Who Is the Black Dahlia? (1975)

Sober dramatization of the infamous murder case of a delusional young woman in post-WWII Lo Angeles. The so-called Black Dahlia was a girl from Maine who went to L.A. to be reunited with her father only to end up end up a homeless hustler who dreamed of stardom. Her cut-up body was found in a field, and to this day, no one has been convicted of her death. Lucie Arnaz plays the lost soul and Efrem Zimbalist is the detective trying to solve her murder. For what little money the filmmakers had to make this TV movie, they did a fine job. The irony of all this is, if the girl had not been brutally slaughtered, we would have never heard of her. Just another small-town kid with big dreams and not equipped to achieve them. She just floats along from day to day, dressed all in black and convincing others to take care of her. I've known a few like her in my time. We all have.

This is by far the best-told, best-acted and best-produced of all the many movies about Elizabeth Short's story.Lucie Arnaz's restrained performance succeeds in presenting Short as a woman of thwarted ambition, floating in a vacuum of failure, just hanging on by a thread. She should have received an Emmy for it.This version of the Black Dahlia story has more in-depth characterization of Elizabeth Short than other versions, which go more for sensationalism. I don't understand why "Who Is The Black Dahlia?" isn't out on DVD, especially considering its cult following.

I watched the film when it was first broadcast and I remember actually being really frightened by it. It was the eerie, atmospheric setting of the movie and good acting that gave the movie it's frightening aspects not the gore and carnage that movies made today depend on. Also, after watching her for years in "The Lucy Show" it was a very pleasant surprise to see Lucy Arnez playing a sexy young woman. Her acting career was really hampered by being the daughter of the famous woman. I wish that the film would be shown again on a cable telvision channel such as TCM or AMC so I could tape it. The recent big screen movie version of "The Black Dahlia" was a major disappointment especially compared to this well done made-for-television version.

Literate, well-told, consistently excellent review of the events leading to the disappearance of the Black Dahlia? Marvelous performances, especially by Zimbaliest, Beckman, Mills, and DeHaven. Mystery buffs and crime drama enthusiasts alike should find this one as excellent exercise for the mind.