Charlie with his attorney, Nathan Burkan, & director Henry King, Del Monte, CA, August 1927

On August 15th, 1927, Charlie arrived in Del Monte from San Francisco where he had been in conference with his attorneys regarding his divorce from Lita Grey. The trial was set to open on the 22nd amid rumors of a settlement, which Charlie and his attorneys denied.

Charlie was briefly interviewed the day before in San Jose, where he stopped en route to Del Monte for a meal. He wouldn't answer any questions regarding his divorce, but did tell a funny story:

"We hailed a motorcycle officer in the city & asked him to direct us to a good restaurant," he said. "The officer took us to a place. I looked in and could see all the families eating their beans. Nice, democratic place I thought, but I didn't wish to spoil my jaded appetite. I looked around and we found the Hotel Sainte Claire sign and stopped here." (The News, August 15th, 1927)

Due to the divorce case and tax problems, Charlie had spent the last eight months in New York City. On August 17th, he would leave Del Monte by car and finally return home to Los Angeles. On August 19th, the lawyers on both sides would decide upon a settlement and it would be the largest in U.S. history at that time. More on that to come...