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Unsolved September 5, 1932 Suspicious Death

Paul Bern

Status Unsolved
Type Suspicious Death
Date September 5, 1932
Location Beverly Hills, California
Victim Age 42
Gender Male

MGM film director Paul Bern was found shot at his Beverly Hills home. It was ruled a suicide but a note was found that some interpret as a murder. Theories point to Dorothy Millette, his common-law wife who was found drowned days later. MGM allegedly covered up details of the investigation.

Paul Bern is documented in the ColdCaseIndex database as a suspicious-death case in Beverly Hills, California. The events are dated to September 5, 1932. The victim is recorded as 42 years old and male. The last known information on record places the case at September 5, 1932, his home in Beverly Hills, CA.

Within the ColdCaseIndex taxonomy, Paul Bern is filed under Suspicious Death with a status of Unsolved. A suspicious-death entry documents a death, sometimes officially ruled accidental or natural, that remains contested. The record is cross-referenced under the themes suspicious death, historical, California, Hollywood, 1930s, possible murder, which connect it to related cases across the database.

As of the most recent information compiled here, no arrest has been publicly recorded in the Paul Bern case, and it remains open and unsolved. Cases like this can be reactivated at any time — advances in DNA analysis, forensic genetic genealogy, and renewed public attention have resolved cases that lay dormant for decades.

Primary jurisdiction for the Paul Bern case rests with local law enforcement in Beverly Hills, supported by California state investigative authorities. The case sits within a wider national picture: the U.S. homicide clearance rate has fallen from roughly 90% in the 1960s to about 54% today, and more than 346,000 homicides recorded since 1965 remain unsolved. ColdCaseIndex documents individual cases like this one to keep them publicly visible and searchable.

suspicious death historical California Hollywood 1930s possible murder
Last Known Information
September 5, 1932, his home in Beverly Hills, CA
Date of Incident
September 5, 1932
Current Status
Unsolved — the case remains open

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