I had been curious as to when and why the engagement had been called off, the newspaper article from around that time suggested that it must have been mid-February. Looking at the letter it seems that Viola was not in love with Hector, no great shock, but that she also was no longer seeing ‘darling’ and that this rejection, and his subsequent decision to marry someone else, had left her wanting more from life and love. This obviously confirms that the engagement to Hector was in face a career driven decision but also that Viola was looking for something more than just being a start.

Putting this aside we had a look at the purse. I originally expected this to be Viola’s but upon looking inside we sound a ticket in Ruth Eriksons name and a train timetable. On the back of the ticket were some ticked of chores and yet another line of coded wording. As it was only two word this was easy to de-code to ‘call Lawrence’. We kept this to one side and took a look at the telegram as this also had Ruth’s name on as it was from her to her husband on the night of the murder telling him she had arrived safely. It appeared that the Lawrence on the back of the ticket might be the VP of the general store she sent the telegram but we were unsure why it would matter to her.

Analysing the content of the message to George we cross reference this with the train timetable, the station closest to the theatre and the timings that would work with her leaving the theatre and being in Tannesville, PA by 9.51pm in order to sent the telegram. It seemed there were a few options but it wasn’t till we were looking at the newspaper article that we were able to lock in the train she took. The article outlines so train disruptions, one of which fell on the 6th November and would mean that there would be no trains from Penn Station at all let alone going through Tannesville from 5.30pm. As we can place her leaving the theatre around 5pm the only train she could get would be the 5.20. This seemed like as great an alibi as any, but we did spend some time discussing why she left George a gift and what it might be, there were no further pieces of evidence that helped narrow that down so we left that line of inquiry alone for now.

Speaking of George, the poster and the scribbled discussion on it confirmed that he was thinking ahead, even with, or maybe because of the theatres monetary trouble, he had put out a poster with Viola on though it seems no contract had been signed by the young star and, in my mind, speaks of a desperation by George to try and lock her in to a new show quickly. Viola must have felt the walls closing in even more. On the back of the poster was another code grid that has been added to the list, I hope that another piece of this will help us crack it soon.

The last two pieces of evidence are not specifically linked but together we believe they an important piece of Viola’s story and I am going to explain them in the order they make sense, not the order we looked at them in.

The first is a letter from Olga to Ira Adler. In it Olga is talking about Viola, using her real name Viktoria. This in itself speaks of an intimacy that Hector didn’t share with either lady. She talks of her past and what she had to do to Vi to the place she is now and how Viktoria can buy them both nice things, that she takes her mother to parties and they are all things never dreamed of back home (in Romania) but that Vi longs for something else. She goes on to states they both want the best for her daughter and for Ira to speak to Viola so she doesn’t throw away her fame and marriage. This letter is dated December 1933, just 2 months before she broke up with Hector after splitting up with her lover and finding him ready to marry another.

Without unpacking that lets look at the last piece of evidence – the script notes. they appear to be a not very well hidden conversation Viola and Evelyn had along the side of script pages, Presumably a written conversation between the two ladies during a read through or rehearsal. They start out friendly, Viola bought herself a watch recently that cost 3 paychecks (the one she was wearing when she died?). But the Eve asks what Vi thinks of Ira and tells her that they have been seeing each other for a little while and that Ira is ‘over the moon’ for  her. Vi then makes excuses to leave.

These two confirm that Viola’s ‘darling’ was indeed Ira Adler. Along with the letter to Hector I would guess that they had been seeing each other for a while in secret, that Ira said he wasn’t the marrying type, whether this is true or a pretty lie he told her so she wouldn’t have to worry about marrying Hector it’s hard to say. I would also surmise that after Olga interfered with her letter in December Ira called things off and not long after Ira, who seems to like young pretty actresses starting seeing Evelyn. There is no date on the scripts notes, but there is a note for updated rehearsals on Feb 25th. This leads me to believe that this conversation was what led to Viola sending the letter to Hector calling off the engagement on the 22nd February.

I do not believe that this helps eliminate Ira or Evelyn, in fact they are pretty likely candidates at this time. Ruth Erikson on the other hand….. I had originally had her quite near the top of my prime suspects list, but Jay and I agree the alibi is pretty solid and have to go with the evidence – Ruth Erikson has now been eliminated.