Peg Entwistle is the focus of a subplot in Netflix's Hollywood, but the actress was a real figure who met an extremely tragic death. The series, co-created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, gives a glimpse of Tinseltown in the post-WWII era but through a "what if" lens. Rather than share a story already told, Hollywood rewrites the script by showing what could have been if studios fought to take more risks.
At the center of Hollywood is six outsiders looking for a way to get their foot in the door. They each go to great lengths to find their big break, but unfortunately, studios from that time weren't as willing to hire diverse faces. When a major studio gets a new president, a film goes into development that could change the standards with regards to how the industry operates. Through mixing Hollywood's true stories with fiction, the series focuses on the industry's dynamics and the secrets that many major figures tried to keep hidden.
Archie Coleman is one of the fresh faces looking to make it big during the Golden Age of Hollywood. Unfortunately, he often encounters discrimination due to the fact he's a gay black man. Archie is an aspiring screenwriter, and in order to hide his identity, he creates a script about Peg Entwistle, a young actress who faces failure and kills herself before jumping from the Hollywood sign. Archie's script ends up becoming Ace Studios' game-changing project, but instead of using the title Peg, the studio accepts adapting it to Meg so that a black actress could be in the lead. The plot of the movie gets a few reworks, but it's actually based on a real Hollywood actress who took her own life in 1932.
Born Millicent Lilian Entwistle, known by her stage name "Peg," she admired acting from a young age. Entwistle had a tough upbringing due to the death of her parents, but she found solace in stage plays. She appeared in a few Broadway plays, but after the Depression hit and she went through a divorce, she relocated to Los Angeles with a dream of becoming a movie star. Unfortunately, a ton of other women had the same idea. It was the 1930s when the silent film era was over and "talkies" were all the rage. Entwistle finally found a gig in 1932 with a part in Thirteen Women. She then learned that her part didn't make the final cut. To make matters worse, Entwistle was let go from her contract and had no savings to keep her afloat.
On September 16, 1932, Entwistle was absolutely hopeless. She lied to her uncle about meeting friends and instead drove to the Hollywood sign, which read "HOLLYWOODLAND" at that time, hiked the canyon, climbed to the top of the "H" letter, and jumped to her death. A hiker found her body the next morning after seeing her belongings scattered under the sign. In her purse was a suicide note that read: "I am afraid, I am a coward. I am sorry for everything. If I had done this a long time ago, it would have saved a lot of pain."
In Hollywood, Meg takes a different approach by changing the lead character's fate. The aspiring actress climbs atop the sign but realizes that she has more life to live and that this bump in the road won't define her entire career. It's certainly more hopeful, but that certainly wasn't the case with Entwistle. Ironically, Entwistle became a legend following her suicide. With her presence in Hollywood, she is once again getting a chance at fame, albeit 88 years too late.
