Pepi Lederer

Biography

Pepi Lederer (born Josephine Rose Lederer; March 18, 1910 – June 11, 1935) was an American actress and writer. She was the niece of actress and philanthropist Marion Davies. A high-spirited young woman, Lederer was a lesbian who had relationships with actresses Nina Mae McKinney and Louise Brooks, among others. She became a well-known figure in the gay and bisexual community of Jazz Age Hollywood.

Due to either her sexual orientation or a drug addiction, Lederer was involuntarily committed to a psychiatric ward at the behest of Davies's partner, newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst.

On June 11, 1935, the 25-year-old Lederer took her own life by jumping from the sixth floor window of he...