A screenplay about his life floated around Hollywood for years but never got sold. At one point John Belushi was considered for the part, then John Candy, then Chris Farley. All three died suddenly and the script has been shelved indefinitely.
After his career was ruined, Buster Keaton personally supported him as repayment for giving him his break into film.
Although he divorced his first wife Minta Durfee in 1925, they did in fact separate as early as in 1917.
An excellent breakdown of the rape/murder scandal is "Frame-Up!: the Untold Story of Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle", by Andy Edmonds.
Arbuckle hated the nickname "Fatty" and insisted that his friends and acquaintances always address him by his real first name, Roscoe.
Arbuckle is the only person to have the three top silent film comedians, Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd appear in supporting roles in his films; Chaplin assists Arbuckle in The Knockout (1914) Lloyd is his co-star in Miss Fatty's Seaside Lovers (1915) and Keaton supported him in at least 14 shorts.
Began his career as an entertainer in vaudeville at the age of 12 in order to survive, after his mother died and his alcoholic father had abandoned him.
Biography in: "American National Biography". Supplement 1, pp. 11-13. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith; pg. 21-22. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
Cousin of actor Andrew Arbuckle and actor/writer Macklyn Arbuckle.
Directed under the name William Goodrich.
He fathered two sons, born to him by Minta Durfee.
He was one of the very first, if not first person to actually own his films. As the studios, at the time, saw no reason to keep movies, since they would only be shown in cinemas once, Roscoe decided to own the films himself. This has subsequently made his heirs very rich.
He was the very first actor to be paid a million dollars a year.
In 1924, he hired Bob Hope as a "cheap act" for his traveling vaudeville show. After seeing Hope perform at the Bandbox Theater in Cleveland, Arbuckle sensed he would be a major star if he just had the right break. He contacted some friends in Los Angeles and instructed Hope to do the same. Hope eventually followed his advice and headed west.
It is often reported that Arbuckle's career as an actor ended with the rape trials and that he died forgotten. In fact, Arbuckle was in the midst of starring in a series of successful shorts and was on his way back up when he died.
It the subject of the novel "I, Fatty" by Jerry Stahl.
It was written in his contract that his weight remain above 250 pounds and that he would be given a healthy yearly bonus if he exceeded that by 50 to 100 pounds. During his career he kept it well over 300.
Joined Keystone as a Keystone Kop in 1913.
Met Buster Keaton accidentally one day while strolling down Broadway in New York City with vaudeville veteran Lou Anger. Anger, who was an old stage acquaintance of Keaton's, introduced them. Arbuckle immediately invited Keaton to visit the Colony Studio where he was about start a series of two-reel comedies for Joseph M. Schenck. The famous duo was thusly formed.