On a cold October afternoon in 1966, billionaire heiress Doris Duke returned to her palatial Newport estate in the company of friend and interior decorator Eduardo Tirella, stopping her car just outside the large iron gate that barred entrance to the driveway. Having offered to open the gate, he stepped out of the car and walked toward the gate, when the car began rolling forward, knocking Eduardo to the ground and crushing him under the two-ton weight of Duke’s station wagon. Within four days of Tirella’s death, the Newport Police had closed the case, calling it an “unfortunate accident,” but the residents of Newport, Rhode Island weren’t as convinced.
Thank you so much to the remarkable David White for research assistance!
References
Duca, Rob. 2021. "Newport police closed Doris Duke case, again." Newport This Week, November 24.
Duke, Pony, and Jason Thomas. 1996. Too Rich: The Family Secrets of Doris Duke. New York, NY: Harper Collins.
Lance, Peter. 2021. Homicide at Rough Point: The Untold Story of How Doris Duke, the Richest Woman In America, Got Away with Murder. Auburn, NH: Tenacity Media.
—. 2021. The triple 'murder' of Eduardo Tirella, gay confidant of Doris Duke. November 29. https://www.advocate.com/commentary/2021/11/29/triple-murder-eduardo-tirella-gay-confidant-doris-duke-newport-rhode-island.
—. 2021. "The Doris Duke Cold Case Reopens: The Only Known Eyewitness Speaks for the First Time." Vanity Fair, August 5.
Mansfield, Stephanie. 1992. The Richest Girl in the World: The Extravagant Life and Fast Times of Doris Duke. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam & Sons.
New York Times. 1964. "Divorce suit filed against Doris Duke." New York Times, January 11: 14.
—. 1935. "Doris Duke is wed to J.H.R. Cromwell." New York Times, February 14: 23.
—. 1966. "Duke estate death ruled an accident." New York Times, October 12: 25.
Newport Daily News. 1967. "Crash victim's kin asks $2.5 million of Doris Duke." Newport Daily News, December 8: 1.
—. 1966. "Death of Miss Duke's friend ruled 'unfortunate accident'." Newport Daily News, October 10: 1.
—. 1966. "Doris Duke kills friend in crash." Newport Daily News, October 8: 1.
—. 1966. "Press blasts police chief Radice on handling public information." Newport Daily News, November 3: 1.
Schwarz, Ted, and Tom Rybak. 1997. Trust No One: The Glamorous Life and Bizarre Death of Doris Duke. New York, NY: St. Martin's Press.
Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White
Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois
Research by Dave White, Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley
Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally
Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElroy
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Popular Podcasts
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.