The Abortionist of Golden Hollywood

WARNING GRAPHIC

Inez Brown Burns (1886-1976) taught herself to read after losing her father, a German immigrant, to alcoholism. Growing up in San Francisco and assisting her mother with her three siblings, Burns worked in a pickle factory and learned she was good with her hands. Working as a manicurist in San Francisco's Palace hotel, she met abortion doctor Eugene West. West took the young girl on as a lover and assistant. When the 1906 earthquake destroyed San Francisco, Burns lived among the homeless in Golden Gate Park. She discovered she could perform abortions just as well as Dr. West, and by 1915 she had her own clinic. This grew to a clinic occupying a two-story building on Fillmore Street that saw 20-30 women daily. Aborting hundreds of thousands of fetuses, Burns cut her own toes off to fit into designer shoes. In the sights of criminal reformer Pat Brown, Burns found herself paying taxes in the millions even when juries wouldn't convict her. In a happy marriage with California assemblyman Joe Burns, Inez kept at least two of her children. The impact of abortion on Golden Hollywood actresses is also discussed.

Sources:

Thomas Duke, "Dr. Eugene West Kills Patient, Throws Body in San Francisco Bay, 1892", https://www.historicalcrimedetective.com/ccca/dr-eugene-west-kills-patient-throws-body-in-san-francisco-bay/ (1910)

Masur, Louis P. (2018-02-09). "'The Audacity of Inez Burns,' by Stephen G. Bloom". SFGate.

The Rise and Fall of Hollywood's Secret Abortionist (Exclusive Book Excerpt)". The Hollywood Reporter. 4 December 2017. Retrieved 2020-05-24.

Kluchin, Rebecca (2019-03-01). "San Francisco's Queen of Vice: The Strange Career of Abortionist Inez Brown Burns". Journal of American History. 105 (4): 1065–1066. doi:10.1093/jahist/jaz118. ISSN 0021-8723.

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