The King of Marvin Gardens, The Shining, and Twin Falls

Bob Rafelson's The King Of Marvin Gardens (1972) is a bit of a bizarre film that sees Jack Nicholson and Scatman Crothers sharing the screen, as they do in The Shining (1980).

Indeed, Benjamin Sherman "Scatman" Crothers appeared in only four films with Jack Nicholson: The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), The Fortune (1975), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), and The Shining (1980). He was born, intriguingly, exactly 70 years to the day before The Shining was released, on May 23, 1910. Crothers is a JFK Resonator, as well. He died at the age of 76, exactly 23 years to the day, on November 22, 1986, after John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

Also starring in The King of Marvin Gardens are Bruce Dern, Ellen Burstyn, and Julie Anne Robinson (pictured below). (For the plot of the movie, see here.)

Julia Anne Robinson was born on March 4, 1951 in Twin Falls, Idaho, USA. Besides playing Jessica in The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), the only other films she appeared in was A Fan's Notes (1972), as Bunny Sue, and a short film, Getting Straight (1970), uncredited.

After Marvin Gardens, Robinson was cast in a community play in Eugene, Oregon. While there, Robinson skipped a cast party and went home early. She died on April 13, 1975 in her motel room, from a fire.

Great confusion, in the sync-world, has arisen due to Robinson's birthplace being Twin Falls, Idaho, with a notion she might be part of the "Twin Peaks" realm of mystical thinking. In one biographical article, her birth was misgiven as "Twin Falls, Iowa."

In another article, which says Julia Anne Robinson died from falling asleep while she was smoking, her brother commented that, no, it was from an electrical mishap, instead.

In general, while the other stars went on to fame, the tragedy of The King of Marvin Gardens is the film is basically the end of the line for Robinson.

Two billboards for suntan lotion in the winter of Atlantic City.