William Mulholland - in Popular Culture

In Popular Culture

  • A fictionalized story based on the California Water Wars was used as the basis for the 1974 Roman Polanski film Chinatown starring Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway and John Huston. The character of Hollis I. Mulwray appears to be drawn from Mulholland.
  • In the 1990s, the artist Frank Black recorded two songs, "Ole Mulholland" (from Teenager of the Year) and "St. Francis Dam Disaster" (from Dog in the Sand) about the life and works of William Mulholland.

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