Lizzie Borden's Actress Friend, In Real Life

In Netflix's Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, the actress Nance O'Neil is part of Lizzie's life. She was real: "the American Bernhardt", one of the most famous actresses in America. Here is what we actually know about her friendship with Lizzie Borden: the note backstage, the parties, why Lizzie's sister Emma walked out for good, the rumors, and what Nance herself said after Lizzie died. Wren tells Marlow the true story. Marlow only knows the famous rhyme. Pause at every question and make your guess before he does. Chapters 0:00 Intro 0:30 The Actress 1:30 The Note 2:28 The Party 3:17 The Rumors 3:57 What Nance Said 5:11 After Lizzie Sources Wikipedia, Nance O'Neil: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nance_O... Wikipedia, Lizzie Borden: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzie_... Biography.com, "Was Lizzie Borden in Love With Actor Nance O'Neil?" (Sept 18, 2026): https://www.biography.com/movies-tv/a... Mental Floss, "Inside Nance O'Neil's Mysterious Relationship With Lizzie Borden" (Sept 17, 2026): https://www.mentalfloss.com/history/l... Wikipedia, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monster... Images: public domain via Wikimedia Commons (portraits of Nance O'Neil, the San Francisco Call 1907, The Witch 1916, The Fall of the Romanoffs 1917, Tyngsboro postcard, portraits of Lizzie Borden); the Borden graves photo is CC0. Map data: Natural Earth (public domain) About this video Wren and Marlow's voices and the illustrated reconstructions are AI-generated, and every reconstruction is labeled "RECONSTRUCTION" on screen. Evidence images are public-domain records. Every fact in this episode is sourced above. What do you think happened? Tell us in the comments. #LizzieBorden #NanceONeil #TrueStory