One of the greatest scandals in Hollywoods, indeed in all of American history, was the abuse of power routinely practiced by the man who considered himself to be the greatest lawman in America throughout his long and self-serving career. The boy hadnt stolen the moneyhed earned it sleeping with gentlemen at a house on Cleveland Street, and so did other young telegraph boys. She wasnt, though she later bore him two sons. These men were celebrated for their pluck, courage and daring, says Nate Hendley, author of the 2016 book The Big Con: Great Hoaxes, Frauds, Grifts and Swindles in American History. To understand famed Australian swimmer Annette Kellermans bravado, you have to have a grasp on how hopelessly proper the beaches of the early 1900s were. Harvard Theatre Collection. Entwistles promise as an actress was stressed in the sensationalized reports of her death, including her performance on a New York stage with luminary Billie Burke (later Glinda in The Wizard of Oz) and a young actor by the name of Humphrey Bogart. But Kellerman rejected this notion, preferring a tighter one-piece suit that left the arms and legs bare. But when it came to relationships with the opposite sex he was less gifted. Arbuckle was tried three times, with the first two resulting in mistrials due to juries unable to render a verdict. She entertained American troops during the Second World War, protested against segregation in the US Armed Forces, and was generally regarded as one of the leading actresses of her generation. Pickford was a notorious man about town, with the result of being stricken with syphilis, then treated with highly toxic mercury. Sadly, Honey Boo Boo wouldnt be born for another century-plus, so reading newspapers, penny press publications, and scandal sheets was a way for the public to sate its appetite for the disturbing, the sinful, the extraordinary, and the downright ugly. The combination of a female sex symbol, a mobster, and her daughters involvement was too much for the press to resist and the trial became a media circus. During the party actress Virginia Rappe was heard screaming in a room from which Arbuckle later emerged. Franchot Tone derailed his own career by becoming enmeshed in several scandals in the 1930s and 40s. After some likely exclamations of I say! and protracted harrumphing, both Gordon-Cumming and the prince were dragged through public mud. Their affair was the talk of society in both Hollywood and Boston, where Rose Kennedy chose to ignore it, at least publicly. Online, Gloria and Joe: The Star-Crossed Love Affair of Gloria Swanson and Joe Kennedy. D.H. Lawrence, author of the controversial Lady Chatterleys Lover, also faced criticism for an earlier novel depicting sexual acts, 1915s The Rainbow. Edward Jones, seventeen years old, son of a tailor and by all accounts as unattractive as homemade sin, was discovered in Buckingham Palace in the dressing room next to Queen Victorias bedroom. Many wanted to use this valuable oil source. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle in a scene from 1921s Brewster's Millions. Despite all the goodwill equity he had built up over the years, the public was aghast when Beecher was accused of sleeping with a married parishioner in 1872. The scandal, which was fed by the Catholic Legion of Decency, numerous newspapers and magazines, and from the pulpits of churches across the country drove Bergman from the United States. Explore American politics in the 1920s to understand why this was a period of transition and corruption. Library of Congress. Finally offered a film contract in 1933, a dozen years after the scandal, he died of a massive heart attack before the project could be started. It was 1931, and the air in Chicagos 57th Street art colony crackled with sexual tension. READ MORE: Warning Signs Investors Missed Before the 1929 Crash. Tune in to Comedy CentralTuesdays at 10:30/ 9:30con Comedy Centraland on the Comedy Central app to see what they're up to next. Gustavo Turner, Discover Los Angeles. The scandal involved ornery oil tycoons,. During their lengthy affair, Tracy was also unfaithful to Hepburn, having an affair with actress Gene Tierney which made the tabloids, and speculation was often rife over others. Here are 10 celebrities and their scandals you may or may not be familiar with. Dont be timid. Eventually, the practice faded. Arbuckle was formally barred from acting by a newly formed censorship board, and the press and public subjected him to continuous condemnation, as well as ridicule over his substantial girth. Wikimedia. Bakers trial caused discussion over the British class system since it was argued, quite rightly, that if hed been in third class, hed have gotten away with it. Eve Golden. However, the plethora of old Hollywood scandals that have since come to light prove that the movie industry has always been a dark place behind its bright lights. 8 Ways The Great Gatsby Captured the Roaring Twenties, How Prohibition Put the Organized in Organized Crime, Warning Signs Investors Missed Before the 1929 Crash. 1. Susan Saurin (formerly Sister Mary Scolastica) sued her mother superior, Mrs. Starr, for libel and conspiracy, claiming shed been unfairly expelled from the convent. For some, it was a long kiss; for others, it involved more intense physical contact. French artist John Singer Sargent hoped his work would draw notice, but he could never have imagined the hysteria that followed his Portrait of Madame X. Normands cocaine use and resulting connections to organized crime figures were also considered, but no firm evidence could be found. Lana Turner, in a publicity photo from the 1940s. They repeatedly made lurid claims that . In 1874, it was revealed that he had fathered an illegitimate child and was paying the mother support. Future: Heaven only knows what.. Parisian culture took one look at her naked shoulders and wedding ring and assumed the worst. The accident caused a scandal over working safety, particularly for children on film sets, and years of litigation which kept the story on the front pages of trade papers for a decade. SFGate The Death Of An Actress In San Francisco. But even sex takes a back seat to scandal when it comes to attracting the attention of an often lascivious public, and when the scandal is about sex, especially illicit sex, the morally upright cant help but line up to buy. Instead, the older Ruskin put off consummating the marriage. Twenty minutes after the first copies went on sale, the pair were arrested following a complaint by the Society for the Suppression of Vice. When Nesbits husband, Harry Thaw, learned of Whites sexual impropriety years after the fact, he did what any gentleman would do: He shot White dead in front of hundreds of witnesses. NY Daily News Roscoe Fatty Arbuckle, Acquitted For Murder Of Virginia Rappe In 1922, Never Recovered From All The Bad Press, Timeline The Mysterious Death Of The Most Beautiful Woman On Earth, Medium The Death of William Desmond Taylor, Factinate Dramatic Facts About Gloria Swanson, Hollywoods Iconic Diva, FBI to keep files on stars, directors, producers, and reporters. That eagerness played right into the hands of the Roaring Twenties legions of fast-talking promoters, charlatans and outright swindlers, who enticed the would-be wealthy with scores of seemingly foolproof schemesfrom stock in companies that didnt really exist, to speculation in Florida real estate or California oilfields, to Boston-based conman Charles Ponzis promise that investors could make a 50 percent return in 90 days time by investing in a bizarre plan to redeem overseas postal coupons. (Eve Blue eventually gave up on petting parties after she was nearly raped.) The economy boomed during the Roaring Twenties and rising incomes gave ordinary Americans access to enticing new conveniences, including washing machines, refrigerators, cars and other luxuries that would have once seemed unattainable. The Watergate Scandal, as it came to be known, altered American politics forever, and changed the way Americans looked at their elected officials. Teapot Dome Scandal. Wikimedia. Cleveland will go down in history as the 22nd and 24th President of the United States, but his first term in office was nearly waylaid by a campaign scandal. The subject was contraception. This gave the lie to the LAPD theory that she had exited the car to insert a hose into the exhaust pipe, the other end feeding into the cabin in which she died from carbon monoxide inhalation. Katharine Hepburn was interred in Connecticut, thirty-six years after Tracys death. Like the Rhett Butler character he portrayed, Clark Gable was fond of patronizing brothels, as did many of Hollywoods leading men. It was among the most well-known and popular brothels in Hollywood, with several of the leading stars of the day counted among its satisfied clientele. Paget went on to build a playhouse so he could perform with a hired repertory company: His specialty was a fluid, vaguely erotic dance routine. Despite warnings, they kept selling the book. A mugshot of Elizabeth Short the Black Dahlia taken when she was arrested for underage drinking before becoming the victim of a grisly murder. On the morning of Feb. 2, 1922, Taylor's body was found in his bungalow in a trendy and affluent neighborhood of LA. American actors such as Gloria Swanson (b1899), Mary Pickford (b1892), and Clara Bow (see below) would make their names in the silent films of the 1920s, joined by the likes of Gary Cooper (b1901) John Gilbert (see below) and the British actor Charlie Chaplin (b1889). Instead, she ended up, as they say in movieland, on the cutting room floor, her part eliminated, her work rejected (according to most stories of her suicide, in fact, she wasnt cut out of the final print of the film until after her death, though her fourteen-minute appearance had been reduced to four). Although even the most avid movie fan today is likely unaware of Thelma Todd, the actress appeared in more than seventy films, performing with luminaries including the Marx Brothers, Buster Keaton, and Laurel and Hardy. Chaplins reputation never fully recovered. Historic Hollywood scandals were mired in filth, debauchery, and depravity. 2003, American Gigolo. The Los Angeles police responded to the call, and according to reporters and those who have studied the case since, thoughtfully removed evidence of Taylors liaisons with other women, including several young actresses not yet of legal age. April 2008, The Sunset Strip: The Story of a Hollywood Icon. They were let off with stern warnings. Eve Blue, a college undergraduate, was there for the fun. At the same time, many people lacked the financial literacy to understand the difference between investing in a legitimate company and a scheme such as the one operated by Ponzi, an Italian immigrant who claimed to have become a wealthy man through sheer ingenuity and hard work. They were eventually acquitted in terms of criminal liability, but civil penalties were assessed. Alarmingly for many, petting was popular among both wild flappers and average young women during the 1920s. He operated his grandly named Bayano Syndicate swindle for almost 20 years, far longer than any Ponzi scheme survived until Bernie Madoffs multi-billion-dollar fraud was exposed a decade ago.. It involved the secret leasing of federal oil reserves at Elk Hills, California, and Teapot Dome, Wyoming, by Albert Bacon FallU.S. Public outcry in America was strong, and Senator Edwin Jackson railed against her in the US Senate. In 1921, Fatty Arbuckle was accused of raping and killing Virginia Rappe. Mabel Normand. 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Public discussion of sex was regarded as disgraceful. The queen had recently given birth to her first child. According to Lita, Chaplin had demanded an abortion prior to their marriage (which she couldnt have because she wasnt pregnant) and told her that their marriage would be short. Both her marriages became tabloid fodder as a result of her physical and alcohol-fueled public brawls with her husbands. Her role in The Postman Always Rings Twice established her as a serious actress at the same time her well-publicized personal life called her morals into question among those inclined to do so. Although he escaped the rape charge, he was convicted of committing an indecent assault. In the third, he was acquitted, though the press and the public had long before convicted him. The jury decided Besant and Bradlaugh hadnt meant to deprave the public and they were ordered not to republish the pamphlet. She also got a shock a year later when Yelverton made a bigamous marriage to another woman. Some of the speculators never actually went to Florida themselves. Mordaunt confessed to her husband, Charles, after her child was suspected of having syphilis. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. He was so material-minded that his wife, Lilian, demanded an annulment, allegedly because he preferred to cover her naked body in jewels rather than make love. An incendiary speaker, Reverend Henry Ward Beecher was quite possibly the most famous minister of 19th century America. The rise of cheap, sensational newspapers in the nineteenth century meant that shocking scandals werent just whispered about behind fluttering fans and raised teacups. United Artists: The Company Built by the Stars . Neal eventually married a receptionist named Gale Bennett, living with her in Palm Springs until 1965, when she was murdered. The growing demand for petroleum to fuel automobiles also led to oil drilling schemes concocted by promoters who mailed out literature and handed out flyers that promised a fabulous return. Prohibition began in the United States, and . Bluefit the stereotype of the 1920s flapper to a T, chasing a lifestyle that would have been unthinkable just 20 years before. Nonetheless, Taylor maintained a relationship with actress Mabel Normand, and on February 1, 1921, he entertained her at his home, where he was found dead the following morning. She also attracted her share of inappropriate attention, including untoward advances from 50-something Stanford White. The boys call me a Sunday School girl because I will not smoke, drink or kiss, said one anonymous participant. The woman who found the body thought that the scene was so grisly that it had been set up using a mannequin for the purpose of shocking the police and witnesses. Their seven-year marriage produced two sons. June 5, 2019, The Black Dahlia. Campbell claimed hed only gone to the party in a dress so he could witness the vice for himself and later preach against it. Warren Harding served in office from 1921-1923 as the 29th U.S. President, before dying of a heart attack. Tone and Neal encountered each other one evening at Paytons home, and with the actress providing an enthralled audience, the two men attempted to settle the issue with fisticuffs. The existence of a large insurance policy on her life, with Jack the beneficiary, gave credence to the former belief. The next day Rappe died of peritonitis, the result of a ruptured bladder. To save her virtue, though the train was in motion, she escaped to the step outside the first class railway carriage and clung there, screaming for help. Florida, which attracted northerners who were eager to escape winter weather, also became a paradise for land speculators, who bought properties at cheap prices and sold them for large profits. , 1877 was not a good year to argue against sexual repression. But it was no mannequin. Not until the final years of his life, when Tracy was suffering from numerous ailments and in declining health, did he and Hepburn live together? Thaw was no prize himselfhe had a reputation as a cocaine fiend and woman-beaterbut the public nonetheless sided with him over White, who was married at the time of his indiscretion (Nesbit, who would marry Thaw later, was not then attached). Her death was less a scandal than a sensation, and in 2014 a group of roughly 100 film fans gathered to mark her demise by viewing 13 Women in a Hollywood parking lot, an event geared towards raising awareness (and money) for suicide prevention. 10 Twisted 19th-Century Serial Killers Everyone Forgets, Top 10 Vicious 19th-Century Australian Slaughters, 10 Ghastly Prison Practices Of The 19th Century, Prince William's Dancing Is The Latest Of 10, 10 Crazy Conspiracies That Rocked Governments, 10 Golden Hollywood Scandals That Were Covered Up, 10 Biggest Scandals Of The Obama Presidency, Top 10 Celebrity Scandals Misrepresented By The, Top 10 Bizarre YouTube Scandals That Shocked Everyone, 10 Controversial Toys You Might Already Have in Your Home, Ten Absolutely Vicious Fights over Inherited Fortunes, 10 Female Film Pioneers Who Shaped the Movies, Ten True Tales from Americas Toughest Prison, 10 Times Members of Secretive Societies and Organizations Spilled the Beans, 10 Common Idioms with Unexpectedly Dark Origins, 10 North American Animals with Misplaced Reputations, 10 Historical Events With Hilarious Forgotten Details, 10 Little-Known Aspects Of Ancient Roman Family Life, 10 Failed Conspiracies That Would Have Changed Everything. It was a party that proved to be his downfall. After guests heard screaming from the room, they rushed in and found Rappe writhing in agony. Learn more at erinblakemore.com. Others claimed Olive committed suicide after learning of the reason her husband carried the mercury with him on his travels. Sports was one of these to blow during the 20's. During the 1920s there were many forms of sports rising up, with baseball being one of the older sports it has always been a long time favorite for Americans despite the dangers of the sport and the 1919 World Series scandal. The French authorities decided the poisoning was accidental, but their finding did little to stop wagging tongues in Hollywood and Paris over the untimely death. All Rights Reserved. Eyman, Scott. He liked them young, both his first and second wives were sixteen when he married them, and the second, Lita Grey, convinced Chaplin that she was pregnant with his child, leading to a hasty marriage (he could otherwise have been imprisoned for having sex with a minor). When she learned that he had similarly stalked other actresses (including Zsa Zsa Gabor and June Allyson) and of his underworld contacts, she broke off their affair. From adulterous affairs yielding secret children to hotel break-ins and secret gun deals, scandal has always followed American politicians. Sargent was demonized: His career in tatters, he headed for a fresh start in London. The files were held for the purpose of blackmail, and were extensive collections of personal information and activities. So much so that when Haynau visited a brewery during a trip to London in 1850, the draymendrivers of the wagons used to deliver the barrels of beerattacked him with whips, brooms, and stones. Much of the hand-wringing about petting parties focused on the supposed immorality of the young woman who attended them. When The Washington Post published a glossary of the flappers philosophy in 1922, it defined life as One long petting party accompanied by jazz. READ MORE: 8 Ways The Great Gatsby Captured the Roaring Twenties. The Teapot Dome Scandal of the 1920s shocked Americans by revealing an unprecedented level of greed and corruption within the federal government. Several leading ladies were counted among the customers as well, including Talalluh Bankhead, Jean Harlow, and Barbara Stanwyck. Flynns acquittal did not restore his reputation in much of the publics opinion. With the Wall Street crash of 1929, the prosperity that had funded the rise of get-rich-quick schemes vaporized. When police arrived on the scene, they found Taylor lying on the living room floor with at least one bullet in the back. READ MORE: Americas Forgotten Mass Imprisonment of Women Believed to Be Sexually Immoral, Flappers dancing while musicians perform during a Charleston dance contest at the Parody Club, New York City, 1926, The gatherings may have raised eyebrows, but petting parties werea far cry from orgies, historian Paula S. FasstellsNPR: They both encouraged experimentation and created clear limits.. Most have been generally dismissed as urban legends, but Clara did give rumourmongers grist for the mill. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. He also carried on a long-term affair with the wife of a local dry goods store owner who blackmailed him for $50,000 and a cruise to China during the 1920 election. In some ways, the get-rich-quick schemes were the inevitable by-product of an optimistic era in which anything seemed possible. During the 1950s the phrase In like Flynn meant that someone was in an enviable position, with the success of whatever venture was being undertaken all but ensured. In the 1940s the namesake of the phrase, Errol Flynn, found himself in a position neither enviable nor likely to lead to success. Both mens character witnesses painted impeccable pictures. Some of the nations greatest film heroes were subject to damaging tales, some true, some speculative, and some criminal. The scandal remained at the tip of Hollywoods wagging tongues for months, and is still considered from time to time in various media today, though the probability of solving the crime was destroyed by the LAPD nearly a century ago. Stompanato wooed Lana with flowers and phone calls while she was filming The Lady Takes a Flyer, and unaware of his reputation and mob contacts, she began dating him. The divorce was eventually granted. Tallulah Bankhead was born into wealth and privilege, and though she was mainly known as a stage actor, she became a symbol of Hollywood extravagance in her lifetime. In April 1958, after a heated argument in her home during which Stompanato allegedly threatened to kill her, Turners daughter came to her mothers defense with a kitchen knife. At the trial, Dickenson alleged that the colonel had tried to raise her skirts, put his hand in her underwear, and kiss her many times on the lips. Bettmann / Contributor / Getty Images. The affair continued until at least 1930 when Kennedy summarily dumped his paramour in the aftermath of her completing a film, Queen Kelly, which was a critical and box office failure. The list of suspects was long and colorful, including an allegedly gay Englishman who turned out to be neither gay nor English following police inquiries; fellow director and creator of the Keystone Kops Mack Sennett, another paramour of Normands; and Mary Minters mother. Jean Harlow with actor Ben Lyon in a promotional still for the film Hells Angels, 1930. To make matters worse, many small investors were enticed into buying shares of companies on marginessentially, with loans that they had to repay out of their pockets if the stock price went down. Harlow seemed primed for another scandal but before it could become the talk of the town she died suddenly, at the age of 26, of kidney failure. Courage is good. Wikimedia. J. Edgar Hoover, with his penchant for keeping records damaging to the reputations of anyone he deemed too powerful and influential, ensured the FBI was active in Hollywood for decades, collecting what should have been private information in order to protect the nations morals. She succeeded in trashing Chaplins reputation while relieving him of $800,000 (about $11 million today). Franchot Tone was a film and stage star of sufficient stature to marry Joan Crawford in 1935.