famous scandals of the 1920s
To many Americans, petting parties epitomized everything that was evil about the Jazz Age. In the third, he was acquitted, though the press and the public had long before convicted him. Over the next four years, they tried to have children with no success; Crawford suffered two miscarriages and their marriage dissolved when his drinking became out of control. Richard Babcock, Chicago Magazine. Jack Pickford was the brother of Mary Pickford, arguably the most powerful woman in Hollywood in 1916. 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. They repeatedly made lurid claims that . During the 1930s an apartment complex on Sunset Strip known as the Hacienda Arms Apartments offered more than just leases on residential quarters. Kirn Vintage Stock/Corbis via Getty Images. The 1920s were a time of great economic change in the United States. FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG/Getty Images. On the morning of Feb. 2, 1922, Taylor's body was found in his bungalow in a trendy and affluent neighborhood of LA. After her husband responded to the affair by committing suicide (by gunshot, though according to the police he took the time to strip naked before shooting himself), the press speculated whether Jean had been involved in some manner or another. Rather than live with Hepburn, Tracy resided in hotels for the most part, with his main employer, MGM, helping to continue the charade of his having a happily married life. 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 boys of today must be protected from the young girl vamp, complained a New York mother to the New York Times in 1922. 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. Petting was a means to be safe and yet not sorry, writes Fassa way to explore ones sexuality without experiencing things like the loss of virginity, pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections. A jury found the work indecent but preferred not to hold them responsible for it. After meeting Charles Chaplin at a dinner party, J. Edgar Hoover began using the resources of the FBI to compile a dossier on what he considered to be the Hollywood stars un-American beliefs and activities. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Warren Harding appointed several distinguished people to his cabinet, such as _ as Secretary of State., Harding gave appointments to _ and _ from Ohio, which lead to corruption and numerous scandals., The most famous scandal, the _ Scandal, concerned bribes for leasing navy oil reserves in Wyoming and California. Though the scam became known as a Ponzi scheme, its namesake wasnt the only one who perpetrated it. Seven American hostages were being held by Iranian-backed terrorists in 1985. 1991, The Mysterious Death of Massachusetts Movie Star Thelma Todd. Despite President Ronald Reagan's vow not to negotiate with terrorists, National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane went to Iran to make a deal, sending weapons in exchange for the Middle Eastern countrys help brokering the release. Technically, the trial was meant to settle whether Lady Mordaunt was sane enough for a divorce to proceed. It turned street-corner thugs such as Al Capone into millionaires. The subject was contraception. Americas Forgotten Mass Imprisonment of Women Believed to Be Sexually Immoral, The First Birth Control Pill Used Puerto Rican Women as Guinea Pigs. Wikimedia Lana Turner was the classic blonde bombshell of the 1940s, a popular pinup among American servicemen and teenage boys and a favorite co-star with Clark Gable. Pres. Some 40,000 investors entrusted Ponzi with $15 million. Tone was beaten soundly, with his opponent inflicting a broken cheekbone and nose, a concussion, and a no doubt severely bruised ego. Its popularity was such that it was in high demand in reruns for years, and eventually was adapted as a full-length motion picture in the early 1980s. HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate. Tracy was one of them, on multiple occasions. 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. 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. Many of the purchasers couldnt afford to actually pay off the loans; instead, they were gambling that land prices would rise even more, so that they could resell and walk away with a profit. Another found that 62 percent of women surveyed thought the practice was essential in order to be popular. His magnificent moustaches were torn, his clothes ripped off, and the dread Hangman of Arad, abandoning his dignity, fled to a nearby inn for sanctuary. Wikimedia. She got the matrimonial ring in a secret church ceremony in 1857. Witnesses gave accounts of Saurins supposed crimes, which included eating strawberries and cream (the wicked woman!) Wikimedia. In the 1940s the namesake of the phrase, Errol Flynn, found himself in a position neither enviable nor likely to lead to success. For most people, the Roaring 20s conjures up images of flapper dresses, sparkles, and bootleggers wearing fedoras. Talullah: My Autobiography. What had started as a wild bohemian party was now something more intimate. She drank alcohol, smoked cigarettes, and dabbled in bohemianism. The money may have dried up, but the allure of easy wealth had become a permanent part of the American psyche. After his father died in 1898, Paget, the 5th Marquis of Anglesey, inherited property that earned roughly 110,000 annually (today, that would be equivalent to 55 million). (This was not unexpected, as previous publishers had been arrested; and indeed, getting their case to trial was their goal, in order to challenge a new obscenity law.) In the 1940s the Swedish-born actress Ingrid Bergman displayed her versatility as a performer with roles as Ilsa in Casablanca, a near saintly nun in Bells of St. Marys, and an actual saint, as well as virgin, in the title role in Joan of Arc. Ingrid Bergman, with Cary Grant in Alfred Hitchcocks Notorious, was forced to live in exile from Hollywood for several years after her affair with Rossellini. Gloria Swanson was one of the leading actresses in Hollywood, on her third husband when she met Joseph P. Kennedy. Julian attracted $2 million from 40,000 small investors, and actually used it to drill wells and open a chain of gas stations. At least occasionally, those business leaders fretted about the potential threat posed by Soviet communism.. She created scandal by aborting a pregnancy in which the father was a leading man in one of her films, married to another (William Powell). Harding's campaign slogan, "A return to normalcy," aptly described American politics for the entire period. READ MORE: How the Ponzi Scheme Got Its Name. The First Trial of the Century Evelyn Nesbit arrived in New York City in 1900 as a 15-year-old. READ MORE: Warning Signs Investors Missed Before the 1929 Crash. Taysha Mutaugh, Country Living. 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. That angst led to the rise of private-sector watchdog groups such as the Better Business Bureau, a nationwide organization formed in 1921 that investigated and alerted the public to unscrupulous operators, and increasing aggressiveness by government regulatory agencies. 1. The shocking expose not only opened the floodgates for other women to declare similar affairs, it actually ended up getting Clinton impeached for perjury and obstruction of justice. Here are some of the juiciest Old Hollywood scandals that are just as jaw-dropping to read about today as they were back then. Gloria Swanson, in her heyday as a silent film star, circa 1921. In 1949 the married Bergman (her husband was neurosurgeon Petter Lindstrom) began an affair with Italian director Roberto Rossellini (an earlier affair she had with American actor Gregory Peck was kept hidden at the time). 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. Twenty minutes after the first copies went on sale, the pair were arrested following a complaint by the Society for the Suppression of Vice. Eventually, though, the market stalled, prices fell, and many were stuck with properties worth far less than theyd expected. On September 9, Jack called a doctor to their hotel room after learning that Olive had taken a liberal dose of his bichloride of mercury. A jump from the H in the Hollywoodland sign ended the life of actress Peg Entwistle. 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. All Rights Reserved. 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. 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). Having lost Joan, Tone turned to a fashion model and actress named Jean Wallace. Warren Harding served in office from 1921-1923 as the 29th U.S. President, before dying of a heart attack. Flappers reputations were made worse by petting, but the practice also reflected traditional values by avoiding premarital sex. Her name was Peg Entwistle, and she had recently completed work on a film by David O. Selznick entitled 13 Women. Scandals in the Hollywood periodicals of the day, later amplified by the mainstream press, were fed by the FBI files as Hoover attempted to discredit Hollywoods elite. Before she died she recanted most of them. 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. Public discussion of sex was regarded as disgraceful. Banker and financial swindler, Charles Ponzi, circa 1920. The divorce was eventually granted. He also managed to convince many of his investors to reinvest their paper profits in more worthless Bayano stockin effect, conning them twice. But when it came to relationships with the opposite sex he was less gifted. The divorce became a scandal which the newly-minted entertainment tabloids and the mainstream press couldnt get enough of. An oil painting completed in 1884, Sargent used socialite Virginie Gautreau as his model, depicting her wearing a black dress held up by two narrow straps. Their declining popularity can probably be explained by the maturation of flappers and their petting partnerswho needs a petting party when youre already married? September 4, 2011, Olive Thomas: The Life and Death of a Silent Film Beauty. The next day Rappe died of peritonitis, the result of a ruptured bladder. 1988, Platinum Girl: The Life and Legends of Jean Harlow. The dramatic nature of her demise, including the manner in which her body had been found (by a hiker who also found her suicide note), led to the inevitable gossip around town, which was fed further by the elaborate funeral she was given by the film community, attended by several stars. Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. He documented, often through little more than innuendo, potential homosexual activity, drug use, alcohol use (both during and after prohibition), sexual peccadilloes, extramarital affairs, and political beliefs. The Twenty-first Amendment, ratified in December 1933, repealed Prohibition. Some even chartered buses to round up potential investors and drive them out to the oil fields for a look-see. When Charles demanded a divorce, Harriet attempted to evade a separation by claiming insanity, eating coal, and smashing dishes. Ordinary members of the public could sit down at the breakfast table and over tea and toast, read every juicy, salacious, delicious detail of who did what and to whom. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Intentionally or not, the message that filtered down to the public was: Be bold. Prohibition led directly to the rise of organized crime. She died that night, in considerable pain, as a result. In 1932 she told an interviewer that she had accepted a film part only so that she could sleep with Gary Cooper, though she substituted a common four-letter word for sleep with in the interview. Mordaunt confessed to her husband, Charles, after her child was suspected of having syphilis. Tracy was a married man who presented the public persona of being a devout Catholic, though, in fact, he did not follow the practices of the religion as piously as his image indicated. The 1920's was a grand time for the United States. Now considered the. 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. Several leading ladies were counted among the customers as well, including Talalluh Bankhead, Jean Harlow, and Barbara Stanwyck. Their affair was the talk of society in both Hollywood and Boston, where Rose Kennedy chose to ignore it, at least publicly. 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). 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. According to one writer, MGM studios maintained an open account upon which their stars could charge the services they requested, thus keeping their expenses secret from wives and husbands. But after authorities began to suspect him of cooking the books and other improprieties, he sold his collapsing company and avoided a mail fraud indictment by fleeing to Shanghai, where he committed suicide. His arrest had the newspapers dubbing him, the Boy Jones. Despite increased security, he would cause more furor over an apparent inability to stay away from the palacehe was caught again in 1841 and sentenced to hard labor. She enjoyed drugs and alcohol, and didnt attempt to hide the fact from the public. After guests heard screaming from the room, they rushed in and found Rappe writhing in agony. Boston indecency laws led to the phrase -, which became a term of - among those who supported artistic freedom. 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. Thelma Todd with Chico Marx in the 1932 film Horse Feathers. The rise of cheap, sensational newspapers in the nineteenth century meant that shocking scandals weren't just whispered about behind fluttering fans and raised teacups. While Reagan was never charged with a crime, several members of his administration were convicted of crimes in what became known as the Iran-Contra Affair. Once citizens had crossed that moral line and started frequenting illegal speakeasies and buying black-market booze, they naturally became more receptive to sleazy but enticing pitches to invest in get-rich-quick schemes., READ MORE: How Prohibition Put the Organized in Organized Crime. Most have been generally dismissed as urban legends, but Clara did give rumourmongers grist for the mill. The Teapot Dome was the biggest political scandal of the 1920's. The Teapot Dome was an oil field that belonged to the U.S. Navy. 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. Getty Images One of the biggest Hollywood scandals of all time was the murder of mobster Johnny Stompanato, the boyfriend of Lana Turner in 1958. Landis later attempted to deflect the blame for the accident, claiming that the cause of the accident had been in part a special effects fireball detonated by an underlying erroneously, an error for which he was never charged. 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. To the queens fury, the married Prince of Wales was called upon to testify about his relationship with Lady Mordaunt in open court. Arbuckle was tried three times, with the first two resulting in mistrials due to juries unable to render a verdict. 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.
