Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Today's Blind Items - Shamed - Old Hollywood

Considering her father started making her sleep with men who could advance her career from the time she was 13 or 14, I don't think people would find it shocking she didn't really enjoy her life. There was the time she was 16 and essentially was at the back and call of a 50 year old man who kept promising our teen and the teen's dad that he would help her career. He never did. He just kept sleeping with the teen.

When our actress, who would become A++ list, did finally make it she had to sleep with a director, but he cast her. When she stopped sleeping with him, he cut her out of the movie.

Pretty soon our actress didn't have to sleep with anyone to get parts. Her problem was a bad contract she signed. She was the biggest movie star in the world, but was getting paid like she was an extra. Her studio would loan her out and give her a pittance. So, she found ways to get more and more money. She would be dared to do things for money. She rarely said no. Whether it was taking on three or four men or women or even having sex with animals, if there was enough money being offered, she would do it. After just a few short years, her mental health was so messed up, she quit the business and went into seclusion for 35 years. During that time, she tried to kill herself multiple times.

48 comments:

Tricia13 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
sandybrook said...

Greta Garbo?

Tricia13 said...

Veronica Lake?

IndieRaga said...

Garbo.....?
Only one I know who went into seclusion for that long!
Plz corret me....I wanna know the answer!

MyDogSmiles said...

Garbo left Hollywood pretty abruptly.

Simon said...

Not Veronica lake, Tricia. Her dad died in 1932.

gauloise said...

CLara Bow?

Tricia13 said...

She was adopted by her step dad,I believe. And they lived several places before she hit it big. She became a recluse and ultimately was a barmaid in Greenwich Village;but likely Greta “I vant to beee alooone”Garbo

Tricia13 said...

@Simon*

Jed's Friend and Supporter said...

Rita Hayworth comes to mind. Sad, sad life.

Simon said...

@tricia. Ah, could be then. Garbo’s dad died when she was 13 and was sick before his death.

loopymommy said...

Kim Novak had shitty contracts and left Hollywood pretty abruptly.

gauloise said...

Bow was raped as a teen by her father who supported her acting dreams. She retired in 1933 and died about 35 years later. She was def A++ for the silent era.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clara_Bow

"Bow won an evening gown and a silver trophy, and the publisher committed to help her "gain a role in films", but nothing happened. Bow's father told her to "haunt" Brewster's office (located in Brooklyn) until they came up with something. Bow was introduced to director Christy Cabanne, who cast her in Beyond the Rainbow, produced late 1921 in New York City and released February 19, 1922.[35] Bow did five scenes and impressed Cabanne with true theatrical tears,[15] but was cut from the final print. "

gauloise said...

Bow is notorious for her sexual escapades, with the rumour at the time being she slept with the entire USC football team

gauloise said...

She also tried to commit suicide many times after retirement.

Sunkist said...

I never said, "I want to be alone." I only said, "I want to be let alone! There is all the difference. Greta Garbo (September 18, 1905 – April 15, 1990), born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson, was a Swedish born actress and Hollywood icon.

ChuckD said...

Vivan Leigh

Vita said...

Geez, tragic life! Unsanitized biopics and expose-style histories of the Old studio system would keep the film industry going for decades. The stories are unbelievable!

IndieRaga said...

Thanks for the link....awesome read!

Veritas said...

I have heard this about Kim Novak

Gator said...

Rita Hayworth did have a bad life, and her father passed her off as his wife when they performed together. He was such a scumbag, I always wondered how far he actually went with her.

STN said...

Rita Hayworth came to mind but I have to go with Clara Bow - the 'It Girl'.

Undine said...

Has to be Clara Bow. I've read a couple of biographies of her, and she had an incredibly sad life. And despite all her problems, she seems to have been a really sweet, likable human being.

Count Jerkula said...

God bless broken toys

Cold in Ct said...

Rita Hayworth

Unknown said...

My granddad said he nearly slept with Clara
But had to settle for the Bowfinger.
🖕

T. W. said...

Not Vivian Leigh. She was sent to convent schools & then travelled Europe with her mother. She married her first husband when she was 18 years old. She was still acting close to the time of her death.

JHanoi said...

Dolores hart

Red Velvet Boots said...

I'll go with Clara Bow on this too.

DJ Big Daddy said...

But it was Clara Bow who received the harshest punishment. During the trial DeVoe divulged the most intimate and unflattering tales of Clara Bow's life. Tales of wild sexual encounters, drunkenness and gambling kept the public's attention glued to the trial. Smelling blood, a smarmy yellow paper called The Coast Reporter printed unsubstantiated tales of drugs, gang sex with the USC football team, sex in public, sex with multiple partners, sex with men, sex with women and even sex with dogs. Clara was ruined. In the court of public opinion, Clara Bow was morally unfit to appear in films. Adding insult to injury, Paramount cancelled her contract and screwed her out of the money owed to her.

DJ Big Daddy said...

http://flickchick1953.blogspot.com/2013/10/scandal-clara-bow-it-girls-lifestyle-on.html


But it was Clara Bow who received the harshest punishment. During the trial DeVoe divulged the most intimate and unflattering tales of Clara Bow's life. Tales of wild sexual encounters, drunkenness and gambling kept the public's attention glued to the trial. Smelling blood, a smarmy yellow paper called The Coast Reporter printed unsubstantiated tales of drugs, gang sex with the USC football team, sex in public, sex with multiple partners, sex with men, sex with women and even sex with dogs. Clara was ruined. In the court of public opinion, Clara Bow was morally unfit to appear in films. Adding insult to injury, Paramount cancelled her contract and screwed her out of the money owed to her.

Tueschild said...

It's Clara Bow. Her life as a child was unspeakably sad. Her mother was mentally ill and once tried to kill her. If you haven't seen her movies, you should. She was so talented and her personality jumped off the screen.

Curtis M. said...

louise brooks

AwkwardTurtle said...

I love Old Hollywood blinds. They're usually the juiciest!

BRAD PITT said...

biggest movie star in the world = Elizabeth Taylor

studio would loan her out = Elizabeth Taylor

gauloise said...

Betty Boop was also modelled after Clara

s.s. said...

The timeline says---roughly---Clara Bow---last films early 30's, death in 1965...

Andi said...

Joan Crawford

OKay said...

Who would think that Hollywood has actually gotten *less* scuzzy over the years?

MichiganMama59 said...

I have the most beautiful picture of Clara Bow I wish I could share.

Tea Cup said...

The details fit, but Clara Bow as an A++ actress?

Never heard of her even though I am familiar with plenty of her contemporaries.

Uber Driver said...

Clara Bow. Director - Christy Cabanne. Movie - Beyond the Rainbow

hhstarr said...

I just watched it. I usually don't like silent films but it was really good.she was good. And yes, I think this is her. She had a horrible life.

sugar of lead said...

Tea Cup - In her day, Clara Bow was huge. There was no one bigger. Justifies A++.

flyingtiger said...

Kim Novak faded away from hollywood. She married a veterinarian and lived in the country. She had a few small roles on TV and in the movies in the 70s.

RonnieLake said...

This is NOT Veronica Lake.

I'm thinking Deanna Durbin or Bow.

RonnieLake said...

@Tea Cup you've never heard of Clara Bow, but you are familiar with her contemporaries? Pfft. Do you even know who her 'contemporaries' would be? Clara Bow was a BIG DEAL.

Unknown said...

I would second either Louise Brooks or Clara Bow (at least Clara found her happy ending).

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