- 3 months ago
Old Hollywood dazzled us with glamour and unforgettable stars, but beneath the sparkle lies a darker story. From ruthless political witch hunts and toxic makeup to dangerous stunts and systemic discrimination, the realities behind classic Tinseltown were far from glamorous. Join us as we uncover the unsettling truths that shaped the golden era of cinema and forever changed the industry.
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00:00Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night.
00:04Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're looking at 20 of the darkest truths about old-school Tinseltown.
00:09This is bad. Bad for movie stars everywhere.
00:16Number 20. The Hollywood Blacklist.
00:1919 subpoenas have been issued to those we believe have knowledge of the ongoing communist threat in Hollywood.
00:26What kind of threat is that?
00:28Conspiracy.
00:30To corrupt democratic values and bring about the overthrow of this nation.
00:33Using movies.
00:34Old-school Hollywood was in the midst of intense political paranoia.
00:38In the late 1940s and 50s, the Cold War's Red Scare seeped into Los Angeles.
00:42And in that time, the House Un-American Activities Committee investigated alleged communist influence in the industry.
00:48When a defiant group dubbed the Hollywood Tin refused to testify, they were sent to prison.
00:53In response, studios began caving to government pressure and implemented a ruthless blacklist.
00:58Hundreds of talented actors, screenwriters, and musicians were suddenly unemployable.
01:03Many lost their livelihoods overnight.
01:05And writers were forced to ghostwrite under fake names for decades just to survive.
01:09It is no exaggeration to say that it changed American cinema forever.
01:13I went down there without being called and gave them the names of the communists I knew.
01:17You want to call me a commie? Back it up.
01:19Jerry, he wants to call you a commie. He doesn't have to back it up.
01:22Number 19. Toxic Costumes and Makeup.
01:34Why, it's a man.
01:37A man made out of pins.
01:40Before modern safety standards, the pursuit of the perfect on-screen aesthetic frequently came at the expense of an actor's
01:46well-being.
01:46Today, special effects makeup is highly regulated, and health and safety is taken very seriously.
01:51But back then, actors were basically guinea pigs for health experiments.
01:56For example, Buddy Epson was originally cast as the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz,
02:00but he was forced to withdraw after the aluminum dust makeup coated his lungs and put him in an oxygen
02:05tent.
02:05Similarly, original blonde bombshell Jean Harlow used a highly toxic mixture of peroxide, ammonia, and bleach for her iconic hair.
02:13A horrific concoction that severely damaged her scalp and caused her hair to fall out.
02:18What's the matter with you? Crazy?
02:21Just a little nauseated.
02:23This rain seems to have uncovered a pile of garbage around here.
02:27Number 18. A Deadly Lack of On-Set Safety.
02:42It wasn't just the actors who were suffering.
02:44In the Wild West days of cinema, stuntmen and extras were treated as little more than disposable commodities.
02:51Without union protections, ambitious directors pushed the envelope for spectacle, and often with fatal consequences.
02:57One infamous example occurred while filming the 1928 biblical epic Noah's Ark.
03:02Director Michael Curtiz was so obsessed with making the climactic flood scene authentic
03:06that he ordered hundreds of thousands of gallons of water to be violently dumped into the studio.
03:11The results were catastrophic.
03:13Three extras tragically drowned, another had his leg amputated,
03:17and dozens more were hospitalized with varying degrees of injury.
03:21It is a stark reminder of the human cost behind old-school movie magic.
03:34Number 17. Asbestos as Fake Snow.
03:36Come on, everybody. Let's get down now.
03:39Just a picture.
03:40Get out of it with you, bro.
03:42Hit your snow.
03:45All right. Roll on.
03:47Continuing with the theme of horrific dangers,
03:49there's nothing quite like the cozy magic of classic Hollywood holiday movies.
03:54But the pristine snow blanketing those old soundstages hides a terrifying secret.
03:58From the late 1920s through the 1940s,
04:01a product marketed as white magic was used to simulate snowfall.
04:04Of course, this was 100% pure chrysatile asbestos.
04:08That's right.
04:09The highly toxic material known far and wide for causing cancer
04:13was actually sprinkled all over the era's biggest stars.
04:16So when you're watching those classic Christmas movies like Holiday Inn,
04:19just know that the actors are actively breathing in poison for the sake of our entertainment.
04:23A state inspector filed 1.74 parts per million of asbestos.
04:29That's not enough.
04:29We demand more asbestos.
04:32More asbestos.
04:33More asbestos.
04:34Number 16. Lavender Marriages.
04:36And then there's the name.
04:38Roy Fitzgerald.
04:40That ain't gonna work.
04:44Something like...
04:49Rock.
04:50Back in the day, studios would often sign their actors to morality clauses
04:54that intensely govern their public personas.
04:57One devastating application was the forced concealment of an actor's sexual orientation.
05:01To maintain the illusion of heterosexual desirability for the box office,
05:05studios ruthlessly orchestrated fake unions known as lavender marriages.
05:10Gay and lesbian stars were often forced to marry opposite-sex partners
05:13simply to quell malicious press rumors and keep their true sexual orientation under wraps.
05:17Perhaps the greatest example is heartthrob Rock Hudson,
05:21who was forced to marry his agent's secretary.
05:23These look like glamorous actors and actresses,
05:25but they were often forced to live painful lies just to keep their careers afloat.
05:29Well, you haven't seen any of my work.
05:31What work?
05:32You just said you haven't done anything.
05:34You read for Ann Rogers last week.
05:35She's casting the Barbara Stanwyck picture at MGM.
05:38Yeah.
05:39Well, I wasn't sure it'd gone all that well.
05:40It didn't.
05:41She said you were terrible.
05:42Number 15.
05:43Horrific Animal Cruelty.
05:45You're good fellas.
05:47If only men were as good.
05:48If you thought stuntmen were treated poorly, you haven't heard anything yet.
05:52Nowadays, we are all accustomed to the modern disclaimer,
05:55no animals were harmed in the making of this film.
05:58However, that vital assurance exists strictly because of how barbaric old Hollywood used to be towards animals.
06:04For example, war movies were really big back in the day.
06:07And to get those sweeping cavalry charges,
06:09productions utilized a brutal tripwire system called the running W.
06:12Wires attached to the horse's legs were violently pulled at a full gallop,
06:16sending them crashing to the ground.
06:18During the 1936 film The Charge of the Light Brigade,
06:22dozens of horses were killed or euthanized due to broken legs.
06:25And it was this that finally prompted the first major push for legal animal welfare.
06:30What's the matter, Pearson?
06:31One of the lead horses at the supply cart has broken a leg, sir.
06:34Well, you know what to do.
06:35Carry on.
06:36Number 14.
06:37Murder and Crime Cover-Ups
06:38There's $100,000 in that attaché case.
06:43Ransom money.
06:45Baird Whitlock has been kidnapped.
06:52This is bad.
06:56Bad for movie stars everywhere.
06:59The studio machinery didn't just control the press.
07:01It sometimes operated completely above the law.
07:04While fixers like Eddie Mannix would try to put the kibosh on certain scandals,
07:09their dark duties frequently went far beyond silencing columnists.
07:12In some cases, they actively tampered with crime scenes to protect their assets.
07:17For example, when MGM executive Paul Byrne died of a gunshot wound,
07:21fixers allegedly scrubbed the scene before police arrived to ensure the scandal didn't taint the reputation of his wife,
07:26the aforementioned Jean Harlow.
07:28And many unsolved mysteries, including the murder of director William Desmond Taylor,
07:33were heavily muddied by executives rummaging through crime scenes and tainting evidence.
07:37Here's your story.
07:39You woke up.
07:40You found her.
07:41That's all you know.
07:43Say it.
07:46Say it, please.
07:47Number 13.
07:48Yellowface and Whitewashing
07:58Classic Hollywood systematically denied major opportunities to actors of color,
08:03relying instead on deeply offensive casting practices.
08:06Not only were performers of color often restricted to stereotyped supporting roles,
08:10but studios routinely gave their roles to white people in grossly offensive makeup.
08:14A glaring example occurred in 1937's The Good Earth,
08:18when white actress Louise Reiner won an Academy Award after wearing yellowface to play a Chinese peasant.
08:24At one point, John Wayne played Genghis Khan.
08:27Imagine that.
08:28This infuriating practice remained a staple in Hollywood for decades,
08:31even reaching into the 1960s with Mickey Rooney's heinous performance as Mr. Yunyoshi.
08:36Oh, darling, I am sorry, but I lost my key.
08:39But that was two weeks ago.
08:41You cannot go on or keep ringing my bill.
08:44You disturb me.
08:45You must have a key made.
08:47Number 12.
08:48Mob Control of the Unions
08:50Jack Dragner's the kingpin here, huh?
08:52What do you hear about him?
08:54What I hear, he runs a nice little operation.
08:57Got a city here with three million people in it,
08:59and he runs an operation that's nice and little.
09:01Organized crime was absolutely everywhere in the 20s and 30s.
09:05And wouldn't you know it, it had a violent hand in shaping the golden age of Hollywood.
09:09In the 1930s, the notorious Chicago outfit extorted the flowing wealth of the film industry by controlling its labor force.
09:15Infamous mobster Willie Biaf successfully infiltrated the theatrical stage employees union
09:20and gained total control over projectionists and stagehands.
09:24By doing so, Biaf could shut down movie theaters nationwide.
09:27He ruthlessly used this immense power to extort millions of dollars from terrified studio heads,
09:32often demanding huge illicit cash payouts to prevent catastrophic labor strikes.
09:37Let's just say that the famous horsehead scene from The Godfather isn't too far off.
09:41Thank you for the dinner and a very pleasant evening.
09:45Maybe your car could take me to the airport.
09:48Mr. Corleone is a man who insists on hearing bad news immediately.
09:51Number 11.
09:52The Hays Code's Explicit Bigotry.
09:54Mainstream people dislike homosexuality because they can't help concentrating on what homosexual men do to one another.
10:07And when you contemplate what people do, you think of yourself doing it.
10:13And they don't like that.
10:14Starting in 1934, movies began facing the strict enforcement of morality policies outlined in the Hays Code.
10:21And the implementation of the code wasn't just about banning sex and swear words.
10:25It was actually a formalized system of extreme bigotry.
10:29The code strictly prohibited any depiction of interracial romance
10:33and completely erased queer identities by classifying them under sex perversion.
10:38By the 1960s, Hollywood studios were suffering due to the rise of uncensored foreign films.
10:43To survive, filmmakers began blatantly violating the code to produce grittier movies like Bonnie and Clyde and Who's Afraid of
10:50Virginia Woolf.
10:51Recognizing the code was obsolete and bad for business, the MPAA formally abandoned it in 1968,
10:57replacing it with the age-based rating system we still use today.
11:00There are lots of needs for art.
11:04The greatest one is the mirror of our own lives and our own existence.
11:08And that hunger that I felt as a kid looking for gay images was to not be alone.
11:16Number 10.
11:17The Pressures of Beauty
11:18Hollywood is, among many other things, artifice.
11:22Yet we often worship old-school Tinseltown idols for the perceived standards of beauty espoused by their films.
11:28However, appearing that glamorous came at a price.
11:31Now get me out of these weeds. I'm beginning to feel sad, and I shouldn't feel sad. It's so depressing.
11:36Icons such as Marlena Dietrich, Joan Crawford, and Judy Garland were all pressured to look a certain way.
11:42For instance, Dietrich reportedly lost weight and dramatically altered her look in a bid to meet often unattainable ideals.
11:49Crawford, for her part, allegedly had her back teeth removed, which in turn raised her cheekbones.
11:54It's also led to bone loss. There's barely anything holding your remaining teeth in place.
11:59Well, you know what they say about stars. They're like Christmas trees.
12:04Once the lights are off, you sit there and watch the needles drop.
12:07Her autobiography also touches upon intense beauty practices, one of which involves using boric acid on your eyelids.
12:14Why are you doing this to me?
12:16Why?
12:18Doing what?
12:20Making me afraid to eat. Trying to make me starve myself.
12:23Number 9. Contract Pressure
12:25Part of that choice is mine, Ms. Lamont.
12:27And I just won't do it.
12:29You got a five-year contract, honey. You do an RFP.
12:33Outside appearances weren't the only cause of pressure for old Hollywood stars.
12:37Nowadays, actors have a decent amount of freedom and can often sign on to any picture, regardless of which studio
12:44is at the helm.
12:45However, the system used to be quite different.
12:48I like it that way.
12:50Maybe it's not very admirable.
12:55Back in the day, performers were signed to hefty contracts, some of which had rather lengthy terms.
13:01As a result, they typically had to take jobs given to them, regardless of whether they wanted to or not.
13:07Turning one down was intensely frowned upon and could be punished via things like suspensions.
13:12In other words, film studios wielded what's considered an unreasonable amount of power.
13:18Many careers, including silent film star John Gilberts, suffered as a result.
13:23Why did you go out of your way to make me ridiculous?
13:27All that idiotic talk of love and beauty that made my heart beat, made me dream like a fool and
13:33talk like one.
13:36These days, celebrities are often forced to fight for their right to privacy.
13:40Old Hollywood actors didn't have it easy either, but it was often due to the studio's desire for control over
13:46their personal lives.
13:47You shouldn't believe all that banana oil that Dora Bailey and the columnist dish out.
13:52I'll try to get this straight.
13:53There is nothing between us.
13:56There has never been anything between us.
13:59Just air.
14:00It apparently wasn't uncommon for private spaces to be bugged or for studio employees to act as publicists and friends
14:06to the stars while going behind their backs.
14:09For instance, Judy Garland was allegedly deceived by such a confidant.
14:13I don't want any of your homemade remedies.
14:15I know what you're trying to do.
14:16And the best thing you can do for me is to just leave me alone.
14:19Sammy Davis Jr., meanwhile, also had to deal with a sort of spy game.
14:23His romance with screen icon Kim Novak was strictly forbidden.
14:27So intent was Columbia head Harry Cohn on nixing the love affair that he reportedly had organized crime associates threatened
14:34to harm Davis Jr.
14:36Yeah, you were always one of those guys who didn't want any brave ones on patrol with you, weren't you?
14:41That's simple enough.
14:42In my book, bravery rhymed with stupid, and it still does.
14:46Number 7. Thomas Edison's Monopoly
14:56Hollywood as we know it today might look very different were it not for Thomas Edison.
15:01Indeed, the inventor was responsible for developing the first film studio in the late 1800s, named the Black Mariah.
15:08He also invented and patented lots of movie-making equipment, like the motion picture camera.
15:13The first motion picture entertainment device was a genius contraption that allowed you to see a loop of film, a
15:23very short loop.
15:25Importantly, this all took place in New Jersey and New York, where he eventually assisted in establishing the Motion Picture
15:31Patents Company.
15:32With that, he got himself a monopoly.
15:34In a bid to get away from it, his intimidation tactics, and his infamous litigiousness, numerous filmmakers reportedly moved out
15:42to California.
15:43Edison's Monopoly essentially ended after the United States vs. the Motion Picture Patents Company court case in 1915, though L
15:50.A. remains the industry's home base.
15:53Number 6. Child Labor
15:54He won't mind you're going on a little trip with me.
15:57Where?
15:59Just to Frankfurt. You can come back whenever you like.
16:02I don't want to go to Frankfurt.
16:03You will do as I say.
16:04It can be difficult to reconcile the affection we feel for adorable young actors with Hollywood's historically horrible child labor
16:11record.
16:12The city thrives on child labor. A lot of people make money that way.
16:16The Addams Family actor Jackie Coogan was notoriously robbed of his earnings by his parents, leading to the California Child
16:23Actors Bill of 1939.
16:25Elsewhere, directors and others reportedly went to cruel lengths getting young performers to cry on camera.
16:31Many even resorted to punishment when someone was perceived to be wasting time.
16:35The Black Box, a cramped space with only a block of ice as a seat, was one example of this.
16:41Finally, it wasn't unheard of for productions to make youth work insanely long hours.
16:47Something that's unthinkable today.
16:49I'm tired of this, Grandpa.
16:51That's too damn bad!
16:53Number 5. Award Show Racism
16:55The lack of diverse representation at Hollywood award shows is an issue that remains today.
17:01And while there's a lot that still needs to be done, the industry has come a long way.
17:05Miss Mellie, this year has done broke her heart, but I didn't bet you here on Miss Scarlett's account what
17:12that child got to stand.
17:13In 1940, Hattie McDaniel became the first Black person to be awarded an Oscar, which marked a historic moment.
17:20Yet before the ceremony, there was a real worry that the actress wouldn't be allowed to attend.
17:25In the end, she was cruelly seated separately from Vivian Leigh and the rest of her Gone with the Wind
17:30co-stars.
17:31Well, I don't think it's fitting, but it ain't fitting, it just ain't fitting.
17:38McDaniel showed great courage amid the racism and prejudice she faced,
17:42and gave a deeply stirring speech when she was named Best Supporting Actress.
17:45But the journey for her and many others was very difficult.
17:49You don't like me, Mammy.
17:50Now don't you argue with me, you don't, you really don't.
17:55Number 4. Pre-Code Hollywood
17:58The enforcement of morality can be a slippery slope.
18:01And it's easy to fall backwards with regards to cultural sensitivity and representation.
18:06Welcome to the asshole of Los Angeles.
18:10Pre-Code Hollywood refers to a time between the mid-late 20s until 1934,
18:15before films faced the strict enforcement of morality policies outlined in the Hays Code.
18:20These policies were put in place, in part, to clean up Hollywood's perceived reputation as an immoral Babylon.
18:26As a result, filmmakers were required to skirt around issues of intimacy and substance use via innuendo.
18:33This could notably be seen in the film noir movement of the 40s and 50s.
18:36What'd you do that for?
18:39Been wondering whether I'd like it.
18:41What's the decision?
18:43I don't know yet.
18:44However, pre-code films were often rife with anti-heroes, strong female leads, and plenty of romantic liaisons.
18:52Film lovers just need to seek them out.
18:54Listen, little boy.
18:55In this business, there's only one lawyer you gotta follow to keep out of trouble.
18:59So, do it first, do it yourself, and keep on doing it.
19:06Number 3. Incentivized Substance Use
19:08We've discussed how poorly child actors were often treated within the old-school Hollywood system.
19:14Unfortunately, emotional manipulation and long work days were not the only hurdles they faced.
19:19What's happening? What is it?
19:23I can't run anymore.
19:25I'm so sleepy.
19:26Here, give us your hands and we'll pull you along.
19:29Studios reportedly often incentivized substance use among their most popular young stars,
19:34such as Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney.
19:36The idea was apparently that time is money.
19:39So, studios would dole out uppers to make hours upon hours of work possible,
19:43and downers and or sedatives when the time came to sleep.
19:47Oh, lady, would you? Oh, tell me, could you use me?
19:52Time is also precious, however,
19:54and too little of it was spent considering the dependencies these vulnerable actors would develop as they grew up,
20:00and the often tragic consequences.
20:02You have to have ambitions, right?
20:04Well, I used to have them.
20:06I found they gave me the most terrible headache.
20:09Number 2. Morality Clauses
20:11The 2016 Coen Brothers movie Hail Caesar does a great job at satirizing the backdoor dealings of Hollywood's golden age.
20:19Specifically, it expertly separates the artifice we mentioned earlier with the very real behind-the-scenes drama.
20:25Hey, you listen to me, buster.
20:27Nick Skank and the studio have been good to you and to everyone else who works here.
20:30If I ever hit you bad-mouthing Mr. Skank again,
20:32it'll be the last thing you say before I have you tossed in jail for colluding in your own abduction.
20:36Studios would often sign their actors to morality clauses that intensely governed their public personas.
20:42Hollywood and the press reportedly collaborated often on star stories.
20:46The marriage doesn't have to last forever,
20:48but Deanna, having a child without a father would present a public relations problem for the studio.
20:53The aquatic pictures do very nicely for us.
20:55So you go and strap on a fish-ass in Mariani, says Luke.
20:58A pregnancy like the one Scarlett Johansson's character experiences in Hail Caesar, for example,
21:03would likely have been handled with a hush-hush abortion.
21:06This was all to protect the studio's investments in the perceived quote-unquote
21:10purity of their biggest stars.
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21:39The fortune calls, rise and ruin, night and noon, all are prisoners of the moon.
21:53Number 1. The Casting Couch.
21:55You see that man? That's Max Fabian, the producer. Now go and do yourself some good.
22:01Why do they always look like unhappy rabbits?
22:04Because that's what they are. Go and make him happy.
22:06The practice of having to exchange intimate so-called favors for career advancement
22:11doesn't solely exist within the realm of moving pictures.
22:15However, casting couch practices have been dogging the film industry since the days of old Hollywood,
22:21with seemingly never-ending stories about predatory behavior.
22:24Isn't this scene supposed to go something like this?
22:27I'll make your test for you, and you'll be good to me, and I'll be good to you.
22:32The phrase even shows up in a 1924 stag film of the same name.
22:36The casting couch plays this behavior up for the prurient interest, as well as for laughs.
22:41But there's absolutely nothing funny about how many actors have been victims of these exploitative tactics.
22:47The Times Up organization has brought more attention to harassment and assault within the industry
22:52in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
22:54But it remains an active talking point.
22:57Just think, if you were some big shot like a casting director or something,
23:01I'd be staring into your bridgework saying,
23:03Yes, Mr. Smearcase.
23:05No, Mr. Smearcase.
23:06Not really, Mr. Smearcase.
23:09Oh, Mr. Smearcase.
23:10That's my knee.
23:12What do you think about old Hollywood?
23:14Glory or disaster?
23:15Let us know in the comments.
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