Top 10 Old Hollywood Scandals You've Never Heard Of

When it comes to child stardom, you can’t talk about it without mentioning the name Jackie Coogan. As a young boy, Coogan was one of the major stars of the silent era and one of the first child stars in the industry’s history. Because Coogan was so young, his parents were to retain control over his money until he came of age. But when his father died suddenly in a car accident and his mother remarried, all of that changed. His new stepfather and mother stopped giving the now young adult Coogan access to any of his money and started spending it for themselves. In 1938, Coogan sued them, and later won the suit, drawing considerable attention to issues surrounding compensation in child labor.

Nowadays, we remember the 1990s film “The Little Rascals.” But in the early part of the century, those rascals were a part of the short film series “Our Gang.” But while the content of those short films was wholesome, the story of one of its major stars was not. Carl Switzer played the popular role of Alfalfa in the “Our Gang” movies. But when he left the series in 1940, he had some trouble moving on. That trouble led to financial problems that ultimately resulted in his death. During a fight with his longtime friend over money, the friend shot Switzer and killed him. Accounts have differed over what caused the shooting, but the sad story remains the same.

You can’t spell scandal without Mae West. But even she used a fake name every once in a while. In the 1920s, West would write scandalous plays using the name Jane Mast. She also produced and starred in one of those plays, called “Sex,” which was a huge hit among audiences. But, apparently, some religious groups felt differently. Their influence was so strong that the police ended up arresting West and the rest of the cast. West later had to spend 10 days in jail. Someone with West’s stature could have probably gotten off, but she thought it would be good publicity for the show. She wasn’t wrong.

For a guy who created such a funny thing, the way Ted Healy eventually met his end was the opposite of funny. In the early part of the century, Healy was a vaudeville performer who went on to create “The Three Stooges.” But a night that started out in celebration cut his life short. While out at the Trocadero nightclub, Healy reportedly had an argument and got into a fight with three strange men. By the end of the night, he would be dead. At first, MGM said that Healy died from a heart attack, but when news of his apparent injuries became public, that tune changed. While many people witnessed Healy get attacked, the police deduced he did not die because of his injuries.

Back in the early 1900s, Errol Flynn was a handsome, swashbuckling charmer. Known for his roles as Robin Hood and other heroes, his persona couldn’t have been more dashing. But now, we know a little better. In 1942, two teenagers accused Flynn of assault. While Flynn was eventually found not guilty, things only progressed from there. The son of L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, later claimed that Flynn and his father both engaged in sexual activity with underage girls. He also reportedly had a relationship with Beverly Aadland, who was 15 when the romance began.

For these newlyweds, wedded bliss was cut short. Movie star Jean Harlow married producer Paul Bern in 1932. Two months later, he was found dead in the couple’s home in what authorities thought at the time was an act of self-harm. But nearly 30 years later, the case was reopened. Screenwriter Ben Hecht alleged that Bern was actually murdered by a woman, who might have been an estranged ex-lover. Nothing has ever been confirmed, and many rumors swirled around Bern’s sudden and unexpected death. For her part, Harlow never spoke about the matter until the day she died.

A good-natured cowboy who leads a big band is the last person you might expect to get caught up in a murder. But, we should never judge a book by its cover. In the 1930s and 40s, Spade Cooley enjoyed great success on television and on record players as a swing musician and actor. But in 1961, all of that disappeared. That year, Cooley filed for divorce from his wife, Ella Mae Cooley. They had both been unfaithful to each other, and it was time for things to end. But for Cooley, that wasn’t enough. On April 3, he brutally murdered his wife, and was sentenced to prison.

It’s well known that film stars Greta Garbo and Marlene Dietrich hated each other. So much so, that they sometimes denied even knowing who the other was. What could have caused such animosity? The two had affairs with a few of the same men, but even that doesn’t seem like it should warrant this type of hatred. Well, there is a pretty intense rumor to be discussed. In a 2000 book, an author claimed that Garbo and Dietrich had an affair while filming a 1925 German movie called “The Joyless Street.” Clearly, things ended badly. There’s no real proof of any romantic involvement between the two, and much of the footage from “The Joyless Street” is lost to time. But, it gets you thinking.

In the early 1930s, and then again in the 1940s, Joan Crawford was one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood. But before her star took off, there was a bit of a scandal that almost stopped everything. In 1923, a year before she first appeared on Broadway, Crawford reportedly starred in a movie called “The Casting Couch.” That name should give everything away, but just in case you’re a bit lost, the movie was essentially an adult film. Crawford, trying to make ends meet and get her name out there, apparently starred in many adult movies around that time. Crawford repeatedly denied her involvement in “The Casting Couch,” but researchers have found she was blackmailed at the time because of the movie.

Lana Turner is one of the best-known femme fatales of 1940s and 50s noir, particularly for her performance in “The Postman Always Rings Twice.” Unfortunately, moments in her real life were just as dark as some of the films she appeared in. In the late 1950s, Turner began seeing known mobster Johnny Stompanato. When Turner found out what line of business Stompanato was in, she reportedly tried to break things off, which kickstarted a year of physical and emotional abuse on the gangster’s part. During one violent argument, Turner’s teenage daughter Cheryl came to her mother’s defense. She stabbed and killed Stompanato. A jury found that the killing was justifiable, but publicity and scandal surrounding the event was massive.