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While reading more about Tyrone Power and how he died while filming a scene , I had a look for some other accidents in the ld days of Hollywood and found some I knew nothing about.... I did know about the fire scene in the Wizard of Oz.. and Buddy Ebsens makeup used for the tin man..
Margaret Hamilton was badly burned during a scene in which her character, the Wicked Witch of the West, "vanished" in a burst of flame and smoke. A delay in activating a trap door left her exposed to the pyrotechnic device.[23] Her stunt double was also injured in a scene involving a smoking broomstick.[24] Buddy Ebsen suffered a severe allergic reaction to his Tin Man makeup that resulted in a collapsed lung and lifelong breathing issues.[25] He was unable to continue working on the production and was replaced by Jack Haley.
these however I knew nothing about...
They Died with Their Boots On (1941). Three horsemen perished during the cavalry charge, one of whom was extra Jack Budlong, Another man died filming on horseback for The Charge of the Light Brigade when he too fell off his horse.. Hollywood could be dangerous in many ways..
There were other "injuries" as well under the hold Hollywood system; not as visible as physical but never the less painful. Am speaking of the drug and booze addiction that often was instigated at the hands of studio doctors and or those employed by same.
Pills to get you awake at 5AM to be on the set, Pills to help you go to sleep (and or reverse the effects of the pills given to keep you awake), and so it went. That Judy Garland lived long as she did is a miracle given her drug abuse, which started when she was quite young (all those uppers and downers).
Then there were the abortions.....
Big film about to start shooting and the star actress finds out she's pregnant? With millions at stake there was no "shooting around" or delaying... The actress in question was sat down and spoken to, then came a trip to a Hollywood connected physician for that most serious of intimate female operations. Judy Garland was pretty much forced/talked into having an abortion when she was pregnant early in her first marriage. That her own mother sided with the studio shows you where priorities were.
There were other "injuries" as well under the hold Hollywood system; not as visible as physical but never the less painful. Am speaking of the drug and booze addiction that often was instigated at the hands of studio doctors and or those employed by same.
Pills to get you awake at 5AM to be on the set, Pills to help you go to sleep (and or reverse the effects of the pills given to keep you awake), and so it went. That Judy Garland lived long as she did is a miracle given her drug abuse, which started when she was quite young (all those uppers and downers).
Then there were the abortions.....
Big film about to start shooting and the star actress finds out she's pregnant? With millions at stake there was no "shooting around" or delaying... The actress in question was sat down and spoken to, then came a trip to a Hollywood connected physician for that most serious of intimate female operations. Judy Garland was pretty much forced/talked into having an abortion when she was pregnant early in her first marriage. That her own mother sided with the studio shows you where priorities were.
What you say is so true. Drugs like uppers and downers were rife in Hollywood. You had to perform..... no exhaustion allowed!! Judy Garland is the most tragic example of this.
So many stars adopted children, unable to have their own. Many with insides damaged from abortions. Joan Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck were two who this is true of. There were many more. In later years, Marilyn Monroe was a well known example.
What you say is so true. Drugs like uppers and downers were rife in Hollywood. You had to perform..... no exhaustion allowed!! Judy Garland is the most tragic example of this.
So many stars adopted children, unable to have their own. Many with insides damaged from abortions. Joan Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck were two who this is true of. There were many more. In later years, Marilyn Monroe was a well known example.
Miss. Jane Russell sadly was another Hollywood star unable to have children due to abortions. They occurred while Ms. Russell was still a young lady and undiscovered IIRC back in her home town. Sadly like a majority of other females of that period and place she had to use some back alley quack. Later when the finally saw a good physician (in Hollywood?) upon examining her internals supposedly said "whoever did this to a woman should be shot". That is how badly she was messed up inside afterwards.
About Joan Crawford and children the less said the better. Am not one to speak normally ill of the dead, but if even half of what her daughter wrote in that book is true, then God perhaps was wise in not allowing Ms. Crawford to have children naturally.
Yet again Hollywood knew of the treatment JC was giving her children, but things were kept quiet.
About Joan Crawford and children the less said the better. Am not one to speak normally ill of the dead, but if even half of what her daughter wrote in that book is true, then God perhaps was wise in not allowing Ms. Crawford to have children naturally.
Yet again Hollywood knew of the treatment JC was giving her children, but things were kept quiet.
Joan Crawford is a complex case, and she had many friends who defended her after publication of the book that destroyed her reputation.
The two younger girls who Joan adopted, said they had nothing but love from Joan, and say much of the book 'Mommie Dearest' was untrue.
Joan had a hard upbringing, which left her with a very determined nature to succeed. Others from difficult backgrounds like Barbara Stanwyck were similar. Barbara turned her back on the boy she adopted, and in later life, refused to see him.
These were complex, driven women........ it's hard now to separate the truth from the fiction, and legend.
There were other "injuries" as well under the hold Hollywood system; not as visible as physical but never the less painful. Am speaking of the drug and booze addiction that often was instigated at the hands of studio doctors and or those employed by same.
Pills to get you awake at 5AM to be on the set, Pills to help you go to sleep (and or reverse the effects of the pills given to keep you awake), and so it went. That Judy Garland lived long as she did is a miracle given her drug abuse, which started when she was quite young (all those uppers and downers).
Then there were the abortions.....
Big film about to start shooting and the star actress finds out she's pregnant? With millions at stake there was no "shooting around" or delaying... The actress in question was sat down and spoken to, then came a trip to a Hollywood connected physician for that most serious of intimate female operations. Judy Garland was pretty much forced/talked into having an abortion when she was pregnant early in her first marriage. That her own mother sided with the studio shows you where priorities were.
Back in the older days of Cinema, Hollywood was very good at hiding things that celebrities back then did. For example , many of our beloved film actors of years past actually did alcohol and drugs. Hollywood did a good job at hiding that from the public. My reasoning is probably because they did not want everyone to know that they were doing that kind of stuff
Back in the older days of Cinema, Hollywood was very good at hiding things that celebrities back then did. For example , many of our beloved film actors of years past actually did alcohol and drugs. Hollywood did a good job at hiding that from the public. My reasoning is probably because they did not want everyone to know that they were doing that kind of stuff
The Hollywood studios wanted to present a wholesome image of their stars. They were photographed in their homes, and in nightclubs having a good, glamorous time. Care was taken to remove glasses of booze from the table, before photos were taken.
The magazines hinted that some were ladies men, who had plenty of good clean romances. Most of the women stars were portrayed as one man women, who sometimes fell in love too easily. It was all good for selling to the public a certain way of seeing Hollywood.
In reality. the town was full of frightened, and at the same time ambitious people, desperate to get in the movies, and for the ones who made it, to remain stars. The average spell of stardom was reckoned to be about five years. A few managed to last a lot longer than that, and they are the ones remembered today.
Stars, especially in the early days of movies, were paid vast sums, with very little paid in taxes. Most came from very ordinary backgrounds, and some went a little nuts. One named Fatty Arbuckle, got himself involved in scandal, and it destroyed his career. One named Wallace Reid, died from drug addiction. Really, all this could be expected in a town built on ambition and greed.
About Joan Crawford and children the less said the better. Am not one to speak normally ill of the dead, but if even half of what her daughter wrote in that book is true, then God perhaps was wise in not allowing Ms. Crawford to have children naturally.
Yet again Hollywood knew of the treatment JC was giving her children, but things were kept quiet.
Barbara Stanwyck adopted a boy, but was never maternal and they didnt keep in contact in later years ...sometimes it more difficult to adopt a dog from a shelter than adopt a child. Maybe instead of designer children they should have took a leaf out of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans book... wonderful couple..http://www.happytrails.org/roy_rogers.html
Last edited by dizzybint; 08-06-2016 at 06:57 AM..
I think Bette Davis and Joan Crawford were two sides of the same coin.
The story of Judy Lewis, and her true origins is very sad. But it shows the extent her mother had to disguise her child's origins, to avoid a scandal that would have ended her career in the 1930s.
It is a shame her true father could not acknowledge her. The only good thing I guess, is that her religious mother was determined to have her child, unlike many other female stars who had abortions when in such difficulty.
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