Top 10 Dark Truths About Old Hollywood

fasten your seat belts it's going to be a bumpy night welcome to Ms Mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 dark truths about old Hollywood this is bad apart from movie stars everywhere for this list we're looking at the most surprising disturbing and or controversial things about the industry's so-called golden age did any of these stories surprise you let us know in the comments number 10 the pressures of beauty Hollywood is among many other things artifice yet we often worship old school Tinseltown Idols for the perceived standards of beauty espoused by their films however appearing that glamorous came at a price now get me out of these weeds I'm beginning to feel sad and I shouldn't feel sad so depressing icons such as Marlena Dietrich Joan Crawford and Judy Garland were all pressured to look a certain way for instance Dietrich reportedly lost weight and dramatically altered her look in a bid to meet often unattainable ideals Crawford for her part allegedly had her back teeth removed which in turn raised her cheekbones it's also led to bone loss there's barely anything holding your remaining teeth in place well you know what they say about stars they're like Christmas trees once the lights are off you sit there and watch the needles drop her autobiography also touches upon intense Beauty practices one of which involves using boric acid on your eyelids why are you doing this to me why what making me afraid to eat trying to make me starve myself number nine contract pressure choice is mine Miss Lamont and I just won't do it you got a penny you'll do it all right then outside appearances weren't the only cause of pressure for old Hollywood stars nowadays actors have a decent amount of freedom and can often sign on to any picture regardless of which studio is at the helm however the system used to be quite different look sweetie be practical I've got a good deal here a long-term contract with no options I like it that way back in the day performers were signed to Hefty contracts some of which had rather lengthy terms as a result they typically had to take jobs given to them regardless of whether they wanted to or not turning one down was intensely frowned upon and could be punished via things like suspensions in other words film studios wielded what's considered an unreasonable amount of power many careers including silent film star John Gilberts suffered as a result why did you go out of your way to make you to make all that idiotic talk of love and beauty that made my heart beat made me dream like a fool and talk like one number eight spying these days celebrities are often forced to fight for their right to privacy old Hollywood actors didn't have it easy either but it was often due to the Studio's desire for control over their personal lives you shouldn't believe all that banana oil adorable in the columnist dish out I try to get this straight there is nothing between us there has never been anything between US just air it apparently wasn't uncommon for private spaces to be bugged or for Studio employees to act as publicists and friends to the Stars while going behind their backs for instance Judy Garland was allegedly deceived by such a confidante meanwhile also had to deal with a sort of spy game his romance with screen icon Kim Novak was strictly forbidden so intent was Columbia head Harry Cohn on nixing the love affair that he reportedly had organized crime Associates threatened to harm Davis Jr yeah euro is one of those guys didn't want any brave ones on patrol with you weren't you that's simple enough in my book bravery rhymed with stupid and it still does number seven Thomas Edison's Monopoly I'm working on something now or something so new that people who forget my name is ever associated with electricity Hollywood as we know it today might look very different were it not for Thomas Edison indeed the inventor was responsible for developing the first film studio in the late 1800s named The Black Mariah he also invented and patented lots of movie making equipment like the motion picture camera the first Motion Picture entertainment device was a genius contraption that allowed you to see a loop of film a very short Loop importantly this all took place in New Jersey and New York where he eventually assisted in establishing the motion picture patents company with that he got himself a monopoly in a bid to get away from it his intimidation tactics and his Infamous litigiousness numerous filmmakers reportedly moved out to California Edison's Monopoly essentially ended after the United States versus the motion picture patents company court case in 1915 though la Remains The industry's Home Base number six child labor he won't mind you're going on a little trip with me where just to Frankfurt you can come back whenever you like I don't want to go to Frank you would do as I say it could be difficult to reconcile the affection we feel for adorable young actors with Hollywood's historically horrible child labor record the city thrives on child labor a lot of people make money that way The Adams Family actor Jackie Coogan was notoriously robbed of his earnings by his parents leading to the California child actors bill of 1939. Elsewhere directors and others reportedly went to cruel lengths getting young performers to cry on camera many even resorted to punishment when someone was perceived to be wasting time the Black Box a cramped space with only a block of ice as a seat was one example of this finally it wasn't unheard of for Productions to make Youth Work insanely long hours something that's Unthinkable today [Music] number five award show racism the lack of diverse representation at Hollywood award shows is an issue that remains today and while there's a lot that still needs to be done the industry has come a long way but I didn't fetch you here on Miss Carl's account what that child got to stand in 1940 Hattie McDaniel became the first black person to be awarded an Oscar which marked a historic moment yet before the ceremony there was a real worry that the actress wouldn't be allowed to attend in the end she was cruelly seated separately from Vivian Lee and the rest of her Gone With the Wind co-stars it ain't fitting it just ain't fitting McDaniel showed great courage amid the racism and Prejudice she faced and gave a deeply stirring speech when she was named best supporting actress but the journey for her and many others was very difficult you don't like me Mammy now don't you argue with me you don't you really don't number four pre-code Hollywood the enforcement of morality can be a slippery slope and it's easy to fall backwards with regards to cultural sensitivity and representation welcome to the of Los Angeles pre-code Hollywood refers to a time between the mid late 20s until 1934 before films faced the strict enforcement of morality policies outlined in the haze code these policies were put in place in part to clean up Hollywood's perceived reputation as an immoral Babylon as a result filmmakers were required to skirt around issues of intimacy and substance use via innuendo this could notably be seen in the film Noir movement of the 40s and 50s did you do that for been wondering whether I'd like it what's the decision not yet however pre-code films were often Rife with anti-heroes strong female leads and plenty of romantic Liaisons film lovers just need to seek them out listen little and this business is only one lawyer you gotta follow to keep out of trouble do it first and keep on doing it number three incentivized substance use we've discussed how poorly child actors were often treated within the old school Hollywood System unfortunately emotional manipulation and long work days were not the only hurdles they faced what's happening what is it I can't run anymore I'm so sleepy here give us your hands and we'll pull you along Studios reportedly often incentivized substance use among their most popular young Stars such as Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney the idea was apparently that time is money so Studios would Dole out uppers to make hours upon hours of work possible and downers and or sedatives when the time came to sleep oh tell me could you use me time is also precious however and too little of it was spent considering the dependencies these vulnerable actors would develop as they grew up and the often tragic consequences you have to have Ambitions right well I used to have them I found they gave me the most terrible headache number two morality Clauses the 2016 Coen Brothers movie hail Caesar does a great job at satirizing the backdoor dealings of Hollywood's Golden Age specifically it expertly separates the artifice we mentioned earlier with the very real behind the scenes drama how you listen to me buster Nick skank in the studio been good to you and to everyone else who works here if I ever hear you bad mounting Mr skank again it'll be the last thing you said before I have you tossed in jail for colluding in your own abduction Studios would often sign their actors to morality Clauses that intensely governed their public personas Hollywood and the Press reportedly collaborated often on Star Stories while fixers like Eddie Mannix would try to put the kibosh on certain scandals marriage doesn't have to last forever but at the end of having a child without a father would present a public relations problem for the studio The Aquatic pictures do very nicely for us so you go and strap on a fish ass and Mariani sayslin a pregnancy like the one Scarlett Johansson's character experiences in hail Caesar for example would likely have been handled with a hush-hush abortion this was all to protect the Studio's investments in the perceived quote-unquote purity of their biggest stars would the twist with the twists before we continue be sure to subscribe to our Channel and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos you have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them if you're on your phone make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications number one the casting couch you see that man that's Max Fabian the producer now go and do yourself some good why do they always look like a nappy rabbits because that's what they are a go and make him happy the practice of having to exchange intimate so-called favors for career advancement doesn't solely exist within the realm of moving pictures however Casting Couch practices have been dogging the film industry since the days of old Hollywood with seemingly never-ending stories about predatory behavior is scene supposed to go so I'll make your text phrase even shows up in a 1924 stag film of the same name the casting couch plays this Behavior up for the prurient interest as well as for laughs but there's absolutely nothing funny about how many actors have been victims of these exploitative tactics the times up organization has brought more attention to harassment and assault within the industry in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein Scandal but it remains an active talking point just think it was some big shot like a casting director or something I'd be staring into your Bridge work saying yes Mr smear case no Mr Smith case not really Mr smear case oh Mr smear case that's my knee do you agree with our picks check out this other recent clip from Ms Mojo and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos [Music]

Channel: MsMojo

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Keywords: Film, History, Movies, award shows, best movies, child labor, contract pressure, dark truths, dark truths about old hollywood, hollywood, incentivized substance use, list, mojo, morality clauses, msmojo, old hollywood, old hollywood controversies, old hollywood dark truths, old hollywood scandals, pre-code hollywood, pressures of beauty, spying, the casting couch, thomas edison, top 10, watch mojo, watchMojo

Id: py2CjTFlxk8

Length: 12min 32sec (752 seconds)

Published: Fri Mar 17 2023