Tragic Hollywood Starlets: 11 Leading Ladies Who Hid Their Secret Past

In today’s entertainment industry, we’re constantly bombarded with headlines about the famous faces we adore seeing on our screens. From scandalous secrets to heartwarming stories, there isn’t much that celebrities can keep hidden from the public eye anymore. But back when Hollywood was just getting started with silent films and big budget pictures, stars were able to keep at least a few things private. Though there were also plenty of infamous gossip writers, they tended to work with the performers rather than expose them. That’s why it’s so shocking to see how many of the beautiful ladies below were concealing some tragic moments in their lives. Over the years, since the height of their fame, historians have uncovered the heartbreaking truth behind some of the world’s most captivating and iconic women. 1. Judy Garland Wikimedia Commons The legendary and multi-talented performer was deemed an “ugly duckling” when she arrived in Hollywood at the age of 13, forced to wear caps on her teeth and plastic disks to change the shape of her nose. MGM Studio founder Louis B. Mayer would frequently refer to her as “little hunchback.” 2. Hedy Lamarr Wikimedia Commons After becoming a successful actress in Germany, Lamarr’s native country, her first husband became so possessive that he essentially kept her prisoner in their home. She finally escaped by disguising herself as their maid and fleeing to Paris. 3. Ginger Rogers Wikimedia Commons Fred Astaire’s iconic dance partner was kidnapped by her own father twice as an infant, after her parents separated a few months before her birth. She never saw him again the rest of her life. 4. Dorothy Dandridge Flickr / classic movie scans Her daughter was born with severe brain damage and ultimately had to be placed in a mental institution. After a long affair with director Otto Preminger ended with him refusing to leave his wife, she discovered those in charge of her finances had stolen $150,000 and left her in debt, owing $139,000 in back taxes. 5. Mary Pickford Wikimedia Commons As half of the original Hollywood power couple with Douglas Fairbanks, Pickford’s life was frequently overshadowed by issues with alcohol, which began when her father abandoned the family before dying of a blood clot. She also suffered from domestic abuse by her first husband when he drank and became jealous of her career becoming more successful than his own. 6. Carmen Miranda Wikimedia Commons Her devoted mother supported her career, but when her father found out about Miranda going on her first audition, he took his disapproval out on her mom with physical abuse. 7. Joan Crawford Wikimedia Commons Her father abandoned the family just months before she was born — something she didn’t realize until her brother confessed that her stepdad wasn’t her biological father. She also endured a serious leg injury that kept her out of school for over a year. 8. Clara Bow Wikimedia Commons The original “It Girl” grew up caring for her mother throughout childhood and dealing with her bouts of “psychosis due to epilepsy,” waking up one morning with her mother holding a knife to her throat. 9. Ingrid Bergman Wikimedia Commons She lost her mother at just two years old, followed by her father when she was 13. Bergman was sent to live with an aunt, who also passed away after just six months later. 10. Hattie McDaniel Wikimedia Commons The Academy Award-winning Gone With the Wind actress had awful luck when it came to love, losing her first two husbands and being treated cruelly by two others, one of them actually threatening to kill her. She also became severely depressed after suffering a “false pregnancy” and never had children. 11. Jayne Mansfield Wikimedia Commons She lost her father at 3 years old, who suffered from a heart attack while driving with Mansfield and her sister in the car — an eerie premonition for her own death in a horrific automobile accident with her children in the backseat. Did we miss your favorite starlet’s tragic secret? Leave a comment and SHARE their heartbreaking stories with your friends! (Source: Little Things) Related: Old Hollywood’s Dirty Secrets Forgotten Hollywood Scandals