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36 Famous People Who Did Evil Things In The Past, But The World Sort Of Ignored It
Fame can distort reality to a massive extent. When somebody becomes a globally beloved singer, actor, athlete, or artist, some of their fans might start ignoring all the messed up, unethical things they’ve done in the past.
In a thread on AskReddit, u/aesthetic3 urged everyone to share which celebrities have done unspeakable things that the rest of the world kind of ‘forgot’ about after they became famous. Scroll down for a peek behind the scenes, into the dark recesses of these stars’ lives.
A note of warning: many of the topics here can be very triggering and disturbing.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Gwyneth Paltrow
Shes a con artist and manages a MLM, as well as recommending women treat their illness by putting rocks up their V****a and steaming their privates causing harm to people.
You can say shes an idiot.
Or just that shes a sociopath that loves making money off hurting other people.
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#2
George Wallace—the infamous pro-segregation Governor of Alabama in the 60s—did not inform his wife that her doctor diagnosed her with cancer (doctors during this time often told patient’s relatives of their cancer diagnosis instead of the patient, especially if the patient was female). The reason was that she was running for governor as a surrogate for him since he had reached his term limits and he thought that the diagnosis would negatively affect her chances of winning. She ended up finding out about it 4 years later during a visit to a gynecologist, but unfortunately the cancer had progressed to the point that she died from it 3 years after learning that she had cancer and that her husband had known about it.
He ended up successfully getting the term limits repealed and went on to serve a few more terms as governor. People forget about this, I’m assuming, because of all of the other s****y things he did.
Edit: Her name was Lurleen Wallace, for those interested.
#3
Chris brown.
He beat the daylights out of Rhianna and everyone made that excuse that "she had a bad mouth", or "he was young and needs time to grow". People still make music with him now even though he's been caught stalking the mother of his child and allegations of abuse.
But the guy still has a thriving career.
ynyrhydref56 3 weeks ago
At the time he was certainly condemned in the media. But somehow his career has recovered.
While people can change for the better and make amends for their past misdeeds, it would be naive to take their apologies at face value. Sometimes, it’s all for show. And this can be dangerous. According to one recent paper, there are moral dangers associated with celebrity apologies.
According to the author of the paper, there are are few main lessons to learn about celebrity apologies. “First, we should not trust celebrity apologies so easily. Second, even a good celebrity apology can still further harm victims,” they said.
“Third, celebrities should be wary of placing too much importance on their fame, as doing so can block their moral redemption.”
The last lesson, according to the author, is that prioritizing maintaining one’s fame is a moral danger that can stop celebrities from achieving actual moral redemption. This, in turn, makes celebs more likely to exacerbate two other moral dangers: setting the narrative in a way that’s favorable for them and using narrative disempowerment on the victims.
#4
Jenny McCarthy helping to push the anti vaccination movement.
iseefractals 3 weeks ago
Can't mention McCarthy without acknowledging the dumpster fire that is OPRAH. McCarthy had been singing that song for years and largely, no one paid attention. Once Oprah put her in front of her audience, that's when the dumb really kicked into high gear. Oprah is also responsible for Dr.Phil, Dr.oz and legitimizing numerous fad diets.
#5
Beyonce Knowles Carter.
She preaches empowerment and is lauded for it, but behind the scenes utilizes sweatshop labor that pays 54 cents an hour.
https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2017/02/04/beyonce-clothing-line-sweatshop/.
#6
Piers Morgan
Was the Editor of the Daily Mirror during the Iraq War,
Published photos that he knew were fake of American and British Troops abusing Iraqi prisoners.
He was fired but somehow managed to make a successful media career out of it.
Fame, power, beauty, money, and influence can massively change the public’s opinion in your favor. Suddenly, the evil, unethical, dubious things you’ve done in the past might not matter to society as much because here you are, seemingly adored and celebrated by all.
That’s one of the dangers of the so-called Halo Effect. This is a cognitive bias where people have positive initial impressions about a person based on a single attribute. For instance, human beings tend to think that someone who is beautiful is also virtuous, ethical, smart, kind, skilled, capable, etc. When, in fact, this might not necessarily be the case.
According to Verywell Mind, one of the ways that the Halo Effect is used in, for example, marketing, is to sell products and services. “When a celebrity spokesperson endorses a particular item, our positive evaluations of that individual can spread to our perceptions of the product itself.”
The Halo Effect can be felt in other areas, too, like education and the workplace. Someone who’s seen as warm, positive, friendly, attractive, etc., can be perceived as more knowledgeable, intelligent, competent, qualified, and skilled.
#7
I guess noones really forgotten, but Roman Polanski's still getting awards and standing ovations for his films.
Nathaniel He/Him Cis-Het 3 weeks ago (edited)
It amazes me how many actors will still work with him. Same with Woody Allen.
#8
Here's a list I compiled earlier this year:
Jimmy Page was 26 when he started calling 14 year old Lori Maddox his girlfriend.
Mick Jagger had a few rounds with Maddox around the same time.
Also of the rolling Stones, Bill Wyman started dating 13 year old Mandy Smith when he was 47. He got her mother's permission.
Jerry Lee Lewis of course married his 13 year old cousin - she still believed in Santa on their honeymoon.
Elvis Presley, the king of rock and roll himself was routinely in trouble with underage girls and even the fabled romance with Priscilla is a tale of sexual interference... She was 14 when they met.
Courtney Love says she gave Ted Nugent a b*****b when she was 12. He also adopted a 17 year old so he could bang her without getting charged with kidnapping. He even wrote a song about avoiding p********a charges.
Anthony Kiedis (red hot chili peppers) wrote songs about it too, "Catholic school girls rule" is about his hooking up with a 14 year old at 23.
Marvin Gaye knocked up his wife's 15 year old niece.
Don Henley (the Eagles) was charged after paramedics found him with two naked girls, aged 15 and 16.
Diane Tucker 3 weeks ago
Let's face it: the sexual revolution of the 1960's was for men. So they could have consequence-free s*x with whoever they wanted to and feel just fine about it. A whole generation of men at that time came to see this as entirely normal and desirable and raised their sons the same way. I grew up as a girl in the 1970s and much popular culture constantly exhorted girls to be s**y by our preteen years. It was the adult, modern way to live, we were told. It's only in the last thirty years or so that we've begun to reap the harvest of the lies woven into that culture.
#9
Logan Paul going to the s*****e forest in Japan and laughing at a dead guy hanging in the tree while showing the corpse.
Despite the distorting effects of fame, when you’re well-known, you can never truly run away from your past. Potentially, there’s always room for genuine redemption and regret, sure. And people do sometimes change for the better, making amends. However, in this day and age, with the entire world’s information at your fingertips, public figures find it harder than ever to hide any proverbial skeletons in their closets.
Someone who is dedicated to uncovering the truth can find hints about a celebrity’s dark past online, in the news, and on social media. Fans should try to have a nuanced, full picture of their favorite stars' lives. They shouldn’t ignore the awful things they’ve done simply because they like their work. Shutting your eyes to the truth is unhealthy.
#10
Caitlin Jenner caused a car crash that killed Kim Howe.
Ann Kapoxeet 3 weeks ago
She should be canceled for her part in creating the Kardashian trainwreck.
#11
Jerry Seinfeld dated a 17 year old girl in highschool, when he was 39 years old.
Edit : I know it isn't illegal. He had money, fame, and was at the height of his show. And he chooses to date a 17 year old who is still in highschool ? It might not be illegal and as bad as murder/r**e/kidnapping/etc. , but it's still pretty scummy.
#12
Mark Wahlberg beat and blinded a Vietnamese guy just because he was Vietnamese.
Souljacker 3 weeks ago
He also said he would have stopped one of the 9/11 planes had be been a passenger because, you know, he's that much of a tough guy.
What celebrities and public figures do you think have behaved in ways that you think are beyond redemption? On the other hand, do you think there are any stars out there who have genuinely changed and made amends for their dark pasts?
What celebs have fallen from grace in your eyes? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
#13
John Lennon beat his wife.
#14
Coco Chanel was a n**i. Tila Tequila is a n**i.
Savahax 3 weeks ago (edited)
Coco Chanel collaborated with Nazis: Recruited as an agent (codename "Westminster") for German military intelligence. She leveraged relationships, including romantic ties with a Nazi officer, Hans Günther von Dincklage, to advance Nazi agendas, including espionage operations like Operation Modellhut. She wanted to de-Jew her company but they kept it anyway
#15
Jimmy Savile.
For those unaware, huge TV and radio star in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Still popped up now and again until he died in 2011.
After he died, massive allegations about him came out, the vast majority of which were proven to be true - abused and r***d multiple children (both sexes, many ages) while working on TV shows, etc, but also was known as a "charity man" who did actually raise millions for children's hospitals, etc but it was just a cover to gain access. He even had keys and an official advisory position at Broadmoor, a high security psychiatric hospital in the UK, which allowed him to abuse and r**e patients at will. Unproven, but he's also had connections with children's homes were kids "went missing", quite possibly m******d.
What is staggering about this is that it was "known" and often talked about while he was alive. He even makes admissions in his autobiographies, people took him to task over it, he was even questioned by police multiple times, but he managed to get away with it.
Still astounding looking back, and there were massive investigations into everything from the BBC to the NHS after he died.
Hippopotamuses 3 weeks ago
... and Johnny Rotten (Aka. John Lydon) warned everyone about him in 1978, and got banned by the BBC for it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Lydon
#16
R Kelly married Aaliyah when she was 15 years old in the mid 90's and yet it took like two decades for people to start boycotting him as a sexual predator. He was still making songs with beyonce and lady gaga etc for a looooong time.
Scott Rackley 3 weeks ago
He's boo hooing in prison right now that some other inmates want to hurt him. Yeah dude, that's what happens to pedophiles in prison. I'm surprised they haven't got him yet.
#17
Jared Leto’s been accused of r**e by half-a-dozen 13-15 years old girls.
#18
There's a soccer player in Brazil who k**led his wife, quartered her body and gave it to dogs eat (to make it harder to police found out). He went to jail for a few years and now he is paying again and making tones of money again like nothing happened.
EDIT: ok he is not making a tone of money, what a meant is that he's probably gonna have a pretty confortable life and have his carrer back
also the woman wasn't his wife, it was his mistress but they have a children together and still, she was a person
his name is Bruno Fernandes de Souza.
#19
Charlie sheen once had unprotected s*x with his girlfriends (plural) when he has HIV.
#20
Floyd Mayweather beats his wife with hands that are registered as lethal weapons in front of his children. But because he wins nobody cares.
#21
Kurt Cobain's mother regularly goes on talk shows and interviews where she talks about how supportive she was of Kurt and how she new how famous he would become from the moment she heard his music. Yup, it's the same mom that abused Kurt and kicked him out multiple times making him live at his grandparents, friends and sometimes (not confirmed)sleep under a bridge.
#22
Steven Tyler became the guardian for a 16 year old he was dating when he was 25 so he could bring her on tour...knocked her up too.
#23
In my country there is a TV host that k**led several people in a car accident. TWICE. It was his fault both times. You can still see him on TV.
#24
I mean it seems to most that Drake is actively grooming young girls but it seems to be forgotten as soon as new evidence surfaces.
Joey Jo Jo Shabadoo 3 weeks ago
Dude. Kendrick Lamar rapped about it at the Super Bowl. Nobodys forgotten about it
#25
Chris brown. Probably one of the biggest pieces of s**t out there in the celebrity world and still somehow has a career after the things he’s done. It blows my mind how so many people still support this guy.
#26
Emma Roberts beat the s**t out of her then boyfriend Evan Peters, then continued to co-star in the same show as him.
Savahax 3 weeks ago
Oh yeah it can go the other way around. I have been struck by women too. Twice. Once by an ex, we broke up during a holiday, and on the way back she saw a girl flirting with me, and got jealous. I said the exact wrong words on purpose and she swung a bag at me. And in a pub, I made an offensive joke. Some drunk chick overheard me and "punched" (more pushed) me in the face. I never struck back. I don't know what it would take for me to hit a woman
#27
Johnny Cash walked out on his wife and kids saying that his career was more important to him than they were, then went on to eventually settle down with June Carter and start a whole new family while still ignoring the kids he already had.
Anony Mouse 3 weeks ago
Paul Newman did the same thing to his first wife, but everyone ignores that.
#28
Karl malone got a 13 yr old pregnant and refused to take care of that child.
#29
There was that time James Franco tried to f**k a teenager. After she posted the exchange on social media of her telling him how old she was and him not caring and still wanting to see her, all he had to do was go on a few morning talk shows a couple days later and say, "You don't always know who you're talking to online," and everyone instantly forgot about it. He framed it like he was the one who was deceived and people just let it slide even though that clearly wasn't the case.
Wintermute 3 weeks ago
He's effectively blacklisted from a lot of Hollywood. Not everyone has let it slide.
#30
Boy George
He beat a guy with a metal chain after cuffing him to a radiator. Should make for an interesting sequence in his forthcoming biopic...
veirdbuttrue 3 weeks ago
Watching him and that awful blond woman that he used to stay with on RHOBH was enough to put me off him for life. And RHOBH for that matter
#31
Salman Khan, a very famous Indian actor. (Edit, It's not the guy from Khan Academy)
He killed someone by driving his car over them. I forget the specifics, but he drove his car over one or more people who where sleeping on the side of the road, killing at least one of them.
He carried on with his acting career and on Indian TV because he is famous.
He ran over 4 people, killing one of them.
He was later found guilty, 13 years after the incident, then appealed and the was cleared and charges quashed.
You can read more here:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/10/bollywood-star-salman-khan-cleared-over-hit-and-run-death
Hippopotamuses 3 weeks ago
I have worked with a group of expat Indians for several years. One of the reasons which they give for emigrating is rampant corruption.
#32
Vince Neil was driving drunk and caused a crash that killed his passenger.
Gavin Johnson 3 weeks ago
His passenger was Razzle, drummer in Hanoi Rocks, his star was on the rise when his life was taken. There were two people in the car he hit and they both suffered injuries, one had permanent brain damage. Neil did 17 days of a 30 day sentence and 5 years probation. He also paid $2.5m, his net worth now stands at around $50m. Utter s*****g.
#33
Charlie Chaplin and Edgar Allan Poe both had s*x with and married underage girls. Both are considered icons and pioneers in their fields.
Max Blancke 3 weeks ago
Things were different in the 1830s. My Grandmother married at 13, and they were happy all of their lives.
#34
Jim Carrey allegedly gave his ex partner 3 STDS and then broke up with her. She committed s*****e because she couldn't ever see herself being with anyone or happy with herself as she was now stuck with these diseases for life. Her family filed a wrongful death suit against him and last year Jim was cleared on the charges because the 2011 STD test stating the gf was clean before dating Jim was "forged" meaning she had apparently contracted the diseases before meeting him. Not sure what to believe here tho. He paid her off in 2013 because she was blackmailing him saying she would go to the press, but he apparently regretted doing that. Quite a sad story, whatever the truth may be.
#35
Matthew Broderick k**led two women in a car accident caused by gross negligence by driving on the wrong side of the road in Ireland in 1987 and got off with a $175 fine.
What do you think ?
Ellinor 3 weeks ago
I'm always so happy when I see lists like that and I don't see anyone I'm a fan of !
Savahax 3 weeks ago
Preach. Although Bowie should've been on this. He also had a scandal with a minor 😬
Load More Replies...
Power puff scientist 3 weeks ago
basically the conclusion is if you are rich enough you can get away with almost anything.
Fuhleeheece 3 weeks ago
The saying is "You get the justice you can pay for."
Load More Replies... Ellinor 3 weeks ago
I'm always so happy when I see lists like that and I don't see anyone I'm a fan of !
Savahax 3 weeks ago
Preach. Although Bowie should've been on this. He also had a scandal with a minor 😬
Load More Replies... Power puff scientist 3 weeks ago
basically the conclusion is if you are rich enough you can get away with almost anything.
Fuhleeheece 3 weeks ago
The saying is "You get the justice you can pay for."
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