Joan Crawford was an Oscar-winning actress and bombshell businesswoman — but she also took pride in sleeping her way to the top!
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From directors to co-stars, the legendary actress was willing to use her body to curry favor with anyone who could advance her career. A veritable "Who’s Who" of Hollywood — including
John Wayne,
Yul Brynner,
Kirk Douglas and even “Our Gang” star
Jackie Cooper — fell into her bed!
Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images
Accused of launching her Oscar-winning career via the infamous “casting couch,” Crawford once bragged, “It sure beat the cold, hard floor.” She began her string of sexual conquests in her hometown of San Antonio, “entertaining boys from the local high school football team — and demanding money for her services,” a source said.
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After arriving in Hollywood seeking fame, she resorted to pornographic “stag” films and prostitution to pay the rent — and was even arrested for selling her body! “Joan was no angel, not by a long shot!” said one Hollywood veteran. “She did anything she could do to get her way — or her man or lady!”
Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images
But not all her leading men fell under her charms. While making 1937’s “Mannequin” with
Spencer Tracy, she managed to
bed the bisexual actor — but, Joan recalled, “he did cute things like stepping on my toes when we were doing a love scene after he chewed on some garlic.”
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Crawford finally ended her marriage to Tone in 1939 — after finding him in bed with another woman. In 1942, she married Phillip Terry, but divorced him “out of boredom” four years later. Her string of conquests continued — among them
Rock Hudson, who was then
hiding his homosexuality from the public, but was already
known in Hollywood to be gay!Photo credit: Getty Images
One night she convinced Rock — who would
later die from AIDS in 1985 — to swim naked with her in her pool. Afterwards, Rock entered the shower in her pool house when suddenly the lights went out. Crawford was soon nuzzling her naked form against him, purring, “Close your eyes and pretend I’m
Clark Gable.” Sources say her suggestion worked, too!
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Another time, Crawford invited a struggling actress named
Marilyn Monroe to dinner, handed her an expensive black cocktail dress, and said, “Take off your things and try it on.” In a Hollywood twist, though, Marilyn wasn't as interested as Joan, leading to
a vicious feud that only
ended with Marilyn's death.Photo credit: Getty Images
Sadly, the closest Crawford came to lasting love was her off-and-on fling with Gable. An insider recalled, “She fell on him like a sex-starved bird of prey.” They made eight films over the years, allowing them to constantly renew their sizzling chemistry both on and off the screen.
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Eventually, Crawford’s sordid past came back to haunt her. She was threatened with blackmail over an early porno movie, but had MGM Studios to pay $100,000 to make the threat go away. Her fourth and final marriage in 1956 was to Pepsi tycoon Al Steele.
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Steele was found dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs in 1959 — amid speculation that he was murdered by Joan. “Joan Crawford wasn’t the first Hollywood actress to trade sex for stardom,” points out David Bret, author of “Joan Crawford, Hollywood Martyr.” “But few have matched her for her ruthlessness!”
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