In the golden age of Hollywood, abortions were not just a taboo topic, but also a common practice.
Unlike today's political climate that seeks to restrict women's access to abortion, Old Hollywood saw this procedure as routine and readily available.
So how did something so controversial and illegal at the time become so normalized among the Hollywood elite?
Similar to today, decisions about women's bodies in Old Hollywood were made with the interests of powerful men in mind.
The heads of major motion picture studios like MGM, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., and RKO held significant influence over the lives and careers of actresses.
As Aubrey Malone notes in Hollywood's Second s**: The Treatment of Women in the Film Industry, 1900-1999, conforming to male standards was crucial for survival in the industry.
Being a woman was something better left unmentioned.
From the early days of American cinema, abortions became essential for actresses in the spotlight.
Birth control, including contraception, was as new as the rising “stars” themselves.
These movie performers went from being ordinary individuals to overnight sensations, earning titles like “America's Sweetheart” or “s** Goddess.”
As Anne Helen Petersen explores in Scandals of Classic Hollywood, these newly wealthy men and women found themselves navigating a world of excess and indulgence.
With newfound financial freedom, they could spend their earnings however they pleased.
Women, who were previously confined to domestic roles, now had the opportunity to earn large incomes and challenge men professionally.
This shift naturally led to sparks flying.
To protect the value of their stars from scandalous behavior, studios implemented measures to maintain their image.
In 1922, Will H. Hays collaborated with studios to introduce “morality clauses” into actors' contracts.
These clauses ensured that any unintended pregnancies would not only bring shame upon the actors but also violate studio policy.
Cari Beauchamp's book, Without Lying Down, reveals that there was a common assumption that glamorous stars would lose popularity if they had children.
These morality clauses may have even extended to an actress's right to marry.
According to Petersen, rumors circulated that Jean Harlow, the iconic “Blonde Bombshell,” couldn't marry William Powell due to a clause in her contract forbidding her from doing so.
After Harlow became pregnant from her affair, she found herself in a panic and sought out the help of Howard Strickling, the head of publicity at MGM.
She entered Good Shepherd Hospital under the name “Mrs. Jean Carpenter” for what appeared to be an appendectomy, just as she had done the year before.
Throughout the 1930s, actress Tallulah Bankhead, known for her vampish and man-eating roles, received abortions just as commonly as other women got permanent waves, according to biographer Lee Israel in Miss Tallulah Bankhead.
Even virtuous singing sensation Jeanette MacDonald was not exempt.
When she found herself pregnant in 1935, Louis B. Mayer, the head of MGM, instructed Strickling to “get rid of the problem.”
Soon after, MacDonald checked into a hospital for what was officially noted as an “ear infection.”
Some of these silent film s** symbols either succumbed to their own hedonistic lifestyles, faded from the limelight, or burned out.
Actresses like Theda Bara and Clara Bow fell victim to these circumstances.
However, stars like Joan Crawford persevered.
Kenneth Anger describes Crawford as a fearless woman who rose above her impoverished background, surviving the transition from silent films to talkies and the Great Depression unscathed.
Crawford knew where she came from and was determined never to return.
In 1931, Joan Crawford, estranged from her husband Douglas Fairbanks Jr., discovered she was pregnant and believed the child to be Clark Gable's.
Strickling arranged for an abortion, and Crawford chose to deceive Fairbanks by claiming she lost the baby after slipping on the deck of a ship during the filming of Rain on Catalina Island.
The history of abortions in Old Hollywood reveals a dark secret that intertwines power dynamics, studio control, and the desire to maintain a pristine public image.
While today's society grapples with debates over women's reproductive rights, it is important to remember the past and how attitudes towards abortions have evolved over time.
