Classic Hollywood Stars Who Were Terribly Racist Off-Camera

Did you know that Henry Fonda refused to talk to James Stewart for several years after the latter ratted out several Hollywood communists to J. Edgar Hoover during the industry’s Second Red Scare and that an exhibit honoring John Wayne has been removed from the University of Southern California due to the actor’s flagrant racism? While most classic films trick audiences into thinking that Old Hollywood was squeaky clean under its surface, this certainly wasn’t the case! There were plenty of classic Hollywood stars that held some decidedly racist values.

▬Contents of this video▬
00:00 - Intro
00:24 - James Stewart
03:15 - William Frawley
05:09 - John Wayne
07:06 - Walter Brennan
08:00 - Outro

Some of the most racist stars from Old Hollywood include James Stewart and John Wayne. James Stewart may have been a nice guy in the eyes of his coworkers and most of the audience, but the actor was accused of racism by an African-American actor working on the set of one of his films. It seems that James held some backward value from his small-town upbringing, and these caused the actor to become fairly xenophobic later on in life. Besides his racism, this xenophobia was also exemplified in the fact that James helped rat out Hollywood communists to J. Edgar Hoover.

While James Stewart’s legacy hasn’t been affected much by tales of the actor’s racism, John Wayne’s has. John Wayne gave an extremely racist interview to Playboy magazine in 1971, and this interview directly resulted in the actor’s name being removed from an exhibit at the University of Southern California. Join Facts Verse as we take a look at classic Hollywood stars that were terribly racist off-camera.

Classic Hollywood Stars Who Were Terribly Racist Off-Camera

[dwaynebaird]

Im not surprised by any of it. Im never surprised to find out someone is racist.

[THEVOIDZ]

I'm pretty sure no one in the world has ever thought old Hollywood as "squeaky-clean".

[williampetersen]

For rhe record, Desi Arnaz didn't have to "demand" that William Frawley play Fred. He had complete creative control and could cast anyone he wanted.

[lillianjenkins]

anyone taking joy from Dr.King's death really sickens me

[daveides]

The piece on James Stewart basically calls him a racist because one actor apparently thought he did something racist (no specifics on what) on the set of one movie. That’s pretty thin to put it mildly. He was very Conservative- and proudly so - and Henry Fonda was a lifelong friend despite being very Liberal and proudly so. They both said the secret was that they didn’t talk politics. So I think you need a lot more evidence to claim all this about James Stewart.

[njkocher]

James Stewart grew up in Indiana, Pennsylvania and not a “Small town in Indiana” as stated in your video. Isn’t your site named Facts Verse? I wonder what else you have incorrect in your video if you can’t get that basic fact, which is pretty easy to find, accurate.

[gkennedy]

Lew Wasserman was Jimmy Stewart's agent for decades. Stewart was raised in Pennsylvania not Indiana. Stewart objected to the "uncle remis"-ish costume that was assigned to Woody Strobe (verbatim from one of his interviews). Stewart did not rat out Hollywood Communists to Hoover.

James M. Stewart entered the Army as a Private and retired as a Brigadier General. He founded several companies (NetJets, for one) and worked for conservation and environmental causes.

You really need to do some homework before tarnishing someone's good name.

[davidkruyer]

I WAS A LONDON TAXI DRIVER AND PICKED UP James Stewart one day from the Savoy hotel and took him to the connaught hotel and I am Jewish but he was a gentleman and asked me to join him for drinks in the hotel one of the nicest people I have ever met

[alexbowman]

James Stewart was offered to serve in WW2 as an actor in propaganda movies. He denied this and volunteered to serve as a bomber officer flying over Germany. This was a very dangerous job.

[rickysdadl]

What an asinine concept, call people racist when they can't defend themselves. The word racist means nothing today, they all over use it.

[warrenoleary]

If only the term racist & its punishment were ever applied equally all demographics.

[kenshiloh]

Instead of giving commentary about what these actors supposedly said, why not quote them directly? Good journalism uses quotes, not generalities and speculations.

[polloloco]

FACTS know, I'm pretty sure that all these actors are spinning in their graves non stop realizing they offended you enough to talk about them after they are dead. Of course, people at FACTS VERSE have never done anything wrong to the extent that they report on themselves....oh no, heaven forbid.

[johnminehan]

Frawley, for whatever intolerance he may have displayed (and, since he was remembered as a moody, irascible drunk, it might have been a great deal) had Desi Arnaz (a man he greatly admired) as a pallbearer. Most people aren't prejudiced against their friends (which might be a start).

[nicholasschroeder]

I once laughed at a racist joke someone told. I didn't know it was racist, but someone schooled me in no uncertain terms that it was, and that me laughing was hurtful. I apologized and learned something. Now if I become famous, 70 years from now someone will recall that I laughed at a joke and condemn me.

[altonbunnjr]

BTW Jimmy Stewart was born in Pennsylvania not Indiana. The town was named Indiana.

[rackyjaeckel]

It is cowardly and a cheep shot to attack people who are dead and cannot fight back.

[robertjames-life]

Another “Facts Verse” that is full of BS. They took Wayne’s comments completely out of context.

[dennispullen]

YouTube stories such as this one is full of inaccuracies just like the reaction videos when most of the people who are doing them don't have a clue

[malbourne]

Not defending John Wayne, but a few points:

- He once borrowed his Rio Bravo hat (which was actually his own personal property) to Sammy Davis Jr. for a Western Davis was doing and posed for a pic with him.

- He acted alongside Sidney Poitier in THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD (JW played the centurion at Jesus' feet who uttered the words "truly this was the son of God"). Reportedly, the two got along well.

- Woody Strode co-starred with Wayne AND Jimmy Stewart in THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE, and while he couldn't stand the best bone in Stewart, he and Wayne got along well.

- Roscoe Lee Browne co-starred with Wayne in THE COWBOYS (1972), and said that he and Wayne had alot of respect for each other and that he never got any racist vibes from Wayne at that time.

- Wayne himself destested Walter Brennan so much that Wayne once said that he used to think of himself as a Liberal as compared to Brennan's strong Conservative leaning because - according to Wayne - Brennan was filled with pure hatred for anyone with skin darker than his own.

You have to remember the times these guys were raised. Sure, Clark Gable grew up in their time as well, but he fought against racism to the point where he threatened to walk off the GONE WITH THE WIND set if the Black actors were mistreated. Hattie McDaniels was also his friend, and she was the one who persuaded him to attend the screening of GWTW after he threatened to boycott the screening after he found out that the cinema wouldn't let her attend. I don't thing John Wayne was racist in the way we know it now. Many of these guys would utter racial epithets because it was part of their upbringing, but some of them were not racist. Like I said, I'm not defending them, just saying what I think, and telling what I heard from people who were associated with some of them. And in case you're wondering, yes, I'm a Black man.