Difference between revisions of "Confidential Magazine"
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* Actor [[Errol Flynn]] had a two-way mirror on a ceiling installed so that he could watch his guests sleep and make love. Flynn filed a multi-million dollar libel lawsuit against the magazine for publishing this story. Later, after Flynn had died, his widow admitted the story was true when she sold the home.<ref>"Errol Flynn's 1m Funhouse", Evening Standard, Jan 12, 1978, Page 13 | https://www.newspapers.com/image/721841963/</ref> | * Actor [[Errol Flynn]] had a two-way mirror on a ceiling installed so that he could watch his guests sleep and make love. Flynn filed a multi-million dollar libel lawsuit against the magazine for publishing this story. Later, after Flynn had died, his widow admitted the story was true when she sold the home.<ref>"Errol Flynn's 1m Funhouse", Evening Standard, Jan 12, 1978, Page 13 | https://www.newspapers.com/image/721841963/</ref> | ||
| − | The magazine's most notorious period was from 1954-1958, when the publication was sued for [[criminal libel]] by the Los Angeles District Attorney [[ | + | The magazine's most notorious period was from 1954-1958, when the publication was sued for [[criminal libel]] by the Los Angeles District Attorney and the then-California Attorney General [[Pat Brown]], who then ran for and became [[Governor]] of [[California]]. The trial was ultimately a mistrial, and featured testimony against Publisher Harrison by former Editor Rushmore. There were allegations that jurors were being bribed.<ref>"Map New Confidential Case Action, Mistrial is Declared", Valley News, Oct 3, 1957, Page 52 | https://www.newspapers.com/image/30324078/</ref> |
In the late 60's through the 1970's, the magazine's editor was Tracy Cabot (d.2020), who later became an author and worked for the [[National Enquirer]].<ref>https://obits.staradvertiser.com/2020/09/04/tracy-cabot-whitfield-04092020/</ref> | In the late 60's through the 1970's, the magazine's editor was Tracy Cabot (d.2020), who later became an author and worked for the [[National Enquirer]].<ref>https://obits.staradvertiser.com/2020/09/04/tracy-cabot-whitfield-04092020/</ref> | ||
Revision as of 20:06, June 9, 2024
Confidential Magazine was a tabloid magazine published from 1952-1978. Some have labelled it a 'scandal' magazine.
The magazine was notable for investigative journalism about public figures in politics and Hollywood. Publisher Robert Harrison brought on former Communist Howard Rushmore to help cover and expose Communist agents in the government. In time, Harrison also found readers enjoyed reading the real-life stories of famous celebrities.
In August 1955, the Postmaster General refused to distribute the magazine on the grounds of obscenity. This caused the magazine to adapt its business model to be produced and printed with regional printshops, and then distributed directly to newsstands, bypassing the mails altogether. Even though the magazine was regularly derided for being disinformation, the magazine was scrupulous about fact-checking and having attorneys review its stories prior to publication.
The publication developed an ingenious method for preventing harassment lawfare libel lawsuits. The magazine would print a story, but purposefully tone down the story so that it would be less salacious. In this way, if the offended party were to sue, they would face the negative consequence of the full story becoming public knowledge.
Confidential was the first national outlet to report:
- Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio's marriage was ending, August 1953
- FDR Secretary of State Sumner Welles was actually fired in 1943 for soliciting male railway workers, not what was originally reported, March 1956
- Liberace was homosexual and preying on young men around him, July 1957
- Segregationist Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus had been trained at a Communist Labor school in his teens, Commonwealth College in Mena, Arkansas, February 1959
- Actor Errol Flynn had a two-way mirror on a ceiling installed so that he could watch his guests sleep and make love. Flynn filed a multi-million dollar libel lawsuit against the magazine for publishing this story. Later, after Flynn had died, his widow admitted the story was true when she sold the home.[1]
The magazine's most notorious period was from 1954-1958, when the publication was sued for criminal libel by the Los Angeles District Attorney and the then-California Attorney General Pat Brown, who then ran for and became Governor of California. The trial was ultimately a mistrial, and featured testimony against Publisher Harrison by former Editor Rushmore. There were allegations that jurors were being bribed.[2]
In the late 60's through the 1970's, the magazine's editor was Tracy Cabot (d.2020), who later became an author and worked for the National Enquirer.[3]
Books
- Barbas, Samantha (2018). Confidential Confidential: The Inside Story of Hollywood's Notorious Scandal Magazine.
- Bernstein, Samuel (2006). Mr. Confidential: The Man, His Magazine & The Movieland Massacre That Changed Hollywood Forever. Walford Press.
- Scott, Henry E. (2010). Shocking True Story: The Rise and Fall of Confidential, "America's Most Scandalous Scandal Magazine". Pantheon
- ↑ "Errol Flynn's 1m Funhouse", Evening Standard, Jan 12, 1978, Page 13 | https://www.newspapers.com/image/721841963/
- ↑ "Map New Confidential Case Action, Mistrial is Declared", Valley News, Oct 3, 1957, Page 52 | https://www.newspapers.com/image/30324078/
- ↑ https://obits.staradvertiser.com/2020/09/04/tracy-cabot-whitfield-04092020/