7 Celebrity Scandals That Happened Before Gen Z Was Even Born (Feel Old Yet?)

Celebrities always live in the spotlight, which inevitably means getting their dirty laundry aired in public from time to time.

While most of us will be familiar with recent celebrity controversies, we want to take a stroll down memory lane to look at some of the big celebrity scandals that dominated headlines in the days of yore.

Here we've compiled a list of notable celebrity faux pas predating Generation Z.

1. Elizabeth Taylor, Debbie Reynolds, and Eddie Fisher’s love triangle (the 1950s)

In the 1950

s, Elizabeth Taylor and Debbie Reynolds were some of Hollywood's biggest stars, while Eddie Fisher was a celebrated musician. Despite having two children and seeming outwardly happy, Fisher and Reynolds faced upheaval when Fisher left Reynolds for her best friend, Taylor. Tabloids documented the entire affair in excruciating detail.

2. Lucille Ball being shunned in Hollywood (the 1950s)

At around the same time, Lucille Ball, the iconic Hollywood actress and comedienne, fell victim to Senator McCarthy's witch hunt, who accused her of being a communist. She was investigated by The House Committee on Un-American Activities, but the public came to her defence.

3. Richard Gere and the gerbil (the 1990s)

In the 1990s, a bizarre rumour circulated that Richard Gere had a gerbil trapped in his rectum. The outlandish notion, suggesting a perverse and utterly impossible sexual practice, made Gere a tabloid sensation. This rumour's origin and initiator remain unknown, but it has since permeated pop culture, becoming a punchline on shows like Family Guy.

4. Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopes’s arson attack on her boyfriend’s house (1994)

Lisa Left Eye Lopes, a member of the R&B group TLC, set fire to her ex-boyfriend's house. She had been in a relationship with Andre Rison, who was allegedly abusive. Despite the charges being dropped, an aggrieved Lopes sought her own form of retribution.

5. Bob Geldof, Paula Yates and Michael Hutchence’s love triangle (1995-1997)

In the mid-1990s, Paula Yates, a well-known British TV presenter, and Bob Geldof, a distinguished Irish actor and musician, were married. Their union was disrupted when Michael Hutchence of INXS entered their lives. To cut a long story short, Yates left Geldof for Hutchence and had a daughter with him, but Geldof retained custody of their children. Hutchence committed suicide in 1997, and Yates tragically succumbed to a heroin overdose three years later.

6. Hugh Grant’s arrest for solicitation (1995)

Around the same time, Hugh Grant was caught cheating on his wife, Elizabeth Hurley, with a sex worker, leading to his arrest for solicitation. Their marriage, however, soldiered on until 2000.

7. Jessica Alba’s kidnapping on the set of Flipper (1996)

While working on her debut project, the TV show Flipper, a fifteen-year-old Jessica Alba was kidnapped from the set and held hostage for fourteen hours. She was eventually found tied up and gagged in a car trunk. The case remains unsolved, and Alba refrains from discussing it.