Skip to Main Content
John W. Harding, Author John W Harding

Attending to details so that the bigger picture can emerge.

  • CAST ASIDE
  • THE BEN-HUR MURDERS
    • BEHIND THE SCENES
    • VIDEO SERIES: The Unspoken Ben-Hur Saga
  • THE DESIGNATED VIRGIN
    • Liquor and Flickers
    • The Contrarians
    • The McClellan Massacre
    • The Sealed Trunk
    • Videos
  • SHORT TAKES
  • SHORT FICTION
  • CONTACT
  • THE STORYTELLER
  • CAST ASIDE
  • THE BEN-HUR MURDERS
    • BEHIND THE SCENES
    • VIDEO SERIES: The Unspoken Ben-Hur Saga
  • THE DESIGNATED VIRGIN
    • Liquor and Flickers
    • The Contrarians
    • The McClellan Massacre
    • The Sealed Trunk
    • Videos
  • SHORT TAKES
  • SHORT FICTION
  • CONTACT
  • THE STORYTELLER

Monthly Archives: January 2018

The Immortal Casting Couch
10 Jan 2018

The Immortal Casting Couch

by John Harding | posted in: Hollywood history | 1

Watching the body count rise from the backlash over sexual harassment in Hollywood, one might think the days of the “casting couch” are now over. But the phenomenon didn’t start with the movies and it won’t end with Harvey Weinstein’s … Continued

Ben-Hur, Casting couch, Irving Thalberg, MGM, morals in Hollywood, Norma Shearer, studio system, The Ben-Hur Murders

Search the Site

The BLOG

  • Truth and Lies — the old Hollywood way! 10/19/2023
  • Chasing Cines: On the Trail of Italy’s Lost ‘Ben-Hur’ Studio 12/14/2022
  • June Mathis: The Devil and Hollywood’s “Million Dollar Girl” 03/21/2022
  • Blowing Smoke: The Mating of Propaganda and Public Relations 12/07/2021

The Morgue

Connect

Recent Posts

  • Truth and Lies — the old Hollywood way!
  • Chasing Cines: On the Trail of Italy’s Lost ‘Ben-Hur’ Studio
  • June Mathis: The Devil and Hollywood’s “Million Dollar Girl”
  • Blowing Smoke: The Mating of Propaganda and Public Relations
  • Fascism and Fairy Dust

Recent Comments

  • franc czuchaj on The Violent Death of Ramón Novarro
  • tom hammant on ‘The Voice of the Violin’: Art and Social Justice at American Biograph Co.
  • John Harding on ‘The Voice of the Violin’: Art and Social Justice at American Biograph Co.
  • Helen on ‘The Voice of the Violin’: Art and Social Justice at American Biograph Co.
  • John Harding on Griffith’s Secret Scandal, Part 3

Archives

  • October 2023
  • December 2022
  • March 2022
  • December 2021
  • July 2021
  • October 2020
  • April 2020
  • September 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • August 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • January 2018
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • January 2016
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015

Categories

  • Early moving pictures
  • Hollywood history
  • Uncategorized
  • Writer's notebook

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

© 2025 John W Harding - WordPress Theme by Kadence WP