20 Historical Figures That Were Terrible People Behind Closed Doors
Never Meet Your Heroes
People may appear one way only to turn out to be complete opposites. Despite their public appearances and acclaim, many historical figures who are praised for their successes actually have quite a dark side.
Kingkongphoto & www.celebrity-photos.com from Laurel Maryland, USA on Wikimedia
1. Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley remains one of the most celebrated entertainers of the twentieth century, but some aspects of his personal life look deeply troubling when examined today. Historical context can help explain why certain behavior attracted less public criticism at the time, but it does not erase the enormous imbalance that existed when a famous, wealthy adult pursued relationships with teenage girls.
2. Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa may come across as a saint at first, especially for hosting numerous hospices that catered to poor and ailing patients. However, she believed suffering brought people closer to God and left most of these people to experience pain. Volunteers were untrained, and her practices were negligible at best, leading to a 40% mortality rate. In fact, when she herself got sick, she decided to go to one of the best hospitals rather than her own treatment center.
3. Alfred Hitchcock
Let’s just say Hitchcock and Weinstein have a lot in common. If stars didn’t meet his obscene demands, he would actively try to ruin their careers and often succeeded.
4. Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel is best known as a French fashion designer and businesswoman who founded and popularized the Chanel brand. It turns out she was also a Nazi double agent who went undercover to secure her perfume line profits.
Los Angeles Times on Wikimedia
5. Albert Einstein
Okay, so Albert isn’t all bad and has done numerous great things. But like everyone on this list, it’s important to be aware of his shortcomings. Firstly, Einstein was terrible to his wife, Mileva Maric, and even created a contract to turn her into his maid. He also refused to acknowledge his children and even forced his wife to give one up for adoption. To make matters worse, he also encouraged the use of nuclear weapons but then claimed to regret it after World War II.
Photograph by Oren Jack Turner, Princeton, N.J. on Wikimedia
6. Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs has certainly made his mark on the world, and Apple continues to dominate the tech market. But like many of the creatives on this list, his innovation was paired with cruelty as a father, as he disowned his daughter. He also backdated Apple stocks to accumulate wealth, but perhaps that’s not as bad.
7. The Wright Brothers
The Wright Brothers may have been crucial to understanding aviation and flight, but that didn’t mean they were perfect. Instead, after their success, the brothers actively blocked anyone else who tried to launch flights, arguing that their work should be patented and protected. To amend this, Franklin Delano Roosevelt created a patent pool that allowed aviators to share their technologies for a small fee.
8. Queen Elizabeth I
Queen Elizabeth is recognized for her accomplishments in stabilizing and leading England through a golden era. But like most monarchs of the time, she wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty – through proxy, of course! She treated her prisoners horrendously and brutally suppressed the Irish.
Unidentified painter on Wikimedia
9. Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss is an adored writer known for great works like How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Cat in the Hat. Despite his success as an author, he was a terrible husband. He essentially ignored his wife and had an affair while she struggled with health issues, pushing her toward an untimely end.
Al Ravenna, New York World-Telegram and the Sun staff photographer on Wikimedia
10. Charlie Chaplin
Best known for his work in silent films, Charlie Chaplin certainly let his power and sway go to his head. Not only did he pursue and marry extremely young women in a series of failed marriages, but he also ridiculed and harassed them.
Unknown photographer on Wikimedia
11. Christopher Columbus
If you don’t know why Columbus has a bad reputation, then you’re in for quite the doozy. Despite “discovering” the Americas, Columbus also initiated Indigenous subjugation, exploited oppression, and started colonization in Native lands.
Sebastiano del Piombo on Wikimedia
12. John Lennon
If you’ve ever delved into John Lennon’s biographies, you’ll find the singer has plenty to say about his poor childhood. It turns out he did the same thing to his son with Cynthia Powell and then took it a step further by hurting his son and cheating on his wife with Yoko Ono.
13. Gandhi
Gandhi did great work progressing non-violent resistance in India, but it turns out his love for peace only extended to certain races. He said terrible things about those with darker complexions and was very hateful toward people of African descent.
14. Thomas Edison
By now, many people have caught onto Thomas Edison’s reputation as a notorious patent thief. Instead of inventing crucial objects, he was a big bully who stole and capitalized on the success of other inventors, mainly Nikola Tesla, who had to work under Edison for a time.
Louis Bachrach, Bachrach Studios, restored by Michel Vuijlsteke on Wikimedia
15. John Wayne
While the heyday of Hollywood has evolved into something else, certain classic actors are still adored by fans. One such actor, John Wayne, had plenty of troubling things to say when he tried to storm the stage at the 1973 Academy Awards. He verbally attacked Indigenous politics and publicly shared his horrifying beliefs on race.
16. Pablo Picasso
Nowadays, Picasso’s work is considered the pinnacle of art. But in his actual day, he was also known for doing terrible things to women. His violent tendencies, paired with his cheating scandals and aptitude for disowning children, ensured he ruined dozens of lives before he was done.
Argentina. Revista Vea y Lea on Wikimedia
17. Henry Ford
For fans of Ford, it’s important to understand the legacy behind the car you drive. While Ford certainly revolutionized the automobile industry, he wasn’t afraid to share his anti-Semitic views and admiration for Nazis.
18. Winston Churchill
Churchill is best known for leading the Allies to victory during World War II, but that might be one good thing in a pot of bad. For one, he encouraged the use of chemical offenses against Afghani people, referring to them as uncivilized tribes. Also, when India was under his control in the 1940s, he refused to provide any aid during the famine, leading to the passing of three million people.
United Nations Information Office, New York on Wikimedia
19. Charles Dickens
This one’s wild, but Charles Dickens was pretty much ready to do anything to run away with his teenage mistress. So much so that he tried to bribe doctors to diagnose and commit his wife into an asylum.
Herbert Watkins (1828–1916) on Wikimedia
20. Walt Disney
Walt had his ups and downs, and maybe at his heart, he was trying to make something wholesome and approachable. Of course, it’s important to consider the bad with the good, and Walt displayed numerous issues with hiring women animators like Mary Ford and even used unacceptable terms when referring to the dwarves in Snow White.
New York World-Telegram and the Sun staff photographer: Fisher, Alan, photographer. on Wikimedia
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