In the Golden Era of moviemaking, motion picture studios "owned" Hollywood from the beat cops on up, meaning that the wild misadventures of top-earning movie stars were regularly swept out of the public eye. But no such effort was expended on behalf of minor stars, and their shenanigans became tabloid gold in newspapers across America, damaging careers, reputations and lives.

This book presents 15 life stories of Golden Age Hollywood from the sordid to the sad, from battles with the bottle to nightclub brawls, hard-luck childhoods, and even murder. Each write-up includes biographical information, much of which has gone unseen for decades, and filmographies. Actors covered include Ross Alexander, David Bacon, Bruce Cabot, James Cardwell, William Eythe, Wallace Ford, Billy Halop, Weldon Heyburn, Ronald Lewis, Tom Neal, Allan Nixon, Craig Reynolds, Danny Scholl, Lawrence Tierney, and Sonny Tufts.