9 Famous Movie Facts (That Were Never Actually True)

2. Florence Lawrence's Fans Tore Her Clothes Off After Finding Out She Was Alive

Back in the early days of the movie industry, marketing and promotion wasn't quite as regulated as it is today. Florence Lawrence is often considered to be one of the first movie stars ever, appearing in a number of popular films in the 1910s. Universal founder Carl Laemmle invented a rumour that Lawrence had been killed by a street car in New York City. After the fabricated story gained a huge amount of media and public attention, he revealed that it was a lie, and part of the promotion for upcoming movie The Broken Oath.

After already making the actress the centre of attention with this lie, Laemmle wen't one step further with a fabrication that still permeates film history books and movie trivia to this day. He claimed that Lawrence's fans in St. Louis were so excited to learn that the actress was alive, that they mobbed her and tore her clothes off in a frenzy. It was partially thanks to this story that Lawrence became such a star, despite being completely false.