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We often mistake children’s media as content that has been specially made with great care for young viewers. The truth, however, is that most of our childhood memories are based on strange adaptations, dark secrets, and disturbing jokes made by often unstable adults.
If you want to know more, and if you're ready for it, click through this gallery to learn facts that will completely change how you see your childhood.
Dolphins are incredibly smart creatures, and keeping them in confines for filming can take a huge toll. Kathy, one of the dolphins that starred on the TV series 'Flipper,' reportedly killed herself due to the conditions of her captivity.
Giambattista Basile's 1634 story 'Sun, Moon, and Talia' inspired Charles Perrault, who then inspired Disney. But in the original tale, a king sexually assaults an unconscious woman then leaves. She only awakens after having birthed twins, and he returns and they fall in love.
But it doesn't end there. The king's wife finds out and tries to slaughter the twins, feed their cooked bodies to the king, and burn Sleeping Beauty at the stake. Somehow, however, it all ends with a happily ever after for the king, his twins, and their mother.
The writer, whose real name is Theodor Seuss Geisel, is beloved for classics like 'Horton Hears a Who,' 'The Grinch,' 'The Cat in the Hat,' and 'Green Eggs and Ham,' but school systems and reading programs are moving away from his work after several of his racially offensive cartoons have caused a stir. Even US President Joe Biden left out mention of the famed author on 2021's Read Across America day on March 2, which takes place annually on Dr. Seuss's birthday, thus ending a presidential tradition that goes back about 20 years.
Numerous studies of Dr. Seuss's work have found harmful racist stereotypes of Asian and Black Americans, and have even found 'The Cat in the Hat' to be based on a display of blackface.
Several men accused Kevin Clash, the voice actor of Elmo on 'Sesame Street,' of sexually abusing them when they were minors, claiming he used his "unique position" to target children.
Clash resigned, after 28 years, when the claims came to light, but a judge dismissed the case the following year because the claims were made outside of the state's statute of limitations.
The only place Jeffrey Jones will ever be a principal is in 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off,' as the actor pleaded no contest to paying a 14-year-old boy to pose for sexually explicit photos in 2003. He received probation.
The beloved author of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' admitted he was anti-Semitic. He said in 1983, "There's a trait in the Jewish character that does provoke animosity ... even a stinker like Hitler didn't just pick on them for no reason."
Ten-year-old Judith Barsi, the original voice of Ducky, was killed alongside her mother by her father. She didn't live to see the release of the animated classic.
Victor Salva directed the Disney-produced film after having been convicted of sexually abusing a 12-year-old child actor he'd previously worked with. He served 15 months of his three year sentence. When pressed with questions, Disney officials reported that they had only found out after production had begun, and stressed that there were no minors on set.
Two of the coolest actors in '80s were Corey Feldman and Corey Haim, from 'The Lost Boys.' But, in Feldman's memoir 'Coreyography,' he wrote that both he and Haim were given drugs, sexually assaulted, and sodomized by older men during filming.
In an effort to make 'The Wizard of Oz' look as real as possible, the costume designer used a real lion skin for the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr) costume. The wig and mane were also made of human hair.
There are rumors, and a quote from actress Anne Revere, indicating that Victor Fleming was a Nazi sympathizer, or "violently pro-Nazi" as Revere put it.
In the original text of 'Little Red Riding Hood,' author Charles Perrault wrote that the wolf forces Red to eat her own grandmother, then makes her strip down to get into bed with him.
You've probably heard that Disney's 'Pocahontas' is a far cry from the truth, but let's remember that Pocahontas would have not yet been a teenager, and John Smith was in his late 20s. Pocahontas was actually held hostage, taken to England when she was 17, and then died four years later.
'Double Dare' host Marc Summers revealed that "GAK," the slimy goo that Nickelodeon used in the '80s, got its name from a street slang term for heroin in Philadelphia.
The late Paul Reubens created the famous Pee-wee Herman character of the early '80s, a childlike man who became a Saturday morning TV staple. In 1991, however, things took a turn as police arrested Reubens for indecent exposure at an adult theater in Florida.
Reubens reportedly offered to perform a children's benefit for the sheriff's office if the charges were dropped.
'Free Willy,' 'Air Bud,' and 'Homeward Bound' were all released in the '90s, so it's highly unlikely they're still alive today.
Though beloved by audiences, the actor behind the character, David Yost, revealed in 2010 that he left the show after years of constant abuse for being gay.
From being an awful employer, to allegations of anti-Semitism, racism, and misogyny, to being heavily involved in dubious anti-communist tactics, Disney was not so kid-friendly after all.
Kevin Peter Hall, the 7 ft 2 in (2.2 m) star of the movie and TV series 'Harry and the Hendersons,' received a blood transfusion, after being in a car accident, which was tainted with HIV. He died in 1991.
After photos of naked young girls were found in his home, the legacy of Lewis Carroll was merged with the image of a pedophilic author transcribing his fantasies.
Ricardo Medina Jr., who played the Red Lion Wild Force Ranger on 'Power Rangers Wild Force,' was reportedly moonlighting as a male stripper when he got into an argument with his roommate and fatally stabbed him with a sword.
It's reported that Hitler, a cartoon-hobbyist himself, considered 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' a great film. Roy Disney supposedly sold the film to the Propaganda Ministry in 1938, making it one of 50 American films bought by the Nazi regime that year.
Remember the little piggy, playfully symbolized by one of your toes, who went to the market? Some say this pig was certainly not going to buy anything at the market...
The Brothers Grimm version of Cinderella is especially morbid. The evil stepsisters are encouraged by their mother to cut off pieces of their foot to fit the slipper, but the Prince sees blood dripping and foils their plan.
Many believe that Humpty Dumpty was actually a powerful cannon owned by King Charles I, used to gain control over the city of Colchester during the English Civil War. A barrage of cannonballs destroyed its tower perch and Humpty had a great fall, damaging it beyond repair.
It might surprise you to learn that a boy with no legs named Matthew DeMeritt played E.T. in several scenes, using his arms as E.T.'s legs.
Sources: (Ranker)
See also: Children's movies that are equally entertaining for adults
The dark truth behind your childhood memories
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We often mistake children’s media as content that has been specially made with great care for young viewers. The truth, however, is that most of our childhood memories are based on strange adaptations, dark secrets, and disturbing jokes made by often unstable adults.
If you want to know more, and if you're ready for it, click through this gallery to learn facts that will completely change how you see your childhood.