Celebrity Scandals from the 90s You Forgot About

Despite the widespread, insipid nostalgia for the 1990s held by much of Generation X and Millennials, this decade was one of immeasurable (often necessitated) disruption. The early half of the decade gave way to the nascent media domination the internet would assume, inviting a demand for increased press scrutiny and the acceleration of the 24 hour news cycle to the terminal velocity it moves at today. After the Drudge Report (a previously relatively unknown, unserious blog) broke the Clinton-Lewinsky story, a rapturous shift in the media landscape was underway, giving credence and journalistic legitimacy to bloggers and internet based news sources, an oft derided and rarely taken serious subset of the news media in the early 90s. Near the end of the decade as technical egalitarian media sharing services like Napster placed the music industry in a stranglehold, the monolithic mainstream media industry seemingly began to crumble, creating the framework for the contemporary digital media landscape and a complete collapse of the evanescent membrane segregating press and public.

Sinéad O’Connor’s notorious SNL appearance

During a performance of Bob Marley’s song “War” on Saturday Night Live, Irish singer Sinéad O’Connor ended her rendition of the ballad by ripping apart a photo of Pope John Paul II before launching the pieces toward the camera and shouting, “fight the real enemy” to an ominously (perhaps presciently) silent studio audience. O’Connor’s statement was intended as a protest against the widespread sexual abuse of children in the Catholic Church - an atrocity John Paul II would not acknowledge publicly for another 9 years following O’Connor’s performance. Throughout rehearsal for her performance, O’Connor displayed a photo of a Brazilian child who’d been killed by police, withholding her planned photo display from SNL’s production team ostensibly to avoid being barred from performing. The Irish singer’s stunt was decried and celebrated with equal voracity, leading to a lifetime ban from NBC and a barrage of eggs pelted at her as she left 30 Rockefeller Plaza following her appearance.

Roseanne Barr’s notorious national anthem performance

Barr performed a notorious rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” on July 25, 1990 during an MLB game between the San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds at San Diego's Jack Murphy Stadium. The comedian’s satirical performance was rife with intentionally abrasive squawks and screeches, topped off by the Roseanne star grabbing her crotch before spitting on the ground in an exaggerated fashion. The reaction from the public and media was one of near universal abhorrence, even then-president George H.W. Bush labeling it “disgraceful”. While cringe inducing national anthem performances have become a fairly unremarkable occurrence (i.e. Fergie, Dierks Bentley, Chaka Khan, etc.), Barr’s appearance had an undeniable lasting impact on her career, eviscerating much of the goodwill Barr had garnered from her hit sitcom and congealing as a definitive turning point in her career.

Amy Fisher, the “Long Island Lolita”

Amy Fisher, grotesquely given the “Long Island Lolita” moniker by media outlets in a blatantly misguided reference to Vladimir Nabokov’s seminal work, came to national attention in 1992 after she shot and severely injured the wife of 35 year-old auto body shop owner Joey Buttafuoco after engaging in an extramarital “affair” with Buttofuoco beginning when she was 16 years old. On May 19, 1992 Fisher went to the home of Joey and Mary Jo Buttafuoco to confront Mary Jo in a fit of jealous rage. After a heated argument with Mary Jo, Fisher shot Buttafuoco’s wife in the face, severely injuring her. Fisher was arrested and subsequently charged with attempted murder, later pleading guilty to 1st degree aggravated assault and receiving a sentence of 5 to 15 years in prison. Following Fisher’s conviction, Buttafuoco was charged with statutory rape and served just 4 months in prison. After Fisher was released from prison after serving 7 years, she embarked on a career as a writer, webcam model, and adult entertainment actress.

Jerry Seinfeld dates a teenager

After a chance encounter in Central Park, 17 year-old Shoshanna Lonstein exchanged phone numbers with then 38 year-old comedian Jerry Seinfeld after Seinfeld approached Lonstein (then a senior in high school) and the pair had a brief conversation. The couple subsequently dated from 1993 to 1997 with Lonstein even transferring from George Washington University to UCLA in part to be closer to Seinfeld. Despite being more than twice Lonstein’s age, Seinfeld insisted there was nothing inappropriate about their relationship, defending his actions during an appearance on Howard Stern’s radio show shortly after he and Lonstein began their relationship. Shortly after Lonstein and Seinfeld ended their relationship, the comedian met Tommy Hilfiger public relations executive Jessica Sklar and asked her out on a date, unaware Sklar was just returning from an Italian honeymoon with then-husband Eric Nederlander. Sklar filed for divorce from Nederlander just 2 months later and married Seinfeld on Christmas 1999.

Julia Roberts calls off her wedding to Kiefer Sutherland

After beginning a romantic relationship on the set of the 1990 film Flatliners, Roberts became engaged to 24 actor Kiefer Sutherland in 1991 shortly after Sutherland’s divorce was finalized and Roberts ended her engagement to her Steel Magnolias co-star Dylan McDermott. Despite their rapturous infatuation with one another, Roberts called off the couple’s nuptials just 3 days before the pair was set to walk down the aisle. On the day of what was to be their wedding, Sutherland moved out of Roberts’ Hollywood Hills home as the Pretty Woman actress jetted off to Ireland with Sutherland’s friend Jason Patric. After returning from the Emerald Isle, Patric and Roberts continued their relationship for a time but eventually called it quits in 1992.

Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes is charged with arson

The late TLC bandmate was arrested for arson in 1994 after setting fire to sneakers belonging to her then-boyfriend, former football player Andre Rison, following an altercation between the pair. Lopes lit the shoes on fire in a bathtub but the conflagration quickly spread throughout the couple’s Atlanta mansion resulting in roughly $2 million in damage. Lopes pled guilty to the charge and was sentenced to 5 years’ probation and ordered to complete counseling alongside payment of a $10,000 fine and restitution for damages caused by the blaze. Despite this, Lopes and Rison would continue their acrimonious on again, off again relationship marred by accusations of domestic abuse until 2001.

Milli Vanilli returns their Grammy Award for Best New Artist

At the 32nd annual Grammy Awards, French-German R&B duo Milli Vanilli (Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan) were given the Grammy Award for Best New Artist following the success of their 1989 album “Girl You Know It’s True," only to have the accolade unceremoniously revoked less than a year later after the group’s German producer, Frank Farian, disclosed the pair hadn’t performed any of the vocals on their smash hit album. Before the award was officially rescinded by Recording Academy head Mark Greene, Pilatus and Morvan had already decided to return the award - instead suggesting it be given to Brad Howell, John Davis, and Charles Shaw, the singers actually heard on the album. In the years since the Recording Academy’s decision to revoke Milli Vanilli’s Grammy, online petitions have surfaced urging the Academy to reinstate Milli Vanilli citing claims the pair were a strawman punished by a hypocritical music industrial complex that rarely (if ever) rewards total transparency and authenticity in artists.

Mike Tyson bites off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear

During the 1997 WBA Heavyweight Championship, a fight ironically billed as “the Sound and the Fury”, Tyson bit off a large chunk of opponent Evander Holyfield’s right ear during the fight’s 3rd round. After medical staff intervened, the fight was briefly paused but resumed shortly thereafter only to be halted once again when Tyson then bit Holyfield’s other ear. Tyson was disqualified from the match, fined $3 million plus legal fees, and had his boxing license revoked by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. While Tyson claimed the bites were in retaliation to headbutts dealt by Holyfield, Holyfield speculated Tyson purposely had gotten himself disqualified in order to avoid a knockout loss. Holyfield and Tyson later reconciled, even partnering in 2022 to produce a line of edible marijuana gummies called “Holy Ears” alongside a satirical holiday advertisement for the product.

Marlon Brando’s son is convicted of manslaughter

Christian Brando, son of actors Marlon Brando and Anna Kashfi, shot and killed Dag Drollet, the boyfriend of Brando’s half-sister Cheyenne, at Marlon’s Hollywood Hills home on May 16, 1990 following an altercation between the pair. Cheyenne, 8 months pregnant with her and Drollet’s child at the time of his death, had alleged Drollet had physically abused her when she and Brando had met for dinner at Musso & Frank Grill the evening of Drollet’s death. Brando was arrested shortly after the shooting and later accepted a plea deal for voluntary manslaughter in order to avoid a murder conviction. Brando was sentenced to 10 years in prison for killing Drollet, but was released in 1996 after serving just half of his sentence. Brando later died as a result of complications stemming from pneumonia on January 28, 2008 at the age of 49.

Paul Reubens is arrested for indecent exposure

Reubens, best known for his portrayal of the beloved children’s character Pee-wee Herman, was arrested for indecent exposure in 1991 after being spotted masturbating in an adult movie theater located in Sarasota, Florida during a random police inspection. Reubens was subject to a deluge of public ridicule and largely retreated from the public, spending the months following his arrest at the New Jersey estate of tobacco heiress Doris Duke. The Pee-wee Herman actor later pleaded no contest to the charges and was ordered to complete 75 hours of community service, completed in part through his creation, production, and financing of 2 anti-drug public-service announcements. Despite the widespread public condemnation, Reubens was supported by a slew of artists he’d held personal relationships with like Cyndi Lauper, Zsa Zsa Gabor, and Big Top Pee-wee director Randal Kleiser.

Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs are involved in a club shootout

In the early hours of December 28, 1999, Lopez and Combs (better known by his stage name Diddy) were involved in an altercation that quickly escalated to a shootout after Diddy allegedly knocked a drink over belonging to club patron Matthew “Scar” Allen. After Allen and Combs began arguing as he and Lopez exited the club, shots rang out (one allegedly coming from a firearm wielded by Combs) resulting in 3 club patrons being injured. Lopez and Combs quickly fled the scene but were stopped by authorities shortly after when the couple had run a red light in their Lincoln Navigator where authorities found a stolen 9mm handgun in the vehicle's trunk. Both were then taken into police custody, but eventually were cleared of any wrongdoing. Jamal Barrows, a Belizean rapper turned politician and Combs’ protege at the time, was later convicted of assault in connection to the shooting and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Princess Stéphanie of Monaco marries (and divorces) her bodyguard

Princess Stéphanie of Monaco married her bodyguard, Daniel Ducruet, in a private civil ceremony on July 1, 1995 at the Monaco Town Hall after exhaustively begging her father, Prince Rainier III, to approve a marriage between the two. Prior to tying the knot the couple had 2 children: a son, Louis, and a daughter, Pauline, born in 1992 and 1994 respectively. The couple’s relationship was a subject of intense media scrutiny in large part due to the pair’s vastly different social backgrounds; Stephanie, a member of Monaco’s royal family, and Daniel, a divorced pet shop owner, seemed an unlikely match given the stereotypically inculcated social mores that govern the marriages of royals. Ultimately, the couple’s marriage was short lived and ended in divorce in 1996 after compromising photographs of Daniel with a female stripper were released in Italian tabloids.

JFK’s nephew Michael has an "affair" with his children's underage nanny

Kennedy separated from his wife Victoria shortly after accusations Kennedy had engaged in a sexual relationship with the couple’s underage babysitter since she was as young as 14 were made public in 1997. Days after the story broke, The Boston Globe reported that Kennedy’s wife had caught her husband in bed with the underage sitter roughly 2 years prior. Kennedy was placed under investigation for statutory rape shortly after, but the charges against him were dropped when the babysitter ceased cooperating with investigators. Though Kennedy admitted to an inappropriate relationship with the teenage babysitter, he maintained it had only become sexual after she’d turned 16 (the age of consent in Massachusetts where Kennedy and his wife resided with their 3 children and the alleged incident took place). Shortly after the investigation was halted, Kennedy was killed in a skiing accident in Aspen, Colorado on December 31, 1997 after colliding with a tree.

Woody Allen marries Soon-Yi Previn

Previn, a South Korean orphan adopted by actress Mia Farrow and musician André Previn, began a sexual relationship with Farrow’s ex-partner, director Woody Allen, in December 1991 when she was 21 and Allen was 56. Previn and Allen’s relationship became public in August 1992 after Farrow had discovered nude photographs of Previn in Allen’s home in January of that year. Despite Allen sharing 3 children with Farrow (2 adopted, Dylan and Moses, and 1 biological, Ronan), Previn insisted Allen was never any kind of father figure to her despite his relationship with Farrow beginning in 1980 when Previn was 10. Allen and Previn’s quasi-incestuous union generated immense public interest and catalyzed Farrow and Allen’s acrimonious, increasingly litigious relationship. Farrow and Allen’s adopted daughter Dlyan accused Allen of molesting her at Farrow’s Bridgewater, Connecticut home in 1992 when she was 7 years old, allegedly taking place 8 months after Farrow had learned of Allen’s relationship with Previn. Allen has asserted Dylan’s accusation was a plot concocted by her mother in order to exact vengeance on Allen - an accusation both Farrow and her daughter have vehemently denied.

Anna Nicole Smith marries oil tycoon James Howard Marshall II

Model and actress Anna Nicole Smith married billionaire J. Howard Marshall II in 1994 when she was 26 and Marshall was 89 - 63 years her senior. Marshall and Smith’s union attracted significant media attention with many outlets belittling Smith and villainizing her as a calculating gold digger taking advantage of the geriatric Marshall. Despite the brazen misogyny in the media’s depictions of Smith, she maintained that although the relationship was not sexual, her and Marshall’s romance was genuine. Just over a year into their marriage, Marshall passed away on August 4, 1995 at the age of 90, igniting a contentious legal battle between Smith and Marshall’s children over their late father’s estate of which Smith claimed she was promised half despite being left out of Marshall’s will. Smith’s legal battle for her share of Marshall’s estate ascended to the Supreme Court, eventually ruling to deny her claim to the estate shortly before her death from an accidental drug overdose in 2007 at the age of 39.

Michael Jackson is accused of child sexual abuse for the first (of many) times

Jackson was accused of child sexual abuse for the first of many times in August 1993 by Evan Chandler on behalf of his 13 year-old son, Jordan, a child Jackson had befriended after renting a vehicle from Jordan’s stepfather. The Chandlers alleged Jackson had engaged in kissing, masturbation, and oral sex with the underage Jordan; a accusation Jackson denied and claimed stemmed from Jordan’s father, Evan, being jealous of Jackson’s close relationship with his son. Police investigation into other children Jackson had relationships with found that although they’d admitted to sharing a bed with Jackson, they insisted nothing sexual had ever transpired. However, La Toya Jackson, Michael’s sister, made numerous public claims that Jackson was a pedophile, offering to reveal proof for $500,000, though she’d later retract these statements and claim she’d been forced to make them by her abusive husband, Jack Gordon. La Toya had also been estranged from the Jackson family at the time of her statements leading many to question their validity. The Chandlers later settled out of court with Jackson reportedly for $23 million in January 1994. Authorities never formally charged Jackson with any crime and closed their investigation in September 1994 citing lack of evidence.

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