23. Arrested While Working in a Whorehouse
Taxi dance clubs, such as the one in which Rudolph Valentino worked, had a system in place for picking intimate partners. Clients who got good vibes and liked their dance partner would negotiate a price with him or her, then pay the club an “exit fee” to leave with the dancer. Some taxi dance clubs were legitimate and innocent, but most were just straight-up escort services. In Valentino’s case, he was once arrested in a brothel before becoming famous, so it is unlikely that his taxi dance club was the innocent kind.
To put it in perspective, imagine the damage to Brad Pitt’s public image if it emerged that he had been a gigolo or male prostitute who’d worked for an escort service. The paparazzi stampede would probably have caused an earthquake. The ensuing media and social media firestorm would probably have broken the internet, as the insatiable demand for salacious details produced a never-ending stream of stories.
Also Read: 18 Examples of Old Hollywood Sexism.