Dark Conspiracy Theories Involving the Deaths of Hollywood Blonde Bombshells

Anna Nicole Smith Conspiracy Theories

Anna Nicole's entire life was based around mimicry of Monroe, and unfortunately, those comparisons followed with her 2007 death, even down to the overdose. However, there were a few suspect things about the what reportedly killed Anna Nicole.

For one thing, Anna Nicole had just lost her 20-year-old son Daniel a few months prior to a similar overdose. The cocktail involved things his mother had prescriptions of: Zoloft, Lexapro, and methadone. Likewise, Daniel didn't have a known record of pill abuse.

The second suspicious factor is that while Anna Nicole was no doubt pill-popping, plenty of the pills that took her out were prescribed to the people she surrounded herself with, including lawyer Howard K. Stern and one of her doctors, Khristine Eroshevich.

So now consider the media circus that followed the paternity hearing of Danielynn Birkhead, Anna Nicole's daughter, only 5 months old at the time of her passing. Anna Nicole's millions were left with a single, small heiress, which meant they were now essentially up for grabs. That implies something seriously sinister when you consider Howard K. Stern was claiming to be Danielynn's father. Essentially, theorists believe that Anna Nicole could have been recklessly pushed into mixing her pills by her lawyer. And it wasn't negligence. It was murder, as was what happened to her son.

Is that what happened? Again, like Marilyn, Anna Nicole had a spotty enough history to make us doubt a killing. Mystique clouds her death nonetheless… which is, of course, very Marilyn of her.

Jean Harlow Conspiracy Theory

Jean Harlow was the trope codifier of blonde bombshells, and it's sometimes speculated that her platinum hair is ultimately what sealed her demise. The starlet's gruesome, out-of-nowhere death definitely has prompted some suspicions.

The known details are this: Jean was bloated, gray-faced, and suddenly ill on the set of Saratoga. Nausea and fatigue left her bedridden and ultimately doubling in size. Her breath was rancid, smelling of urine, because she could no longer properly excrete waste: co-star Clark Gable said upon visiting her, "It was like kissing a dead person, a rotting person." And although she had a brief return to the set, Jean took a turn for the worst. She passed away about a week later of what was officially deemed "kidney failure."

Some people are inclined to think it was a cover-up for a botched abortion (unlikely) or that Jean's Christian Scientist mother declined her the medical attention she really needed (no doctor at that time could've saved her). Incidentally, Jean was a known lush and had several health issues that could've led to this.

But the most horrifying rumor is that the chemical combination that Jean used to bleach her famed coiff—peroxide, ammonia, Clorox, and Lux flakes—slowly destroyed her. By the time Jean passed away, that platinum blonde was falling out. She was 26.

Jayne Mansfield Conspiracy Theory

There is the persistent urban legend that Jayne Mansfield was decapitated in her car crash—most likely it was her wig or, more disturbingly, her scalp and hair. And yet that still isn't as dark as the theory that Jayne was hexed by Satanic forces.

True Story: From 1966-1967 Jayne was best buds with Church of Satanism founder Anton LaVey. They even had a super fun photoshoot in Jayne's famous Pink Palace. However, there's speculation that LaVey was in love with the actress and jealous of her boyfriend, Sam Brody. It's thought that he placed a curse on the lawyer… and unfortunately, said curse went into action when he was taking a drive with Jayne.

Brittany Murphy Conspiracy Theory

Brittany's death came so suddenly that it's still hard to process — the Clueless star was taken by a bout of pneumonia, which also consumed her widower Simon Monjock. Or did it? Some theorists — including Brittany's father Angelo Bertolotti — believe that she was actually poisoned by the government.

Apparently, the actress was involved in an issue of national security. In the documentary Top Priority: The Terror Within it was alleged that Brittany and her husband were on government watch. Julia Davis, friend and filmmaker, had blown the whistle on an incident where dozens of potential terrorists had been let into the country through Mexico. Brittany was among those who defended Julia, and when Angelo was interviewed he said the couple was subsequently monitored by the government.

"They were, in fact, under surveillance, including helicopters," he said. "Their telephones were wiretapped, Brittany was afraid to go home, because of the sneak-and-peek incursions into their residence and other terror tactics she suffered after speaking out in support of Julia Davis and being named as a witness in her lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security."

So what would be easier than wasting millions of dollars trying to terrorize the couple? Attacking the source: the "pneumonia" symptoms seemed very in line with heavy metal poisoning, leading some to believe the couple was strategically taken out.

The less exciting theory is that it was a tragic architectural accident: Brittany's mother Sharon Murphy was more inclined to believe that toxic mold in the house killed the pair. Both assumptions have been heavily contested, which means we may have lost Brittany to natural causes… and that doesn't make it any less heart-wrenching.

Grace Kelly Conspiracy Theory

Grace Kelly lived a double life as Hollywood royalty and Monaco's Princess, so when a car crash took her life in 1982, the whole world was shaken. And though this is more of a widely rebuffed rumor than a conspiracy theory, it still makes the list.

The short end of it is this: It has been suspected over the years that it wasn't Grace Kelly behind the wheel. Instead, it was her daughter Stephanie who lost control of the vehicle while arguing with her mother over her plans to marry race-car driver boyfriend Paul Belmondo.

This has since been denied by the Princess. "I was not driving, that's clear," Stephanie said in 2002. "In fact, I was thrown around inside the car like my mother, who was catapulted in to the back seat… The passenger door was completely smashed in; I got out on the only accessible side, the driver's."

There is also a far-fetched theory that Grace Kelly became the high priestess of a sex cult and she got whacked off because she didn't donate enough money to the Order of the Solar Temple.

We're going to safely assume that didn't happen, either.

Marilyn Monroe Conspiracy Theories

In 1962 Marilyn Monroe was found dead at the Roosevelt Hotel, and the golden age of cinema died with her. The country went into mourning over the iconic sex symbol and misunderstood actress, their hearts breaking about what seemed to be a clear-cut ruling: a Barbiturate overdose and probable suicide. Due to the star's depression and substance abuse problems, conspiracy theories didn't starting swarming until two years later, and they mostly revolve around one name: Kennedy.

Or two names. It's been alleged over the years that Marilyn had affairs with both John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, and most believe that one or both of these rumored relationships got her in trouble. The first variation comes from Frank A. Capell in a 1964 pamphlet titled, The Strange Death of Marilyn Monroe. It simply posits that Marilyn had an affair with Bobby and when he tried to break it off, she threatened to go public. The Kennedys placed a hit on her in order to save Bobby's reputation.

Other theories imply that she simply knew too many scandalous facts about the famous family. In The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, writers Jay Margolis and Richard Buskin suggest that Marilyn got involved with both Kennedys and kept a running account of incriminating information in her diary. Bobby found out and ordered a hit on her. First, he and one of the illegal members of the LAPD Gangster Squad broke into Marilyn's house. The officer sedated Marilyn with Nembutal and followed up with more injections of broken down pills to thoroughly knock out the actress while they collected the red book.

The murder, however, was allegedly conducted by Marilyn's psychiatrist, Dr. Ralph Greenson. On the ambulance ride to "save" Marilyn, the doctor gave a fatal injection of undiluted pentobarbital.

The tale is certainly sensational, and yet, sometimes we'll hear Marilyn croon that infamous rendition of "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" and start to wonder.