Gloria Grahame shot to stardom after appearing in the Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life. Yet if her name isn’t as well known today, maybe that’s because this ingénue never got a happy holiday ending—far from it.

Plenty of today’s Hollywood action stars seem a little below average when it comes to height—hello, Tom Cruise. Jeff Chandler was something different entirely. With his broad frame, he towered over most of his costars. The wavy silver hair, dark complexion, and deep, resonant voice certainly didn’t hurt either. When a terrible tragedy took his life far too early, Hollywood lost one of its true leading men. But years later, a shocking accusation would force people to see Chandler in a completely different light.

Andy Griffith entertained stage, film, and TV audiences for decades. His hit shows like The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock proved both his comedic and dramatic chops. Unfortunately, he never got the credit he deserved—until it was already too late.

This sunny beach boy just barely survived a friendship with one of the most feared men in American history.

Director Nicholas Ray saw no problem mixing business with pleasure. After all, he had two affairs while making his iconic film Rebel Without a Cause. While James Dean was not one of his conquests, the two did share an intense bond that went beyond an intimate affair. And when Dean tragically lost his life, a wounded Ray descended into a chaotic, debauched lifestyle that seemed to be chasing one thing: the elusive youthful rebel that was James Dean.

No one says “blockbuster” like Tom Cruise, and no one gives their all the way that he does—after all, who else has scaled the Burj Khalifa for a part? But behind the scenes, Cruise’s legacy is a lot more complicated.