In 1990, Gillepsie launched a lawsuit against Disney, in which she attacked the entertainment giant for “promising her super stardom,” which never quite happened for her. She also claimed that she wasn’t being paid her fair share for reruns being played of the show. The case wound up being settled outside of the courtroom. But things were just starting to heat up for Gillepsie, who met and fell in love with a man named Jerry Fraschilla.
Things were going wonderfully for the love birds, and they decided to tie the knot. Unfortunately, the pair would find themselves traveling down a dark path, and eventually…the marriage, and the rest of the child stars life, would fall apart. In 1998, Gillepsie was tried for petty theft for assisting her ex in shoplifting some clothing. At 56 years old, she received a few days in jail along with three years of probation for the crime.
Johnny Crawford: Playboy Model
Johnny shocked his fan base in the 70’s when he took it all off and did a nude photoshoot for Playboy Magazine. Keep in mind, doing that sort of thing wasn’t nearly as common in that era as it is today, so it was a pretty risqué move on his part. Unfortunately, the feedback he got for the shoot wasn’t exactly the kind-hearted support he was hoping for. Quotes about the small size of his…member…began to fly around.
But Johnny didn’t take the criticism to heart. In fact, he bared it all once again for his work in the 1973 film, The Naked Ape. The film, despite masquerading as an educational film about human evolution, was pretty shocking for its time. It was after all, produced by Hugh Hefner. All of this nudity and sexuality must have been a lot for his Disney fans and costars to take in!
Darlene Gillepsie’s Teen Stardom
Darlene Gillepsie quickly rose to fame during her young years as an actress. She appeared on numerous shows, aside from all four years of the original Mickey Mouse Club, including the spinoff, which Disney dubbed Corky and the White Shadow. She even played the title character in their live action production of Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz. Darlene was a fan favorite Mouseketeer, second only to Annette Funicello.
Unfortunately, Gillepsie never quite found herself rising through the ranks to that which costar Annette Funicello reached, and instead decided to move away from acting into a career in music. She gave herself the stage name “Darlene Valentine,” and recorded a few albums, including 1950’s rock album, Darlene of the Teens. But as she started to fizzle away in the world of entertainment, she found herself treading some very troubled waters.
Darlene’s Criminal Record
Jerry Fraschilla took Darlene Gillepsie’s hand in marriage – and walked her down a path of criminal activity and eventually jail time. He talked her into participating in all types of criminal schemes, like check fraud. You would think that her celebrity status may have helped her out, but it only made things were for her. In 1998, she and Jerry were arrested on charges of perjury, obstruction of justice, conspiracy, and securities and mail fraud. Gillepsie faced a judge in a federal courtroom and wound up being sentenced to a couple of years behind bars.
Luckily for her, she was released just three months into her 2-year sentence. Years later, she found herself tangled up in another mess including Fraschilla and claims of fraud, but the charges against her were dropped. After her short time in prison, she devoted her energy to spending more time with her family, especially her twin grandchildren.
Sharon Baird: Mouseketeer Sweetheart
Sharon Baird began performing when she was just 3 years old, when she began taking her first dance lessons. She won the title of “Little Miss Washington,” in her hometown at age five, before her parents decided it was time to move out to Los Angeles. When she got to Tinsel Town, she quickly got an agent and started doing some television work, making appearances on shows like The Colgate Comedy Hour. She snagged her first role in film in 1950, when she hit the screen on Bloodhounds of Broadway. In 1955, Baird was slotted to fill one of roles as an original Mouseketeer on The Mickey Mouse Club.
Sharon went on to work on the show for the first three consecutive seasons and was beloved for her unique talents in tap dancing, among many other things. Since it’s pretty hard for the young actors to go to school and act on the show simultaneously, she held off until her contract was up. When filming wrapped, she earned her high school diploma and went on to earn a university degree in math and secretarial science.