"Christmas cant really be enjoyed without children...to take gifts away from. Then, when the tree is all lit, I force them to give up things they really love. Then I teach them that they're not truly worthy of gifts or love, but rather, they must earn love and said gifts. Because if this doesn't teach the true spirit of Christmas, nothing will."
Christopher said his favorite Christmas Carol is Away in a Manger. I'm sure that's no accident. A lot of the nativity scenes make it look like baby Jesus is swaddled down in the crib.
When she takes away things that were meant to belong to her children, it is nothing less than stealing from them. That doesn't teach children anything other than how to be cruel and sinful.
That is cruel didn't she think viewers are going to think you cruel mother children seem rehearsed in what they are saying you imbocile Joan if I took away my daughters Barbie dream house she would cry for forever she is so proud of what she got plays with it everyday mommie dearest comments at full swing here so horrid for those children
Good or Bad she gets the attention. Always on people's minds. They will watch/ listen & comment from a little radio xmas segment from the 1940s . DAMN that woman is still the BOSS .
Very true. There's no question Joan Crawford was abusive to Christina and Christopher. As the boy, Christopher wasn't as resilient as Christina and suffered many years of psychiatric issues as a result of his adoptive mother's cruelty to him. Christina always looked out for him as an adult, and supported him financially with the proceeds of 'Mommie Dearest' since he couldn't work - and of course Crawford had spitefully cut both elder adoptive children out of her will. As Kirk Douglas (among other visitors to the house) testified, Crawford would strap Christopher to his bed at nights, supposedly to stop him sleepwalking, but many suspect it was actually to stop him masturbating - she was utterly crazy.
MYNDZ IYE Not so ! REAL giving is giving up something you love the most for the good of the other better that than giving something you dont care about or can afford JUST so you feel better about yourself for ..."giving " She was strict but in this case she was right She was teaching her kids if you're gonna give something to the other ? ..give it your ALL and THAT is the true meaning of giving !!
I find that a form of emotional abuse , too . To the child , how can they ever feel happy about getting a gift if they know they will probably have to give it up eventually ? That doesn't teach giving , it teaches there is no such thing as a. present given out of love.You can't force what she was trying to instill in her kids .It has to come from the heart .
@Linda Heasley you are so right. By forcing them to do this it can have the opposite effect. They could become hoarders. They will want to hang onto their stuff later in life.
@@ZEITGEISTism Then I suppose you yourself gave away the presents YOU really loved when you were young. What a superior person you are, a model for all sociopaths to emulate.
And "They don't give away the received Christmas gifts because it wouldn't be fair to the fans that sent them." What?? What about it being unfair to the children? Narcissistic mother without a doubt. The fans were her primary supply and her children were secondary. Listening to this audio has proven to me that Christina Crawford was telling the truth.
Christina's gift was a can of Bon Ami and an ax. Christopher's gift was a new rope. The twins each got a cheap hanky from Woolworth's. And Joan gave herself a carton of Lucky Strikes and a bottle of Smirnoff Vodka.
Truly loved? What a total bitch. Shame that they couldn't throw her away. Shame though, as they didn't truly love her anyway. My kids call me Mother Dearest. They probably couldn't if they saw the film about this. However, I love it as it's for fun and I love them. They are all grown up now
.."If you childern don't read the lines right during the interview I will beat you with the Christmas tree"! LOL..What a classic, I hae hunted for this for years, thanks sooo much for adding it too RU-vid!
@@geminijohnson4019 He was prone to sleepwalking (supposedly). Christina had to SECRETLY unstrap him, so that he could use the bathroom. But she was forbidden to do so, in a big way. And Heaven forbid he should have an accident.
I'll be damned if I wake up by 6:30 am "the latest"!!!! just to eat breakfast before opening a bunch of gifts that I don't get to keep! Get the hell out of here! If that is not child cruelty...I don't know what is!
+jamarietwetty78 Duh! I never said Christmas is about getting presents!!! I said I'll be damned if someone wakes me up at 6:30 am for some bull💩I had nothing to do with setting up! Get your facts straight!
@@moralesk35 Child cruelty is it??? To donate the gazillions of expensive gifts they were fortunate to receive. Some kids don't have clean water to drink love. Others are starving and physically abused. Joan's Poor little rich kids having to donate gifts!!
Joan: I don’t see how any Christmas can be without children so I can take out all my Frustrations on them because, I’m Hollywood poison don’t you know George.
Amparo Valdivia Fernandez The one thing Joan Crawford was, she was a major movie star. And, one of the BEST actors, leading lady, in Holywood. Obviously, you're not old enough, to understand, or know that. No, she wasnt a good mother. But, when it came to her acting, she was the best, at what she did. Faye Dunaway, protrayed Joan Crawford, in Mommie Dearest, Surely, you do KNOW that, right?
She was one of the best!! Maybe they are lying because they thought she was gonna leave them her money but she didnt then all of that conveniently came out, she made up for it with the book money then she was so upset that she didnt get money from the movie that was based on her book. Really all I see is a gold digger, Joan can never tell her side ......
Joan: From tomorrow on, they earn their gifts. George: How do you mean they "earn them"? Joan: Well, if they stay on their good behavior, they're given the choice of what present they want next. Christopher had his birthday in October, and he still hasn't received all of his presents. George: Miss Crawford, why is Christopher displaying his middle finger in that manner? Joan: Beats me.
Amazing,I just finished reading Mommie Dearest which contains a direct transcript of this recording.Christina wrote that all the responses were rehearsed and after the interview they were sent back to their rooms,had to change clothes and write "thank you" notes for days,for presents they were not allowed to keep.The best ones they had to take rewrapped to birthday parties of other children.
It's an outrage that abusive alcoholic Joan Crawford was allowed to adopt other people's innocent babies as a single parent. It meant those poor children were 100% at her mercy when she turned violent/abusive, without even a second parent to turn to. Appalling she was able to 'buy motherhood' like that - while claiming sainthood for having taken the children on! She was a vile hypocrite. Many witnesses attested Crawford was a cruel, sadistic control freak, and her first two adopted children suffered terribly at her hands. The twin girls she was later - outrageously - able to adopt had a better time of it because by then she had married Pepsi magnate Arnold Steele, who gave her financial and therefore emotional stability. Those two girls spent most of their childhoods in boarding school too, so they didn't get the brunt of JC's madness as poor Christina and Christopher did. Horrible how they claimed their older adopted siblings were lying about Crawford's abuse, just because they didn't experience it - psychologists are well aware children can be treated very differently in the same household, by abusive parental figures who have favourites, singling out other children for abuse. The twins should not have accused Christina of lying - her book 'Mommie Dearest' was clearly truthful, and it's only a shame she protected evil Joan Crawford and didn't release it till after her death. Crawford fully deserved to be exposed as a child abuser!
1949...a radio interview would be a challenge. The kids did a great job. The whole feeling of the interview reflects the awareness of the times...58 years ago...
I can only imagine the fear behind the children's scripted monologues, having full knowledge that if they screw up in the slightest, there is an axe or a wire hanger or a "simple slap across the face" waiting to happen once the radio crew leaves. Not to mention scrubbing the floors of the entire mansion by hand... spooky Christmas indeed.
If my son Christopher still hadn't received all of his presents I don' think I'd be announcing it over the radio or TV for everyone to hear. Her snickering at this creeped me out.
Just listening to her...... They EARN their presents. (The old bag). My kids could be right gits but they had all their presents. She sounds horrid!! Even the kids sound like they are reading petrified from a script. Xxx
That will forever kill me the fact that a child has to endure that till 12 years old. Not even to get up to go to the bathroom. Imagine the pain in sleeping like that
It was a harness that Christopher could slip in and out of at will. He walked in his sleep and one night was found in the middle of the road. Joan did this under the advice of a child psychologist. What, you expect her to do nothing and let him get run over. Such dumb ass comments.
Joan worked and she worked, and she heard people say, "she's getting old" and what did she get? A daughter who cared as much about her beautiful dresses as she cared about her. Joan gave her daughter $200 -$300 dollar dresses and she treated them like they were some dishrag.
“Do you ever sneak downstairs to get a peek at Santa Claus?” No sir. That’s impossible since mother straps me into bed every night before I go to sleep.
just watched this scene in mommie dearest. i was abused all my life. the WHOLE movie i was stoic, then wire hanger scene i couldnt take. too close to home. i got beat with a wire hanger. but it was on the soul of my foot and on my tigh bc he knew that's where it hurt the most. :P my butt got so numb after the years
hollywoodream30 because the twins wouldn't allow their names or likeness in the film, it would never get past legal. Notice other stars like Bette Davis, Douglas Fairbanks Jr and Myrna Loy weren't mentioned either for the very same reasons as they were all still living at the time.
The 'crinkle' sound you hear isn't wrapping paper- it's the children passing "Help Me" notes under the coffee table! 😮 Joan: "They wake early, I insist on feeding them, beating them...then it's present time! Hooray!" Merry Christmas Kids😕😬😣😢
Christina & Christopher are both answering shakingly. Christopher's "Hello, everybody." Sounds like he was scared & nervous, his voice was cracking & sounded off.
Well, he was just a kid, there were sound people around and Radio microphones aimed at him, he probably WAS a little nervous and frightened and yes, this certainly sounds very scripted but I don't buy EVERY little tidbit of "how cruel" Joan was. Any of us could write a book about our own childhood and exaggerate certain facts. My dad could smack us as easily as joke around with us but I wouldn't write a book about it - (who would care, we weren't celebrities) - I think people are very quick to judge Joan Crawford, when none of us were actually on the scene.
Christopher was very traumatized by what took place in his childhood. The book mommie dearest details what Joan put him through, shipped him off to a foreign country after he got into minor trouble & tried to prevent him from re-entering the USA but Christina got him home again. Joan slso burned Christopher's hand as a punishment, so they got the full brunt of her bipolar, drunken rages. The twins were treated much better by Joan. They were 8 years younger than Christina & Christopher
@@irisheyes4935 The twins were 7 years younger than Christina and 4 years younger than Christopher. If you believe every part of this exaggerated book then I would ask if you have heard Christina's interviews over the decades and how her tale has been dramatically changed.
Those kids seem scared during this and Joan is all serious I can tell the difference we will never what happened behind closed doors maybe she hurt Christina maybe she didn't
I'm not totally accepting everything Christina claimed . Half truths for sure . Maybe she made up the physical abuse stories because Joan's stringent ways of raising kids made the relationship very strained later on . This interview and Joan's answers didn't sit right with me .Think she tried too hard to micro manage her idea of how a family should act and was lacking on the emotional aspect of the family unit
I agree. I mean, she grew up knowing nothing of parental acceptance and love. Her father left when she was young and her mother favored her brother and showed her no love or affection. I blame parents on messed up kids/adults. Also, I can't say I believe Christinas book 100%. Even SHE said they embellished and over exaggerated/dramatized much that was portrayed in the movie.
The children were not allowed to keep any of the gifts except for only one. The rest were given away. The children were also expected to be completely silent until Joan woke up. Her standards for 'good behavior" was unattainable- perfection was expected.
BetterThanEmril Lol, it was a fluke. Friends took me out for dinner & a movie for my birthday. We were late & Mommie Dearest was about to begin... so in we went. My friends hated it, but this film made a lasting impression on me. I could probably recite the script, beginning to end. 😊
They weren't allowed to go to the tree until after they finished breakfast...."They earn their Christmas gifts? " Christopher's birthday was in October and he still hasn't earned all his gifts? I never believed Christina's story, but listening to this, now i don't know how much she exaggerated and how much was spot on.
@Jarred Knox Exactly. No reason for her to exaggerate. She wasn't trying to become a career novelist, AFAIK. She just told the world who Joan really was. And Joan knew she was writing the book, as I recall. It wasn't published before her death but I seem to recall Joan finding out that she was writing it, which means it wasn't revenge like the movie implied. www.bustle.com/p/did-joan-crawford-know-about-mommie-dearest-her-daughters-book-is-forever-linked-with-her-legacy-53122
It think it might be because he turned 7 in October and they´re doing the interview in December - it´s a way of saying that to the person asking.....however it´s not a way of phrasing it we would use today which is why it sounds strange to us now :-)
JC said the kids dawdled over breakfast everyday of the year but at Xmas, breakfast was the quickest meal on record. To JC, I guess that meant Xmas was the day Christina ate her raw-to-blood rare steak without complaining.
The 'Davenport', the 'stately Colonial fireplace', the white carpet.....'excellent training for the children'....'earning' the rest of their gifts'. It's all so 'perfect'. Obviously, Mommie Dearest was a fairly accurate portrait of life with Saint Joan. She gets a LOT of digs in, against Christopher. And the organ in tremolo!!!! Thanks for posting this Gem!
True,..plus they needed a template in order to keep it within it's time restraints. I wouldn't want to return to the 1940's, but the respect level that we had for people back then would be a nice breath of fresh air in today's society...
I actually AM aware of the circumstances surrounding "Mommie Dearest" and the controversy surrounding Christina Crawford's allegations. Even so, I still think this is hypocrisy, lying and child abuse. So DON'T FUCK WITH ME, YOU POMPOUS GASBAG!!!
This is so sad. The kids are clearly unhappy and sound very rehearsed. Joan was putting up her front as the big-hearted movie star who adopted four children - she used them as part of her public image to an appalling degree. Joan was clearly disturbed herself and never healed from her own childhood mistreatment, and she inflicted her childhood injustices on her adopted kids (especially Christina and Christopher). It's all just overwhelmingly sad to me.
I actually loved the "mad-at-the dirt" part. The wires thing I thought it was a bit overboard, I cant help but laugh at that specific line everytime I see it. But I was amazed at her job, even the pitch in her voice, the tone and the way of talking, the expressions, she was incredible. I think she was stolen, really!.
Joan's excess aversion to "wire coat hangers" was from her childhood of living above a dry cleaners that used them, her mother its employee and child Joan a sometime assistant.
"And Christopher, what's your favorite Christmas carol "Ding, Dong, the Witch is DEAD!" "Uh, Christopher, that's not a Christmas Carol". "Yes, I know...wishful thinking. Considering I didn't get all of my birthday presents two months ago!"
@@socialdistancejusticewarri8533 I wonder if these various RU-vid families are as happy as they appear to be when they show their Vlogs! The above person mentioned that he sensed something suspicious going on in this interview! Hmm!
Very sad to listen to. The one part Joan couldn't play was loving parent. Its not a part you take on for six weeks at a time. Its a lifetime commitment. Adoption is tough on all parties. If you can't handle it, don't take the role. Crawford's answers are bizarre at best. Having heard this, I know the rumors were true. Sorry I played it.
Those kids lived in one of the most beautiful homes in Brentwood. Went to the best schools. Wore the finest clothes. I'm sure it wasn't THAT bad. They got through it and probably came out better than if Joan had never adopted them at all.
Why dont the other children speak on their life with the mother? I mean I find it odd that there are 3 other children who remain suspiciously silent one way or the other.
@@metalmonkey6262 I dont know. Is Tommy North whose family was featured in Yours, Mine, and Ours lying because the other 18 wont corroborate his claims of physical and sexual abuse?
Can you imagine how the radio audience in '49 was eating this nonsense up (especially at Xmas)? People were dabbing their tear-filled eyes with tissues and handkerchiefs , thinking "oh, what a marvelous actress she is. How kind and generous of her to take four adopted children and making them her own. What a tremendous mother she must be". Yeah, Joan was a good actress, but I'd certainly question how her mothering skills were after what Christina said about her.
"Mommie LOVES giving to those less fortunate than us. Sometimes, she gives money to handsome twenty-something gentlemen. They come up to Mommie's room for Acting Lessons. I hear Mommie teaching them how to act frightened. My uncles always make lots of noise when studying with Mommie"
Had Joan had a normal childhood, I wonder what kind of mother she could have been? Most horrible childhood. She was too strict. She didn't have a normal childhood. I think she wanted everyone to think she had a happy home. I'm beginning to see things I didn't want to. Her childhood played a big role in how she parented her children. Now, I see she adopted them to be seen, mostly. It was all a show, I suppose. But, she was a darn good actress!! Seems like she was cruel, like her mother. She wanted a picture perfect family. Hurting people hurts others. I suppose Joan took her anger out on her children. I really didn't want to think, she was as bad as she obviously was. Live & learn!
when this scene was acted in the movie, Christina said that they send most of the gifts to orphans. In this interview JC says they never give away presents because it's not fair to those who sent them.
Imagine if one of those kids flubbed a line or accidentally said the wrong word during this recording, when they were rehearsing. I expect Joan would have created a good punishment afterwards, to build character. There is so much subtext here behind the phony sentiments and Joan's haughty posturing. SNL should have done a parody of this in the 1990's; it's such a rich load of manure. Now, I doubt that life for her children was as ghastly as "Mommie Dearest" would indicate-- but I am sure those kids had a very hard time living in this crazy Hollywood bubble.
Same here! Went through abuse as a child and no one cared, nor believed either. I believe Christina. She displays all signs of trauma endured, even the way her book goes, chaotically, just like the flashbacks of PTSD victims usually do.
Odd how she's the only one smiling in that photo...The two oldest ones are in fear of making mistakes and the two younger ones have seen them getting beaten,look how their looking at them.That picture speaks louder than the movie
@Vydio I agree! People with extreme Narcissistic Personality Disorder love to belittle those whom they consider "theirs". I noticed two particularly disturbing digs at Christopher during this short clip. And this while she's playing the part of "Loving Mother". One can only imagine the self-esteem destroying things she said and did when there was no audience.
Actually, the twins disproved that in the 1990s. The went to Tennessee and found out that they are indeed twins, from the same mother. So, Joan did not lie about that.
In those days, children DID sound like that. Even the books made for children had this serious-polite tone. I have some that I often read my child and it always cought my attention about how much they talked about manners and such, but in an adult way, not like books today for children. Those were other days.
This is downright terrifying! It's so obvious those kids were rehearsed and u can HEAR the tension in their voices. I believe "Mommie Dearest" was all too accurate.
This family could have been a really enjoyable experience. Too bad for Christina and Christopher it was a nightmare. As for the two younger children, they were much younger and Joan had mellowed out and learned from her mistakes.
"Have you ever tried to sneak downstairs and catch Saint Nick at work?" "Oh, no! Mommy would beat me if I tried to do that! Besides, she keeps me strapped to the bed so I can't get out of bed at all..." Merry Christmas Everybody!
Christina’s wish for a Collie dog broke my heart. Sure, kids want dogs…. but you know damn well it was more than that, she just wanted to love something without restrictions that would love her back (not counting her poor POW brother)
Oh, agreed completely. I am getting a kick out of hearing the actual one though. I read Mommie Dearest, and some of it has to be true. I know she must have just exaggerated some of it, but it makes for good reading.
this was so scripted. im sure they had papers in front of them to read. crawford was all about appearances. so sad and fake. those poor kids! if only people back then had known what was going on in that house.
