While reading about the Mel Gibson incident and how he is “facing six months in jail,” I was wondering about this. Obviously Gibson is not going to jail. He will probably pay a fine. Similarly, other celebrities like Nick Nolte or Winona Ryder who find themselves in trouble with the law (often over alcohol or drugs) usually do rehab, pay fines, or maybe have probation.
Have any famous Hollywood actors actually done time in jail while famous?
Robert Downey Jr served a month of his three-year sentence before the sentence was overturned due to a sentencing error made by his trial judge.
Robert Downey Jr.
Muhammed Ali (who played himself in the movie, so…actor?)
Lil Kim just got out of jail after spending a year. Then there’s Martha Stewart. Those are the two recent examples that spring to mind of actual, non-trivial jail time (though their conditions were probably relatively cushy - for jail anyway.)
I believe Robert Mitchum spent some time in the Graybar Hotel in the 40s after a marijuana posession conviction.
Life magazine had to explain what marijuana was. :dubious:
Lillo Brancato, he of ‘A Bronx Tale’, and cast member on the Sopranos, is currently awaiting trial for the murder of a NY City cop. He probably won’t see day light again.
Gene Krupa, too, around that time. I think he might have gotten big publicity on the bust, then gotten off or gotten a suspended sentence.
Can we include professional athletes?
Former Steelers NFL RB Bam Morris: 30 months in Leavenworth for drug trafficking.
Former Panthers NFL WR Rae Carruth: still in jail for conspiring to murder his pregnant girlfriend.
Former Blues NHL Center Mike Danton: still in jail for conspiring with his girlfriend in a murder-for-hire scheme to kill his agent.
MLB Closer Ugueth Urbina was charged with attempted murder in Venezuela; he allegedly attacked some people with a machete, poured paint thinner on them and lit them on fire. Not sure about the outcome of that one.
Chuck Berry was an A-list recording artist when he was convicted of violating the Mann Act and sent to federal prison in 1961.
How about Mike Tyson ?
James Brown
Sophia Loren did a stint in Italian prison for IIRC tax evasion.
Paul McCartney was locked up in Japan for marijuana possession.
OJ Simpson spent time in jail while awaiting his trial.
Ditto Robert Blake.
Ditto Phil Spector (non-actor but a celebrity).
Didn’t Ike Turner spend some prison time for drug offenses?
I leave it as an exercise for the reader to decide if any or all of these examples meet the OP’s criteria of “while famous.”
Sean Penn spent 32 days in jail in 1987 for assault.
Here in the UK, Lord (Jeffrey) Archer recently spent several years in gaol for perjury.
He was (and remains) a best-selling author, former Member of Parliament and chairman of the Conservative Party, and Peer of the Realm.
I seem to recall Craig Charles serving time in prison for a rape charge. In fact I think his detainment delayed the filming of the cult sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf and he would certainly be classed as famous at this point of his career (if only in the U.K., i’m not sure if Red Dwarf was ever big across the pond).
Ol’ Dirty Bastard (of former Wu-Tang Clan fame) had a laundry list of legal troubles, the longest incarceration being a 2-4 year sentence (he served a little over 2) for fleeing a drug-treatment facility the court had mandated he attend when he was arrested with marijuana and 20 vials of crack. They picked him up signing autographs in a Philadelphia McDonald’s parking lot.
Other interesting arrests include but are not limited to: assault, failure to pay child support, shoplifting (on a $50 pair of shoes while carrying ~$500 on his person), attempted murder, and in 1999, he received the prominent distinction of being the first person to be arrested under a new California law prohibiting convicted felons from wearing bulletproof vests.
(all info from Wikipedia)
Sophia Loren did a fairly soft 18 days for tax evasion in an Italian jail in 1982.
Oscar Wilde did a duece in Reading Goal.
mm
Don’t tell Otto.