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The Unstoppable Icon: 7 Shocking Ways Joan Crawford Reinvented Herself In The Cutthroat 1960s

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The 1960s were a decade of seismic shifts in Hollywood, and for an aging star like Joan Crawford, it was a period of brutal reinvention and unexpected career pivots. As of late 2025, modern audiences continue to be fascinated by her resilience, largely due to renewed interest in the explosive drama of her late career. This era saw the once-glamorous MGM queen trade in her silks for psychological horror, masterfully leveraging her legendary persona to survive an industry that had largely discarded its older female stars. The story of Joan Crawford in the sixties is not just one of decline, but of a calculated, relentless battle against irrelevance, resulting in some of the most iconic, and controversial, work of her entire career. Her journey from the boardroom of a major corporation to the set of low-budget horror films is a masterclass in celebrity survival.

Joan Crawford: Biographical Profile & 1960s Context

The 1960s began for Joan Crawford in a state of professional and personal transition, following the death of her fourth husband and a noticeable slowdown in quality film roles. Her reinvention during this decade is a testament to her legendary drive and business acumen.

  • Birth Name: Lucille Fay LeSueur (later changed to Joan Crawford)
  • Born: March 23, 1904 (or 1905, sources vary) in San Antonio, Texas
  • Died: May 10, 1977, in New York City
  • Key Studio Era: MGM (1925–1943)
  • Oscar Wins: Best Actress for Mildred Pierce (1945)
  • Husbands: Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Franchot Tone, Phillip Terry, Alfred Steele
  • 1960s Status: Widowed (Alfred Steele died in 1959), Board Member of Pepsi-Cola, and an independent actress seeking new film roles.
  • Defining 1960s Work: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), *Strait-Jacket* (1964), *Berserk!* (1967).

The Age of 'Hagsploitation': Embracing the Psycho-Biddy Genre

The biggest story of Crawford’s 1960s career—and arguably the most enduring—is her pivotal role in the creation of the 'Hagsploitation' subgenre, also known by the more high-brow term 'Grande Dame Guignol' or the derogatory 'Psycho-biddy' films.

This niche genre, which turned aging female stars into monstrous, murder-hungry figures, was born from the 1962 phenomenon, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

1. The Explosive Feud That Launched a Genre

Crawford herself initiated the film adaptation of Henry Farrell's novel, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, specifically seeking out her lifelong rival, Bette Davis, for the co-starring role. The film was a critical and commercial smash hit, reviving both actresses’ careers and demonstrating that older female stars could still draw massive crowds.

The well-documented, combustible rivalry between Davis and Crawford—a feud that continues to be analyzed in modern media like the FX series Feud: Bette and Joan—fueled the film’s publicity and box office success.

2. A Calculated Pivot to Low-Budget Horror

Following the success of Baby Jane?, Crawford made a calculated decision to lean heavily into the newly established 'Hagsploitation' formula. This allowed her to continue starring in films even as major studios stopped offering her A-list roles.

Her subsequent films, directed by William Castle, were B-movie psychological thrillers that cemented her 'camp queen' status:

  • Strait-Jacket (1964): A notorious thriller where Crawford plays a woman released from an asylum who returns to her family, only for a series of axe murders to begin.
  • I Saw What You Did (1965): A suspense film where she plays a supporting role as the jealous neighbor of a killer.
  • Berserk! (1967): Crawford stars as the ruthless ringmaster of a traveling circus plagued by a serial killer.

While the quality of these later films declined and some were considered "truly awful," they kept her name above the title and her career active, demonstrating her fierce determination to remain a working actress.

The Corporate Powerhouse: Joan Crawford, Pepsi Executive

Perhaps the most surprising and least cinematic aspect of Crawford's 1960s life was her role as a high-powered corporate executive, a position she had inherited from her late husband, Alfred Steele, the chairman of Pepsi-Cola.

3. From Starlet to Board Member

Upon Steele's death in 1959, Crawford was elected to fill his vacancy on the Pepsi-Cola board of directors. This was not a ceremonial role; she became a glamorous, globe-trotting ambassador for the soft drink company throughout the 1960s.

She used her star power to promote the brand, traveling on the Pepsi jet to meet bottlers and attending dedication ceremonies for new bottling plants worldwide, including events in Nashville and San Diego in the early sixties.

4. The Forced Retirement

Crawford's tenure on the board lasted well into the next decade, but her corporate career ended abruptly. She was forcibly retired from the PepsiCo board of directors in 1973. This dismissal marked the final, painful chapter of her public life, illustrating that while she could outwit Hollywood, the corporate world eventually proved too rigid for the aging star.

Beyond the Big Screen: The Television and Public Persona

As film roles became scarcer in the late 1960s, Crawford strategically utilized the burgeoning medium of television to maintain her visibility and connect with a new generation of fans.

5. Game Show Glamour and Guest Spots

Crawford made numerous television appearances throughout the decade, showcasing her enduring star quality. She was a regular guest on talk shows, often appeared as a contestant on game shows, and endorsed various products through commercials.

A notable appearance was on the popular game show What's My Line?, where she delighted the panel by answering questions in a faux Southern accent, channeling her old Hollywood charm.

6. The Failed Pilot and the Final Film

In 1964, Crawford attempted a full-scale pivot to weekly television by starring in the pilot film Royal Bay, later retitled Della. She played Della Chappell, a wealthy recluse, a role that echoed the themes of her successful psychological thrillers. The show was not picked up as a series, but the attempt demonstrated her willingness to adapt to the changing media landscape.

Her final feature film of the decade was the British horror film Berserk! (1967). She later made one final feature film appearance, the sci-fi horror picture Trog (1970), which is widely considered one of the worst films of her career, serving as a poignant, if unfortunate, closing chapter to her filmography.

7. The Enduring Legacy of Survival and Camp

The 1960s redefined Joan Crawford's legacy. She transitioned from a symbol of Golden Age glamour to a figure of resilient, self-aware camp. Modern analysis, often spurred by the popularity of the Feud series, frames her 1960s choices not as desperation, but as a groundbreaking, albeit problematic, form of survival.

By embracing the 'Hagsploitation' genre, Crawford and Bette Davis inadvertently created a subculture that celebrated their dramatic personas, securing their relevance for decades to come. Her life in the 1960s—split between the horror movie set and the corporate boardroom—is the ultimate proof of her mantra: never stop fighting for your place in the spotlight.

joan crawford 1960s
joan crawford 1960s

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