The genesis of MGM's Freaks was a magazine piece by Ted Robbins titled Spurs. The story involved a terrible revenge enacted by a mean-spirited circus midget upon his normal-sized wife. In adapting ...

The 1932 movie Rasputin and the Empress didn’t just botch historical accuracy — it sparked a lawsuit that forever changed the way Hollywood protects itself with disclaimers.

The 1932 MGM film won Best Picture at the fifth Academy Awards and since then has found itself nestled into pseudo-obscurity. An ensemble cast of characters, intersecting stories and then a swift end.

“American Horror Story: Freak Show,’’ premiering tonight on FX, employs elaborate digital effects as well as actors with deformities to depict backstage life at a 1950s carnival. Clips and ...