The Getty family curse is a mysterious and often discussed topic. The Getty family, known for their immense wealth and involvement in various industries, has faced a series of unfortunate events and controversies throughout the years. The curse allegedly began with J. Paul Getty, an oil tycoon and founder of the Getty Oil Company. Despite his immense wealth, he experienced personal tragedies, such as the kidnapping and mutilation of his grandson, John Paul Getty III, in 1973. This incident, which gained worldwide attention, seemed to mark the beginning of the alleged curse.

Will Getty family curse claim the next generation after the latest death?

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Ivy Getty and John Paul Getty. Shutterstock (2)

When John Gilbert Getty was found “unresponsive” in a $1,200 suite on Nov. 20 at the luxe Hotel Emma, a chic refurbished brewery in downtown San Antonio, details about his death — in the words of a veteran investigator — were “buttoned down” very fast.

“That’s how they do it,” Los Angeles investigator John Nazarian, who worked for years for billionaire heiress Doris Duke, told The Post. “They get in there and they clean it up and they make sure nobody talks.”

Neither hotel personnel nor the San Antonio police would comment to The Post. Even reporters at the local newspaper and TV station just rewrote the original scoop from TMZ that John Gilbert Getty, the handsome grandson of oil baron J. Paul Getty and an heir to his $5 billion fortune, had died at age 52 — two months after the passing of his mother and five years after the harrowing death of his older brother Andrew, a methamphetamine addict.

John Gilbert Getty’s daughter, Ivy, told The Post that her father had fallen in love with San Antonio and was there preparing to move into a new home when he died.

John Gilbert Getty, who died at age 52 last month. Instagram

Described as a talented musician and a lover of high-end Los Angeles real estate, John Gilbert Getty, who grew up bouncing between the US and the UK, was one of four sons of the San Francisco investor and philanthropist Gordon Getty — the last remaining son of J. Paul Getty. Gordon is a fixture of San Francisco society and helped fund the political rise of Gov. Gavin Newsom as well as vice-president-elect Kamala Harris.

He holds such sway in San Francisco that when news hit in 1999 that he had a second, secret, family in Los Angeles — a mistress and three young daughters — people barely blinked an eye and he stayed married to his wife, Ann, until her death.

With the cause of his death still not publicly known, it’s been up to John Gilbert Getty’s only child, 26-year-old Ivy, and her cousins, to shed light on his life — and to insist that the newest generation of the family is making its mark free of the notorious and tragedy-ridden Getty past.

“My father was awesome — coolest man to ever land on this planet and I will forever be the proudest daughter,” Ivy wrote on Instagram. “Love you so much, Dad … Life is cruel sometimes.”

Ivy Getty, 26, is an artist and model. Max Lakner/BFA.com

J. Paul Getty has more than 40 descendants but the younger generation, his great-grandchildren, includes budding stars such as socialite, model and artist Ivy, who has 23,000 Instagram followers. Successful fashion designer August Getty, 26, dresses icons ranging from Cher and Hailey Baldwin to Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus. Isabel Getty, 25, the jet-setting musician daughter of Christopher Getty and Pia Miller, is the singer of the band Jean Marlow. And Nats (Natalia) Getty, 27, founded her own streetwear clothing line, Strike Oil, and is an LBGTQ activist married to Gigi Gorgeous, a transgender woman with a huge YouTube following.

Ivy told The Post that “growing up with a family in the public eye, I noticed that some people tended to focus on our tragedies. But tragedy is not unique to the Getty family. It strikes us all at some point. Although I’m grieving for my father right now, I am filled with gratitude for everything he taught me. My glass is half full. I think our generation has been given a special opportunity to do good in the world, and we intend to take advantage of that opportunity.”

Though the lives of the younger generation look glam and glossy on social media, family insiders say they face an uphill battle when it comes to the dark past of the Getty family.

J. Paul Getty was once the richest person on earth. Born in 1892, he died in 1976, leaving a dysfunctional family plagued by drug overdoses, a kidnapping, illicit affairs and scandals. He was by many accounts a cold, stingy man who was married and divorced five times and had five sons by four different wives. His youngest son, Timothy, died of a brain tumor at 12 — but J. Paul could not be bothered to attend the funeral. His eldest son, George, stabbed himself to death with a barbecue fork while under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Another son, John Paul Getty Jr. (born Eugene), became a heroin addict whose second wife, Talitha, died of a drug overdose in Rome.

Nats Getty, 27, is an LGBTQ activist with more than 160,000 Instagram followers. WireImage

In 1973, John Paul Jr.’s son, 16-year-old John Paul III, was kidnapped by Italian mobsters who cut off part of his ear and mailed it to his grandfather in a quest for a $2.2 million ransom — which J. Paul initially refused.

Though he was eventually freed, John Paul Getty III never got over the trauma and became a drug addict. In 1981, he suffered a stroke brought on by alcohol and drugs and was left blind, unable to speak and confined to a wheelchair until his death in 2011 at age 54. The kidnapping was chronicled in the 2017 film “All the Money in the World” and the 2018 FX series “Trust.”

His only child is actor Balthazar Getty, 45, the father of four who is one of the more successful Getty progeny — along with John Paul Getty III’s brother Mark, 60, who co-founded the photographic agency Getty Images.

“We’re talking old-school money — so you have old-school demons and ghosts passed down from generation to generation,” a family friend told The Post. “The kids didn’t earn it. A lot of the them have been very tempted by drugs. I’ve been holding out hope for the youngest ones since there’s distance between them and the old man [J. Paul]. But John’s death didn’t help.”

Even Ivy, who remembers her father so fondly, has not had the easiest life, according to a prominent socialite in San Francisco who knew her paternal grandparents well.

Isabel Getty, 27, is the vocalist for the rock band Jean Marlow and a double heir (her maternal family, the Millers, founded DFS duty-free shops). Mike Marsland/WireImage

“John Gilbert Getty was a dysfunctional parent to the point where Ann took over and decided Ivy was going to live with her and Gordon,” the insider said. “It was kind of like a modern version of the poor little rich girl. Ivy’s mother was not really around too much.”

To make things more complicated, Gordon’s secret double life with his Los Angeles mistress put a strain on all his heirs. Getty publicly acknowledged his three daughters — Nicolette, Kendalle and Alexandra — from that union in 1999 after they went to court to be officially recognized as Gettys.

“Two days ago, for the second time in my life, one of my brothers died,” Kendalle, 31, wrote on Instagram after John Gilbert’s death last week. “John, we were never close but I find myself affected by this loss anyway. You were hard on me. I guess you felt that was your duty. It’s been scary being the bastard daughter of our father and his mistress in a family that’s so notorious. I hid my truth, but never because I hated you guys. I’m sorry. I promise to take care of your daughter from here on out.”

Kendalle and her sisters are Ivy’s aunts and from comments on their respective Instagrams, appear to be close.

August Getty, 26, is a fashion designer who has worked with Miley Cyrus and Hailey Baldwin. Owen Kolasinski/BFA.com

John Gilbert’s untimely death was just the latest in a long line of so-called Getty “tragedies.” His brother Andrew, 47, died in 2015 of gastrointestinal bleeding reportedly brought on by a meth habit. He spent almost 15 years working on a horror movie, “The Evil Within,” that was released after his death. The protagonist in the movie brutally kills everyone he loves. A family friend said the film was based on “powerful, sick, twisted dreams” Andrew had as a boy.

Among the up-and-coming generation, many point to Nats as one of the more inspirational members of the family. Last year she married Gigi Gorgeous, who began her YouTube career as a self-described “gawky Canadian teen named Gregory” giving makeup tutorials, and says their love has saved her life.

Recently, Nats posted frightening photos from her past when, she said, she weighed 80 pounds because of anorexia and had suffered multiple drug overdoses, a diabetic coma from malnutrition, a medical detox and broken bones.

“I have come to realize that I never realized how ill I truly was,” Nats wrote. “I look back … and I see a soulless version of myself. It has taken me years to recover and it is still a daily struggle. I refuse to let my demons bring me back to that place of darkness. I work constantly to live in light and love.”

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Kidnapping, Drugs and Scandal: Inside the Billionaire Getty Family's 'Curse'

Once the richest dynasty in the world, the Getty family has weathered enough suffering and scandal over generations to earn their reputation for being cursed.

The most infamous example of the Getty misfortune — the brutal kidnapping and mutilation of John Paul Getty III in the ’70 — is the subject of Ridley Scott’s All the Money in the World, starring Christopher Plummer as the family patriarch J. Paul Getty, and Michelle Williams as Getty III’s devoted mother Gail Harris who fights to save her son.

“The great unanswered mystery of the Getty fortune is why it has apparently devoured so many of its beneficiaries,” wrote John Pearson in his 1995 biography Painfully Rich, which inspired the new movie about the Getty kidnapping, All the Money in the World. “It’s a sad story,”

Who Is Getty?

The richest man in the world at the time of his grandson’s kidnapping, Getty made the bulk of his eventual billion-dollar fortune extracting oil from the Middle East. A notorious playboy, he married and divorced five different women throughout his life, and was rumored to have countless other affairs. The miserly patriarch “was a genius at business,” biographer Robert Lenzner once told PEOPLE, “but an illiterate with respect to intimacy and family.”

All the Money in the World screenwriter David Scarpa said of Getty, “This is a man with a deep, gnawing sense of insecurity. The money is what he thinks is going to fill it, and it never does.”

However, after his death, a bulk of his estate was put into the J. Paul Getty Trust, now the world’s wealthiest art institution. His heirs have also donated a substantial part of the family fortune to charitable causes.

Tragedy Strikes

The first personal tragedy to strike the billionaire’s family was the untimely death of his youngest son, Timothy Ware Getty, who died of a brain tumor at the age of 12 in 1958.

In the early ‘70s, his son John Paul Getty Jr. became a drug addict while living in Morocco, and divorced his wife, Abigail Harris. Soon after, he married actress Talitha Pol, who died of a heroin overdose in 1971.

The Kidnapping

Two years later, Getty Jr.’s son Getty III was kidnapped by Italian gangsters while living in Rome. The 16-year-old was already using drugs at the time, according to Getty Sr.’s friend and former chief executive Claus von Bülow.

“Paul was living more or less on the Spanish Steps together with other kids shooting up when it happened,” said von Bülow. “When he disappeared they just assumed he was on a binge somewhere. Let’s just say he did not disappear out of his childhood bedroom.”

The kidnappers demanded a $17 million ransom, but his father didn’t have the resources to pay. Getty Jr. and Harris begged the boy’s billionaire grandfather to save their son, but the family patriarch refused, reasoning that negotiating with terrorists would put his other 14 grandchildren at risk.

“The problem could have been solved instantly,” says Scarpa. “The money’s there, the entire problem exists in the head of one man.”

Only when the kidnappers mailed his grandson’s severed ear and a lock of hair to an Italian newspaper, did Getty agree to get involved, negotiating a deal to pay a total of $2.9 million. He put up the first $2.2 million with no strings attached, as that was the maximum amount of money that was tax deductible. The remaining sum was given to Getty Jr. as a loan, which he was responsible to repay at 4% interest.

Coincidentally, the same year of the kidnapping, Getty’s oldest son, George Franklin Getty, died of a cocktail of drugs and alcohol, in addition to an self-inflicted stab wound.

More Tragedy

Despite being saved from abduction, Getty III never fully recovered from the experience. In 1981, when he was his 20s, he suffered a stroke after a drug overdose, leaving him partially blind and quadriplegic. He died in 2011 at the age of 54 following years of illness.

After his son’s kidnapping, Getty Jr. sunk deeper into depression, and eventually checked himself into a London rehab in 1984. During his stay, he received a personal visit from then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Eventually, he learned to manage his depression and died at the age of 70 in 2003.

Even the most respected and accomplished heirs to the Getty fortune became mired in controversy.

Getty’s son Gordon was an esteemed musician living in San Francisco when it was revealed in 1999 that he had three children out of wedlock. Gordon is still married to his wife, Ann Gilbert.

The Family Curse

“Large amounts of money are very toxic,” Getty’s granddaughter Aileen, a recovering addict turned philanthropist, told PEOPLE in 1992. “It’s a very unfortunate substance to have.

Although he rarely speaks of his famous family, Gordon opened up about his father and the family curse in the 2016 documentary Gordon Getty: There Will Be Music.

“It’s neither a curse nor a blessing,” he said in the film of his family name. “It’s an influence and if you have something bigger – and music is bigger than me – you might escape the curse. You make the best of what you are.”

In 2015, Gordon’s son Andrew died at the age of 47 due to intestinal bleeding. His ex-girlfriend Lanessa DeJonge discovered his body. The death was ruled accidental, with methamphetamine use and heart disease listed as contributing factors.

All the Money in the World is now in theaters.

Inside the billionaire Getty dynasty wrecked by booze, addiction, suicide and kidnapping

And the curse surrounding the mega-rich dynasty has struck again, with the death of John Gilbert Getty, aged 52.

The curse surrounding the Getty family has struck again, with the death of John Gilbert Getty Credit: Instagram

The head of the dynasty was J Paul Getty, who struck rich in the oil industry in 1916 Credit: Camera Press

He is often remembered for refusing to pay a ransom when his grandson John Paul was kidnapped Credit: Popperfoto - Getty

The long-haired, tattooed grandson of oil tycoon J Paul Getty, and one of the heirs to the family’s £3.75billion fortune, was found unresponsive in a hotel room in Texas.

A family statement said: “He was a talented musician who loved rock and roll. He will be deeply missed.”

He leaves one daughter, Ivy Love Getty, who posted memories on Instagram about her dad’s love of rosé wine and how he would put ice cream in the fridge for 30 minutes before he would “drink it like soup”.

Ivy, 25, who said she was proud to be the only “consistent” woman in his life, wrote: “My father was awesome — the coolest man to ever land on this planet and I will forever be the proudest daughter.”

John was the son of composer Gordon Getty, 86, who has now lost his wife and two of his seven children within five years.

In 2015, John’s brother Andrew died aged 47 from an intestinal haemorrhage.

He was found to have a toxic level of methamphetamine in his system. Two months ago, Gordon’s wife Ann passed away from a heart attack, aged 79.

This incident, which gained worldwide attention, seemed to mark the beginning of the alleged curse. The Getty family curse continued to haunt subsequent generations. J.

STABBED HIMSELF IN THE CHEST

The latest death on Friday last week is part of the long and sorry saga of the Getty clan, which includes the 1973 Mafia kidnapping of a 16-year-old John Paul Getty III.

His grandad J Paul refused to pay the ransom of £12million (equivalent to £70million today) so the Mob cut off John Paul’s ear and sent it to a newspaper in Rome.

Renowned miser J Paul eventually coughed up, but only after the US government negotiated a ransom figure of about £1.6million, the maximum that would be tax deductible.

John Paul's kidnapping was the subject of Ridley Scott’s 2017 movie All The Money In The World Credit: Hulton Archive - Getty

After his release, John Paul fell into drug addiction and suffered a stroke which left him paralysed Credit: Getty

The film itself could not escape the curse - it had to be re-shot when Christopher Plummer took over Kevin Spacey's role Credit: Alamy

Even then, he ordered John Paul’s father John Paul Getty Jnr to repay him at four per cent interest.

The kidnapping was the subject of Ridley Scott’s 2017 movie All The Money In The World — and it seems even that film could not escape the Getty curse.

Actor Kevin Spacey was cast as J Paul, but had to be replaced after filming came to a close when sexual abuse allegations broke. His scenes were then re-shot, with Christopher Plummer taking over the role.

J Paul’s road to fortune began in 1903, aged 11, when his father George, a lawyer, moved the family to Oklahoma in the hope of striking it rich with oil.

And strike it rich they did. In 1914 George lent a 21-year-old J Paul 10,000 dollars to make his own investments. Within two years he had made his first million.

Thanks to shrewd early investments in oil-rich land between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, he was named the richest man in America in 1957.

The Guinness Book Of Records named him as the richest private citizen in the world in 1966, with wealth of approximately £6billion in today’s terms.

But the sheen was already coming off America’s golden family.

Dad George had fallen out with J Paul over the younger man’s womanising.

J Paul married and divorced five times in his life — with three of those coming in the 1920s alone. He had five sons in total.

In 1959, J Paul moved the family to the UK, buying Sutton Place, a 16th Century Tudor manor house in Surrey.

Visitors there could admire the Rembrandts and Renoirs on the walls, but had to use a payphone to make calls.

J Paul's eldest son George died in 1973 - he had overdosed on barbiturates and alcohol and stabbed himself in the chest Credit: Getty

Fourth son Gordon (pictured with son Andrew) lost his wife and two of his seven children within five years Credit: AP:Associated Press

When J Paul’s youngest son, Timothy, by fifth wife Teddy Lynch, developed a brain tumour at six years old, J Paul moaned about the cost of the medical bills.

When ­Timothy died in 1958, aged 12, J Paul was “too busy” to go to the funeral. Soon after, he and Teddy divorced.

J Paul died at Sutton Place, aged 83, in 1976, surrounded by his mistresses and dogs, but not a single family member.

He left a large slice of his £4.2billion estate to the Getty Art Museum in Los Angeles.

Of J Paul’s four other sons, one died after a suspected suicide, one had a secret second family and another fell into drug and booze addiction.

The eldest, George F Getty II, chief operating officer of the family’s Getty Oil Company, died in 1973, aged 48.

An inquest in LA found he had overdosed on barbiturates and alcohol and stabbed himself in the chest.

In Danny Boyle’s American TV drama, Trust, about the family, George is seen staggering away from a pool party at his Bel Air mansion, locking himself in the garage and stabbing himself with a barbecue fork.

According to J Paul biographer John Pearson, George had been taking drugs and on the night of his death had argued with his wife about his father, who George was said to be scared of.

Pearson wrote: “Their rows were almost always over Mr Getty.

John Paul Jnr's second wife Talitha Pol died of a heroin overdose in 1971 Credit: Getty Images - Getty

After her death he spiralled further into addiction, but he turned his life around and went on to be knighted Credit: AFP - Getty

“At the end of the row, he flipped. All the frustrations, hatreds, impotence and rage surfacing in one great wave of anger and he panicked.”

A month after his death, his nephew John Paul Getty III was kidnapped.

In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine after his release in 1974, John Paul said he never thought his grandfather would cough up.

He explained: “Because of the way he is. Besides, I realised I would probably do the same thing.

"Because I don’t believe that somebody should work for 60 years to make his money then have some little criminal who’s too lazy to get a job take his money.”

It was five months before the Mafia released him. Afterwards, John Paul fell into drug addiction and suffered a stroke aged 25, leaving him paralysed in all four limbs, partially blind and unable to speak.

He died at the family’s estate, Wormsley Park, Bucks, in 2011, aged 54.

John Paul’s own son Balthazar, 45, became a musician and actor, appearing in TV series Twin Peaks.

Paul Getty III's life was plagued by addiction and physical disabilities resulting from his kidnapping. He struggled with drug abuse and faced financial difficulties. His cousin, J. Paul Getty Jr., also had his share of struggles, dealing with drug addiction and divorces. Additionally, his son, Mark Getty, suffered from depression and a public divorce. These incidents and challenges have led some to believe that the Getty family is cursed. Furthermore, the family's wealth and success have been accompanied by scandals and controversies. The division of the Getty fortune and legal battles over inheritances have created tensions and feuds within the family. In 2015, the Getty family made headlines again when John Gilbert Getty, a grandson of J. Paul Getty, was found dead. The cause of his death was reported to be complications related to a stomach ulcer, but some speculate that the curse may have played a role. Despite disbelief from skeptics, the idea of a Getty family curse continues to capture public fascination. The notion that immense wealth brings tragedy and misfortune has been a popular theme throughout history, and the Getty family's experiences seem to fit this narrative. However, others argue that the alleged curse can be attributed to the family's complex dynamics, personal choices, and the societal pressures that come with immense wealth. In conclusion, the Getty family curse remains a subject of intrigue and debate. The tragic events and controversies that have plagued the family over the years have fueled speculation of a curse. Nonetheless, whether these incidents are the result of a supernatural force or simply human misfortune, the Getty family's story serves as a reminder that wealth and success do not guarantee happiness and tranquility in life..

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Unraveling the Getty Curse: A Family's Struggle