Discovery Channel Hostage Drama and Five Other Attacks on Hollywood

Anthrax, bombs, guns—we look back at some of the scariest showbiz scares

Scary day at Discovery Channel headquarters in Maryland today, where an armed man held hostages before being shot dead by police. Suspect James Lee, who was killed by police, had a history of run-ins and rants against the cable giant.

Here are five other times Hollywood institutions came under frightening attack:

1. The Post-9/11 Anthrax Scare. Just days after the 2001 terror attacks, the Manhattan offices of ABC, NBC and CBS were jolted anew by the discovery of letters laced with the potentially deadly toxin. Those infected included the infant child of an ABC News staffer. An apparently unrelated anthrax threat rattled A-list types in 2008. 

2. The Pat Robertson Letter Bomb. In 1990, a letter bomb addressed to the televangelist exploded in the mailroom of his Christian Broadcasting Network. One person, a network security guard, was injured.

3. The CBS Gunman.  In 2002, the network's famed Television City complex in Los Angeles was evacuated, and taping on The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful halted, after an armed man barged into the mailroom. A police standoff ensued, and ended only when the suspect shot himself.

4. The CNBC Blackout. In 1998, the business network went dark for about 90 minutes after its New Jersey studio was cleared due to a bomb threat. No explosive devices were found.

5. The Planet Hollywood Explosion. In 1998, a terror group targeted the Cape Town, South Africa, outpost of the Bruce Willis-, Arnold Schwarzenegger- and Sylvester Stallone-founded restaurant chain. One person was killed in the blast.