Sexual Assault and the Culture of Hollywood - The Something Awful Forums

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Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

From the cache

quote:

Here’s How Gal Gadot Actually Responded When Her Friend Raped Me.
Content warning… please proceed with caution.

Recently Gal Gadot tweeted that bullying is unacceptable.
Her hypocrisy is deeply wounding. The shame and blame she instilled into me after I was raped was deeply traumatizing.
Gal is more than a bully; she is a predator who enables predators.
This is my story.
Thirteen years ago, I shared an apartment with Gal Gadot for two months in Milan, Italy. Several young girls lived in the building, all under contract with the same modeling management company.
Shortly after we met, Gal invited me to share space in her room. Gal’s roommate Maya* was going back home to Israel. Maya was 15, and only spoke Hebrew.
Maya was about to leave for the airport. Her bags were packed. The expression on her face was vacant. Tears were in her eyes. It was clear she was in deep pain.
Gal calmly told me that the girl had been raped, and that the experience had put the girl in the hospital.
Gal said the girl was stupid — for going to the wrong club, and for trusting the man who brought her there. I felt sorry for Maya, but I didn’t know what to do and I didn’t speak her language. I didn’t realize that meeting her would foreshadow my future.
Gal had been in Milan for a few weeks. She said she would show me the ropes and who could be trusted. Her confident strength made me feel safe, protected, and loved in a way that I hadn’t felt before. Gal taught me to trust her. I was 18 and she was 19.
Gal told me about men who followed models around to casting calls. They were paid by clubs to convince models like us to join them at these clubs in exchange for expensive food, drinks, publicity photos, and VIP treatment. Gal told me to never trust these men, because they rape.
Gal’s previous roommate had been tricked by one of these men, and the underlying message was clear: trust Gal. I felt safe with Gal. I did not realize then how little I knew about rape, predators, and the culture that supports them.
Gal and I spent most of our free time together. We shared food, clothes, and makeup. We went to the gym. We went shopping and tanning together. We went on photo shoots together. I made her a mix CD. I sang her to sleep. I watched her smoke constantly out of the window. We shared body insecurities, and she shared sex stories. She made sure to appear confident, knowledgeable, and successful — even then. She fed me information about Israel. Whenever she discussed Palestinians, she showed deep hatred.
Gal set us up on dates with men who expected sex in exchange for the lavish meals they fed us, although we never slept with them. She would pick smaller men, and threaten them after dinner. They complained and she chased them off with more threats. She would laugh about it later. She used sex as a weapon.
Several weeks into my stay, she took me to meet her Israeli friends including her best friend Ayala*. Ayala and her boyfriend Yaniv seemed very close. He appeared to dote on her, and they seemed very much in love.
Gal, Ayala, Yaniv and I went out each weekend, sometimes with other friends. The four of us quickly became a core group. We went to clubs to spend time in the spaces reserved for celebrities.
Hidden behind the historic exteriors of Milan’s ancient architecture were sensory-overwhelming nightclubs, decked out like palaces. These places were teeming with swarms of people feeding off of manufactured prestige. I was a sheltered child from a small town, and was utterly unprepared for the dark side of the modeling and nightlife industries.
A short time later, Gal and I spent a weekend at Yaniv and Ayala’s room inside another shared apartment. Gal and I shared a pull out couch while Yaniv and Ayala slept in their bed. The room was close and intimate. We spent the evening laughing, watching movies, smoking, and drinking. Yaniv commented on how I could not hold my alcohol, fully aware I had no experience getting drunk.
A week later, Ayala left for a modeling gig in Greece while Gal was in Ireland for a weekend shoot. Yaniv invited me out to dinner alone. Over dinner, we talked about our significant others, his travel around the world, and his time in the Israeli Defense Forces. I didn’t realize that his intentions were anything other than honorable. After dinner, his friend invited us to a new club.
Yaniv asked if I had ever drank wine, knowing I had not. He bought me several drinks with dinner while telling me that I needed to try different varieties. It’s hard for me to remember what happened after that. I assume he drugged me.
To this day, I have never been inebriated in that particular way, especially after only drinking wine. I was in and out of consciousness, and my body felt limp. I kept falling over. My brain felt like it was shutting down. Yaniv called his roommate Ofir to help carry me home. I couldn’t walk. I was dead weight. I remember odd pieces, like him repeatedly asking me in a sick, almost playfully malicious tone of voice if I thought I was smart.
I remember thinking that we were going home so that I would sleep on the couch, as Gal and I had before. I woke up in Yaniv’s bed, naked. He had removed my clothes when I was unconscious. I remember him climbing on top of me. I could just barely say “no”, and “this isn’t right”. Then I blacked out.
I woke up again while he continued raping me. He was restraining my arms so I couldn’t move. It was violent. There was pain. I will never forget how he looked in that dark room. I will never forget the absolute panic I felt. It was terror. I thought he would kill me next. His rape was full of hate. He did not look at me.
I woke up the next morning, groggy and delirious. I asked Yaniv what happened. I wanted to hear him say it.
“We had sex,” he said, and shrugged. “I thought you knew.”
“I told you no,” I said, quietly.
“You told me no but your body told me yes,” he said. That line still haunts my mind, 13 years later.
I couldn’t get out of his bed, even though I wanted to leave. I was physically sick; not only still intoxicated from the aftereffects of whatever I consumed, but also bruised, shocked, and traumatized. As I lay in his bed, I listened to Yaniv call a friend and brag about having sex with an 18 year old. His conquest; an accomplishment; a notch on his belt.
He told me that no one could know, because Ayala would be too hurt. Soon, he began ignoring me.
I was disoriented and traumatized. I had absolutely no context to process what had happened. I had no sex education, and certainly no understanding of predators or the culture that supports them. I had been taught a woman should be a virgin until marriage.
I thought sex was about love. What I experienced from him was not love. It was hate and disgust. I didn’t have the language to call this rape. Rape was something to fear from strangers while walking alone down the street. Rape was not committed by a friend.
I thought he was my friend.
I was used, discarded, and alone.
Almost alone. At least I had Gal, I thought. She came home two days later. She knew something had happened by looking at me. I wonder if I reminded her of her previously raped roommate.
Gal immediately began interrogating me. I could see no compassion in her eyes. I told Gal something had happened between Yaniv and I.
She took me down to the basement. It was cold, mechanical, and frightening. We were alone. Then her anger exploded.
She stood over me, intimidating and loud, blaming me for what happened. Her eyes were fire. I had already felt small and violated, but she shamed me into feeling obsolete. I felt extremely dirty. Already in shock, I disassociated from my body. I can’t remember most of her words. I remember being in utter terror of her anger.
She was furious for Ayala and “what I had done to her”. Gal pointed her finger in my face like a weapon. She asked me how I could do this, and that I needed to make this up to Ayala. She made me feel ashamed, that the whole event had been my fault, and that I had brought it upon myself by being so naïve.
After that, I feared Gal. I spent nights out as long as I could, hoping to avoid her. When I did see Gal, she would speak of nothing other than her conviction that I needed to speak with or write to Ayala. She would not let up. She was obsessed. There was absolutely no understanding from her. I don’t know how she could not have seen how the rape changed me. I was no longer the same person.
On my last night in Milan, Gal made one final attempt to get me to submit to her demands. She brought me downstairs to a computer. Gal put her hands on me and forced me into the chair. She made me open my email account and write Ayala’s address in the address bar.
Standing behind me and above me, Gal held my shoulders down with a terrible pressure, preventing me from escape. She attempted to dictate what she called my “confession and apology”. I could not do it. I was crying, and my head seemed to break apart. My heart felt like it was bleeding out. My stomach was in awful knots. I began disassociating from my body. I could not speak. I could not write her lies.
She referred to the rape as “your mistake”.
After what felt like several hours, Gal eventually gave up in disgust. It was late at night. She made me promise I would write the letter to Ayala. I never wrote the letter.
I returned home confused, silent, and ashamed. Later Gal returned to Israel for her military training. I ended my modeling career as another young woman assaulted, used, and disposed by the industry and its enablers. I did not think I would ever see Gal again.
When I was getting my degree in Women’s and Gender Studies, Gal showed up on Maxim in a bikini and heels, the cover girl of their issue on the women of the Israeli Defense Forces.
When I saw her face, I had an immense panic attack. I had no idea how much she would upset me. My rape came flashing back. I could feel Gal’s hands pushing on my shoulders. My throat closed up and my heart raced. The nightmares continued to haunt me every night.
After I graduated, I worked as the director of the sexual assault services program back in my hometown. I spent many years helping survivors to validate their experiences and process emotions, yet I still deeply struggled with my own.
Yaniv Nahoum is responsible for drugging and raping me. That was not Gal’s fault. But her confidence and her power in blaming me opened up a part of my brain, and filled me with an all-consuming shame. I can still feel the pressure of her hands pushing down on me.
The trust she built with me was a gateway to my total devastation.
Predators gain trust in order to exploit it for their advantage.
Gal has succeeded in a predatory industry because she is a predator. She is unafraid to destroy others in pursuit of her ambitions. Like any strong predator, she knows how to target, destroy, and consume the weakest and most vulnerable.
Highly skilled predators in our society manage to land roles where they cultivate public trust.
Bill Cosby put on a sweater and built trust as a Huxtable.
Gal Gadot put on a breastplate and became an icon for women.
A predator in a costume is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
When Gal Gadot says that she supports sexual assault survivors, do not believe it. Her actions speak louder than words.
*not her real name

I'm having a little trouble buying this one. Why would you wait until now to make this public? Gal's been in the public eye in a major way for several years now.

# ¿ Nov 15, 2017 03:30

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# ¿ May 26, 2022 02:24

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Al Borland Corp. posted:

Apparently the person who posted it doesn't admit it was made up. It was deleted for violating site policy.

You got links to this drama as it unfolds?

# ¿ Nov 15, 2017 04:26

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Uncle Boogeyman posted:

So was Kevin Spacey

The Kevin Spacey thing had been discussed and joked about for what, 12 years at least? The FG joke was from 2007 wasn't it? Are there any other sources of Gal being a bad person on record anywhere?

# ¿ Nov 15, 2017 04:54

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Uncle Boogeyman posted:

I dunno whether it's true or not but "why didn't the victim come forward earlier?" is not the best question. Many victims in these situations do not come forward immediately for many reasons, among them fear of not being believed.

It just feels weird that this comes out on the eve of her continued massive success as a female empowerment icon.

# ¿ Nov 15, 2017 05:04

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

teagone posted:

The twitter account of the author who published the Gadot article on Medium doesn't seem to strike the proper tone with their replies. It all just feels a bit off? Don't know how else to describe it. Read for yourself: https://twitter.com/imasurvivor4eva/with_replies

[edit] Should note that I'm still not dismissing it, but I feel like major media outlets would have picked up this story by now and have it blasted all over the web.

SOme of the responses seem a bit flippant. As I said in my first comment on the story, we need to see how Gal reacts to this.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 02:45

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

That really throws a whole lot of shade on the entire thing.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 03:20

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Hat Thoughts posted:

Predicting a lot of real bad takes from comedians on this Franken one

Why? Because he's one of them? Have a lot of comedians been defending Louie?

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 16:18

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Uncle Boogeyman posted:

I mean a lot of them did until the flood of evidence became too much to deny

I know they did in the past, I meant over the last few weeks. I should have been clear on that. I didn't see many people stepping up to defend hi when the floodgates opened.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 16:35

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Didn't Loren Michaels have a lovely rep like 20 years ago? I've been waiting for the SNL doors to blow wide open with poo poo like this.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 18:34

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Frankin's response is not what I expected

quote:

The first thing I want to do is apologize: to Leeann, to everyone else who was part of that tour, to everyone who has worked for me, to everyone I represent, and to everyone who counts on me to be an ally and supporter and champion of women. There's more I want to say, but the first and most important thing—and if it's the only thing you care to hear, that's fine—is: I'm sorry.

I respect women. I don't respect men who don't. And the fact that my own actions have given people a good reason to doubt that makes me feel ashamed.

But I want to say something else, too. Over the last few months, all of us—including and especially men who respect women—have been forced to take a good, hard look at our own actions and think (perhaps, shamefully, for the first time) about how those actions have affected women.

For instance, that picture. I don't know what was in my head when I took that picture, and it doesn't matter. There's no excuse. I look at it now and I feel disgusted with myself. It isn't funny. It's completely inappropriate. It's obvious how Leeann would feel violated by that picture. And, what's more, I can see how millions of other women would feel violated by it—women who have had similar experiences in their own lives, women who fear having those experiences, women who look up to me, women who have counted on me.

Coming from the world of comedy, I've told and written a lot of jokes that I once thought were funny but later came to realize were just plain offensive. But the intentions behind my actions aren't the point at all. It's the impact these jokes had on others that matters. And I'm sorry it's taken me so long to come to terms with that.

While I don't remember the rehearsal for the skit as Leeann does, I understand why we need to listen to and believe women’s experiences.

I am asking that an ethics investigation be undertaken, and I will gladly cooperate.

And the truth is, what people think of me in light of this is far less important than what people think of women who continue to come forward to tell their stories. They deserve to be heard, and believed. And they deserve to know that I am their ally and supporter. I have let them down and am committed to making it up to them.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 18:44

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

I'm pretty torn on this one too.

# ¿ Nov 16, 2017 18:57

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Cash Monet posted:

Don't turn out to be a monster, Scorsese.

Another one that I'm trying to prepare myself for is the possibility that while on a coke binge, Robin WIlliams did something horrible and we just haven't heard about it yet.

# ¿ Nov 17, 2017 14:57

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Uncle Boogeyman posted:

I do really wish we could shy away from extrapolating which artists we think are predators based on the art they made (Larry Clark notwithstanding)

The whole situation is just making us all voice our fears that creators we love might be bad people. And then what does that say about us?

A friend of mine just had a major revelation about his own past behaviors and he's pretty much locked himself in his apartment because he feels like a piece of garbage and he won't tell us what pushed him to this.

# ¿ Nov 17, 2017 15:10

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Another woman has come forward with allegations against Franken.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/woman-says-al-franken-inappropriately-touched-her-in-2010/ar-BBFlVOU

# ¿ Nov 20, 2017 16:21

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Macdeo Lurjtux posted:

He wasn't well known to public but he was a huge deal already in the comedy world. In 2002 Louis had already spent a decade writing for Conan O'Brien, Letterman and Chris Rock. He was super well-connected and, at that time, the careers of two of his discoveries Steven Colbert and Steven Carell were taking off fast. He had a reputation of making stars even then.

I believe he wrote a lot for Sarah Silverman? Helped launch her career. And everyone should watch her video reaction to the Louis debacle, she's clearly crushed by this.

# ¿ Nov 25, 2017 01:18

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Well, maybe if his career is ruined it will motivated Crews to rip that dude's arms off like he should have in the first place.

# ¿ Dec 3, 2017 01:12

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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El Gallinero Gros posted:

I'm hoping some of the folks from Expnedables help him out, work wise

Uh, those guys don't exactly have great careers going on themselves and Stallone had a sexual assault accusation thrown at him recently. If anything Terry should distance himself from them.

# ¿ Dec 3, 2017 04:49

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Bryan Singer's days are numbered. I feel like this is going to start the ball rolling on him.

http://www.looper.com/98996/bryan-singer-responds-queen-biopic-firing-ill-parent/

# ¿ Dec 6, 2017 04:34

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Fart City posted:

There was a story item that dropped earlier today where Gabriel Byrne revealed that The Usual Suspects was shut down for two days because of Kevin Spacey's inappropriate sexual advancements on a crew member. That's bad enough. But then you remember that Bryan Singer worked with Spacey again on Superman Returns - another production that Singer vanished on mid-shoot - and it feels like there's some serious BINGO coming down the road for him.

If even half of the rumors are true he needs to be taken down.

# ¿ Dec 6, 2017 05:01

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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DC Murderverse posted:

i mean, the former is probably true but the answer to "why?" is neither of those. They wanted a big release, Lionsgate shuffled it off to one of it's subsidiaries which was gonna give it a small one, so they got let out of their contract and some big money dude is gonna make sure they get a big release next May.

The movie looks like garbage and Travolta is almost certainly someone who has skeletons in his closet, but amazingly neither of those things are the primary reason behind this move.

Kelly Preston has always seemed like a wonderful person but looking back she has to know about anything that Travolta did. I hope she hasn't been covering for him for all these years.

# ¿ Dec 7, 2017 16:33

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

esperterra posted:

gently caress, I hope this allegation actually sticks to Singer and more people speak out. He's such a loving sicko sleazeball and should have been stopped years ago.

It's all I want for Christmas.

I fell down the rabbit hole reading articles linked on FB, a few people were saying Spacey has fled the country. While I don;t know if that is true I'm really curious to see if that becomes a thing that these assholes end up doing.

# ¿ Dec 8, 2017 07:00

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Oh god drat it Bill.

# ¿ Dec 9, 2017 22:45

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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I spent 10 years in the service industry and it is every bit the hellhole you imagine it to be. For women anyways.

# ¿ Dec 12, 2017 05:33

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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muscles like this! posted:

Andy Yeatman, the Netflix executive who (unwittingly) told one of Danny Masterson's victims that Netflix didn't believe her, has been fired.

I'm really enjoying watching all these shitheels reap the consequences.

# ¿ Dec 13, 2017 04:06

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Al Borland Corp. posted:

Oh hey, Roy Moore loving lost, his career is over

Let's hope. They're already screaming voter fraud.

# ¿ Dec 13, 2017 04:30

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Magic Hate Ball posted:

Jesus christ stop being assholes

I KNOW YOU ARE BUT WHAT AM I

On topic, I am kind of curious to see if sexual abusers of the recent past come back into the spotlight for their actions. Ben Roethlesberger did some poo poo and got a free pass. Would that happen so easily now?

# ¿ Dec 18, 2017 01:37

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

Wanna bet Miller get's 100% edited out of Deadpool 2?

# ¿ Dec 20, 2017 05:02

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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There are no requirements at all at most places. I got bumped uo from barback because the evening guy went back to jail and I'd never made a mixed drink in my life at the time.

# ¿ Dec 20, 2017 19:21

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

K. Waste posted:

Replace him with the woman he assaulted.

This. And two or three times she gets to break the 4th wall and flip him the bird.

# ¿ Dec 20, 2017 22:23

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

21 Muns posted:

I think he also said we should lower our standard and ignore sexual harassment because it's not rape. Pretty disgusting stuff.

Whoa, got a link to this?

# ¿ Dec 21, 2017 01:59

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

21 Muns posted:

There'll probably be very little left of Hollywood when the people who let sexual abuse happen are also thrown out, and I am perfectly fine with that.

I'm enjoying the fire.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2017 02:09

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Chili posted:

I don't like tinkering with old movies.

But, I really like wiping these shitbags out of exitence.

It's a fair trade.

What if we put out new versions of the movies where you could switch from the new one that replaces Spacey to the old version? But when you chose to play that version the dvd player shoots the disc out at high speed and it hits you in the dick for choosing to keep supporting that piece of poo poo.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2017 05:40

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Eddie Berganza got bounced from DC Comics for being a piece of poo poo. Now Bleeding Cool (the rear end in a top hat of comic book journalism) is quietly trying to gather dirt on any creator in the industry. A friend of mine who also works comic retail was sexually assaulted by former Dark Horse editor Scott Allie and recently told me that BC contacted them looking for a quote about it. So I'd expect to see the entire comic book industry tree getting shaken in the near future and a fuckload of bad apples will come falling down.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2017 21:00

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Timby posted:

Yep. RDJ literally has a career today because he's friends with Mel Gibson.

I think a lot of his current career thanks go to Shane Black and Jon Favreau as well. Gibson kept him afloat back in the day but Favreau is fought tooth and nail to get him in Iron Man when the studio didn't want him.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2017 19:28

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Dr. S.O. Feelgood posted:

I think Sam Worthington has been putting in some good work lately. His starring roles in big movies were all pretty bad, but he seems fine in more supporting roles.

He's handsome.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2017 19:32

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

I find it quite amusing that people can't figure out why mid-talent people who happen to be beautiful end up in film and television.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2017 19:38

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
change the world?

I seem to recall Keifer being in a shitload of popular films.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2017 20:42

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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I mean, yeah he wasn't always center stage but to say he was a joke until 24 is total bullshit.

# ¿ Dec 23, 2017 21:09

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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Basebf555 posted:

Landis defenders never seem to know the facts about what happened, like they heard some vague story about how some kids were accidentally killed and then he was just blamed because hey he's the director gotta blame somebody.

HE MADE A THING I LIKE JUST FORGIVE HIM

That's the usual defense.

# ¿ Dec 27, 2017 18:24

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# ¿ May 26, 2022 02:24

Rhyno: Mar 22, 2003; how few people do you
need before you can
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bad day posted:

Landis caused that accident 40 years ago. How many people in this thread are even 40 years old?

Get off my goddamned lawn.

# ¿ Dec 27, 2017 21:38

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > Cinema Discusso > Sexual Assault and the Culture of Hollywood

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