Louis C.K. Accused of Sexual Misconduct by Multiple Women
by EG
Louie star and creator Louis C.K. has been accused by several female comedians of sexual harassment and lewd behavior. The allegations are not new, but they're getting new attention thanks to the wave of allegations against many high-profile male Hollywood figures. A recent article in The New York Times details the alleged incidents.
Louis C.K. has been accused of sexual misconduct by five women in a report by The New York Times.
The exposé, published Thursday, alleges the comedian exposed himself and masturbated in front of two female comedians in 2002, masturbated while speaking to a female comedian over the phone in 2003 and asked to masturbate in front of another comedian, who declined, in 2005. A fourth woman, identified only as a production employee on HBO's The Chris Rock Show, said C.K. masturbated in front of her as well.
The article was written by investigative reporter Jodi Kanter, the co-author of the Times' Oct. 5 Harvey Weinstein story.
Chicago comedy duo Dana Min Goodman and Julia Wolov, comedians Rebecca Corry, Abby Schachner and C.K. collaborator and onetime friend Tig Notaro all spoke on the record to the Times for the story, with Notaro supporting the claims made by the women.
Goodman and Wolov said they thought it was a joke when C.K. asked if he could take out his penis during a nightcap in his Aspen hotel room in 2002. "Then he really did it," said Goodman. “He proceeded to take all of his clothes off, and get completely naked, and started masturbating.” The duo said that when they openly told people about the incident, in hopes of inciting outrage about the comic, they heard C.K.'s manager David Becky was upset with them and they feared their careers could be in jeopardy. They still feel the backlash today. (Becky told the Times he "never threatened anyone.")
When Schachner invited C.K. to one of her 2003 comedy shows, she said she could hear him masturbating as they spoke from inside his office on the Fox series Cedric the Entertainer Presents. He started telling her about his sexual fantasies, breathing heavily and talking softly, she claims, and says the call went on for several minutes even though she "definitely wasn’t encouraging it." She added, "You want to believe it’s not happening."
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.
Do you believe the accusations against Louis CK? Tell us about it in the comment section below.