On Fri, Oct 2, 2009 at 8:10 AM, PGage <[email protected]> wrote: > > I am a little surprised at how much of the reaction has been "what a > creepy sleaze-ball Dave is" (not on this list so much, but in much of > the online commentary). The crime (based on what we know so far) is > extortion, and Dave is the victim. From what we know so far, the > affairs happened before Dave was married, and before his son was born.
I think we on the list assume it as a given that the blackmailer is a douche. Where Letterman's morality comes into question is that he had a long standing relationship with his wife, which was taking place when he chose to diddle Stephanie (among others, apparently). If the mother of his child is alright with that, she's a more open minded person than I might be under those circumstances (when I woman I loved cheated on me, I dropped her almost instantly). I think Letterman fell victim to the cliche and abused his position as producer/host. I've spoken/written before about a producer I worked with for years who used to insist a certain woman be hired on any show he produced, merely so he would have someone on staff he could pull into his office and f*ck. He did so openly -- so openly that an early draft of the show's contact list included the woman's name and, next to it, the title, "f*ck buddy" (the title was eventually changed to "talent associate"). But I saw this on virtually every show I worked on, though usually in a more subtle fashion. I saw dancers give producers (married producers) lap dances right on the stage in full view of the crew. I heard more than a few pleasure moans from dressing rooms and trailers, after which someone would peek out the door and look both ways to make sure the coast was clear before exiting. Come to think of it, I could have blackmailed a boatload of people and retired at the age of 30 -- what a moron am I. And for that he is a sleaze-bag. I knew many qualified and talented women in Hollywood who had to work twice as hard as guys, because for every woman who deserved the job she had, there was a tart who was getting ahead by screwing her way through the glass ceiling. And the qualified women had to fight that stereotype and prove themselves in ways no man had to. I suppose as the story unfolds, we'll learn whether Dave exchanged professional favors (on air appearances, promotions, etc.) for personal gratification. Even if he just screwed around with no promises in return, he still exploited his employees and abused his position. And while I may have my differences with his on air performance of late, such off air behavior is what gets him labeled a sleaze. -- Kevin M. (RPCV) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
