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The Forum > Article Comments > More to the Harvey Weinstein story than Harvey > Comments

More to the Harvey Weinstein story than Harvey : Comments

By Brendan O'Reilly, published 18/10/2017

People are overlooking a big 'elephant in the room', which provides additional insight into why Hollywood tolerated the indefensible for so long.

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At 17 I came to Brisbane in the early 60's from a little country town called Ayr. The Big City was an eye opener for me. I got a job at the National Hotel, making beds, I got to know a lot of Entertainers & other not so savory people. Mostly Police. There were Drugs, Prostitution, Gambling, etc. I got to know one bloke who got me a traineeship with Channel 7 Through the Training was done by the ABC. The Trainees had to do the lighting, move the Cables around, hold up Flash boards (clap, cheer, etc) The girls were trainee High Class Prostitutes & Models. I worked behind the scenes mostly.

Most of the News Readers & Cooking Show people were Gay & I was invited to many of their Parties. I naively only went to one & promptly left, in a mighty hurry.

On graduation The guy who got me the traineeship was driving me home & he stopped the car, produced a bottle of beer & proceeded to explain how the Entertainment Industry Works. It involved being at call for the gay executives. I didn't have to be Gay my self, just bend over when asked. & the hand went on the knee. I walked home to New Farm from half way up Mt. Coo-tha & joined the Army shortly after.

If you think this Whinestine thing is new, you are wrong.
Posted by Jayb, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 10:15:20 AM
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Those women should look in a mirror? Why? Because a moralizing judgemental and entirely indifferent society? Patently no better? Actually presented other choices, for often immature vulnerable women, often miles from home and their traditional support base!

And all too easy under the circumstances, to be taken advantage of! And for what? Following a dream!

Try going hungry and homeless for a couple of weeks your honor!

Moreover, if this man had a very well developed and active almost out of control libido? He had the money to employ all too willing professionals to assuage his every sick fantasy!

Have absolutely no sympathy for this misplaced and immoral defence of an entirely immoral man!?

Not for being what he was, but for the facade he created of being a paragon of virtue. With just too many skeletons in the closet; and being added to almost daily, it would seem, to carry the pernicious pretence any further?

Oh how the mighty have fallen!
Alan B.
Posted by Alan B., Wednesday, 18 October 2017 10:36:59 AM
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This all started at the same time as the Movie Industry started & before with Vaudeville. Don't put your daughters on the Stage Mrs Worthington.

It's not new. All the Moguls have been at it for years & the Women & Men have complied willingly. Now the women want to cry foul play when they were willingly complicit. Been there. Done that.

A famous person in the Deportment Industry's School was a Training facility for High Class, er, Escorts. I did some training with this persons School to escort Models down the Runway sometimes.
Posted by Jayb, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 11:33:07 AM
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This tawdry but predictable saga reminds me of the song by Dory Previn titled Starlet Starlet On The Screen Who Will Follow Norma Jean. The lyrics are available online
It is from her deliciously truth-telling LP Mary C Brown & The Hollywood Sign. At the time Dory Previn was one of my favorite singer songwriters.
Posted by Daffy Duck, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 12:03:57 PM
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The elephant in the room is the entertainment industry.

Why do we need it?

Life is short and there is much to attain, do we really want to waste our precious lives on being entertained? Or do we rather lead other people astray by entertaining them so we can empty their pockets? Those who so aspire, deserve the outcome.
Posted by Yuyutsu, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 12:33:16 PM
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Who has a reputation as top sleazy person ex President Clinton.

I believe it take place in every institution where you have a superior who can sense the vulnerability or eagerness to please (for advancement purposes) of people they are supposed to be the boss of.

It does not mean they all do it but the potential is there.

Regrettably so are the instances of false reporting and made up accusations.
Posted by Philip S, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 12:51:15 PM
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The Harvey Weinstein scandal transcends Hollywood.
What this is really about is our culture at large
where for far too long many turned the other way
as power was abused and covered up to protect
profits.

Rich and powerful people will continue to be predators.
And who of us females (and some men)
will really be prepared to risk everything to speak up?
Very few, I imagine. Most of us would just quietly not
say anything, resign, and seek employment elsewhere.
Fighting the system takes courage -
and who has the courage, the time,
or is prepared to take the risks involved to do what's
right? Who would be prepared to put themselves and their families
through the scandal that speaking up would cause?
I admire greatly the people who have the courage to do
precisely that. Only through them do we have the hope that
perhaps something will change. And that sins won't be met with
silence any more.
Posted by Foxy, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 1:22:50 PM
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Foxy - minor addition to yours, if one was to fight it and win $10 bet says a new job would be exponentially harder to get.

So in reality the perpetrators win.
Posted by Philip S, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 2:39:49 PM
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Dear Philip S.,

Those of us who have tried to fight "the system"
can attest to the fact that the perpetrators
do win. One way or another. And if the fighters had to do
it again, most would just simply walk away.
Posted by Foxy, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 2:51:06 PM
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Sorry and apologies. And given I've reached my limit on another (housing) thread. $8.00 should be read as $80.00 And a typo, sorry!

Still $920.00 dollars difference! Sorry!
Alan B.
Posted by Alan B., Wednesday, 18 October 2017 5:55:43 PM
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It's another beet up story. We all know it happens. They knew it happens before they went for their Screen Test. These people, Men & Women, would have eaten a Shite Sandwich if asked for a chance to break into the industry.
Posted by Jayb, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 6:28:11 PM
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The behaviour Hervey Weinstein is accused of is unambiguously awful.

However, there must be several actors who have initiated sexual encounters in the hope of advancing their careers. If so, then those people also need to be held to the same rules. There must also have been several enablers, who assisted and encouraged this behaviour. This story could get quite juicy and it must be a busy time to be a lawyer in Hollywood.

The size of the reported payouts also worries me. A blue collar worker could lose an arm and get a lot less than that.
Posted by benk, Wednesday, 18 October 2017 8:37:20 PM
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Everyone is pretending to be shocked about something that everyone has known about, joked about and covered up for many decades.

What is different now is that a cultural space has opened up in the last couple of decades that has made it possible for the issue of sexual harrassment and sexual predation in the workplace (and Hollywood is just another workplace) to be brought out into the open.

The gropers who once benefited from this sexual protection racket are now being dragged into the limelight of media and legal scrutiny - Bill Cosby, Jimmy Saville, Rolf Harris, Woody Allen et al.

As for the premise of this article, so what if some women have proactively 'traded sexual favours' to get ahead? That's a whole different issue. In these cases, the women are agents of their own decision. This is NOT to be conflated with a culture that encouraged and protected sexual predators in the workplace - where women were the vast majority of victims.
Posted by Killarney, Thursday, 19 October 2017 3:05:04 PM
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Killarney: where women were the vast majority of victims.

Oh BS Killarney. They did what they had to do to get into the Movie Business. Now they are getting in on the current Trend. It's all good Publicity, that's all.

It happened to me in the 60's. That bloke would be dead by now. Most of the girl dancers were pros ( err sorry High Class Escorts). We did deportment Classes together in Brisbane. They looked after me quite well ;-) (the Kid) & no, I didn't bend over for the Producers. Most of the male singers of the time did though or they didn't get a career. Sans the times & some things never change.
Posted by Jayb, Thursday, 19 October 2017 3:38:36 PM
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Amazing the number of women willing to play along in order to get that next promotion. No doubt its no difference in politics. Just shows what happens when you throw away the moral base on every persons conscience. You have hollywood 'heroes' leading the way and the brainwashed public about 20 years behind. How else could any country possibly of got to a state where marriage is so trashed. The left have shown itself to be totally dishonest in self examination. Unfortunately the right are not far behind.
Posted by runner, Thursday, 19 October 2017 6:51:27 PM
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Jayb

That was not my point. There is a difference between a woman proactively choosing to use sexual favours to get ahead and a woman who is pounced on by a sexual predator and/or coerced and bullied into sexual activity or risk destroying her career.

And what is the motive in the first option? The woman got what she wanted. Why go public with a sleazy declaration of being a victim and having her life and career tarnished by being dragged through the courts of the legal system and the courts of the media and public opinion? It makes no sense.

This is just a rehash of the old 'cry rape' scenario, whereby it was deemed that a woman who chose to have sex on a Saturday night suddenly gets an overwhelming case of remorse on Monday morning and decides to ruin a man's life just to soothe her conscience.

It's ridiculous and illogical and can only be explained through the lens of a legal and cultural system that sees life through a male lens.
Posted by Killarney, Thursday, 19 October 2017 11:29:15 PM
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Killarney: sleazy declaration of being a victim and having her life and career tarnished by being dragged through the courts of the legal system and the courts of the media and public opinion?

Any Publicity is good Publicity. & the, "Oh my, I a victim." does positive wonders for their Publicity machine. Being a Victim is very, very trendy now-a-days.

Killarney: It makes no sense.

Oh, yes it does. "Oh poor woman, HOW DOES FHE FEEEEEL!" That's at least another two parts & she'll milk it for all she can get. They'll all get on the Trendy Band Wagon now. Me too, Me too.

Notice Molested Men haven't been mentioned. Why is that. 'Cause Gay is the new Black. & woe betide anyone who says anything against Gays.
Posted by Jayb, Friday, 20 October 2017 1:17:14 PM
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I heard that there's a connection between Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Eppstein, and Bill Clinton.
Posted by Armchair Critic, Saturday, 21 October 2017 9:32:19 PM
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