George Takei, Richard Dreyfuss the latest in Hollywood to be accused of sexual misconduct
Takei said on Twitter he denies the allegation, while Dreyfuss's agent denied the actor exposed himself
George Takei took to Twitter on Saturday to deny groping a male model and Richard Dreyfuss said he never exposed himself to a female writer helping him with a TV script, both back in the 1980s.
Star Trek actor Takei has been accused of groping a model-actor in 1981, in another development in the barrage of sexual assault, harassment and rape allegations to rock the entertainment industry.
Takei said on Twitter that events described in an interview with Scott Brunton "simply did not occur."
"Right now it is a he said/he said situation, over alleged events nearly 40 years ago. But those that know me understand that non-consensual acts are so antithetical to my values and my practices, the very idea that someone would accuse me of this is quite personally painful," Takei tweeted.
Friends,<br><br>I'm writing to respond to the accusations made by Scott R. Bruton. I want to assure you all that I am as shocked and bewildered at these claims as you must feel reading them. /1
—@GeorgeTakeiThe events he describes back in the 1980s simply did not occur, and I do not know why he has claimed them now. I have wracked my brain to ask if I remember Mr. Brunton, and I cannot say I do. /2
—@GeorgeTakeiBrunton told the Hollywood Reporter he was 23 and living in Hollywood when he met Takei at a bar. They exchanged numbers and kept in touch, he said. Later, after Brunton broke up with a boyfriend, Takei invited him to dinner and the theatre, then back to his condo.
At the condo, Brunton said he "must have passed out" after two drinks, awakening to Takei groping him. The Hollywood Reporter said Friday it spoke to four longtime friends of Brunton who said he had confided in them about Takei years ago.
The actor was not interviewed for the Hollywood Reporter story.
Also Saturday, an audio clip surfaced from Takei's appearance on Howard Stern's radio show last month. The interview was recorded less than two weeks after sexual assault accusations against fallen film mogul Harvey Weinstein were made public. Stern and Takei were discussing the "irony" of the Weinstein case and the audiotape of President Donald Trump boasting about grabbing women's genitals years ago, when Stern asked Takei whether he had ever grabbed a man's genitals against his will.
Takei, a staunch opponent of the Republican president, initially was silent, then said "uh oh" and laughed. Stern asked again and Takei said, "Some people are kind of skittish, or maybe, um, uh, afraid, and you're trying to persuade."
Stern and his co-host, Robin Quivers, persisted, asking Takei whether he ever held a job over somebody for sex and he said no.
Quivers asked if he did "this grabbing at work." Takei said, "It was either in my home. They came to my home."
Richard Dreyfuss accused of sexual harassment
Meanwhile, a writer who worked for Richard Dreyfuss on a TV comedy special in the 1980s said he sexually harassed her for years and exposed himself to her in a studio lot trailer.
Jessica Teich told the New York magazine blog Vulture.com that the actor made continual, overt and lewd comments and invitations after they met at a theatre where she worked and Dreyfuss appeared.
Dreyfuss, meanwhile, told the blog he flirted and even kissed Los Angeles writer Teich over several years but thought it was a "consensual seduction ritual." The fact that "I did not get it," he said, "makes me reassess every relationship I have ever thought was playful and mutual."
Dreyfuss's agent Barry McPherson on Saturday denied the actor ever exposed himself to Teich, but he acknowledged to Vulture other encounters Dreyfuss now realizes were inappropriate.
Teich said she decided to speak out after Dreyfuss tweeted support for his son, Harry, after the younger Dreyfuss went public with accusations that Kevin Spacey groped his crotch when he was 18.
Massachusetts prosecutors will meet with the son of a former Boston TV news anchor who said Spacey sexually assaulted the teenage boy at a Nantucket restaurant.
Cape and Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe told the Boston Globe on Friday the meeting "will occur soon."
Heather Unruh told reporters Wednesday that Spacey stuck his hand down her then-18-year-old-son's pants and grabbed his genitals while the two of them were at a restaurant in July 2016. Unruh said Spacey ultimately left to use the bathroom and when he was out of sight, her son ran away.
Spacey's lawyer didn't immediately return an email seeking comment Saturday.