Kevin Spacey Accused of Sexual Misconduct, Confirms Rumors He Is Gay

[Moondance]

Actor Anthony Rapp, 46, best known for originating the role of Mark Cohen in the Broadway production of Rent in 1996 and later for reprising the role in the film version. has accused Kevin Spacey of making a sexual advance at him when he was aged 14. Rapp was quoted as saying Spacey climbed on top of him in a bedroom at a 1986 party in New York.

 

Spacey, who would have been 26 or 27 in 1986, said in a statement Sunday night on Twitter that he didn't remember the incident, but apologized for "what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior" ... and then he came out as a gay man.

 

That his response to Rapp's accusation came with a statement about his sexuality, led to criticisms about Spacey addressing those two matters together.

 

"Nope to Kevin Spacey's statement. Nope," tweeted columnist Dan Savage. "There's no amount of drunk or closeted that excuses or explains away assaulting a 14-year-old child."

[jjkrkwood]

32 years later ????? Come On dude !

[Moondance]

ABC News faced swift backlash for a headline that focused on Kevin Spacey's sexuality rather than on an allegation of attempted child molestation.

 

The original headline was 'I choose now to live as a gay man': Kevin Spacey comes out in emotional tweet.

 

That has since been changed to Kevin Spacey apologizes, comes out as gay after allegation of sexual advance on 14-year-old.

[jjkrkwood]

Whoever didnt know he was GAY long ago was living under a rock.

[Whitman]

Whoever didn't know he was GAY long ago was living under a rock.

Yep. And how unfortunate that they -- and the rest of us -- didn't get the official word from Spacey under different circumstances.

 

Because if he was going to come out from under his own rock, it would have been so much better to have the headline be about a two-time Oscar winner proudly sharing the fact that he is also a gay man.

 

But instead ...

 

Spacey makes a statement that plays right into the thinking of homophobes and to their long history of raising the specters of pedophilia or predation whenever gay men get a little too "tolerated" for their comfort.

 

So, this morning, some idiot who thinks less of you or me because we're gay, can turn to some other idiot and say, "You see, our kids aren't safe around them."

[Frequentflier]

If it happened, it was wrong. What's also not right is a 14 year old kid going to an adult party at night alone, assuming that's true.

 

There are statutes of limitations for good reasons, the erosion of those exposes anyone to any accusation, and when late makes it difficult to defend oneself. In America an accusation like this is almost a conviction. I think anyone who makes an accusation 32 years later or after the statutory period for a claim should be exposed to libel/slander damages. Think about how many times you were alone with someone in your home or office whether repair person/neighbor/fellow employee/customer/etc/etc and how they could, like this accuser, come out 30 plus years later to say you did something improper. How would you successfully defend yourself? It's not right.

[+ sync]

Beside the point, but the NYT article states that the assault took place after all the other guests had left the party. I'm curious how is was that a 14 year-old was left on his own in that environment.

[Whitman]

There are statutes of limitations for good reasons ...

Are you suggesting that there should be a statute of limitations on speech?

 

Or that we should disregard the many accusations against Bill Cosby or Harvey Weinstein that happened beyond the scope of any legal statute of limitations?

I think anyone who makes an accusation 32 years later or after the statutory period for a claim should be exposed to libel/slander damages.

Did you hear Spacey suggest that he had been libeled or slandered? Or even deny the accusation?

[jjkrkwood]

Are you suggesting that there should be a statute of limitations on speech?

 

Or that we should disregard the many accusations against Bill Cosby or Harvey Weinstein that happened beyond the scope of any legal statute of limitations?

 

Did you hear Spacey suggest that he had been libeled or slandered? Or even deny the accusation?

 

 

 

Whitman, dont get so testy... Its not unusual or uncommon for people to also make outrageous claims for 15 minutes of fame, and while THESE allegations are unsavory and must be looked into, we shouldnt immediately jump to conclusions and crucify ANYONE, without proof. Spacey says he doesnt remember, the accuser hasnt produced any witnesses, so the hysteria is simply because the of the current climate focusing on Weinstein and abuse that THIS accusation is of any interest. I'm smelling day old fish....

[Whitman]

Whitman, dont get so testy... ..

And you, krkwood, don't be so dismissive ...

 

Again: no denial from Spacey ... instead, the age-old excuse: "inappropriate drunken behavior."

... so the hysteria is simply because of the current climate focusing on Weinstein and abuse that THIS accusation is of any interest. I'm smelling day old fish....

Is it all hysteria? Or just this particular accusation?

[jjkrkwood]

And you, krkwood, don't be so dismissive ...

 

Again: no denial from Spacey ... instead, the age-old excuse: "inappropriate drunken behavior."

 

Is it all hysteria? Or just this particular accusation?

 

 

I just believe with the current Weinstein scandal, people are super sensitive to these types of claims. I cant comment otherwise on the allegations, I wasnt there, and I dont know the truth. It's just NOT uncommon for people to jump on a bandwagon. It's not being dismissive, it's being REALISTIC. If you keep saying the sky is falling over and over, people WILL start to believe it is. And it COULD be, but prove it.

 

Perhaps the excuse of "inappropriate drunken behavior" can be used for supporters voting for Trump ? That's the only excuse I will believe or accept.

[Whitman]

There's an article in the October 27 edition of The New Yorker that focuses on speaking out, years later, against sexual misconduct/assault.

 

It's specifically about Weinstein, but more broadly insightful for understanding why victims may be reluctant to come forward.

 

Here's a link to it: https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/weighing-the-costs-of-speaking-out-about-harvey-weinstein

[jjkrkwood]

There are probably skeletons in Everyones closets, and victims need to speak up in timely fashion so the perpetrators can be punished. Allowing victimization to continue for 30 + years just seems selfish in my opinion, IF the allegations are true.

[+ sniper]

Anthony Rapp has a successful career. What does he possibly have to gain from this? And since the allegation is occurring at the time he says it, not at the time of the events in question, he IS exposed to a suit for slander by saying this. Kevin Spacey can't be touched for what he allegedly did at this point.

If he were some underemployed 40something coming out of the woodwork, yeah one might question the motives.

 

And did you look at the fucking pictures of Rapp from back then? He was 14, but he looked like he was 10 years old. I imagine he's coming out now in hopes of preventing Spacey from doing it again.

[jjkrkwood]

Anthony Rapp has a successful career. What does he possibly have to gain from this? And since the allegation is occurring at the time he says it, not at the time of the events in question, he IS exposed to a suit for slander by saying this. Kevin Spacey can't be touched for what he allegedly did at this point.

If he were some underemployed 40something coming out of the woodwork, yeah one might question the motives.

 

And did you look at the fucking pictures of Rapp from back then? He was 14, but he looked like he was 10 years old. I imagine he's coming out now in hopes of preventing Spacey from doing it again.

 

30+ years later ? Noble, but selfish ! Let's wait and see IF any more crawl out of the woodwork on this one....

[+ WilliamM]

There are probably skeletons in Everyones closets, and victims need to speak up in timely fashion so the perpetrators can be punished. Allowing victimization to continue for 30 + years just seems selfish in my opinion, IF the allegations are true.

 

Please read The New Yorker article posted by Whitman.

[jjkrkwood]

Please read The New Yorker article posted by Whitman.

 

 

I DID read it.

[+ sniper]

30+ years later ? Noble, but selfish ! Let's wait and see IF any more crawl out of the woodwork on this one....

 

And he's expressed regret for not speaking out sooner. Do you really expect people to risk all their hopes and dreams when the odds are quite good that it won't help anything and will in fact hurt? Had he said something back then, it likely would have been dismissed and he may never have found work again.

Failing to be exceptionally brave is not the same thing as selfish. By your standard then, everyone is selfish for not giving up all their possessions to help the poor.

[jjkrkwood]

And he's expressed regret for not speaking out sooner. Do you really expect people to risk all their hopes and dreams when the odds are quite good that it won't help anything and will in fact hurt? Had he said something back then, it likely would have been dismissed and he may never have found work again.

Failing to be exceptionally brave is not the same thing as selfish. By your standard then, everyone is selfish for not giving up all their possessions to help the poor.

 

I'm not about victim blaming or shaming, but we need to stop making excuses for them as well for not speaking out... This kid was 14 then.... Hopes and dreams ???? You can always make excuses for Everything, just like Spacey is saying his behavior was just drunken antics, or Trump dismissing his behavior as lockeroom talk.... But hurling accusations many decades later, just really defeats the purpose, but still doesnt make it any less serious.... Let the courts of law decide, but in this case, it's too late. All the accuser did was discredit Spacey, and cast doubt on himself. How did this help ANYONE ?

[Moondance]

Kevin Spacey's Misguided Apology for Sexual Misconduct Is Awkward and Irresponsible

By Tyler Coates ESQUIRE Oct 30, 2017

 

On Sunday night, BuzzFeed released a shocking and disturbing account from actor Anthony Rapp, in which the Star Trek: Discovery star alleged that two-time Oscar winner Kevin Spacey made a sexual advance toward him in 1986. At the time, Spacey was 26 years old—and Rapp was 14.

 

The two actors were both appearing on Broadway at the time—Rapp in George Furth's Precious Sons, Spacey in Edward Albee's Long Day's Journey Into Night—and the alleged encounter took place at a party hosted by Spacey at his apartment. Rapp remembers being the only non-adult in attendance; bored, the young actor left to watch TV in Spacey's bedroom; later, Spacey appeared in his bedroom and, according to Rapp's account, picked the 14-year-old up "like a groom picks up the bride over the threshold" and then laid on top of him on his bed.

 

“He was trying to seduce me ... I don't know if I would have used that language. But I was aware that he was trying to get with me sexually,” Rapp alleges.

 

At the time of publication, BuzzFeed reported that Spacey declined numerous requests for comment. At midnight, hours after the BuzzFeed report was published, Spacey made a statement on Twitter, saying he did not remember the 1986 encounter with Rapp—but he did publicly acknowledge that he is gay for the first time.

 

Rapp's allegations come fresh on the heels of numerous allegations of sexual assault and harassment against Harvey Weinstein and director James Toback (as well as leading figures in other industries). Rapp's account, however, is particularly disturbing because of his age at the time. Spacey's statement is also suspect, as he does not exactly deny Rapp's allegation, but he uses his sexuality in an attempt to soften the blow of the Rapp's claims that the older actor sexually assaulted him when he was a teenager.

 

Spacey's sexuality has been sort of an open secret in Hollywood for a long time—so much so that he joked about it himself twice during the 2017 Tony Awards, which he hosted. (A 1997 Esquire cover story about the Oscar winner ran with the headline, "Kevin Spacey Has a Secret.") Spacey has long avoided talking about his sexuality publicly, as he references in his public apology to Rapp: "I know that there are stories out there about me and that some have been fuelled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy," he wrote before admitting that he currently "chooses" to live life as a gay man. "I want to deal with this honestly and openly and that starts with examining my own behavior."

 

That Spacey has finally publicly acknowledged his sexuality is one thing, but the timing—and the reason—for his coming out has sparked additional outrage following Rapp's account of their encounter.

 

That Spacey is gay has nothing to do with his alleged sexual misconduct against a minor, which the actor describes as "inappropriate drunken behavior;" it would be unwise to conflate the two, and doing so would be like asserting anyone with a drinking problem would somehow find it appropriate to make sexual advances toward a teenager (or that homosexuality is equivalent to alcoholism in the first place). Spacey's misguided statement only gives fuel to anti-LGBT activists, who have long used fear-mongering tactics invoking pedophilia as ammunition against queer people, particularly gay men.

 

Yet Spacey was not thinking of the LGBT community at all—just as he has refused to do for years when brushing off questions about his sexuality. He had numerous chances to acknowledge a basic fact of his personal life—as he has, according to his statement, with friends and family (and likely professional colleagues who encounter him socially at events). That he chooses to do so now is awkward at best and horrendously irresponsible at worst; his attempt to soften the blow of an allegation of sexual misconduct with the revelation that he is gay feels nothing more than a reframing of the narrative to protect the actor against a homophobic witch hunt.

 

The actor is not the victim of such, however; in fact, the brunt of Rapp's allegations are not that Spacey is gay, but that he allegedly propositioned him when he was a minor—an abhorrent offense no matter the perpetrator's sexuality, and one that has little to do with Spacey's identity as a gay man at all.

 

There's an absurdity in responding to allegations of a sexual misconduct by passing it off as a drunken encounter and using it to come out of the closet. Yet the latter is the focus of many headlines this morning, proving that Spacey's team has already successfully taken control of the narrative and shifted its focus. Do not fall for this. Spacey says he does not remember the encounter between himself and Rapp, which took place 31 years ago. Yet the alleged event is enough to force the actor, according to his statement, "to deal with this honestly and openly" and begin "examining my own behavior."

 

The details of Rapp's allegations are shocking; the personal emotional aftershocks the actor experienced for years are heartbreaking. He is the true victim in this story: a man who has for years struggled with an encounter with an adult that left him with a trauma he had to face repeatedly and privately. Spacey, no doubt, has had his own share of private struggles, as referenced by his public statement and apology. But Spacey's sexuality and alleged behavior are not only two separate issues that have nothing to do with each other—they also do not make him a victim in any way. And it is a true indignity that this is the way in which Spacey has publicly acknowledged his sexuality: not because of pride or celebration, but because of stigma and shame.

[jjkrkwood]

They apparently are BOTH very private people, so this drama should have remained private. Rapp shold have contacted Spacey privately to discuss his recollections and concerns. Something is just "fishy" here. Perhaps Rapp has a new work coming out soon, and needs a bit of hype ?

Cynical YES, but to be discounted, NO !

[+ sniper]

Perving on children is not typically a one-off. Sorry, it's not something to keep private. There's really no ambiguity in what Spacey did.

[Whitman]

Failing to be exceptionally brave is not the same thing as selfish.

Amen to that!

Rapp should have contacted Spacey privately to discuss his recollections and concerns.

Seriously!!?? What a lot to expect of Anthony Rapp. And why? To "protect" Spacey from something he has no reason to want to protect him from? And at what risk? Perhaps to expose himself to the suggestion that he wanted to blackmail Spacey?

I'm not about victim blaming or shaming ...

Good to hear, because you've sure given that impression.

[jjkrkwood]

Amen to that!

 

Seriously!!?? What a lot to expect of Anthony Rapp. And why? To "protect" Spacey from something he has no reason to want to protect him from? And at what risk? Perhaps to expose himself to the suggestion that he wanted to blackmail Spacey?

 

Good to hear, because you've sure given that impression.

 

 

And YOU Sir have convicted Spacey without any proof. Typical of all bandwagon jumpers. Wouldnt want you on any jury. Who should be sorry now ?.....

[Whitman]

And YOU Sir have convicted Spacey without any proof.

Nothing I have written this morning about Kevin Spacey comes close to making him look as bad as he has made himself look.