Arts & Entertainment
George Takei blames Russian bots for spreading sexual assault allegation
the tweet has since been deleted
(Screenshot via YouTube)
George Takei blamed Russian bots for spreading the sexual assault allegation against him in a now-deleted tweet.
Male model Scott Brunton recently accused George Takei of sexually assaulting him in 1981. Brunton told the Hollywood Reporter that while having drinks with Takei he began to feel woozy and passed out. Brunton alleges that when he woke up, his pants were down and Takei was groping his crotch.
Takei has denied the allegations saying that “non-consensual acts are so antithetical to my values and my practices.”
In another tweet that is now deleted, Takei posted a chart of Russian bot activity from SecuringDemocracy.org. The chart shows that “George Takei” and “Takei” are at the top of the list.
“A friend sent me this. It is a chart of what Russian bots have been doing to amplify stories containing the allegations against me. It’s clear they want to cow me into silence, but do not fear friends. I won’t succumb to that,” Takei tweets. “By way of background, when I criticized Putin’s anti-LGBT policies publicly, Russian bots attacked my FB page relentlessly, and we had to develop special security measures and ban all traffic from within the Russian Federation and the Ukraine. I am accustomed to their practices.”
“Russia did this” — George Takei
(he deleted but here are the screens) pic.twitter.com/xh7096Qk2n
— Eoin Thanksgivins ??? (@EoinHiggins_) November 12, 2017
In a recent appearance on “The Howard Stern Show,” Takei and Stern were discussing the allegations against Harvey Weinstein.
“You never hassled anybody, or grabbed their c*ck?” Stern asks Takei who hesitates.
“Well, they were different times,” Stern says. “[But] you never sexually harassed anyone. Have you?”
“Well, it’s some people that are kind of, um, skittish, or maybe afraid, and you’re trying to persuade,” Takei replies.
“What is he saying, Howard?” Stern’s co-host Robin Quivers asks. “But you didn’t do this grabbing at work?”
“Oh no, no, it wasn’t at work,” Takei says. “It was in my home, they came to my home.”
Listen below.
Celebrity News
Madonna announces release date for new album
‘Confessions II’ marks return to the dance floor
Pop icon Madonna on Wednesday announced that her 15th studio album will be released on July 3.
Titled “Confessions II,” the new album is a sequel to 2005’s “Confessions on a Dance Floor,” an Abba and disco-infused hit.
The new album reunites Madonna with producer Stuart Price, who also helmed the original “Confessions” album. It’s her first album of new material since 2019’s “Madame X.”
“We must dance, celebrate, and pray with our bodies,” Madonna said in a press release. “These are things that we’ve been doing for thousands of years — they really are spiritual practices. After all, the dance floor is a ritualistic space. It’s a place where you connect — with your wounds, with your fragility. To rave is an art. It’s about pushing your limits and connecting to a community of like-minded people,” continued the statement. “Sound, light, and vibration reshape our perceptions. Pulling us into a trance-like state. The repetition of the bass, we don’t just hear it but we feel it. Altering our consciousness and dissolving ego and time.”
Denali (@denalifoxx) of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” performed at Pitchers DC on April 9 for the Thirst Trap Thursday drag show. Other performers included Cake Pop!, Brooke N Hymen, Stacy Monique-Max and Silver Ware Sidora.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Arts & Entertainment
In an act of artistic defiance, Baltimore Center Stage stays focused on DEI
‘Maybe it’s a triple-down’
By LESLIE GRAY STREETER | I’m always tickled when people complain about artists “going political.” The inherent nature of art, of creation and free expression, is political. This becomes obvious when entire governments try to threaten it out of existence, like in 2025, when the brand-new presidential administration demanded organizations halt so-called diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programming or risk federal funding.
Baltimore Center Stage’s response? A resounding and hearty “Nah.” A year later, they’re still doubling down on diversity.
“Maybe it’s a triple-down,” said Ken-Matt Martin, the theater’s producing director, chuckling.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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