More Grey’s Drama!
It just doesn’t end! The drama that is the real life soap involving Isaiah continues to go on and on.
First up, earlier this week news broke that gay and lesbian activist Jasmyne Cannick had begun to petition for Isaiah to get his job back. She noted that Isaiah’s firing was just one of many prominent African-American roles cut from major primetime shows within the past year. Given the whole incident involving Isaiah, this was huge.
Well when things seemed to be looking up for Isaiah, foot-in-mouth disease seems to have struck! Chron.com has an article in which Isaiah says TR was the trouble maker and should have been fired! He claims TR made the slur incident about him, when it never was. It was all a ploy on TR’s point for more money, according to Isaiah.
I’m no longer sure what world Isaiah is living on after this. TR basically orchestrated his own outing by tabloids and celebrity blogs? Is Isaiah for real? TR only came out and discussed the incidents after the tabloids got a hold of the story and AFTER Isaiah stirred it up even more at the Golden Globes.
Okay – I’ve had enough with the drama going on here. It’s been going on too long.
06.21.2007 at 3:20 pm
I totally have to agree KED, but have you ever thought that maybe Isaiah is right. Just because someone spits a slur at you doesn’t mean that you have to tell your life story to anyone. I think it was just a ploy for him to further his career.
06.21.2007 at 3:26 pm
The problem is it was the tabloids and celebrity blogs who basically used the onset story to out TR. TR only spoke later on when he was basically forced out. That’s why it makes no sense he made this all about him and used it to further his career.
06.21.2007 at 3:35 pm
I think it is absurd to think that TR started this all. It is only Isaiah’s stupid remark to stir thinks up more…maybe he somehow thinks it will help him, make him more desirable to work with or something. I am so over Isaiah…he just needs to move on with his career!!
06.21.2007 at 7:51 pm
I’m infuriated right now, and Mary Ann’s comment (no offense to you personally, Mary Ann) just makes it worse because it shows that Isaiah’s spin is actually getting to some people.
Look, here are the facts. T.R. didn’t make this about him. Isaiah SPECIFICALLY referred to T.R. during the whole argument (“I’m not your little ***** like T.R.”), and now he’s attempting to act like T.R. “made” it about him?
And as for T.R.’s intentions or character – It makes my heart hurt that people are actually making him the bad guy in all this. T.R. was SILENT about the whole thing for MONTHS. The only thing he did was confirm that he was in fact gay – and how people can say that he did this for his career offends me as a gay man. He was asked and he answered. It had nothing to do with trying to further his career. Hell, it was a risk for him to come out as in Hollywood 8 times out of 10 being gay is going to hinder your career, not help it.
He then went silent AGAIN about the whole thing, avoiding questions about it and not ONCE said ANYTHING bad about Isaiah – not until the fiasco at the Oscars when Isaiah made an ass out of himself, denied it ever happened and even used the word again! After that, T.R. went on Ellen and confirmed that it happened. And rightfully so. How he had the patience and the fortitude to sit back and watch as everyone involved denied it ever happened amazes me. I’d never have been able to last as long as he did.
T.R. Knight has been a bastion of morality, kindness and tact throughout this whole ordeal. He is a VICTIM in all of this. Period. Isaiah Washington has been a bigot, violent (why does everyone forget that he was physically attacking Patrick Dempsey on top of the slur?) and a liar. For Isaiah Washington to throw T.R. Knight under the bus for his own wrongdoings is pathetic, and for anyone to actually be on Washington’s side makes me weep for humanity.
…and that’s my piece. Washington has had a history of being a problem on set, with this on top of it, and it’s about time he got what was coming to him. As much as it upsets me that people are turning on T.R. Knight, I’m going to just take comfort in the fact that someone at ABC finally did the right thing and fired Washington.
Bleh. Sorry. I’m just taking this whole situation personally. Especially when so many people (especially at places like TMZ, within the comments) are making shit up about T.R. and making him the villain here. And, once again, nobody would be defending T.R. Knight had he called Isaiah the N-Word, the same way that nobody defended Michael Richardson.
Again, I apologize.
06.21.2007 at 10:07 pm
Unfortunately, I think that the reality is this. I dont think either should still be on the show.
Though it is boils down to this and it is a sad fact, it is a case of sexual harrassment in the work place. And that in most companies is a zero tolerance issue. One strike and you are gone….
06.21.2007 at 10:16 pm
DOOL Mike,
You and I cross posted, and I dont want to generally do this, but I want to directly reply to you.
Thank you. Someone who gets the tabloid shit and the fact that they can take one line of truth and twist it until it becomes such a lie that you no longer can see the truth.
Now to add a bit to the rant… though not trying to share your soap box
Yellow Journalism at its best. I know that when I was once studying to be a journalist, I was told by a PROFESSOR, that if you are out with a friend who is somehow famous and they tell you that they are getting a divorce, getting married, having an affair, you name it. It is news and you must if you are a true journalist report it.
She went so far as to say this was true even if you were out with the child of a celeb, you had to report it.
So often what gets to these tabloids. You are hearing accounts of things second and third hand at best. The stage hand, who over heard it sharing it with his/her friend, who in turn sells it to the tabs for a few dollars.
06.21.2007 at 10:27 pm
Quite honestly, if ABC had done THEIR job, this would’ve never been an issue. They should’ve kept it self contained and sat the three of them down (or even not included T.R. Knight if that is how they felt), told Isaiah Washington that they were not going to tolerate verbal and physical altercations on their set, and ended his contract cut and dry. Then they could’ve released a press statement to the effect of Washington getting into an altercation, and left the details to our imagination.
Instead, they tried to sweep it under the rug and act as if nothing at all had happened, and that only made the media more interested. Which erupted into all of this.
…and this is where we are. A victim being made a villain, and a loose cannon attempting to save his career by attacking the victim. If Isaiah Washington had done all he did because he was truly sorry, and not because he wanted to keep his job, he’d probably still HAVE his job.
06.22.2007 at 6:46 am
I don’t think he should have been fired but dude keep your trap shut!! I heard he may bring a lawsuit up about his job and I think he should. He made amends and did what they asked.
06.22.2007 at 12:49 pm
….really no one really knows what happens and to call T.R the “bastion of morality” is a tad too much. no of us knows what happens that day becaue we werent there. And i agree with Mary-Ann, T.R took it upon himself to say he was gay. If any one remembers at first the name was kept a secret and remained that way.It wasnt until after the awards show when isaiah denied calling T.R that slur that T.R went to people magazine and came out, so to speak. No one forced him out. Theres countless celebs in hollywood who are suspected to be gay and are called slurs, if they come out would it be forced? better yet theres those who are suspected and stay in the closet. T.R couldve done that. This whole thing is just stupid, and if anything they both shouldve been fired, for making the show such a freaking circus about the whole thing.
06.22.2007 at 12:58 pm
Ok, were any of you there?? I mean seriously, as far as I know there’s no tape of the incident so how do we really know what happened??
06.22.2007 at 2:55 pm
When the argument between Isiah and Patrick was first reported, there was no mention of T.R. People just thought Isiah and Patrick were coming to blows over other crap and Isiah was dumb and used the slur. When T.R. came out, it doesn’t matter when he came out or after what incident the point is he did it on his own. He could have kept his mouth shut. If he felt that Isiah was attacking him, he should have gone to Isiah first before coming out to the media and making it sound like he was directly or indirectly targeted by Isiah. I don’t really care for Grey’s but the story since the first argument with Patrick and Isiah was in the news so much that you couldn’t help but follow it. And the facts all support that Isiah is right when he says the first fight was with Patrick and had nothing to do with T.R. And before Isiah even came out with his remarks, I’ll always believed that T.R. chose to make it about himself.
06.22.2007 at 3:01 pm
First the reports were leaked there was a fight. No mention of TR. This was true.
Then about 3 days later the reports that were leaked, Isaiah specifically referred to TR during his fight with Patrick. Therefore he made it about TR, TR didn’t make it about himself.
TR came out AFTER the media got wind about it all and the name calling. Isaiah didn’t help it at the Golden Globes either.
Yeah sure, it’s easy to say TR could have kept his mouth shut. But the tabloids wouldn’t have and they would have stalked him all over hollywood and made his life hell. So he came out. Has any of this happened would he have publicaly come out? Coming out might have gotten him short term attention, but in the long run who knows what it will do to his career.
It’s also very telling that a lot of the co-stars on the set have supported TR through this, not Isaiah. At this point the only one who can probably really clear things up is Patrick, and my guess is the cast is being told not to talk about it anymore.
06.22.2007 at 3:08 pm
theres plenty of stars who are stalked by the tabloids so that really means nothing. and you cant really say the co-stars support ny one particular person because only about 2 of them have sed anything about it.
06.22.2007 at 3:21 pm
Okay let me put it, or suggest it be looked at, in another way. Let’s say Isaiah IS telling the truth. The fight had nothing to do with TR at all, TR made it about him for his own gain.
Why then have none of the other stars, crew members or anyone at the show backed Isaiah through this ordeal? Why has no one come out and said “Hey this isn’t right, TR is the one causing the problems not Isaiah.” Why would they stand by and let Isaiah be fired when TR is the trouble maker.
Isaiah is the accomplished actor and the one with far more star power. TR was unknown before this show. If TR was really the one causing the problems, isn’t in the shows best interest to hold onto Isaiah and get rid of TR? That isn’t what they did.
06.22.2007 at 3:53 pm
I feel all this with Isaiah and TR is childish. First off, if Isaiah made comments to Patrick about TR it should have never been told to anyone else. Patrick should have been a bigger man than to spew and fuel this mess. The most important question is WHAT WAS PATRICK’S MOTIVE FOR TELLING? I feel Patrick was only trying to make himself “look†noble by defending TR’s honor. I teach third grade children, and when my students repeat hurtful words said about someone else (that the someone else did not hear) I hold them just as responsible for the hurt the other student is feeling. If Patrick has kept his mouth shut no one would be the wiser of Isaiah’s words. I am no way defending Isaiah but I think we all make stereotypical slurs about other people to our friends. So apparently he thought he and Patrick were good enough friends to say such things. My advice to Isaiah is to pick your friends more carefully.
Second, I believe Isaiah’s firing is spill over from the Don Imas stuff. As I said about Isaiah, Don made comments to “friends†about other people; the only difference was he said it on national TV where everyone could hear. As a black female I was not offended by Don’s words to describe the girls. My personal perspective of a “Hoe†is the equivalent of a prostitute. I can’t speak for world of Hip Hop/R&B but the girls in the songs and the videos are usually girls who do whoever and whatever for money. That is a prostitute; not me. I find my fault with Don in blaming his poor choice of “public†words on other people. As I tell my third grades “don’t be a monkey.†We have all heard of Monkey see Monkey Do. Don made a monkey out of himself. Like I said above, we all say things we shouldn’t to our friends and usually in private. I will be the first to say I do. The only difference between Isaiah/Don and me and a lot of other people is we pick what, where, and who we tell our “mess†to more carefully.
Finally, I don’t TR planned all of this for publicity, if so this could have terribly backfired in his face. If the woman of the Grey’s audience had been unable to continue to believe the character of George TR would have had no place to go. As for Isaiah, I think he is grasping at straws to try to keep his head above water. He was one of my favorite characters on the show and I will really miss Burk. I will continue to watch if he or TR are there or gone. My last thought it – I think Patrick/Derek should now be called Mr. McShit-Starter.
06.22.2007 at 6:58 pm
at the same time there was only ONE person to say oh well Isiah was wrong. So you cant say why havent more castmembers came out and said anything or prevented him from being fired. they cant prevent a single thing. their employees, not employers. and in no way am i defending what he sed, it was wrong and uncalled for. As for a whole reference to Don Imus..well i found that highly offense, and whether something is sed im private or national television makes all the difference. Because his job that day was to do commentary on the game, not to make hateful/sexist remarks. by calling em ‘jiggaboos’ and ‘nappy headed hoes’. At the same time i dont think he shouldve been fired, he shouldve been warned. And the same goes for Washington. Besides all this non-sence surrounding the show, is a huge tun-off from it, and i know im not alone in that because weeks before the finale the rating droped. I wonder why?!?
06.22.2007 at 8:23 pm
I am very torn on this issue. I can say I do not feel IW should have been fired. I also do not think TR started anything, I do think he used this situation to his advantage. I am inclined to think that it is some truth to what IW said. Kate Walsh did publically support IW in saying he was a great actor and Katheryn H recant what she origannly said. TR niver had to say anything and this would have blown over, I am still wondering why IW said any thing at the award, though. I am not sure what was said, but it was between IW and PD, and it should have stayed that way. I do not think IW is a bigot either. It does sound crazy that he wants to file a law suite, so maybe something is up and the public knows nothing about.
One other thing TR character is unbelivable. I do not see him with 2 women. I think the show should wrap that story line up as soon as season 4 starts.
06.24.2007 at 5:18 pm
When did Katherine H recant her original statement? I never heard that
06.25.2007 at 7:38 pm
IW apoligized to katherine K. and she made a statement something like…..He made a mistake and apologized for it. That really threw me off, but she said it, I saw her. I also saw Kate walsh, she just kept saying the same thing. It was unfortunate and he was a great actor.
06.25.2007 at 9:06 pm
OK, Why would anyone say TR should have been fired? The victim/reportee of any type of harrassment suit is protected by law from reprucussions. I also don’t understand why people say IW shouldn’t have been fired. In any other job, if you slur a co-worker, at least where I’m from, you’re outta there. There is no second chance. Why would an actor get special treatment when it comes to that?
06.26.2007 at 11:48 pm
Samantha gets it! Samantha’s eyes are open! 🙂
06.27.2007 at 8:11 am
this isnt a matter of someones eye being open. it’s basicaly your opinion and others opinion. So by saying her eyes are open…does that then imply that my eyes are closed?
06.27.2007 at 2:37 pm
Frankly, Ally, i agree with you. Nobody is going to agree completely with one or the other. It is all a matter of opinions. However, everyone does have the right to express their own opinion, and whether or not you agree with it doesn’t necessarily make it right or wrong. Point of the matter is, IW was fired. Nothing that we the public argue about is going to change that at this point in time.
And as for the slur::
Where i come from there is certain protocol that you would follow. 1. a complaint to HR 2. a follow up report with a probationary period 3. any other similar occurances would lead to further disciplinary action up to and or including termination. And that’s coming from a strictly Human Resources’ manual i happen to have laying here in front of me. Any other company that i have worked for has followed the same protocol.
06.27.2007 at 4:47 pm
and on another note.. i am almost as sick of this whole controversy as i am the whole paris hilton junk.
06.27.2007 at 4:58 pm
I agree. Not renewing the contract is totally out of line. There is a protocol and it wasn’t followed. Someone earlier mentioned that Grey’s ratings declined. I think it is mostly in part to TR’s character. I mean for God sakes he is gay (known because he felt compelled to give us this information) and we are supposed to believe that he has two attractive young ladies that he is sleeping with. Puhlease……
It is totally unbelieve and I know, DOOL Mike, you are going to have a lot to say because you are gay, blah, blah, blah. Frankly, whenever I see his character I don’t believe it and when you lose trust like that in a character, it brings the character down.
06.27.2007 at 4:59 pm
Now while Mary Ann you present a very good point, i don’t think that the actor’s specific sexual orientation should have anything to do with how a character can act. Afterall… it is called “acting”. There are many actors and actresses out there that are either gay or straight that have played oposite to their specific orientation. They knew the role they were playing.
Everyone just needs to get over the drama! lol
06.27.2007 at 5:52 pm
Jess:
I agree but there has been so much said about TR’s sexuality that in my opinion it is affecting the show and how you view the character.
06.27.2007 at 8:06 pm
i agree totally.
06.28.2007 at 2:08 am
point taken 🙂
06.28.2007 at 8:54 am
I hate to come down on DOOL Mike, but I find it funny that no one is coming after Patrick Dempsey for his failure to act like a proper human being and treat others as such. Maybe if he had done so, this incident would have never happened. Just a thought. As for T.R. Knight, he did ask for a raise when I can tell you, that his performance up to date has been quite poor and that goes for his best friend, Katherine Hiegl. I believe that it would have been in the shows best interest to fire the main group that started this whole problem and bring in new actors who can act and mantain some professionalism on set.
08.13.2007 at 2:55 am