Posted on 10/15/2004 1:24:14 AM PDT by kattracks
TV host Bill O'Reilly suffered "the worst day of my life" yesterday after being thrust into a sleazy sex scandal - one so explosive, it has forced the talk-show loudmouth into silence."I have been advised to keep my big mouth shut, and I have promised to do that," O'Reilly told the Daily News from his Fox News studio yesterday.
But he didn't.
"This has been the worst day of my life," O'Reilly said. "I am getting hounded by the press, and I knew I would be. I knew that they were going to kill me, but what am I going to do?"
O'Reilly, 55, was accused Wednesday of making "disgusting" phone calls and remarks to Andrea Mackris, 33, an associate producer on the hugely popular Fox show "The O'Reilly Factor."
Hours before Mackris sued him, O'Reilly, a married father of two who lives on Long Island, struck the first blow - filing his own lawsuit claiming that Mackris and her lawyer, Benedict Morelli, tried to extort $60 million from him and Fox News to buy her silence.
And he used the airwaves to tell his 3 million viewers, "These people picked the wrong guy."
But neither Morelli nor Mackris was backing down yesterday.
"This is a man who went on TV and said, 'They don't know what kind of guy they're messing with.' When somebody says something like that, I take it as a threat against me, my family, my client and her family," Morelli said.
He then raised the stakes, suggesting the scandal could destroy O'Reilly's career.
"They have made it personal. When this case is dismissed, not only are they going to be embarrassed, but they are going to see who is left standing. I think this can bring O'Reilly down."
Mackris claimed O'Reilly, a best-selling author and writer, started making sexual comments to her after she split with her fiancé in 2001. The situation worsened after she returned to Fox following a brief stint working for CNN earlier this year, she said.
Closely guarded by her lawyer, Mackris appeared on NBC's "Today" show and ABC's "Good Morning America" yesterday.
"I felt extremely threatened for many reasons," she said.
"There were definitely threats. It crossed the line when I ... came back [to Fox] in July. It went much further than it ever had.
"The language was ratcheted up. He pushed the boundaries further and further from what I had already established. I came back because he agreed to not ever talk to me that way again."
Her lawyer said, "She really didn't feel she had to do something until she returned from CNN. It started in 2002, but when she returned from CNN it started crossing the line, and it wasn't until then she said, 'My God, I have got to do something about it.'"
O'Reilly's alleged remarks included telling Mackris she should use a vibrator and regaling her with tales of threesomes with Swedish stewardesses and stories of his "amazing" endowment.
Mackris claims he made three lewd phone calls to her since August in which he described fantasies involving her and sex acts he would perform on her.
She said he was clearly pleasuring himself as he spoke.
When Mackris pointed out to O'Reilly that he was her boss, she claims he replied, "You just have to suspend that."
O'Reilly characterized Mackris' allegations as "outrageous and I've got to take action. I don't know what [Mackris] is talking about."
Asked what his wife thinks of the accusations, O'Reilly said, "We don't talk about any of this. It's nothing to do with me - it's with the lawyers."
O'Reilly's lawyer, Ronald Green, said Wednesday he intended to file papers demanding that evidence - including possible tape recordings of the alleged sex calls - be made public. He was unavailable for comment yesterday.
Morelli refused to confirm whether he had tape recordings, saying only, "We have concrete and unrefutable evidence that [O'Reilly] did it."
The scandal apparently has had no effect on O'Reilly's syndicated newspaper column, featured in 300 publications, including the Daily News. None had canceled by last night, said the syndicate's president, Rick Newcombe.
And O'Reilly said his program was being broadcast every weeknight as usual.
He also kept the support of many of his neighbors in Plandome, L.I.
Bill Georgas, 42, co-owner of Louie's Manhasset Restaurant, where O'Reilly is a regular, said, "He's always been a gentleman.
"I don't see that man they're talking about in the news."
With Laura Williams
Originally published on October 15, 2004
Don't worry, Bill! All the conservatives you steadfastly spoke up for through recent weeks are still with you....and there's onnnne...oh, oh..two...no..THREE..people out there that'll light up the blogosphere in your defense....
Well,...maybe not. But I understand John Edwards is a pretty good trial lawyer. And I'll bet he'll represent you for free, in return for a softball run on your "no spin" zone, right after Kerry's.
Methinks this has the makings of O'Reilly's undoing. I won't be crying too hard over it.
Seems that someone should have advised O'Reilly of that a long time ago. He wouldn't be in this mess now. Anyway, the woman's a slime. She thinks someone talking dirty to her is worth $60 million. I hope she doesn't get one red cent.
It's the timing of it that smells like last week's fish. If they'd waited till after the election, I wouldn't have the same reaction. It just seems a little too Anita Hill to me.
"I have been advised to keep my big mouth shut, and I have promised to do that"
Chris Matthews should be so lucky.
That said, I have little use for the new breed of "sue 'em" women I'm seeing, either- in my day, she would have smacked him, or had a man from her family "have a word" with him.
Are you going to worry about Bill? He has the $ to hire Johnnie Cochran (if Johnnie has recovered from his brain tumor). Besides, this is all about money and money will settle it in the end.
I seem to recall he chided Rush for much the same statement.
I am not crazy about Bill O'Reilly, but I believe we should not be smirking over this. Let his ratings fall, yes. Let his books be a flop, yes. Judge him by what he produces and let him be found wanting, by all means.
However, this case smacks of a setup - Mackris went back to work for O'Reilly after the supposed harassment. She didn't have enough sense either to hang up, or to go to Fox's human resource department and make a complaint. This does strike me as chicancery, and we should not wish O'Reilly's downfall for the wrong reasons. This is decidedly the wrong reason.
I for one, hope Mackris falls flat on her sour face. It would be an improvement.
Regards, Ivan
Have you seen the "lady" in question?
She should be paying HIM to talk dirty to her.
It seems like all the reporters on TV yesterday were calling O'Reilly a "conservative commentator." I guess anybody who doesn't agree with Ted Kennedy 100 percent of the time is considered conservative by the mainstream media.
And apparently she listened. She could have slammed the phone down.
Man, they weren't kidding when they said graphic.
If she has a recording, his career is toast. The complaint reads like a transcript, so I'm guessing she does.
The sad truth is that you're being entirely too kind to Kennedy and Clinton with that statement. I've never heard of any male alleycats who went out and hired private investigators and Carville-type goons to intimindate, threaten and harm past acquaintances and/or victims.
O'reilly should have learned when you run with the democrats the mange is easy to obtain. Too Bad So Sad, O'reilly. When you slam President Bush, then you have slammed the majority of Americans. Bush/Cheney 2004
Sen. Lott is able to provide you with some important information, and you must listen to what has to he tell you.
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