When Transparent debuted four years ago on Amazon with a transgender lead character, it was a special moment for TV. It won Emmys and seemed a perfect fit for a burgeoning civil-rights movement. Now, the show’s future is in question after allegations against star Jeffrey Tambor. Fellow Transparent actress Trace Lysette said Tambor pressed his body against hers in a sexually aggressive manner, and made inappropriate and unwanted sexual statements on the set of the show. Tambor denied the allegations, saying in a statement that he has “never been a predator — ever.” Lysette is the second woman to accuse Tambor of harassment. Lysette, who is herself transgender, said on Twitter that when she emerged from wardrobe in a costume of a lingerie top and shorts for a scene with Tambor, he said, “My God, Trace. I want to attack you sexually.” Lysette said she and another actress laughed off the remark, but then Tambor approached her between scenes a few minutes later. “He came in close, put his bare feet on top of mine so I could not move, leaned his body against me, and began quick, discreet thrust back and forth against my body,” Lysette said. Tambor has been hailed for his portrayal of Maura Pfefferman, the transgendered matriarch of the quirky Pfefferman family. He won a best actor Emmy for his portrayal.
A jury has found that an entrepreneur must pay $5 million to singer Katy Perry and the archdiocese of Los Angeles, finding that the woman intentionally interfered with the sale to Perry of a hilltop property that was once a convent. The jury found Friday that Dana Hollister should pay the archdiocese $3.47 million and Perry $1.57 million for interference with contractual relations and other misdeeds. The 33-year-old pop star has sought to buy the 8-acre property and its Roman-villa style buildings in the city’s Los Feliz neighborhood for $14.5 million, and to relocate an adjoining house of prayer used by priests. Her bid has the approval of Los Angeles’ archbishop. But Hollister stepped in and attempted to purchase the property from two nuns who had lived there. A judge voided that sale earlier this year, saying the archdiocese had the right to sell the property, not the nuns. The jury found that her actions led to Perry and the archdiocese having to pay exorbitant lawyer fees and other costs, which Hollister should get the bill for. Hollister’s lawyer Michael Geibelson said in court that Hollister thought she had a correct and legal contract and intended no harm.
