Another one bites the dust in corrupt old Hollywood. This time, director James Toback is getting his comeuppance.
According to the Los Angeles Times, 31 victims admitted on the record that they were allegedly sexually harassed and victimized by the director of the aptly named film, Seduced and Abandoned, (which starred the noted lib Alec Baldwin). Of course, in an industry that turned a blind eye to Harvey Weinstein’s alleged rape and assault of women for thirty years, this story should come as no surprise.
The victims all shared similar experiences: Toback would “prowl the streets of Manhattan looking for attractive young women, usually in their 20s, sometimes college students, on occasion a high schooler.” He would tell them he’d make them a star, and tell them to meet in a hotel room (or another private place.)
The victims all told stories of indecent exposure and harassment, and were too ashamed to confront Toback or alert the police to his gross behavior. “I felt like a prostitute, an utter disappointment to myself, my parents, my friends,” said one. “And I deserved not to tell anyone.”
The question is not what films did Toback direct (mostly documentaries), but who he knew and worked with on a regular basis. Alec Baldwin, Robert Downey Jr., Molly Ringwald -- these were the stars who were cast in his films.Toback worked closely with Baldwin in 2013 to create the documentary Seduced and Abandoned.
Were there warning signs? There must have been. The Huffington Post interviewed Toback in 2013, where he told stories of a misspent youth, “having orgies with 15 to 20 girls.” “That was fun!” he told the interviewer.
What a surprise.
