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Joy Behar Page
NFL Harassment Scandal; Tea Party
Aired September 15, 2010 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOY BEHAR, HOST: Mel Gibson has been seen in public. At least we think he has. That`s him in disguise, you know. Maybe he`s trying to avoid the paparazzi. Who knows?
But I do know one thing. That ever since Braveheart he loves playing dress-up. Look. Here he is in Malibu. Here he is on Rosh Hashanah. Here he is at the VMAs. You know, not for nothing, the man knows how to wear a brisket.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Coming up on THE JOY BEHAR SHOW. The NFL investigates a female reporter`s complaints about her treatment in a New York Jets locker room. Now the great debate rages on. Can an attractive woman in a male-dominated profession get a fair shake?
And the Tea Party tallied some big wins in yesterday`s primaries but can they get all the way to Washington.
Plus, the masked man: wait until you see the ridiculous disguise Mel Gibson was caught wearing in L.A.
That and more starting right now.
BEHAR: NFL officials began questioning New York Jets players and coaches yesterday about allegations of sexual impropriety towards Mexican sports reporter Ines Sainz. Of course, they held the questioning at Hooters, but still. Here`s what Sainz had to say about the controversy when she was on my show yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
INES SAINZ, SPORTS NEWS REPORTER, TV AZTECA: Everybody start to make noses and expressions about myself. But I have eight years working in this kind of things and in Mexico and in Europe and other parts. I decide it`s better to go focus on my job and don`t pay attention.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: That`s a good idea. So did Sainz invite the cat calls and suggestive comments with her provocative attire or do women deserve to be treated professionally regardless of how they`re dressed? Even in testosterone-fueled environments.
With me now to debate the issue are Jillian Barberie-Reynolds, co-host of "Good Day, L.A." and former NFL correspondent; Bonnie Bernstein, sports caster and host of 1050 ESPN Radio; and Max Kellerman, CNN contributor and sports analyst. Ok.
Let me start with Jillian. Ok. Sainz defended this picture of what she wore to practice that day, claiming it`s not appropriate. See the picture. Ok. She said it`s not inappropriate, rather. I`m sorry. Do you agree or is she being naive when she says it`s not inappropriate, Jillian?
JILLIAN BARBERIE-REYNOLDS, CO-HOST, "GOOD DAY, L.A.": Well, I think it`s a little bit of both Joy. I`ve been on the NFL at the NFC Conferences for many years. I did three Super Bowls working with the NFL for ten years. I wore jeans and sweaters. It`s how you fill it out.
Look, she`s a beauty queen. Let`s call it what it is and not be naive. She`s known for her beauty. Didn`t she win a big beauty contest?
BEHAR: She was Miss Spain, I think.
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: Ok. So she`s Miss Spain. She didn`t win the contest for the academics. It`s a beauty contest. So she is beautiful obviously and of course, it`s going to draw attention.
And Joy, I can tell you, you can draw as much or as little attention as you like on the sidelines. Quite frankly, being there for ten years, I`m also a little offended that I didn`t get cat-called like that. But it is a matter of --
BEHAR: Really?
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: Well, it is a matter of -- she looks a certain way and she`s going to get attention for it.
BEHAR: All right. Thank you. Now, she tweeted after the practice that she was embarrassed by what they were doing but she didn`t feel threatened by it. I have to put that out there. What do you think she expected? You sort of have to know that there are going to be cat calls in a locker room if you come in with tight pants. I`m not saying they were right. I`m just saying it`s a little disingenuous to say you`re shocked by that.
BONNIE BERNSTEIN, SPORTSCASTER: You`re talking about two different things. The first question is should they have behaved the way they allegedly have behaved? Men and women are allowed in locker rooms. There should be equal access and equal professional treatment.
But I sort of agree. If you`re going to walk into a locker room with skin-tight jeans and that`s the way you want to portray yourself, I don`t know how anybody could be surprised if there are going to be looks. The attire, Joy, doesn`t justify the behavior. But you`re naive to think --
MAX KELLERMAN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR AND SPORTS ANALYST: Bonnie was a gymnast. Did you ever put on as tight jeans as you could and walk into a locker room?
BERNSTEIN: I don`t know if I would be able to walk, period, if I ever put on jeans that tight. But I`ve worn jeans in the locker room but they`re more conservative. I have a shirt that covers it. It`s just -- to me it`s all about how you want to be perceived. And I just think I`m a little more conservative.
BEHAR: But Max, shouldn`t she be treated respectfully regardless of what she`s wearing? I mean really?
Kellerman: On the one hand, she was dressed inappropriately. I think that`s pretty obvious. On the other hand -- an also it depends what was being said. Was she getting some whistles? I mean you saw her -- when she was talking to you out on the street, she was getting whistles. You heard guys yelling while she was talking to you.
BEHAR: Were they yelling at her? We don`t know. It`s New York. Who knows?
KELLERMAN: Yes. It sounded like it.
(CROSSTALK)
Kellerman: On the one hand she was dressed inappropriately. On the other hand, if they were saying really lewd, obnoxious things, then that is also inappropriate whether or not she could anticipate that sort of thing.
BEHAR: Right. But I mean Bonnie, is there anything wrong with using sex appeal in a job, really? I don`t know that there`s anything really --
BERNSTEIN: IT depends on how you want to frame your career. And Joy, frankly, I think this is one of the big problems. I think women in our business, particularly on the sports side, get caught up in trying to figure out, "Am I a journalist or am I an entertainer?" If I`m an entertainer, perhaps I`m more apt to dress up the sex appeal. If I`m a journalist, that`s what I consider myself --
BEHAR: You consider yourself a journalist?
BERNSTEIN: Yes. A lot of people -- I get it, a lot of people don`t. I wrote for my high school paper and my college paper and I majored in broadcast journalism. And when I`m in a locker room, I want to be getting eye contact with somebody. I want them listening to my questions. In the event they find me attractive, that`s lovely and flattering.
BEHAR: I know but why is she responsible for their stupid behavior no matter what she wears really? It`s almost like when a girl walks in Central Park at night in a short skirt, maybe, and she`s attacked, they blame her. They say why is she out in the middle of the night? Why is she dressing like that? It`s nobody`s business when she`s out really or what she`s wearing.
(CROSSTALK)
Kellerman: This whole idea that they`re blaming -- this blaming of a victim -- I`m not quite sure what she`s a victim of. She didn`t claim she was sexually harassed. She tweeted what she would feel because we`re in this culture now where everyone tweets. It`s so narcissistic.
You know, "I woke up in the morning. I`m having a cup of coffee and talking to my friend. I tied my shoe."
BEHAR: Yes.
KELLERMAN: She`s just tweeting in the locker room what was happening. She felt embarrassed supposedly because these guys were getting her cat calls or wolf whistles or whatever it`s called.
BEHAR: What she`s doing is thanking the NFL at this point and thanking the Jets --
BERNSTEIN: But there are mixed messages though. There are mixed messages because on the one hand, she tweeted that she was embarrassed. "I`m going to die of embarrassment."
On the other hand, she`s spoken with other news outlets where she thought it was all in good fun. I didn`t pay much attention to it. I didn`t feel threatened.
KELLERMAN: Have you seen the work Web site -- the Azteca TV Web site? The Web site of her employer has her in a bikini -- several shots of her in a bikini in sexual poses.
BEHAR: So?
KELLERMAN: This is on her Web site.
BEHAR: So what.
KELLERMAN: In other words, she is using her sex appeal to advance her career actively and billing herself that way. So if she simply gets some cat calls, to me that`s not a big deal.
BEHAR: Ok. Jillian -- ok, jump in there Jillian. Go ahead.
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: Yes. I know, I totally agree with what you guys are saying. Much like Bonnie, I have a journalism degree. It`s how you want to be perceived. I`m sure I could have worn the bubble butt jeans and the crop-top -- whatever. It is what it is.
And I don`t think she`s trying to mask herself as being something she`s not. She`s a beauty queen. I think she said I`m the sexiest woman in sports or whatever.
BEHAR: The hottest. The hottest reporter.
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: Hottest, excuse me, she`s hot. Yes. Just ask her. She`s sizzling.
KELLERMAN: Jillian, you seem very into her. I`ve got to say.
BEHAR: What are you trying? Start a rumor --
KELLERMAN: I`m just saying. That`s like the fifth comment she`s made.
BEHAR: Because she identifies, that`s why. Right, Jillian? Go ahead. She`s hot also?
KELLERMAN: Clearly.
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: No. I don`t know what Max means by that. But I do know that --
KELLERMAN: Joy, do you know what I mean?
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: You can`t -- I don`t know that you can have it both ways. Either -- I think there are beautiful women. I worked with Pam Oliver for ten years. I don`t think Pam is -- she`s one of the most respected sideline reporters in the NFL. I don`t think she`s ever had this problem.
By the way, Ines said that this is the first time in her 100 interviews or something she said along those lines that she`s ever had this problem. I think we can vilify her and say as much as we want about her. I don`t think I would have ever worn a belly shirt out there.
BEHAR: Ok. But what about the fact that men, in general -- you would know about this -- the men who run these leagues and everything and also the networks, they want her to look like that. She`s only doing what the job description sort of requires. Isn`t that true?
BERNSTEIN: I think there`s actually a little bit of a cultural divide here. I think they do. To Max`s point about the Azteca TV website. They do play up her sexuality. I think we see that more in entertainment here. I think by and large in sports, you see it sometimes. You see it in other times.
BEHAR: yes.
BERNSTEIN: But overall, Joy -- and I agree with Jillian -- I know Pam`s not had an issue. In my almost 20 years in the business now, I`ve never had an issue in the NFL. And they`re going after this in the dressing --
BEHAR: So you don`t have that when you go into the locker room? They don`t come on to you that way or cat call or anything like that to you?
BERNSTEIN: I`ve never had an issue when I`m in the locker room.
BEHAR: Because you`re an attractive woman -- why don`t they do that to you?
BERNSTEIN: Maybe they don`t find me attractive.
BEHAR: They do. I`m sure they do.
(CROSSTALK)
KELLERMAN: I think that Bonnie`s a professional and her resume says it. And she takes her job seriously and she`s not simply exploiting her sexuality to get ahead. I mean, it`s a simple as that.
BEHAR: These guys -- some of them are naked in the locker room, I understand. Have you encountered that?
BERNSTEIN: Inevitably that will happen on occasion. They`re getting out of showers. They`re usually very diligent about wrapping towels around but that`s the other side of this. There has been a lot of debate in the last couple of days as to whether women should even be in the locker room. It`s our job.
KELLERMAN: Or reporters should have a separate room for this. They don`t need male or female reporters in the locker room.
BEHAR: Jillian, do you get this behavior towards you?
BARBERIE-REYNOLDS: No. And again I was on the sideline for many Super Bowls and talked to the players if they`re down there. Do they come over and say flirty things and have fun -- absolutely, as they`re warming up. But it was never an issue and I never took offense to it by any means.
And to what Bonnie is saying, if you go back and look at -- I mean, are males allowed in the female -- let`s say synchronized swimmers or gymnasts. Are male reporters allowed to see women naked?
(CROSSTALK)
BERNSTEIN: They are allowed -- reporters at the locker room.
BEHAR: What is it --
KELLERMAN: The WNBA, the men can be in there.
BEHAR: So men do go in there?
BERNSTEIN: And I just know having been a college gymnast, that I would feel terribly uncomfortable if I had men in the locker room.
But you have to understand Joy we`re in there because we`re on deadlines, we`re getting interviews. We don`t have time for guys to take their showers and get dressed and put their jewelry on and call his wife --
BEHAR: So you can`t wait until they are finished.
BERNSTEIN: I know and there is a guy --
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: I see because that was an issue why not wait until --
KELLERMAN: I mean, I think that most athletes are uncomfortable with reporters in the locker room, period.
REYNOLDS: And I get that. I totally get that.
BEHAR: All right, I think I`m going to walk around in a hot outfit at the (INAUDIBLE) court in Central Park from now on and see what happens.
KELLERMAN: So if I whistle, do I get in trouble, Joy?
BEHAR: Yes, you will. But I might enjoy it. You never know.
Thanks everybody. Up next, the Tea Partiers are partying a little harder after some key primary wins. But will the movement crash and burn in the general election?
Stay tuned.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Coming up a little later on THE JOY BEHAR SHOW, Mel Gibson`s attempt to go incognito backfires big time. We`ll have the latest on Mel`s ridiculous disguise.
And Bristol Palin prepares for her debut on "Dancing with the Stars" with a little help from none other than Kate Gosselin.
Now back to Joy.
BEHAR: Well, it looks like the Tea Party knocked the moderates out of the box last night. They celebrated major victories in primary races in the northeast. But none bigger than Delaware`s Christine O`Donnell who shocked many by defeating the GOP establishment`s pick, Mike Castle. Watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE O`DONNELL (R), DELAWARE SENATE CANDIDATE: Ladies and gentlemen, the people of Delaware have spoken. No more politics as usual.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: So is this Tea Party candidate heading to the senate or will the Democrats beat her in the general election? With me now to discuss this is Roy Sekoff, founding editor of the "Huffington Post"; also with me is Leslie Sanchez, Republican strategist and author.
Welcome to the show you guys. You know Leslie --
ROY SEKOFF, FOUNDING EDITOR, HUFFINGTON POST: Thanks Joy.
BEHAR: -- when she was -- when she was running in the primary, the National Republican Senatorial Committee didn`t give her money. And the GOP didn`t support her. Now, that seems to have all changed. Is that because everyone loves a winner or because they have no choice and they just has to go with it? What do you think?
LESLIE SANCHEZ, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: You`re -- Joy you`re a little bit right on both. Quite honestly to think about that; the truth is that she has proven to be a viable candidate. People in the state of Delaware support her, like her ideas.
And don`t forget, she was talking about economic -- the economic health of the country and political liberties and freedom. It resonated. And people learned long enough -- long ago not to try to predict Delaware.
So I think with respect to that, you saw the senatorial committee, Republicans come out and support her. Put a little a bit of money in her coffers. And I think you`ll see a lot more. Her Web site went down --
BEHAR: Right.
SANCHEZ: -- a lot of people are saying because the donations are coming in.
BEHAR: Well, they have no choice, Roy, right? But is this a little penny wise and dollar foolish -- Roy? I mean --
SEKOFF: Well, you know, I mean, it`s really is a small amount that we`re talking about, Joy. I mean, I think that -- didn`t Michael Steele`s boys spend more than that at the lesbian strip club out here in Los Angeles last year?
BEHAR: Oh, boy.
SEKOFF: So we`re not talking a lot of money. It`s not -- it`s not like we`re talking about Christie Whitman having to spend $100 million. So it`s a little bit of money to buy some goodwill with a very important part of their constituency. So I think it was a no-brainer that they had to turn around and do it after saying --
BEHAR: Right.
SEKOFF: -- that they weren`t going to do it last night.
BEHAR: Ok now Karl Rove, believe it or not, slammed this woman, O`Donnell, last night on Fox News. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KARL ROVE, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: I`ve met her. I`m not, I`ve got to tell you I wasn`t frankly impressed as -- in her abilities as a candidate. And there are just a lot of nutty things she`s been saying that just simply don`t add up --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: A lot of nutty things, Leslie? Is there trouble in paradise?
SANCHEZ: You know, I think people had a lot of pre-conceived notions about this candidate. Once they win the primary, it`s amazing how it creates strange bedfellows. But bottom line she`s energized the base and let`s not forget, she won by connecting her Republican opponent to Barack Obama and basically saying, there wasn`t a lot of light between those two.
It`s something that should concern the Democrats more than the Republicans.
BEHAR: Roy, it seems --
(CROSSTALK)
SEKOFF: Yes but it --
BEHAR: -- to me that --
SEKOFF: Yes.
BEHAR: -- that she`s getting her tips from Sarah Palin. And Sarah went in there and backed her up, right? Who`s nuttier do you think, Christine or Sarah?
SEKOFF: Well, you know actually, Christine is actually when you look right down to it is even nuttier than Sarah. This is a big win for Sarah she gets to chuck up another win in her endorsement column.
But I think the stuff that`s going to come out, even a victory is not going to make it go away that -- that she has a record of not paying her taxes. That she has a record about dissembling about what she did -- through other times when he ran against Joe Biden, not paying her college loans.
And don`t forget, she has a great background Joy, where she first claimed -- her claim to fame is when she came out as an abstinence spokesperson --
BEHAR: Oh yes I`m glad you`re saying that --
SEKOFF: -- saying that masturbation -- yes.
BEHAR: Let me -- let me play the clip because it`s so much fun to watch.
SEKOFF: Ok.
BEHAR: Ok let`s play this.
SEKOFF: It`s a good one.
BEHAR: Yes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to address sexuality with young people. And masturbation is part of sexuality. But it is important to discuss this from a moral point of view.
The Bible says that lust in your heart is committing adultery. So you can`t masturbate without lust.
You`re going to be pleasing each other. And if he already knows what pleases him and he can please himself, then why am I in the picture?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: Well, Leslie that`s her platform --
SEKOFF: Why am I in the picture?
BEHAR: -- look, ma, no hands. That was on "Rachel Maddow`s Show" last night. Go ahead Roy.
SANCHEZ: You know, I`m surprised we weren`t talking about the bad choice there and that was in the spiral perm. I did that in the `90s. It was just really the wrong move there.
SEKOFF: Yes I know but this is obviously, this is not a good day. Yesterday was not a good day for masturbators, Joy. Clearly this is -- you know, the biggest opponent of masturbation since your seventh grade science teacher told you about the hair on your palms.
SANCHEZ: Let`s be -- now let`s --
SEKOFF: It`s not -- it`s not a good day for the self-pleasurer.
SANCHEZ: -- let`s put it in perspective, I don`t think it`s fair, I think it`s really sad to be criticizing someone for their religious beliefs. I mean --
SEKOFF: No, no, look, that`s not -- that`s not necessary --
SANCHEZ: -- Rachel Maddow may not agree with that -- that she created an abstinence video for MTV for youth. I mean --
BEHAR: She needs to watch some porn and gets some tips. That`s what she needs.
SEKOFF: Leslie -- exactly. Leslie she was still -- Leslie she was still on the Web site as of last year as one of their spokespeople. And there`s a difference -- we`re not criticizing the religious beliefs. But you`ve got to say that --
SANCHEZ: You`re not? How are you not?
SEKOFF: I`m telling you exactly that I`m not.
BEHAR: Oh come on.
SEKOFF: There`s a lot of Christian people who I understand who like sex and don`t think that just because you masturbate, you don`t need a woman.
BEHAR: That`s right.
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: Leslie, come on. Christians masturbate just like everybody else. But we`re going to continue with this in just a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: I`m back with my political panel. Let me ask you something, Leslie. Is the Tea Party going to be a third party in the whole system now? Could that be detrimental to the Republicans really the way -- the way Nader was to Gore in that last election against Bush. I mean don`t you think that that will hurt the GOP if there`s a third party?
SANCHEZ: I think if you look at what the Tea Party supports, in most cases, they`re talking about economic health of this country. Increased deficits, concerned about the direction of the country and their political and their private liberties. That`s what`s important. They`re not talking too much social issues. It`s economic across the board.
You have to acknowledge the trend. And I think to the effect that you`re seeing a lot of independent voters have moved toward Republicans on economic issues, the deficit issues --
BEHAR: Yes. But you say it`s economic only. I don`t get that. This Christine O`Donnell -- she is against abortion. She`s against masturbation. She`s against stem cell research. She`s against gay rights. I don`t see that they`re only fiscally responsible people in there.
SANCEZ: I will tell you that what is resonating among people that are moving -- where the vote is aggressive, where people are playing in these tight margins is these independent voters, voters who are mobilized and engaged and they`re looking more at economic issues more than the social issues.
BEHAR: Right.
SANCHEZ: And they`re also favoring GOP newcomers. They want -- we`re in the era of kick the bums out. Republican or Democrat, I think anybody who`s an incumbent right now has a problem.
BEHAR: Well, that`s kind of irrational in my opinion.
Roy, isn`t this the best thing that could happen to Democrats? These Tea Party candidates?
SEKOFF: Listen, the GOP is clearly having this identity crisis. We have the establishment figures on the one side. We have the insurgents on the other. The question is, are the Democrats going to be able to capitalize on it or are they going to blow it?
We have to admit, they can`t just say, she`s an easy win. They can`t just talk that up. There is a great energy. When they look at the polls right now of who is excited about voting. The numbers on the GOP side are way, way, way above the Democrats.
What are the Democrats going to do to energize their base? They can`t just sit back and let a candidate like O`Donnell and hope she implodes.
BEHAR: What`s your advice Leslie to the Democrats? What should they do?
SANCHEZ: They need to start talking about the economy. They need to understand that when people are out of work they forget party affiliation. They`re not Republican; they`re not Democrat. They`re looking for a job. That has always been the focus. That`s what a lot of these candidates are talking about, the ones who are surging.
BEHAR: What did the moderates in the GOP make of the point that -- you know, get the government off my back, get them out of my bank book? Everything -- I don`t want any government. Basically the Tea Party is against government but then they say, don`t touch my Medicare, don`t touch my Medicaid, don`t touch my social security. How do they reconcile those two disparate ideas, Leslie?
SANCHEZ: There`s a little bit of both. I mean, the party of (INAUDIBLE), there is libertarian -- I mean you have a lot of folks who don`t want the government involved in it. They`re very concerned about the mass growth of the federal government and its implications on your personal life. They`re very real concerns. And look at the state and they`re pushing back as well.
BEHAR: I never understand that Roy. You know, it`s like they`re worried about infringements on their personal life. But when it comes to abortion, when it comes to gay rights, they`re right up there in your business. I don`t understand. It`s such a confusing party, the GOP, to me.
SEKOFF: There`s no consistency. There`s no consistency there. It`s the same way as saying the most important thing is cutting the deficit until it comes to extending the Bush tax cuts for millionaires.
BEHAR: Yes.
SEKOFF: Then $700 billion -- well, sure.
BEHAR: It`s crazy.
SANCHEZ: We`re a vast umbrella of many issues.
BEHAR: Ok. Thanks guys, very much. This just will go on and on, this conversation.
Up next, Mel Gibson goes incognito with a fake mustache. I wonder if he went with the Groucho or the Stalin. We`ll find out.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: Celebrities handle paparazzi differently. Some stars scream at them and others like Sean Penn punch them and kick their cars. But Mel Gibson is different. He is crafty. He tries to fool them by going into disguise. Look at this picture, OK, who is he kidding with that disguise. OK with me to discuss this and more are comedian Kevin Meaney, Daphne Rubin Vega, co-star of the new film "Jack Goes Boating." And Natalie Thomas, deputy editor for "US Weekly." OK you know, guys, why is he in disguise? Is he feeling guilty? Does he - he doesn`t want to get recognized obviously? Do you think he feels guilty and bad that people hate him on the street? Anybody, Kevin?
KEVIN MEANEY, COMEDIAN: I think he`s got these great disguises. But he should do something else.
BEHAR: Like what?
MEANEY: You know like, for instance, what I do, I don`t know if he`s ever considered dressing in women`s clothes.
BEHAR: Well that could be next.
MEANEY: And that`s something I have done myself to --
BEHAR: And you brought us a picture?
MEANYE: Yes, I actually bought a picture, there is a picture up there -
BEHAR: Let`s see, there you are.
MEANEY: There I am. I`m not in full disguise, but I`m preparing to disguise myself. And then I wear a red burqa on top of that.
BEHAR: So slenderizing that thing.
MEANEY: Well it`s actually a fat suit. It`s a fat suit, part of it yes. Yes, so, I`m not that heavy. But with the red burqa, really, you can`t recognize me at all.
BEHAR: All right, Daphne, why do you think he`s disguising himself? Do you know the story of the kind of verbal abuse towards the wife --
DAPHNE RUBIN-VEGA, ACTRESS, "JACK GOES BOATING": Right. I heard something about the rant. And he was talking about how he`d never go out looking like that. So if he dressed in drag, then you know, all the -- just the bad advice that he gave her and the threats would come back to him.
MEANEY: Uh huh, do you think he`d look good in that red dress?
RUBIN-VEGA: You know, you must be very -
MEANEY: We`re the same age.
BEHAR: Let me just refresh your memory on what the rants were.
RUBIN-VEGA: Uh huh.
BEHAR: He called Oksana a whore and "c" word. He said you look like an f-ing pig in heat and if you get raped by a pack of "n" words it would be your fault. He`s a real charmer. If I were him, I would be in disguise also. Wouldn`t you?
(LAUGHTER)
RUBIN-VEGA: I mean he`s clearly not a man - he`s not all there. Like he`s clearly lost it. He needs to be not going out in disguise, not following paparazzi and confronting them. He needs to go somewhere and work on himself and take care of his issues and lay low. And not be out and about in L.A. I don`t think it`s the place for him.
MEANEY: But didn`t he go up to the paparazzi car with his phone camera and say, you know, and they didn`t recognize him at first. And then they started interviewing him saying, you know, what did you really mean that to your wife? Did you really say these things to her?
BEHAR: Well I know that they, the paparazzi also said, do you think you`ll ever make a movie in Hollywood again? They asked him that which is really the crucial question.
RUBIN-VEGA: And what it did he say?
BEHAR: I don`t know, I don`t think he answered.
NATALIE THOMAS, DEPUTY EDITOR OF "US WEEKLY": They said, do you have a response to that? He said, not to you. And then he said, how does it feel to go around sniffing other people`s laundry. Yes so he was kind of attacking the paparazzo for his job. But you know, Mel has not right to be judging people --
MEANEY: O but didn`t he just doing a movie with Nell though?
RUBIN-VEGA: I think they are friends. I mean like this is the time when he needs his friends. Clearly --
MEANEY: No that was the movie "Nell." That was the movie "Nell."
BEHAR: You mean the movie about the deaf girl? Where did that come from?
MEANEY: No he just did a movie with Jodie Foster.
BEHAR: Oh Jodie Foster, who plays Nell.
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: You know what the movie is called "The Beaver."
MEANEY: "The Beaver."
BEHAR: I kid you not. "The Beaver."
MEANEY: How is that doing?
BEHAR: Where do they get that title from?
MEANEY: From one of his rants.
BEHAR: OK let`s change - let`s change the topic. Kate Gosselin OK is adding a nine to her plus-eight. Kate is reportedly mentoring Bristol Palin for her upcoming appearance on "Dancing With The Stars." Now why would Bristol take dancing advice from a woman who looks like she`s dancing on hot coals when she is walking and dancing. Why?
RUBIN-VEGA: Admittedly, it`s not about dancing. It has nothing to do with dancing. It`s about selling yourself.
THOMAS: Kate herself said, reportedly, that it`s a popularity contest and that Bristol needs to do it up.
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: And take tips from Sarah Palin. Like what kind of tips could Sarah Palin might have -- her do you think?
MEANEY: Well stay away from Jon Gosselin, that`s for sure.
BEHAR: Yes, yes.
MEANEY: So I don`t know if he was -- was he in the background trying to pick up Bristol Palin?
BEHAR: No.
MEANEY: No, all right.
BEHAR: That is sick.
MEANEY: It could happen.
BEHAR: This is what she said. Kate reportedly told Bristol to sell the performance, even if your feet are a mess. What kind of advice is that to give the girl, to destroy had her feet?
MEANEY: What does she have, athletes foot?
(LAUGHTER)
BEHAR: To be on "Dancing With The Stars." That`s the advice she`s giving her.
THOMAS: Again if it`s Kate Gosselin giving you advice, maybe not the one to be taking the advice from.
BEHAR: I know well they`re both good, they`re both single mothers.
THOMAS: True.
BEHAR: You know, they have both got knocked up plenty and there`s no man in the room. They have that in common.
RUBIN-VEGA: Sorry, I didn`t mean to interrupt.
BEHAR: That`s fine.
RUBIN-VEGA: It`s like the fascination with --
BEHAR: Kate.
RUBIN-VEGA: Trashy.
BEHAR: She`s very popular. I understand you can tell me, isn`t she on the cover of "People" magazine?
RUBIN-VEGA: She is.
(CROSSTALK)
MEANEY: Well I saw her show on the other night, "KATE PLUS EIGHT." It is you know --
BEHAR: What do you like about it?
MEANEY: Well my daughter likes to watch it. So you know, because she is an only child and her father dresses up in women`s clothing.
BEHAR: I`m sorry for the child. Poor little thing.
MEANEY: What are you doing tonight, daddy? I was just trying on little dresses honey. Let me get back to you later.
BEHAR: OK you`re putting aside some money for the therapy is what I want to know.
MEANEY: But it`s interesting looking into somebody`s life, you know, that has all these kids. And it`s like, oh my god, they`re going on another vacation. They`re always going places.
BEHAR: Yes.
MEANEY: It`s kind of fun to watch the kids go to these places and you know dream about what they`re going to be like when they get older.
BEHAR: OK the next one, a British judge sends singer George Michael to jail for a DUI, giving him eight weeks in the slammer. OK, he was also -- he was once arrested for engaging in a lewd act with a man in a public toilet. So sending him to jail with a bunch of guys is a win-win.
MEANEY: This is heaven, this is absolutely heaven.
BEHAR: It`s a win, win. I mean what do you think about that.
MEANEY: I always dreamed of going to jail you know when I was younger so I wouldn`t have to come out. You know so I could be in jail with men. You know that was my fantasy at one time, you know. And now I`m out so I don`t have to go to jail. You know but he was high on the pot.
BEHAR: He was on the pot.
MEANEY: He was on the pot.
BEHAR: Listen, how do they know you were on the pot?
MEANEY: You`re on the pot -- your eyes are bloodshot.
BEHAR: Yes.
MEANEY: And --
BEHAR: Always? Not always.
MEANEY: Yes. And probably he was smoking the pot in the car.
BEHAR: He was smoking the pot. When they opened the window, smoke comes out?
MEANEY: Yes when they open the window, smoke comes out. He`s like hey, what happen.
THOMAS: They also said there was prescription drug usage. So they had to have tested him to know to some extent there was prescription drugs and marijuana.
MEANEY: Oh they can test you, they can test your hair. That`s why a lot of the people shave their heads when they go in for a drug test. Obviously I don`t do that. You don`t need a drug test when you`re doing stand-up comedy.
BEHAR: you`re full of information tonight.
MEANEY: Yes, thank you. Thank you.
BEHAR: That`s very good. Now he was sentenced to eight weeks in jail, OK. How many weeks, on a one to Lindsay, how many weeks will he actually --
(CROSSTALK)
RUBIN-VEGA: What the -- this is in London, is that right?
THOMAS: They actually said that he`s serving four weeks in jail and serving four weeks on parole.
MEANEY: Yes.
THOMAS: So whether he actually serves all those four weeks remains to be seen as well.
MEANEY: Can he smoke pot while he`s on parole?
BEHAR: I don`t think so.
RUBIN-VEGA: Does he get a bracelet, jewelry to go beep?
MEANEY: What about a pot brownie? Do they have a pot brownie.
BEHAR: Well it`s hard to detect a pot brownie.
MEANEY: No of course you can detect a pot brownie.
BEHAR: No you can`t.
MEANEY: You don`t know anything about pot. It`s in the blood.
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: I despise marijuana. I need a drug to increase my appetite? No, I don`t need that aggravation.
RUBIN-VEGA: And makes you paranoid.
BEHAR: Now, he`s very open about the fact that he was on the pot for a long time.
MEANEY: Yes, yes, he was.
BEHAR: So he`s open. I mean, he would just say, I`m on the pot.
MEANEY: And then that whole thing about him going into the bathrooms --
(LAUGHTER)
BEHAR: And be and the pot.
MEANEY: Look for other prisoners. It`s like he wanted to go to jail.
BEHAR: Yes.
MEANEY: He would go in on the pot and then like look for something going to the bathroom and say, do you want to come back you know, to my pot place and smoke more pot and have gay sex.
(LAUGHTER)
BEHAR: OK there`s one more story.
RUBIN-VEGA: I miss his voice though. Come on.
BEHAR: You do.
MEANEY: Oh he has a beautiful voice. You ever hear him sing in the bathroom?
(LAUGHTER)
BEHAR: Universal Orlando is expanding some seats on it its Harry Potter and the forbidden journey ride to accommodate obese riders. Apparently the forbidden journey is to Dunkin Donuts.
(LAUGHTER)
Why don`t they tell people to just lose weight? It`s very unhealthy.
MEANEY: I want to get on the Harry Potter ride. How come I can`t get on the Harry Potter ride?
RUBIN-VEGA: Let`s shame you before you get on the ride. No, fatties. You know -- you`re too fat.
BEHAR: But aren`t they enablers? It seems like they`re enablers.
RUBIN-VEGA: Well Jetblue does it. Should you not ride in an airplane because you`re overweight?
BEHAR: Well because there`s a crazy guy running the airplane. All right thanks guys, we`ll be back in a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey. I thought you were supposed to be studying for your cooking exam.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How can you do on two things at once?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Haven`t you heard at shake and bake?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BEHAR: John Ritter`s unexpected death at age 54 from an aortic dissection in 2003, shocked his fans, his friends and family, including his wife, Amy Yasbeck, and their then 5-year-old daughter, Stella. Amy`s new memoir, "With Love And Laughter: John Ritter," is a touching story. Here with me now is Amy. Welcome to the show.
AMY YASBECK, AUTHOR "WITH LOVE AND LAUGHTER: JOHN RITTER": Hi Joy, thank you. How about that outfit John had on?
BEHAR: Yes.
YASBECK: He took all that stuff home and tried to squeeze into it when he was older and more muscular. He had everything
BEHAR: He was a funny, funny guy.
YASBECK: Funny, funny.
BEHAR: Very adorable. People were very upset when he passed away.
YASBECK: People took it very personally, like he was someone in their family.
BEHAR: Let me go back to the fact that you met him when you were in high school? Did you ever --
YASBECK: No I didn`t meet him when I was in high school.
BEHAR: No I mean you saw him on TV, sorry.
YASBECK: Exactly, in my dreams, I met him when I was in high school.
BEHAR: And you fell for him while you were watching him?
YASBECK: You know what, fell for him, get it, Ritter going pluck.
BEHAR: Got it.
YASBECK: By Joy Behar, ladies and gentlemen.
BEHAR: I use to watch Ed Sullivan and I was turned on by him. But this is a whole new - kidding.
YASBECK: I heard Ed had a really big shoe.
BEHAR: Really? You never know.
YASBECK: I thought John was -
BEHAR: So there you are -
(CROSSTALK)
BEHAR: Wait let`s put the picture. Here you are. Where are you? What city?
YASBECK: New Ash, outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, with my mom and dad on the couch. And every time the show would start --
BEHAR: How old are you?
YASBECK: Let`s see. Then?
BEHAR: Back then, yes.
YASBECK: I think it was the `70s so I was an embryo probably. I don`t know. I`m 48 now. Whatever I can`t do the math.
BEHAR: OK, so you were a teenager.
YASBECK: Let`s call it teenager, tween as they call it now.
BEHAR: Tween.
YASBECK: Anyway, so I was sitting on the couch with my mom and my dad, and every time the show would start, my mom was somehow compelled to explain the premise every time. See, he`s living with them. The reason he can live with them is the reason that he`s gay. She would say gay because that was a new fabulous PC word for her. God knows what she said before gay. Because he`s pretending to be gay. Do you understand? I`m like, yes, mom. That was so embarrassing.
BEHAR: So she would keep explaining it to you?
YASBECK: Yes. And my dad would laugh. But then there was the first time there were girls, Suzanne and Joyce jumping around without their bras, jumping around. It was very hot stuff. It was very hot. They would make jokes.
BEHAR: Well there was a menage a trois. People use to think they were having, the three of them. I mean I was --
YASBECK: Oh, they were. Were you`re talking about on the show?
BEHAR: You`re funny. Are you a comedienne?
YASBECK: No, I`m not, Joy Behar.
BEHAR: You should be, you might want to do that.
YASBECK: All right I will.
BEHAR: But he should be, what kind of crazy things did he do at home?
YASBECK: At home, you know, the things our dad and grandpa would do, oh, dad. But John did -- he never got a drink without a straw in it, go like this get it stuck in his nose and then just be turning around and say, come on, come on. Or when he would eat, home, away, it didn`t matter. He would on purpose get something huge stuck somewhere. And then he would do a big thing. Have I got it? Have I got it?
BEHAR: He was a clown. He was just a clown husband type of guy, fun.
YASBECK: He was a clown husband. Honk, honk.
BEHAR: You know what I mean. Now your daughter Stella was born September 11th, 1998.
YASBECK: Yes.
BEHAR: What was John like as a daddy? Was he wacky with the kids too?
YASBECK: Absolutely wacky and fun.
BEHAR: He was.
YASBECK: Of course, I got to see him with his three big kids. He was always fantastic and available and go for it with them. And with Stella, she only got him for five years. But she -- she`s like a sponge. She absorbed so much of him. And I know that`s because of the nature of who had her dad is. So much has got to be what she saw and what she observed. We lived here for a year. She remembers stuff about New York that when she was two that I don`t tell her. But she was a pretty memorable guy.
BEHAR: He was a memorable guy that must have been quite a loss for her, my god.
YASBECK: Absolutely.
BEHAR: And she -- he passed away on September 11th. Right?
YASBECK: Her birthday.
BEHAR: Yes, on had her birthday. And September 11th is such a loaded date anyway for you.
YASBECK: Forget it.
BEHAR: Yes, so tell me what happened that night.
YASBECK: It was actually in the day. We were supposed to go to a school. John and I were supposed to go to her back to school day. He fell ill at work, stomach pains and stuff and was taken into the emergency room across the street from where he was working it was erroneously treated for a heart attack that he wasn`t having. And he died from a tear in the aorta, as opposed to a block an in the heart. So you can imagine all the treatments were in the opposite thing. And it is a misdiagnosis that happens a lot. But with god and John as my witness, I swear it`s getting less and less. Because my family -- I, so many people in the community about vascular disease community have taken great pains to see other families don`t go through what Stella and our family did.
BEHAR: Of course. Can we say lawsuit?
YASBECK: Sure.
BEHAR: Was there one?
YASBECK: There was a lawsuit, yes.
BEHAR: That`s pretty bad.
YASBECK: Yes. It`s a huge thing. But since then, it`s almost like pre-John Ritter, which he fell into, and then there`s post John Ritter. And I talk to people all the time, they write me and they call me. I`m way, way too accessible. But I don`t care.
BEHAR: Yes.
YASBECK: And people say, I was saved in the emergency room because I was having these weird pains and gripping thing. And they said, it might be you have a cough. And then they`d get halfway out the door and a nurse or somebody and said did they check you for the John Ritter thing.
BEHAR: Wow.
YASBECK: And the doctor, and some of them were kind of shamed into it. Well all right we`ll give you a CT scan if you want to pay for it. And by god they have a giant aneurysm, which is what happens first. Your aorta is the tube that you know takes everything from the heart into the rest of your body.
BEHAR: Right.
YASBECK: And it`s like if you have a bubble in your tire of your car. You don`t look at it and go, that will go down. I`ll drive to Las Vegas. No, you fix it.
BEHAR: Right.
YASBECK: Well, that`s what the aneurysm --
BEHAR: You`re doing good work with that, making people aware. Stay right there.
YASBECK: Oh I`m not going anywhere, Joy Behar.
BEHAR: Because we`ll continue this in just a minute, you`re very cute.
YASBECK: Thank you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BEHAR: I`m back with Amy Yasbeck, author of a loving new memoir about her late husband, John Ritter. Tell me about the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health is what it is called.
YASBECK: Exactly, after John died, of course, job one was of course, be Stella`s mom and be a whole human being and not just weeping and that. Hard to do and working on it still. Job number two, almost as important as to be able to get the message out there. So I started the John Ritter Foundation for Aortic Health.
BEHAR: Right.
YASBECK: At the time, all it was, was me doing Google alerts for aortic dissection and John Ritter and just calling random families. I would just call people to get them into a genetic study. Because it is genetic. Which in the minute you hear that, OK, you say, if somebody has it, and I found out you`re 20 percent more likely to have an aortic aneurysm dissection if somebody in your family has it. I mean breast cancer is that 5 percent.
BEHAR: Yes.
YASBECK: Why aren`t we talking about that 20 percent. So I would just call families and read I`d like read an obituary from Kansas City and call people up, I know it`s only a week since your son died or your grandmother died but I need to talk to your family.
BEHAR: Wow, you did that?
YASBECK: And sometimes, yes, I did. I did it up all night and cried. Because it was like I talked to so many families. And I never really wanted to be a widow. I didn`t want to be John Ritter widow. I wanted to be his wife.
BEHAR: Yes.
YASBECK: But when I would call, hey, this is John Ritter`s widow. They had just heard -- this is any age. Aortic Dissection is at any age.
BEHAR: At any age.
YASBECK: So your child has just died. What did he die from? It`s the thing John Ritter died from. So they have this image in their head of John.
BEHAR: It`s good to put the name to it.
YASBECK: And they felt they were part of communities. So our family wrapped our arms around these people, carried them to the University of Texas, the UT Health Center.
BEHAR: Yes.
YASBECK: And I have teamed up and now it`s the John Ritter research program at UT health.
BEHAR: Uh huh, that`s great.
YASBECK: They`ve discovered genes. You can get tested.
BEHAR: Who was John -- where was the genetic connection with him such.
YASBECK: Well here`s the thing. Because his brother, Tommy -- we had Tom scanned. And we found the -- "we" -- the doctors and I. But seriously, it takes a village. They found it. It was fixed, completely replaced. They think Tex Ritter, who was John`s dad, the singing cowboy.
BEHAR: Oh yes, Tex Ritter.
YASBECK: Because he died of a heart attack, air quotes --
BEHAR: He probably had it.
YASBECK: Well yes.
BEHAR: Right.
YASBECK: Well yes when they talk about statistics for aortic dissection. So many I know people we know and I know you`re Italian.
BEHAR: I`m Italian.
YASBECK: I`m Lebanese. We have all these relatives we don`t know what exactly where we are. But we know Aunt Sophie died of a massive heart attack. But it`s not autopsied.
BEHAR: Right.
YASBECK: It`s not - so when it`s a cardiac event, or it could be an aortic dissection, they don`t know what it is, we put it in the cardiac category. So it`s way more prevalent than people think.
BEHAR: I think it`s fantastic what you`re doing.
YASBECK: Thanks, Joy.
BEHAR: Really incredible.
YASBECK: Thank you.
BEHAR: We have to go.
YASBECK: That`s crazy. I`m insulted. Let`s see what my mood ring says. My mood ring says --
BEHAR: I`m sorry. You have to come back. I think you have a career as a comedienne frankly. Are you an actress at all?
YASBECK: I am an actress at all. And Mel Brooks likes me. Half Lebanese and half Irish. That equals one whole Jew. He did, Mel tell her.
BEHAR: I wish Mel would come on the show.
YASBECK: Do you want me to tell him to ---
BEHAR: Yes, he won`t come?
YASBECK: No, I know where he eats on Tuesdays. I do.
BEHAR: OK, the book is called "With Love And Laughter, John Ritter." Goodnight, everybody. Buy it.
END
