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“People who improperly harass or assault do not do so because they are gay or straight – that is a deflection” director George Takei told The Hollywood Reporter. “They do so because they have the power and they chose to abuse it.”
It’s been a turbulent 24 hours for actor Kevin Spacey who has been accused of sexual assault by fellow-actor Anthony Rapp who claims, in 1986, the House Of Cards actor attempted to seduce him when he was just 14-years old. In the wake of this news, Netflix has today announced HOC will end after its upcoming sixth and final season, a decision that, although timely, was reportedly in the works for some time.
Adding fuel to the fire is Spacey’s estranged older brother’s recount of their upbringing. Randall Fowler, a 62-year-old Rod Stewart impersonator and limousine driver from Idaho has told The Daily Mail his father, Thomas Geoffrey Fowler, began raping him when he turned 12. Fowler says his mother knew of this abuse. “Neither [Kevin or I] had a chance growing up with two such damaged parents. I went through three marriages and 40 affairs,” says Fowler. “There was so much darkness in our home it was beyond belief. It was absolutely miserable.”
Fowler disturbingly goes on to tell the publication that he recalls the first time his father abused him. Summoning his young son to the bedroom to teach him about the birds and the bees, “he unbuttoned my pants and started playing with me,” says Fowler who called out for his mum. “She came right up and pounded on the door but Dad had locked it and he told me to keep quiet. All of a sudden the pounding stopped. Mom had left. I’d never felt so abandoned. Dad started to perform a sex act on me. That was the beginning of my adolescence.”
The abuse continued for the next four years forcing the Fowler’s only daughter to run away. As Fowler says, Spacey retreated and “turned into himself” to stay out of trouble. “Kevin tried to avoid what was going on by wrapping himself in an emotional bubble. He became very sly and smart,” says Fowler of Spacey.
“[Kevin] was so determined to try to avoid the whippings that he just minded his Ps and Qs until there was nothing inside. He had no feelings.”
Thomas Geoffrey also reportedly joined the American Nazi Party when his children were young. Similarly, Spacey’s character’s father on HOC held close ties with white supremacist groups.
Spacey released a strange statement in response to Rapp’s allegations yesterday in which he seemingly confirmed his sexuality as a means of deflecting from the 1986 incident. “I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor. I’m beyond horrified to hear his story,” it reads. “I honestly do not remember the encounter, it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behaviour, and I am sorry for the feelings he describes having carried with him all these years.”
“This story has encouraged me to address other things about my life,” he continues”. I know that there are stories out there about me and that some have been fuelled by the fact that I have been so protective of my privacy. As those closest to me know, in my life I have had relationships with both men and women. I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life, and I choose now to live as a gay man. I want to deal with this honestly and openly and that starts with examining my own behaviour.”
