Archive for the ‘John Travolta’ Category

John Travolta wins over sex book suit

September 28th, 2012 by faye

“Wild Hogs” star John Travolta just won a huge legal victory against the author of a book who claims the actor frequented gay bathhouses.

According to reports, 58-year-old John Travolta is a victorious defendant after the actor was sued for libel by a man named Robert Randolph — the author of “You’ll Never Spa in This Town Again” — who claimed Travolta and his lawyer Marty Singer conspired to discredit Randolph and his book.

In his suit against the two, Robert Randolph alleged that Travolta and Singer “falsely claimed Randolph had mental issues and spent time in a mental institution” in a letter to press. Robert claimed that such allegations about his mental health made it difficult for the author to sell the book, as retailers were hesitant about stocking it.

However, Los Angeles judge Malcolm Mackey dismissed the case on Thursday, agreeing with John Travolta and Marty Singer’s lawyer Lynda Goldman — ruling the letter was a legitimate part of the legal dispute over the book, and therefore protected by the First Amendment because the pair’s right to free speech.

In his book “You’ll Never Spa in This Town Again,” Robert Randolph said that he personally witnessed the “Saturday Night Fever” star performing gay sexual acts with men at spas.

The win for John Travolta and Marty Singer comes on the heels of the dismissal of two May lawsuits by masseurs who claimed the actor had touched them inappropriately and subjected them to unwanted sexual advances. Those cases were withdrawn voluntarily.

“Saturday Night Fever” star John Travolta has fired back at the cruise ship worker who claims that the actor sexually assaulted him.

According to reports, Marty Singer — the powerful Los Angeles lawyer of John Travolta — filed legal docs on Friday, where the actor requested the lawsuit filed by former Royal Caribbean employee Fabian Zanzi be dismissed and that Zanzi should cough up money for legal fees. The legal docs also stated that Travolta admitted being on the 2009 cruise where the alleged sexual assault occurred. However, the 58-year-old actor denied all of the misconduct claims Fabian Zanzi is throwing his way.

Previous reports have stated that Fabian Zanzi made his shocking allegations back in May, claiming that the sexual assault happened when he worked as a room service operator for Royal Caribbean International back in 2009 and made a delivery to the actor’s stateroom.

Fabian Zanzi is said to be among a steady stream of men who took a step forward earlier this year with accusations against John Travolta — including a gym employee and three masseurs.

Zanzi, who is suing for unspecified damages, claimed that the “Pulp Fiction” star asked for a neck massage, and when he reached over to comply to his request, John Travolta allegedly dropped his robe and exposed his erect genitals.

The Chilean-born worker said that he resisted, then John Travolta subsequently offered him $12,000 to keep his silence on the matter.

It was also reported that Fabian Zanzi never mentioned many of the details when he went to the cruise ship management to complain, and now he claims that the Royal Caribbean International did not allow him to write any details regarding nudity or sexual contact.

Now, Travolta’s lawyer Marty Singer drew attention to this in a strongly worded statement. Singer said, “This is another ludicrous lawsuit with inane claims. It is obvious that Mr. Zanzi and his lawyers are looking for their 15 minutes of fame.The lawsuit’s ridiculous claims are completely contradicted by what Mr. Zanzi told his employer back in 2009 when he was being disciplined for his own violations of company policy.”

Singer added, “In his handwritten report three years ago, the only physical contact he claimed occurred was allegedly touching my client’s neck.The inappropriate conduct he alleges in his lawsuit is absent from his written report he submitted at the time. That glaring omission speaks volumes.”

“Also calling his credibility into question is his dubious allegation that his employer supposedly restrained him in a room on the cruise ship for five days, yet after that supposedly occurred, Mr. Zanzi continued to work for Royal Caribbean for years, on multiple ships. Now, after waiting three years, and after getting paid to tell his story to the media, Mr. Zanzi has filed this absurd lawsuit.”

“We are confident that my client will prevail on the merits and that he will be completely vindicated in court,” Singer concluded.

Marty Singer was referring to an employee discipline form where it is stated that Fabian Zanzi admitted to superiors at Royal Caribbean International he rubbed the neck of John Travolta, but then refused his request that he return later.

Months after accusing John Travolta of sexual assault and battery, the former Royal Caribbean manager had finally formally sued the ‘Grease’ star.

According to E! News, Fabian Zanzi, the former cruise line employee aired his own allegations after two masseurs accused Travolta of sexual misconduct. Zanzi had now filed his own lawsuit against Travolta for alleged inappropriate behavior during a 2009 cruise.

Travolta’s attorney, Marty Singer, dismissed Zanzi’s claims. ”This is another ludicrous lawsuit with inane claims,” he declared in a statement to E! News. According to Singer, it was obvious that Zanzi and his lawyers were looking for fame with John Travolta.

E! News reported that, like the John Does that preceded him, Fabian Zanzi filed a graphically-worded lawsuit. His 16-page suit alleged that Travolta approached Zanzi on the afternoon of June 9, 2009.

According to the plaintiff, he served as  Travolta’s personal suite attendant during the actor’s cruise.  While delivering room service, John Travolta complained of neck pain. When Fabian Zanzi reached for the neck of the robe, Travolta removed the robe. The ‘Grease’ star “proceeded to forcefully embrace” the Royal Caribbean manager while naked

In his lawsuit, Zanzi claimed that he “pleaded” with Travolta to release him. However, John Travolta supposedly didn’t do so immediately. Instead, the actor chose to remain in contact that was “nonconsensual, inappropriate, extreme and outrageous.”

E! News continued to report that John Travolta also allegedly tried to bribe Zanzi $12,000 to keep quiet. Zanzi’s lawsuit did not explicitly state whether Zanzi accepted or refused Travolta’s money. It did say that Zanzi immediately reported the incident to “at least three” Royal Caribbean superiors.

After laying into Travolta, Zanzi’s suit now dragged Royal Caribbean into the fray. Fabian Zanzi claimed that the ship’s human resources manager, Lorena Alvarez, told him to fill out paperwork about the incident. However, Alvarez also told Zanzi that if he was “not bleeding or bruised,” then he wasn’t allowed to get treatment “or any other type of attention.”

Zanzi also said that he requested to fill out his complaint against John Travolta in his native language, Spanish. But Lorenza Alvarez allegedly insisted that Zanzi must do it in English.

After filling up the paperwork, Fabian Zanzi claimed that Royal Caribbean forced him to stay in a room for five days until John Travolta left the ship. Zanzi was then placed on indefinite “sick leave” after the cruise. Zanzi’s suit claimed that he pursued his sexual assault complaint with Royal Caribbean through 2011. The company reportedly kept telling him to check back at a later time.

Fabian Zanzi charged John Travolta of assault, battery, and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

In his statement to E! News, Attorney Marty Singer declared that Zanzi was actually being disciplined for violating Royal Caribbean policy. Singer also said that the “ridiculous claims” of Zanzi’s lawsuit were “completely contradicted” by what Zanzi wrote in his complaint form.

According to Singer, Zanzi’s handwritten report from three years ago claimed that the only physical contact that occurred was allegedly touching the neck of John Travolta.  There was no mention of the inappropriate conduct that Fabian Zanzi now alleged. “That glaring omission,” Singer said, “Speaks volumes.”

Marty Singer further called Zanzi’s credibility into question by noting his “dubious” allegation that his employer supposedly restrained him in a room on the cruise ship for five days. “Yet after that supposedly occurred,” Singer noted, “Mr. Zanzi continued to work for Royal Caribbean for years, on multiple ships,” instead of quitting.

“Now, after waiting three years,” said Marty Singer, “Mr. Zanzi has filed this absurd lawsuit.” Singer expressed his confidence that his client John Travolta ”will be completely vindicated in court” against Fabian Zanzi.

John Travolta and his attorney, Martin Singer, got hit with a libel suit from the author of a self-published book about gay bathhouse culture called ‘You’ll Never Spa in This Town Again.’

According to E! News, plaintif Robert Randolph accused Travolta and Singer of sullying his reputation. Randolph filed his lawsuit on Wednesday at Los Angeles Superior Court.

Two years ago, Gawker Media published an article in November about Randolph’s book. The Gawker article ‘The Secret Sex Life of John Travolta’  detailed alleged encounters between Randolph and various celebrities, including Travolta.

E! News reported that Marty Singer threatened legal action against Gawker Media. The high-powered attorney sent a cease-and-desist letter that listed multiple reasons why Robert Randolph was not a believable source of information on John Travolta.

Singer’s letter claimed that several people testified that Randolph spent time in mental institutions. The author’s memory was also allegedly distorted after a spa patron attacked him back in 2003, an attack that left Robert Randolph brain damaged. And to top it all off, when Randolph returned to the spa where the violent attack allegedly took place, he supposedly got attacked again.

Because the in-thing nowadays was to accuse and sue John Travolta for whatever reason, Gawker Media decided to post the entire letter online.

“This letter,” Robert Randolph contended in his lawsuit, “Exceeded the scope of any pre-litigation communications.”

E! News reported that Randolph claimed his memory was “fully operational.” The plaintiff stated that Marty Singer and John Travolta intended to stop Randolph’s book ’You’ll Never Spa in This Town Again‘ from selling. He also accused the two defendants of blocking lucrative deals that could have arisen from his book’s success.

Robert Randolph sued for trade libel and two other charges. He did not specify the amount of damages he wanted.

E! News reported that Travolta’s rep predicted that a judge will quickly throw Randolph’s suit out.

For his part, Marty Singer informed E! News that “This is a ridiculous lawsuit.” According to the lawyer of John Travolta, Robert Randolph based his suit on  a letter that was completely privileged under the law. “We intend to sue the attorneys for malicious prosecution,” Singer vowed, “After the court promptly dismisses this baseless lawsuit.”

Because telling the tabloids wasn’t enough, the pilot who claims that he carried on a six-year gay affair with John Travolta is reportedly negotiating with writers to reveal all the details in a book described to be a “marriage-ender.”

According to The Hollywood Gossip, Doug Gotterba worked as a pilot for Travolta in the ’80s. Gotterba, his former secretary, and Gotterba’s ex-boyfriend claimed that he and Travolta were lovers during that time.

The Enquirer reported that two writers have already lined up for Gotterba’s side of the story. Doug Gotterba also reportedly “confirmed his desire” to expose everything about his gay affair with John Travolta.

An insider told The Enquirer that Gotterba’s tell-all book “could be a marriage-ender. The insider claimed that the book would not only crush the career of John Travolta, but it would also devastate his wife, Kelly Preston.

“Even though [Kelly Preston] wasn’t married to John at the time” he and Doug Gotterba supposedly had their gay affair, the Enquirer source claimed that “She’s already been terribly humiliated by this ugly scandal that doesn’t seem to end.”

According to the insider, ”A book by a man who John carried on with for years could simply be too much” for Kelly Preston to take.

More than a month has passed since two masseurs came forward to file lawsuits against John Travolta for alleged sexual misconducts. The lawsuits have been dropped, but more accusers have appeared, including Doug Gotterba.

John Travolta, Kelly Preston, and their children have remained in seclusion during the entire crisis. The actor denied all allegations through his attorney Martin Singer.

Apparently, paying tribute to Shirley MacLaine at the American Film Institute means a lot to John Travolta.

According to E! News, the 58-year-old ‘Grease’ actor has been avoiding the spotlight ever since two masseurs filed sexual misconduct charges against him. His attorney, Marty Singer, had been handling the case while Travolta shuttled between Florida and the Bahamas aboard his personal planes.

However, E! News reported that John Travolta was going to be present at the Shirley MacLaine tribute of the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. And even more surprisingly, he was also going to be a presenter.

Unlike fellow surprise presenters Jennifer Aniston and Julia Roberts, Travolta would not be sitting in the audience. Instead, the plan was for him to step onstage, drop his remarks about Shirley MacLaine, and leave just as quickly.

Trouble for John Travolta began about a month ago when two massage therapists filed suit against him. They claimed that the ‘Grease’ actor hired them for massages, only to make sexual advances on them during the sessions. Their accusations spawned a torrent of tabloid reports and copycat accusers.

The masseurs later dropped their joint lawsuit. However, they then hired famous civil rights attorney Gloria Allred to represent them. Allred declared that her clients could refile their cases if they want, but she is currently dealing with the masseurs’ previous attorney.

While Marty Singer ferociously denied any and all allegations against his client, John Travolta apparently spent his time with his family on a remote home in the Bahamas and at a gated community in Florida.

There’s a silver clouding to the storm clouds tailing John Travolta: Every interviewer worth his salt wants the ‘Pulp Fiction’ actor’s side of the story- and Oprah Winfrey will probably get it.

According to a top TV executive interviewed by The Huffington Post, “John [Travolta] is literally the most wanted person in the world right now. Everyone wants him,” the exec continued, “And he can literally pick who he wants to sit down with.”

That is, the exec added, “If he decides to ever tell his side of the story at all.”

The current hurricane of media attention started when two John Doe masseurs anonymously filed a federal lawsuit against the ‘Pulp Fiction’ star. Both masseurs spun lurid accounts of how John Travolta fondled them during separate massages.

John Doe No. 1 claimed Travolta had groped him during a massage at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Jan. 16. He later withdrew his claim after Travolta’s lawyer obtained flight records and photos that placed the actor 3,000 miles away on that date.

The second masseur also dropped his lawsuit. He and his predecessor are now working with civil rights lawyer Gloria Allred. At least two more men have emerged to accuse John Travolta of sexual battery.

An A-list publicist who does not represent Travolta weighed in on the matter. ”Up to now,” the publicist noted, “His strategy has been to say nothing and let his lawyer talk. But eventually,” the HuffPost source opined, whether or not he was innocent, “John [Travolta] will have to say something.”

The publicist believed that John Travolta “will most likely agree to answer one or two questions about this in a very controlled environment.”

The likeliest candidate? Oprah Winfrey, whom the publicist called Travolta’s “dear friend.”

A senior vice president of communications for ABC News refused to comment on efforts to book John Travolta for an interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Is there any truth to the rumor that John Travolta is reportedly close to inking an out-of-court settlement with one of his many alleged victims?

Perez Hilton sources claimed that Marty Singer, the lawyer of the ‘Pulp Fiction’ actor, is offering a settlement to an unidentified accuser. One source, who asserted close proximity to the situation, believed that the deal is almost done.

According to that source, “John Travolta’s lawyer is currently in settlement talks with one of the accusers.” The source said that the  supposed goal of Marty Singer “is to have a settlement reached very quietly and quickly” because John Travolta “just wants this scandal to go away. No money has been paid yet,” the source claimed, “But it’s almost a done deal.”

The Perez Hilton source further said that the deal will be “an out of court settlement” and that John Travolta “won’t even be in the agreement to ensure complete confidentiality.”

The reported settlement will also include a clause to further secure the accuser’s continued cooperation. ”If the man ever goes public with his story,” the source said, “He will be sued for at least twice the amount of the settlement.”

In addition, the source said that the anonymous man will still sue John Travolta and Marty Singer can’t meet the price for his silence. ”If the accuser who is in talks with John’s lawyer right now is unable to reach a settlement,” the source warned, “He is absolutely prepared to file a lawsuit against him.”

The source claimed that the accuser “isn’t intimidated by John’s celebrity status.” The accuser “wants the actor to be held accountable for his actions.”

There is currently no case filed against John Travolta. His lawyer, Marty Singer, earlier stated that his client will not shell out ”any money for these ridiculous and false claims.”

While Marty Singer does all the work, John Travolta is staying out of sight -and as close to out of mind of the public- somewhere in the sunny Bahamas.

According to E! News, exclusive sources stated that the actor was mostly staying put at a private home on a remote island in the Bahamas. His wife, Kelly Preston, and their kids, Ella and Benjamin, are reportedly accompanying him.

Further, E! News confirmed that the Bahamas home in question is not the same place where the Travolta couple’s 16-year-old son, Jett, died after suffering a seizure.

Travolta didn’t spend all his time in the Bahamas, though. He flew to Ocala, Florida, where he owns a house in the Jumbolair gated community that can accommodate private jets. (John Travolta is a certified pilot and owns five airplanes, including a Boeing 707-138.) He also spent time at the Scientology center in Clearwater.

John Travolta hasn’t been heard from since the start of his legal troubles. The only exception was a statement released by his representative after the death of Travolta’s friend Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees.

Lawyer Marty Singer has been doing all the talking on his client’s behalf since two masseurs accused the ‘Pulp Fiction’ star of sexual battery. Both plaintiffs dropped their joint lawsuit against John Travolta, but they have also hired legal eagle Gloria Allred, who said that they can refile their lawsuit.

After breaking the anonymity of John Doe No. 2, the New York Daily News claimed John Travolta is offering the same man -John Truesdale- $125,000 to drop his sexual battery lawsuit. According to Gossip Cop, a ‘source’ told the newspaper that Truesdale was offered a “six-figure sum” to cease accusing Travolta of sexual impropriety in an Atlanta, Georgia hotel.

The New York Daily News recently identified John Truesdale as ‘John Doe No. 2.’  Truesdale and another masseur filed a sexual battery lawsuit through lawyer Okorie Okorocha. Truesdale then dropped Okorocha and hired Gloria Allred to represent him.

The camp of John Travolta quickly denied the paper’s report of a proposed payoff.

Travolta’s lawyer, Marty Singer, informed Gossip Cop that the Daily News story about “a purported six figure settlement offer” to John Truesdale was ridiculous and false. “Just like the claim by the New York Daily News,” Singer noted, “That my client had been ‘banned’ from the Peninsula Hotel.”

Accusing the New York Daily News of publishing anything it came across even if it wasn’t true, Marty Singer pointed out that the paper’s source, Michael Caputo, was also quoted by People magazine as having confirmed that the Peninsula Hotel never banned John Travolta.