Let me be crystal clear; I don’t travel in the same circles as Casey Wasserman does. For one, my pop-pop ran a neighborhood pharmacy, not a legendary talent agency that eventually wound up controlling Universal Studios. For another, my skill sets are anything but in demand in the sector of the inustry where his own eponymous people pusher reigns supreme. Even the one-time colleagues and subordinates of mine who were employed by agencies have left those positions after repeatedly being castigated for being unable to produce positive enough narratives in the wake of ever-fractionalizing audiences. The truth has never been particularly desired even under more optimal circumstances.
But we did cross paths when Wasserman was a teen when I paid a set visit to a G-d-awful train wreck of a Universal-produced sitcom called WHAT A DUMMY, which my new boss at FOX inexplicably was enamored enough with to demand we partner on a pre-emptive launch deal that made it the de facto replacement for SMALL WONDER, which by comparison was CHEERS. Apparently Casey was a private school classmate of the show’s male teen lead who was himself a friend of one Nicole Eggert, who had recently completed a stint on the studio’s far more popular CHARLES IN CHARGE and was about to explode as a poster girl on BAYWATCH. She and a few of her comely co-ed friends, along with the significantly younger Wasserman and his buddy, were enjoying some of the free gourmet ice cream that DUMMY’s showrunner Arthur Annechario kept in a freezer in his bungalow that rivaled anything any Baskin-Robbins could offer. On a hot August day in the San Fernando Valley this was as popular a destination as any in the theme park could offer. Arthur brought me in to meet the “star” and have a cone of my own, and let’s just say to curry favor with their male buddies the ladies relished their treats in a manner not seen since the Popsicle Twins prematurely ended THE GONG SHOW’s association with NBC. I dare say this was far enjoyable to watch than was the actual taping.
So I can’t say I was anything but surprised when Wasserman grew up to be more than a bit of a lech, culminating earlier this month with the news which DEADLINE’s Tom Tapp was among the first to report that connected him with the apparent story of the century involving a coupla pervs named Jeffrey and Ghislene:
Wasserman’s name surfaced when the latest batch of Epstein documents were made public Friday by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of its investigation into Epstein, who died in a jail cell in August 2019 of a reported suicide as he awaited trial on federal charges…The documents revealed multiple salacious email exchanges between Wasserman and Maxwell, Epstein’s associate who was convicted in 2021 on federal charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy for helping Epstein procure girls and young women…The newly-released emails are from 2003. They feature flirtatious remarks from both parties, including Wasserman writing that he wanted to see Maxwell in a “tight leather outfit,” and Maxwell offering to give him a massage that can “drive a man wild.”
And as Tapp’s deeper-in-the-weeds legal beagle colleague Dominic Patten reminded his readers yesterday, this was hardly a first offense:
That takes on added significance as Wasserman has a history of interactions with women and others that has more than raised eyebrows before — a couple years ago Billie Eilish left Wasserman’s music unit in what was widely perceived to be a response to his relationships with some LA28 staffers.
This was previously documented and well-known among the Hollywood A-listers and wanna bes yet it didn’t stop the shy yet opportunistic Chappell Roan to hiring him which rewarded her with the 2025 Grammy for Best New Artist. But once the name Maxwell was invoked, that led her to divorce herself from the agency.
Let’s review that timeline carefully. At the time of his exchanges with Maxwell, Wasserman was a married adult and it was before even Epstein had been convicted of his crimes, let alone Maxwell. He was guilty of little more than infidelity, and since his wife is still married to him he’s apparently passed muster in the court of private opinion, Every relationship has its price.
At least in this case Wasserman has taken some degree of accountability for this particular involvement, which is much more than can be said for plenty of others whos names have been included in the latest Epstein dump, let alone the ones that led Eilish to leave his purview. Per Tapp:
In a statement to various media outlets, Wasserman said, “I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell which took place over two decades ago, long before her horrific crimes came to light. I never had a personal or business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. As is well documented, I went on a humanitarian trip as part of a delegation with the Clinton Foundation in 2002 on the Epstein plane. I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them.”
But apparently that’s nowhere near enough for the bloodthirsty politicos seeking nothing less than the head of Alfredo Garcia served up on a silver platter. It started last week with this wail from CITY NEWS SERVICE:
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn and other local elected officials Tuesday called on LA 2028 Olympics committee chair Casey Wasserman to resign over a string of racy emails with Ghislaine Maxwell, who’s been convicted of sex trafficking for her role in a widespread sexual abuse scandal involving the late Jeffrey Epstein. Hahn, who is among the L.A. County and city officials working with LA28, the organizing committee for the Games, told the Los Angeles Times Tuesday that Wasserman needs to step down. “Having him represent us on the world stage distracts focus from our athletes and the enormous efforts needed to prepare for 2028,” Hahn told The Times.
And in the wake of what Patten reported yesterday, the hue and cry grew still louder. Here was his latest boots-on-the-ground report:
Casey Wasserman will remain as the head of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, says the LA28 Board. After a quickly called emergency meeting Wednesday over Wasserman’s recently revealed relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and the pedophile’s inner circle, leaders of Wasserman’s hand-picked board, which includes Jeffrey Katzenberg, Jeanie Buss, Kevin McCarthy and Jessica Alba, have determined his connections to the now dead convicted sex offender and his emails with Ghislaine Maxwell.are not enough to send him packing — at least not yet.
Which led to what THE WRAP’s Benjamin Lindsay dropped yesterday afternoon:
Los Angeles Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez condemned LA28 Olympics leadership on Wednesday for “doubling down in defense” for its embattled chairman Casey Wasserman…Councilwoman Rodriguez, who had previously spoken out against Wasserman’s leadership after the Epstein revelations, denounced the decision Wednesday. “The people of Los Angeles deserve leadership that understands the gravity of these revelations,” the councilwoman said. “At a moment when public trust is already shaken, doubling down with defensiveness only deepens the concern Angelenos have about accountability at LA28.”\
And was then followed up by this timely observation from LA’s wanna-be Mamdami–a newly-announced challenger to current mayor Karen Bass– which an apparently overworked Patten supplied mere minutes later:
“I am disappointed by the decision made by the LA28 Board’s Executive Committee to continue their contract with Casey Wasserman, Councilmember Nithya Raman said tonight. …Wasserman’s apparent relationship with the architect of Epstein’s sickening exploitation is not only a distraction from the urgent and overdue work ahead of preparing for the upcoming Olympic and Paralympic games, but a complete breach of the values we hold as a city,” tonight said the 4th District representing Raman, who was the executive director of Time’s Up Entertainment before first running for office six years ago.
You can practically hear the sabers rattling over the din of opportunistic discontent. The thing is, if one digs even far less deep than one would have to extract perceived kryptonite from THOSE files, one might also notice a few skeletons in these yentas’ closets. Witness what Janice Hahn has done on her watch. Habits perhaps learned from her brother and one-time mayor James. Themselves neopbabies and heirs to the throne of their storied father Kenneth who served as an honored Los Angeles County Supervisor for more than four decades. For that matter, both Rodriguez and Raman are not model citizens, either.
I encourage you who may think I’m anything but sympathetic to those whose lives have been impacted by Wasserman to actually click on a few of the hyperlinks and judge for yourself on the track records of those that somehow remain committed to the concept that personal accountability is meaningless and no one deserves a chance at redemption. At what point can an apology actually be given at least a shred of consideration for a refresh? And at what point does any attention get aimed at those who grew up like the group I observed in Arthur Annechario’s bungalow who set the precedent for “expectations”? Not every woman is an underage victim. Aren’t any of you saber-rattlers even the least bit peeved at them?
To them, I urge one more click-through to the explanation behind John 8:7. You know, the verse that goes like this:
Let him who is without sin among you be the first to cast a stone at her.
I would meekly contend that–for now– any quarry you may think is at risk of disruption is completely safe.
Until next time…