- A white Hollywood manager who has helped a number of minority women achieve stardom is being accused of sexual harassment by nine different women
- Vincent Cirrincione, 70, has claimed credit for helping the careers of Halle Berry and Taraji P. Henson
- He is now being accused by at least three women of demanding sex as a condition for him agreeing to represent them
- Another accuser says Cirrincione masturbated in front of her during a meeting in his office
- The women say that the alleged harassment and unwanted sexual advances took place over the course of two decades
- The accusations, which were made by eight African Americans and one Asian American, were reported by The Washington Post
- Cirrincione said that while he did pursue sexual relationships with a number of women, he denies requiring sex as a condition for him representing them
By Ariel Zilber For Dailymail.com
Published: 03:19 GMT, 3 February 2018 | Updated: 05:56 GMT, 3 February 2018
A white Hollywood manager who has helped a number of minority women like Halle Berry and Taraji P. Henson achieve stardom is now being accused of sexual harassment by nine different women, it was reported on Friday.
Vincent Cirrincione, 70, is being accused by at least three women of demanding sex as a condition for him agreeing to represent them.
Another woman said she was told he would further advance her show business career in exchange for monthly sexual encounters.
Another accuser says Cirrincione masturbated in front of her during a meeting in his office.
Vincent Cirrincione (left), a white Hollywood manager who has helped a number of minority women like Halle Berry (right) and Taraji P. Henson achieve stardom, is now being accused of sexual harassment by nine different women. The photo above was taken in 2005
Cirrincione, 70, is being accused by at least three women of demanding sex as a condition for him agreeing to represent them. He is seen above with Henson in Los Angeles in 2015
The accusations, which were made by eight African Americans and one Asian American, were reported by The Washington Post.
The women say that the alleged harassment and unwanted sexual advances took place over the course of two decades.
They allege that Cirrincione took advantage of young, vulnerable women eager to make it in an industry that is very difficult for non-white women to break in to.
Cirrincione responded to the allegations by releasing a statement.
He said that while he did pursue sexual relationships with a number of women, he denies requiring sex as a condition for him representing them.
‘We live in a time where men are being confronted with a very real opportunity to take responsibility for their actions. I support this movement wholeheartedly,’ Cirrincione said in a statement.
‘I have had female clients and employees my entire career in this industry.
‘I have built a reputation for advancing the careers of women of color.
Letha Remington (above) alleged that in 1993, Cirrincione told her that he could not represent her after she spurned his advances
‘I have had affairs while in committed relationships, ones I am now ashamed to say are coming to light and shading my past and my reputation.
‘I can say without a doubt that I have never used favors, sexual or otherwise, as a reason for managing anyone. I want to make it clear that not one of those relationships were anything but consensual.
‘I take responsibility for my part in the situation and I am not here to diminish anyone’s feelings or experiences.
‘I apologize to these women, my past and present partner, my clients and employees for the pain this is bringing them.
‘I was under the impression I was living my life as a supportive man to women. It is with a heavy heart that I see now I was wrong.’
Tamika Lamison (right) described an encounter with Cirrincione (left) in a hotel suite in June 1996. She claims he agreed to take her on as a client on condition that she make herself available to him sexually whenever he wanted
Three women went on the record for the Post story while most of the accusers chose to remain anonymous.
In 1993, Letha Remington, who was a stage actress at the time, was trying to make it big in show business.
She met Cirrincione at his office, which at the time was based in a New York City apartment building.
Remington wanted Cirrincione to represent her and help her career.
During their third meeting in his office, Remington said the agent began caressing her shoulders.
Cirrincione allegedly told her that he was lonely because his wife at the time was working night shifts as a nurse.
When Remington made clear she had no interest in him sexually, the agent allegedly told her he could not represent her.
‘It made me feel like I had to be clever enough to maneuver around that and get the opportunity that I needed to make it on my own talent, not on sleeping with somebody,’ Remington said.
Peppur Chambers (above) said she was made uncomfortable by Cirrincione's advances, but she continued working with him for months after he agreed to invest in her project as an executive producer
Tamika Lamison described an encounter with Cirrincione in a hotel suite in June 1996.
Lamison, who at the time was a 27-year-old stage actress living in New York City, said she was introduced to Cirrincione at the Tony Awards dinner.
She said she knew about Cirrincione’s role in helping Halle Berry become successful and that she was excited for the opportunity to audition for him.
At the hotel suite, Cirrincione’s phone rang. Lamison said it was Berry on the other end of the call.
Cirrincione put the phone on speaker and Lamison listened to the conversation.
She grew excited about the possibility that Berry’s manager could take her under his wing and lead her to similar fame.
After the phone call, Lamison started to recite a poem she had written.
She alleged that midway through the poem, Cirrincione grabbed her and started kissing her.
The manager allegedly stuck his tongue in her mouth.
Lamison said Cirrincione offered to take her on as a client – on condition that she make herself available to him sexually whenever he wanted.
Lamison said she pushed Cirrincione away and left.
In 2011, Peppur Chambers was invited by Cirrincione to his home after she approached him about producing her show, Brown Betties, a burlesque group which she created.
As they sat on the couch watching television, Chambers alleged Cirrincione tried to kiss her, but she turned away and his lips landed on her head.
‘In my head, I was like: “This is dumb. Why am I even here?”’ Chambers said.
‘I remember feeling like I’m going to take this for the team. You feel like you’re selling your soul for what you want.’
After he agreed to invest as an executive producer of her dinner theater cabaret, Chambers, 47, said she felt obligated to continue meeting him for a period of at least four months.
Henson said that in the two decades she has been managed by Cirrincione, she never saw or heard of any inappropriate behavior by him toward her or other women. 'I’ve never had any issue with this on any level,' Henson said
Nonetheless, she told colleagues about her encounter at the time it took place.
Six of the accusers said that as a result of their experiences with Cirrincione, they either abandoned their acting careers or took extended breaks from the business.
They said the manager destroyed their self-confidence and sense of self-worth.
Cirrincione is said to have tried to persuade many women to become his client by pointing to his track record with stars like Berry and Taraji P. Henson.
One accuser said he told her that she reminded him of Berry when she started out.
‘Of course that was like your dream to have Halle Berry’s manager say, “Oh, my God, you remind me of Halle”,’ said the woman.
After the audition, Cirrincione told her that she wasn’t quite ready to be represented by his agency, though he did say he would arrange for her to get new headshots.
He also said he would introduce her to other people who could help her career – on condition that she sleep with him once a month, she alleged.
'He said it so matter-of-factly, like we were just going to get coffee,' she said.
The woman, who now works as a fashion blogger, said the agent called her a week later and apologized.
Cirrincione also asked her to ‘forget what we talked about', she said.
Another actress made similar allegations. She said she met Cirrincione at a Los Angeles premier party for Hustle & Flow, a movie starring Henson.
The actress (not Henson), who was 36 at the time, said that during her audition for the agent, he told her that he would sign her.
As part of their business arrangement, he would help advance her career, though she would have to sleep with him, the woman alleged.
The actress, who had no television or film credits to her name, told him she was not interested.
Berry told the Post that while Cirrincione never acted inappropriately with her, she ended her business relationship with him three years ago when she learned of an allegation made against him
The Post reported that it was ‘an open secret’ in Hollywood that Cirrincione pursued sexual relationships with aspiring actresses.
Berry told the Post that while Cirrincione never acted inappropriately with her, she ended her business relationship with him three years ago when she learned of an allegation made against him.
‘Over three years ago, a woman was on the radio saying that Halle Berry’s manager was her worst casting couch experience ever,’ Berry told the Post.
‘That news literally stopped me in my tracks. I immediately confronted Vince about it, and he denied it completely.
‘But even with his denial, something didn’t feel right in my spirit, and with the possibility that it could be true, I immediately ended our over-25-year relationship.’
Berry did not remember the woman’s name or the name of the radio station.
Cirrincione said he doesn’t remember being confronted by Berry over a radio interview.
'I never heard that from Halle. We never had a discussion. I’m totally shocked. It’s not like she left me abruptly,' Cirrincione said.
Berry released another statement on Instagram late Friday.
‘Yesterday I was saddened by the allegations against my former manager, Vincent Cirrincione, but today I’m sick after reading the horrifying detailed accounts of his abuse towards 9 women,’ she wrote.
Berry released another statement on Instagram late Friday saying she was 'livid' that her former manager allegedly 'used' her to 'lure and manipulate innocent vulnerable women of color for his predatory actions'
‘I’m livid that he used me, and the role model he helped me become, to lure and manipulate innocent, vulnerable women of color for his predatory actions.
‘I’m deeply hurt and I want these women and countless others to know I see you.
‘I heard you. You matter. I will fight for you.’
Henson said that in the two decades she has been managed by Cirrincione, she never saw or heard of any inappropriate behavior by him toward her or other women.
'I’ve never had any issue with this on any level,' Henson said. 'He totally respected me.'
Henson said Cirrincione was like a 'father figure' who helped guide her career. He even at times paid her rent, child care fees, as well as her son's school tuition.
'He saw a single mother trying to make her dreams come true, and he nurtured that,' Henson said.
'He wrote checks and wouldn’t ask for anything in return. It wasn’t coming from a creepy place. If anything, it empowered me. Like this man believes in me. I love him for that.'
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