It's Bush vs. Hart Over the Ledger Video

AOL/AP

Posted: 2008-02-01 09:25:49

(Feb. 1) - Stars across Hollywood lobbied against 'Entertainment Tonight' and 'The Insider' after they announced they would air a video showing the late Heath Ledger hanging out at a party where drugs were being taken. In the end, 'ET' decided not to air the clip, saying it was pulled "out of respect for Heath Ledger's family." Story over, right?

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Taken from Bush's Blog

I don't often comment on our competition, but because we have so much of it in the "entertainment show" genre these days, we are often lumped in a group together. The fact is, we're very different, and that stems mostly from the difference in scruples of the respective Executive Producers.

'Entertainment Tonight' and 'The Insider' ran a promo tonight for their Heath Ledger drug use video, which they "reportedly" (love that lawyer enforced word) bought for a couple hundred thousand dollars. A still frame of this video which shows Heath apparently doing cocaine ran on the east coast feed of "ET," but on the west coast feed, the tasteless still shot was replaced with a shot of someone's feet (Heath's, I guess). The voice over by Mary Hart had not changed, however. She still spoke of the incriminating scene and still promo'd the full video tomorrow.

Yes, the still shot was just a taste. Tomorrow is Day 1 of the sweeps ratings period.

Gross. Totally gross. And add to that some predictability:

'ET' and 'The Insider' higher ups released this tonight:

"Out of respect for Heath Ledger's family, 'Entertainment Tonight' and 'The Insider' have decided not to run the Heath Ledger video which has been circulating in the world media,"

"Out of respect" -- Oh my. How about, "in response to a letter of outrage, written by Heath's publicist, circulating the industry hotter and faster than nude Brangelina photos could, we have decided to duck and run here." That would be refreshingly honest.

Here's an excerpt of that aforementioned letter by Heath's publicity firm and clearly in defense of those loved ones of Heath's still reeling from the loss:

"Tonight Entertainment Tonight/The Insider are previewing an extremely distasteful segment regarding Heath Ledger. The segment centers around a two-year old video ET purchased for a large sum of money in the hopes of stirring up a salacious and exploitive story about Heath, which would win them big ratings on the first day of sweeps. The two outlets did not even have the courtesy to wait until after Heath's burial to broadcast this segment. They intend to air the full segment tomorrow."

For the sake of his grieving family and friends, his child, and common decency, we hope to pressure "Entertainment Tonight" and "The Insider" to do the right thing and pull the spot. This is not journalism, it is sensationalism. It is a shameful exploitation of the lowest kind, to a talented and gentle soul, undeserving of such treatment.

Wow. I don't always leap to the side of publicists, because objectivity is sometimes an afterthought. They are hired to shape an image, but --

Heath Ledger's family has not even had the chance to bury their son. We know he had problems, but this kind of salacious opportunism is poisonous.

I struggle with every type of borderline exploitive material. I'm a constant pain to our Executive Producer as I worry too much that things go too far. Ask him.

I am shocked that Mary Hart would read this crap. I know her and she is a very nice lady, but its clear to me she's "checked out" of that place, basically taking whatever they put in her hand and reading it with the same excitable veneer you'd expect to hear at a 50's sock hop.

Mary gets paid a lot of money. She must have the clout to say 'no.' Their Executive producer used to run "Hard Copy." She doesn't hit the brakes for anything. But Mary, you are the June Cleaver of entertainment news; this cannot be OK.

Let's see how long the outrage lasts.

Source: Billy's Blog on AccessHollywood.com

Wrong. Billy Bush, the co-host of 'Access Hollywood' -- the chief rival of 'ET' -- has lashed further into the show's initial decision to run the clip.

"Gross. Totally gross," Bush writes on his blog. "And add to that some predictability: 'ET' and 'The Insider' higher ups released this tonight: "Out of respect for HEATH LEDGER's family, Entertainment Tonight and The Insider have decided not to run the Heath Ledger video which has been circulating in the world media,""Out of respect" Oh my. How about, "in response to a letter of outrage, written by Heath's publicist, circulating the industry hotter and faster than nude Brangelina photos could, we have decided to duck and run here. That would be refreshingly honest."

Bush saves his best barbs for 'ET' host Mary Hart, attacking her for both the decision to initially run the video and her voiceover she recorded for the promo which aired earlier this week and has since been surfacing on YouTube.

"I am shocked that Mary Hart would read this crap. I know her and she is a very nice lady, but its clear to me she's "checked out" of that place, basically taking whatever they put in her hand and reading it with the same excitable veneer you'd expect to hear at a 50's sock hop. Mary gets paid a lot of money. She must have the clout to say 'no.' Their Executive producer used to run Hard Copy. She doesn't hit the brakes for anything. But Mary, you are the June Cleaver of entertainment news; this cannot be OK."

There have been no comments back after Bush's statement from Hart or 'Entertainment Tonight.'

"Entertainment Tonight" is hardly the lone news organization to broach the topic of potential drug abuse by the star. But the video it acquired, reportedly taken two years ago at a party at the Chateau Marmont Hotel, drew the fiercest attention.

'ET' is reported to have paid $200,000 for the video.

The syndicated magazine's sister show, "The Insider," aired a "preview" of the story that it had planned to run Thursday that actually showed several segments of the video. Following the protest, "The Insider" yanked the segment from the West Coast version of its telecast.

Ledger is seen standing in the doorway of a room where the party was taking place, swigging from a beer bottle. The actor is heard saying that he was "going to get serious (word bleeped) from my girlfriend" for being at the party.

The show made clear that there was nothing on the video showing Ledger taking any drug. At one point, however, the then-26-year-old said he "used to smoke five joints a day."

But a person who has seen the entire video, who asked not to be identified because of its sensitive nature, said Ledger then points to his tattoo of "M'' (for his daughter, Matilda Rose) and says, "this is to remind me never to smoke weed again." That part of the quote was not used in Wednesday's preview.

Powerful film industry players and stars ranging from Natalie Portman to Sarah Jessica Parker lobbied 'Entertainment Tonight' not to run the Heath Ledger party video. 'ET' pulled the clip, saying it was out of respect for the Ledger family. Here's a promo that was used to publicize the Ledger clip before the decision was made to shelve it. <<<<<

Later, with Ledger in the background, an unidentified man, his face blurred, seems to snort cocaine from a table.

After seeing a promotion for the show Wednesday, a publicist at ID, Ledger's public relations firm, called "Entertainment Tonight" and asked that the segment be pulled. The request was refused.

ID then composed a three-paragraph protest letter that it distributed to some 30 other public relations firms around Hollywood, asking them to tell their clients about what was about to happen. The circle included powerhouse publicists like PMK-HBH, 42 West and BWR.

The letter said "ET" had paid a large sum of money for the video to stir up an exploitive story about Ledger.

"For the sake of his grieving family and friends, his child and common decency, we hope to pressure 'Entertainment Tonight' and 'The Insider' to do the right thing and pull the spot," the letter said. "This is not journalism, it is sensationalism. It is a shameful exploitation of the lowest kind, to a talented and gentle soul, undeserving of such treatment."

Stars, studio executives and PR firms all called "ET" to register protests, said Kelly Bush, CEO of ID. The star-studded roster of Bush's firm alone includes Robin Williams, Sean Penn, Tobey Maguire, Mike Myers, Jennifer Hudson, Katie Holmes, Ellen DeGeneres, and Ledger's "Brokeback" co-star Jake Gyllenhaal.

Bush said the response was unlike anything she'd ever seen.

"I hope it represents a turning point," she said. "I think we have all heard from members of the media and members of the public that it's too much. Britney Spears and Paris Hilton are the top news stories when Darfur should be."

No boycott was threatened, she said. But when a television show that needs celebrities like living things need oxygen hears from so many powerful sources, a threat probably wasn't necessary.

Not a spoken one, anyway.

"We need them as much as they need us," Bush said. She wouldn't speculate on what made "Entertainment Tonight" change its mind, but said "they've probably never gotten this much heat before over anything."

Executives at "Entertainment Tonight" refused to talk publicly about the retreat. There was some bewilderment and anger at the company about why its show was singled out when many other publications and TV outlets were talking about the same thing. The party video is likely to be seen soon in England, and is already available over the Internet.

But "ET" can't complain about getting nothing for its money. Even though it was called a "preview," ''The Insider" already aired a significant story with salient portions of the video, while maintaining the appearance of having taken the high road in the end.

Drew Pinsky, star of VH1's "Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew," backed "Entertainment Tonight." He saw the video and was quoted by the show, calling it "heartbreaking."

"When a 28-year-old seemingly healthy man, whom we love and respect, dies suddenly, there is a reason," Pinsky said. "His death plays upon our deepest fears. We owe it to the public to try to answer the question why. I am convinced that if this heart-wrenching video had aired, it would have gotten through and had a positive effect on young people in America. Perhaps it could have even saved some lives."

Also unanswered are questions about how much the Hollywood friends who jumped to Ledger's defense this week knew about any drug use while he was alive, and what they had done to help him. Few of the people close to Ledger have come forth with statements since his death, and those who have chose not to broach the topic of any possible drug use.

One notable exception was Lee Daniels, who produced "Monster's Ball," in which Ledger starred.

"The definition of substance abuse is really up to one's perspective," Daniels told The Associated Press last week. "I didn't see him as a drug addict. I saw him as someone who enjoyed life. I know drug addicts; he was not a drug addict."

2008-02-01 08:20:54

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670 comments

galianomaritza 10:52:56 PM Feb 05 2008

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its really a shame he had to die such a great guy feel sorry for child and michelle

cedrickpachyderm 10:28:25 PM Feb 04 2008

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I heard that a women in England has never heard of this story. Go figure.

cedrickpachyderm 09:38:35 PM Feb 04 2008

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Why do so many girls in this country think that it's better to hid the "crewel truth?" They must be teenie boppers. THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE.

Advice: Live a good life and you won't have to hide the truth.

jobsab 02:48:03 PM Feb 04 2008

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Billy Bush is related to our fearless and incompetent leader, President George Bush. Both of them are total idiots. 11 more months of hell and then we can start getting America back on track.

tweetyloverjg24 02:07:42 PM Feb 04 2008

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I feel that it was very heartless on the part of ET to want to air this video. They should think of Heath's family and his young daughter! They should not try to tarnish his image and destroy his legacy! I loved Heath and his movies! He was a terrific actor! He brought joy and laughter and sadness and tears! He will truely be missed! May God rest his soul and I pray that all the media will let him rest in peace and not put his family and daughter through alot of useless hell!

jbond1038nc18 01:22:02 PM Feb 04 2008

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Since Hollywood has cut off the vedio, Ledger must have been doing something wrong. Where there is heat, there is fire!

mystofrowan13 12:46:59 AM Feb 04 2008

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sorry for the below typo's .

mystofrowan13 12:40:20 AM Feb 04 2008

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jbond get a life. Just because someone decides that their career in life is to be an actor does not give people an open invitation into their personal lives. By the way, what does being gay or straight have to do with his death?
Heath Ledger was a breat of fresh air and one that will be greatly missed. His family and friends are trying to grieve with a loss while trying to stay away from all this tabloid crap. Think of his daughter! What will she feel when she is old enough to read and understand about a cruel and awfully uncaring public who could not snap enough pics of her father in a black body bag. This man was someone's son, someone's father and someone's soul mate, someone's friend. And to many of us, we were lucky enough to share a little of his life in what should have been a long and wonderful carrer. Yes, I did not know him but yes I cried and still do. What a great contribution to this world that was taken away far too soon. Lastly, to anyone that has a problem with this co

jbond1038nc18 11:55:38 PM Feb 03 2008

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Hollywood people just don't want their drug use in the public. If this guy had not stared in a gay movie he wouldn't be protected by the so-called stars!

jobsab 03:06:59 PM Feb 03 2008

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Any Bush is a total ******* idiot...borderline retarded!

Jcutie11893 12:53:14 AM Feb 03 2008

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BILLY BUSH IS A GOOD -LOOKING GUY..... ;)

Jcutie11893 12:48:13 AM Feb 03 2008

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YEA!

Jcutie11893 12:45:37 AM Feb 03 2008

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SO THERE; !

Jcutie11893 12:44:20 AM Feb 03 2008

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IT TAKES A BIG RESPONSIBLE PERSON TO TAKE THE BLAME...........
GEORGE W. BUSH HAS TAKEN THE BLAME FOR ALOT OF THINGS....
THAT SHOWS ALOT OF INTREGITY AND RESPECT......!
PEOPLE BLAMING OTHERS ARE THE COWARDS............!

chariotsofelohim 12:20:13 AM Feb 03 2008

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When the millions and several multi-million dollar homes and fancy cars and the multitudes of sexual partners and expensive clothing and costly jewelry and exotic pets and Oscar-winning/Oscar-nominted films and drugs and so on are found to be incapable of filling the ever-begging void inside of their souls which only the Creator/Savior can fill, it can be a very earth-shaking thing. Drugs tends to be the fake filler they pursue in "private," though it is never really private, coming out one way or the other before too long. Often, unfortunately, at D.O. death.

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