'Price Is Right' producer defends Bob Barker against sexual harassment claims in documentary
Longtime "Price Is Right" producer Roger Dobkowitz called the "Dirty Rotten Scandals" documentary a hit piece and defended late host Bob Barker's legacy.
Longtime "The Price Is Right" producer Roger Dobkowitz defended Bob Barker amid damning allegations in the "Dirty Rotten Scandals" documentary.
Dobkowitz, who worked on more than 4,600 episodes of the game show in a 36-year span, shared a lengthy social media statement saying he attempted to avoid commenting on the "obvious ‘hit piece'" and hoped the series would "quietly disappear."
Two episodes of the six-part E! series focused on the long-running CBS show and featured interviews with "Barker's Beauties" models who claimed they either experienced or witnessed sexual harassment, retaliation or a hostile work environment.
FORMER ‘PRICE IS RIGHT’ MODEL EXPOSES DARK TRUTH ABOUT BOB BARKER ERA
"Many of my friends have asked me for my comments in regards to the E documentary that was recently shown on their network," Dobkowitz wrote. "However, up until now, I avoided commenting on it because I didn’t want to add any social traction to such an obvious ‘hit piece’. The ‘documentary’ should just quietly disappear into the bottom of a TV equivalent of a waste basket along with all the other forgotten so-called 'exposes.'"
Dobkowitz acknowledged the program "doesn't seem to have received much traction anyway" before claiming that "fewer people care" or remember "probably since the purported incident took place 30 years ago on a daytime game show."
"I feel it is OK for me to reveal my thoughts and, most importantly, defend the dignity and integrity of our great show," he wrote. "This so-called ‘expose’ makes me realize that there are some people in this world who will happily exaggerate and create falsehoods in order to justify a personal hateful vendetta against a person in order to draw attention to themselves.
"Making the situation worse is the fact that the accused is deceased, and therefore, making it impossible for the accused to defend himself. The adjective ‘brave’ should never be used in reference to a person attacking a dead person."
He wrote, "Most people in society and individuals move on with their lives, especially after court rooms have settled disputes and they are closed. Most people are happy that a headache in their lives is over.
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"Such closure is usually a life-marker to remind the person to grow and put things behind them. When someone feels the compulsion to constantly bring it up for another 30 years is a sign that something could be wrong with their capacity to reason maturely."
Dobkowitz mused the idea of writing a book about his 36 years with the show, which would include "36 years of observations with Bob, the models, and the staff," and likely "clear up lots of misconceptions and dismiss many wrongful accusations."
"The show was a happy place … our working environment was the envy of other shows. Staff rarely quit ... the dozens of women who were in our repertoire of models came back year after year, happy to be on our show," he wrote.
"The only unhappy people, as would be found in any company, were the ones that didn't get the raise they wanted, the ones that didn't get the promotion they thought they deserved, and the ones that were terminated for not doing their job. Of course, we did have a small handful of those people, but far, far, less than other companies had."
He added, "I was there for 36 years. I was on that stage."
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Barker, who hosted the show for 35 years, died in 2023 at age 99.
"Barker's Beauties" model Holly Hallstrom appeared on the show from 1977 until she was fired in 1995, a decision she has said was blamed on weight gain caused by medication. However, Hallstrom alleges she was actually dismissed after declining to publicly support Barker when fellow model Dian Parkinson filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against him in 1994.
She then spent nearly a decade locked in a legal battle after Barker sued her for defamation, according to Business Insider. She countersued, alleging defamation along with claims of emotional distress and discrimination.
Hallstrom said she was effectively blacklisted in the entertainment industry and pushed to the brink financially, according to the outlet. She also declined settlement offers, saying she refused to be silenced by a nondisclosure agreement.
Barker consistently denied wrongdoing and maintained that any relationships were consensual.
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