Model Lanisha Cole Sues ‘The Price Is Right’ for Sexual Harassment, False Imprisonment
The longest-tenured model for the popular TV game show The Price Is Right has filed a lawsuit claiming she was sexually harassed by Michael G. Richards and Adam Sandler, two of the show’s producers (not the two you’re thinking of).
When Lanisha Cole departed from the show last year, she was a seemingly a fan favorite who revealed the actual prices of various household items to the contestants. She alleges, however, that backstage, for about a year, she endured some pretty harsh treatment.
The civil complaint that was filed references wrongful termination, wrongful sexual harassment, failure to take steps to prevent harassment, false imprisonment, and infliction of emotional distress.
The lawsuit states that Cole started working for The Price Is Right back in 2003 and loved working there. She says all that changed in 2009, when Richards became enamored with another model and began to favor her and not Cole. She said that her work on the show was then limited utilizing policies “which never before existed.”
Cole also mentions one incident in which Sandler barged into her dressing room without knocking (despite a sign posted to do so) and tore into her for not wearing a microphone…while she was hardly wearing any clothes. Cole’s attorney says, “Sandler deliberately humiliated Ms. Cole in front of her peers.”
Cole’s attorney, Solomon Gresen, said in a prepared statement, “This case is about senior-level men in the entertainment industry exploiting power and control over women by bullying and harassing female talent.” He added, “Ms. Cole did nothing to provoke Richards and Sandler. Once the harassment began, she was powerless to stop it.”
Cole complained about her unfair treatment only after being summoned into a meeting regarding alleged harassment of a different model on the program. When she filed her lawsuit, she was told she was “holding the show hostage,” and she left the show.
The Price Is Right host Drew Carey isn’t named in the suit and isn’t blamed in any way, thankfully. Cole is seeking a jury trial and monetary compensation to cover her medical and legal expenses as well as her loss of earnings.
The show has not yet commented on the matter.
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