[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Lori Beth Denberg is speaking out about Dan Schneider.
In an interview with Business Insider published on Tuesday, the All That alum made some icky, icky, ICKY allegations against the former Nickelodeon boss. She recalled being cast on the show at 17 years old in 1994, and claims her relationship with Dan took a disturbing turn not long after. She alleges that around her 19th birthday in 1995, he showed her pornographic clips on his computer, culminating in a “grand finale” of a woman performing oral sex on a donkey. WTF!!!
She told the outlet, “I feel like that is the first time he preyed on me.” And according to her, it wasn’t the last.
The now 48-year-old went on to allege that Dan would frequently call her and the two would discuss sexual topics. She claimed he once even tried to have phone sex with her! She was still a teen and he was nearly 30!
Related: Diddy Files To Dismiss Jane Doe Lawsuit & Denies Allegation He Assaulted Her As A Teen
In 1996, filming for All That moved from Orlando to LA, and Lori said she began spending lots of time at Dan’s house — including frequent late nights and even sleepovers. She said the two never had sex, but they’d give each other massages and that Dan played porn on his computer. A high school friend of Lori’s, Farah Alvin, even corroborated the claims, noting that Lori told her about the activity at the time.
The Nickelodeon alum went on to recount one shocking encounter when Dan asked her to accompany him to an auto repair shop. On the way there, the two got pulled over by a cop, and Dan allegedly pulled out a gun and gave it to Lori and asked her to hide it under her skirt.
How terrifying!!
Lori labeled her relationship with Dan as a “weird, abusive friendship,” recalling one hangout in particular when she was 20 or 21 that took an overtly sexual turn. She says she was watching Jeopardy! with Dan and betting whoever guessed the most correct answers would be owed a massage by the other. Lori ended up winning, and during her massage, she claimed Dan groped and placed his mouth on her breasts.
At the time, she said she talked herself out of thinking the interactions were inappropriate as she was over 18, but recently she’s been reflecting on the major power imbalance that was at play. She recalls feeling like if she were to refuse or reject Dan, that he may cut her out of the show or attempt to humiliate her on set, explaining:
“I couldn’t have been more green. I couldn’t have been more vulnerable.”
Again, she was a CHILD when all of this began, and this was her ADULT boss!
She went on to cite a time where she DID push back against Dan… And that things did not go over well. The alleged incident was during a dinner with crew members and writers, when Dan out of nowhere allegedly asked everyone if they thought one of Lori’s breasts were bigger than the other. Just 18 or 19 at the time, Lori threw a piece of bread at Dan, which she said resulted in him screaming at her before leaving the restaurant.
“It was one of those turns that was just really upsetting and scary. Everyone else seemed to completely blow it off.”
She said that if she pushed back after that, “it became more and more of, I’m going to make your life miserable. I’m going to treat you as badly as I can” on Dan’s end. Lori ultimately left All That in 1998.
In response, Dan has categorically denied some of Lori’s allegations, which he called “wildly exaggerated and, in most cases, false,” stating:
“As I have previously stated, there were times, particularly in the early years of my career, that I made mistakes and exhibited poor judgment as a leader. If I did that with respect to Lori Beth, I sincerely apologize to her. But I cannot apologize for things I did not do.”
He noted in the statement to Variety that the writer of the Business Insider article, Kate Taylor, was also a producer on Quiet On Set, which Dan is currently taking legal action against, explaining:
“[The fact she] would pursue allegations regarding what may have happened between adults nearly thirty years ago — only a week after I filed a defamation lawsuit accusing ‘Quiet on Set’ of being intentionally false and misleading — seems more than coincidental.”
There’s a lot to take in here. What are your thoughts? Let us know down in the comments.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
[Images via NBC, Nickelodeon, & BooG!e Wonderland/YouTube]
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