Introduction
When Chuck Berry died last weekend, obituaries were unanimous – he was an extraordinary talent who lived an extraordinary life – and everyone from Barack Obama to Mick Jagger rushed to tweet their unconditional admiration. However, one detail was strikingly overlooked in many of the reports about him: his history of multiple sexual offenses.
In 1959, Berry was arrested for taking a 14-year-old girl, Janice Escalanti, across the state line for “immoral purposes,” a charge that ultimately resulted in a two-year prison sentence. But that was nearly 60 years ago; some might say: times change, morals change! Well, that’s partly true. The accusation that he installed a camera in the women’s restroom of a Missouri restaurant is hard to ignore, especially since the incident occurred in 1989, not so long ago. After the camera footage was found in Berry’s home, he received a suspended sentence and settled a class-action lawsuit with 59 women.
I’m not one to suggest that an artist’s personal flaws – to put it more simply – should ruin their professional career. I just shake my head in dismay when I hear someone say they “can’t watch Woody Allen’s films anymore,” because I believe it’s perfectly possible to separate the artist from the artwork. But I’m always curious about which artists are overlooked for these flaws, and which are not.
Woody Allen is now 81 years old, and when he dies, his various sexual scandals – abandoning his partner for her adopted daughter, being accused of sexual abuse by another woman – will be mentioned, if not in the first line, then certainly in the first paragraph of his obituary. Allen was never charged, let alone imprisoned, and always denied the allegations; But it’s unimaginable that politicians would publish such unapologetic praise upon his passing. Similarly, Roman Polanski’s entire life was shaped by his 1977 decision to sexually assault 13-year-old Samantha Gailey; this would be acknowledged from the outset in the obituaries. In contrast, the New York Times obituary for Berry didn’t mention the Escalanti affair until paragraph 23; the so-called “bathroom camera” scandal was completely ignored. Instead, the articles reporting his death relied on euphemistic language like “legal troubles” and “a colorful life.”
While everyone knows Jerry Lee Lewis married his 13-year-old cousin, nowadays no one in their right mind would say people shouldn’t listen to Great Balls of Fire – unlike how the music of Gary Glitter or even Michael Jackson was considered problematic in liberal circles. If Operation Yewtree decided to investigate every famous musician accused of having relations with a minor, including (Britain, you won’t thank me for this) David Bowie, they would be out of police from day one. Allegations that John Peel had sex with a minor girl did not diminish his standing as one of Britain’s great deceased national heroes.
The issue isn’t that past celebrities get off more easily. Actors Fatty Arbuckle in the 1920s and Errol Flynn in the 1940s had their careers ruined when they were accused – and acquitted – of rape. Instead, the issue lies in what the celebrity represented, and whether the misconduct contradicted that. Part of the reason Allen was so harshly and relentlessly criticized was because, to both fans and critics, he embodied Manhattan intellectual elitism, and living with his wife’s stepdaughter didn’t really fit that image.
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Hadley Freeman
Hadley Freeman
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Berry didn’t have such ambitions. Except in a few cases, musicians are generally more overlooked due to their old-school rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle – although it’s debatable whether Berry’s habit of peeping at women in restrooms is really living the dream life. Musicians also often defend each other, which is helpful: before 24/7 news and minute-by-minute social media updates, the easiest way for the public to judge the seriousness of an event was to see the reaction of those close to them. Therefore, while OJ Simpson remains an outcast after his acquittal on double murder, Keith Richards and Bob Dylan have consistently praised Berry. Another crucial factor is the identity of the victims: Janice Escalanti was Native American; the first woman to accuse Berry of filming her was Hosana Huck, a 48-year-old former chef at his restaurant. They were not young white women, still the only significant type of victim in the eyes of so many.
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