'Price Is Right' Show Model Claims Sexual Harassment and False Imprisonment

'Price Is Right' Show Model Claims Sexual Harassment and False Imprisonment By ANNE-MARIE DORNING Sept. 8, 2011 The popular television game show "The Price Is Right" has been hit with a sexual harassment lawsuit by former show model Lanisha Cole. The lawsuit includes seven complaints against two of the show's producers, including sexual harassment and false imprisonment. Lanisha Cole, 29, one of Barker's Beauties, as show models were sometimes called after longtime show host Bob Barker, began working for the "The Price Is Right" in February 2003. Cole's lawyer, Solomon Gresen, said landing a job on the long-running game show was a "dream come true" for his client. A show model on "The Price Is Right" interacts with the host, displays consumer items and turns numbers on the various games that have become the fabric of the show. And for six years, Cole's "dream job" seemed perfect. But that all changed in December 2009, according to court documents filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Show producers Adam Sandler and Michael G. Richards, no relation to the high-profile actors of the same names, and FremantleMedia North America, which produces such powerhouse shows as Fox's "American Idol" and the syndicated game show "Family Feud," are named in the suit. The lawsuit alleges that producer Richards stopped speaking to Cole, and would communicate only through notes, messages and intermediaries, according to the court filing. This behavior lasted for more than a year, according to Gresen. "Why would he just stop talking to her? I have no idea, and nor does she," he said The suit also alleges that Richards began to show favoritism to another show model with whom he was allegedly engaged in a relationship. That model, according to the court filing, showed up late for work and pursued other modeling opportunities without repercussions to her job on "The Price is Right." Whereas Cole, the lawsuit alleges, was repeatedly called into meetings to discuss "matters related to her employment," despite what Cole's attorney said was an "exemplary employment record." In September 2010, according to the lawsuit, Sandler, the other producer named in the suit, entered Cole's dressing room without permission and began to berate her loudly as she stood nearly naked except for "sheer thong bikini underwear." After that incident, the situation on the show deteriorated for Cole and "began to affect her health," said Gresen. The legal filing states that Cole had "a severe physical reaction to the stress and anxiety created by her employer's refusal to address her complaints and their failure to treat her the same way as every other "Price Is Right" model." Following a meeting with human resources in which Richards was present that did not resolve the situation and after several more instances of mistreatment, Cole decided to quit, according to her attorney. "She is heartbroken over the situation," said Gresen, "because she loved the models and Drew Carey and the people. And she also feels a little bit of indignation and anger. She really felt it was time to stand up for herself." Cole's suit consists of seven complaints, including false imprisonment, which stems from the dressing room incident, sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress. When asked to comment on the allegations, a spokesperson for Fremantlemedia North America, a defendant, told ABC News.com, "We don't comment on pending litigation." Gresen said even though Coles' lawsuit centers on a specific industry and involves a beautiful model and a popular television game show, workplace sexual harassment is widespread. "Time and again, I see cases of women who are mistreated by men in positions of power. … It happens all the time" said Gresen. The lawsuit seeks damages for medical expenses, lost job opportunities and "extreme and severe physical and mental anguish." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 'Price Is Right' model sues show for alleged sexual harassment September 7, 2011 |  8:12 am Lanisha Cole A former model on "The Price Is Right" game show filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging wrongful termination and sexual harassment by producers who continually humiliated and berated her, according to court papers. 'Price is Right' model's harassment complaint In the 20-page civil complaint filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Lanisha Cole names the producers of the popular game show, Michael G. Richards and Adam Sandler (who are not related to the well known, actor-comedians that share the same names) as well as their production company, Fremantle Media North America. "This case is about senior-level men in the entertainment industry exploiting power and control over women by bullying and harassing female talent," said Cole's attorney, Solomon Gresen. "Ms. Cole did nothing to provoke Richards and Sandler. Once the harassment began, she was powerless to stop it."  Cole began working on "The Price Is Right" in 2003 and by all accounts enjoyed a normal work environment over half a dozen years. But beginning in December 2009, the situation began to deteriorate when Richards suddenly and inexplicably stopped speaking to Cole and began showing favoritism to another model with whom he was having a relationship, the suit alleges. According to the court papers, Richards used policies "which never before existed" to limit her modeling work on the show and engaged in abusive behavior. She cited an incident in September 2010 when Sandler allegedly burst into Cole's dressing room despite a "Knock Before Entering" sign and castigated her for failing to wear a microphone. Gresen said models often perform without microphones, citing cases when a wardrobe change consumes too much time to properly equip models with sound, the suit said. "Sandler deliberately humiliated Ms. Cole in front of her peers," Gresen said of his client, who was naked from the waist up and clad only in "a very sheer thong bikini underwear bottom." "All the women in the dressing room, including Ms. Cole, were frozen in shock until Sandler finished his tirade and stormed out of the women's dressing room," the document said The stage manager apologized to Cole but did not report the incident. While called into a meeting about alleged sexual harassment involving another model, Cole complained about her own treatment. Months later, Cole informed management she had to miss a day of work because of a family commitment and was told she would not be able to work for that week, the lawsuit says. When she returned, she was told she was "holding the show hostage" because of her complaint. Cole was described by her lawyer as "a fan favorite and the longest tenured model on 'TPIR' " at the time she left.