The #MeToo movement has come to the big top.
In a disturbing story broken by The New York Times, the man behind one of The Big Apple Circus’ most beloved performers has resigned due to an allegation of sexual misconduct.
And Barry Lubin has admitted via statement that this allegation is accurate.
The 65-year old quit his post on Friday as a clown who dresses up in pearls and a wig after a 16-year-old aerialist alleged he pressured her into posing for pornographic photos in 2004.
Through his lawyer, Lubin acknowledged the veracity of the claim and simply said in response:
“What I did was wrong, and I take full responsibility for my actions.”
The most famous circus in the nation just completed its annual three-month run at Lincoln Center in Manhattan.
It will soon open in Alpharetta, Georgia… but it will do so without Lubin and without the character he portrayed for several years.
According to circus chairman Neil Kahanovitz, a woman named Zoey Dunne leveled her accusation against Lubin in 2012.
However, there was little those associated with the circus could do about it back then because Lubin had actually left the circus.
(Kahanovitz was NOT serving as chairman at the time and says no executive working for the circus when Dunne initially filed her charge is working there now.)
Three months ago, however, Dunne learned that Lubin had returned as Grandma and once again made her complaint known.
She is now 29 years old, married, and pursuing a doctorate in school psychology in Seattle.
“I saw this ad that said ‘Grandma is back!,’” Dunne told The Times on Monday, explaining how she learned of Lubin’s reprisal and adding:
“I almost threw up on the bus.”
On Friday, Dunne reached out to Kahanovitz and he immediately took action.
Dunne tells the newspaper that she met Lubin when she was touring New England with Circus Smirkus, a youth troupe that Mr. Lubin helped coach as recently as last summer.
Lubin told her at the time that he also wanted her to be a model for his personal photography business.
She agreed and showed up at Lincoln Center, prior to being escorted by Lubin to his trailer.
Lubin proceeded to have Dunne lie down and pose in a bathing suit.
He then asked her to picture Ashton Kutcher, expecting this to lead to a state of arousal for Dunne.
“I felt overwhelmingly sad, not excited,” she tells The Times.
From there, Lubin directed her to change into a thong, spread her legs and hold a paintbrush up to her genital area. He asked her to hike her underpants up to the side.
Dunne complied.
Lubin paid her $ 100 in cash and warned her not to tell the circus, claiming folks there would be angry that he was doing outside work in their trailer.
This same process then happened a second time, at Lubin’s insistence.
After working as an aerialist for the circus, Dunne quit the industry and drifted for several years.
“I just felt really confused and lost and ashamed,” she says.
During this time, Grandma the Clown became a very popular figure, spraying himself with a hose during shows and eating popcorn out of the hands of audience members.
In his statement, Lubin apologized directly to Dunne, using her maiden name, Phillips.
“I know that what happened has had a lasting impact on her life, for which I am sorry,” he said, concluding:
“I not only failed Ms. Phillips, but I also failed in my responsibility as a man, an adult, a father, and as a representative of the Big Apple Circus.”
