Gary Coleman and Molly Shannon Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock; Picture Perfect/Shutterstock
Speak up Molly ShannonGary Coleman was accused of sexually harassing her at a meeting when she wasn’t a teenager.
The Saturday Night LiveThe alleged encounter was described by the 57-year-old alum during a Tuesday interview on April 12. The Howard Stern Show. The comedian had recently signed with the sitcom star’s agent, and at one point, she was given the chance to meet Coleman, who died in May 2010 at age 42.
“I think he was like, ‘Sit down [on the bed].’ It was very sweet,” she alleged on Tuesday. “And then he’s, like, tickling me a little. This and that.”
The Superstar actress went on to claim that she was “trying to be polite” to the Diff’rent Strokes alum, but he didn’t pick up on her unease.
“He was relentless,” she alleged. “Then, he was, like, trying to kiss me and get on top and I was like, ‘No, Gary. Stop.’ So, I push him off. Then, I would get up from the bed. Then, he would jump on the bed. Jump, jump, jump. And wrap him around me. Then, he would throw me off. Then he got on top me. I guess because of his size I didn’t feel physically threatened. But … it was going on and on. Repeating. I would throw him off, he would get back on.”
The Wet Hot American SummerStar also described the incident in her memoir. Hello, Molly!The book was released on Tuesday. The Ohio native claimed she eventually managed to “throw” Coleman off of her.
“He grabs me onto my leg and I was, like, [trying to] kick him off,” she alleged. “And then, I go lock myself in the bathroom and then he sticks his hands under the door. And he’s like, ‘I can see you.’”
At that point, Shannon said she left the room and told the agent that he should “watch” Coleman more closely. “I wish I could have stood up for myself more,” she added.
Before his death in 2010, the former child star had suffered from multiple medical issues. A lifelong kidney condition stunted his growth, which resulted in him standing at 4′ 8″ as an adult. He had multiple unsuccessful kidney transplants and later claimed that he attempted suicide twice.
Coleman died after he fell at home and developed an epidural hemorhage. After the incident, Coleman was admitted at a hospital but his condition worsened. He died two days later.
Contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656 HOPE (4673) if you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted.
