Media

Gayle King Talks To BFF Oprah Amid Stinky Rose Debacle

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Betsy Rothstein Gossip blogger
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A rose by any other name might really smell sweeter at this point.

Among the first things CBS “This Morning”co-host Gayle King did amid the bizarre scandal involving her 75-year-old coworker Charlie Rose is she got on the horn with her bestie Oprah Winfrey.

In the wave of men who are getting hung by the rafters for alleged incidences of sexual harassment is the interviewer known best for the noir background of his show. And now the situation just got a little bit darker as CBS initially suspended and then fired him after a Washington Post story divulged a pattern of behavior toward eight female underlings that included a lot of naked shower scenes, open robes (unfortunately for them, his) and fantasies of women swimming in the moonlight.

“Charlie literally had no idea. He really believed it was 1975 and everyone wanted to see him naked,” a media insider cracked to The Mirror.

The two remaining female hosts — King and Norah O’Donnell — helmed the show on Tuesday without Rose and went there.

“I really am reeling,” King said. “I got one hour and 42 minutes of sleep last night. Both my son and my daughter called me; Oprah called me and said, ‘Are you okay?’ I am not okay.”

Oprah keeps a level head when it comes to sexual harassment. Earlier this month, the TV network behemoth was asked how she keeps harassment issues from cropping up on the sets of her OWN shows.

“We don’t want any assholes around us,” Oprah told People, explaining that all of her shows have female directors.

PBS and Bloomberg suspended Rose, who issued a contrite but somewhat defensive statement.

“It is essential that these women know I hear them and that I deeply apologize for my inappropriate behavior,” he wrote. “I am greatly embarrassed. I have behaved insensitively at times, and I accept responsibility for that, though I do not believe that all of these allegations are accurate. I always felt that I was pursuing shared feelings, even though I now realize I was mistaken.”