President Bill Clinton, Gina Gershon Deny Affair Rumors

Former President Bill Clinton and actress Gina Gershon are slamming a new Vanity Fair article that implies they had an affair.

In a story titled "The Comeback Id," National editor Todd Purdum — who is wed to former Clinton press secretary Dee Dee Myers — writes that Clinton's personality has changed since his 2004 heart bypass surgery and that there were reports of President Clinton "seeing a lot of women on the road."

He writes that, according to "recent high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip ... Clinton has been seen visiting with the actress Gina Gershon in California."

Gershon's rep tells Usmagazine.com: "Todd Purdum's insinuation is a lie, and it is irresponsible journalism. We are demanding a retraction."

(A rep for Vanity Fair tells Us: "Todd Purdum’s article does not indicate that former president Bill Clinton had an improper relationship with Gina Gershon. The story merely examines the concerns of some of Clinton’s aides about reports of his behavior. We don’t believe that any correction is warranted.")


President Clinton also denied the claims, calling Purdum "sleazy" and a "scumbag." ("He's one of the guys that propagated all those lies about Whitewater for Kenneth Starr," Clinton said. "He's just a dishonest guy — can't help it.")

He also told the Huffington Post that the article is an attempt to discredit his wife Hillary Clinton.

(A rep for Hillary's campaign has since apologized, saying that President Clinton used "inappropriate" language.)

Purdum defended himself on CNN , saying he was "very careful to say there is no clear-cut evidence that President Clinton has done anything improper."

"I reject the notion that I'm making an insinuation," he added. "But I'm very comfortable quoting the people I quote because I know who they are, and I know that they are very senior people who have known President Clinton for a very long time and work for him at very high levels."

Re: President Bill Clinton, Gina Gershon Deny Affair Rumors

here's a follow up to what Gossip Queen posted:

CNN story

Actress named in Clinton article wants retraction

Actress Gina Gershon is demanding a retraction from Vanity Fair after the magazine reported "high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip" that former President Clinton "has been seen visiting" her in California.

The lengthy article by the magazine's national editor, Todd Purdum, mentioned the actress along with several other women rumored to be associated with Clinton, all anonymously sourced.

"Todd Purdum's insinuation is a lie, and it is irresponsible journalism," said Gershon's publicist, Mara Buxbaum. "We are demanding a retraction."

A letter sent by Gershon's attorneys to Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Graydon Carter, obtained by CNN, demanded a published correction and retraction and threatened possible litigation for defamation.

The actress appeared in 1995's "Showgirls" and the more recent "P.S. I Love You."

Gershon "is extremely offended by the false and defamatory inference that she engaged in an adulterous relationship with the President," the letter says, adding that the actress has been in the same room with Clinton three times, always in the presence of at least a dozen people.

"It is apparent that Vanity Fair was intent upon publishing unsubstantiated rumors, and that it avoided learning the true facts so that the truth would not get in the way," the letter says. "Such conduct is reckless and malicious, giving rise to substantial liability for defamation."

In a statement, Vanity Fair denied that the article indicates any "improper relationship" between Clinton and Gershon.

"The story merely examines the concerns of some of Clinton's aides about reports of his behavior," the magazine said. "We don't believe that any correction is warranted."

Purdum's article, "The Comeback Id," quoted multiple anonymous sources questioning the former president's behavior since leaving the White House.