Ren And Stimpy Grooming Scandal Overshadows Dan Schneider Story

We reported previously about Nickelodeon's Dan Schneider parting ways with the Nickelodeon. In addition to being one of their top writers and producers for many years, Schneider had a reputation as having a bit of a temper and due to some of his tweets, his obsession with feet, certain sequences he recorded that never appeared in the shows and his being targeted by ex-stars like Jeanette McCurdy many believed him to be a serial child exploiter. From soliciting pictures of feet from children through the official "Sam and Cat" tv show Twitter account to "parent free" pool parties hosted by Dan, there is enough to give one pause. Interestingly enough, not many major venues brought up this issue apart from Deadline.com and Jezebel. The website <a href="https://revengeofthecis.com/2018/03/26/dan-schneider-fired-from-nickelodeon/">Revenge of the Cis</a> had talked with someone who left one of Schneider's "grooming camps." For a time PEOPLE, AOL Entertainment, The Hollywood Reporter and Bustle showed some interest in the story but none decided to speak with the witness.

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That said, within <i>days</i> Ren and Stimpy creator Jon Kricfalusi had been called out for allegedly "grooming" two young girls who spoke with Buzzfeed news.One of the two women who <a href="http://archive.is/hj6Ng">came forward to Buzzfeed</a>, Robyn Byrd says she began to write Kricfalusi when she was just 14. She expressed her interest in becoming an animator and he offered to mentor her. By the time she was 16 he had flown her to Los Angeles. While she was there she relates how he touched her genitals through her pajamas. By the Summer of 1997 she was living with him and working as an intern for his animation studio, Spumco. She considered the relationship with the Ren and Stimpy creator (15 years her senior) a romantic entanglement that was often turbulent. She moved out permanently in 2002 and found she couldn't draw anymore as she associated the act with Kricfalusi.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It has been 1 month since <a href="https://twitter.com/DanWarp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DanWarp</a> last tweeted. What&#39;s the matter, big guy?</p>&mdash; Mersh (@Mersh) <a href="https://twitter.com/Mersh/status/989221631603232768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 25, 2018</a></blockquote>

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https://thegoldwater.com/news/17398-Are-MeToo-and-TimesUp-A-Distraction-From-Hollywood-s-Pedo-Underworld

Katie Rice also was apparently "groomed" by Jon Kricfalusi during her teen years. When she was 18 she was offered a job but left due to being sexually harassed. According to co-workers of Kricfalusi, the cartoonist even shared "child abuse images" of one of the Byrd. Through his lawyer, Kricfalusi (also known as "Jon K.") has denied that he ever possessed any such images, but one thing that this does show is the lax nature of Nickelodeon towards potential child abusers.

https://thegoldwater.com/news/11580-The-Dark-Side-of-YouTube-Children-s-Programming-From-Elsagate-to-the-Finders-Cult

This wouldn't be the first time that someone working with Nickelodeon was found to have a history of child abuse. Ezel Channel and Brian Peck instantly come to mind. Peck, along with Bryan Singer (another Hollywood abuser) and Schneider were known to run in the same circles. Peck and Schneider "discovered" Amanda Byrnes at a 2 week comedy boot camp for kids. The LA Times article was actually entitled "Groomed To Be All That." Peck was a serial child predator accused of abusing a child star and still worked with kids afterwards.

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https://thegoldwater.com/news/21631-Nickelodeon-Finally-Parts-Ways-With-Top-Producer-And-Long-Suspected-Pedophile

Kricfalusi did not respond to comments except by speaking through his lawyer Daniel Perlman:

“The 1990s were a time of mental and emotional fragility for Mr. Kricfalusi, especially after losing ‘Ren & Stimpy,’ his most prized creation,” the statement said. “For a brief time, 25 years ago, he had a 16-year-old girlfriend. Over the years John struggled with what were eventually diagnosed mental illnesses in 2008. To that point, for nearly three decades he had relied primarily on alcohol to self-medicate. Since that time he has worked feverishly on his mental health issues, and has been successful in stabilizing his life over the last decade. This achievement has allowed John the opportunity to grow and mature in ways he’d never had a chance at before.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Waiting for those Dan Schneider 2018 allegations to come out, so we can all make this face when we hear those earth shattering stories of Nickelodeon&#39;s alleged pedophile ring. <a href="https://t.co/qYKu9ABKTM">pic.twitter.com/qYKu9ABKTM</a></p>&mdash; Obiscure Nickelodeon (@ObiscureNick) <a href="https://twitter.com/ObiscureNick/status/987193111150391296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2018</a></blockquote>

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Tony Mora claimed that he had actually seen "child abuse images" created by Jon Kricfalusi of Robyn Byrd:

<blockquote>Sometime between 1998 and 2000, Mora went to a party at Kricfalusi’s house that has bothered him for years. He remembered Byrd, who was no older than 20, was drunk and seemed to be drifting in and out of consciousness when Kricfalusi called Mora over to him. “And then he pulled out these Polaroids of Robyn basically — how can you say it? — going down on him. … He’s like, ‘What do you think of that?’”</blockquote>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I don&#39;t fully understand this <a href="https://twitter.com/entylawyer?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@entylawyer</a> blind from today (4-26-18) but people in the comments say it&#39;s about Dan Schneider victim Amanda Bynes using private Twitter accts to spread &quot;her truth&quot;<a href="https://t.co/dBeKkIOgxN">https://t.co/dBeKkIOgxN</a> <a href="https://t.co/cP3EHAvCNy">pic.twitter.com/cP3EHAvCNy</a></p>&mdash; John Doe (@JohnDoe78359022) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnDoe78359022/status/989684457245421574?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2018</a></blockquote>

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http://thegoldwater.com/news/10141-Boycott-Jeepers-Creepers-The-Pedophile-Film-Franchise

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The second thing I wanna say: <a href="https://twitter.com/DanWarp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DanWarp</a> this piece I wrote goes out to you, sweetheart, and tell your loser friend John Kricfalusi about it too :)<br><br>[<a href="https://twitter.com/TopographicFish?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TopographicFish</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/katiejrice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@katiejrice</a> y&#39;all get nothing but endless love and support from me, always ❤️] <a href="https://t.co/zEUSI1pyrU">https://t.co/zEUSI1pyrU</a></p>&mdash; Νεγρα Σπσε ☽ (@Abenihana) <a href="https://twitter.com/Abenihana/status/988482860624568320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2018</a></blockquote>

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Tony Mora and Derrick J. Wyatt both allege to have seen polaroids like this that Kricfalusi was collecting though Byrd herself doesn't recall any being taken or shared. That said, if they did exist then why didn't these men (who after Spumco would work with Warner Brothers, Nickelodeon, Disney and other studios) ever say anything about it? As a longtime fan of Ren and Stimpy, I'm shaken and hurt at this revelation about the artist's dark side. What's just as disturbing however is the cavalier attitude about grooming and child sex abuse in Hollywood. The blind item in Crazy Days And Nights mentions the power that Schneider wielded (likely still does to some extent) in the industry and the sad fact is, even in the age of #MeToo child abusers like Victor Salva (who Rose McGowan has defended) have somehow escaped censure.