Rosie O’Donnell celebrates her legal win in slander suit

Rosie O’Donnell is celebrating her legal win in a defamation lawsuit where a former producer claimed ex host of The View destroyed her reputation.  

The 55-year-old comedian shared the news via Twitter on Monday, writing: ‘I’m gratified the Court, DISMISSED Jen Brookman’s defamation complaint IN IT ENTIRETY [sic] – Ms. Brookman’s claim was without merit’, followed with a heart emoji.

In 2015, Jennifer Shephard-Brookman, an Emmy-award winning producer who spent 14 years at The View, filed suit against O’Donnell in a New York court. 

Brookman claimed the TV personality slandered her name and destroyed her professional reputation by repeatedly falsely accusing her of leaking stories to the press and left her in ‘intense emotional distress’.

But on Monday, New York’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of O’Donnell and declared that Brookman had no legal ground to stand on in her claim.

In 2015, Jennifer Shephard-Brookman (pictured with Rosie) , an Emmy-award winning producer who spent 14 years at The View, filed suit against O’Donnell. Brookman claimed Rosie slandered her name and destroyed her professional reputation by repeatedly falsely accusing her of leaking stories to the press and left her in ‘intense emotional distress’

In the lawsuit, Brookman claimed that O’Donnell had to be physically restrained from her during her time at The View and would explode into rages over perceived slights by ‘Team Whoopi’. 

The civil lawsuit also alleged that in September 2014, Rosie pinned Brookman to a chair while getting in her face and berating her.

Brookman was fired from ABC in 2014 over an alleged ‘vicious’ email she sent to Rosie. She had strongly denied ever leaking information about The View. 

O’Donnell would go on to leave The View in February 2015, the same month she announced her split with then wife Michelle Rounds. 

A source close to the show claimed that Brookman had been left a ‘nervous wreck’ by Rosie.

In January 2015, Rosie ‘stormed towards Jennifer and had to be physically restrained by her own staff who were dragging her away, screaming and shouting’, the source claimed.

The scene appeared to have been sparked by Rosie making thinly-veiled accusations about Brookman leaking stories to the press in a packed meeting, accord

The following day, tensions were still high at a staff meeting and following a series of muttered remarks, the confrontation between the two women spilled out into the hall.  

The only person who seemed to escape Rosie’s abuse was moderator, Whoopi Goldberg. 

Back in September 2014, a news story appeared, according to the lawsuit, which claimed O’Donnell wanted to take control of the show and the role of moderator from Whoopi and that the pair clashed over O’Donnell’s efforts to take control.

The 55-year-old comedian shared the news via Twitter on Monday, writing: ‘I’m gratified the Court, DISMISSED Jen Brookman’s defamation complaint IN IT ENTIRETY [sic] – Ms. Brookman’s claim was without merit’, followed by a heart emoji

In the lawsuit, Brookman claimed that O’Donnell had to be physically restrained from her during her time at The View and would explode into rages over perceived slights by ‘Team Whoopi’. Pictured: Brookman and Whoopi Goldberg 

The lawsuit claimed that Rosie ‘would become upset if she was not granted the coverage she expected, and accused Brookman of teaming with Goldberg to undermine O’Donnell’.

And if Rosie perceived any staff to be on, what she dubbed ‘Team Whoopi’, then it meant that individual was against Rosie and became a target.

The source said: ‘Rosie wouldn’t dare say anything to Whoopi because she was too afraid of her.’

Rosie O’Donnell first joined The View in late 2006, staying for one season, in what would become known as ‘Round One’ to staffers. She left in early 2015. 

During her time on the morning show, according to Brookman’s civil suit, Rosie ‘feuded with Mr [Bill] Geddie, the executive producer of the show since 1997, and senior staffers and co-hosts of the show, and reportedly fell into rages, screamed at the staff, insulted them, and was so vicious that some of the staffers on the show spoke of O’Donnell using the word “hate”.’

Rosie left the show in 2007 after an explosive showdown live on-air with Elisabeth Hasselback over the Iraq War.

Seven years later, following the retirement of The View’s founder Barbara Walters and a revolving door of panel members, Rosie returned in July 2014, known to staffers as ‘Round Two’.

Soon afterwards, Bill Geddie, the producer who had helped Barbara Walters shape The View into a daytime TV success since the late 1990s, left the show along with supervising producer Alexandra Cohen and director Mark Gentile.

O’Donnell left The View in February 2015, the same month she announced her split with her then wife Michelle Rounds

A source told DailyMail.com: ‘Many staff believe that Bill Geddie was fired because of Rosie and that it was one of her demands for returning to the show.’

At this point, Brookman remained as the only long-serving senior production staffer on The View, the lawsuit stated.

According to the suit, Rosie accused the producer of conspiring with Whoopi to ‘shift the coverage of a story on the show, specifically about the beheading of James Foley by ISIS, away from her and to Whoopi’.

O’Donnell screamed at Brookman that she ‘owned’ the story and was upset that Whoopi covered the story.

Rosie grabbed ‘the arms of the chair in which Ms Brookman was sitting, leaning very close to her face, and prohibiting her from leaving, while continuing to aggressively and loudly berate her for giving the coverage of the story to Ms Goldberg’, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit mentioned a number of stories that appeared in the press over Rosie’s troubled relationships with co-stars and staffers.

The examples cited include a story from September 2014 where Rosie was said to have a hard time ‘playing second fiddle’ to Whoopi, wanted to be in charge and griped in front of the studio audience about a perceived on-air snub when Whoopi cut her off.

It was also claimed that Rosie had fought with and screamed at Whoopi and staff about the discussions of several topics including the Bill Cosby rape scandal and the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.

Rosie then was said to be enraged that show producers agreed to allow only Whoopi to interview former model Beverly Johnson about her accusation of drugging and attempted sexual abuse against Bill Cosby.

In January 2015, during a Hot Topics planning meeting, attended by Brookman, executive producers, William Wolff and Brian Balthazar, co-host Nicolle Wallace, two guest co-hosts from outside ABC, and other staffers, Rosie publicly accused Brookman of betraying personal and professional confidences by leaking certain sensitive information to the media, the lawsuit stated.

Whoopi was not at the meeting – but ‘would have opposed O’Donnell’s accusation against Ms Brookman, and would have defended Ms Brookman’, the suit read.

The lawsuit said that Brookman felt ‘attacked’ by Rosie at the meeting and was forced to deny she would leak any information about the show to the media. 

Brookman, who has two children, claimed at the time of the suit in 2015 that she had not been able to find full-time work since leaving The View.

But she is now the supervising producer of The Wendy Williams Show.