Investigator Barresi Opens Up on Hollywood

Paul Barresi is a former porn star turned private eye who has worked on Hollywood cases involving Michael Jackson, Eddie Murphy, Sylvester Stallone, Tom Cruise, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Barry Bonds, among other celebrities. Barresi, who formerly worked for private detective Anthony Pellicano, was interested in commenting on Pellicano's pending sentence for illegal wiretapping. Now working for Backstreet Investigations, he had plenty of other things to say about other Hollywood types what goes on behind the closed doors in an interview with FBLA. FBLA: How long did you work for Anthony Pellicano. Barresi: Off and on for almost ten years. FBLA: Pellicano dealt with a lot of high profile Hollywood cases. Did you assist him with any involving celebrity? Barresi: Yes, starting in 1993, with Michael Jackson and ending, on the day of his arrest, with a fire we were putting out for Tom Cruise. FBLA: And in between? Barresi: Let's see, in between, there was Eddie Murphy, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Barry Bonds, to name a few. FBLA: What did you do on Schwarzenegger? Barresi: Searched for the names and addresses of his detractors. Anyone who may want to harm him, should he run for office. FBLA: This was obviously before he was Governor. Barresi: Yes. FBLA: Did you make a list? Barresi: A mile long. FBLA: And, Stallone? Barresi: I'm not at liberty to talk about that one. FBLA: How about, Barry Bonds? Barresi: The same song you always hear in Hollywood, but sung to a different tune. Some gold digger tried to shake him down by claiming that she was carrying his baby. It turned out not to be true. FBLA: And what did you do for Eddie Murphy? Barresi: I tracked down half dozen transvestites, alleging they had sexual relations with him. FBLA: And what was the result of your efforts? Barresi: I was successful in convincing five of the six to retract their claims. FBLA: What became of the one that held out? Barresi: Regrettably, she fell to her death from the roof of her Hollywood apartment building. The police ruled that it was an accident. FBLA: Pellicano is known for being a man who was not quick to get close to just anybody. You are a former porn star, turned private investigator. Barresi: Yes, a tag the media gave me, I'm just going to have to own it. FBLA: Not a likely resume to carry into Pellicano's office. Barresi: To the contrary. Thanks to my porn past, I stand uniquely perched on the scaffold that connects the two biggest industries in Hollywood. FBLA: Which are? Barresi: The movie industry and the sex industry, which follows the movie industry like the moon. FBLA: And your point is? Barresi: My point is, the quickest way to seriously damage the career of actors is if it is discovered that they are gay, cheating on their spouses, or acting out some sexual proclivity behind closed doors that their fans don't approve of. Who better than I do get inside that door, and clean up their mess? FBLA: And that is one of the things Pellicano saw in you that he saw to be invaluable. Barresi: That is one of of the things. We are both Sicilian. (laughing) We can both be hot-headed. We have that in common as well. FBLA: Did you share any of the same common beliefs or opinions? Barresi: Oh, yes, several. FBLA: What's the first that comes to mind? Barresi: Well, we both loathe cyber stalkers. You know who I'm talking about. Those malicious psychopaths who take pleasure in harming others. They harass and attack people with mean spirited blog postings. They hide behind various screen names, being the cowards that they are. It gives them a false sense of safety, hiding in the shadows, like a frightened rat. FBLA: Did you ever take action against any of them? Barresi: I remember one guy in particular. Tony and me had a long conversation about him. Tony said he deserved a good beating. But in the end, he was dealt with the legal way -- in the courts. FBLA: Anything else you want to say about Mr. Pelllicano before we sign off? Barresi: Well, next month Judge Fischer will be handing down his sentence. I attended Tony's trial quite a few times. I got a strong sense that her honor is fair and impartial. I trust that she will take into account Tony's redeeming qualities. I always knew him as a man with a strong sense of family. La familia. That's got to carry some weight.

Fishbowl

Investigator Barresi Opens Up on Hollywood

Meghan

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Meghan