Los Angeles- THE rugged Hollywood nightlife wars just got uglier. Left Coast clubland denizens are buzzing about an apparently anti-Semitic comment made by an unnamed associate of club queen Amanda Scheer-Demme [pictured left] in Los Angeles magazine.
In the mag's profile of powerhouse L.A. nightclub promoter Brent Bolthouse, an anonymous "business associate" of Scheer-Demme, explaining her decision not to pose for a picture with Bolthouse in the magazine, told writer Dave Gardetta, "We just think Bolthouse is so over, now that he's sold out to the Jew." The unidentified Scheer-Demme associate was referring to Sam Nazarian, who recently merged his fast-growing hospitality company SBE with Bolthouse's promotion business.
Called for comment, Scheer-Demme e-mailed Page Six: "Being a proud Jew, and having been a partner of Brent's at one time, I find it hard to believe that anyone I may know or work with would ever make an anti-Semitic comment like that, and I would never tolerate any form of racism or sexism in my company.
"I adore Brent and am friendly with Sam. This just seems to be a carefully worded attempt to provoke animosity, and it makes me upset to hear people talk like that. I am sickened by this statement, as well as by the person (whose article I coincidentally declined to participate in) who printed it in a clear attempt to attach me to it."
A spokeswoman for Scheer-Demme - who runs popular young-Hollywood watering holes Teddy's and the Tropicana Bar at the Roosevelt Hotel - added that Scheer-Demme called Bolthouse to apologize and even contacted Gardetta to try to find out who the anonymous associate was, to no avail.
This isn't the first public relations scrape in which Scheer-Demme has found herself. The well-connected widow of director Ted Demme was hit with a lawsuit last November by former NFL star Terrell Davis, who claimed he was roughed up at an Emmy Awards after-show party at Tropicana Bar.
Davis, who is black, said the trouble started when Scheer-Demme told a friend of his to stop talking with a white waitress. An argument resulted, and Davis claims bouncers choked and wrestled him to the floor, leaving him with a bruised neck.
