Closetgate

English Etymology From en closet gate; from the name of the South Park television episode "Trapped in the Closet" (referring to the figurative "closet" that homosexuals who have not disclosed their sexual orientation are said to be in). Proper noun A scandal following the airing of the South Park television episode "Trapped in the Closet", which was a satirical parody of Scientology and Scientologist actor Tom Cruise.Collins Scott Channel Island; Clamor outside 'South Park' closet; 'Mission: Impossible' studio joins Cruise's camp in denying it strong-armed scrapping of Scientology repeat. Los Angeles Times Calendar Desk; Part E; Pg. 16 2006-03-18Usborne David South Park declares war on Tom Cruise The Independent March 19, 2006 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/south-park-declares-war-on-tom-cruise-470502.html 2009-12-08 https://web.archive.org/web/20150925093847/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/south-park-declares-war-on-tom-cruise-470502.html 25 September 2015 en March 18, 2006 Scott Collins Clamor outside `South Park' closet w:Los Angeles Times http://articles.latimes.com/2006/mar/18/entertainment/et-channel18 Closetgate is heating up! Paramount has joined Tom Cruise's public relations rep in denying reports that the movie star strong-armed the studio into spiking a "South Park" episode that ridicules him and Scientology. https://web.archive.org/web/20180705044536/http://articles.latimes.com:80/2006/mar/18/entertainment/et-channel18 5 July 2018 en March 19, 2006 David Usborne South Park declares war on Tom Cruise w:The Independent http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/south-park-declares-war-on-tom-cruise-470502.html The Los Angeles Times dubbed the flap Closetgate. "For Stone and Parker, Closetgate will be the gift that keeps on giving," it said. https://web.archive.org/web/20090829233625/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/south-park-declares-war-on-tom-cruise-470502.html 29 August 2009 en August 23, 2006 Anu Anand Congo, Iran & Tom Cruise w:BBC World Service http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2006/08/congo_iran_tom_cruise.html Viacom says it's dropping actor Tom Cruise for his strange behaviour. You fans will remember the South Park 'Closetgate' episode and 'couch incident' on the popular talk show, The Oprah Winfrey Show of May 23, 2005. https://web.archive.org/web/20260208120543/https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldhaveyoursay/2006/08/congo_iran_tom_cruise.html 8 February 2026 en 2009 David Lake The 10 Most Controversial 'South Park' Episodes w:MSN TV http://tv.msn.com/controversial-south-park-episodes/ Dubbed Closetgate, Comedy Central, a network owned by Viacom, pulled a rerun of this Emmy-nominated episode, supposedly under pressure from Tom Cruise, who threatened to bail out of promoting his upcoming film "Mission: Impossible III," which was being released by Paramount, a division of Viacom. 8 December 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090406014448/http://tv.msn.com/controversial-south-park-episodes/ 6 April 2009 en 2009 Tom Cruise - Biography w:Turner Classic Movies http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant.jsp?spid=41706 Matt Stone and Trey Parker – the show’s fearless creators – were not afraid to call out Cruise on his power play – being dubbed “Closetgate” by The L.A. Times – even taking out ads, proclaiming tongue-in-cheek that they themselves were "servants of Xenu" and that the "million-year war for Earth" had only just begun, presumably now that their show had been screwed with backdoor deals. https://web.archive.org/web/20100717063055/http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/participant.jsp?spid=41706 17 July 2010 en 2009 Off-screen antics cost Cruise w:Herald-Sun http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/gallery-0-1111119484601?page=2 Loony toon ... Controversy erupted in March over a South Park episode that made light of Tom's religion, Scientology. The LA Times dubbed it "Closetgate" as Comedy Central pulled the episode at the last minute. Quotations en Related terms en -gate en Watergate en closet References en Historical events Scientology South Park