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Clarifying the Story Behind the Laundered Wig, Georgie Speaks Out

Millions of people watched the appearance of Mendi and Heidi on The Peoples Court over last few weeks, both on national TV and on the internet. The ‘trial’ ended with Judge Marilyn Milian accusing the Jewish couple of lying, embarrassing the two, and causing a Chillul Hashem of “epic proportions” as we called it. And most concluded that the Jewish couple indeed attempted to defraud the cleaners, but the story is not as straightforward as it seemed.

In an interview with Rabbi Yair Hoffman for Vos Iz Neias he spoke with the Georgie who actually sold the wig, and had an email correspondence with Shlomo Klein of Georgie International Wigs. Klien confirmed that he received a call from the judge, and that he did not recognize the couple. Georgie on the other hand confirmed the couple’s story.

by Rabbi Yair Hoffman

For those seeking truth, the evidence points strongly to the following progression of events:

There are two Georgie companies – as a result of a divorce. Heidi purchased a high end wig from “Georgie the woman” in May. This is Georgie’s statement to me in the enclosed video. I believe her. There is strong compelling evidence for this as well from the appointment book which was shown to me by Georgie. This appears toward the end of the Youtube video. It seems pretty clear that it was not planned. One week later Heidi had another appointment for the original wig. There is strong, compelling evidence for this.

Sometime in July, the wig and the laundromat incident occurred. There is strong evidence that it occurred with the wig that appeared in the Court TV case. Georgie herself claims that it happened with the wig that she made. There is very strong evidence that this is the case.

I don’t think Georgie would lie for her at all. Georgie is a very well respected reputable woman. The conversations I had with her, the new material she showed me, the appointment books, all this indicates that she is extremely trustworthy. For Georgie to be part of an elaborate charade would mean that she is extremely devious and has a criminal mind. Heidi and Mendi do not strike me as having been capable of creating such a hoax at all.

Georgie made Heidi a new wig with one from a customer who did not come in and pay for the wig that she had ordered. This was, according to Georgie, the new wig she now uses.

The judge on Court TV first called Sylvia, Georgie’s assistant, who told the judge that, yes, Heidi purchased a wig from Georgie. Georgie herself was, in fact, away in France at the time the show was taped.

The judge had asked Sylvia to confirm the receipt. Sylvia responded that she was not in the office and the call was forwarded to her cell.

This next paragraph is conjecture:

It is likely that the judge then Googled the company named Georgie and made a second phone call. She spoke to someone at the other Georgie Company. That person said that the markings on the wig are not from a wig that they manufacture.

It is not clear why the judge called the second company. It could be she suspected that the receipt was phony and that the number that was called was just a shill for Heidi and Mendi. When she later said that Georgie confirmed that the wig was purchased by her but not that one the judge was conflating both phone calls.

The proof that a second call was made is confirmed by the email below. Someone at the other Georgie Company, in fact, sent an email to the judge that he was the person who spoke to her.

Heidi and Mendi did not know what hit them. They could not understand nor could they figure out what had happened at all. They were like deer caught in a headlight. The story had to be pieced together by this author. It is difficult to fathom that Heidi and Mendi are so sophisticated that they would leave clues for someone else to figure it out.

I personally have no doubts that these above statements are correct.

It is not possible to ascertain, however, how much the original wig had cost? Heidi and Mendi claim it was $3000. Georgie backs up this amount. The receipt was a replacement receipt.

Is this figure of $3000 inflated and are they both lying?

Consider the following: I had a conversation not long ago with a sheitel macher in Bayswater who has a sterling reputation in the Five Towns. A high end sheitel with her cost about $2800, with all the trimmings. It seems reasonable that the very famous “Georgie” charges $3000 for her high end sheitels as well. Other customers of Georgie say that this figure is about right.

Georgie discusses some of these points in the video.

My initial reaction upon seeing the other tape was that this couple was guilty of what the Court TV judge accused them of. I have since reversed myself completely. My belief now is that the judge was not careful at all and did some grandstanding here without looking at the evidence and issues carefully.

Below is the email from the other Georgie company to the People’s Court:

Hello,

My name is Shlomo Klein, VP of OSY Inc (parent company of Georgie Wigs).
I recently came across the You Tube video entitled “Wiggin Out” on YouTUBE.

I believe that I was the one that received a call asking about some marking in a wig and as to whether or not they were a Georgie wig. I answered that they were not.

However, I do not know if you are aware that there are 2 separate entities:

We are Georgie Wigs www.georgiewigs.com, 888-GEORGIE.

Additionally, there is Georgie International. They can be reached at georgiewig@aol.com, or 718-253-3405.

Furthermore, I do not recognize the plaintiff, nor the type of receipt shown in the video.
I hope this clarifies any mix up.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any further questions.

Thank You,
Shlomo Klein

I believe that the reputation of this couple has been irreparably damaged. Their error was in going on television to this court in the first place.

The author can be reached at yairhoffman2@gmail.com

This was republished with permission from Vos Iz Neias.

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47 Comments

  • .E

    I feel really sorry for this couple. Their name has truly been besmirched. I don’t remember reading a single comment on any website that cast a shadow of doubt on the judges findings. Personally I thought that they could very well have been telling the truth, but when I even attempted to say that people were telling me that I am too gullable. I now wish I had had the guts to write it on every website.
    The judge needs to call them all back in and re-try the case – plus publicly apologize.

  • wow

    WOW. I am admitting that I was not “Dan lkaf zechus”, and I thought, what a chillul hashem they made to make up a whole story to get moeny for a wig. Thank you for bringing this information!

  • shes not speaking clearly

    Georgie is trying to make a good situation out of a bad one…but notice that not all answers are straightforward…
    she would have been better off leaving well enough alone and letting this chillul Hashem just go away..

  • cma

    Thank you for publishing this. The story should never have been published in the first place. I have personally been involved in loshon horo regarding this story.

    I hope crownheights.info has learned their lesson. I hope I’ve learned mine.

  • Reverse Chillul Hashem

    Sue Sue Sue, Big bucks and the way media will properly reverse the chillul hashem. If you have the right lawyer think every Jew in the would could claim money.

  • mother in ch

    Thank you crownheights.info for publishing the other side of the story!!!!!!!!! It teaches us all a lesson in being melamed zchus

  • Kop Doktar

    Why did these foolish people go to People’s “Court”?? If they had a real claim, they could have gone to Small Claims COurt with a real judge and rules of evidence and procedure! Their 15 minutes of fame made them infamous, their enjoyment of the limelight ended up disgracing them and klal yisroel. This episode caused more damage than any anti-semite would be able to accomplish. I am sure they intended no harm, but better to have a wise enemy than a foolish friend.

  • What do they say

    Did anybody get in contact with the people’s court, will they make a retrial, what do they say to all this?

  • tables turned

    OMG – we must be so careful with what we do in public, what we say and how we judge others!

  • ashamed

    I don’t think i ever felt so guilty in my life. Please try to found out their email and post it, so we can apologize for not believing them. Thank you

  • Shmuli

    I think this shows how we must be Don Lchaf Zchus. I was shocked when I saw all the negative comments in the original article.

    Our biggest problem in Lubavitch is the fact that we both speak to each other privately, and use the websites to spread Loshon Horoh and Motzi Shem Ra. These are Jewish concepts, not Litvishe concepts. They are also issurim D’oraiso, not D’rabbonon.

    I think the lesson here is to stop speaking and writing Loshon Horoh. This will make a Kli to bring Moshiach much more than learning Inyonei G’ulah U’moshiach or saying Yechi.

    An analogy would be that if a building has a faulty foundation, adding more paint to the walls won’t stop the building from collapsing.

  • crown heights

    dont judge why cant they just let it go why make a big deal about this i think she is just covering up for her to save face

  • to 14

    amen you are right..i always get so annoyed when i hear litvish ppl talking about lashon horah 24/7; however we do need to acknowledge that we all have a problem with it and should work on it!

    but i do not understand your analogy

  • This interview is a lie

    These people are clearly lying. Georgie avoids questions like a politician, skirting the issues instead of answering directly. Also, why did the couple not defend themselves to the reporter when they got out of the courtroom?
    Georgie speaks about how Heidi did not have anything but a scarf to wear, but on the show, Heidi talks about a “fall” that she has at home.
    Heidi also called this wig “mid-range” in price and said the more expensive ones are $5000. I have never heard of a $3000 wig being called “mid-range” by anyone and I have never heard of a wig going up to $5000.

  • confused

    she said she had to make a wig overnight b/c heidi had nothing to wear..but heidi said on the show that she has 3 wigs and that was her only LONG one…..??

  • STOP LOSHON HORA AND JUDGING NOW!

    WHO EVER HERE IS JUDGING OR SAYING LOSHON HORA STOP IT NOW!

    i agree with the ONES who say only good about this thing because its not nice to judge or say LOSHON HORA so BE CAREFUL i agree with Georgie………..

  • ashamed to

    vat about the revlon label on the first wig? its a chillul hashem of the worst kind. go already.

  • WHY?

    My question is why did this woman have to sue the cleaners so publicly to begin with? whos public business is this?

  • to #4

    what do you mean “let this chillul hashem just go away” we are talking about people that their names and reputations were besmurched and its still up there for people to see and condemn, by people like you and then when they are giving you the truth you run from it like a mad man on fire where’s your jewish pity??? i think they must take down the video and do a re-trail so that the judge can bring out the truth and apologies in person for ruining their names!!!

  • Shmuli

    To #16

    Analogy is that if the building has a faulty foundation (i.e. we speak loshon horoh about one another – the issur is a cornerstone of Yiddishkeit), adding paint (learning about Moshiach) won’t help to fortify the building. A strong building is what we need to bring Moshiach.

    It’s a pessimistic analogy, but unfortunately we kind of need to fix our foundations.

  • Naive guy

    Do you belive in the tooth fairy? Do you belive in Santa Claus?
    Is a joke grown ups believing that this is real.
    Bad publicity is good publicity not only frum women care about wigs.
    Is a biz, no one is exhibited without compesation on TV , if you belive that is because thank G-d you don’t watch TV and is ok, but please dont make comments about foreign concepts for you.
    Don’t judge , as devils advocate if you were generous as community old people and this couple will not have the need to play fool for $500 bucks that may help them a lot, this is a poor reflection in all of us, we are BS if we don’t help others, BTW this is an old show…

  • Empire

    Watch the video at the 8:10 mark in the video, Sylvia, the assistant says in Russian “ reveal to him….” at which Georgie furiously starts to shake her head and the video cuts at that point straight to Georgie being across the room presenting her appointment book. Why is that entire part edited out and what is she hiding?

  • ASHAMED OF OUR ISSUES

    Georgie said that she had nothing to where on her head so she made her a new wig ……………………….HELLO!! in court she said she had ONE wig and ONE fall!?! ok every body know they are full of it. it make me sick to see when jews have an issue and all they try to do is cover it up. Its done with most issues like ABUSE, LYING, STEALING, DRUGS, CHEATING and SHALOM BAYIS. yes there will all way be issuses in a community but there is NOTHING to be embarrassed of if your working on them and taking care of your problems! when nothing is done ONLY more people get hurt, kids and adults. adults playing ‘hide-in-go-seek’ IS NOT A GAME its the biggist issue. rabbis teachers and parents wake up!! When you see signs, and letters and storys about “awareness” thats some thing to be PROUD of.

  • #4 to #24

    If you saw the ‘court case’ you would know that the wig brought to court was a shamatteh…revlon wig. Georgie is being untruthful in the video above, evading the important questions.

  • Rochel

    Heidi said on TV she had ONE FALL (which got ruined) and ONE FULL WIG.
    Now, Georgie’s version of a custom wig which was destroyed and replaced within 24 hours is a totally different story!
    What’s going on?
    I have never heard of a Georgie’s fall costing $3,000, and carrying the label of Revlon?
    Have you?

  • is she being truthful?

    this video doesnt seem truthful. Georgies adds too much hype and other details instead of just giving facts.

    ya, what does the assistant want to reveal when she speaks in russian?

    Georgie has no proof of a new shaitel except for her word.

  • Disgusted

    She is kind of pathetic….crying….trying to make it all emotional and trying to get you to feel sympathetic. Get over it she is a lying wig maker…..her body language frequent eye batting heart rapidly beating…..everyone could tell she is simply a liar. She cant even look directly in the camera! Stop lying you will stop “hurting”.

  • Lawyer

    The “People’s Court” is not a real court, nor anything like a real court. It is a TV show meant solely to entertain and generate advertising revenue. People go on it because they get paid for doing so. Once they do they are at the show’s mercy. In a real court the judge would have been immediately disqualified from hearing the case if she had made an ex parte phone calls to do her own “investigation.” The couple was then left with no way to know whom the judge even called, nor were they given a fair opportunity to present their own evidence to show they were being truthful. Any lawyer watching the show would have thought it was a kangaroo court. Those who go on the show, and watch it, should know it is nothing like a real court.

  • great readership!

    BS”D

    Great readership!
    Dear CH.info this is the first list of posts where the readership is expressing genuine remorse for having judged wrongly.
    Of course there is always the possibility that there is an epic cover up but this story a) rings true and b) is more than anyone needs to be dan lekaf zechus.
    I am truly saddened by comments in other circles completely bashing this couple and trying to use every possible clue to find them guilty.
    As far as I am concerned, that hatred and quick judgment is the true chillul HaShem.

  • me!

    yup nothing to do with dan lkaf zchus!!!
    its all planned!!! well dont know why youre in wigs woman….
    and if it was the truth heidi wouldnt have been shaking in court!

  • Lesson!

    The lesson from all this is: Please lets start acting like frum Jews! No need to go on National Television, No need to eat Chalav Akum, No need to trim your beard, don’t try to act like an American Goy…! Be proud of being A Charedi Yid – don’t copy the Goyim…

  • to #18

    How do you know that she didn’t recently buy the fall! Maybe then she didn’t have anything else to wear. Lets work on our ahavas yisrael and being dan l’kaf zechus!

  • TO # 36!!!!!!

    IT ALL COMES DOWN TO BEING HONEST REGARDLESS HOW RELIGIOUS YOU ARE.
    BTW….. YOU CAN STILL BE A FRUM JEW IF YOU EAT CHALAV AKUM AND SHAVE YOUR BEARD.

  • OY VEY

    I actually in the middle of a law suit against an elected member of the CHJCC who i will remain nameless. when i recieved something in the mail about going to The Peoples Court, Judge Joe Brown and Swift justice with Nancy, my first thought was… cool a paid vacation to LA, then i thought … that would suck to make a CHILUL HASHEM. B”H IM suing in NYS court. PS i would sue in a bais din if there were Dyanim who were versed in NYS CPLR an CPL.

  • m w

    I feel so ashamed that I misjudged them… I hope they can get back all or some of the money they lost in this sad story.

    Good luck!

  • #24 to #4 / #29

    i can not figure out what you mean. she says exactly what happen’s (and most of happened) to the shaitel when thrown in a washing machine and she says that she couldn’t recognize the one i made (and well for good reason look at the difference between the 1 on her head which was made the same way and the 1 that come’s out of a washing machine) any shaitel would look like that a $5 one or a $5000 one either way the other people took her custom made $3000 shaitel and totally destroyed it! there’s a mishna in pirkei ovos “hevai dan lekaf zechus” if even after they prove themselves to you, you are still skeptic then you gotta check up with your mashpia to become morre of a chosid and follow the milei de’chsidusa!!! here’s my blessing that you shouldn’t just say that fine they are right but that you shouuld feel it deep down! (thats real ahavas yisroel)

  • to # 18

    not true she said she had ONE wig and ONE fall and it could be that she doesn’t wear the fall

  • SAY SORRRY!!!!!!

    I THINK THAT INSTEAD OF THEM TRYING TO COVER UP THEIR HUGE MISTAKE, THEY SHOULD FACE THE TRUTH AND MAKE A PUBLIC APOLOGY FOR THE CHILLUL HASHEM,AND MASSIVE FOOLS THEY MADE OF THEMSELVES….THAT WILL BE THE BEGINNING OF SOME CLOSURE!
    THE ABOVE VIDEO WITH GEORGI DOESNT MAKE ANY SENSE, IT IS ANOTHER STUPID ATTEMPT TO NUMB THE SITUATION!!!

    ONE LIE LEADS TO ANOTHER!

  • to 35

    you’d be shaking to if you were accused of lying in a court of law in front of tons of people and its going on TV. they’re yidden just like you and me and if your judging them like that well,im afraid my friend that your not being any better then them and we don’t know if for sure they lied and we should just trust them because they’re yidden and as yidden we have faith in each other- we’re one family we should trust one another i don’t know who these people are but i believe them.And now instead of talking bad about these people who you don’t even know go out and try and bring moshiach.