Written By @cabbagepatchgrl
Page Six reports that a man is taking legal action against his town council for allegedly allowing Beyonce to shoot a video at the local historical site, which he calls “sacred ground.”
In court papers obtained by Page Six, Mike Gaynor says that neither Beyonce nor Disney had permission to film the visual “Black Is King” at Sylvester Manor, which was home to a former slave trader named Nathaniel Sylvester.
According to Gayner, Sylvester was a “top a-hole and CEO of a worldwide slave-hunting and trading operation,” but he does believe that the site demands respect because slaves are buried there.
Last Wednesday, Gayner filed a suit in the New York Supreme court against the town, and the town’s trustees, and the Community Preservation Fund Board members.
Last year alone, he donated over $30,000 to the manor.
“I have official confirmation from the town clerk that no permits were obtained,” he told Page Six. “I was deeply offended when I learned that The Manor took money from Disney to allow the film … on what is without argument on wholly sacred ground.” He added, “Please know that there are at least 200+ enslaved Africans and Manhasset Indians buried on their land, and so that’s just not a place where you film a dance-off.”
He believes that the council let Beyonce knowingly film without permits. He said, “There’s no way they would have allowed her to turn up without knowing — I believe in fact the town did know about this and the town was signed up on an NDA so that the Manor and the town could make money.”
In August, the manor staff confirmed that they did, in fact, host Beyonce and that they helped her choose locations. They say the superstar insisted on the location because of the manor’s history.
However, a source said that Disney apparently did not have a hand in the filming locations because they had bought the completed movie from an independent production company.
Representatives for the Shelter Island Town Council and Beyonce have yet to comment.
The town’s supervisor, Gerry stiller, said it was ‘preposterous’ to think that the town received a secret payment. He said: “The first time anyone in Town Hall was made aware of the film shoot at Sylvester Manor was when an article was written about it in the local paper, The Shelter Island Reporter. The article referenced the film that had been made in the summer of 2019 and recently released.” He added, “When we learned that no permit or application for a permit had been requested, we met with Sylvester Manor, which apologized for the mistake; they had assumed that the film company had completed the required paperwork, which it had not done.”
