By Jon Swartz
A top Apple Inc. executive is reportedly leaving the company after a TikTok video, in which he boasted of fondling “big-breasted women” for a living, went viral.
Tony Blevins, Apple’s /zigman2/quotes/202934861/composite AAPL +1.01% vice president of procurement in charge of cutting deals with suppliers and partners, appeared in a Sept. 5 video as part of a series where owners of expensive cars describe their occupations. When asked about his job, Blevins — in an apparent spoof of the 1981 movie “Arthur” — cracked, “I have rich cars, play golf and fondle big-breasted women, but I take weekends and major holidays off.” He also boasted of having a “hell of a dental plan.”
His co-workers did not find it humorous, according to a Bloomberg News report . Following an internal investigation into the matter, Blevins’s team of about half a dozen direct reports and several hundred other employees were removed from his supervision, according to the report.
Apple did not immediately respond to an email message seeking comment. Blevins confirmed the incident to Bloomberg, saying, “I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely apologize to anyone who was offended by my mistaken attempt at humor.”
In the movie “Arthur” starring Dudley Moore, his character described his career: “I race cars, play tennis and fondle women, but I have weekends off and I am my own boss.”
The 25-second video — reportedly shot at a car show last month in Pebble Beach, Calif. — collected more than 1.3 million views on TikTok. It also became a topic of angry discussion among Apple employees, who reportedly noted that Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook and Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams have publicly championed workforce diversity and the empowerment of women, according to Bloomberg’s anonymous sources.
A 22-year veteran of Apple, Blevins played a crucial role in reducing the costs of many critical parts that go into Apple’s mobile devices. He also helped negotiate Apple’s satellite agreement with Globalstar Inc. /zigman2/quotes/209248302/composite GSAT +0.68% , as well as deals over cellular modems with Intel Corp. /zigman2/quotes/203649727/composite INTC +2.13% and Qualcomm Inc. /zigman2/quotes/206679220/composite QCOM +2.29% .
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