this is "nightline." >> tonight, all fight. >> i'm attorney gloria allred. >> a fierce advocate for equal rights, attorney gloria allred opens up about the private pain that inspires her public activism. >> i was faced with the unfortunate choice of having an illegal, unsafe abortion. >> reporter: her decades of challenging powerful men that helped pave the way for today's "me too" movement. plus, burning up the ice. team usa's adam rippon dazzling at the olympics, becoming the first openly gay athlete to compete for america in the winter games. >> there's still sort of a taboo, that being gay means you are weaker. that is absolutely not the case. >> his rise from his personal

rock bottom to figure skating sensation. and picture perfect. the official portraits of president obama and the former first lady unveiled today. already inspiring some hilarious memes on social media. but it's what the president said about michelle's painting that has everyone feeling the love. but first, the "nightline" 5. number 1 in just 60 seconds.

good evening. thanks for joining us. gloria allred can be your best friend or worst nightmare. for decades she's relentlessly pursued equality and justice for women while wreaking havoc on corporations and powerful men. tonight she shares the personal pain that gave her the fire to fight and why she says she'll never stop. >> reporter: her signature press conferences. >> thank you for coming today. i'm attorney gloria allred. >> i'm attorney gloria allred. >> gloria allred. >> groria allred. >> reporter: sending shutters down the spine of the very rich, very powerful men her clients are taking on. helping to usher in the me too movement. >> roman polanski. >> donald trump. >> harvey weinstein. >> it appears that bill cosby thinks he is far from finished. but he should know that we are

also far from finished with him. >> you were voted most persistent in high school. >> i was. >> reporter: persistent is perhaps the perfect word to describe firebrand attorney gloria allred. >> women depend on me to be strong. >> reporter: her lifelong feminism now the subject o of a highly touted new netflix documentary, "seeing allred." you say early in the movie there's a war on women. >> there is a war on women. and it has real-life consequences. >> reporter: a lot of your critics say oh, she's so theatrical, she's looking for the spotlight. >> i do believe that women must have a voice in the court of public opinion. so i make no apologies about that whatsoever. >> reporter: she says she resorts to public shaming because for many of her clients, including dozens of bill cosby accusers the statute of limitations means they've missed their day in court. >> at first i was not going to get involved because i thought it's too late for me to file a

legal claim. but then as i listened to the women i understood they wanted to have a voice and they wanted to speak out. so ultimately i said okay, i'll do it. >> justice is long overdue for these brave women. and they will be silent no more. >> reporter: but what you may not know is fighting for equal rights for all has been a four-decade crusade for allred. >> she's trying to turn women into men! >> i think secretly you envy women and you fear them. >> reporter: and yet it's her painful life experiences that became a blueprint for her legal career. her struggles as a single mom. >> not paying your child support. >> reporter: her story of being raped at gunpoint in her 20s while on vacation. >> in the "me too" movement is this idea that women either don't report or delay reporting a sexual assault? >> i didn't report. i didn't know why anybody would believe me over what was sure to be his denial. >> reporter: allred says the rape resulted in an unwanted

pregnancy. >> i was one of millions of women who was faced with the unfortunate choice of having an illegal, unsafe abortion. and this is before roe v. wade, which meant that women like me had to go to back alley butchers, so to speak, who were not licensed. >> reporter: soon after she says she began suffering from massive complications. >> i was admitted to the hospital with a 106 fever. i had to be packed in ice. i was bleeding. and a nurse came and said, this will teach you a lesson. the lesson that it taught me ultimately was this must never happen again to anyone's daughter or mother or sister. instead of being stuck in the

pain caused by the injustice inflicted on you, take that rage and use it as a source of energy to propel you forward to constructive change. >> reporter: allred has been a vocal critic of sexism. >> it's "the dinah show"! >> reporter: way back in the '70s on "the dinah shore show," she was cast as a radical. >> i'm an attorney in los angeles. >> there's a list of what one husband would want from his life. have a meal prepared within an hour and 6, be atired in a negligee. how would you feel if your husband presented you with a list like that? >> well, dinah, i think we have a uterus and a brain and they both work. and i think it's very insulting to women. >> i think you ought to be definite about this. don't just tiptoe around it. >> reporter: she's provided a steady drumbeat, challenging a culture where many laughed at sexual harassment. >> we don't think that our daughters should have to trade sexual favors in order to get a raise. >> why not?

we did. how do you think we get on this show? [ laughter ] >> i want to see you in my dressing room after the show. >> reporter: more recently she represents an ongoing case against president trump. >> today i filed a lawsuit against donald trump for defamati defamation. >> reporter: president trump claims his remarks were protected political speech and not defamatory. allred also represents 33 of the more than 50 women who've accused bill cosby of sexual assault. cosby has denied all allegations against him. >> this is unprecedented. for so many women who allege that they are victims of one rich powerful famous man to have spoken out. in the 40 years of law practice that i've been engaged in, i've never seen anything like this. >> reporter: but she's been slammed throughout her career by those who call her attention-seeking for having tabloid-friendly clients. like the porn star who claimed to be tiger woods's mistress. >> with me is my client, jocelyn

james, also known as veronica swift daniels. >> reporter: so amber frye, the ex-lover of scott peterson, who at the time was on trial for killing his pregnant wife, lacey. >> i am grateful that gloria allred has agreed to represent me as my attorney. >> how do you choose clients? >> very carefully. >> i was going to say, because there are those clients that are slightly more tawdry, more sort of tablid friendly, who on some level if you put them on the same moral plain as like a bill cosby accuser that that sort of diminishes the cause. >> i'm not sheer to judge women. i'm here to support women. i think there's more than enough judging of women going on and not enough justice for them. >> you were an early advocate for gay rights, marriage equality, transgender rights. >> gloria, i see you drive by here year after year. >> reporter: i was doing gay and lesbian rights, late '70s, early '80s. one of my first public cases was

two women, lesbian life partners, and were denied the right to dine in the section for romantic dining. that was only for opposite sex couples. we litigated that lawsuit. ultimately, we won. >> reporter: the fight for victims' rights runs deep in allred's family. her granddaughter sarah is an attorney. as is gloria's daughter, lisa bloom. but bloom, also seen as a champion of women's rights, has recently come under fire. >> women's rights lawyer lisa bloom taking some heat this morning. >> lisa bloom resigning. >> she is stepping down. >> reporter: representing harvey weinstein against a multitude of accusations. ranging from sexual misconduct to rape. >> did you advise her against it? >> my daughter has a separate law firm, and she makes her own decisions about who her clients are going to be. i'm not here to second-guess her in any way. >> reporter: bloom has since resigned as weinstein's attorney in the midst of the controversy. she later told buzzfeed news that she realized she'd made a colossal mistake in representing weinstein. >> and you haven't given her any advice following it either?

>> i don't, no. >> reporter: now 76 years old, retirement for allred is nowhere in sight. >> what fuels you? what makes you work that hard. >> the gandhi quote you that must be the change you wish to see in the world. so i need to live that change, and i do feel i have a duty to help others, to pass it on. and we must pass it on. up next, the figure skating star sticking a triple axel on his way to olympic glory. becoming the first openly gay athlete to compete for team usa in the winter games. and later, the president has a few complaints about his official portrait. touch is how we communicate with those we love, but when your psoriasis is bad, does it ever get in the way? embrace the chance of 100% clear skin with taltz. taltz is proven to help people with moderate

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♪ you know, figure skater adam rippon says he's had his eye on the olympics since he was a kid. now after being passed over for a spot on team usa in 2010 and again in 2014 his dream is finally coming true. and he's making history by becoming the first openly gay athlete to compete for america in the winter games. here's abc's matt gutman. >> reporter: it was a performance as smooth as the ice he skated on. >> so solid. >> reporter: adam rippon wearing his emotions on that sequined sleeve, dazzling the crowd. [ cheers and applause ] the american cleanly landing two triple axels, helping to propel team usa to the bronze medal,

and instantly launching rippon himself into that prized olympic darling status. and even that bronze wasn't without controversy. rippon's fans quick to point out that the first and second place skaters both fell. but the judges awarded them more points because their routines had a higher level of difficulty. but so many claiming that rippon was ripped off and turning to social media, making it the world's top trending topic overnight. one person tweeting, "do the judges award extra points for falling?" technical difficulty notwithstanding, he addressed the backlash with his trademark sass in a conversation with our amy robach. >> i think we need to get those people who think that i was ripped off on a judging panel immediately. >> you -- >> maybe before the individual competition. >> reporter: and rippon wasn't the only hero for team usa. his beloved teammate, mirai nagasu, made history when she became the first american woman to land a triple axel at the

olympics. >> oh! >> wow. >> reporter: it took her years to perfect that move. the result evident in that triumphant smile. >> do you try to convey the feeling of a triple axel, it is a fast jump. the faster you spin the harder it is to basically breathe because there's so much force. >> reporter: mirai ultimately placing second in her team event. but what is no doubt gold is the relationship between mirai and adam and the journey that led them to pyeongchang. at just 16 she was selected for the vancouver olympics, narrowly missing the podium. rippon was a relative late bloomer. he says he was awkward and unathletic. >> i fell in love with skating because of the performance aspect. you know, growing up, i sucked at every sport that i tried. but i loved being active. i loved playing sports. and finally, when i found skating, it was sort of like a

combination of something where i felt i could perform but i was also getting that like athletic satisfaction. >> reporter: adam working his way through the competition circuit became a second alternate for the 2010 olympics. but adam and mirai's friendship was forged by bitter heartbreak they shared when both athletes were passed over for sochi in 2014. rippon remembers he and mirai both eating burgers together and crying. but they kept going. rippon saying there was a time he subsisted on three apples from his gym, a low point in his life. but now he says he has found his authentic self. >> you don't get to have those highs if you don't push yourself, you know, to be vulnerable and to have setbacks in training because that's kind of what makes everything all worth it. >> reporter: and he continued to develop what he would become known for, his artistry during performances. ♪ like diamonds in the sky here he is singing "diamonds" on

the ice at the grand prix final in japan last year. and now at 28 rippon is the oldest american rookie singles skater since 1936. and he's not just representing himself. >> it's almost shocking that it took to 2018 for you to be the first openly gay male for the winter olympics. >> you know, i think in 2018 there's still sort of a taboo that being gay means you are weaker or being gay doesn't mean that you'll fight or that you're strong. and that is absolutely not the case. >> reporter: in his corner here in pyeongchang so many including his mom, kelly rippon, who is a single mother of six. >> what are you proud of most? >> one, i'm proud that he kept with it and persevered over the last four years. oh. >> that's them? >> yes. >> you face time? >> it is. >> reporter: even on face time the olympic village roommates are seemingly inseparable. >> you guys were great.

>> reporter: but rippon also has developed a special bond with fellow olympian skier gus kenworthy. he is the second openly gay american man to compete in these games, who tweeted out support for his teammate, sharing this moment and writing, "very proud of this guy." the two walking together into the olympic stadium for the opening ceremony. and rippon using his platform to take that political stand. reportedly refusing to meet with vice president mike pence because of his stance on gay rights. >> i personally don't have anything to say to mike pence. right now i have a voice and i think it's really important for me to use it. >> reporter: but adam isn't hanging up his skates yet here in south korea. both he and mirai will compete in the individual events later in the games. >> how are you going to celebrate? >> i'm going to go to target. and i'm going to get a bottle of sauvignon blanc oyster boy with

a twist top. >> i like it. that sounds like a plan. >> immediately. >> reporter: but it's clear that no matter how they do some things aren't going to change. >> no more burgers eaten on the roof, right? >> actually, we might have a celebration. >> reporter: for "nightline" i'm matt gutman in pyeongchang, south korea. up next, just in time for valentine's day, president obama's romantic remarks about his wife's official portrait and what he wishes was different about his own. ♪ we the people... are defined by the things we share. and the ones we love. who never stop wondering what we'll do or where we'll go next. we the people who are better together than we are alone...

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and finally tonight, a picture perfect family. >> whoo! >> the official portraits for president obama and the former first lady unveiled today, and they are anything but garden variety. social media lighting up over this untraditional background, celebrating with some hilarious memes. some joking the artist was inspired by obama gal pal

beyonce. the president seeming pleased with his portrait. >> that's pretty sharp. >> but he did have a few complaints. >> i tried to negotiate less gray hair. i tried to negotiate smaller ears. >> as usual, he was much more flattering when it came to his wife. >> i want to thank you for so spectacularly capturing the grace and beauty and intelligence and charm and hotness. of the woman that i love. >> and adding to the hotness, a historic milestone. these are the first official presidential and first lady portraits painted by african-american artists. kehinde wiley and amy cheryld. that's pretty sharp. thanks for watching "nightline." and as always, we're online at our "nightline" facebook page. good night, america.