ISAIAH WASHINGTON - WASHINGTON: 'I TRIED TO RESIGN'

WASHINGTON: 'I TRIED TO RESIGN'

Sacked GREY'S ANATOMY star ISAIAH WASHINGTON has revealed he twice tried to resign from the show following the fuss caused by the gay slur he uttered during an on-set fight - but TV bosses wouldn't let him walk. The actor made his first full television interview appearance since his firing on CNN's Larry King Live on Monday (02Jul07) - and confessed he's still reeling from his departure from the show. Washington is annoyed because he offered to do the right thing after using the word 'faggot' in a row with co-star Patrick Dempsey last year (Oct07) - and then repeating it at the Golden Globe Awards earlier this year (07). The scandal outraged gay groups and prompted gay co-star T.R. Knight to 'come out'. Washington agreed to publicly apologise for his comments and met with gay community leaders to ask their forgiveness - and then he offered to quit. He told King, "I expected something. I didn't know that it would happen (firing) because I resigned. I tried to resign twice." Washington also used his chat with King to reiterate the fact he's not anti-gay. He claims an unfortunate word simply slipped out in the heat of the moment and the fight was leaked to the press. He added, "I am not homophobic, no way, shape and form... I made a huge error in judgment." During the interview with King, Washington broke down as he talked about the support he has received from his castmates. He fought back tears as he explained, "I got a wonderful email from Sandra Oh from Spain."