Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 3/23/09

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 12 No. 12 March 23, 2009
Newsletter Editor: OnQYB@aol.com

The Fine Print

See previous issues


The Gay Agenda: Datebook: March 23-29, 2009

This Just In !!! THU: 3/19: New York, NY: NGLJA Headlines and Headliners Benefit at CNN. 14th annual edition. Soledad O'Brien hosts. http://www.nlgja.org/newyork09.htm

This Just In !!! SAT: 3/21: New York, NY: Night of a Thousand Gowns, the 23rd annual charity ball and silent auction to benefit LIFEbeat—The Music Industry Fights AIDS and MCCNY Homeless Youth Services. Performers for the benefit will include Michelle Williams, Christopher Sieber, Lea DeLaria, Ari Gold and Kelly King. www.icny.org/tickets.

MON: 3/23: New York, NY: Legends, a reading of the infamous James Kirkwood comedy with Charles Busch, Lypsinka, Whoopi Goldberg and Bryan ("Mad Men") Batt. Fran Lebowitz narrates. A benefit for Friends in Deed: The Crisis Center for Life-Threatening Illness. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/125984.html

TUE: 3/24: New York, NY: Arthur Laurents, the out director, does a reading and booksigning of his new book, "Mainly on Directing: Gypsy, West Side Story, and Other Musicals". 7:30PM. Barnes & Noble, Lincoln Triangle. www.bn.com.

WED-SUN: 3/25-3/29: Keystone, CO: OutBoard, annual LGBT snowboarding festival. www.outboard.org

WED: 3/25: New York, NY: Nathaniel Frank, author of "Unfriendly Fire: How the Gay Ban Undermines the Military and Weakens America" does a reading and booksigning. 7PM. LGBT Community Center. http://www.unfriendlyfire.org/events.php

FRI: 3/27: New York, NY: The Big Gay Sing: A Sing-a-long Extravaganza. Scott Nevins, the New York City Gay Men's Chorus and the audience sing some gay faves. www.biggaysing.com.

FRI: 3/27: Dallas, TX: Del Shores, author of "Sordid Lives" and "Trials and Tribulations of a Trailer Trash Housewife", unveils his one-man show "Del Shores: The Storyteller". www.delshores.net.

SAT: 3/28/: New York, NY: 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. Tyra Banks and Suze Orman to be honored. www.glaad.org

SAT-SUN: 3/28-3/29: Pittsburgh, PA: Pennsylvania Volleyball Steel City Classic, a NAGVA-sanctioned vball tourney. www.SteelCityVolleyball.org
www.edgepublications.com.

Newsworthy:

Coming Out: West Point Grads Come Out to show support of the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell". The Navy Times reports on Knights Out, a group of 38 graduates of West Point, who came out on 3/16/09 and offered to serve as liaisons between alumni and Army administrators as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is in the process of being repealed as well as a support group for LGBT US Military Academy active duty alumni, cadets, and their families. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2009/03/38-west-point-grads-come-out-of-the-closet-in-show-of-force.html

"Laramie Project" Costs Oklahoma Teacher Her Job. Gay rights groups are complaining about the firing of a rural Oklahoma high school teacher who lost her job last week after assigning "The Laramie Project" the play abo9ut the murder of Matthew Shepard, to her students. USAToday reports: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-03-16-teacher-laramie_N.htm

Record-Breaking Benefit: Stars from ABC’s “All My Children,” “One Life to Live,” and “General Hospital” performed at the 5th Annual ABC Daytime and SOAPnet Salutes Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS benefit on 3/09/09, raising an all time record of $330,000 bringing the cumulative total to nearly $1.5 million dollars since the shows inception in 2005. www.broadwaycares.org

Awards and Honors:

Lambda Literary Awards Finalists have been announced. There are 105 finalists from 72 publishers. Winners will be announced on 5/28/09. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2009/03/21st-annual-lambda-literary-award-finalists-announced.html

In Memoriam:

James Purdy, the American writer, whose works frequently addressed gay issues, died on 3/13/09 at age 94. He was best known for his novel "Malcolm" which was adapted for the stage by Edward Albee. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/14/books/14purdy.html?_r=1

Natasha Richardson, the actress, died on 3/18/09 at age 45, following a ski accident. She was the daughter of Vanessa Redgrave and Tony Richardson, the bi-director who was one of the first high profile entertainment industry people to die from HIV/AIDS. Natasha was a major AIDS activist in New York, and involved with amFAR. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2009/03/natasha-richardson-actress-and-advocate-for-people-with-aids-dies.html

Features

Profile: Arthur Laurents. "When You're a Shark, You're a Shark All The Way". The 91 year old Broadway author/director made a revival of his "Gypsy" Broadway's hot ticket last season. Now, he's doing the same with "West Side Story" which opens this week. New York Magazine reports: http://nymag.com/arts/theater/profiles/55341/

San Francisco: An Alternate World. In writer-director Dorothy Adams' new play, "Lead," lesbians rule a world in which all children are born female and men (or "dawgs") are created in a lab. the San Francisco Chronicle reports:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/12/NSE4164LUB.DTL&type=performance

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***Blithe Spirit. Rupert Everett makes his Broadway debut in Noel Coward's ghostly comedy. Angela Lansbury and Christine Ebersole co-star.
***Finian's Rainbow. Cheyenne Jackson stars in the Encores revival of the musical. to 3/29/09. www.nycitycenter.org.
***Gates of Gold. Frank McGuinness' comedy-drama based on Hilton Edwards and Micheal MacLiammoir, partners in business and also in life, who together founded Dublin's Gate Theater in Dublin in 1928. to 3/29/09. www.59e59.org.
***The Gay Agenda's Great Big Broadway Show, presented by Shortened Attention Span who are committed to complete and utter world domination through showtunes. opens 3/25/09 and runs the last Wed. of each month. www.ShortenedAttentionSpan.com
***Hair, The first major American rock musical, which has "sodomy" and other words in its lyrics. www.publictheater.org.
***West Side Story. The acclaimed musicalization of "Romeo & Juliet" in a new production directed by Arthur Laurents. www.broadwaywestsidestory.com.

Elsewhere...

***Act A Lady. A group of men in a small Prohibition-era town cross-dress to perform a play. to 4/26/09. New Conservatory Theatre Pride Season. San Francisco, CA. www.nctcsf.org
***After the Garden: Edith Beale Live at Reno Sweeney Miss Pixie's Backroom Palace, a recreation of Edith (Little Edie) Bouvier Beale's famous nightclub act, which lasted less than a week after "Grey Gardens". to 3/29/09. Washington, DC. www.ganymedearts.org.
***And The Award Goes To...The Gay Mens Chorus of Los Angeles perform Broadway hits. Wilson Cruz guest stars. Miss Coco Peru hosts. 3/28/09-3/29/09. Glendale, CA. www.glcma.org.
***The Andrews Brothers. Roger Bean's musical about three USO stagehands who long to sing with The Andrews Sisters. to 4/26/09. Ft. Lauderdale, FL. www.risingactiontheatre.com
***Blind Faith. a world premiere by Harry Cronin. Two teen boys fall in love in conservative Colorado Springs. to 5/03/09. New Conservatory Theatre Pride Season. San Francisco, CA. www.nctcsf.org
***Grey Gardens, the award-winning musical about mother and daughter Big Edie and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, former society queens turned into recluses with 51 cats.to 5/17/09. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN. www.ordway.org.
***La Cage Aux Folles. The Jerry Herman/Harvey Fierstein musical based on the film that became "Birdcage".to 3/29/09. Santa Rosa, CA. www.6thstreetplayhouse.com
***Master Class. Barbara Walsh stars as opera diva Maria Callas in Terrence McNally's Tony-Award winning play. to 4/05/09. Millburn, NJ. www.papermill.org.

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Resource: Cine-Queer: GLAAD's Guide to What's LGBT in Film: http://www.glaad.org/eye/cinequeer.php

Out on Screen...

***Ciao. Two men meet after the death of a mutual friend. www.ciaomovie.com.
***Hair: Let the Sunshine In. Pola Rapaport's documentary that traces the roots and legacy of the landmark musical.
***Little Ashes, Paul Morrison's drama about the young lives and loves of Salvador Dali, Luis Bunuel and Frederico Garcia Lorca. www.littleashes-themovie.com.
***The Universe of Keith Haring, a documentary on the late gay pop artist. Now making the rounds of film festivals and independent cinemas.
***Were The World Mine, Tim Gustafson's film about a struggling gay teen in a homophobic town, who fantasizes about a potion that turns the town gay. http://www.weretheworldminefilm.com/

Out On Video & DVD

***Fashion Victims, a 2008 German film, tells the story of a straight fashion designer’s teen son who falls for his father’s biggest rival in the design world.
***FirstOUT International, a collection of gay-themed shorts.
***Laughing Matters: Next Gen, a gay standup comedy documentary that follows Andrea Meyerson putting together the fourth installment of her series of comics for the gay standup circuit.
***Milk, Gus Van Sant's film about gay activist Harvey Milk (Sean Penn).
***Religulous. Bill Maher travels the globe to investigate the current state of world religion, questioning many religious leaders on LGBT rights. www.lionsgate.com/religulous.
***"Rent" Filmed Live on Broadway. Film made of the final performances of the landmark musical New to DVD and Blu-Ray.
***The Yellow Brick Road And Beyond. A feature documentary takes a look at the phenomenon that is The Wizard of Oz, highlighting some of the earliest stage and screen adaptations, and the musical Wicked.

On TV Of Note: All times listed are ET. Check local listings for times in your area.

Resource:TV Gayed, GLAAD's Weekly Guide to What's LGBT on TV: Updated every Friday. www.glaad.org/eye/tv_listings.php

***March: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/
***WED: 3/25: Sir Ian McKellan, out actor and activist takes on Shakespeare's "King Lear". Great Performances on PBS. Check local listings.
***SUN: 3/29: "The Making of Me: John Barrowman". Barrowman, out star of "Torchwood", attempts to discover the origins of his homosexuality in a documentary. 10PM. BBC America. www.bbcamerica.com.

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

3/30/09-4/05/09: Palm Springs, CA: Kraft Nabisco Golf Championship. previously known as the Dinah Shore Golf Championship. women and golf. www.nabiscochampionship.com or www.dinahshoreweekend.com

4/01/09-4/04/09: Kingston, RI: University of Rhode Island GLBTIQQ Symposium. www.uri.edu/glbt/symposium.html

4/09/09-4/11/09: Calgary, AB: Canada Badminton, Bowling, Curling, Running, Swimming, Volleyball Western Cup XXVII, www.westerncup.com

4/09/09-4/12/09: Washington, DC: International Gay Square Dance Clubs Convention. www.iagsdc.org

4/17/09-4/19/09: Minneapolis, MN: 2009 Bisexual Empowerment Conference (BECAUSE) at the University of Minnesota. www.becauseconference.org.

4/17/09-4/19/09: Jersey City, NJ: New Jersey Bowling Gotham Open, an IGBO sponsored gay bowling tournament. www.gothambowling.com

4/17/09: Nationwide: National Day of Silence. The National Day of Silence brings attention to anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment in schools. www.dayofsilence.org

4/18/09-4/19/09: San Diego, CA: Camp Courage. An intensive two-day training to provide grassroots activists the practical, hands-on skills to organize in their communities on marriage equality for same-sex couples. www.couragecampaign.org/campcouragearmy.

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: The Corner Bookstore and More

When we learned that A Different Light Books in West hollywood was closing, it brought to mind the LGBT community's rich heritage of bookstores that served as community centers; organizations that fostered LGBT literature and publishing...

1. Question: Name America's earliest self-styled gay and lesbian bookstore, founded in 1967. Its founder, who was one the organizer's of the first pride march, displayed a sign proclaiming it "a bookshop for the homophile movement". There was also a "gay is good" sticker in the window. Answer: The Oscar Wilde Memorial Bookshop in New York, founded by activist Craig Rodwell. It will unfortunately close on March 29, 2009. Because Rowell refused to stock pornography, at first his entire inventory comprised only about 25 titles.

2. Question: When the entity in Question #1 closes, where will the oldest operating bookstore in North America be located ? Answer: Toronto, Ontario, which is home to the Glad Day Bookshop, Canada's oldest LGBT bookstore, which opened in 1970.

3. Question: Name this national non-profit devoted to the promotion, preservation and publication of LGBT literature. Its mission is the promotion of LGBT literacy in the widest possible sense. An annual award program (scheduled for May, 2009) puts the organization on the national map. Answer: The Lambda Literary Foundation. lambdaliterary.org

4. Question: Name this worker-owned feminist bookstore, the oldest continuously-operating independent feminist bookstore in the USA. Its name is the same as a mega-seller who has put many independent booksellers out of business. Answer: Amazon Feminist Bookstore in Minneapolis, MN, founded in 1970. www.amazonfembks.com

5. Question: Name this LGBT American literary magazine, which began publishing in 1976. It was known both for its serious discussion of issues within the gay community and its satire of anti-gay criticism, It also featured original fiction from then up-and-coming authors like Andrew Holleran. After over 230 issues, it closed in 1995. Answer: Christopher Street

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: Spring Break

1. Question: Name this gay Spring Break getaway. Hollywood's A-List began wintering here in the 1930's; by the 1980's, the boys came for the Easter Weekend White Party and the girls came for golf's Dinah Shore Weekend. Its onetime Mayor, father of a major gay rights activist, was once married to a diva.

2. Question: Name this gay Spring Break getaway. This party town, one dubbed "The Paris of the Swamps" is known for its Southern Decadence, its fine food, and its non-stop partying. Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote, and Christopher Rice used the city as a backdrop for America's finest dramas and literature.

3. Question: Name this gay Spring Break getaway. Ponce de Leon stumbled on it in 1513, and by the 1880's, it was a tough party town filled with pirates, smugglers, and whores. The alternative lifestyle types moved in by the 1960's. The locals refer to themselves by the name used for a shellfish.

4. Question: Name this gay Spring Break getaway. In the beach blanket movie period, it was "where the boys are". Despite an orange juice queen's anti-gay actions, the city became a gay mecca on a par with a beach to its south.

The first person to submit the correct answers gets their name in print right here. Email your answers to: OnQYB@aol.com. If you do not want your email address to appear in the blog format of this newsletter, please indicate that. http://cosnewsweekly.blogspot.com/