Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 5/11/09

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 12 No. 19 May 11, 2009
Newsletter Editor: OnQYB@aol.com

The Fine Print

See previous issues

The Gay Agenda: Datebook: May 11-17, 2009

thru SUN: 6/28: Minneapolis, MN: Everything Kushner at The Guthrie. honoring out playwright Tony Kushner ("Angels in America"). www.guthrietheater.org/kushner

thru SUN: 5/17: Dublin, Ireland: Dublin Gay Theatre Festival. www.gaytheatre.ie

MON: 5/11: New York, NY: The Leading Men IV, A benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS with Jonathan Groff, Norm Lewis, and Seth Rudetsky. www.broadwaycares.org.

WED: 5/13: New York, NY: Comedy Night with Judy Gold and Friends to benefit Westside Crime Prevention Program "Safe Haven" Project. Caroline's Comedy Club.

THU-SUN: 5/14-5/24: Toronto, ON: Inside Out: Toronto LGBT Film & Video Festival. www.insideout.on.ca

THU-SUN: 5/14-5/17: New Orleans, LA: Saints & Sinners. LGBT writers & readers from gather for a weekend of readings & performances. to benefit the New Orleans AIDS Task Force. www.sasfest.com

FRI: 5/15: New York, NY: Cynthia Nixon and Jeremy Irons co-host the 2009 Drama League Awards for excellence on Broadway. www.DramaLeague.org

SAT: 5/16: Miami Beach, FL: 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards. www.glaad.org

SUN: 5/17: New York, NY: Harvey Fierstein hosts the Drama Desk Awards for excellence in New York theatre.

SUN: 5/17: New York, NY: AIDS Walk New York. www.aidswalk.net

SUN: 5/17: San Francisco, CA: An Evening with Armistead Maupin, author of "Tales of the City". www.TheRhino.org

SUN: 5/17: Minneapolis, MN: Minnesota AIDS Walk. www.mnaidsproject.org

Newsworthy:

Maine has become the fifth state to legalise same-sex marriage, as governor John Baldacci signed legislation. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2009/05/maine-governor-baldacci-signs-marriage-equality-bill.html

Washington, DC: A majority on the D.C. Council voted to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The Washington Post reports: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/05/AR2009050501618.html

The Human Rights Campaign will announce a staff reduction due to the current recession. The Washington Blade reports: http://www.washblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=25248

The Buzz (People Making News)

Coming Out: Kelly McGillis ("Top Gun") has come out. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2009/04/top-gun-star-kelly-mcgillis-im-gay.html

Coming Out: David Ogden Stiers, star the TV series "M*A*S*H", has come out. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid82693.asp

PFLAG Mom: Marie Osmond talked with LA radio station KOST about her out daughter. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid82363.asp

Awards and Honors:

Tony Award Nominees from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/theater/theaterspecial/06tony.html?_r=1&ref=arts

In Memoriam:

Stephen Craig Hayes, the producer/singer/actor known professionally as Steve Gideon, who appeared in the original cast of Naked Boys Singing, died 5/01/09 of cancer at age 52. Playbill.com reports: http://www.playbill.com/news/article/128865.html

Dom DeLuise, the comic who played Buddy Bizarre, the choreographer staging "The French Mistake" in Mel Brooks' "Blazing Saddles", died on 5/04/09 at age 75.

In Print:

Pre-Gay LA: A Social History of the Movement for Homosexual Rights by C. Todd White. University of Illinois Press. An exploration of the origins and history of the modern American movement for homosexual rights, which originated in Los Angeles in the late 1940s and continues today. (Thanks to Billy Glover for bringing this book to our attention).

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***Billy Elliot, the Elton John/Lee Hall musical based on the movie about a boy who wants to become a ballet dancer. www.billyelliotbroadway.com.
***Blithe Spirit. Rupert Everett makes his Broadway debut in Noel Coward's ghostly comedy. Angela Lansbury and Christine Ebersole co-star.
***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...

***Bruce Vilanch and Sharon McNight bring their gay iconery to the club scene. 5/12/09-5/17/09. San Francisco, CA. www.therrazzroom.com.
***Design for Living. Gay Noel Coward's play about a festive menage-a-trois. to 6/28/09. Washington, DC. www.shakespearetheatre.org.
***Grey Gardens, the award-winning musical about mother and daughter Big Edie and Little Edie Bouvier Beale. to 5/17/09. Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN. www.ordway.org. Also to 6/14/09, Stages, Houston, TX. www.stagestheatre.com
***Lay of The Land. Out performance artist Tim Miller debuts his new autobiographical solo performance to 5/23/09. Los Angeles, CA. www.timmillerperformer.com.
***Queer Queens of Qomedy, the all lesbian comedy revue. 5/17/09. San Francisco, CA. www.therrazzroom.com
***Stale Magnolias. the story of the Last Chance Salon, a nightspot turned day-spa in the overheated town of Rectal, TX. to 6/14/09. San Francisco, CA. www.foulplaysf.com
***Three on a Party one-acts by queer authors Gertrude Stein, Tennessee Williams and Armistead Maupin. to 6/07/09. San Francisco, CA. www.TheRhino.org

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Resource: GLAAD's Guide to What's LGBT in Film: Note new web address: http://glaadblog.org/whats-lgbt-in-film/

Out on Screen...

***The Big Gay Musical. A film about a the making of "Adam and Steve", a gay musical. http://www.thebiggaymusical.com/
***Every Little Step. A documentary about the making of the 2006 Broadway revival of "A Chorus Line".
***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.
***Outrage. Kirby Dick's ("This Film is Not Yet Rated") documentary, a searing indictment of the hypocrisy of closeted politicians who actively campaign against the LGBT community they covertly belong to.
***Valentino: The Last Emperor, a new documentary about the life of the Italian fashion designer, focusing on his business and romantic relationship with Giancarlo Giametti..

Out On Video & DVD

***A Jihad for Love, the daring documentary filmed in 12 countries in which Muslim gay filmmaker Parvez Sharma explores the intersections of Islam and homosexuality.
***Barbra Streisand: The Concerts. 3 DVD set including her concert with Il Divo, the HBO special, and the Broadway Album special.
***Doubt, A nun (Meryl Streep) suspects a popular priest of abusing a boy.
***Kiki & Herb Live at The Knitting Factory. The Tony-nominated gender-bending downtown club act.
***King Lear. Out gay rights activist Sir Ian McKellan stars as Shakespeare's elderly king. www.shoppbs.org.

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. Note new web address: GLAAD TV Gayed: http://www.glaad.org/Page.aspx?pid=331

***May: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/
***WED: 5/13: Grey Gardens, a new movie about eccentric Jackie O cousins Edie Beale and her mother, starring Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. 5:30PMPM. HBO. www.hbo.com/films/greygardens

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

5/23/09-5/24/09: Houston, TX: Lone Star Classic Softball Tournament, www.montrosesoftballleague.com/lonestarclassic.htm

5/26/09-5/31/09: Honolulu, HI: Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival. www.hglcf.org

5/28/09-5/31/09: Ft. Worth, TX: Q Cinema. LGBT-themed movies. www.qcinema.org

5/31/09-6/06/09: San Francisco, CA to Los Angeles, CA: AIDS LifeCycle to raise money for HIV/AIDS services. www.aidslifecycle.org

6/01/09-6/30/09: San Francisco, CA: National Queer Arts Festival. performances & exhibitions highlighting artists from around the country. www.QueerCulturalCenter.org

6/04/09-6/14/09: New York, NY: NewFest: New York LGBT Film Festival. www.newfest.org

6/11/09-6/13/09: Ft. Lauerdale, FL: Pride Planners Bi-Annual Conference. for financial proessionals who serve LGBT individuals and families. www.prideplanners.com.

6/14/09-6/21/09: Washington, DC: IGLFA World Championship. International Gay & Lesbian Football Association's annual soccer tournament. www.iglfa.org

6/17/09-6/21/09. Provincetown, MA: Provincetown International Film Festival. www.ptownfilmfest.org

6/18/09-6/28/09: San Francisco, CA: Frameline: San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival. www.frameline.org

6/21/09: New York, NY: Broadway Bares 19.0 "Click It", the annual burlesque to benefit Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS. Roseland. www.broadwaycares.org.

6/30/09-7/04/09: Chicago, IL: Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf Conference. to celebrate LGBT deaf culture & identity. www.rad.org

7/03/09-7/05/09: Washington, DC: International Association of Country Western Dance Clubs Annual Convention. www.outcountrydance.com

7/10/09-7/21/09: Los Angeles, CA: Outfest, LA's LGBT film and video festival.
Los Angeles' lesbian/ gay film & video festival in mid-July. www.outfest.org

7/11/09-7/18/09: Seattle, WA-: R Family Vacations Summer Alaska Cruise. Gregg Kaminsky's and Kelli O'Donnell's vacation for LGBT families. www.rfamilyvacations.com.

7/13/09-7/26/09: New York, NY: The Fresh Fruit Festival. 7th annual multidiscipline International LGBT Cultural & Arts Festival. www.freshfruitfestival.com.

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: PFLAG Moms

1. Question: Name this “PFLAG Mom”, who turned her daughter’s very public coming out (on television and in the media) into a positive experience for parents everywhere with a book, an internet advice column, and as a spokesperson for a national coming out service organization. Answer: Betty DeGeneres, mother of Ellen, who wrote “Love, Ellen”, became a columnist for PlanetOut and the spokesperson for the HRC National Coming Out Project.

2. Question: Name this “PFLAG Mom”, an award-winning actress, director, composer and singer, who has donated significant monies to LGBT service organizations, both to honor her gay filmmaker son and her many LGBT fans. She recently returned to movie-making and a global concert tour. Answer: Barbra Streisand, also known as Mrs. James Brolin, mother of Jason Gould, and star of the recent hit “Meet the Fockers” now on video.

3. Question: Name this “PFLAG Mom”, former government bureaucrat and author of a 1981 romance novel about lesbians in the 19th century American west. When her husband’s competitor mentioned her out daughter, this mom called his actions “a cheap trick”. Answer: Lynne Cheney, mother of Mary, author of “Sisters”. She has refused to discuss her out daughter’s sexuality in the media, and she took John Kerry to task for doing so. (We’re not proud of her denial.)

4. Question: Name this “PFLAG Mom”, also an award-winning actress and singer. Her daughter, a spokesperson and activist for LGBT rights, wrote two books describing her coming out process and her mom’s reactions and eventual support. Mom is a donor to LGBT causes. Answer: Cher, mother of Chastity Bono.

5. Question: Name this “PFLAG Mom-in-law” (who would have been a PFLAG supporter had the organization been around in her day). An icon in the LGBT community, she was supposedly married to a gay man and her eldest daughter married at least one. Daughter’s first husband was the subject of a recent Broadway musical which won a Tony Award for its Australian star. Answer: Judy Garland, wife of Vincente Minnelli, mother of Liza, who was married to Peter Allen (played by Hugh Jackman in “The Boy from Oz”).

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: LGBT Rights Milestones

1. Question: Name this populous American state, which decriminalized same-sex acts between consenting adults on May 12, 1975. One of its major cities is known as the LGBT capital of the USA; another major city is a center of mass culture which employs thousands of LGBT artists.

2. Question: Name this symbol of LGBT rights, created by an oppressive political regime defeated over 60 years ago, who incarcerated men convicted under three paragraphs of its penal code and ID’d them with the symbol. In the 1970s, the gay rights movement adapted the symbol for its cause.

3. Question: Name this American city, site of one of the first public gay rights demonstration on July 4, 1965. The late activist Jack Nichols also staged a public demonstration in Washington, DC that year. This month, the city honors the gay rights movement at its Pride celebration.

4. Question: Name this equality milestone, which celebrates its fifth anniversary on May 17, 2009..

5. Question: Name this recent Broadway musical character, who was the first to be featured in a same-sex wedding onstage. Hint: “He likes to dance-a-lot and visit France-a-lot”. His character showed up in a previous Broadway musical where he was heterosexual.

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/