Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 5/31/10

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 13 No. 21 May 31, 2010
Newsletter Editor: M. G. Auerbach Email: COSNewsweekly@gmail.com

The Fine Print

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The Gay Agenda: Datebook: May 31-June 6, 2010

Ongoing: Global: 2010 Pride Season. Parades, fairs, festivals celebrating LGBT Pride around the world. www.interpride.org

thru SUN: 6/06: New York, NY: Gayfest NYC, the 4th annual LGBT arts festival to benefit the Harvey Milk School. Highlights: “Romeo and Hamlet” a comedy on marriage equality in the style of Shakespeare and the musical “This One Girl’s Story”, inspired by Sakia Gunn. www.gayfestnyc.com.

thru SUN: 6/20: Chicago, IL: Five Decades of Great Gay Plays. An exploration of scripts written for the stage (some adapted for the screen. www.pridefilmsandplays.com

thru SAT: 6/05: Hartford, CT: Out Film CT. Connecticut's LGBT film festival. www.outfilmct.org

thru MON: 5/31: Columbus, OH: Annual Gay Bowling Tournament. www.igbo.org

thru MON: 5/31: Atlanta, GA: Mondo Homo Dirty South queer-centric festival featuring music, dance, crafts, performance & more. www.mondohomo.com

TUE-MON: 6/01-6/07: Orlando, FL: Gay Days Orlando including Gay Day at Disney World. www.gaydays.com

TUE-WED: 6/01-6/30: San Francisco, CA: National Queer Arts Festival. LGBT performances & exhibitions in the San Francisco Bay Area highlighting artists from around the country. www.QueerCulturalCenter.org

TUE: 6/01: Philadelphia, PA: John Waters, American filmmaker , writer, and bad boy of American cinema (“Hairspray”, “Pink Flamingos”, “Serial Mom”, reads and signs from his new book “Role Models”. www.freelibrary.org Also: WED: 6/02: Washington, DC: TBA. Smithsonian Institution. Also: SAT: 6/05: Baltimore, MD: Atomic Books. www.atomicbooks.com

THU: 6/03: New York, NY: amfAR inaugural New York Inspiration Gala, honoring Ricky Martin and Jean-Paul Gaultier. Hosted by Kylie Minogue. www.amfar.org

THU-SUN: 6/03-6/06: Fort Worth, TX: Q Cinema annual celebration of LGBT-themed movies. www.qcinema.org

THU-SUN: 6/03-6/13: New York, NY: NewFest, the New York LGBT Film Festival. http://newfest.org/wordpress/

FRI: 6/04: Bloomington, MN: Cat Cora, out star of "Iron Chef America" signs copies of “Cat Cora's Classics With A Twist”. 6PM Barnes & Noble, Mall of America.

FRI-SUN: 6/04-6/06: Falls Village, CT: Nehirim East 2010, a retreat for LGBT Jews, partners and allies from around the world. http://www.nehirim.org/east

SAT: 6/05: San Francisco, CA: 21st Annual GLAAD Media Awards, recognizing and honoring media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the LGBT community and the issues that affect their lives. www.glaad.org/events

SUN: 6/06: Boston, MA: AIDS Walk & 5K Run Boston. www.aac.org

SUN: 6/06: New York, NY: Broadway Bares: Classic Broadway strips to benefit Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS at Splash. Jerry Mitchell, the event’s creator, and Broadway stars Jennifer Cody and Sebastian LaCause take it all off. www.broadwaycares.org.

SUN-SAT: 6/06-6/12: San Francisco to Los Angeles, CA: AIDS LifeCycle. bike trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise money for HIV/AIDS services. www.aidslifecycle.org

Newsworthy:

Coming Out: National Coming Out Day: for Politicians. An Australian gay activist has proposed that the country institute a “National Coming Out Day” so that closeted politicians can come out without fear of retribution, The Daily Telegraph reports: http://www.news.com.au/national/activist-calls-to-hold-special-outing-day-for-gay-mps/story-e6frfkvr-1225870298131

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell: President Obama backs a compromise which could end the policy. ***The Washington Post reports:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/24/AR2010052403681.html?hpid=topnews
***NPR reports: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=127095950&sc=fb&cc=fp
***Towleroad gauges LGBT community response: http://www.towleroad.com/2010/05/split-emerges-in-lgbt-community-over-language-in-dont-ask-dont-tell-repeal-compromise.html

Groups Help Gay Entrepeneurs. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/20/business/smallbusiness/20sbiz.html

The Buzz (People Making News)

Matthew Vanderpool, an out 24-year-old with only $150.00 in campaign donations and no college diploma has won the Democratic primary race for the 45th District of Kentucky's House of Representatives. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/05/19/Gay_24_Year_Old_Matthew_Vanderpool_Wins_Primary_in_Kentucky/

Dr. DeRionne P. Pollard, an out educator, was named president of Montgomery College in the Washington, DC. Suburbs. Maryland Community Newspapers Online reports: http://www.gazette.net/stories/05192010/montnew180642_32550.php

Sean Hayes will host the 2010 Tony Awards on June 13. http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/index.html

Awards and Honors:

GLSEN, The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network honored Cyndi Lauper, along with Pfizer, American Express, David Dechman and Michel Mercure, and Student Advocate of the Year Danielle Smith, at its seventh annual Respect Awards. www.glsen.org

Winners: Drama League Awards. Best Revival of a Musical: “La Cage Aux Folles”. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/139723-Sondheim-Red-Bridge-La-Cage-and-Molina-Win-Drama-League-Awards.

Winners: Drama Desk Awards. Reported by Theatermania.com: http://www.theatermania.com/new-york/news/05-2010/viola-davis-montego-glover-liev-schreiber-catherin_27603.html

The Fresh Fruit Festival Awards of Distinction or the “Fruities” will be awarded to New York State Senator Tom Duane, Off-Broadway, Legend Doric Wilson and Television Producer Tony Sawicki, being recognized for achievements include supporting the arts and the LGBT community. www.freshfruitfestival.com

Photo Shoots and Video

Coming Out: Video: Chely Wright explains her coming out to Oprah (Oprah cries). The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/05/20/Chely_Wright_Talks_Gay_Teens_Makes_Oprah_Cry/

Video: Frank Kameny, gay rights activist, talks with the Washington Blade on his 85th birthday. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyXyI2rOInY

Features

Coming Out: Celebrities Come Out. So what ? The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/23/fashion/23outing.html?src=mv

Profile: Kirk Walker, possibly the only out gay man coaching a Division 1 sport. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/22/sports/22softball.html?8dpc

Dear Democrats: We need to talk...The Gays...The Courage Campaign: http://www.couragecampaign.org/page/s/DearDemocrats

John Waters’ six favorite books. The Week reports: http://theweek.com/article/index/203141/john-waters-6-favorite-books

New Films with a Queer Literary Edge. LambdaLit reports: http://www.lambdaliterary.org/features/05/21/new-films-with-a-queer-literary-edge/

In Print:

Queers in History. 900 Amazing True Stories of Prominent Historical Figures who were Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender 2450BC-Today. by Keith Stern. BenBella Books. Forward by Sir Ian McKellan. www.queersinhistory.com.

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***Filthy Talk for Troubled Times: Scenes of Intolerance, Neil Labute’s new series of short plays starring T.R. Knight. 6/03/10-6/05/10. www.mcctheater.org.
***La Cage Aux Folles, a revival of the 1983 Jerry Herman/Harvey Fierstein musica, based on a French film, which inspired the film "Birdcage". Kelsey Grammer stars. www.LaCage.com
***My Big Gay Italian Wedding. Anthony J. Wilkinson's comedy. Reichen Lehmkuhl stars; www.BigGayItalianWedding.com.
***My Trip Down The Pink Carpet. Leslie Jordan’s one-man show. Produced by Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner. to 7/03/10. www.mytripdownthepinkcarpet.com
***Next Fall. Geoffrey Nauffts' provocative play about a gay couple; one partner is a devout Christian and the other is an atheist. www.nextfallbroadway.com
***Promises, Promises. Newly-out Sean ("Will & Grace") Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth star in the Burt Bacharach & Hal David & Neil Simon musical. www.promisespromisesbroadway.com.

Elsewhere...

***A Little Night Music. Sondheim's all-waltz musical as directed by Isaac Mizrahi. 6/06/10-6/19/10. St. Louis, MO. www.opera-stl.org/Season_Operas_show3.aspx
***Boys Will Be Boys. a new musical. A benefit for a man who suffers from Gay Attention Deficit Disorder. to 6/26/10. San Francisco, CA. www.nctcsf.org
***Hot Greeks. A Revival of the Cockettes’ 1972 Musical Extravaganza. to 6/27/10. San Francisco, CA. http://thrillpeddlers.com
***M.Butterfly. David Henry Hwang's award-winning play. The true story of a French diplomat who falls for a Chinese spy posing as a Bejing opera diva. to 6/06/10. Minneapolis, MN. www.guthrietheater.org
***Pearls Over Shanghai. San Francisco’s Longest-Running Cockettes Musical. to 8/01/10. San Francisco, CA: http://thrillpeddlers.com
***Yellow. A new dysfunctional family comedy by Del (“Sordid Lives”) Shores. to 7/25/10. West Hollywood, CA. www.yellowbydelshores.somc

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Out on Screen...

***Arias With a Twist. The incredible performance collaboration between performance artist Joey Arias and puppeteer Basil Twist is now a documentary. To see the trailer: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=759971528901
***Beyond Gay: The Politics of Pride. Bob Christie’s documentary shows that Pride is more than a parade, it’s a giant step on the road to global human rights.
***LA Mission. Benjamin Bratt is a barrio tough guy who discovers that his son is involved in a relationship with another boy.
***Sex and The City 2, the sequel. Sarah Jessica Parker and friends.
***Stonewall Uprising, a new documentary by Kate Davis and David Heilbroner covering the 3-day Stonewall riots in 1969. http://firstrunfeatures.com/stonewalluprising_playdates.html
***The Topp Twins: Untouchable Girls. A documentary about the provocative New Zealand comedic duo, twin sisters and singers. http://topptwins.com.
***Violet Tendencies. Mindi Cohn (“The Facts of Life”) plays a fag hag in this new romantic comedy. www.violettendenciesmovie.com. Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJi_HtHFLFY

Out On Video & DVD

***Finding Billy, the documentary about the search for the young male leads in “Billy Elliot” has been posted on YouTube. Playbill.com reports: http://www.playbill.com/playblog/2010/04/finding-billy-available-on-youtube-video/
***Hannah Free. Sharon Gless stars in the film adaptation of Claudia Allen's play about a woman who fights to see her lesbian partner one last time in a nursing home. Premiere screening:www.hannahfree.com
***My Dog: An Unconditional Love Story. The documentary about the bond between people and their pets. Among the people stars : Edward Albee, Glenn Close, Billy Greg Louganis, Nellie McKay, Christopher Meloni, and Isaac Mizrahi. www.docurama.com.
***One Night Only: Barbra Streisand and Quartet at the Village Vanguard. Concert DVD.
***Prodigal Sons. A family grapples with challenges, triumphs, intense sibling rivalries and unforeseeable twists of plot and gender in this illuminating portrait of a truly remarkable Montana family. Trans filmmaker Kimberly Reed’s autobiographical film about coming home after coming out and transitioning.
***Sordid Lives, the TV series. A Black comedy about white trash, based on the Del Shores play and film.
***Trinidad. The documentary about the Colorado town that has become “the sex change capital of the world. http://trinidadthemovie.com/

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/tvgayed

***June: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/
***THU: 6/03: Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth bring “Promises, Promises” to “The View”. ABC. Check local listings.

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

Ongoing: Global: 2010 Pride Season. Parades, fairs, festivals celebrating LGBT Pride around the world. www.interpride.org

6/07/10: San Francisco, CA: Help is On The Way. Jai Rodriguez, Marga Gomez and RJ Helton, along with the cast of In the Heights, perform a benefit for the Richmond/Ermet AIDS Foundation (REAF) and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. www.helpisontheway.org.

6/09/10: Las Vegas, NV: LGBT Travel Symposium. www.lvccld.org

6/14/10-6/20/10: Berkeley, CA: David Sedaris workshops new stories from an upcoming book in front of a live audience at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. www.berkeleyrep.org

6/16/10-6/20/10: Provincetown, MA: Provincetown International Film Festival. www.ptownfilmfest.org

6/17/10-6/27/10: San Francisco, CA: Frameline: San Francisco Int’l LGBT Film Festival www.frameline.org

6/20/10: New York, NY: Broadway Bares XX: Stripopoly. Broadway boys and girls take it all off for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. The 20th anniversary edition. http://broadwaybares.com/home-flash.php

6/26/10: New York, NY: The Gay Pride Edition: Celebrity Autobiography: In Their Own Words. Rachel Dratch, Cheyenne Jackson, Kristen Johnston, John Cameron Mitchell, Eugene Pack, Dayle Reyfel, Bruce Vilanch, and B.D. Wong star. www.celebrityautobiography.com.

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: LGBT Movers and Shakers

1. Question: Name this American computer software entrepeneur who became a major gay rights activist and philanthropist. He started a company with a $2,000 loan from his parents and became a millionaire many times over. Colorado's Amendment 2 prompted him to get involved. Answer: Tim Gill, founder of Quark. His foundations are the Gill Foundation and the Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado.

2. Question: Name this controversial politician, the first openly gay mayor of a Top 30 American city. He was recently under scrutiny for a relationship with an underage intern in a representative's office. Hint: He's not related to a drink with the same name. Answer: Sam Adams the mayor of Portland, Oregon.

3. Question: Name this American author, teacher, and adventurer, the first out woman to reach the North Pole. She shares a name with an actress who seduced a college graduate. Answer: Ann Bancroft the first woman to successfully finish a number of arduous expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic.

4. Question: Name this activist, the oldest known open lesbian, who was the subject of a documentary which profiled her on her 100th birthday. Answer: Ruth Ellis (1899-2000), focus of Yvonne Welbon's film, "Living With Pride: Ruth C. Ellis @ 100".

5. Question: Name this activist and philanthropist from a spam family. He was the first out man named as a US Ambassador. Answer: James Hormel, appointed by President Clinton as United States Ambassador to Luxembourg. Hormel is grandson of the founder of Hormel Foods (producers of SPAM and other meat products).

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: June Milestones

1. Question: Name this event, on June 22, 1969, which triggered anguish within the gay community and may have led (according to legend) to the Stonewall riots.

2. Question: Name this landmark legislation on June 26, 2003. When The Supreme Court acted, this fueled the revival of an intense LGBT civil rights movement.

3. Question: Name this event, which first started on June 28, 1970, to commemorate the Stonewall riots. New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and smaller cities saw this event.

4. Question: Name this gay composer, known for his spicy lyrics, born June 9, 1892. He gave Ethel Merman the showstopping Reno Sweeney, and rhymed “heinous” with “Coriolanus”. His film bio was released in 2004.

5. Question: Name this Canadian pop singer who came out in the Advocate on June 16, 1992. Her star continues to rise, and she recently completed a global tour with Tony Bennett.

The first person to submit the correct answers gets their name in print right here. Email your answers to: COSNewsweekly@gmail.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/