Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 3/21/11

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 14 No. 11 March 21, 2011
Newsletter Editor: M. G. Auerbach Email: COSNewsweekly@gmail.com

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The Gay Agenda: Datebook: March 21-27, 2011

thru SAT: 6/04: Nationwide: David Sedaris continues his book tour with his new bestseller “Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk”. http://www.barclayagency.com/speakers/appearances/sedaris.html

thru SAT: 3/26: Crested Butte, CO: Butte 11: Matthew Shepard Foundation Gay Ski Week, to be held at Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Some of the proceeds benefit the Matthew Shepard Foundation. http://www.matthewshepard.org

MON: 3/21: New York, NY: GayFest NYC Spring Gala with Wanda Sykes, Michael Urie and Lance Horne, to benefit the students of the Harvey Milk School. www.gayfestnyc.com.

MON: 3/21: New York, NY: The Broadway Beauty Pageant. Broadway chorus boys compete in talent, formal wear and swim suits. Tovah Feldshuh hosts; Judges are: Rachel Dratch, Carson Kressley, and Bruce Vilanch. A benefit for the Ali Forney Center, NYC’s primary emergency housing resource for homeless LGBT youth. http://aliforneycenter.org/beauty/

MON: 3/21: New York, NY: Center Dinner 2011, a benefit for The LGBT Community Center honoring producer Tom Kirdahy. David Hyde Pierce, Angela Lansbury and Barney Frank are featured. http://www.gaycenter.org/specialevents/centerdinner2011/tickets

TUE: 3/22: New York, NY: It Gets Better Book Tour with Dan Savage. 7PM. Barnes & Noble. 97 Warren Street. Also: THU: 3/24: Los Angeles, CA: 8PM. Renberg Theatre, West Hollywood. FRI: 3/25: San Francisco, CA: 12N. San Francisco State University. Jack Adams Hall.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvhZA0B_qiQ&feature=player_embedded

WED: 3/23: San Francisco, CA: Meredith Baxter does a booksigning for her memoir “Untied: A Memoir of Family, Fame, and Floundering”. 7PM. Books Inc, Market Street. Also: THU: 3/24/11: La Jolla, CA: 7:30PM. Warwick’s, Girard Avenue.

THU: 3/24: New York, NY: Headlines & Headliners, the 16th annual NLGJA New York benefit hosted by MSNBC’s Thomas Roberts. Guests include: Sam Champion, JuJu Chang, Ann Curry, Andy Towle, and more. http://www.nlgja.org/news/NYE2011.htm

FRI: 3/25: Los Angeles/West Hollywood, CA: Dear John, I Love Jane reading/booksigning with editors Laura Andre and Candace Walsh and writers Audrey Bilger and Leigh Stuart. 7PM. Book Soup. Sunset Blvd. .http://www.dearjohnilovejane.com/events.html

FRI-SUN: 3/25-3/27: Falls Village, CT: Nehirim GLBT Jewish Culture and Spirituality Men’s Retreat. http://www.nehirim.org/men

SAT: 3/26: Portland, ME: EqualityMaine 27th Awards Dinner, honoring the Maine AIDS Alliance and others. www.equalitymaine.org

SAT: 3/26: Portland, OR: Screening: Gen Silent,Stu Maddox’s documentary about six LGBT elders and their caregivers in Boston. http://stumaddux.com/gen_silent_screenings.html

SAT: 3/26: New York, NY: Rainbow Book Fair, a LGBT Book Expo sponsored by the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies. www.rainbowbookfair.org.

SUN: 3/27: New York, NY: dot429 Networking Brunch.Professional networking opportunities for the LGBTA Community. http://dot429.com/events

SUN-TUE: 3/27-3/29: Washington, DC: GLSEN Safe Schools Advocacy Summit. http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/news/record/2680.html

Newsworthy:

Coming Out--Not by Choice: Carl Kruger, New York State senator surrendered to federal authorities on corruption charges took $1 million in bribes which his boyfriend laundered. Kruger, a closeted hypocrite cast voes against marriage equality last year. The New York Post reports: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/gay_pol_mil_bribe_out_rage_ez6JwuYoczyNwZDtsPd0LN

Navy Boots Sailor on Bogus Charges. Petty officer Stephen C. Jones was discharged from the Navy, despite repeal of DADT, because he fell asleep with another sailor while they were watching a video. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/03/10/Navy_Boots_Sailor_on_Bogus_Charges/

Maryland: Democratic lawmakers failed to gather enough votes to pass a bill to allow same-sex couples to marry and withdrew it from consideration after hours of emotional debate, effectively killing the bill’s chances for passage this year. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/12/us/12marriage.html

The Point Foundation, the nation's largest scholarship-granting organization for LGBT students of merit, announced today the creation of a scholarship in memory of Rutgers University student, Tyler Clementi, whose life ended 9/22/10, at age 18. Yahoo News reports: http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20110309/pl_usnw/DC61773

Gay groups watch their enrollments fall as the web flourishes. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/technology/11bcjames.html?src=recg

The Buzz (People Making News)

Coming Out: Peter Murphy, a Maryland state delegate, has come out. He’s become the 8th openly LGBT state lawmaker in Maryland, giving the state the largest LGBT caucus in the USA. Gay Politics reports: http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/03/09/maryland-legislator-comes-out-as-gay/

Coming Out: Anton Hysén, the 20-year-old British-born professional soccer player for Sweden’s Utsiktens BK, came out this week. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/03/11/Hysen_Its_Effed_Up_Im_Swedens_First_Out_Soccer_Player/

Matthew Breen has been named editor in chief of the Advocate news brand. Here Media reports: http://www.heremedia.com/company/financialnews.php

Transitions:

James "John" Finley Gruber Jr., the last surviving original member of the Mattachine Society, one of the earliest gay rights organizations in the United States, died on 2/27/11, at age 82. The Bay Area Reporter reports: http://ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=5543

Hugh Martin, the songwriter who created three Judy Garland hits in the movie “Meet Me in St. Louis” died on 3/11/11 at age 96. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/arts/music/hugh-martin-composer-of-judy-garland-hits-dies-at-96.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=hugh%20martin&st=cse

Photo Shoots, Audio and Video

Video: Dr. John Corvino’s trailer for his lecture “What’s Morally Wrong with Homosexuality?”. http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/story/2011/03/Easy-access-free-Wi-Fi-help-make-airports-favorites-for-business-travelers/44871868/1

Video: Daniel Radcliffe speaks about gay rights and The Trevor Project to Katie Couric. CBS reports: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7359324n

Video: Conversation: Tony Kushner and Stephen Sondheim, two out cultural masters, at The Public Theatre. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aBqii2qeWQ

Trailer: Becoming Chaz, the documentary about Chaz Bono’s transition. It comes to Oprah’s network in May. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/03/10/Watch_the_Becoming_Chaz_Trailer/

Features

Gender Bender Design. Broadway’s top designers talk about dressing their drag queens, cross-dressers, and stars like Harvey Fierstein, Charles Busch, and the cast of “Priscilla”. David Gordon reports on TheaterMania: http://www.theatermania.com/broadway/news/03-2011/going-on-a-gender-bender_34951.html

“Priscilla” Queens get a Broadway makeover. The show has been changed for American audiences. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/11/theater/priscilla-queen-of-the-desert-gets-broadway-makeover.html

Kathy Griffin makes her Broadway debut. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/10/theater/kathy-griffin-on-broadway.html?_r=1

Profile: Fay Jacobs, author and publisher. The Philadelphia Gay News reports: http://epgn.com/view/full_story/12273483/article-Fay-Jacobs--Author--publisher-and--horrible--actress?instance=detour_portraits

In Print:

Coming Out: It Gets Better: Living Proof. Coming Out, Overcoming Bullying, and Creating A Life Worth Living. by Dan Savage and Terry Miller..Penguin. A collection of stories from many people, known and unknown, involved in the It Gets Better Project.

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes. Tony Kushner’s award-winning epic. Michael Urie stars thru 4/24/11. www.signaturetheatre.org.
***Book of Mormon, the new musical penned by "South Park" co-creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker and “Avenue Q” Tony winner Robert Lopez.
***Canned Ham. Tom Judson’s autobiographical show about his life in (as Gus Mattox) and out (Broadway) of porn. to 3/26/12. https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/799875
***The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key To The Scriptures. Tony Kushner’s new play. to 6/12/11.www.publictheater.org
***In Trousers, the first part (and seldom-performed) of composer William Finn's Marvin “Falsettos” trilogy. 3/25/11-3/28/11.www.thereddoortheatre.com
***Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Three drag queens \who head west across the outback in their battered old bus. www.priscillathemusical.com.

Elsewhere...

***Grey Gardens, the award-winning musical about mother and daughter Beale. to 4/03/11. Ft. Lauderdale, FL. http://www.Risingactiontheatre.com/
***I Bought A Blue Car Today. Alan Cumming in concert. 3/21/11. Chicago, IL.. www.harristheaterchicago.org
***Little Miss Sunshine. A new musical by William “Falsettos” Finn and James Lapine based on the film. Hunter Foster and Malcolm Gets co-star. to 3/27/11. LaJolla, CA. www.lajollaplayhouse.org.
***Prometheus Bound. Gavin Creel and Lea DeLaria star in a new musical from Steven Sater and Serj Tankian, based on the Aeschylus tragedy. to 4/02/11. Cambridge, MA. www.americanrepertorytheater.org
***Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Tracy Letts and Amy Morton star as sparring spouses in out Edward Albee’s masterpiece. to 4/24/11. Washington, DC. www.arenastage.org.

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Out on Screen...

***Beastly. A modern take on “Beauty and the Beast”. Neil Patrick Harris is featured.
***Gen Silent,Stu Maddox’s new documentary about six LGBT elders and their caregivers in Boston. http://stumaddux.com/gen_silent_screenings.html
***Kaboom, a new film from Gregg Araki. The world according to Smith, a bisexual Southern California cinema studies major (Thomas Dekker).
***Making The Boys. A documentry about the production of “The Boys in The Band”, the first commercially-successful gay-themed drama which opened just before Stonewall. With Edward Albee, Mart Crowley (the playwright), Candis Cayne and others. Screening schedule on Facebook.
***Rabbit Hole, John Cameron Mitchell (“Hedwig” and “Short Bus”) directs the movie version of the Broadway drama which stars Nicole Kidman. www.rabbitholefilm.com.

Out On Video & DVD

***Burlesque. The tale of a young singer (Christina Aguilera) who is hired as a cocktail waitress at a club that does musical revues by the star (Cher).
***Glee: Season 2, Volume 1: First ten episodes of Glee Season 2 on 3 DVDs.
***HOWL, the docu-feature about Allen Ginsberg (James Franco) by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman.
***Prayers for Bobby. Sigourney Weaver stars in a true story about the mother of a gay son who has problems accepting him.
***The Times of Harvey Milk. The award-winning documentary about the gay rights leader.
***William S. Burroughs: A Man Within. Documentary about the Beat Generation icon and one of the first writers to explore queer culture in the 1950’s.

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 frequently. www.glaad.org/tvgayed

***March: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/
***Ongoing: The Pee-Wee Herman Show on Broadway. Times vay through 4/16/11. HBO. www.hbo.com
***MON: 3/21: Dancing With The Stars. Kirstie Alley competes. Season premiere. 8PM. ABC..
***SUN: 3/27: Mildred Pierce, the Joan Crawford classic, is re-imagined in a miniseries with Kate Winslet. 9PM. HBO.

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

3/28/11-4/03/11: Palm Springs, CA: Kraft Nabisco Golf Championship. previously the Dinah Shore Golf Championship. www.nabiscochampionship.com

3/29/11-4/03/11: Breckenridge, CO: OutBoard. annual LGBT snowboarding festival
www.outboard.org

4/01/11-4/03/11: Waltham, MA: National Union of Jewish LGBT Students National Conference. http://www.nehirim.org/nujls

4/01/11-4/03/11: Sacramento, CA: GAYLA. GSA Advocacy and Youth Leadership Academy. https://gsanetwork.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=57

4/03/11: Miami, FL: AIDS Walk Miami. www.aidswalkmiami.org

4/04/11: New York, NY: Point Honors Benefit http://www.pointfoundation.org/newyork/index.html

4/04/11: Sacramento, CA: QYAD: Queer Youth Advocacy Day. https://gsanetwork.org/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=57

4/07/11-4/10/11: Rehoboth Beach, DE: Camp Rehoboth 2011 Women’s Fest. www.camprehoboth.com.

4/09/11: Hollywood, CA: Campus Pride College Fair and Prep Day. West Coast Region. http://www.campusclimateindex.org/events/default.aspx

4/15/11: Nationwide: National Day of Silence. www.dayofsilence.org

4/16/11: Washington, DC: PFLAG Gala and Silent Auction. www.pflagdc.org

4/21/11-5/01/11: Miami, FL: Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. www.MGLFF.com

4/21/11-4/23/11: Calgary, AB: Western Cup, the longest-running (29th year) annual LGBT multi-sport tournament in North America. www.westerncup.com.

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: St. Patrick’s Day

1. Question: Name this gay Irish-born author and playwright, currently represented on Broadway. He is best kknown, however, for his personal life, imprisonment, and early death. Answer: Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), whose “The Importance of Being Earnest “ is a current Broadway hit with Brian Bedford directing and starring as Lady Bracknell”.

2. Question: Name this out Irish-American actor, who married her partner last year. She’s best known for co-starring with Tom Cruise. Answer: Kelly McGillis, the star of “Top Gun”.

3. Question: Name this out Irish-American actor, talk-show host and LGBT rights activist. She produced a musical by and about a gay Irish/English singer/songwriter, and played opposite another gay star as Jewish parents in the old country. Answer: Rosie O’Donnell, who produced the Boy George story “Taboo” and starred opposite Harvey Fierstein in “Fiddler on the Roof”.

4. Question: Name this out Irish-American actor, who is the star of a current hit TV program. She married her partner last summer, and previously starred in a Christopher Guest mockumentary about a trainer who brings home the gold. Answer: Jane Lynch, who plays Sue Sylvester on “Glee” and starred in the film “Best in Show”.

5. Question: Name this out Irish-born female impersonator, who starred in “Hello Dolly” on London’s West End (the equivalent of Broadway). He was one of Britain’s highest entertainers in the 1960s, known for his impersonations of Elizabeth Taylor, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Marlene Dietrich, and Margaret Thatcher. Answer: Danny LaRue (1927-2009).

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: Celebrating Women

1. Question: Name this American writer, poet, and art collector who spent most of her life in France. She wrote a coming out story in 1903, which was published in 1950. Several of her writings were set to music. Her long-time partner was best known for her brownies.

2. Question: Name this lesbian couple, who in 2004, became the first same-sex couple to be legally married in the USA. Both were activists involved in forming an important gay rights organization.

3. Question: Name this politician who became the first out lesbian elected to a state-office in 1974. That same year, Kathy Kozachenko had been elected to Ann Arbor’s city council.

4. Question: Name this comedienne, television host and actress, who came out publicly to Oprah as her TV character came out on prime time television. She has over a dozen Emmys to her credit. She was the first out person to host The Oscars. Hint. While hosting the 2001 Emmys just weeks after 9/11, she said “What would bug the Taliban more than seeing a gay woman in a suit surrounded by Jews?”

5. Question: Name this Indian-born American LGBT rights activist and author. She pushed the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force into international limelight. Her book about the mainstreaming of LGBT liberation has been a blue print for the current gay rights movement.

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/