Coming Out Support Newsweekly: 7/18/11

Coming Out Support (COS) Newsweekly
Volume 14 No. 28 July 18, 2011
Newsletter Editor: M. G. Auerbach Email: COSNewsweekly@gmail.com

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The Gay Agenda: Datebook: July 18-24, 2011

For Pride Events worldwide: www.interpride.org. or http://www.gayfriendlybiz.com/calendar.html

thru SAT: 8/06: New York, NY: HOT Festival, The NYC Celebration of Queer Culture with theatre, dance, music, burlesque, performance art, literature, and homoeroticism. 20th edition. http://www.hotfestival.org/

thru MON: 7/25: New York, NY: Fresh Fruit. The 9th annual international LGBT arts festival. www.freshfruitfestival.com.

TUE: 7/19: Saco, ME: Screening: Gen Silent,Stu Maddox’s documentary about six LGBT elders and their caregivers in Boston. http://stumaddux.com/gen_silent_screenings.html

THU: 7/21: New York, NY: Broadway in Bryant Park. Free performances by the casts of “The Addams Family” and “Billy Elliot”. 12:30PM. www.1067litefm.com

THU-THU: 7/21-28: New York, NY: NewFest, the New York LGBT Film Featival. http://newfest.org/wordpress/

THU-SUN: 7/21-7/24: Seattle, WA: Gender Odyssey. panels, workshops & meetings, entertainment, focus on transmen, transwomen & other gender variant people. www.genderodyssey.org

SAT: 7/23: East Hampton, NY: The Gutter Ball. A dance party to benefit the LGBT Center of New York. East Hampton Bowl.. www.gaycenter.org

Newsworthy:

Resource: Free LGBT News E-Newsletter. Gay Politics Report comes out twice-weekly with news briefings. From Smart Brief. An excellent resource for LGBY officials, business organizations, and community leaders. http://www.smartbrief.com/lgbt/

Resource: Gay Rights Media. News and resources of interest for the LGBT Equality Movement. http://GayRightsMedia.org/

Resource: New York Times “Coming Out” Series: LGBT teens in their own words, made its debut on 5/23/11. The New York Times reports: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/23/us/23out.html?_r=1

Coming Out:

DADT: A federal appeals court has ordered an immediate halt to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. ABC News reports: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=14011565

DADT 2: A federal appellate court on 7/11/11 directed the Obama administration to announce within 10 days whether or not it will continue to defend “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in court in the wake of its decision to no longer litigate on behalf of the Defense of Marriage Act. The Washington Blade reports: http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/07/11/will-obama-drop-govt-defense-of-dont-ask/

California: The California Assembly today gave final approval to a bill sponsored by out State Sen. Mark Leno that will require the state’s public schools to “fairly and accurately portray the LGBT civil rights movement and the historic contributions of the diverse LGBT community in social science instruction. Gay Politics reports: http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/07/05/california-legislature-passes-lgbt-history-bill/

US Department of Justice’s admission of the “regrettable role” of the federalgovernment in anti-gay discrimination is historic. MetroWeekly reports: http://metroweekly.com/news/?ak=6399

Lesbians marry more often than gay men, according to research from states with sanction same-sex marriage. Towleroad reports: http://www.towleroad.com/2011/07/lesbians-marry-more-often-than-gay-men.html

Coming Out: Gray and Gay. A Closeted Psychiatrist comes out after 40 years. ABCNews reports: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/gay-gray-psychiatrist-loren-olson-40-years-closeted/story?id=14022799

Connecticut: Governor Dannel Malloy has signed the state’s TG Non-Discrimination Bill. GLAAD reports: http://glaadblog.org/2011/07/11/connecticut-gov-dannel-malloy-signs-transgender-non-discrimination-bill/

Massachusetts: The city of Cambridge will pay gay married employees more to offset the taxes levied by the IRS , who don’t recognize same-sex marriage. The Boston Globe reports: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2011/07/10/mass_city_to_pay_wedded_gay_workers_to_offset_tax/

Opera Off/Opera On. “Billy Elliot” writer Lee Hall says that homophobia caused the cancellation of his new opera. The New York Times reports: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/07/07/after-charges-of-discrimination-a-cancelled-opera-is-reinstated/?hp

Guilty: Isaiah Kelebu was found guilty in the murder of Teresa Butz and the rape of her partner. Butz was the sister of Tony Award winning actor Norbert Leo Butz. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/07/06/Guilty_Verdict_in_Seattle_Rape_Murder_Case/

The Buzz (People Making News)

Brenda S. “Sue” Fulton, an out lesbian, has been appointed to the Board of Visitors to the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY. Fulton, a 1980 West Point graduate, was honorably discharged from the Army at the rank of Captain after serving for five years in the Army Signal Corps in Germany.  Gay Politics reports: http://www.gaypolitics.com/2011/07/05/obama-appoints-out-lesbian-to-west-point-board/

Mark Perriello, an out, visually-impaired man, has been named to lead the American Association of People with Disabilities. The Washington Blade reports: http://www.washingtonblade.com/2011/07/07/gay-man-to-lead-national-disability-group/

Rudolf Brazda, a 98-year old gay Holocaust survivor, shares his story in a new book. Der Spiegel reports: http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,772667,00.html

Liza Minnelli has been named an “officier” in the Legion of Honor by France’s cultural minister. The Advocate reports: http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/07/11/Liza_Is_Named_an_Officier_in_the_Legion_of_Honor/

Transitions:

Jean Harris, the out LGBT advocate, died last week at age 66. GLAAD reports: http://glaadblog.org/2011/07/05/glaad-mourns-the-passing-of-lgbt-advocate-jean-harris/

Photo Shoots, Audio and Video

Video: Pray Away the Gay? Michele Bachmann’s and husband’s Christian counseling clinic practiced thie theory. ABC News reports via Towleroad: http://www.towleroad.com/2011/07/bachmannclinic.html

Video: CNN profiled a bi-national gay couple facing deportation, because DOMA prohibits federal recognition of their marriage. via Towleroad: http://www.towleroad.com/2011/07/watch-cnn-profiles-binational-gay-couple.html

Video: California State Senator Mark Leno explains the FAIR education act, which requires that state social studies courses include LGBT history. Video via Towleroad: http://www.towleroad.com/2011/07/watch-mark-leno-discusses-californias-lgbt-history-bill.html

Opportunities

Coming Out: MTV Coming Out Special Casting Call. If you’re 16-24, audition ! http://www.bmpcasting.com/casting/comingout/

In Print:

Finally Out: Letting Go of Living Straight. A Psychiatrist’s Own Story by Loren A. Olson. InGroup Press. A story about coming out in middle age. Part memoir and part psychology book.

The Last Deployment: How A Gay Hammer-swinging Twentysomething Survived a Year in Iraq. by Bronson Lerner. University of Wisconsin Press. The story of a gay carpenter in the National Guard who gets deployed to Iraq and longs for a future as an openly gay man.

In Performance: Onstage:Theatre/Music/Dance

New York City (and Broadway)

***The Judy Show: My Life As A Sitcom. Out comic Judy Gold’s new comedy. www.judygold.com.
***Master Class. Tyne Daly stars as opera diva Maria Callas in Terrence McNally’s drama with music to 9/04/11. www.manhatttantheatreclub.com
***A Strange and Separate People. A new play by Joe Marans, author of “The Tempermentals”. An upper West Side Jewish couple have their lives turned upside down by a charismatic gay man.
***Unnatural Acts, a new play about Harvard's “Secret Court” investigation and persecution of a group of gay students in 1920. Conceived and directed by Tony Speciale and the Plastic Theatre. to 7/24/11. www.classicstage.org

Elsewhere...

***A Blizzard in Marblehead Neck. A new opera by Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori. 7/21/11-8/22/11. Cooperstown, NY. www.glimmerglass.org.
***Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City, world premiere of a new musical based on Armistead Maupin’s stories. to 7/31/11. San Francisco, CA. www.act-sf.org
***Bash’d, the gay rap opera. Los Angeles, CA. http://www.celebrationtheatre.com/onstage.html
***Five Lesbians Eating a Quiche. A 1950’s brunchon gathering of the Susan B. Anthony Society for the Sisters of Gertrude Stein.to 7/30/11. Chicago, IL. www.thenewcolony.org
***Hay Days. Thomas James O’Leary stars as Harry Hay, who organized America's first gay-rights group, the Mattachine Society, from his apartment in 1948 Silver Lake. to 7/26/11. Los Angeles, CA: www.celebrationtheatre.com.
***Seth’s Big Fat Broadway Show, Seth Rudetsky’s hilarious “deconstructing Broadway” show. to 9/03/11. Provincetown, MA. www.ptownarthouse.com

On Display

***Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, a collection of the out designer’s works from 1992-2010. through 7/31/11. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY. http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId=%7B55189B0E-51CF-4801-BC24-1D7CC67F7633%7D

***HIV & AIDS: Thirty Years Ago and Archiving The History of An Epidemic: HIV & AIDS to 10/02/11. National Museum of American History, Washington, DC. http://blog.americanhistory.si.edu/

On Screen (and Video & DVD)

Out on Screen...

***Beautiful Darling: The Life and Times of Candy Darling, Andy Warhol Superstar. James Rasin’s documentary about the transgender Andy Warhol superstar, who died in 1974, at age 29.
***Beginners. Ewan McGregor plays an illustrator whose father (Christopher Plummer) comes out to him.
***The Broken Tower, written, directed by, and starring James Franco, who plays gay poet Hart Crane. At film festivals.
***Carol Channing: Larger Than Life. Dori Berinstein’s new documentary is a tribute to a Broadway legend. Stay for the end credits outtakes.
***Finding Judy. Gary Riotto’s new short about a Black Chicago kid who channels Judy Garland. At Film Festivals. http://www.garyriotto.com/Director.html
***Gen Silent,Stu Maddox’s new documentary about six LGBT elders and their caregivers in Boston. http://stumaddux.com/gen_silent_screenings.html
***The Perfect Host. Out star Davd Hyde Pierce throws a dinner party with an unexpected guest.

Out On Video & DVD

***Christopher and His Kind. The BBC adaptation of out author Christopher Isherwood’s autobiography. Isherwood wrote The Berlin Diaries, which was adapted as “Cabaret”, the musical.
***Kaboom, a new film from Gregg Araki. The world according to Smith, a bisexual Southern California cinema studies major (Thomas Dekker).
***Lead with Love, a documentary about strengthening families through the coming out process. Available for online viewing. http://LeadWithLoveFilm.com// The trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGxcb7Ih7N0&feature=youtu.be
***Undertow. A Peruvian film about a man with a pregnant wife who takes a male lover.
***Violet Tendencies. Mindi Cohn (“The Facts of Life”) plays a fag hag in this new romantic comedy. www.violettendenciesmovie.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 frequently. www.glaad.org/tvgayed

***Ongoing: Happily Divorced. Fran Drescher plays a woman whose husband comes out. They stay best friends. Based on her real life. WED: 10:30PM. TV Land.
***July: In the Life. LGBT news magazine. PBS. Check local listings. http://www.itl.tv/inthelife/episodes/

Conferences, Seminars, Benefits, and Special Events

For Pride Events worldwide: www.interpride.org. or http://www.gayfriendlybiz.com/calendar.html

7/25/11-7/31/11: Vancouver, BC: North American Outgames. www.vancouver2011outgames.com

7/28/11: New York, NY: Broadway in Bryant Park. Free performances by the casts of “Anything Goes” and “Hair”. 12:30PM. www.1067litefm.com

7/29/11-7/31/11: Tacoma, WA: OLOC (Old Lesbians Organizing for Change) Nat’l Gathering. women only • lesbians 60+ gather for workshops, guest speakers & entertainment to promote old lesbian pride & fight ageism www.oloc.org

7/30/11-8/06/11: Provincetown, MA: Family Week. Family Equality’s program for LGBT families. http://www.familyequality.org/site/PageServer

7/31/11: West Hollywood, CA: The Gay Elder: Archetype of the Spiritual Father. An interactive program to bring the contributions of elder gays to the community at large. http://www.gayeldercircle.org/

8/05/11-8/07/11: Becket, MA: OUT at The Pillow. A weekend of events for LGBT people and families at the Jacobs Pillow Dance Festival. http://berkshirestonewall.org/2011/05/out-at-the-pillow/

8/06/11: Washington, DC: OutWrite LGBT Book Fair at the DC Center for the LGBT Community. www.outwritedc.org

8/06/11-8/13/11: Los Angeles, CA: Lambda Literary Writers’ Retreat for emerging LGBT voices.. http://www.lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat/

8/09/11-8/14/11: Newport, RI: FLICKERS Rhode Island International Film Festival. http://www.film-festival.org/index07A.htm

8/12/11-8/28/11: New York, NY: New York International Fringe Festival. Fascinating off-beat, off-the-wall performances. www.fringenyc.org.

8/13/11-8/15/11: Detroit, MI: COLAGE Midwest Regional Retreat. a weekend of community, activism, and empowerment. http://www.colage.org/category/events/upcoming

Last Week’s Trivia Quiz: Friends of Dorothy

1. Question: Name this character. Amongst the original Friends of Dorothy, one friend's real life son married Dorothy's real-life daughter. Answer: The Tin Man, played by Jack Haley. Jack Haley, Jr married Judy Garland's daughter, Liza Minnelli. Their 1970s marriage was brief.

2. Question: Name this TV series set in the Emerald City, in which two Friends of Dorothy had a brutal romance. One emerged as a compassionate cop; the other emerged on a suburban lane, where he romanced a housewife's son. Answer: Oz, which starred Christopher Meloni ("Law & Order SVU") and Lee Tergesen ("Desperate Housewives") as prison buddies. The prison unit was called "Emerald City".

3. Question: Name this 1978 film, based on an earlier musical, which urbanized the friends of Dorothy, who was played by a diva. Her recently-deceased scarecrow was said to resemble her appearance. Answer: "The Wiz". Diana Ross played Dorothy and Michael Jackson was her scarecrow. The Broadway version was revived this summer with Ashanti as Dorothy.

4. Question: Name this prequel to Dorothy's story, based upon a best-selling book written by an out author. It tells Dorothy's story from the viewpoint of two witches, one who wants to be popular and one who is green. Answer: "Wicked", the blockbuster musical based on Gregory Maguire's book "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch".

5. Question: Which of the following has not played a Witch ? A) DeeDee Bridgewater, B) Kristin Chenoweth, C) Lena Horne, D) Bebe Neuwirth E) Billie Burke. Answer: Bebe Neuwirth. DeeDee Bridgewater was "Glinda" in Broadway's "The Wiz" and Lena Horne played the role in the film. Chenoweth was "Galinda" in "Wicked" and Billie Burke was the original "Glinda".

This Week’s Trivia Quiz: Comically Gay

1. Question: Name this cartoon couple of 25+ years, who were assumed to be gay. A 1993 film documentary about them confirmed the urban legend, but their creators denied that they were any more than “just friends”.

2. Question: Name this British born member of a television quartet, who was accused in 1999 by a member of the religious right of promoting a “homosexual agenda”. The cleric said this stylish puppet “looked gay”.

3. Question: Name this syndicated cartoon. One of its major characters came our on February 10, 1976, the first cartoon character to do so.

4. Question: Name this address, where a closeted Republican stockbroker puppet named Rod lives with his “roomate”, Nicky. Rod likes Broadway musicals from the 1940s and 1950s.

5. Question: Name this peripatetic cartoon hero who was chastized for hanging out with lesbian moms on a Vermont maple sugaring trip. P.S. The segment was filmed near the home of Vermont's tastiest same-sex couple, Ben & Jerry.

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/