RIP Tony Curtis

During the 1950's the Hollywood studio system was beginning to break down, but the stars of that time were as glamorous as ever. The hot Hollywood couples were, Liz Taylor and Eddie Fisher, Lucy and Desi and Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh.

Any time I think back and try to remember my earliest memories of same-sex attraction, Tony Curtis comes to mind. He was the classic Hollywood leading man and my little gay heart would swoon whenever I saw him in one of the old movies my sister used to watch after school.

There was a lot of speculation over they years that Curtis was gay. In his later years, he would dress in very colorful outfits with matching scarfs, and take on a very over-the-top persona.

The Brooklyn-born Bernie Schwartz, passed away last night at the age of 85. Curtis and the late Janet Leigh were the parents of actress Jamie Lee Curtis. Here is Tony Curtis, along with Jack Lemon and Marilyn Monroe in the Billy Wilder, cross-dressing classic, "Some Like It Hot".
 

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Gay NJ Teen Commits Suicide after Room Mate Posts Secret Sex Tape

This is just the latest tragedy in the last couple of weeks where prolonged, persistent bullying has led to a gay teen taking his own life. Every homophobe everywhere has blood on their hands today.

Rutgers University freshman, Tyler Clementi, jumped to his death from the George Washington Bridge in New York after his room mate and a friend secretly recorded a video of him engaged in a sexual encounter with another young man.

AP reports:

Clementi's roommate, Dhraun Ravi, and fellow Rutgers freshman Molly Wei, both 18, have been charged with invading Clementi's privacy. Middlesex County prosecutors say the pair used a webcam to surreptitiously transmit a live image of Clementi having sex on Sept. 19 and that Ravi tried to webcast a second encounter on Sept. 21, the day before Clementi's suicide.

A lawyer for Ravi, of Plainsboro, did not immediately return a message seeking comment. It was unclear whether Wei, of Princeton, had retained a lawyer.

Collecting or viewing sexual images without consent is a fourth-degree crime. Transmitting them is a third-degree crime with a maximum prison term of five years.

This is just the latest case of kids killing themselves over being bullied for being gay. Asher Brown, 13, shot himself in the head with his stepfather's gun on September 23rd after years of torment that was ignored by school teachers and administrators.

Another 13-year old from Seattle, Seth Walsh was taken off life support yesterday after hanging himself due to prolonged bullying over his sexual orientation.

On September 9th, 15-year-old Billy Lucas died after hanged himself from for the same reason. 

How many more?

This video comes via MSNBC.com

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Judge Vaughn Walker Announces Retirement

Ninth District Court Judge Vaughn Walker, who ruled that California's Proposition 8 violated the Equal Protection clause of 14th amendment over the summer, has announced that he will retire effective at the end of December this year.

Walker said in a letter to President Obama, “Concluding twenty-one years of judicial service, I leave the bench with the highest respect and regard for the federal judiciary, its judges and their staff and the essential role they fulfill in our constitutional system."

Walker was appointed to the federal bench in 1990 by then-president George H.W. Bush who hailed his conservative values. The right-wing, anti-gay, enemies of freedom (a/k/a Republicans) now call Walker a biased, activist judge for his ruling, which read, in part, "Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license".

It reminds me of those heartfelt words of my mother, who once told me many years ago when I was winning an argument, "Don't get rational with me!"

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G.A.Y.S.: Guys Against You Serving (comedy video)

Image via WikipediaPresident Obama and the Democratic Congress has failed to deliver on their promises to the LGBT community. The clock has run out on this legislative session and there's very little chance that any movement on repealing DADT will be made during the post-election, lame duck session in December. 

DADT Repeal is something that 80% of all Americans support. How in the world can a Democratic controlled senate allow itself to be bullied by John "Crotchety Old Man" McCain yelling at the neighbor kids from his front porch?

Call your senators at 202-224-3121 and tell them you won't forget their coardice and broken promises on election day.

Meanwhile, here's a funny take on a serious subject . A star-studded look at bigotry from Funny or Die.

G.A.Y.S. (Guys Against You Serving) from Thomas Lennon

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Defense Authorization Act Stalls Over DADT, Repeal this year unlikely.

Just as we feared, the Do-Nothing Dems have successfully dragged their feet through another legislative session, without acting on DADT repeal and all of our other issues. Even Gay, Inc. has to admit that all of their elite, inner circle access was worthless. They used to say in D.C., "it's not who you know, it's who you blow." You'd think we would at least have had things covered in that department. 
The Huffington Post reports that Joint Chiefs Chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen reiterated his belief that DADT should be repealed:

This past week, the upper chamber declined to pass a defense authorization bill that included DADT's repeal. And at a breakfast sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor on Wednesday, Mullen registered disappointment, stressing again that he believes the policy needs to end.

"I am very clear where I was on February 2 and where I am today," he said. "This is my personal view. I struggled greatly with the fact that we asked people in an institution that values integrity, which is who we are, that we would ask individuals to show up everyday and basically lie. So my position on that hasn't changed at all."

The Joint Chiefs chairman acknowledged that both he and his staff are subject to the whims of the congressional process. But he did offer a preference for legislative action that will likely be cheered by those seeking to slow down DADT repeal. The military brass, Mullen said, would prefer to get the results of a yearlong survey of service members and their families (set to be done on December 1) before revising its policies towards gay members.

Meanwhile over at Advocate.com, Kerry Eleveld writes that the whole process is now, once again, in the grubby little hands of Republicans, led by that homophobic throwback to the Ice Age, John "Grumpier Old Man" McCain. When it comes to missed opportunities and lying to constituents, and being all around prick-teases, the Democrats, up to and especially including President Obama, take the cake.

A nearly insurmountable series of negatives seem to be stacking up: The White House is not engaged, time is running terribly short, Republicans are winning the political battle on the legislation, the midterms only stand to weaken Senate Democrats, and many fear the release of the Pentagon’s study of repeal in early December could deal a final blow to the effort.

“When you actually look at how much time Congress has to be here in lame duck, and the appetite to get difficult bills done, it will be very difficult to move the defense authorization bill,” said Winnie Stachelberg, who is vice president of external affairs at the Center for American Progress and has worked on the repeal effort.

Stachelberg tempered her comments with glimmers of hope, pointing out recent remarks from White House deputy chief of staff Jim Messina, who last week spoke to a group of students at The University of Montana about DADT and said, “We’re going to get that done this year.”

Still, she added, “when you throw in the fact that Secretary [Robert] Gates continues to say the legislation should come after the Pentagon’s working group study, which is due December 1, it’s an unbelievably narrow needle to thread with many competing legislative priorities.”

For a thorough look at HRC's role in the fight for DADT Repeal and accusations that the largest LGBT rights org was taking it's lead from the White House (and what they have to say about it) check out "Rift Widens Among Gay Rights Groups" at congress.org.

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Sorry For the Late Posts

I let myself sleep in this morning. It's been a rough week so far. Just when get to thinking I'm immortal, my knees and lower back say, "Oh, really?, You're old, bitch!"



Anyway, lots more to come, so stay tuned.

The Rev.

New Wave Wednesday: "Boys Don't Cry", by The Cure (music video)

Here's a great live version of the 1979 New Wave/Punk classic "Boys Don't Cry", from British band, The Cure. Remember kids, the band's look came way before Boy George, or Cyndi Lauper. The Cure set the standard for an outrageous look that, at the time, was cutting edge, but under all the hair and eyeliner, these guys were good.

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GLAAD Report SaysTV is Becoming More Queer-Friendly

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) released its annual "Where We Are on TV Report" on Tuesday with the news that LGBT visibility on Prime Time broadcast TV has increased to nearly 4% of all characters.

Of the 2011 - 2012 TV season, the report says:

• According to the report, 23 LGBT characters will account for 3.9% of scripted series regulars in the 2010-2011 broadcast television schedule, up from 1.1% in 2007, 2.6% in 2008, and 3% in 2009. The number of scripted LGBT series regulars found on mainstream cable networks has rebounded after a two year decline, from 40 in 2007, 32 in 2008, 25 in 2009, to 35 in the upcoming season.

• The all around leader in LGBT-inclusive programming goes to HBO's "True Blood" which features six regular or recurring queer characters.

• ABC continues to lead the other broadcast networks in LGBT representation, with 11 LGBT characters out of 152 total series regular characters (7.2%), the highest number and percentage of LGBT characters of any network for the 2010-2011 season.

• FOX, which in 2007 featured zero series regular LGBT characters at the launch of the season, now offers five LGBT series regulars out of 100 (5%).

• The CW continues to improve with three LGBT series regular characters out of 67 (4.5%).

• NBC becomes the only network that saw a decline from last year. The network will feature three series regular LGBT characters (2.1%) out of a total of 143.

• CBS remains in last place. Out of 125 series regular characters, only one will be LGBT (0.8%), but the network will include several LGBT recurring characters.

For a full list of LGBT characters on broadcast TV, click here. Flor the list of queers on cable, look here.

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Viking Zombie Boyfriend, By Jeremy Rizza (09-29-10)

You can sing the “Gazebo” song to the tune of “A Real Nice Clambake” from “Carousel”.  Y’know, if you’re into that sort of thing.  Next week kicks off Vampire Month,” with four consecutive Alexandru strips!
-- Jeremy Rizza 

Posted with the permission of the artist. Visit www.VikingZombieBoyfriend.com for past strips, character back stories and cool merchandise.

 

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Another Day Without the Juice: Random Ramblings

Well, friends, here we go again. I'm having another one of those days when the creative juices aren't flowing and all the stories in the news are being done to death by everybody. So it's time for another one of my non sequitur, stream of consciousness ramblings.

There's a touch of Fall in the air here at Morning Wood Acres. The first bit of color is in the leaves and the temps have been dipping lower than I usually like. I hate the cold.

We tried having a yard sale over the weekend. Paul made some beautiful floral wreaths and was trying to sell them along with some other stuff from the garage. He made $5 on some old nick-nacks. The few people that did show up were more interested in the things in the yard that weren't for sale.

Larry King used to do this kind of thing for USA Today and got paid lots of money to write crap like "Sometimes there's nothing better than a tuna melt and a glass of Bosco." I can write better shit than that on my worst day. Maybe it's the suspenders.

The cat has been peeing in my bedroom again and I can't figure out why. Maybe she's mad at me.

I once dated someone who was raised in the Eastern Orthodox Catholic Church. I used to have fun with him by making statements like, "I don't believe in religion." He'd ask, "How can you not believe in God?" I'd tell him, "That's not what I said. Religion is nothing more than organized superstition and has nothing to do with faith." He'd get this look on his face like a dog watching a football game on TV.

I am confounded on a daily basis at work by people who show up with their laptops wanting a document printed, but have no idea how to get it out of their computer. And they make three or four times what I make.

After trying for the last forty years to lose my New Jersey accent, suddenly New Jersey is hot. Reality shows like Jersey Shore, Jerseylicious, Jersey Couture and the Real Housewives of New Jersey are so embarrassing for this former Jersey Boy. They're so friggin' stoopid.

I'd eat more low calorie, fat-free foods if they tasted like pizza or Cheetos.
Hope you enjoyed this little tour of my psyche. There's something about three days of rain that brings it out. Have a great day and stay dry.

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Christine O'Donnell : "Why aren't monkeys still evolving?" (video)

Bill Maher issued a challenge to Sarah Palin's botched clone Christine O'Donnell a couple of weeks ago. Well, it was a little more than a challenge. He said on his HBO show Real Time that if O'Donnell didn't appear on his show, he would air clips from her many appearances on his old ABC show, Politically Incorrect.

O'Donnell was a frequent guest on Maher's old show, which he still owns. Last week Maher aired a clip where O'Donnell admitted that she had "dabbled into witchcraft", telling the panel that she once had a first date with a guy that involved a blood-stained alter. Grammatical errors aside, what she actually described taking part in was Satanism, not Wicca. The devil is in the details. (Sorry for the bad pun.)

Last week Delaware's darling of the Teabaggers, who believes masturbation is adultery and once worked for an ex-gay ministry, told Sean Hannity on Fox "News" that she would no longer do any interviews with the national media. Maybe because they're too smart for her?

This week Bill Maher dug deep into the archives to find another O'Donnell gem from 1998, where she takes on evolution, calling it a myth and asking, "why aren't monkeys still evolving into humans?" You can't make this stuff up. This clip come via Think Progress.

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Virginia and 9 Other States File Brief Supporting Prop 8

It's bad enough that the idiotic voters of Virginia elected hatemonger Ken Cuccinelli to be our attorney general, but it now looks like Cooch is no longer content to keep his bigotry within the confines of the Old Dominion. The Wyoming Star-Tribune reports that Virginia is one of ten states filing an amicus brief in the appeal of Perry vs. Schwarzenegger, the case that resulted in the overturning of California's Proposition 8.

CHEYENNE -- Wyoming and nine other states will file a legal brief today saying a federal court "exceeded its judicial authority" when it ruled that the U.S. Constitution requires legal marriage to include same-sex couples.

In the amicus brief, which will be filed late this afternoon in the case of Perry vs. Schwarzenegger, the states disagree with the court's ruling that same-sex marriage is a fundamental right.

The brief also asserts that individual states, not the federal court system, have final say in decisions about whether to allow same-sex marriages.

In August, a federal district judge ruled in the case that California's Proposition 8, a voter-passed ban on same-sex marriage, was illegal on federal constitutional grounds. All previous court cases on gay marriage cited state constitutions. The case is currently on appeal; both sides have said they expect the case to ultimately reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

The other states joining the brief are Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia. The brief doesn't mean the states will join the lawsuit. Amicus briefs are often submitted in court cases by outside parties to volunteer their opinions on cases.

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Bollywood Actor Disowned by Parents for Playing Gay

The reports out of India last year of the decriminalization of homosexuality might lead you to believe that things have gotten better for LGBT Indians. No so fast. Just like here in the good ole USA, attitudes can't be legislated or changed by a court case.

The Times of India is reporting that popular Indian actor Yuvraaj Parasher, who recently starred in a film that's been called Bollywood's Brokeback Mountain, has been thrown out of his parents' home and disowned not for actually being gay, but for playing gay on screen.

TOI reports:

Worse, his father is ready to go to court and officially cut off ties with his son. Seen as India's answer to Ang Lee's sensitive drama Brokeback Mountain that boasts of remarkable acting from Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal, Dunno Y ... Na Jaane Kyun sees Yuvraaj partner with actor Kapil Sharma to breathe life into their bold characters. Yuvraaj's father Satish Parasher told BT, "I feel what he has done is against the culture and tradition of our country and it challenges the purity of the relationship between a man and a woman. He kept us in the dark right from when he signed the film and told us that he is acting with a girl. When we heard about the poster and the things he has done in the film, we were shocked, hurt and humiliated. People will make fun of us and we won't be able to live peacefully ever again."

Satish believes Yuvraaj will never get a girl to marry him. "His mother is totally devastated," said the aggrieved father. "We are a respected family and I'm appalled that he is playing a gay man's role. We're finished. All the dreams and hopes we had built around him are over. For just a film role, he has lost out on his blood ties. We don't want to see his face ever... not even when we are dying." Interestingly, Yuvraaj's act with Kapil fetched them an award from Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal for their sensitive portrayal of gay men. For the actor's family, however, such accolades mean nothing.

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Katy Perry Fights Back on SNL's "Bronx Beat" (video)

Katy Perry and her boobs are all over the place this week. As I reported here on Friday, her musical number with Elmo was given the heave-ho from Sesame Street due to her low-cut, tits-out dress. She's been on the morning chat show circuit and was  featured in a story/interview on CBS Sunday Morning today, which I'm watching as I write this.

But it was last night's appearance as musical guest on SNL that gave Perry the chance to respond to the uproar over Boobiegate (yes, I just coined a new word).

Some critics this morning are panning her appearance on the 36th season premier over her lack of acting skills and vocals that would have benefited from a dose of Auto-Tune. It doesn't matter. What everyone wanted to see was how writers were going to deal with the controversy. They could have done much better, but instead they chose to pull an old character sketch out of mothballs, as they always do whenever a former cast member comes back as a guest host.

They had the California Girls singer take part in a sketch with host Amy Poehler and special guest and former cast member, Maya Rudolph reprising their "Bronx Beat" roles as bored Bronx housewives with a local access talk show, who kvetch about everyone and everything. Perry plays a neighborhood teen who has "blossomed" over the summer. The hook is that she's wearing a low-cut Elmo t-shirt that she is literally busting out of. Poehler and Rudolph spend the rest of the sketch obsessing over how much their former baby-sitter's boobs have grown.

Katy didn't have many lines in the bit, which made me wonder if maybe they had to cut them due to her lack of acting ability. I found it distracting and disappointing, as I really wanted to hear more from her. SNL really wasted a golden opportunity this time. Anyway, judge for yourself.

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For Rick Santorum, Payback is a Frothy Mix

This story has been around for a while, but in the interest of keeping jack-offs like Rick Santorum out of national politics, I'm happy to pass it along to keep the Google buzz going.

Back in '03, the former senator from Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum famously said to an Associated Press reporter, "Every society in the history of man has upheld the institution of marriage as a bond between a man and a woman. Why? Because society is based on one thing: that society is based on the future of the society. And that's what? Children. Monogamous  relationships. In every society, the definition of marriage has not ever to my knowledge included homosexuality. That's not to pick on homosexuality. It's not, you know, man on child, man on dog, or whatever the case may be. It is one thing. And when you destroy that you have a dramatic impact on the quality".

In response, blogger/columnist/activist/radio host Dan Savage devised a contest for people to submit suggestions for a new definition of "Santorum". The idea was to change the meaning of the name on the web so that any time someone searched for it, the result would be the new meaning and not any website promoting or endorsing the homophobic asshole.

Well, it worked. The winning submission defines Santorum this way:  Santorum: Pronunciation: san-TOR-um. Function: noun. Etymology: Savage Love - 05/29/03 1. The frothy mix of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex.

Savage created a web site called SpreadingSantorum.com where the new definition would find a home on the interwebs and forever remind the American people what a huge douchenozzle this guy really is. Although the site has not been updated since 2004, it continues to confound and confuse Google surfers just as Savage planned. The site is still among the top 3 to 5 search results and the story continues to make the news six years later. Although there's no proof that it has stymied Santorum's political ambitions, I'll point out again, that the whack-a-doodle, right-wing, nut-job who wanted the teaching of Intelligent Design in public schools made mandatory under the No Child Left Behind Act, is no longer in the US Senate.

So on behalf of my people, who many researchers believe are evolutionarily superior to the average breeder, I am happy to keep the momentum going, so that future generations will no longer feel comfortable speaking the word Santorum in polite society.

The lesson to be learned from all of this is simple: Don't fuck with the gays. 

*A special shout-out to reader, William Scott, for bringing this story to my attention again!

 

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"Try a Little Tenderness", from The Commitments soundtrack (music video)

Image via Wikipedia

Here's a clip from one of my all time favorite movies about a rag-tag bunch of Irish kids struggling to raise their expectations and sing their way out of the Dublin slums. From the 1991 film The Commitments, "Try a Little Tenderness". It's well worth the rental, if just for the music.

 Band manager Jimmy Rabbit explains why he wants his band to sing soul music with the best line from the movie, "Do you not get it, lads? The Irish are the blacks of Europe. And Dubliners are the blacks of Ireland. And the Northside Dubliners are the blacks of Dublin. So say it once, say it loud: I'm black and I'm proud."

Try A Little Tenderness @ Yahoo! Video

Watch: Federal Judge Rules Against DADT Discharge (video)

Image via Wikipedia
A federal judge in Tacoma Washington ruled late today in the case of Major Margaret Witt that not only was her presence not a threat to morale and unit cohesion, but in fact, the opposite is true. Judge Ronald Leighton ordered that Major Witt be reinstated. His ruling says, in part:

 "...it was Major Witt's suspension and ultimate discharge that caused a loss of morale throughout the squadron. In addition, several other former service members testified about their military experience as closeted gays or lesbians and the positive reaction of their fellow servicemen and women once they acknowledged their sexual orientation." 

 Watch Rachel Maddow discuss the ruling and what has become known as the Witt Standard with Major Witt and Lieutenant Colonel Victor Fehrenbach, who is also fighting to get his Air Force job back.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

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Katy Perry is Too Hot for the Tots! Sesame Street Pulls Her Elmo Duet (video)

Image by feastoffun.com via Flickr
What could be cuter than America's favorite pop star/goof-ball paired up with America's favorite fur ball? I know, right? Unfortunately, we won't get to see it on PBS, who will air just about anything and call it educational.

What I love best about Katy Perry is not her music, which is not that inspired, but her irreverent, self-deprecating attitude. She's not out to write a masterpiece, she's just having a good time. That's what made last year's hit, "I Kissed a Girl" such a success.

Perry's outfits are always sexy and glamorous, but in a very deliberate way that pays homage to vintage Hollywood pin-up girls, which means that, like Jane Russell, Marilyn Monroe and countless others before her, the boobs are always up and out. That's her style. That's what the people pay for. That's what the producers at Sesame Street should have known before they asked her to appear with Elmo in a parody of her hit, "Hot N Cold". So why are they going ape shit about it now that the video is done?

This whole thing reminds me of the time, back in the 80's, when Roseanne was hired to sing the national anthem at the baseball playoffs. She sang it badly, couldn't hit a note to save her life, grabbed her crotch and spit, just like every ball player on the field has done. The world exploded in mock outrage that a comedian did what comedians do and had fun  with the national anthem. They didn't hire Whitney Houston, they hired Roseanne and they got Roseanne.

This brings me to my point. Sesame Street hired Katy Perry and they got Katy Perry. Now they've decided they don't like her, because a bunch of moms in a focus group decided they didn't want to expose their toddlers, who just got off the boob, to boobs. Are they afraid their kids will backslide? Granted there may be a legitimate concern about Katy's sexy image and the appropriateness of airing it on a kiddie show. But that's something that should have been taken into consideration before they called Perry's agent, not after the shoot was in the can and ready for broadcast.

As someone who doesn't have kids, I've noticed that, all too often, when adults are constantly surrounded by kids, they start to think and act like them. I think the producers at Sesame Street need a time out to sit and think about what they've done. I think they should have their TV privileges taken away for a while too until they start acting like grownups.
 

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Cool Site of the Week: The Bilerico Project

This week's pic for Cool Site of the Week is long over due. When I first started blogging last year, some of my biggest supporters were the folks at The Bilerico Project, Started in 1998 by Bil Browning and his partner Jerame Davis as a website focused on LGBT issues in Indiana, called Bilerico.com, the site has grown into a nationally recognized source of news, information and opinion, featuring over 75 regular contributors, including a weekly Vlog from out comedian Kate Clinton.

Last year, as I was struggling to find my way in the blogosphere, Bil was kind enough to post one of my stories as a guest blogger. I was bowled over that he and Weekend Editor, Dana Rudolph of Mombian.com liked my story enough to post it. I was even more blown away when they published a second submission a couple of months later.

Dr. Jillian Weiss, Associate Editor of the site, has been an invaluable source of information for me on transgender issues and has been a tireless lobbyist for the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) and provides regular updates on its status.

What I love best about Bilerico is that it's a one-stop shop for a true diversity of opinions, commentary and humor from every corner of our community and sets the standard of excellence for bloggers every where. Bil has become a nationally recognized citizen journalist and is a regular contributor to The Huffington Post on LGBT issues. He and Jerame recently relocated to DC, when Jerame took a new job there. This puts the Unambiguously Gay Duo right in the heart of the fight.

If you're looking for a site that is truly representative of the diversity of the LGBTQIA community, I strongly recommend that you check out The Bilerico Project, just don't forget to stop by and see The Rev. now and then. Don't make me come looking for you.

 

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Eastwood will Direct, DiCaprio will Star in New J. Edgar Hoover Bio-Pic

J. Edgar Hoover and Clyde Tolson.

Movie Line reports that Dustin Lance Black, who won the Oscar for Best Original Screen Play for Milk, has finished the script for a new film based on the life of long-time FBI Director, J. Edger Hoover.

Hoover was the first FBI Director, serving from 1935 until his death in 1972. He is credited with building the agency into a modern crime fighting machine. He was the first to institute a national fingerprint database. He also kept secret files on well known figures and politicians, such as Marilyn Monroe, JFK, John Lennon and Martin Luther King.

For years it was rumored that Hoover and his lifetime companion, Associate Director of the FBI Clyde Tolson were lovers. Stories circulated around DC for decades that Hoover often appeared in drag at parties he hosted in his home. The two are buried just feet apart in the Congressional Cemetery.

Black confirmed to TMZ that Clint Eastwood has been signed to direct the film. Leonardo DiCaprio will play Hoover. Eastwood is hoping to sign Joaquin Phoenix to portray Tolson. Filming is set to begin after the first of the year.

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Megachurch Preacher Accused of Molesting Teenaged Boys (Video)

Lithonia, Ga. megachurch leader Bishop Eddie Long, who has long railed against the evils of the butt secks, finds himself in the hot seat as three different men file law suites against him for allegedly coercing them into sexual relationships with him when they were in  their teens.

The lawsuits claim that the relationships began when each of the men were 17. The legal age of consent in Georgia is 16, so there have been no criminal charges.

The men, who are filing separate law suits, say that Long took them under his wing and spent lavish amounts of money on them, including trips around the world. Former megachurch leader and ex-gay Ted Haggard, whose life was turned upside down by allegations that he hired a male sex worker, told AOL News, "Nobody's guilty until the court says he's guilty."

When asked about the story, Pope Benedict XVI is reported to have said, "Thank God it's not one of ours this time. Our insurance premiums are through the roof."

This video comes via the Associated Press.

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GetEqual's "Broken Promises LGBT Remix" (music video)

This is a great way for us all to review and remember the broken promises made to the LGBT community by every alleged ally in the Democratic Party, up to and including President Obama, as well as every LGBT advocacy group. The November mid-terms are just weeks away and it's time to hold our "leaders" accountable. Visit GetEqual.org for more information.

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Florida's Gay Adoption Ban Overturned, Crist Puts Law On Hold Pending Appeal Decision

A Miami appeals court ruled 3-0 Wednesday that a 33-year-old ban on adoption by gays and lesbians is unconstitutional, allowing the 2009 adoption by a gay couple of the children they have been fostering for several years to stand.

The St. Augustine Record reports:

"Given a total ban on adoption by homosexual persons, one might expect that this reflected a legislative judgment that homosexual persons are, as a group, unfit to be parents," the opinion states. "No one in this case has made, or even hinted at, any such argument.

 "To the contrary, the parties agree 'that gay people and heterosexuals make equally good parents.' "

The decision, by the Third District Court of Appeal in Miami, means Frank Martin Gill will be allowed to remain the parent of his two sons -- identified only as X.X.G. and N.R.G. -- whom Gill and his longtime partner adopted from the state's foster care system in 2009. Gill had been foster-parenting the boys for several years.

The opinion was agreed upon by the three judges who reviewed the case -- Gerald B. Cope Jr., Frank A. Shepherd and Vance E. Salter -- who wrote a concurring opinion. The 35-page ruling was written by Cope, who also reviewed a similar case this summer involving a lesbian couple in Broward County, Fla.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist has said he will not enforce the ban, pending the decision on whether to appeal the case to the Florida Supreme Court.

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Viking Zombie Boyfriend, By Jeremy Rizza (09-23-10)

Notes from the artist:

Ever since I got the idea for Osmunda Haines, I’ve been itching to draw her into the strip.  My original conception of her was more horrific: below the waist, leggy starlet; above the waist, a squat, shriveled pile resembling a termite mound.  I tried lots of designs, but they were all too grotesque.  I think my final model is just disturbing enough to be funny.  Osmunda has great legs, like Joan Crawford (and was born the same year), and she has wildly age-inappropriate “glamour girl” hair, like Ginger Rogers in the 1970’s.  She was initially inspired by Martha Raye, and slated to star in a storyline involving Sticky.  I haven’t decided if I still want to write that one or not.  At any rate, Dill is Osmunda’s biggest fan, so we’ll learn more about her and the film “Gazebo” as the strip progresses.
-- Jeremy Rizza


Posted with the permission of the artist. Visit VikingZombieBoyfriend.com for previous strips, character back stories and cool merchandise.

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