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Mug Shot Monday
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Andrew Rannells Holds Court at Tony Awards
Photo from HERE.
Those thick legs had Tennis Tuesday written all over 'em until I realized they were holding racquetball rackets!
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Anal Retentive
When we were in D.C. over the weekend for the Pride festivities I couldn't help but notice the family-size container of Metamucil in my doctor-friend's hotel bathroom. He says he swears by it -- and insists any gay man engaging in receptive anal sex should take 2 tablespoons a day -- as opposed to the recommended 1 to 3 teaspoons. I've had irregularity issues my whole life but have never been able to stick with a fiber-supplement routines, either because it tastes gross, it doesn't seem to be working or shear laziness. Now I've been hearing about a supplement marketed toward anally active gays called Pure for Men. Have any of you ever tried it?
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Shakespeare's Mister Sister
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Weekend Tennis Roundup
Was in Washington over the weekend but am finally home with computer access again. Although it was not the outcome I had hoped for, all due credit to Rafael Nadal on his 10th French Open title -- and for passing Pete Sampras on the all-time majors list. (The Australian Open outcome becomes all the more important when you realize Rafa would be just one behind Roger had he won.) Before this year I really didn't think Nadal had another major in him -- his injuries seemed to drain his confidence -- so you really have to respect this enormous resurgence in his 30s.
With the top four reshuffling as it has, it suddenly makes the luck of the Wimbledon draw extra important for whoever has to play No. 5 Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. (Hard to believe that a year ago Novak Djokovic held all four major titles and is now ranked No. 4 with none. Also didn't know his VERY HOT brother was the person who introduced him to this cult leader many feel is the cause of his downfall.)
Stan Wawrinka is now three for four in Grand Slam finals. But his ass in white shorts still has a perfect record.
After drinking Wednesday (pre-birthday), Thursday (birthday) and Friday (first night in D.C.), I didn't actually get up to see the women's final. But Damian was in the adjoining room watching and I hear him screaming at the TV, completely disgusted that the odds-on favorite repeatedly squandered her opportunity to finally win a major and secure the No. 1 ranking. I don't think anyone can deny that Jelena Ostapenko has an enormous amount of talent. But she didn't exactly come out and blow Halep off the court -- instead Halep blew three points to go up a set and 4-love and again a 3-1 lead in the third, before losing five straight games. If Ostapenko capitalizes on this win -- her very first WTA title! -- then it will turn out to be a great thing for women's tennis. I just fear she will fade into obscurity now that the pressure is on her to win, which has been the case with nearly every rising star in the game. All of this makes our upcoming trip to Wimbledon -- my 50th birthday present -- all the more exciting as it seems like anything could happen!
SIDELINES:
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SIDELINES:
Federer is putting all of his eggs in the grass basket, preparing for this weekend's tournament in Stuttgart with Tommy Haas.
Would be fun to see Tommy play friend Roger. (He beat him on grass just a few years ago!)
Also, Maria Sharapova -- who had been granted a wild card into Birmingham -- announced she is injured so will skip the grass-court season with hopes of rebounding in time for the hard courts and U.S. Open.
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On the Rag, Vol. 461
A weekly look at what's making news in the gay mags:
QX (London): Simon Dunn's cheekiest photoshoot yet
One and Dunn
Out magazine: The Survivors and Heroes of Pulse
Q Salt Lake Magazine: U.S. Soccer team wears rainbow jerseys at Rio Tinto Stadium
Edge Media Network: Starbucks Teams with Lady Gaga for "Cups of Kindness"
Gloss (San Francisco): Sharon Stone Hosts the Hotbed Gala
Attitude (U.K.): U.S. LGBT Murder Rate Rose to Highest Level in 20 Years in 2016
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Gay Times (U.K.): French hunk Charles-Laurent Marchand spent the weekend naked
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HIV Plus: How to Disclose Your Status on a First Date
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Metro Weekly (D.C.): See the seven best signs from the capital's big pride festival
Gay Times (U.K.): French hunk Charles-Laurent Marchand spent the weekend naked
HIV Plus: How to Disclose Your Status on a First Date
Metro Weekly (D.C.): See the seven best signs from the capital's big pride festival
DNA (Australia): Bromances Now Include Cuddles and Kisses
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Outlook Ohio: Apparently "Search Party"/"Arrested Development" star Alia Shawkat wasn't entirely acting in this episode of "Broad City"
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Outlook Ohio: Apparently "Search Party"/"Arrested Development" star Alia Shawkat wasn't entirely acting in this episode of "Broad City"
Lavender (Twin Cities): The Pride issue is out now!
MetroSource: LA Pride #ResistMarch Puts Hundreds of Thousands in the Streets
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My friends Paul Samson and Jim Key
Passport magazine: Behind the scenes with Broadway's leading men
Attractive Men: Easy Ways to Earn Extra Money
Gay Community News (Dublin): Galway rower Gavan Hennigan makes gay bachelor top 10
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Pulse Massacre Victims Remembered Outside Stonewall Inn
Attended Gays Against Guns' event this evening to celebrate those who were killed at the Pulse nightclub one year ago today. I must confess I became extremely emotional when the 49 people wearing white veils carrying photos of the victims walked by me. My cat Larry happened to die the same day of the massacre last year, so I was distracted with my own personal grief at the time and never really felt like I processed the horror of it all. Survivor Keinon Carter, who lost a brother to gun violence, gave a moving speech that got the water works going yet again. This organization is so right that the best way to honor the victims of this needless crime is with action. Vote against and any lawmaker who supports the NRA and learn about other ways to fight back HERE.
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Morning Wood
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Song of the Day: 'Heat Wave' by Marilyn Monroe
It's 95 degrees and rising in NYC.
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Tennis Tuesday
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Page 1 Roundup (06/13)
The New York Post: MTA hopes to avoid ruining your summer with new LIRR service
The Daily News: Megyn Kelly’s interview with Sandy Hook conspiracist Alex Jones denounced — by Alex Jones
The New York Times: Across Russia, Protesters Heed Navalny’s Anti-Kremlin Rallying Cry
The Wall Street Journal: Hell on Earth! Satanic Band Files Suit Citing Dreary Work Conditions
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Rainbow Flag Creator Gilbert Baker to Be Remembered in NYC
A rally and march in memory of Gilbert Baker, creator of the Rainbow Flag, the international symbol of LGBTQ pride, will be held tomorrow (June 14) in New York City’s West Village, The event will begin at 6 p.m. at the Stonewall Inn, 53 Christopher Street, and proceed to Hudson River Park at Christopher Street and the West Side Highway.
Protesters will carry Baker’s hand-sewn banners, including one that reads “Don’t Buy Trump’s Lies,” and march to Hudson River Park at 8 p.m. for the historic raising of the Rainbow Flag on a giant flagpole.
From a release:
WHO: There will be nine speakers, one for each stripe of the Rainbow Flag, and each speech will be tied to the symbolism of the color: lavender for diversity, pink for sex, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for nature, turquoise for art, indigo for harmony, violet for spirit.
➢ Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum of Congregation Beit Simchat Torah
➢ Justin Sams, activist and actor who appeared in the TV series “When We Rise”
➢ Cleve Jones, creator of the NAMES Project AIDS Quilt and political ally since the 1970s
➢ Corey Johnson, New York City Council member
➢ Cathy and Sheila Marino-Thomas, longtime LGBTQ activists, with daughter Jackie
➢ Alex Brandfonbrener, a youth participant from OutCasting
➢ Richard Ferrara, longtime LGBTQ activist and close friend
➢ Ken Kidd, member of Rise + Resist, Gays Against Guns
➢ Lauren Cook Featherston, niece of Gilbert Baker
Music by The New York City Gay Men’s Chorus and Larry Owens.
WHY: The Trump administration and the GOP have declared war on the LGBTQ community. Gilbert Baker was a member of the Rise + Resist movement that protests the Trump agenda. Flag Day, flag maker Baker’s favorite holiday, is also the President’s birthday. On June 14, we honor Baker’s global contribution to LGBTQ unity and protest the current president’s divisiveness and anti-LGBTQ policies
The Trump administration and the GOP have declared war on the LGBTQ community. Gilbert Baker was a member of the Rise + Resist movement that protests the Trump agenda. Flag Day, flag maker Baker’s favorite holiday, is also the President’s birthday. On June 14, we honor Baker’s global contribution to LGBTQ unity and protest the current president’s divisiveness and anti-LGBTQ policies.
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Don't Rain on My (Pride) Parade
I'm late and this has already been covered extensively on social media. But here's a quick postcard from our weekend in the nation's capital, where we attended Saturday's DC Pride Parade and checked out the Equality March for Unity and Pride on Sunday.
As you may have heard, things were somewhat chaotic -- with organizers and attendees alike to blame. For starters,some people seemed to be confused that there were two disparate events with two different marching routes and festivals. The DC Pride parade was your garden-variety Pride celebration that Washington has every year that technically had nothing to do with the Equality march.
We were lucky because a friend's apartment was right by the parade's path, so we had a convenient place to use the bathroom, get refills and cool off.
But no sooner did we get to the corner of 14th and R streets, the lively parade mysteriously came to a screeching halt with no explanation.
Eventually we heard protesters were to blame -- makes sense in this political climate -- only to find out they were activists who are ON OUR TEAM, protesting that organizers were too cozy with the police and corporations -- institutions that have a history of marginalizing minorities such as the LGBT community, immigrants and people of color.
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Um, OK. So it's a bad thing that major corporations want to be aligned with the LGBTQ movement, and that they are instituting sensitivity training so that we are treated with dignity and respect? And we should be hostile to the police who have carved out a safe route for us to have this annual celebration because some cops are horrible people? Needless to say, I think this all-or-nothing Bernie Bro mentality is naive, shortsighted and completely misses the point. But as exhausting as it is, I still find it hard to get too angry as I know their hearts are in the right place even as they misapply knowledge across the board. I just wish people would choose their moments more carefully because there are A LOT of people/events/organizations that deserve to be protested -- and this was hardly the time or the place. Eventually the cops (who were incredibly kind throughout) re-routed the parade, only to re-re-route it back to its original path and everyone had a fun time.
“Capital Pride has consistently demonstrated that it is more interested in accommodating the interests of Metropolitan police and of corporate sponsors than it is in supporting the very communities it supposedly represents,” the group wrote in a statement announcing its disruption of the parade.
“Capital Pride is a sham, corporate scum don’t give a damn,” one person posted on Twitter with the hashtag #NoJusticeNoPride.
Um, OK. So it's a bad thing that major corporations want to be aligned with the LGBTQ movement, and that they are instituting sensitivity training so that we are treated with dignity and respect? And we should be hostile to the police who have carved out a safe route for us to have this annual celebration because some cops are horrible people? Needless to say, I think this all-or-nothing Bernie Bro mentality is naive, shortsighted and completely misses the point. But as exhausting as it is, I still find it hard to get too angry as I know their hearts are in the right place even as they misapply knowledge across the board. I just wish people would choose their moments more carefully because there are A LOT of people/events/organizations that deserve to be protested -- and this was hardly the time or the place. Eventually the cops (who were incredibly kind throughout) re-routed the parade, only to re-re-route it back to its original path and everyone had a fun time.
I shot this photo of Damian, who took the rest
Now on Sunday there was what I thought would be the equivalent of January's Women's March, which is to say a massive crowd on par with the 1993 March on Washington I attended right after I moved to town. The short march past the White House to the Mall began at 10 a.m. and Damian, Ken and I were still home watching Rafael Nadal humiliate Stan Wawrinka. (Bad gays, I know.)
But when we finally got the Mall around noon, we were stunned to see that there was virtually no one there. The speakers kept speaking, but we ended up just hanging out with our visitors from Miami with whom we had arranged to meet up, Tory and John. (We were content to stay under a tree to keep from dying of heat prostration -- the 95 degree weather probably didn't help turnout.)
John, Tory, me, Damian and Ken (in back)
Eventually we realized the people who had marched had already ditched the speakers on the Mall and headed over to the street fair on Pennsylvania Avenue, where there were booths for all sorts of LGBT merchandise and activities.
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Woof!
The Pointer Sisters, Miley Cyrus and others performed a little later in the day. But by then we were exhausted so opted for a great brunch at The Smith before we headed to (the air-conditioned bar) Trade for beers. The music and the crowd were fun -- but then before we knew it, it was time to head to Union Station for the ride home. While it didn't turn out to be the must-attend spectacle I was expecting, it felt good to be counted at a time when our presence feels almost mandatory.
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Nostalgia 'Battle'
Let's face it, there will never be another Bruce Boxleitner sporting a mustache and Speedo. But that doesn't mean we can't give this reboot of "Battle of the Network Stars" a shot! Complete list of teams -- including some hunks of yesteryear who competed on the original(!) -- HERE.
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2017 Lambda Literary Award Winners Revealed
On Monday, Lambda Literary, the nation’s leading organization advancing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) literature, announced the winners of the 29th Annual Lambda Literary Awards (the “Lammys”) at a ceremony hosted by Justin Vivian Bond at NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The ceremony brought together attendees, sponsors and celebrities to celebrate excellence in LGBT literature and 29 years of the groundbreaking literary awards. Complete list of winners HERE.
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Gay Memoir/Biography:
"When We Rise," Cleve Jones, Hachette Books
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Page 1 Roundup (06/14)
The New York Post: Jeff Sessions denies collusion during at-times heated Senate testimony
School is in Sessions: Watch HERE.
The Daily News: President Trump said House health care bill is 'mean'
The New York Times: Jeff Sessions denies collusion
The Wall Street Journal: You Seem Tense! Hang On, I’ll Go Get My Pneumatic Sander
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Morning Wood
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Song of the Day: 'I'm Coming Out' by Diana Ross
Can you guess the closet case?
During Pride weekend in Washington I told my (10-years-younger) boyfriend that the standard date question when someone my age first came out was, "Do you parents know?," always asked in a somber tone in case they didn't or things hadn't gone well. So imagine my surprise yesterday when a guy I have known for 19 years -- the first few of which he worked for me (I hired him!) -- came out to me and a bunch of our former colleagues in a lighthearted group Facebook message in which he poked fun at himself for being upset that the NBA Finals preempted a new episode of his beloved "Bachelorette." (I haven't had to "come out" to anyone since, what, 1987. And I don't think anyone other than my two best friends have ever come out to me!) At first we weren't even sure what he was saying -- he's in his early 40s now and we had no real reason to even think about it now that we mostly just see each other online. But he eventually alluded to a man in his life and their buying a house, which led me to private message him my congratulations, etc. (My ex [Michael] once saw "him" coming out of Barracuda. But just like on your favorite soap, it turns out my friend really does have a twin brother, so I always assumed the twin was gay and that my friend's uncomfortable reaction to my bringing up the sighting was because I'd outed his twin!) I realize he's not someone I see regularly anymore. But nonetheless it's a strange feeling to have known someone for nearly 20 years and then have them come out to you. Like the handful of people I had to "tell" back in the day, I'm just happy that he's happy. It turns out he's been with his partner for 10 years now and his mom is pressuring him to tie the knot, which only goes to prove what we've been saying all along: Homos aren't so different from heteros, after all!
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Wrestle Wednesday
Get a room, you two!
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House Majority Whip Steve Scalise Among 5 Shot at Baseball Field; Suspect Is Dead
A gunman opened fire on Republican members of the congressional baseball team at a practice field in Alexandria, Va., on Wednesday morning, using a rifle to shower the field with bullets that struck five people, including House Majority Whip Steve Scalise. I don't think you can read too much into a lone man's deranged actions. But I'll bet Sen. Rand Paul wishes he hadn't tweeted this last year as he was cowering in the dugout as his friends and colleagues were being hit.
Donald Trump considers Scalise to be a "true friend" and a "patriot"
I think the important thing here is that no one's Second Amendment rights were infringed upon. Right, congressmen?
Unlike Trump, Sen. Bernie Sanders does not like the idea of being affiliated with violent lunatics in any way whatsoever.
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