Lately it seems as though many of my pals are facing their careers head-on and I couldn't be happier. Whether it's that my friend Kylie Edmond's Rock and Rawhide is now an official non-profit or that Molly Pope is making numerous appearances all over town, it's great when my artist friends are making it happen for themselves!
Add to this list the amazing n awesome Roger Yolanda Mapes (my last guest on The Will Clark Show before we moved to The Rtiz) -- he has put together the first installment of his newest creation, a drag gospel show! And it's playing one more night - Sunday June 3rd at 6:30pm at the Duplex.
The past two Sunday's Roger has been knocking it out of the park with a tune filled show featuring real gospel numbers Roger sings himself while accompianied by guitar, cello and two awesome backup singers as well as the incredible Kenneth Gartman on piano - this is two parts gospel, two parts cabaret mixed together for a delightful evening's aural confection.
Plus, there are short/bite-sized homilies on getting a better life - a product of Roger's own ministry - he graduated recently from the One Spirit Institute here in New York.
Delightfully drected by Rev. Shawn Moniger, it's a testament to the sincerity of Roger's performance that songs focusing on God don't feel campy just because Roger is dressed up in drag (and quite fabulously I might add). Plus, hey Lucie Arnaz was in the audience to give the evening a bit more fabulousness than it already had. :)
In what I hope is an ongoing and intense trend for the Obama campaign, today this video is making the rounds - watch it and pass around. This is a response video to a ludicrous attack ad from the Republican's where, as usual, they simply lie about things that the President has done/not done. You know, I've certainly been a supporter of Mr. Obama but even I have been frustrated by the lack of rebuttal over the years to attacks. On one hand, you could say that giving them attention is akin to validating them (and I agree) but on the other hand, even the 'coward of the county' got it together and beat the crap out of the bully eventually. Thankfully while I don't in any way shape or form think that Obama is any kind of coward (I'm a firm supporter of his attempts to bridge a very large gap between our two - sadly only two- political idealogies) but really enough is enough.. and the moment that they say in the video "we're going to call them out on their BS" was the moment that I swooned.
Dude, we got your back - go get 'em. The Koch Brothers might be spending 6 million on attacking you, but you got millions of people supporting you - and while our culture is seriously screwed up in terms of where we place our priorities, in the end, it is the people that will win out. And it is the truth that will also win out. And that's actual truth, not "truthiness".
It's at this point that we need Al Franken to wake up like Sofia-like from THE COLOR PURPLE. Lying liars who lie need to be defeated!
Oh, it's ON. Hold my baby. :) (AB will be happy about that reference) :)
I'm not going to go into great depth of what I was doing walking through the Pines this past Sunday morning at 6:15AM, but you can probably make an educated guess. I was clothed and I wasn't alone if that helps. :)
Anyway, for those Fire Islanders who are, like me, in love with the island the most when the sun is rising and all the little ones have let their heads land softly on the pillow (as well as those whose heads are on the pillow but they ain't exactly sleeping), it is an opportunity to enjoy, admire, drink in, the natural beauty of the place at a time when there is little other kinds of beauty to distract from it.
The stillness of the air around the blossoming complex, even on a windy day, washed over me refreshing my soul with the promise of new adventures to come. I could relate. My life, like the Pavilion complex, had sort of burned down and was in the middle of a fresh, hard won reconstruction.
I hoped, for my own sake, that the new complex would both improve on the clunky rebuilt pavilion of the recent past (I always felt it lacked any kind of character at all - you could be on any dance floor in the world - and that's fine for an Arby's but not so much for the Pine's party focal point) and the Pavilion that everyone remembers from the past few decades (maybe without the feeling as though the entire enterprise might collapse with one strong wind). I sure hoped so. If I'm feeling a sort of sudden kinship with the new building, I want the finished product to be the best of all possible worlds (with apologies to Candide). :)
As we moved past the site, the morning sun streamed in through the wooden beams creating a sort of halo effect. The building bathed in the glorious spring. I wanted to enjoy it as long as I could. I had seen the construction site on my way in on Saturday afternoon (the pic above) but the morning light gave it a life it had lacked before.
The boardwalk reflected the morning sun with dazzling patches of orange creating a sort of road of light leading back to the house where I was staying, visiting a friend who was celebrating his 55th birthday at a big blowout party the night before.
The party itself had been the best kind of Fire Island event - music, lights, great looking men, great food and free flowing liquor. The night had been cool, but what better incentive to find someone nice to curl up with?
After a kind of morning nap, I turned to more drinks and a walk on the beach picking up seashells (the left pic), a perfect, contemplative end to a 'go with the flow' kind of experience.
You see, this is, I think, when Fire Island is at it's best. When it's not about high tea or low tea and all that "showing off" crap that, for me, gets old real fast.
For me, it's best when it's about hanging out with friends and meeting fun, new, interesting people. When everyone pitches in and cleans up the party house the next morning while sipping cocktails and dancing to high energy music. When even mopping the floor and tearing up boxes for recycling is fun because of the company enjoyed.
And of course Fire Island is also at it's best when one is walking home at 6:15AM. <G>But maybe that's just me. :)
I found this on the Facebook page of my friend Kevin and I couldn't resist posting it.. it's a fun parody of the "It Gets Better" campaign founded by sex advice columnist Dan Savage. I'm sure we could all relate at one point in our puberty to this situation....
As a producer (talk show host? emcee? what am I today?) booking my friends on the big show is of course a lot of fun. I know what's going on with them and so the interview is easy.
And the March 28th show was just like that - talking to Bianca about her one woman show at the Laurie Beechman or talking to Torez about him going back to high school so that he can move on to higher education.
Plus, we raised funds for Brainpower, a new org that helps LGBT homeless kids get the skills and experience to work in the comic book industry.
Thanks to our friends Jase, Heriberto, Brian, David and many others who joined us for a really awesome evening!! Click here to see the gallery of pics (Photos by AB).
I love my life. I really do. And I love living in New York. Where else can you do the things we do here without really much thought - theatre, concerts, fundraisers, the park, the subway, etc.. and there's always something going on.
Like the other day I was in Grand Central and the Rangers were doing an impromptu jam session on the platform while people from the team handed out what looked like Ranger themed cum towels (I'm sorry, but they were small terry cloth towels larger than a washcloth and not quite big enough to be hand towels.. it was totally a cum towel!!)
I even love this city when you can't ride the subway without being serenaded by a "Johnny Depp as a Pirate" clone or hang out waiting for your train without being serenaded by a homeless woman who sings better than anyone I've heard on The Voice (seriously).
And never underestimate the joy of catching one of New York's kookiest completely by accident - why just earlier this past week I was on a bus on W. 125th Street and saw a very hot, muscular guy doing chin-ups on the intersection signal post. Just out of the blue. Apparently if the kids sitting near me on the bus were to be believed, he does a whole workout on that corner (Lenox and 125th) every day around 3pm.
Oh, and when you see this guy, well, you're welcome. :)
On Wednesday I hope you'll come and join us for a really fun night featuring one of my favorite New Yorkers - Roger "Yolanda" Mapes. I went to Yo's wedding during the Halloween parade, dressed like a sailor. Roger was dressed in an outfit befitting a Queen and his huzband to be dressed sort of like an Emu complete with beak.
Roger will talk about his upcoming drag gospel shows and perform his favorite tunes at what is going to be a very special edition of The Will Clark Show feat. P*rno Bingo.
Can't say much in advance but if you've been a fan of the show at Pieces, it would be a good idea for you to join us on Wednesday April 11th. 8pm sharp! :)
More later, but be sure to get out of the house and have a amazing day today!
Good morning, peeps! Hope your past week has been a good one.
The other day I was admiring the new Mad Men ad in the subway and, as a lot of men do, coveting the
Don Draper look. I looked at my ratty jeans and my tight t shirt and worn tennis shoes and was struck by the somewhat sad, maybe somewhat charming thought that I was a Don Draper kind of guy trapped on an Archie Andrews budget. Welcome to 21st century New York, right?
The ratty jeans btw were really ratty - a ripped hole along the inside left leg, left over from my "I'm too sexy for underwear" phase (the hole was conveniently - and naturally - away from anywhere that anything popping out would get me arrested but close enough that anyone within a few feet radius who cared to notice would think that something possibly could).
I know this is trivial and probably, for a 48 year old (this Friday March 9th), a bit ridiculous. But lately I've felt the need for a little extra added attention to this kind of stuff. With the job search dragging on and some medical stuff happening with family (not my own absent biological one, my acquired one) I've been a little down in the dumps for the past few weeks, as I've alluded to in past posts.
Let's look at this from a different angle though. A couple weekends ago, New York gym trainer Roman Ragazzi apparently took his own life. For those of you that follow porn, you'll remember that Roman was outed by the New York Post when he was working for Raging Stallion a few years ago as a former Israeli military trainer who worked at the Israeli consulate. Although I didn't ever know Roman personally or professionally, I do know that this caused a lot of problems for him. Whomever outed him really should burn in the deepest darkest pit of hell.
Maybe this happened to Roman, a despondence that life will never progress - and worse, because of being outed, maybe he couldn't go back home.
For me, I am inspired by people like the legendary Jack Wrangler who had a great second act. I am encouraged by the optimism of people like Michael Brandon who have had to overcome some seriously huge obstacles but are emboldened to be a success despite all of that rather than letting their problems overwhelm them.
And I am encouraged by following my old peeps from the porn industry on Facebook, seeing the neat things that they are doing with their lives especially my old friend Cameron Mitchell who is now an enormous (and even hotter than he was 'in the old days') bodybuilder in Chicago who owns his own personal training business.. congrats Cam and Julie!
None of this realization has come easily. But you know, I think that it's actually harder to opt in than opt out and I've never been one to shy away from doing the hard work.
As if on cue, this morning a friend sent me links to these You Tube videos of Idina Menzel's recent concert in Toronto (below). The first one is of course just the right thing to hear given these thoughts and the other, well, it just plain made me laugh out loud.
Now, if you're down in the mouth and I know many of us are, I can't offer you any quick and easy solutions - I don't really have any myself - there are still hundreds/thousands of people looking for work in this city for you know like three or four available jobs, but the key to this really is just to keep on moving forward, getting out of bed in the morning and doing what you need to do to .. opt in. Stay in the game, and don't believe that it won't get better (and if you can't find that kind of positivity in your life, stay out the way of those of us who do!).
Next, I can't embed this clip from HANNAH AND HER SISTERS and the quality is terrible (taken from someone's TV set) but the message is vital and maybe corny and surprisingly, in retrospect, incredibly sentimental and simple given that it's Woody Allen, but, given this time we're living in, necessary viewing.
And as for being a little like Archie.. well, I can think of worse role models - I mean, he's got a lot of people who love him, never ages and currently is showing off his political side (not only are Archie comics featuring a very prominent gay character, but they are also addressing the Occupy Wall Street movement.. very progressive for any "comic book" but especially for Archie). And you know, he's a fellow redhead and I dig my fellow gingers. :)
Thanks to all of you who emailed nice wishes to me yesterday about the 7th anniversary of The Will Clark Show feat. P*rno Bingo, I really appreciated it! We had a good show last night - a great crowd, wonderful stars and raised a few hundred dollars for the Gay/Lesbian Anti Violence Project.
Afterwards I did what I always do - decompress with friends at Julius' located just around the corner from Pieces. If you're not up on your New York gay bar lore, it's one of the oldest (if not THE oldest in the city) and they have a small grill for cooking up all sorts of appetizers (like chile, chicken fingers and chicken wings) as well as burgers that are among the best in the city. It's an eclectic crowd - Bingo refugees, young gays and their female friends, a smattering of straight couples and older gentlemen who have been hanging out there for decades. The bartender, Emilio, is a super sweetheart (and ultra cute) and the bouncer is a big muscle hottie who looks like he'll tear you apart (which is a good thing for a bouncer) but when he smiles, well, I get a little short of breath.
For me, Thursday is my Saturday - the whole week is geared towards making Wednesday night happen and generally I spend half of the day after picking up things around the apartment, buying groceries and catching up on the email that I've put off. You know, Saturday stuff. If I had yard, today would be the day I'd be raking leaves. :) Not such a bad thing in the race around world of Manhattan.
This Friday night I'm catching David Drake's newest creation, Tawny Heatherton as she presents "My Tawny Valentine" at the Laurie Beechman Fridays starting tomorrow February 17th at 7:30 and running through March 2nd. Tickets have been selling at such a brisk pace that they are adding some Thursday shows. Check out the Spin Cycle website for complete deets as well as for reserving tix. (And as a side note, David is looking super luscious these days - and being all dolled up in Joey-clothes doesn't diminish his carnality.. in fact, it rather oddly heightens it).
Let me close this blog entry by quoting C.S. Lewis (found on a friend's Facebook wall today): "A friend is someone who knows the song in your heart and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words.”
If you think you might have a pal who has forgotten why they're pretty amazing, take a moment out of your day to sing their praises back to them, I know they will appreciate it more than you probably know.... because no one ever really knows just how much sorrow another is going through ... and no one ever really knows just how much their kind words make a difference. I speak from experience on both sides of that equation.
Just some thoughts to share for Thursday. The new Saturday. :)
Good morning all - today I'm at home repainting my second bedroom, making homemade soup and well, as always blogging. The music is pumped up and I'm already making tremendous progress, but wanted to stop for a moment to post this video from the Gay/Lesbian Anti Violence Project.
Although most of us have endured anti-gay slurs (although how can calling me a "cocksucker" be a slam? especially when it's yelled out a car window by a carful of drunk straight guys as they're speeding by - it's hard to take that seriously) but thankfully most of us will never know the horror of being attacked like Dave Pittock describes in the video below.
I know I know.. you read this blog for the hunk o the day or for Bingo pics and I hit you all up for causes all the time, but I hope that if you have a couple dollars that you need to burn off anyway before the end of year (you know, if you need to make one last charitible donation for tax reasons) or if you just know how important of a cause this is, that you will consider clicking here and donation to AVP today. The work that AVP does is vital to the health - both physical and mental - of our community.
If you're not able to help financially now, hopefully you'll consider passing this post on to your friends - because not only does AVP depend on your financial support, but they depend on all of us to let our entire network of LGBTQ friends know that should the need arise (God forbid) there will be help (and all of us should carry AVP's emergency hotline number in our wallets or as a saved numbe on our cell phone just in case).
Meanwhile, AVP will be joining us for Bingo on January 18th and if you're in New York City then, I hope you'll join us for a night to raise a bunch o bucks for them. :)
Is this a case of "me thinks he doth protest too much"? (And thank you Lou Grant for using that so brilliantly in an episode of Mary Tyler Moore.. remember when TV shows used to be smart?)
As you all may know, yesterday this People cover proclaiming Taylor Lautner is gay flamed around teh internets but now Lautner's people and uhm People are saying it's a fake. He says he's not gay and People did not create this cover.
My gaydar tells me that Lautner is the gayest thing since Paul Lynde but you know I'm not inside his head and soul.
However, if he is gay, I find it kinda sad. And if someone is that deep in the closet and that afraid of telling the world he's gay because he's that much more focused on being a movie superstar at the price of his own soul (it's certainly been done before... must I point out the obvious example of this?), then hell, who am I, who are WE to tell him otherwise?
I mean, not that it's not ragey frustrating that one can't be gay and be a movie superstar, but as long as the suits in Hollywood project their own homophobia (and even teh gayz in the power positions can be homophobic, sometimes they're the worst ones) on the American public determining that we are too stupid to know the difference between an actor and the role they're playing, movie superstars will remain 'straight' (well, straightish, but you get the point).
Naturally the activist in me pipes up and reminds me that every time a gay man or lesbian hides in the closet, the message that they are telling the world is: It's not OK to be gay.
But again: you cannot make someone feel OK with their sexuality - they have to get there on their own. Some people never do and that's not 'wrong', it's just 'sad' especially in this day and age.
