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Researchers Say That Having Older Brothers Increases the Chance of a Guy Being Gay!

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Photograph from the collection of Stephen Rutledge

If you are guy and you have older brothers, there is a better chance that you are gay. It has something to with what is called ”Fraternal Birth Order Effect”. This is rather dry, but stick with me. According to an article just published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in the United State of America (PNAS), scientists have noticed this in previous research, but now they think they have a biological explanation as to why. It starts before birth.

At Brock University, Anthony Bogaert and his research team say that some women who are pregnant with boys develop antibodies that target a protein made by the Y chromosome (which women do not have). The immune systems make antibodies to recognize foreign molecules that could be dangerous bacteria. Pregnant women produce antibodies against fetal molecules, such as their fetus having a different blood group.

The researchers say this may be at least one of the biological reasons some men are gay. They noticed a pattern that may be linked to something that happens in the womb. It’s possible that when a woman gets pregnant with her first boy, this Y-linked protein gets into her bloodstream. The mother’s body recognizes the protein as a foreign substance, and her immune system responds, creating antibodies. If enough of these antibodies build up in the woman’s body and if she becomes pregnant with another a boy, they can cross the placental barrier and enter the brain of the second male fetus.

They found that the mothers of gay sons with older brothers had the highest levels of antibodies against this protein, followed by the mothers of gay sons with no older brothers. Women who had straight sons had less of these antibodies, while women with no sons had the least.

The team suggests these antibodies build up in some women’s bodies with every male baby they have. At higher concentrations, it is possible that the effect of these antibodies on the protein they target leads to changes in brain development that have an influence on sexual orientation.

The protein targeted by the antibodies is called NLGN4Y. It sounds like an Internet acronym or a Star Wars character, but it is thought to play a role in how brain cells connect to each other. These antibodies affect the wiring of the fetal brain, and that might explain why each subsequent son is more likely to be gay.

Earlier research had shown that the more older brothers a boy has, the more of a chance that boy will be attracted to other guys. A study in 2006 showed that with each brother, the chance that a man will be gay goes up by about a third.

The researchers tested 142 women and 12 men, from 18 to 80-years-old, and found a higher concentration of NLGN4Y in blood samples from women than from men. They found the highest concentration of antibodies to the protein in women with gay younger sons who had older brothers, compared with women who had no sons or who had given birth to only straight boys.

The study builds on work Bogaert and his team have been researching for more than 20 years. Their initial research noted the phenomenon happens even across cultures. They found that a man’s chances of being gay increased even if he was raised apart from his older brother.

Researchers did not see a similar pattern in families with adopted brothers, so scientists started to think there must be some sort of a maternal developmental explanation. Their research did not bring a biological explanation for why some men are bisexual or for gay only children, gay oldest sons, or lesbians. I am not a scientist, but there must be an explanation for girls who like girls, perhaps the mother was listening to Indigo Girls at conception.

I hope that this research will lead to an understanding the being gay is innate and not environmental, and that the antibodies can’t be fiddled with invitro, because the world needs more gays.

 

 


#TransformationTuesday: QWERRRKOUT feat. Ryan Hemminge

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Transformation Tuesday just got a whole lot QTer…New queers featured every week! Tag us, take a pic of us and follow us on Instagram at QWERRRKOUT, and you too could be the next QT! YOU BETTA QWERRRK! (Mx Qwerrrk pic by Santiago Felipe, illustration by Piepke)

Ryan Hemminge

Age: 20

Location: Manchester, United Kingdom

About:

 

“At the start of the year, I decided to take the plunge and move from a small town in South Wales, up to the big party city which is Manchester. I already had quite a big understanding of Manchester due to traveling back and fourth to visit friends here, and I knew that this was the city for me.
Due to the party life that lies on Canal Street, Manchester’s very own gay village, I was sucked into and completely mesmerized by the art of drag. I started off just experimenting in the house and was a bit afraid to go out with makeup on, due to the stigma and hate that comes with it. When I finally sucked it up and thought, fuck it, I’m going to go out with makeup on tonight, that’s when everything changed. Getting such positive and loving feedback off people in general (and obviously off all the village queens), that helped me and pushed me to keep practicing at my art.
I think what I love about drag the most is that we are constantly pushing gender norms and stereotypes in a positive direction that will always make such an impact to every day LGBT life, and I’m so happy, honored and proud to be involved in that movement.
As well as hosting on a Thursday night at KIKI Manchester, I work a lot on pushing my art through social media, because I know that’s where a lot of young queer people seek out inspiration; and also, I suppose hope that they aren’t alone in the way they feel or choose to live their life. Drag is such a beautiful art and no one should hide away due to negative comments injected into the world and through the media.”

Instagram: ryanxhemminge

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Alabama Native Channing Tatum Urges Fans Not to Vote for Roy Moore

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Every little bit helps. Channing Tatum, who was born and raised in Cullman, Alabama, before moving to Mississippi, has been encouraging his Instagram followers not to vote for Republican bigot/child molester/homophobe Roy Moore.

“Usually, I’m not a political person,” he said in an Insta video. “For the record, I’m not a liberal, Democrat or Republican. I am my own mind and my own heart and that is more complex than red and blue.”

He said that Moore is “a man that’s been accused of assaulting girls” and who has “done things that in my opinion go beyond the line of trust.”

Sounds like an easy decision, no?

Watch below.

More than anything i just want young people to go out and vote.

A post shared by Channing Tatum (@channingtatum) on

Via HuffPo:

Earlier this week, he shared another video about the election featuring civil rights leaders lending their support for Democrat Doug Jones, who the actor said has “been an advocate on behalf of helping people his whole life.”

Transformation Tuesdays: The Full IsSheHungry Video Is Out (As Well as a Teaser for Jaymes Mansfield!)

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Yay, omg. I’m really excited for everyone to see the full Transformation video for Germany’s most intriguing queen, Hungry – she’s absolutely AMAZING. You’ve no doubt seen her work on the new Bjork album cover – here she gives me one of her signature mind-bending Rorschach Test/intergalactic insect makeovers. I absolutely love her. Watch below.

And here’s the teaser for the new episode of Transformations featuring Jaymes Mansfield, which is currently available on WOW Presents Plus! (It’s just $3.99 a month after 30-day free trial – and use the discount code “Transformations” for additional 10% off for the first three months!)

Perfect ’50s Housewife Ginger Minj Is Dreaming of a “White Christmas” in Her New Music Video

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Well, this is just adorable. Ginger Minj is a perfect ’50s-era housewife baking a cherry pie for her wonderful hubby Mr Minj (aka CJ Russel) and dreaming of a white Christmas in her latest video. Directed by Shawn Adeli and Brad Hammer, it will definitely put you in the holiday spirit.

She spoke to HuffPo about the making of the video:

How did you decide to sing White Christmas on the Christmas Queens 3 album?

Well, I was originally going to sing “Silent Night”, but I gave it to Michelle in exchange for her officiating our wedding! White Christmas was my grandfather’s favorite Christmas song and I’ve always really loved that Beach Boys/60’s surfer sound, so when you pair those two things together how could I resist?!

You were a lot of fun to work with on set of the music video for White Christmas. What was your favorite part of the shoot?

I had the best time shooting this video! I think my favorite part was channeling my inner Francine Fishpaw from the John Waters/Divine movie “Polyester” … a loving, caring housewife with an edge. It’s always nice being on a set where you’re encouraged to be as over the top and ridiculous as possible!

Watch below, and don’t forget: The Christmas Queens are coming to LA December 22! (And buy the Christmas Queen 3 album on iTunes here)

“Punk Hillary” Portrait Sets Off Bomb Threat at Art Basel

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The Miami Herald is reporting that artist Scott Scheidly‘s portrait of Hillary Clinton as a pink-haired punk caused a full-fledged security investigation at Art Basel this weekend when two security dogs “reacted suspiciously” to a crate containing the work of art.

Fair director Nick Korniloff said that the two dogs reacted to the crate during a pre-show check shortly after 8 a.m., prompting organizers to clear the site. Both the Art Miami tent and a tent for Context, connected by a tunnel, were closed off. The package was then searched and the painting of the former Democratic presidential candidate was found inside.

“We had to err on the side of caution,” Korniloff said. Both tents eventually reopened around 10 a.m.

The painting— entitled “Punk Hillary” — had been shipped with a similar portrait of President Donald Trump (called “Trump Pimp”), featuring the prez in a zebra hat with a gold dollar-sign chain around his neck. The Trump portrait had already been removed from the crate before the security check.

Both artworks, done by Orlando-based artist Scott Scheidly, were listed at $4,000 each and sold to a single collector. They are part of a series by Scheidly, who has painted satirical portraits of roughly 50 politicians and pop culture figures, including former President Barack Obama, Adolf Hitler and Queen Elizabeth II.

The false alarm delayed the opening of the tent located at One Herald Plaza for dozens of people, including event staff and attendees. After police blocked off a section of Biscayne Boulevard with their cruisers and caution tape, many lingering outside were blocked from entering the area.

After the delay Saturday morning, both paintings were hung side-by-side in the Context tent, in a booth for a gallery called Spoke Art based in both New York and San Francisco.

When asked why he thought the dogs reacted to the painting, gallery owner Ken Hashimoto shrugged and said:

“[The police] have no idea,” he said. “My thought is a Republican bomb dog.”

Ha!

 

Jimmy Kimmel Gets Real about Healthcare in Last Night’s Monologue

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Late night extraordinaire; Jimmy Kimmel is at it again! In last night’s monologue, Kimmel got real about the GOP and Obamacare.  After a week of star studded celebrities like Tracee Ellis Ross, Neil Patrick Harris, Chris Pratt and Melissa McCarthy filling in as hosts of Jimmy Kimmel Live! Kimmel returned to the show with his son, Billy.

A recovered Billy joined his father on stage just days after his second open heart surgery.

“He may have pooped but he’s fine,” exclaimed a cheery Kimmel before getting down to business.

Kimmel urged fans to push their representatives to fight against the GOP’s plan to repeal Obamacare.

Kimmel also warned that Congress has failed to approve funding for CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program), that helps families afford healthcare for their kids. Kimmel asked viewers to call both the House and Senate at (202) 225-3121 and let representatives know that they want CHIP fully funded.

“CHIP covers around 9 million American Kids whose parents make too much money to qualify for medicaid but don’t have access to affordable coverage through their jobs,” Said Kimmel.

About 1 in 8 children are covered only by CHIP.

It’s great to see so many late night hosts using their platforms to fight against this administration. If you haven’t heard about CHIP you can learn more about it here.

According to Kimmel, “about 2 million CHIP kids suffer from chronic conditions.”

Watch the heartfelt monologue below.

Content Via Towleroad & Youtube.

More Fabulous Pictures Of WOWie Award Winners, Nominees, & MORE!

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The WOWie Awards 2017 were crazy!

We’re honestly still on a high from it. From Chris Crocker to Trixie Mattel to The Pit Crew and seriously so many others, the night was a crazy success.

The awards were hosted by James St. James and the incredible Traci Braxton including a special performance from Laganja Estranga and Gia Gunn and was sponsored by Black Cowboy Whiskey and Identity Tequila.

Have you seen the list of winners yet? You can read the whole list right here, then mosey on down and look at these incredible pictures courtesy of Albert Sanchez & Pedro Zalba.

Seriously though, prepare yourself because these pictures are CRAZY good. Check out that hair flip from Edward Bess!

Just look at Mariah Balenciaga & Traci Braxton!

Damn, Manila Luzon! WERK it, girl!

YAS, Ongina! Slay that pose, girl!

DAMN, Gia Gunn is STUNNNNNNNNNing!

Edward Bess with this incredible hair flip!

Farrah Moan & Eden Estrada looking SUPA CAYUTE!

Chris Crocker serving up this FIERCE AF birthday look!

Arisces, Laith Ashley, & Isis King serving us some FACE!

Adore Delano ready to take on the world!

We love us some Love Connie!

Mariah making us want to work out in a high fashion look too!

[Images via Albert Sanchez & Pedro Zalba]


Paris Disses Lindsay 11 Years After Their Iconic Girls’ Night Out: “She Wasn’t Invited”

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Sitting down with Australian MTV, perfume mogul/celebutante/foam party DJ Paris Hilton reveals that the much-photographed 2006 “girls night out” with herself, Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan out was … SHOCKER! … only intended for two.

“Actually, it was just Brit and I [going] out,” Hilton said. “And then [Lindsay] chased us to the car and got in. She wasn’t invited.”

The interviewer gasped. “How do you tell Lindsay Lohan she’s not invited?”

“You are not on the list” Paris giggled.

Ohhhhhh, that is some stale shade there, gurl!

People magazine points out that at the time, Lohan defended Hilton, telling photographers:

“Paris is my friend. Everyone lies about everything. She’s a nice person… I’ve known her since I was 15.”

She added, “Stop making us hate each other.”

Seems a lot has changed since then.

Elsewhere in the conversation, Paris says she’s thrilled that Kendall Jenner stole her 21st b-day silver mesh look. “I’m always flattered when I’m an inspiration to others.”

Watch below.

#BornThisDay: Actor, Christopher Plummer

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“The Insider” Photo by Andrew Tepper, Focus Features

 

December 13, 1929- Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer:

”Working with Julie Andrews is like getting hit over the head with a valentine.”

Christopher Plummer has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award for the role in which he replaced a disgraced Kevin Spacey. At 87-years-old, Academy Award winner Plummer plays J. Paul Getty in Ridley Scott’s All The Money In The World about the events surrounding the 1973 kidnapping of Getty’s grandson. Plummer is both the world’s newest and oldest special effect. Scott was able to reshoot the Spacey scenes with Michelle Williams (also Golden Globe nominated) and Mark Wahlberg, sometimes superimposing Plummer’s performance over Spacey’s already-filmed sequences. The film was supposed to open on December 22. All The Money In The World now opens Christmas Day in a limited run to qualify for the Academy Award nominations. Amazing that Scott pulled this off. Plummer was reportedly Scott’s original choice to play Getty, but studio executives persuaded him to cast Spacey, who was the “bigger name”.

Plummer, like Spacey, has won an Academy Award. Plummer, who has worked on stage and screen for 70 years, won his Oscar in 2012 for playing a septuagenarian who comes out as a gay shortly before being diagnosed with terminal cancer in the lovely film Beginners. The oldest person to ever win an acting Oscar.

Plummer should have always been the choice to play Getty. He is closer to the correct age for the role. Getty was 80-years-old at the time of the kidnapping; Plummer was 87-years-old when he shot his scenes; Spacey is 58. And, dare I say it, Plummer is the more interesting actor.

I know that most all of you think of Plummer as the brooding, strapping patriarch of the Von Trapp family in the baby boomer favorite, The Sound Of Music (1965).

1965, via YouTube

 

Did you know that he’s Canadian? Maybe you did. But, did you also know that he has been working on stage in since the Eisenhower years? He made his Broadway debut in 1953, and 20 years later, he won a Tony Award for playing the title role of Cyrano: The Musical (1973). A decade later, he played Iago to James Earl Jones’s Othello on Broadway, followed by more Shakespeare on Broadway: the title role in The Scottish Play with Glenda Jackson as Lady Macbeth in 1988, and Lear in King Lear in 2004.

Besides Getty and Captain von Trapp, Plummer has played several historical figures, winning a second Tony Award for playing actor John Barrymore in the two-character play Barrymore in 1997; and on film as Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington in Waterloo (1970); Rudyard Kipling in The Man Who Would Be King (1975); American Tragedy (2000) as famed lawyer F. Lee Bailey; Kaiser Wilhelm II in The Exception (2016); newsman Mike Wallace in The Insider (1999); and Leo Tolstoy in The Last Station (2009).

I know that you still think of the song Edelweiss when you hear his name, and, by the way, it wasn’t even his voice singing in that film, it was Bill Lee.

Plummer is a real “actor’s actor”, always working in roles large and small, on stage, television, voice-overs and film. He is considered North America’s greatest interrupter of Shakespeare: At his home away from home, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, he played Henry V, Hamlet and Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night in one year, 1957. The following year, he played Leontes in The Winter’s Tale, Bardolph in Henry IV, Part 1, and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. In 1960, he played Philip in King John and Mercutio in Romeo And Juliet. In 1962, he played the title roles in both Cyrano de Bergerac and Macbeth, returning in 1967 to play Mark Antony in Antony And Cleopatra.

He returned to the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in the 2008 season as Julius Caesar in George Bernard Shaw’s Caesar And Cleopatra and in 2010 as Prospero in The Tempest. In 2012, he performed his one-man show, A Word Or Two, a look at his love of literature and then in 2014, he took it to the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.

He has even dared to perform in Shakespeare in Britain at the Royal Shakespeare Company, The National Theatre, and at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Plummer is not all high-brow, he played a shady priest in the film spoof parody of Dragnet (1997) and a shady corporate lawyer in Syriana (2005);

In his memoir In Spite Of Myself (2008) he writes that in his youth, when he was a lustful lush, he had sex at a party with his leading lady while chatting up her husband.

Despite his past reputation, Plummer must have had enormous self-discipline:

”God, you had to, if you drank so much. You have to counteract it with something.”

He also writes that hated making The Sound Of Music, which he called ”S&M”:

”Because it was so awful and sentimental and gooey. You had to work terribly hard to try and infuse some minuscule bit of humor into it.”

Julie Andrews, Plummer and director Robert Wise on The Sound Of Music set, 1964. From MPTV via Youtube

2015, ABC News, via YouTube

 

He drank away his sorrows while filming in Salzburg, which caused him to gain so much weight his costumes had to be let out, and that he was drunk when filming the famous music festival sequence.

”It’s not my cup of tea, that’s all, and somebody had to be cynical. It’s a really good movie of its kind. I think it’s Julie’s best picture, she’s wonderful in it. I remember Robert Wise, the director, would say: ‘If it’s too sentimental, I always look over at Chris Plummer to see if he’s scowling, and if he is, I know it’s a little bit mawkish’.”

Beginners is not Plummer’s only gay role. He is the voice of gay British writer J.R. Ackerley in the animated adaptation of Ackerley’s classic My Dog Tulip about man and man’s best friend. Ackerley wrote it in 1956, about his 14-year-long ideal friendship with a dog named Queenie. It has a decidedly unsentimental view of canines and life in London’s gay underground during the first part of the 20th century. The film, which features hand-drawn animation in the style of The New Yorker cartoons. It is clinical and lyrical, like Ackerley’s writing. It also features Lynn Redgrave’s last performance.

Plummer was briefly married to actor Tammy Grimes (1934- 2016). He is the father of actor Amanda Plummer, but no relation of Charlie Plummer who plays his grandson in All The Money In The World.

Plummer was born into a distinguished and powerful family; his great-grandfather was Canada’s first native-born prime minister. He studied to be a classical pianist before turning to acting.

Plummer, lives with his third wife, former Bond girl Elaine Taylor in Weston, Connecticut. They have been together for 47 years.

“Silent Partner”, 1979, via YouTube

 

I am quite fond of his performance as Harry Reikle in The Silent Partner (1979), not only my favorite villains, but one of the vilest, most unnerving psychopaths in films, plus Plummer is in drag! But, my favorite Plummer role is in Beginners, a heartfelt, funny/sad film about relationships between parents and children, and men and their dogs, and memories and ghosts. Written and directed by Portland’s Mike Mills, who based this memory piece about a straight son and his dying gay father on his own life.

December 13th: It’s YOUR Birthday, Bitch!

#QueerQuote: “Accentuate The Positives – Medicate The Negatives.” – Amy Sedaris

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Sedaris in “At Home With Amy Sedaris”, photo via TruTV

Amy Sedaris is one of the funniest people on our pretty spinning blue orb, but her love of “The Home Arts” is no joke. Her lifestyle series, At Home With Amy Sedaris, isn’t just a satire of the Do-It-Yourself television genre, it is a universe unto itself.

Growing up in North Carolina in the 1960s and 1970s, Sedaris watched local hospitality shows on afternoon television and decided that is what she wanted to do when she grew up. Sedaris:

“I was into home stuff and I liked playing house, and I liked that extremely boring show and I was mesmerized by it.”

Sedaris has published two witty books: I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, and Simple Times: Crafts For Poor People. They are funny enough to make you cry, but they also have honest, useful advice about homemaking.

Those shows on DYI, HGTV and the Food Network can make you feel bad about your own failed home projects, and as a fan of their shows, Sedaris understands they set the bar impossibly high, which is why her TruTV series is so fresh and fun. It is as is as if Martha Stewart and Pee-wee Herman had a television love child.

At Home With Amy Sedaris crafts comedy that can’t easily be categorized; it is often as dark and demented as her much missed Strangers With Candy, and let’s face it, Martha Stewart has never shown us how to make a construction paper vagina, which is exactly what Sedaris does this week.

I love the show so much that I have archived my DVR-ed episodes for future reference. I like to think Amy would be proud. Can you just imagine what a better world this would be if we all used Sedaris’ helpful hints?

“You’re Fired!” – Omarosa Sent Packing, Escorted from White House Screaming Vulgarities

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April Ryan has the T, girl, about Omarosa being fired from what had always rather been a nebulous “job” as the White House’s African-American liaison.

It all began with a fairly innocuous announcement this morning from White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders:

Omarosa Manigault Newman resigned yesterday to pursue other opportunities. Her departure will not be effective until January 20, 2018. We wish her the best in future endeavors and are grateful for her service.”

But American Urban Radio Networks’ always fabulous April Ryan reported, citing unnamed sources, that her departure was perhaps a bit more dramatic than the White House’s account suggested.

“I GOT YOU ELECTED!”

Love that.

Good riddance.

(Photo: MediaPunch)

People Are Up In Arms Over Harry Styles’ Roy Moore Joke

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My lover Harry Styles got into a bit of hot water last night when he made a Roy Moore joke that people thought WENT TOO FAR. The former 1D cutie was the surprise guest host on the Late Late Show, jumping in with 2 and half hours notice after James Corden‘s wife went into labor. (She had a girl, btw).

It was during his opening monologue that he told the joke that was later cut from the show because it was deemed offensive and now people are calling for his head on a platter.

The joke?

I mean…. as far as jokes about Roy Moore go, that’s pretty tame. But you know the reactionary climate we live in. BURN YOUR HARRY STYLES RECORDS! FORCE HIS RETIREMENT FROM POP MUSIC! BAN HIM FROM ENTERING THE COUNTRY! Blah blah blah.

Anyway, he looked pretty adorable the rest of the night, let’s look at some pictures.

(Top pic: Pacific Coast News)

Aja & Her BF Kicked Out of Lyft for “Being Gay”

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RDR fan fave Aja was going home with her boyfriend Lizard Lemon Monday night via Lyft, when they were unexpectedly given the boot for showing each other a little too much PDA for the driver’s comfort.

Huh?! In NYC? In 2017?

Crazy!

Lyft has since apologized for the driver’s actions saying they’ve let him go. (Or “deactivated” him since they can’t fire someone who isn’t technically an employee.)

via Queerty:

“We have zero tolerance for any type of discrimination on our platform, and are committed to maintaining an inclusive and welcoming community,” a spokesperson said.

“What is being described here is against our terms of service and our values as a company.

“As soon as this incident was brought to our attention, we reached out to the passengers to offer our support.

“The driver has been deactivated from the Lyft platform.”

 


Mama Ru Returns to “Project Runway All Stars”

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Project Runaway All Stars returns on Lifetime Thursday, January 4 with an endless list of celebrity judges included our beloved RuPaul!

Other guest judges include: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Whoopi Goldberg, Dita Von Teese, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Rebecca Minkoff, Danielle Brooks, Olivia Culpo, Rosie Perez, Kelly Osbourne, Karolina Kurkova, Kasey Musgraves, Garcia and Zac Posen.

That’s a pretty impressive list!

Other big changes afoot: Alyssa Milano is the returning host with Georgina Chapman and Isaac Mizrahi as judges and Marie Claire editor-in-chief Anne Fulenwider as this season’s mentor. The big twist, though? The contestants are a mix of eight all star vets will go head-to-head with eight former designers who are first-time All Stars. Soooooo…. expect lots of drama!

Meet the rookies competing below:
Kimberly Goldson from Brooklyn, NY: Season 9
Stanley Hudson from Los Angeles, CA: Season 11
Amanda Valentine from Nashville, TN: Season 13
Char Glover from Los Angeles, CA: Season 13
Kelly Dempsey from Boston, MA: Season 14
Edmond Newton from Atlanta, GA: Season 14
Candice Cuoco from Oakland, CA: Season 14
Merline Labissiere from Miami, FL: Season 14

Stars Who Got Their Starts on Reality TV
Meet the rookies returning for another shot:
Anthony Williams from Atlanta, GA: Season 7, All Stars Season 1
Joshua McKinley from New York NY: Season 9, All Stars Season 2
Casanova from New York, NY: Season 8, All Stars Season 2
Ari South from Honolulu, HI: Season 8, All Stars Season 3
Melissa Fleis from Los Angeles, CA: Season 10, All Stars Season 3
Fabio Costa from New York, NY: Season 10, All Stars Season 4
Helen Castillo from Weehawken, NJ: Season 12, All Stars Season 4
Ken Laurence from Atlanta, GA: Season 12, All Stars Season 5

(via US Magazine; top pic of Ru from Pacific Coast News)

 

To Do, LA: “The Heart of Robin Hood” at the Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts, Through December 17th!

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The Heart of Robin Hood is a rip-roaring, cross-dressing, old-timey feel-good production featuring a bevy of shirtless, brooding hunks in tight leather pants who dangle from ropes and leap from tree branch to tree branch – OH MY! – and a career-defining role by longtime WOWlebrity Daniel Franzese as the wildly flamboyant Pierre (played like a cross between Snagglepuss and Lost In Space‘s Dr Smith). (I giggled all night.)

Forget everything you ever knew about Robin Hood. In writer David Farr (“The Night Manager”) and acclaimed directors Gisli Örn Gardarsson and Selma Björnsdóttir’s reimagining, Robin and his unmerry gang of cutthroats steal from the rich, but it’s never occurred to them to give anything back to anyone. But when wicked Prince John threatens all, bold Marion steps in to protect the poor and transform a thuggish Robin from hood to good.

The ensemble also includes: Yummy Luke Forbes as Robin Hood, Christina Bennett Lind as Maid Marion (and Martin), the incredibly limber (and incredibly hunky) Moe Alafrangy, Jeremy Crawford, Patrick de Ledebur, Hugo Fowler, Paige Herschell, Sarah Hunt, Lize Johnston, Jake Justice, Leonard Kelly-Young, Gavin Lewis, Kasey Mahaffy, Sam Meader, Ian Merrigan, Tennyson Morin, Lily Rose Silver, Eirik del Barco Soleglad, Jeff Verghies and Patrick Woodall.

It’s all incredibly thrilling – and playing now at the Wallis Annenberg Center for Performing Arts in Beverly, I highly suggest you run there TONIGHT.

Get your tickets here. Hurry, though, play ends Sunday night!

Pics below.

Heart of Robin Hood_2_tce_2006
The Heart of Robin Hood, directed byJoel Sass OSF 6/1/13
LD: M.L.Geiger
SD: Michael Ganio
CD: Paloma Young
Photograph © T Charles Erickson
tcepix@comcast.net
http://tcharleserickson.photoshelter.com/

Check Out the Trailer for the New David Bowie Doc “The Last Five Years”

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A fascinating look into the last years of David Bowie premieres on HBO January 8th, on what would’ve been the musician’s 71st birthday.

The teaser below features archival footage, photographs and interview clips.

Focusing on the artist’s final years, David Bowie: The Last Five Years presents a nuanced look at the evolution of Bowie’s music as told through archival footage and interviews with the musical legend’s bandmates. Largely focused on Bowie’s final two albums, The Next Day and Blackstar, the film also explores his musical, Lazarus, which he began developing in the midst of his illness.

Says Bowie of his artistic philosophy:

“Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in. And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about at the right place to do something exciting.”

Francis Whately directed The Last Five Years, with appearances from Tony Visconti, Ivo Van Hove, Toni Basil, Earl Slick, Gail Ann Dorsey, Gerry Leonard, Carlos Alomar, Catherine Russel, Sterling Campbell, Zachary Alford, David Torn, Enda Walsh, Donny McCaslin, Maria Schneider and Robert Fox.

(via Rolling Stone)

#BornThisDay: Body Builder, Bob Paris

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Photo via YouTube

December 14, 1959– Bob Paris:

“Every gay person who has been lucky enough to survive the turmoil of growing up is a survivor. Survivors always have an obligation to those who will face the same challenges.”

Robert Clark Paris was an American actor, model, fashion designer, public speaker, Civil Rights activist, a regular guest on talk shows including Oprah, and professional bodybuilder. Now, he is a Canadian poet who lives in bucolic bliss on a remote island in British Columbia. Yet, in the 1980s, he reached the pinnacle of fame as Mr. Universe and he was the second most famous body builder in the world. He became the first athlete to come out as gay while still competing in his sport.  He was on the cover of magazines and was much photographed by important photographers such as Robert Mapplethorpe, Herb Ritts, and Bruce Webber who devoted an entire book to his pictures.

Before finding serenity and contentment in his island life, Paris published autobiographical fitness and self-improvement books, including Natural Fitness, Beyond Built, and Generation Queer.

Those who have known me for just the past half a decade might be surprised to discover that there have been stretches of time, entire eras actually, when I was in spectacular physical shape with a lifestyle dedicated to eating well and exercising. The secret to my success was simply replacing bad addictions to alcohol or drugs with a focused compulsion to exercise.

One of those eras was the first half of the 1980s. 1981-1986 found me at the gym at least two hours a day, six days a week. Obsessive/Compulsive as always, I read books and magazines on weightlifting and diet. For that short time, Bob Paris was one of my inspirations, with his books tossed casually on the coffee table of our Capitol Hill apartment in Seattle.

On our 19th anniversary, in 1998, The Husband and I saw Paris make his NYC stage debut, starring at Carnegie Hall opposite Bea ArthurSandy DuncanMichael JeterPhilip BoscoAlice Ripley and Tyne Daly in a new production the Cole Porter musical, Jubilee. His character was frequently shirtless and Paris at 40-years-old continued to inspire.

Paris was born into a very tough set of circumstances in small town Indiana. His father was an alcoholic who was physically abusive to his family.

Paris first began lifting weights in his sophomore year of high school. After graduating, he moved to California to go after his love of bodybuilding. He also thought that he might be interested in becoming an actor. Paris had heard that Santa Monica and Venice Beach were places a guy might live to pursue both careers.

Paris began to compete in bodybuilding competitions. Then, he began to win them. He realized when he was very young that he was gay. In the bodybuilding community his gayness was only speculated on. Paris didn’t comment on it and he didn’t deny it.

Young Paris was especially good-looking and muscular. I remember him being described as “The Tyrone Power Of Muscles”. Although the bodybuilding world recognized that he was gay, the sport’s promoters always paired him with women at receptions, galas and charity events.

From 1981-1983, Paris competed aggressively and he placed first in five out of seven of the amateur bodybuilding competitions he entered. 1984-1991, Paris competed professionally in the Mr. Olympia competitions but never came in above seventh place. However, he’s entered and placed in 19 total professional competitions.

Paris first came out to his parents and then became open about being gay in the media. He formally came out of the closet in a 1989 issue of Ironman Magazine. Later that year he married the equally pretty Rod Jackson. They became “Bob and Rod”, the most fabulous title for a gay couple of all time. Their union made headlines, but both their professional careers suffered.

paris-advocate

 

Being a couple in the spotlight is never easy, but considering that they were a same-sex married couple in the 1980s, it took real bravery. In the 1980s, Paris was a celebrated bodybuilder, a magazine cover boy with the title of Mr. Universe, but it was also an era when gay men were dying at an alarming rate, hundreds a week, taken by the new plague. At the time, 70% of Americans believed that homosexuality was a sin. Yet, Paris could find the strength to tell all to God, and by God, I mean Oprah, on national television. Bob and Rod were the first modern gay male couple, more famous together than separate. The husbands become symbols of hope in the fight for MarriagEquality, but it was career suicide for Paris.

“You fall in love. When Rod and I met, we found a spiritual bond between each other. If you bastardize it and you stick it in your back pocket where no one can see it, then pretty soon you chip away pieces of that bit by bit, until you have absolutely nothing left. For me, the repercussions of coming out were tremendous. I lost about 80 percent of my business. Literally had doors closed in my face. There were a number of times where my life was threatened. Some death threats came by phone, by mail.”

Paris was also suddenly no longer winning the bodybuilding competitions, even though he was in the best condition of his career. He was booed and called names from the crowds. He finally had enough and retired from bodybuilding in 1991. After leaving the sport, he was blacklisted by the body building powers, whatever that might mean.

But now, Flex Magazine ranks Paris as the Number One Aesthetic Athlete in the history of bodybuilding. Famous for his artistic approach toward the sport, Paris also was dedicated to advocating for the rights of athletes and he was spoke out forcefully against steroid use in his support for drug testing in the professional world of bodybuilding.

But, by 1994, Paris and Jackson were living in separate parts of their house. The Bob And Rod Show ended in divorce in 1995. Rumors swirled, and Paris sent out a press release:

“While our marriage was lived in the public eye for many years, its demise is not a subject either of us can expand upon in the media.”

They both remain mostly silent about the breakup. Together, they had written a book about their relationship and its struggles, Straight From The Heart: A Love Story (1989). They were also the subjects of two awesome volumes of photographs, Duo by the great Herb Ritts, and the slightly dirty, but still artful,  Bob And Rod by Tom Bianchi.

Paris writes that he kept working on the relationship because felt that he would be contributing to a negative image of gay people if they were to break up.

Paris has written seven books including Prime: The Complete Guide To Being Fit, Looking Good, Feeling Great (2002), I own a copy which I perused while eating donuts this morning. It’s a big book, so I did do some lifting.

 

From BobParis.com

In the late aughts he had a recurring role on the ABC series Defying Gravity. But mostly, Paris spends his time on that island near Vancouver, BC with his husband, Brian Le Ferguey and their standard poodle. The pair has been together for 20 years and legally married in 2003 after Canada enacted Marriage Equality.

I have become rather comfortable in my old age lumpiness, Paris still looks like a champion, of course.

December 14th: It’s YOUR Birthday, Bitch!

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