Category Archives: Gay News

Sean Hayes in Lazy Susan Now on Demand

DOING NOTHING IS EXHAUSTING!
Most of us can probably relate right now.  A LOT OF TIME ON OUR HANDS!  I find myself trying to stay busy but exhausted at the end of the day. And I really did not do all that much.
Sean Hayes stars in this slice-of-life comedy about a woman on the edge with nowhere to go but over. Lazy Susan is a story about a spectacularly unmotivated cisgender woman for whom doing nothing is exhausting.
Available On Demand everywhere  NOW,  from Shout! Studios. ($6.99)
This charmingly quirky comedy features an all-star cast including Emmy Award® winner Sean Hayes (Will & Grace), Carrie Aizley (Transparent), Emmy Award® winner Margo Martindale, Academy Award® winner Jim Rash (Community), Kiel Kennedy (Robot Chicken), Danny Johnson (Daredevil), Darlene Hunt (I Heart Huckabees), Skipp Suddthh (Madame Secretary), J.R. Ramirez (Manifest), and Matty Cardarople (Stranger Things) with Academy Award® winner Allison Janney (I, Tonya), and Tony Award® winner Matthew Broderick (The Producers). Lazy Susan is directed by Nick Peet and written by Carrie Aizley, Sean Hayes and Darlene Hunt.

In Lazy Susan, Susan has always been the self-centered oddball in her family, who lazily skated through life with their grudging support until one day she wakes up to realize she’s middle-aged with no job, no relationship, and an increasingly estranged family.

She finally decides to take charge and turn things around, but never having done anything herself before, the struggle is real (and hilarious) as Susan becomes the woman she always wanted to be, all on her own.

“I think a lot of us are lazy Susans — have been or will become. There’s that question we all ask: ‘Who do you want to be?’ It’s not always easy,” Hayes tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue.

Sean explains  how Susan came about; “When I was 21, I got a call from my agent in Chicago. She said, “There’s an audition tomorrow to replace the white guy on In Living Color.” Jim Carrey was leaving. I grabbed all my wigs and props and characters of all shapes and sizes. One of the characters was Lazy Susan. A few years ago, someone brought up the character. And it was such a great metaphor for someone spinning out of control. A spinning lazy Susan, for someone who can’t get their life together. I love tragic characters, when you don’t know whether to laugh or not.”

WATCH THE OFFICIAL TRAILER  NOW

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Wendy Sitti YouTube Channel is a Must!

SHE IS  thee Chicago Socialite and a woman of the world! 

Laughter is best medicine and  Wendy Sitti knows how to serve it up!

It’s true: laughter is strong medicine. It draws people together in ways that trigger healthy physical and emotional changes in the body. Laughter strengthens your immune system, boosts mood, diminishes pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress.

Wonderful, witty, wild and  wacky, EVERYONE loves  Wendy! With her infectious laugh and her wacky ways she will have you forget your troubles in a few short minutes.

Wing it with Wendy!  Wendy Sitti now  has a channel and  a  show!   “I will have episodes of  DIY Do it Yourself Shows, of various domestication from cooking, gardening, home improvement, travel to unique places and landmarks, in Drag Queen style. We will also have guest appearances by celebrities and film episodes from exotic places around the world to also my home!”

Truly entertaining! –  BestGayChicago.com

We hope this channel will entertain you and teach you a new trick or two! At press time,  3  episodes are out now!

 

“I was born in Warsaw, Poland.  The apple of my parents eye! I was raised on a farm and later went to work in my dads sausage factory.  That is where I met Stanley in high school and where we went to prom.   He was nice but I knew I needed something bigger, it must of been from being around all of that sausage.  I wanted to go to America.” Wendy tells us.

“After saving enough money, I flew to Chicago and realized I had no place to stay.   I called my cousin Rich and moved in with him.”

“I know America is the land of opportunity and I was excited to make it big.  I dyed my hair black to fit in and have a different look.   But then some woman, Mrs. Richfield told me I was moving in on her scene.   I went back to my natural color and started doing all kinds of odd jobs.  Cleaning rooms at a hotel on Halsted called Steamworks, to cleaning the rooms at the Elysium Hotel in Mykonos.   I kind of became a big thing and I’m not talking about my boobs!”

  “I enjoy fashion, drinking, socializing and hanging out with nice people.  If you want your event to Pop, like my cherry then invite me!”

SUBSCRIBE!

also  Wendy on Instagram

and  her  website

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Gay Ski Trip in French Alps in 2020!

GAY SKI WEEK 2020!

Val d’Isère is a ski resort in the French Alps, near the Italian border. With nearby Tignes, it’s part of the Espace Killy ski area. Here, ski lifts give access to sites like the steep Face de Bellevarde, a black-rated piste, and the Grande Motte glacier, known for summer ski runs. 300km of prepared pistes as well as some magnificent and easily accessible off-piste opportunities. You can tackle the iconic Face de Bellevarde  with its great views across the Alps and the village down below. In town, bars and restaurants cluster around Avenue Olympique.

Come ski with Dave, an expert travel guide, on this one-of-a-kind  LGBTQ excursion in the French Alps!

SPACE IS LIMITED!  401-885-3500

 

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Escape Winter to Palm Springs

WINTER…..

     Where are  you going to be?

Our favorite place in Palm Springs has a deal you just can not refuse!

INNdulge has Luxury rooms with amenities  that include free wifi, daily continental breakfast, evening social hour, complimentary local gym access, air conditioning, on-site guest laundry, outdoor misters and assistance with restaurant and activity bookings.

 

Pool and Jacuzzi
They offer a 12 man jacuzzi and heated/chilled saltwater pool, both open 24 hours a day.

Morning breakfasts, evening social hours, Thursday pizza and weekend pool parties are the ideal way to meet new friends. INNdulge in a vacation to be remembered, an opportunity to relax, meet new friends or catch up on some rest.

book now and take advantage of the savings.
$119
WINTER SPECIAL
Now through January 31, 2019
excluding holiday weekends
Superior rooms (non pool view) start at $119 during the week (Sunday – Thursday) and weekends discounted (Friday and Saturday).

 

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ALL MAN The International Male Story

So excited for this!  A  new  movie is in the works  that will take us behind  the iconic International Male fashion catalog that transformed the “All-American Boy”, changing fashion, masculinity, and gay rights forever.

More than outrageous fashions, hunky models, and scandalous undies, ALL MAN is a journey across three decades of the International Male catalog’s lasting impact on fashion, masculinity, and gay rights. (I still have many of my old  catalogs!)

With revenues at its peak of $120 million and circulation of over 3 million, the catalog successfully appealed to both gay and straight audiences. For gay men, the images of sensually dressed men were a gateway into a fantasy world providing an escape from the AIDS crisis and widespread homophobia. For straight men and their female admirers, the catalog gave permission to take fashion risks and enjoy a more carefree expression of sexuality without threatening their masculinity and sexual appeal.

ALL MAN: The International Male Story is designed as a tribute to the catalog’s unique aesthetic and cultural relevance. The film mixes exclusive never-seen-before photographs and videos, interviews with super fans and celebrities, and creative re-enactments of the infamous photo shoots, and more!

You can DONATE to this project  now!

Follow on Instagram   and  Facebook!

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Shinesty Brand is Wacky and Fun

Shinesty was created for one reason and one reason only; to bring you the most outlandish collection of clothing the world has ever seen!  And they do the BEST job at doing just that!

Shinesty is “a brand that makes people laugh,” says  founder Chris White. “Either you think we’re ridiculous or you think we’re fools.”

White started the Shinesty website to sell vintage clothing combed from Colorado’s thrift stores to college kids as a way to make extra money while finishing his JD/MBA at CU Boulder.

He went into importing and working with contract manufacturers to make his own line of wacky apparel, and soon had a huge hit: suits with patterns that mimic ugly Christmas sweaters.

The suits went viral and Shinesty was deluged with orders after Al Roker plugged them on Today.

Suits, dresses,  pajamas, and yes,  men’s boxers with a ball pouch!

Choosing to wear regular men’s boxer briefs instead of a ball hammock with ball support is like choosing to adopt a rehabilitated pit bull fighting dog instead of a miniature Golden Doodle runt puppy. It sounds like it’ll probably be fine since plenty of other dudes are doing it, but it’s actually kind of dangerous.

Think about men’s pouch underwear like this: You wouldn’t toss fresh eggs in your shopping cart without an egg carton, all willy nilly. You wouldn’t carry a pair of bulging water balloons loose in your pocket with a set of keys, would you? Of course not. So why would you put your delicate happy sacks in anything other than men’s underwear with a special pouch for your balls? Your man nuggets will practically giggle with delight when you place them in their very own hammock, far away from the sweaty magnetic pull of your upper thigh and safely out of harm’s way.

Besides keeping your love spuds cool by cradling them in a moisture-wicking, micro-modal ball hammock, these men’s pouch underwear enhance the look of your package by keeping your meat and taters all on the same plate. Common reactions from lucky spectators include comments like “Wow, what size shoe did you say you wear?” and stunned silence.

And it’s not just Holiday prints. They do prints for EVERY occasion!  Valentines, Halloween, animal prints, neon prints and more!

Check out their website  and  see what all they have – you are sure to find something  for yourself – or for  that someone special in your life. OR, MAYBE  SOMETHING  MATCHING?!  Sales are happening RIGHT NOW  and  get some free underwear  with a  $75  purchase!

Shinesty

Shinesty Instagram

Shinesty Facebook

 

 

 

 

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Aj and the Queen with Ru Paul

Coming  January 10, 2020
Executive Producers: Michael Patrick King, RuPaul Charles, Jhoni Marchinko
Showrunner: Michael Patrick King
Cast: RuPaul Charles, Izzy G., Michael-Leon Wooley, Tia Carrere, Josh Segarra and Katerina Tannenbaum

 

Robert Lee (RuPaul), better known as the drag queen Ruby Red, has big dreams of opening his very own drag club. After years of performing in clubs all across the country, he has scrimped and saved and is one signed lease away from turning his dreams into a reality until he realizes he’s been swindled by a charismatic grifter (Josh Segarra) and his eye-patch wearing partner-in-crime, Lady Danger (Tia Carrere). With his heart broken and money stolen, Robert has no choice but to pick up the pieces and start over, and a cross country Ruby Red roadshow provides the perfect opportunity to do just that.

 

But when AJ (Izzy G.), a scrappy, streetwise 10-year-old escaping a difficult home life, stows away in Robert’s rundown RV, the consummate performer suddenly finds himself in a new set of shoes: de facto parent. Fabulously mismatched yet perfectly paired, AJ and Ruby must find a way to navigate through tough times as they learn a few tricks from one another and roll on to brighter days. Michael-Leon Wooley and Katerina Tannenbaum also co-star.

 

Created by Michael Patrick King (Sex and the City) and RuPaul, and featuring performances by RuPaul in each episode, AJ and the Queen is an equally heartfelt and gritty comedy about finding family in the unlikeliest of people when they’re needed most.

 

MPK Productions produces in association with Warner Bros. TV

 

Instagram: @AJANDTHEQUEEN
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Broadway’s Carols for a Cure 21

BROADWAY CARES/EQUITY FIGHTS AIDS RELEASES ITS 21ST ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF 
“BROADWAY’S CAROLS FOR A CURE” 

 

The collection is full of spirited holiday favorites sung by stars from Broadway’s leading musicals including 
Hadestown, Beetlejuice, Ain’t Too Proud, Freestyle Love Supreme, Dear Evan Hansen, and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!  

 

For over twenty years, Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS’ holiday CD, Broadway’s Carols for a Cure, has been a staple of every theatre-lover’s wish list.   The beloved series pairs casts from award-winning Broadway musicals with seasonal songs that are both classic and new.  This year’s compilation, Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21, features 18 tracks from the companies of Hadestown, Beetlejuice, Ain’t Too Proud, Freestyle Love Supreme, Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!, and more!  It is available now for $25 in the Broadway Cares store,  along with Volumes 1 through 20.   Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21 is also available at participating theaters.

 

“This year’s 21st anniversary edition features eighteen original, newly recorded singles, creatively arranged and performed by the incredibly talented performers and musicians from the 2019 Broadway season,” explains producer Lynn Pinto. Once again, she has collaborated with engineer Andros Rodriguez on the album.   “Several of the casts really made their song sound like it could be a song from their show!”

 

With over twenty years of creating Broadway’s Carols for a Cure, Lynn Pinto has developed a recipe that works.  She allows each company a great deal of freedom in choosing the material and the style of their arrangement.  She also works with their demanding Broadway schedules.  “We record the musicians and singers in layers, utilizing isolation booths for a higher quality recording,” she says. “It gives our holiday album a unique sound from most cast albums and allows us to properly showcase these amazing voices and instrumentalists.”

 

The first Broadway’s Carols for a Cure album debuted in 1999.  Recorded at St. John’s Church in Greenwich Village, it featured carols from the casts of Cabaret, Fosse, Chicago and Swing!, as well as from Phantom of the Opera who also appear on the 21st anniversary edition.  Fans of today’s Great White Way will be overjoyed to hear original recordings from today’s top productions, including the cast of Hamilton with a sweeping rendition of “What Child is This?,”  the cast of Frozen performing “O Holy Night,”  and the cast of Tootsie singing an all-new, frolicking version of “Jingle Bells.”

 

Additionally, this year’s album includes two unique Chanukah songs.  The cast of Dear Evan Hansen performs “Hine Ma Tov/Together” and the cast of Fiddler on the Roof presents “Drey Dreydele,” sung in Yiddish!

 

This year’s Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21 cd comes with its own digital download card inside the packaging so that listeners can access the music even if without a CD player! In addition, downloaded music also features incredible bonus content including behind the scenes videos of the making of the album.

 

Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS is a nonprofit organization that helps individuals with AIDS and other serious illnesses receive the health care and support they need.  In addition, they provide financial support in the form of grants to AIDS and family service organizations throughout the country.

 

“No town is more festive than New York City for the holidays and no street here is as magical as Broadway!  Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21 is sure to be a favorite for all,” promises Lynn Pinto.

 

Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21 exclusively benefits Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and can be purchased (along with Volumes 1 through 20) in the web store at https://broadwaycares.stores.yahoo.net/caforcucds.html or by calling Broadway Cares at 212-840-0770.  The new album is also available at participating New York City theaters.

 

 
Broadway’s Carols for a Cure Volume 21 Track Listing:
 
1. BEETLEJUICE – CAROL OF THE BEETLEBELLS
2. TOOTSIE – JINGLE BELLS
3. AIN’T TOO PROUD – COME ALL YE FAITHFUL
4. FIDDLER ON THE ROOF IN YIDDISH – DREY DREYDELE
5. RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA! – AULD LANG SYNE
6. MEAN GIRLS – BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE
7. BROADWAY MUSICIANS AFM LOCAL 802 – A PRAYER FOR PEACE
8. ALADDIN – DECEMBER FEELS
9. HAMILTON – WHAT CHILD IS THIS?
10. DEAR EVAN HANSEN – HINE MA TOV/TOGETHER
11. COME FROM AWAY – DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR?
12. WICKED – LO, HOW A ROSE E’ER BLOOMIN’
13. AN FLS TREEMIX – CHRISTMAS TREE
14. FROZEN – HOLY NIGHT
15. WAITRESS – SECRET SANTA
16. THE BROADWAY BABY MAMAS – COVENTRY CAROL
17. THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA – THE FIRST NOEL
18. HADESTOWN – MIDWINTERSONG
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Palm Spring Leather Pride Oct 24-27

For over two decades, the Palm Springs leather community has welcomed the world to our desert paradise each year in the Fall, when temperatures are dropping elsewhere Palm Springs still enjoys the warm weather.
Get all the details  at  Palm Springs Leather Pride!
Fall  is an awesome time to visit  PALM  SPRINGS!
Thanksgiving Celebration
(November 28, 2019)
INNdulge Clothing Optional resort will host their annual Thanksgiving celebration
Thursday, November 28, 2019.
 
Deep fried turkeys, homemade pies, and all the trimmings!
Join us for the festivities that include live music poolside.
Palm Springs Leather Pride 2019 is organized and produced by volunteers and members of Palm Springs Leather Order of the Desert (PSLOD) a registered 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation, we are a Leather/SM/Fetish social, educational, support and charitable organization. We promote with power and pride the right of all adults to engage in safe, sane and consensual sexual expression and orientation.
Proceeds from our events are donated to other local or national non-profits. Over the past 23 years, we’ve have raised or donated over $250,000.00 to the AIDS Assistance Program, Desert AIDS Project, Desert Women for Equality Mammogram Program and Well in the Desert to name a few.
For more information visit our website at www.pslod.org.
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Key West Joins WorldPride NYC Stonewall 50!

The Florida Keys & Key West tourism council and the Key West Business Guild plan to showcase the inclusive spirit of the subtropical LGBTQ visitor destination in New York City’s WorldPride March and PrideFest street festival slated for Sunday, June 30.

 

New York City’s 2019 Pride is to take place in conjunction with the first WorldPride celebration held in the United States, and millions ofrevelers are expected to attend. The 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising also is to be commemorated in the event known asWorldPride NYC/Stonewall 50, with activities scheduled throughout June.

 

The Pride March is to feature a Keys contingent carrying a 100-foot section of the 1.25-mile “sea-to-sea” pride flag fabricated by the late rainbow flag creator Gilbert Baker. Baker and his assistants spent three months in Key West in 2003 sewing about 17,600 linear yards of fabric into the rainbow banner that was unfurled along Key West’s Duval Street from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean on June 15, 2003. The event marked the 25th anniversary of his creation.

WorldPride march participants carrying the flag are to include current and former Keys residents, their friends and families from across the U.S.

“We look forward to showing that Key West is one of the leading destinations to visit by displaying one of the most iconic pieces of history to be created for the LGBTQ community,” said Alan Beaubien, president of the guild’s board of directors.

Welcoming some 300,000 LGBTQ visitors each year, Key West lies at the tip of the Florida Keys island chain and is renowned for its inclusive recognition that all people are created equal. The philosophy was epitomized by the famed One Human Family initiativecreated by local artist J.T. Thompson. After Key West city commissioners adopted the One Human Family motto for the city in 2000,Florida Keys officials embraced it for the entire 125-mile-long string of islands.

The PrideFest street festival is slated for 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday along Fourth Avenue from Union Square to Astor Place. The Florida Keys & Key West booth is to feature Keys giveaways and information on vacationing in the environmentally and culturally rich destination.

“It is important to be present at this historic moment to remind everyone that our islands serve as a place free from judgment for LGBTQvisitors and residents alike,” said Guy Ross, the tourism council’s LGBTQ sales manager. “By participating in WorldPride 2019, we can showcase why we remain such a special, much-loved and much-celebrated destination.”

(The original flag, below)

 

Florida Keys & Key West visitor information: fla-keys.com/gay and fla-keys.com

Key West Business Guild: gaykeywestfl.com

Social: Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • Youtube • Keys Voices blog

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Gay News Flash – New Music from Amanda Lepore

The world’s most famous transsexual and an effervescent fixture on the New York scene, Amanda Lepore has been at the cutting edge of culture since the club kid era, breaking and re-making the rules for music, marketing, and gender.

She has been working in the studio on her latest release, LEPORE.  The first single, “Buckle Up”, can be heard HERE!

Just out this week,   she  does  “Jean Genie”

ON  ITUNES   NOW

 

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Did Lisa Vanderpump talk Nene Leakes out of opening a gay bar?

In a recent interview with Jenny McCarthy for her SiriusXM radio show, NeNe accused Lisa of tricking her out of buying bar/ restaurant space in West Hollywood, California — space that the restauranteur then turned into PUMP.

A source close to PUMP’s landlord told DailyMail.com that the accusations weren’t true, but now an insider tight with NeNe is backing up her story to In Touch. “It all started when Nene expressed interest in opening a bar in an empty space in West Hollywood,” they said. “She called Lisa for advice, who told her, something like, ‘Darling it’s a piece of crap and it’s too expensive,’ and convinced her it was a bad investment deal … According to NeNe, shrewd Lisa swooped in and rented the space which became her hugely successful restaurant and bar called PUMP, which is always packed.”

However, another source close to the entrepreneur denied the allegations against Lisa to In Touch, saying “The same landowner from SUR had brought the space to Lisa’s attention.”

“She knows that we have a little something, something she did to me. I’ve never really addressed it,” Leakes tellsMcCarthy in the clip. “She did some real foul s— to me.”

 

NeNe  reveals that a few years ago, when she and her husband Gregg were living in Los Angeles, she wanted to open a bar in West Hollywood.

“We would ride down that West Hollywood area where all the gay bars are — and I have a large gay fan base — and I kept thinking ‘it would be so cool if I had a bar right in here somewhere.’”

Leakes explains to host Jenney how she stumbled on a space that was “empty and kind of raggedy-looking and torn down,” but thought it would be perfect.

That’s when she made a call to restaurateur Vanderpump for advice.

“She said, ‘Oh darling, darling, it’s a piece of crap and they’re charging so much for it darling,’” Leakes said. “She talked me off of it and then went and got it.”

“That’s so f—ed up,” she added.

Vanderpump’s restaurant SUR is featured on the Bravo series “Vanderpump Rules,” and she opened PUMP in 2014. She also owns Villa Blanca in Beverly Hills.

Nene says she has not addressed Lisa directly about feeling dissed by her power move.

“Now when she sees me, she’s like ‘Hi NeNe,” Leakes explained.

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Best Way to Pad Train Your Dog

When I first moved to Chicago, to a second floor apartment, I knew  I did not want to be running up and down those stairs, 10 times a day,  to take the dog out.  Especially in the winter, which is when our Yorkie puppy arrived.

A friend told me about PooPeePads. They are way more economical then the pads you find in the local stores. 300  pads   for  about  $30! You can’t beat it!

People always ask, “Was it easy to train your dog to use the pads?”

Pretty much, YES.  We taught her that when she used the pads, she got a treat.   Now,  even if she does not have to go, she will squeeze a drop!  just to get a treat!

There is a simple  straight forward  video  HERE. 

But we found  treat rewards really  won her over!

We LOVE PooPeePads!

 

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World Pride 2019 New York City

On a hot summer night in 1969, an intensifying movement reached its breaking point in New York City. It had to happen here—in this city of infinite facets, immutable colors and uncontainable Pride. In the years since, our annual Pride celebrations have become world-famous—and the biggest one is yet to come.

June 2019 marks 50 years since the Stonewall Uprising, a pivotal moment in LGBTQ history—and this summer, the whole world is invited to celebrate in New York City. Consider this your hub for all things World Pride 2019.

MILLIONS  are expected  in NY  for this monumental event!

Stay up to date as events are announced at 2019 World Pride!

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Gay Radio in California

This week brought the launch of Qchella Media Corporation and the new K-GAY 106.5 FM, The Pride of the Valley, which debuted its new music format.

K-GAY, as part of Qchella Media, is a new local radio station streamed worldwide on TuneIn Radio. The station serves the LGBTQ+ community with entertainment and information, including an on-demand podcasting platform bringing a wide variety of LGBTQ+ content to their audience in Palm Springs, the Coachella Valley and worldwide.

Besides their unique and diverse programming, what sets Qchella Media Corporation apart is that they are also a non-profit media organization, where every dollar raised through advertising and their members’ support is devoted to the content, allowing their team to
meet the needs of their diverse communities in the Coachella Valley.

Source Palm Springs Life. Read More!

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Zakar Twins Book, Tour plus Off Broadway!

zakar twins book pray the gay away

I can’t remember exactly  how  I  stumbled upon  the Zakar  Twins,  but I found them on Instagram  and  have been a loyal follower, watching their careers  soar  for over  1  year  now! Their  best-selling book  “Pray The Gay Away” came  out  in the Fall of 2017. That’s  probably about the time I first discovered them.

These young gay models, writers, entrepreneurs, leaders in the LGBTQ+ community, and lovable goofballs Michael and Zach Zakar are known not only for their identical good looks but for trailblazing a path forward for queer people who come from Near and Middle Eastern cultures. As smart as they are funny, their memoir last year is  a dual-account tragicomedy about  growing up with deeply religious Iraqi immigrant parents.

“Mom knows.” A simple text that would change two twin brothers’ lives forever. Coming out is hard. The struggle is ongoing, a daily part of life whether to a new friend, a co-worker, or most importantly yourself. Pray the Gay Away chronicles Michael and Zach as they face awkward sexual encounters, drug-fueled escapades, coming out to each other, and their biggest foe – Mom, a woman who not only gave birth to what she calls one regret – but two.

The memoir hilariously and poignantly explores what it’s like growing up as gay, Iraqi twins in modern America. Pray the Gay Away was inspired the night Mom snuck into their bedroom and force fed them “holy grapes,” determined to “de-gay” them.  She threw Holy Water on them as well! 

The Zakar Twins are new voices speaking out against generations, particularly within the Iraqi culture, who look down on being gay. This book is not only for the LBGTQ community, but for young adults, looking to achieve normalcy.

“The book started kind of as a hateful thing. We wrote it because we were angry that our Mom reacted in such a demeaning way,” Zach said. “Then, over time, the project, it really resulted in kind of a beautiful thing. We were growing with the book, it was growing with us.”

 

zakar twins male models

Currently  they are on tour  with  Drag Queen Christmas – The Naughty Tour!  37 cities now through Dec 29th! Presented by Murray & Peter.  They will be heading  South and West  in the coming weeks. Get specific city and  tour info at www.DragFans.com. 

Their Mom  has come a long way to acceptance and actually  attended  the show  in Detroit! Her first drag show ever!

I am told that  the producers, Murray and Peter  are helping to bring their book  to Off Broadway, hopefully  in time  for  Pride  2019!

Recently the brothers  relased a  calendar for 2019.  Defiance: taking a stance on changing the world’s conservative view on what it means to be gay in the Middle Eastern world. Shot by Dexter Brown.

“Everyone has their own unique story. Fortunately for us, we just wrote ours down,” Zach said with a laugh. “The book is done, but it’s not finished. We’re writing two more books about different things.”

 

Buy  the BOOK  and  CALENDAR   Here.

Get to know Michael and Zach  with their great  YouTube  videos!

ZT  on Instagram

ZT  on Facebook

ZT  on Twitter

ZT  My  Twin Chat App –  a  way to communicate  with  others  who might be struggling with  coming out or just needing someone to talk to.  Many people coming out usually feel like they are the only one. So this app is a support system for those scared to talk to a stranger or a close friend.

“You cannot forget the bigger picture. It feels like life is caving in to a lot of people when it first happens. I think that’s one of the scariest things. Because all I was worried about, was when you grow up, there’s so much involved in the bigger picture,” Michael said. “That’s what I tell people, just realize there is light at the end of the tunnel even if it feels almost impossible.”

 

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Winter in Palm Springs

Escape the winter chill in this 87 degree salt water pool & 12 man hot tub.
These upcoming events and great December rates make it a wonderful time to plan your INNdulge getaway!
Book now
UPCOMING!
Desert TheatreWorks – Indio
The Sound of Music Dec. 7 – 23
All these years later, the hills are still alive with the sound of music, Maria, and the von Trapp family. Climb every mountain and discover a few of your favorite things with this stage classic.
Info and tickets at www.dtworks.org
Palm Springs Gay Men’s Chorus: “Men in Tights” Dec. 14-16
The PSGMC kicks off their 20th year with a spectacular holiday concert presented at the Palm Springs Art Museum’s Annenberg Theatre.
Info and tickets: www.PSMuseum.org
Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio presents
Tony Bennett
Friday, Dec. 7 at 8pm
The McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert presents:
Friday, Dec. 7: The Colors of Christmas, featuring Peabo Bryson, Taylor Dayne, Jon Secada, and Deniece Williams
Saturday, Dec. 15: LeAnn Rimes: You, Me, and Christmas
Tuesday, Dec. 18: Davis Koz and Friends annual Christmas tour
Info & tickets: www.mccallumtheatre.com
Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage presents
Barry Manilow: A Very Barry Christmas
Dec. 15 & 16

Palm Springs International Film Festival

January 3, 2019 – January 14, 2019

Desert Arts Festival

January 12, 2019 – January 13, 2019

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    Tour de Palm Springs February 9, 2019

    Modernism Week 2019 February 14, 2019 – February 24, 2019

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San Francisco Remembers Harvey Milk Nov 27th

Source Towleroad

Gay rights icon Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone will be remembered on November 27 at 7 pm with a candlelight walk from the plaza named for Milk to City Hall, where they were assassinated by SF Supervisor Dan White 40 years ago.

The walk, which will echo the spontaneous march that took place shortly after the murders, is being organized by the Harvey Milk LBTQ Democratic Club, which writes: “In November of 1978, bookending the Thanksgiving holiday, the city of San Francisco and, it might be said, the world was changed forever. The double horror of the tragedy at Jonestown, followed by the slaying of Harvey Milk and George Moscone was a crushing trauma to the heart and soul of San Francisco, and yet in that darkness we rose together in candlelight not only to remember those we had lost but to strengthen and galvanize ourselves to give them voice to continue their fight and and vision for the future….In honour of that same eloquent response, the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club invites all to join us in quiet reflection from those who knew these great advocates of social justice at Harvey Milk Plaza. Following this, we will walk in candlelight to the steps of City Hall where current community leadership will echo their vision, just as those who were there did that warm November night in 1978.

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Drag Queen Christmas – The Naughty Tour

They are back!    A fabulous assortment of your favorite queens!

Drag Queen Christmas – The Naughty Tour!

  COMING TO A CITY  NEAR YOU!  37 cities!

It’s a Hilarious evening of holiday performances featuring contestants from the reality television show on VH1.

(Line up will vary  by  city – check online  for your  city and tickets  HERE)

These talented girls will get you into the holiday spirit, with a naughty twist!

 

Plus special guests the Zakar Twins as Santa’s helpers!

 

This special event is Presented by Murray & Peter.

Get tour info at www.DragFans.com

Super Fan packages are also available in the first few rows with a first-in-line meet and greet pass, official tour poster and laminate with lanyard.

The holidays were never this naughty!

All ages welcome.

Tickets range $35 – $150

 

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TORCH SONG on Broadway! Limited Run!

I am SO LUCKY, that as a young gay boy about 22 years old, I think it was 1982, I made it to New York city (from small town Michigan) and got into Studio 54 for an amazing evening and also got to see Harvey Fierstein on Broadway in Torch Song Trilogy with Mathew Broderick and Estelle Getty! ( I had read about the show in After Dark magazine, and seeing the show was the primary reason for my trip).

In that eye opening trip to the big apple I saw amazing clubs that are no longer around. I also met Andy Warhol on that trip! All the things I had read about NYC were true! What a trip! My little gay life would never be the same!

Harvey and the story left such an impression on my soul. I followed Harvey’s career over the years and saw his works whenever I could. He is genius to me, and “an icon.”

So I was THRILLED beyond belief to see Torch Song, a compact version of Torch Song Trilogy, make it to the stage in New York!

And with Michael Urie no less! Who I met in Chicago when he performed “Buyer & Cellar”. He is so wonderfully talented.

It’s magical that Torch Song is at the Hayes Theater, on it’s 35th anniversary, on the same Broadway stage where the Tony Award-winning premiere forever changed the face of popular entertainment. Along with the talented Drama Desk Award Winner Michael Urie, Academy Award winner Mercedes Ruehl shines are Arnold’s mother.

 

Torch Song Trilogy won Tonys for Best Play and Best Actor in a Play for Fierstein. 3 years on Broadway, it was truly a landmark show!

 

I am sure most of you know the story, but there may be some younger people reading who do not know the story; This show is fiercely funny and heart-wrenching. Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song follows Arnold
Beckoff’s (Mr. Urie) odyssey to find happiness in New York. All he wants is a husband, a child, and a pair of bunny slippers that fit, but a visit from his overbearing mother (Ms. Ruehl) reminds him that he needs one thing more: respect.

This story was of Arnold’s struggle to be accepted as a young Jewish gay man living in New York City in the late 1970s and ’80s. What’s amazing, in some ways, is that it was powerful then to me; this is pre AIDS, pre gay marriage, PRE EVERYTHING and today the story is still just as powerful.

Forty years after writing Torch Song, it still speaks to audiences making them laugh and weep and happy,” says Fierstein in a statement. “Unbelievable. And to now return to the theater where it played all those years ago… Beyond wishes… Beyond dreams.. Beyond the most outrageous fantasy.”

“A great play makes you think, and what’s going on in the White House is always in the back of our minds,” Urie told NewNowNext about the timeliness of the revival. “We’re all confused, terrified, and clinging to each other, so Arnold, the ultimate caretaker, is the kind of friend we need right now. Yes, he’s flawed, but he has so much heart and compassion.”

I urge you to see this brilliant show, if you haven’t already! LIMITED RUN!!

Join Arnold on this all too human journey about the families we’re born into, the families we choose, and the battles to bring them all home.

Torch Song is playing at the Hayes Theater at 240 West 44th Street.

Directed by Tony Award nominee Moisés Kaufman

www.torchsongbroadway.com

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CHER New Cd and Tour

SEE THAT GIRL…

WATCH THAT GIRL…

SHE’S THE DANCING QUEEN!

She’s back! At 72 and going strong!

The one and only Cher will released Dancing Queen last week, a new album of all Abba hits by Warner Bros. Records.

The Oscar, Emmy and Grammy Award winning icon was inspired to record the album following her stunning performance in the recently-released mega-hit film, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again.

 

Commented Cher: “I’ve always liked Abba and saw the original Mamma Mia musical on Broadway three times. After filming Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, I was reminded again of what great and timeless songs they wrote and started thinking ‘why not do an album of their music?’ The songs were harder to sing than I imagined but I’m so happy with how the music came out. I’m really excited for people to hear it. It’s a perfect time.”

Dancing Queen was recorded and produced in London and Los Angeles with Cher‘s longtime collaborator Mark Taylor, who previously produced Cher‘s global smash “Believe” which was number one in over 50 countries. And it does not disappoint! I truly love the last song on CD I think the best, “One of Us”.

Cher is scheduled to be awarded a Kennedy Center Honor on December 2nd in Washington DC.

She is a co-producer of the The Cher Show, the upcoming Broadway musical opening on December 3rd ( we saw it in Chicago and LOVED IT!)

 

She is currently performing a residency at MGM Resorts. Get tickets HERE!

NEW TOUR – The Here We Go Again Tour is the seventh solo concert tour by American singer-actress Cher in support of her twenty-sixth studio album Dancing Queen. It is the first time the singer tours Oceania since her Living Proof: The Farewell Tour in 2005. The tour started on September 21, 2018 and will finish on May 18, 2019.

Cities  with Ticket  links  HERE

 

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Summer Drag Camp – Camp Wannakiki

The premise is simple… take eight drag queens to see who can last the week at an actual Summer Camp and claim the crown “Queen of Camp!” CAMP WANNAKIKI is a new drag reality show airing on YouTube.

This hilarious new show features eight of the campiest campers in the Midwest (O’laysia Prime, Dominique DeGrant, VajayJ Snappinturtle, Pagan Holladay, Sylvia Nixx, Alexis P Bevels, Muffy Fishbasket and C’est Kevvie), along with kooky Camp Counselor Dear Ruthie and Camp Directors Apple Brown Betty and Cherry Pi!

Each episode reprises a day at camp, where campers perform various activities best suited for 10 year olds, as opposed to grown-ass drag queens. Tune in for the hilarity that ensues!

This entertaining competition keeps the focus on fun and friendship, while giving drama and backstabbing the cold shoulder, as was the goal of creators and producers Ashley and Brandon Wright.

The Wrights are real life twin brothers and drag life twin sisters Apple Brown Betty and Cherry Pi Sugarbaker. The twins are also co-owners of Hamburger Mary’s International, and were recently featured on the hit CBS show “Undercover Boss.” Going on 20 locations, Mary’s is known not only for their gourmet burgers, but also for putting on great drag shows across the country.

Let’s Eat, drink and be “Mary” this summer at Camp Wannakiki!

Follow the campy fun on YouTube


Camp Wannakiki FB page

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