Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Born On This Day, 110 Years Ago, Dahling.... Gay Icon Tallulah Bankhead


I am a gay man of a certain age, where telling Tallulah stories & imitating the famed personality was de rigueur at brunches & parties. Now, who has heard of her?

She lived an amazing, spontaneously combustible life, brimming with panache. She loved men, women, liquor, & cocaine, & she smoked like an Alabama smokehouse. There are so many anecdotes about her. Let’s start with this one: It was 1931 & she was traveling to Hollywood for the first time. Riding with her on the train was Joan Crawford & her husband, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Tallulah Bankhead: "Joan, Dahling… you're divine. I've had an affair with your husband. You'll be next."

Sadly her films are mostly uninteresting & do not showcase her considerable talents, except for Alfred Hitchcock’s Lifeboat. Her performance was fearless & memorable. Hitchcock knew how to use Bankhead’s skills.

The outsized Bankhead was perfect for the stage,& the theatre is where she made her mark: She triumphed as the conniving Regina in Lillian Hellman’s The Little Foxes, Sabina in The Skin Of Our Teeth, Private Lives & A Streetcar Named Desire.

Her molasses & whiskey voice, dry wit & impeccable timing Bankhead’s calling card, where her personality came through on radio & TV, with ingenious flare for the wicked & outré. The Sands Hotel in Las Vegas paid her, what was then, a very generous $20,000 per week to perform her solo show which included monologues, songs & poem readings

Bankhead was always very frank & forthcoming about taking lovers of both genders: “My father warned me about men & booze but he never said anything about women & cocaine.” She enjoyed assignations with Billie Holliday, Eva La Galliene, Marlene Dietrich, Mercedes de Acosta, Hattie McDaniel & Patsy Kelly. She never shied away from her attraction to men & she was said to be a loyal lifelong friends to her women.

Bankhead lived a life of audacious adventure & sensual sprees, with a skewed sense of humor & a penchant for the outspoken & outrageous. She was generous; the dividing line between friendship & employee was nearly invisible. Bankhead loved to have young, handsome gay men act as her valet, mixing drinks & drawing her baths. She felt emotions with gravity, & took disappointments in stride. She died too young, at the age of 62, in 1968, having had a raucous, ribald life, & she never wasted a moment of it.

Bankhead Quotes (& there are plenty of them, Dahling...):

"Here's a rule I recommend: Never practice two vices at once."

"I did what I could to inflate the rumor I was on my way to stardom. What I was on my way to, by any mathematical standards known to man, was oblivion, by way of obscurity."

"I have three phobias which, could I mute them, would make my life as slick as a sonnet, but as dull as ditch water: I hate to go to bed, I hate to get up, & I hate to be alone."

"I read Shakespeare & the Bible, & I can shoot dice. That's what I call a liberal education."

"I'd rather be strongly wrong than weakly right."

"I'll come & make love to you at 5 o'clock. If I'm late start without me."

"I'm as pure as the driven slush."

"I've been called many things, but never an intellectual."

"If I had to live my life again, I'd make the same mistakes, only sooner."

"If you really want to help the American theater, don't be an actress, dahling. Be an audience."

"It's the good girls who keep diaries; the bad girls never have the time"

"Nobody can be exactly like me. Even I have trouble doing it."

"They used to photograph Shirley Temple through gauze. They should photograph me through linoleum."






Monday, January 30, 2012

Born On This Day- January 30th... Mark Eitzel


Mark Eitzel was born on this day in 1959. He seems like the sort of guy I would spot at The Eagle, the neighborhood gay watering hole, sitting alone in a shadow, a guy who shows up in the afternoon & stays till last call, stirring his drink, sadly staring at the porn playing on the TV monitors over the bar, muttering to himself, or mouthing the words to an ABBA song playing on the stereo system. I am louche & lazy in a corner reading Dashiell Hammett & we sneek peeks at each other.

He is a gay guy who sang "Ain't no sunshine when he's gone" when he covered theBill Withers song. Eitzel is a guy who claims work at staying away from being labeled as a "gay" artist, but writes songs about Cleopatra Jones & dedicated songs to Barbra Streisand.

Eitzel has made a career out of being sorrowful. He was once the lead singer/songwriter for the band- American Music Club (1985-1994) with 7 albums, & he has released 13 solo albums. He is a songwriter of stunning talent, but his sadness is inescapable, inextricably intertwined into every line of his lyrics. Eitzel's indulgently miserable musings give off a torchy atmosphere. Eitzel composes emotionally eviscerating, elegiac, sometimes furious music. He sings in a plain, sloppy voice; the most heartbreaking thing about Eitzel is that his songs are often tinged with just the slightest bit of hope:

"Forgot there was such a thing as good people left
Can't you just save my life
I got a fresh screwdriver right before closing time..."

If he is new to you try something off 60 Watt Silver Lining from 1996. Remember the 1990s?



'RuPaul's Drag Race' runner-up Manila Luzon releases 'Hot Couture' music video

"RuPaul’s Drag Race" finalist Manila Luzon has released the music video for her debut single, "Hot Couture."
"Hot Couture" music video screen capture
The fun and colorful video was directed by Luzon herself and choreographed by her boyfriend Sahara Davenport, also a former contestant of " RuPaul's Drag Race." It features a myriad of over the top costumes created by a half a dozen fashion and costume designers including Viktor Luna ("Project Runway" season 9 finalist), Garo Sparo (Garo and Sundance Channel) and Marco Marco (Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, etc.).

The dance-y club song, "Hot Couture," was co-written and produced by Grammy Award winning producers Brian Kierulf and Joshua Schwartz of KNS Productions (Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, and 50 Cent). Check out its music video below:


Manila Luzon, also known as Karl Westerberg, was born to a Filipino mother and a German-Swede father. She was raised in Minnesota but currently resides in Harlem, New York.

After placing second on "RuPaul's Drag Race," Luzon was able to perform at various national and international LGBT events including New York Pride and Vancouver Pride. She also appeared on a TV commercial for travel website Orbitz.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Come Out Of The Closet! Two Out Entertainers Share A Birthday


Gay entertainers who stay in the closet are missing out on a chance to be a catalyst for change in the lives of young gay people across this great country, especially when we can more or less figure out that they homos.

Too many children today are living in an environment that indoctrinates them to consider homosexuality as sinful, deplorable, or even fictional. Millions of children are being convinced that they feel different because they simply want the attention. Young people deserve homosexual role models. But too many celebs remain afraid to come out. Coming out as gay can still potentially ruin a career, so many don't take the risk. The bigger your star the harder you fall. But the bigger you are, the bigger the impact your coming out might have.

I feel that sitting on a secret that could help gay youth come to terms with who they are, mean closeted show biz figures are cheating the world of positive examples of what it means to be homosexual. They need to get brave.

I remain a fan of the working class comedy- Rosanne.I consider it to be one of the 10 best sit-coms of all time. From 1988-1997, this very funny & groundbreaking show often featured gay story lines. In an episode titled: Don’t Ask/ Don’t Tell, proving that she's cool, Roseanne Conner (Roseanne Barr) goes out dancing at a gay bar wittily named "Lips" with her sister Jackie (Laurie Metcalf) & friend Nancy (Sandra Bernhard) & Nancy's girlfriend Sharon (Mariel Hemingway). Roseanne is having fun until Sharon kisses her, causing Roseanne anxiety. The next day, after discussing the kiss with Jackie & getting into an argument with Nancy, Roseanne realizes that she may not be as cool as she thinks she is. In the 1995 episode- December Bride, long-time character Leon (Martin Mull) marries his boyfriend Scott (Fred Willard). Roseanne's husband Dan (John Goodman) is distressed at seeing the men kiss & Roseanne chastises him for making a fuss about 2 people of the same sex kissing. Sharon (Hemingway, again) then sits down behind Roseanne & says hello. Her cameo serves as a callback to the earlier episode.

Sara Gilbert decided at a very young age that she wanted to be an actress after her older sister, Melissa Gilbert (one time SAG President), got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. At the age of 13 she nabbed the role of Darlene Conner, the sarcastic middle child, on Roseanne. Gilbert remained a cast member during the show's entire 9 year run. Her contribution was considered so important to Roseanne that the show's producers juggled storylines & taping schedules to allow her to attend Yale University while remaining part of the cast, shooting remote segments of Darlene at a soundstage in NYC. At Yale, she majored in photography, & graduated with honors in 1997.

Since 2007 she has appeared in series episodes of The Big Bang Theory as a scientist friend, with benefits, of the character played by adorkable-Johnny Galecki, who also portrayed her longtime boyfriend & husband David on Roseanne.

Gilbert is a co-host & executive producer of The Talk. Along with Gilbert, Julie Chen, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood & Aisha Tyler co-hosts.

Gilbert finally came out publicly as a lesbian in 2010. She had been in a decade long relationship with TV producer Allison Adler. They have 2 children. They separated this past summer. Gilbert is now in a relationship with songwriter Linda Perry. Gilbert is a long time vegetarian & a supporter of PETA, Meals on Wheels, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, & AIDS Project Los Angeles.



Adam Lambert cleared up any speculation about his sexuality in 2009 in an interview for Rolling Stone Magazine. Lambert: "I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay, I've been living in LA for 8 years as a gay man. I embrace it, it’s just another part of me, but I'm trying to be a singer, not a civil rights leader". Lambert, was sort of closeted on American Idol: "It would have been so sensationalized that it would overshadow what I was there to do, which was sing.”

As an openly gay man, Lambert has been an advocate for full equality. He was presented, by gay singer Sam Sparro, the Equality Idol award at Equality California annual Equality Awards for being a role model for the LGBT community. Lambert was honored at a PFLAG National LA event. He received a GLAAD Media Award nomination for Outstanding Music Artist in 2010. Lambert produced a YouTube clip for the "It Gets Better" campaign, encouraging fans to have pride in themselves & not allow bullies to win.

Lambert has given proceeds from his song- Aftermath to support The Trevor Project, the national organization providing crisis intervention & suicide prevention services to LGBT youth.

I have never owned any Lambert tunes, but I appreciate his big lungs & big hair, his huge, controlled vocal range & bombastic personality. I’m simply not a fan of American Idol style singing. This makes me feel very old.

Gilbert turns 37 years old today & Lambert, currently in a relationship with Finnish TV personality Sauli Koskinen, is 30 years old today. I'm sorry, but writing- "Finnish TV personality", just cracked me up.

Erik Santos' 'Awit Para Sa 'Yo' is Astrovision's top-selling OPM album (Jan. 16-22)

Erik Santos' latest album "Awit Para Sa Yo" sold the most copies from January 16-22, 2012 in Astrovision/Astroplus branches among OPM albums, according to the store's latest tally released today.
Erik Santos' 'Awit Para Sa 'Yo' album cover

 Zia Quizon's self-titled debut album released through Polyeast Records came in second while Aiza Seguerra's "Songs From The Vault" was the third top-selling for the said week.

Check out the complete list of Astrovision's top-selling OPM albums below:

RankArtist 
Album
Company/Label
1Erik Santos
Awit Para Sa 'Yo

Star Records
2Zia Quizon
Zia Quizon

Polyeast Records
3Aiza Seguerra
Songs From The Vault

Star Records
4Angeline Quinto
Patuloy (Expanded Edition)

Star Records
5Gary Valenciano
With Love

Star Records
6Willie Revillame
Kendeng Kendeng

Viva Records
7Jovit Badilvino
I'd Do Anything

Star records
8Basil Valdez
Basil Valdez

Vicor Records
9Juris
Forevermore

Star Records
10Richard Poon
I'll Take Care Of You

MCA Music

Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola to stage a concert in Araneta

Jose and Wally concert
Our favorite noontime comic tandem Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola are set to invade the Big Dome this March!

The "Eat Bulaga" hosts will be staging a concert on March 2, 2012 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

Titled “Jose & Wally Show: A Party For Juan & All,” the concert is expected to be a laughter-filled event as it will be guested by the legendary comedy trio of Tito, Vic, and Joey; Concert Queen Ai-Ai delas Alas and Kapuso hunk Aljur Abrenica.

Tickets for the concert are now available at Tickenet outlets and are priced as follows:

Seat Location Price
PATRON (Reserved Seating) 3180
LOWER BOX (Reserved Seating) 2650
UPPER BOX A (Reserved Seating) 1590
UPPER BOX B745
GENERAL ADMISSION320

Last Saturday on "Eat Bulaga," Jose and Wally gave their fans a glimpse of what their concert will be. They had a special production, which trended on Twitter.

Maan Panganiban dies

Maan Panganiban
Former UP Fighting Maroon and UAAP courtside reporter Maan Panganiban has passed away, according to reports on Twitter.

"Farewell to a dedicated sports journalist, a passionate athlete, and a good friend. You will be missed Maan Panganiban. Till the next game.." GMA News correspondent Mark Sambrano tweeted 47 minutes past Sunday midnight.

Fr. Jboy Gonzales, SJ, the Associate Principal of the Ateneo de Manila High School, also posted, "Will offer a mass for former UPMaroons volleyball player and anchor @maanpanganiban at the Jesuit Residence community."

 ABS-CBN Sports reported that Panganiban succumbed to cancer.

Meanwhile, a News 5 Aksyon report said she died "during an emergency operation."

TV5 sports reporter Maan Panganiban was 25 years old.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

'Underworld' awakens at Ph box office

Underworld 4 poster
"Underworld: Awakening," the fourth installment of the "Underworld" series, dominated the Philippine box office during its first week in theaters in the country. The Kate Beckinsale-starrer film topped the local chart (January 18-25) with its Php37.9 million gross.

Another Hollywood film came in second, "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows" which earned Php10.5 million, followed closely by "Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked" with approximately Php10.2 million.

On its second week, the Star Cinema movie "A Mother's Story" starring Pokwang, took the 5th spot after raking in Php5.5 million. The drama film has now a total earnings of Php24.8 million.

Check out the local box office tally for January 18-25, 2012 below:

TWMovie
Weekend Gross
Gross-to-DateWeek
1 Underworld Awakening
37,954,461 PHP

37,954,461 PHP 1
2 Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
10,530,356 PHP

55,824,885 PHP 2
3 Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked
10,165,825 PHP

50,493,346 PHP 2
4 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
7,318,653 PHP

162,704,917 PHP 6
5 A Mother's Story
5,526,650 PHP

24,815,781 PHP 2
6 We Bought a Zoo
3,933,470 PHP

3,933,470 PHP 1
7 Coriolanus
1,180,075 PHP

1,180,075 PHP 1


Courtesy of BoxOfficeMojo

'Tondo Fiesta Willie's Gym' and more viral videos

Tondo Fiesta Willie's Gym

Fiesta. It's more fun in Tondo!

Instead of the usual ethnic dancers, hunky men gathered and showed their synchronized moves in the streets of Tondo during the Manila district's fiesta, recently. Check out a video of their performance below:


Prison Dance Inspired by Manny Pacquiao - Pak Yow

Like the popular videos of the dancing inmates of Cebu on Youtube, this clip will make you think perhaps prison is indeed more in the Philippines.


Daniel Helm Miraculous Shot, Wrong Basket 
Noypi basketball fans, check this video out. During a college hoops game in the U.S. recently, a player tried to save a loose ball. Miraculously, without looking he threw the ball right into the basket. However, it was his opponent's basket. His team won the game, though.

Angel Locsin, Kim Chiu and Jasmine Curtis-Smith | February 2012 Magazine Covers Roundup

Angel Locsin, Kim Chiu and Jasmine Curtis are on the covers of the latest issues of some magazines in the country. Check them out below:
Angel Locsin's MOD cover
Features:
Angel Locsin: This Will Be Her Year;
New and Renew: A Guide To Start 2012 Right;
Read Into This: How To Arrange Your Personal Library;
Down To Earth: Seeds And Sprout Recipes For Your Diet;
Enter The Dragon: What You Should Eat This Year - Based On Your Zodiac Sign
; and more...
Kim Chiu for Maven
Features:
Kim Chiu: 'Masaya Na Siya At Masaya Na Rin Ako.';
33 Hot V-Day Ideas H'll Love All Year;
50+ Summer-Perfect Pieces For Your Wardrobe;
Sunny Weather Beauty Solutions; and
Real Long Distance Relationships That Work;
and more...
Jasmine Curtis-Smith on the cover of Meg
Features:
Jasmine Curtis-Smith On Making A Name For Herself;
135+ Fashion 7 Beauty Must-Haves;
Single Since Birth?;
This Season's Color: Tangerine;
Your Signature Scent;
and more...

14-pound baby delivered without C-section in US (Video)

14-pound baby Asher Stewardson | Photo credit: Ch13
A nearly 14-pound baby boy was born in the United States on Thursday.

What's more amazing about the ~ 14-pound baby is that he is au naturel, he was born naturally via normal vaginal delivery. His mother endured six hours of labor without C-section, not even epidural injection.

"We wanted to avoid a C-section because that would have not been good for me or the baby," mom Kendall Stewardson said. "We didn't want to forfeit the best possible outcome."

Weighing 13 pounds and 12 ounces and measuring 23 ½ inches long upon birth, baby Asher Stewardson was born at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, Iowa Thursday. He is believed to be the biggest baby ever born at the hospital without a surgical delivery. Fifteen months ago, his brother, Judah, arrived weighing 12 pounds and an ounce at birth.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 2 in 5 births are in the 6.5- to 7.5-pound range. Only 1 in 1,000 newborns weighs more than 11 pounds.

The heaviest baby born to a healthy mother weighed 22 pounds and 8 ounces, according to the Guiness World Records. He was born in September 1955 in Aversa, Italy.

Check out this video report about baby Asher courtesy of Ch.13 News:


 

The Book Of Mormon

Our tiny, 700 sq. ft. cottage in the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle was a maze of walkways, with a few steps down & a few steps up, & covered walkways & several gates to maneuver before arriving at the front door.

One splendid summer afternoon in 1987, with temperatures in the 80s, I had every door & window wide open. I had the music cranked up to the limits. I was having a lovely time: singular, stoned & sublime of spirit.

I was listening to my beloved Eurythmics. There was much dog barking as I made my way to the first gate, where a pair of rather good looking Mormon missionaries, in black slacks & white shirts buttoned to the top button, stood & smiled as Annie Lennox & Dave Stewart were blasting out Missionary Man. I smiled & greeted them with the news that they were most certainly at the wrong address. I did compliment them on their perfect teeth as the lyrics to the song reminded us not to mess with the missionary man.

This would not be the only time in my in my life that I would scare away someone with my bare presence & music choice.


Well I was born an original sinner
I was born from original sin
& if I had a dollar bill
 For all the things I've done
There'd be a mountain of money
 Piled up to my chin

My mother told me good,
My mother told me strong
She said, "Be true to yourself
 & you can't go wrong"
But there's just one thing
 That you must understand
You can fool with your brother
But don't mess with a missionary man

Don't mess with a missionary man
Don't mess with a missionary man
Don't mess with a missionary man

Oh, the missionary man,
He's got God on his side
He's got the saints & apostles
 Backin' up from behind
Black eyed looks from those Bible books
He's a man with a mission,
 Got a serious mind

There was a woman in the jungle
& a monkey on a tree
The missionary man he was followin' me
He said:
 "Stop what you're doin',
 Get down upon your knees
I've a message for you that you better believe"

Believe, believe, believe, believe
Believe, believe, believe, believe
Believe, believe, believe, believe
Believe, believe, believe, believe
Believe, believe, believe, believe

Well I was born an original sinner
I was born from original sin
& if I had a dollar bill for all the things I've done
There'd be a mountain of money

Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money
Money, money, money, money

No, don't mess with him
 No, no
Oh baby
Don't mess with a missionary man
Oh, Please
Don't you mess with him
 Don't you mess with a that man
He's a missonary man!
Stewart & Lennox
1986


Sorry for the ad!

I Will Survive

After reading that Mitt Romney had his scientist/atheist father-in-law baptised as a Mormon after he was dead, I have become restless, sleepless & hapless with the possibility that this could happen to me. I can't shake the paranoia.

You, my dear readers of my little spot on the Internet, are as close as I have to family. I am the only son of an only son. I am the end of the line. So, I am begging you to not let this happen to me. Don't convert me after I have left my body. Do not make me wear special underwear in the next incarnation.

I am leaving a few instructions & I am counting on you to see this through:
1. I do not wish to be buried or cremated. I want my body to go to a University where I will have scientists questioning my brain & penis size & how they relate.
2. In my obituary, mention that I enjoyed unprecedented success as an actor, singer, horticulturalist, writer, & lover. Claim that I won an Emmy, Grammy, Tony, Oscar, Pulitzer. Claim that I had the #1 album- Jock Straps & Vicodin, for 113 weeks.
2. Publish that although it has been noted that I was a perfect partner & spouse to one man for 50+ years, that I also had passionate affairs with: Gary Cooper, Cary Grant, Kurt Russell, Robert Conrad, Paul Newman, Twiggy, Alan Bates, Jack Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, Lawrence Olivier, Marlon Brando, Steve McQueen, Sean Connery. Joe Dellesandro, James Dean, Warren Beatty, Sting, Jon Hamm, James Franco, Seal, Daniel Craig, Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, Taye Diggs, Hugh Jackman, Nancy Walker, Sidney Poitier, The Queen Mother & Cher... & yet never have had a sexually transmitted disease.
3. I insist that there be no funeral, but a memorial service would be acceptable, & a party would be preferred. I have a list of 10 songs that I want played at my party/memorial service:
If I Had A Boat- Lyle Lovett
Fly Me To The Moon (In Other Words)- Frank Sinatra
Beyond The Sea- Bobby Darrin
Every Breath You Take- The Police
Waters Of March- Art Garfunkel
Once In A Lifetime- Talking Heads
Don't Cry For Me Argentina- Patti Lupone
Something Good- Julie Andrews & Christopher Plummer
God Only Knows- The Beach Boys
I Will Survive- Gloria Gaynor

Your Host circa 1992


At first I was afraid
I was petrified
Kept thinking I could never live
Without you by my side
But then I spent so many nights
Thinking how you did me wrong
& I grew strong
& I learned how to get along

& so you're back
From outer space
I just walked in to find you here
With that sad look upon your face

I should have changed that stupid lock
I should have made you leave your key
If I had known for just one second
You'd be back to bother me

Go on now ,go walk out the door
Just turn around now
You're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down & die?

Oh no, not I
I will survive
As long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
I've got all my love to give
& I'll survive
I will survive

It took all the strength I had
Not to fall apart
Kept trying hard to mend
The pieces of my broken heart
& I spent oh so many nights
Just feeling sorry for myself
I used to cry
But now I hold my head up high

& you see me
Somebody new
I'm not that chained up little person
Still in love with you
& so you felt like dropping in
& just expect me to be free
But now I'm saving all my loving
For someone who's loving me

Go on now go walk out the door
Just turn around now
You're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to break me with goodbye
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down & die?

Oh no, not I
I will survive
As long as i know how to love
I know I'll stay alive
I've got all my life to live
I've got all my love to give
& I'll survive
I will survive

Go on now go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
You're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to break me with goodbye?
Did you think I'd crumble?
Did you think I'd lay down & die?

Oh no, not I
I will survive
As long as I know how to love
I know I'll stay alive

I've got all my life to live
I've got all my love to give
& I'll survive
I will survive
I will survive!
Perrin & Fekaris
1978














Friday, January 27, 2012

Markki Stroem's 'Steal Your Soul' Music Video Unleashed

Markki Stroem has unveiled the music video for his single "Steal Your Soul." The visual features model-actress Coleen Garcia.

The song was composed, arranged and produced by the "Pilipinas Got Talent" finalist himself. It features the unique sound of "Ako Na Lang" singer Zia Quizon which blended perfectly well with Markki's voice, producing a refreshing tune.

Check out the music video of Markki Stroem's "Steal Your Soul" below:


Below is the song's lyrics:

Steal Your Soul by Markki Stroem Lyrics

Looking through the glass I see you smiling at me
Watching as you slowly slip on your pair of jeans
From my mountain top
I feel my heart beat stop
Over and over and over and over

I steal your soul, I steal your soul
I steal it
More and more each day
Your heartbeat grows, your heartbeat grows
In me oh, in me
Each and everyday

I watch you in the park carefully reading a book
You stare at me and smile, don't give me a second look
I feel like suicide
Cuz something in me died
Over and over and over and over

I steal your soul, I steal your soul
I steal it
More and more each day
Your heartbeat grows, your heartbeat grows
In me oh, in me
Each and everyday

Every night I watch you as you sleep
Morning comes I feel so incomplete
See him waiting on you by your bed
Somehow I wish I could just shoot him dead

So I did

I steal your soul, I steal your soul
I steal it
More and more each day
Your heartbeat grows, your heartbeat grows
In me oh, in me
Each and everyday

I steal your soul, I steal your soul
I steal it
More and more each day
Your heartbeat grows, your heartbeat grows
In me oh, in me

Each and everyday

Demi Moore latest victim of death hoax

Demi Moore on AM cover in 2010
Demi Moore is dead according to a rumor that has spread on Twitter.

"RIP Demi Moore" is currently trending on the microblogging site, only fueling further speculations.

The recently hospitalized Demi Moore is struggling with her health right now but very much alive. Hence, the rumors are false.

Moore is just the latest victim of death hoax on Twitter, putting her in the company of celebrities like Justin Bieber, Jackie Chan, Jon Bon Jovi, David Guetta, Lady Gaga, and Cher who were all subjects of RIP rumors.

Meanwhile, the dramatic 911 call made by Moore's friend before the actress was brought to a hospital has been released by the Los Angeles police. Check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tQp7dTWRd0&feature=player_embedded

Don't Stop, Don't Stop... I Think I'm Cumming!

The Husband & I caught the film- The Anniversary Party the other evening while channel surfing & we decided to stay with it, although we had rented it years ago. One of the stars is Kevin Kline, one of the great loves of my life. But I kept riffing on the the career & personality of Alan Cumming. I was 1st aware of Cumming in 1998 through his Tony winning turn as the emcee in the Sam Mendes-Rob Marshall revival of Cabaret. He certainly seemed to be a very arresting figure when I saw him on the Tony Broadcast.

Photo by David LaChapelle

Cumming has played classical roles in an extremely eclectic career, including a very well received Hamlet in London, but his main image seems to be: naughty impish scamp, a persona that holds my interest. Cumming has done nothing to discourage this, playing a variety of louche characters: Dionysus, Mack the Knife, the Devil, in theater & film. He wrote a semiautobiographical novel-Tommy's Tale, about a sex obsessed, drug ridden bisexual; & starring in a provocative campaign promoting the fragrance line that bears his last name. I have yet to see the Good Wife, but I understand that he really bites into his role of Lawyer Eli Gold.

I downloaded his rather good album- Blue Car, with songs of love & loss by such songwriters as John Bucchino (A Catered Affair), William Finn (Falsettos) & pop singer Jimmy Webb as well as originals by Cumming himself with his musical director, Lance Horne. I am impressed with his non-theatre singing & his surprisingly touching interpretations.

I can be so very juvenile, I still giggle as I type his last name. Cumming lives in NYC with his husband, graphic artist Grant Shaffer, & their dogs- Honey & Leon.The couple dated for 2 years before entering into a civil partnership in Britain. Cumming and Shaffer married in NYC earlier this month, the 5th anniversary of their London wedding. Cumming turns 47 years old today.

Cumming is himself a Blogger. Check out his entertaining spot on the Internet.

Born On This Day- January 27th... Ethan Mordden

Photo by Charles Higgins Jr for NY Times

His section in my bookshelves takes up quite a bit of space with more than 20 volumes of Theatre & Film commentary & history, with deeply held beliefs & blistering opinions. His fiction, includes the highly addictive, waggish & woeful Buddies series. For me Ethan Mordden is my era’s Charles Dickens.

Still in his 20s, he published his Better Foot Forward: The History of American Musical Theatre. He continues to write about his obsession with the performing arts. I relished his series on Broadway musicals, each one covering a decade. Other show biz books, out of dozens: Movie Star: A Look At The Women Who Made Hollywood (1983), Demented: The World of the Opera Diva (1984), & The Happiest Corpse I’ve Ever Seen: The Last 25 Years of the Broadway Musical (2004).

When I first started reading Mordden, he was writing reviews & semi-autobiographical pieces for Christopher Street magazine (Gosh, I wish I had not tossed my complete collection of Christopher Streets during a move). The stories were written in the voice of Bud, a gay man in NYC telling stories about his chosen family of other urban gay men. Mordden collected the sketches into- I’ve Got a Feeling We’re Not in Kansas Anymore (1985), which started a series that is rather like a NYC Tales Of The City. Mordden published the Buddies serial: Buddies (1986), Everybody Loves You (1988), Some Men Are Lookers (1997), & How’s Your Romance? (2005). Other novels that are smart & engaging: How Long Has This Been Going On? (1995) & my favorite- The Venice Adriana (1998), set in the world of Opera.

In Fall 2010, Mordden released- The Guest List: How Manhattan Defined American Sophistication, from the Algonquin Round Table to Truman Capote’s Ball. This one of my favorite books about my much loved NYC, with anecdotes of: Algonquin Hotel, Stork Club, Alexander Woollcott, Irving Berlin, Edna Ferber, Arturo Toscanini, Leonard Bernstein, Cole Porter, Dorothy Parker, Truman Capote, the Lunts & Helen Hayes. Their books, plays, performances, speeches, dinner parties, masked balls, loves, hates, likes & dislikes became the stuff of dreams for the rest of the nation, Mordden chronicles the city’s most powerful, potent, persuasive period.


Along with the Armistead Maupin books & Felice Picano’s Like People in History, Mordden’s Buddies Series remains an inviting way to remember an important era in urban gay male history. Start with the first & spend a season moving on to the others. I recommend him highly. Mordden makes his home in Manhattan. Her turns 63 years old today.

Viacom CEO's pay drops to nearly half in 2011

Viacom CEO Dauman's pay nearly halved
The CEO of Viacom Inc.(VIA) received a total pay valued at $43.12 million in 2011, just more than half of his compensation from a year earlier, the company said in a securities filing Friday.

CEO Philippe P. Dauman's compensation in 2010 was $83.52 million, making him the highest-paid among 350 CEOs that year, according to a Hay Group study for The Wall Street Journal. His large 2010 pay was mainly due to equity awards in a renewed contract.

Dauman's pay last year included a $3.5 million base salary, a $20 million bonus, and over $19 million in stock and options.

Despite the decline, Dauman's total compensation was still bigger than that of Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger, whose 2011 pay reached 31.4 million. It was also more than News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch's pay of $33.3 million.

However, Dauman will not be the highest paid CEO for 2011 - Apple's Tim Cook was awarded a $378 million package for replacing Steve Jobs as CEO.

Christian Bautista deported from Indonesia

Christian Bautista deported from Indonesia
Singer-actor Christian Bautista has been deported from Indonesia for violating terms of his visa, the Jakarta Globe reported Friday.

Bautista was found staging a performance in Lippo Karawaci, Tangerang Wednesday night despite having only a free visa. He reportedly violated immigration regulations for doing so, prompting officials to confiscate his passport and question him the next day.

"Immigration official Herawan Sukoaji said on Friday that Bautista was being deported for disrespecting and disobeying Indonesia’s 30-day visa regulations, which prohibit foreigners from working while in the country." the Indonesian news website wrote.

The report added that Bautista has been barred from entering Indonesia for half a year.

The singer will be ushered to a Singapore Airlines flight back to the Philippines Friday night.

iPhone factory exposé offensive, cries Tim Cook

iPhone factory | Photo Credit: EPN
Apple CEO Tim Cook has responded to the exposé by the New York Times that alleges inhumane working conditions and labor abuse in its iPad and iPhone factories in China and that it "never cared about anything other than increasing product quality and decreasing production cost" as a Foxconn executive was quoted as saying in a Times report.

"We care about every worker in our worldwide supply chain. Any accident is deeply troubling, and any issue with working conditions is cause for concern. Any suggestion that we don’t care is patently false and offensive to us. As you know better than anyone, accusations like these are contrary to our values. It’s not who we are. For the many hundreds of you who are based at our suppliers’ manufacturing sites around the world, or spend long stretches working there away from your families, I know you are as outraged by this as I am." Cook wrote in a lengthy email sent to all Apple employees.

According to a report by the Times, Chinese factory workers are subjected to poor working conditions which include seven day work weeks, working 12 hour shifts and living in overcrowded dormitories for very low pay. The employees reportedly complained of swollen legs for standing while working for such long hours and that they can hardly work after shift.

The Times also cited reports of mass accidental poisonings and factory explosions that killed four people and injured dozens more.

Although he asserted to the fallacy of these claims, Cook may also be tacitly admitting that there are things that still need to be improved. He added, "We will continue to dig deeper, and we will undoubtedly find more issues. What we will not do — and never have done — is stand still or turn a blind eye to problems in our supply chain. On this you have my word."

Cook also emphasized that there is a program in his company that educates workers to their rights and that encourages the reporting of workplace violations.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Ricky Martin, Carlos Gonzalez wedding set on January 28?

Ricky Martin and Carlos Gonzalez | Photo: Zombietoenails.com
Ricky Martin and his boyfriend Carlos Gonzalez are set to tie the knot on January 28, 2012, Spanish-language newspaper El Nuevo Dia reported.

An unnamed source was quoted by the paper that the "Livin la Vida Loca" singer and his longtime lover's wedding will take place in the city of New York where gay marriage is legal.

So is the couple, who looks happy together, ready to walk down the aisle as reported?

According to Ricky's rep, the Puerto Rican singer has "no set plans to marry," dismissing rumors of a New York wedding this January.

"It is a completely incorrect report," the rep told entertainment sites.

There was also a report last year that Ricky, who was awarded a Spanish citizenship recently, will be marrying his economist boyfriend in Spain where gay marriage is also legal. Buenos Aires was also abuzz when reports came out in December that Ricky and Carlos are marrying in the Argentinian capital.

Ricky Martin, who has 2 kids, revealed his sexual orientation in 2010. He revealed the identity of his boyfriend at the GLAAD Media Awards in New York City last year.

"I Don't Seem To Be Able... To Depart."


ESTRAGON: "I can't go on like this."

VLADIMIR : "That's what you think."

Samuel Beckett, from Waiting for Godot

How To Look Terrific When You Are Over 50

"I never really have a plan. My point is, by the time I was your age, I thought I knew who I was. But I had no idea. Like for example, when I was your age, I was dating men.... So, what I'm saying is, when you're older, most of you will be gay! .... The way I ended up on this path, was from a very tragic event. I was, maybe, 19, & my girlfriend at the time died in a car accident. & I passed the accident, & I didn't know it was her, & I kept going.... I started this path of stand-up, & it was successful, & it was great but it was hard because I was trying to please everybody, & I had this secret that I was keeping that I was gay. & I thought that if people found out they wouldn't like me, they wouldn't laugh at me. Really, when I look back on it, I wouldn't change a thing. I mean, it was so important for me to lose everything because I found out what the most important thing was it to be true to yourself.''

From a commencement speech delivered by Ellen DeGeneres at Tulane University, in her hometown of New Orleans.


A decade & 1/2 ago, DeGeneres was on top of the show biz world, with a popular sitcom, club appearances, dipping her toes into feature films, & then came the Oprah confession (Winfrey would go on to play her therapist when DeGeneres came out herself in an episode of her own show), & the public was drawn to the drama of a Hollywood celebrity coming out, a revelation that was not as common or acceptable then as it is now. Her coming out ignited a storm of controversy, prompting ABC to place a parental advisory at the beginning of each episode of the show & then show took a dive in the ratings, & Ellen was cancelled in 1998. Pop culture pundits suggested that her public coming out, her heartfelt admission of her homosexuality on The Oprah Winfrey Show, had killed her career.

DeGeneres returned to standup &, in 2001, rebounded in prime time with The Ellen Show, a sitcom in which she portrayed a lesbian. The show lasted only a year, & many dismissed it as a good try, but conservative America probably just wasn't ready for a loud & proud lesbian TV star. But, times did start to change, & sexuality became somewhat less of an issue in Show Biz.

In 2003,with the closet door wide open door, DeGeneres stepped out as the host of crisp new daytime talk show. The Ellen DeGeneres Show is not only a ratings winner but it has turned the comedienne into a much loved mainstream star. I adore the way she mentions her wife as a toss off. She never pushes.

The times, they are a-changin'. These days it seems that everybody loves DeGeneres. I do; I am watching her show at this moment. She just had Mario Lopez strip to show his Underwear. Thank you, Ellen!



Her distinctive hip populism cuts across divergent demographics without dividing. As an interviewer, she is sweet & naturally funny, a perfect host who just happens to be a lesbian. Middle America, to my surprise, embraced her uniqueness & today, DeGeneres has a bunch of Emmys, & represents American Express & Cover Girl in commercial campaigns. She hosted the Emmys & the Oscars, the 1st openly gay person to do so.

DeGeneres' has given passionate, persuasive & poignant voice to the position of gay people, especially gay youth.of the show's appeal, of course, is that DeGeneres does not apologize or shy about being gay, joking & sharing details about her life with Portia de Rossi. They legally married in a ceremony at their Beverly Hills home in 2008.

I have always found DeGeneres to be funny & original, & think that she is a true hero to gay people. She looks smashingly good on her 54th birthday! I guess lots of money, a hit show, awards, a personal trainer & a beautiful spouse is the secret to looking good after 50.


DeGeneres shares her birthday with someone special in my life. MGC has been my friend for nearly 40 years. We met when we were both puppies, undergrads at Loyola Marymount University in L.A. We attended 2 different universities together & we have lived in 3 different cities at the same time, not because of each other & without consulting each other; we just kept ending up at the same spot. We worked on, in various capacities, several theatre projects together.


MGC circa 1974 & today... pretty adorable, huh?

MGC has never been anything like my best friend, but we are good friends & honest friends. We lived together once & we have known each other in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, the Aughts & now the Teens. MGC & I have never had a fight, a fuss, or egos, amigos. We once had a flirtation, & that didn't even dent our friendship. It is my understanding that he has bragged that I was one of the most inventive lovers that he has experienced.

We have gone a few years without seeing each other, but we always seem to find our way back again. When we are with each other, I enjoy his company so much that I always ask myself- "Why is it that I don't spend more time with this handsome, smart, strong, spiritual, sweet man?"

I would like to think that Ellen would persuade MGC to strip on afternoon TV.