Lance Bass Fishing -- A Good Summer Sport

The troops are starting to rally about if and when former 'NSync-er Lance Bass is going to come out.

I haven't slept with the guy so I cannot vouch for him one way or the other, but Lance has been spotted in gay hotspots in Provincetown and elsewhere with former 'Amazing Race' star Reichen Lehmkuhl. Perez Hilton has had a field day with this for some time, and now more and more gays are calling for Lance to get with the program.

OutSports jock Cyd Zeigler, who saw Lance and Reichen up close and personal, is one:

"The mainstream press won't touch that one because he hasn't held a press conference at The Abbey to declare he's gay. Blogs and Web sites have been tossing around the rumor for a while, especially with the number of times he's been seen in public with Reichen Lehmkuhl. But, because he hasn't called a press conference, 'upstanding' reporters just won't touch it ... Well, as far as I'm concerned, he's out. He has made a public statement. In Provincetown this past weekend, I saw him with Reichen and some other super-gay friends at the Atlantic House. The A-House is a gay bar. In fact, the last straight person to step foot in there was Anderson Cooper."

Andy Towle over at Towleroad had a similar sighting on his recent P-Town vacation (also good reading):

"And yes, that other alleged power couple Reichen Lehmkuhl and Lance Bass were continually spotted around town. I saw them twice (as did others) at the Atlantic House (A-House) bar. A stroke of serendipity placed them next to me in a line for the men's room where Reichen introduced me to Lance. We had a brief conversation, but I can't confirm or deny the status of their relationship (which some, in the comments to this post, say was a bit rocky). What I can say was that every time I saw Lance he was well-tucked under the shadowy mask of a baseball cap, and Reichen was extremely polite."

Now, the mainstream press has picked up on the hullabaloo in the blogosphere (No Privacy for Lance Bass at the Gay Bar).

So what do you all think? Is it just a matter of time? If Lance parties gay, does that make him fair game?

Let's hear it, leave a comment here.

Worth Repeating: Home | Gay Galleries, Video, Pen Pals, More

 

'Project Runway': Better Than Ever

I know that writing a "gay take" on 'Project Runway' seems somewhat redundant, but like Heidi, I too am already on pins and needles about the show, so I really can't resist.

'Runway' burst onto the scene Wednesday night with more style, energy and excitement than you can shake a yardstick at. With two seasons of success under its Fendi belt, the show is attracting a greater level of talent than ever before, which will make season three the best -- and most competitive --  yet.

I'm so glad to be back with Tim Gunn every week. As I said last season, I love Tim because "he's an honest-to-goodness, old-fashioned homo, and we need more of them." His blog is a lot of fun, by the way, and so are the comments (but be careful if you don't like spoilers.)

It's always hard to sift through the initial couple of episodes when there's a full crew on deck. Although some of the names and faces blend together for me, I can't restrain my need to try to separate fashion's wheat from the chafe, I mean chaff. Here are a few initial impressions on the gang, with way more to come.


Most Annoying
Every season needs its Santino. Enter Malan Beton. He reeks of conceit, he's a little creepy, and I have the feeling he could get creepier. I guess that means he'll make it to the final three.

Woman to Watch Out For
At 43, Laura Bennett isn't about to let her lack of fashion design experience prevent her from giving these kids a run for their money. Her first assignment project was brilliant. Architecture is her first profession, the skills and talents of which she's now applying to clothing. She has five children, but looks like a million bucks. And she says she NEVER dresses down, because once you start it's a "slippery slope to sweat pants." So true. You've been warned: This isn't her first time at the rodeo.

Guy to Watch Out For
This is a toss up. Keith Michael had the balls to show up without a stitch of women's wear in his portfolio-- and yet he managed to make the show. You can tell this guy is driven, independent and talented. His work week-one was stunningly simple. But he'll have some stiff competition from underdog Michael Knight, the lone African American on the show whose initial hip hop look and feel made some wonder if he could design in the school of 'Project Runway.' Fast forward to the dress he crafted from coffee filters -- gorgeous! -- and it became quickly clear that he could be a contender.

Gayest Contestant
Kayne Gillespie definitely has some competition in this category, especially with Robert, Barbie Doll's personal clothing designer in the mix. But the fact that Kayne specializes in designing dresses for pageants and ballroom dancing, does so from Oklahoma, and spells his name K-A-Y-N-E, gives him first dibs on gayest, at least for the moment. He's sweet and affable, and his bio says that he "realized at a young age the importance of standing out."  I think that's supposed to be capital "O" Out.

Who Needs to Go Next
Vincent Libretti is a major goofball. That silly hat he designed from a silly basket with other crap on top reminded me of when Lucy and Ethel wore buckets on their heads in Paris because Ricky told them they were couture. Sorry pal, but you really should have thought twice before cashing in your 401(k) so you could do this. Is it too late to redeposit it?

 

More Links
See Listings, Clips, Boards (AOL TV)
'Project Runway': Official Site (Bravo)

Comments | Worth Repeating: Home | Gay Galleries, Video, Pen Pals, More

Transgender Scientist Exposes Sexism -- In Science

Want to know if women really have a harder time being accepted in the science profession (and elsewhere) than their male counterparts? Ask someone who knows first-hand.

The Washington Post today ran a truly fascinating and very enlightening story about Ben Barres, a 42-year-old scientist who until 1997 was biologically female. Barres talks about how completely differently he -- and his work -- are treated and accepted since he transitioned to living life as a man.

The stories he tells speak volumes about sexism and even misogyny women face in the workplace, even workplaces where the IQ is considerably higher than average.

"By far," Barres wrote, "the main difference I have noticed is that people who don't know I am transgendered treat me with much more respect" than when he was a woman. "I can even complete a whole sentence without being interrupted by a man."

The article explores whether or not men and women are in fact engineered differently, with men being better at some cognitive skills than women and vice versa. That may be true, but one psychologist interviewed for the story says that some of these differences may have more to do with "biases among adults in interpreting the same behavior in boys and girls."

It's today's most e-mailed article on WashingtonPost.com. If you read it, you too will send it 'round. It will make you think. It will make you mad.


Male Scientist Writes of Life as Female Scientist (Washington Post, Free Registration Required)

Comments | Worth Repeating: Home | Gay Galleries, Video, Pen Pals, More

Is Being Gay a PLUS at Work?

And: My Gay Life. My Gay Card.



Canada's Globe and Mail has an article out today about a major shift that has taken place in the corporate world: More and more, it's OK to be openly gay at work.  The article cites HRC's annual workplace report which documents that more than 50 percent of Fortune 500 companies now offer same-sex benefits to employees and their partners, and 86 percent include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies.

That's very cool, and I'm wondering:




EVEN MORE INTERESTING TO ME, however, and I'm not sure the Globe author realizes she was hitting on this, is that the article also touches on one of the great gay secrets of all time: The gay network.

"Through in-house activities at [Ernst & Young] and events [that Mr. Cole, the young 23 year-old interviewed for the article] attends with members of GLBT committees at other Bay Street firms, Mr. Cole has made business connections he would not have otherwise made as an entry-level staff accountant, says Bruce Goudy, a 44-year-old partner with the firm, and one of Mr. Cole's role models."

And why does this young gay guy get access to a much more senior executive? Because he's a card-carrying gay guy.

Isn't it true that your gay card gets you entree in the business world? Call it the gay mafia, call it family, call it what you will -- and I'm not talking about favoritism, anything illegal or sleeping your way to the top -- the fact is that we do help our own, and we always have. This is nothing new.

If everyone in the "real world" is connected via six degrees of separation, then in the gay world that gets cut down to about two. Want to get an interview at XYZ company? Work your gay contacts. What? The company you want to interview with is on the other side of the country and you know no one in that city? No problem. Someone you know has worked with, dined with or slept with someone there (or knows someone who has.) And, the gay man or lesbian across the country who works in that faraway company, whom you've never met before, will be more than happy to talk to you -- because you're family.

The same thing goes for house hunting, vacation tips and anything else where networking will help you acheive the results you need.

The gay card: Don't leave home without it.

Call me old-fashioned, but this is one benefit of being gay I hope never goes away.

Do you have any good stories about how the gay network helped you? Post it as a comment here.

 

Kiki and Herb Are ALIVE!

Like Barbra, and Cher before her, this fab duo has threatened us previously with a "farewell tour."  I was happy when Barbra and Cher made liars of themselves, and so it is with Kiki and Herb. 

Playbill has the scoop on dates and tickets for their Broadway show this summer. Also hear some clips on K&H's MySpace page, and get to know them better on their official site.

Whatever else you do this summer -- and if you don't mind peeing your pants in public -- don't miss the chance to see Kiki and Herb in concert.

WorldPride 2006 Controversy: The Shande & the Fury

Don't look now, but the meshugass over the future of WorldPride 2006 is reaching a fever pitch, threatening the week-long August event in Jerusalem on many levels.

Although they can agree about little else, a cabal of Jewish, Muslim and Christian religious leaders is working together in a virulently anti-gay effort to get the event canceled. They are making serious headway in gathering 100,000 online signatures to protest WorldPride.

Conservatives are also working simultaneously to get the event moved from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. There have been some reports that the move may happen because of the united religious opposition, and to protect the Jerusalem public from possible violence that the pride parade and associated events might incite. (I guess no one cares if there's violence in Tel Aviv?)

In a touching display of Judaic love, New York Rabbi Yehuda Levin said that if gays do descend on Jerusalem for WorldPride, "I promise there's going to be bloodshed -- not just on that day, but for months afterward."

Nice, huh? I'm no balmalocha*, but I don't think that kind of thing is what's encouraged in the Torah, is it?

Meanwhile, 1,000 religious leaders from a variety of faiths have signed a statement in support of WorldPride saying, "Those who would come to Jerusalem to celebrate the diversity of the world we live in are imbued with the same spirit of God that those clergy preaching intolerance would claim belongs only to them."

Canceling or moving WorldPride would be wrong. My dear friend professor Chai Feldblum talks about why she's attending WorldPride, which is, among other things, to send a message in the holiest of all cities that gay, lesbian, bi and trans people are morally whole. I love theidea of taking back morality from religious zealots who think it's an exclusive club that only they get to belong to.

Check out what Chai has to say, then also see statements from other GLBT thinkers, movers and shakers linked below.  And if you can, think about getting yourself to WorldPride, too.

"Jerusalem.  What a meaningful place to hold WorldPride 2006. From a location so filled with moral history, the participants of WorldPride can send a message about the moral goodness inherent in our sexuality, in our sexual orientation, and in our gender.  Jerusalem is a unique and fitting place from which to send such a message.   For millennia, many people have used religious and moral beliefs to devalue and dehumanize those of us who do not conform to so-called sexual and gender norms.  In August 2006, we come to a city that is held sacred by three major world religions and say -- we are good, we are blessed, we are morally whole.  I feel excited to be part of such a celebration. 

Jerusalem.  What a site of pain, struggle and unrealized dreams. As a Jew, I feel deep pain coming to a country that has not yet achieved security for Israeli people or justice for Palestinian people.  As part of a balm, I hold on to the fact that Jerusalem Open House, the sponsoring organization for WorldPride 2006, is a model for the type of cooperation, respect and caring I yearn to see between Palestinians and Israelis in the future.  We are not there yet.

I care about changing the moral values discourse in my country, the United States, and across the world.  WorldPride 2006 gives us the opportunity to begin to change the rhetoric and the substance of the moral values discourse around sexuality and gender.  I look forward to being a part of this important event in Jerusalem in August 2006."

-- Chai Feldblum, www.moralvaluesproject.org

Why I'm Coming to WorldPride in Jerusalem
Thoughts from Evan Wolfson, Julie Dorf, Bishop Dr. Yvette Flunder and others

Comments | Worth Repeating: Home | Gay Galleries, Video, Pen Pals, More



* I'm not Jewish, but after 15+ years of celebrating Passover, Rosh Hashana and even Purim with Chai and our extended family, a guy is bound to pick up a little Yiddish, right? For those of  you who need a hint, see: Shande, meshugass, balmalocha.

Why We Love Kathy Griffin

If you want a good Tuesday titter, head over to the The Malcontent, the Web's most reliable source for daily video clips gays love.

Today's installment includes 13 delicious minutes from Kathy Griffin on 'Larry King' last night. She fills us in about divorcing her husband Matt. Turns out, he was ripping her off.

Of course Kathy, who says her boyfriend in high school is now a choreographer at DisneyWorld, talks quite a bit about her gays:

"My dream would be to have a marriage of convenience with an incredibly wealthy gay guy ... I'd look the other way while he bangs the pool boy and I'd go shopping."

Also included is a 'My Life on the D-List' clip in which she hysterically recounts the moment she encountered a gay serviceman during her visit to Afghanistan to entertain the troops. It's worth the price of admission.

'Life on the Divorced List' (The Malcontent, With Matt & Robbie)

Comments | Worth Repeating: Home | Gay Galleries, Video, Pen Pals, More