Some video moments of our group in the 2010 NYC Pride March

Our group, the champion Gotham Knights rugby team in front of us, some flaggers behind us, and that crazy gyrating kid in the assless pants whom the crowd loved. It was a great day.

41st Stonewall March

Some great Roman Catholics in the NYC Pride March

By Father Tony


I love these people. You can hear the kindness and wisdom in their voices. They are the real Catholics. The ones who have their heads and hearts and souls correctly formed and guided by something much higher than their stupid, misguided and fearful bishops. CNN covered this but when I met them, I was surprised to see that they were not just a group of young Catholic activist gays. They are the salt-of-the-earth Catholics who have spent a lifetime discerning the Spirit and understanding their faith. They are bigger than their bishops. They are wonderful. They are prophetic. Their pastor is a great man.

The Pier Dance

By Tony Adams

Perfect way to end NYC Pride: The Pier Dance. The final event of a festive weekend. Just waking up now, in time to catch a flight back to the monastery (Fort Lauderdale) for a couple of weeks of seclusion and recuperation.

For your viewing pleasure (and don't miss the shot of the young guy in the white wide-belted hot pants. I saw three pairs of these so far this summer on the streets of NYC. My prediction is that they will be the "cargo shorts" of 2011. That will necessitate the portage of a bag since these mini-shorts don't care much more than one package):

Necessity is indeed the mother of invention—and in this case reinvention—as a queer East Village monument launches itself into a new zone of live entertainment. The legendary Phoenix is now home to New York’s only queer music night/event, Courage, My Love. This landmark departure began with the trés successful pride weekend gala sendoff billed as “Gay Rage, Gay Magic”—featuring electronica and rock acts Skeleton Head, Horoscope, Little Victory and Mkng Frndz.

The sound was at the perfect volume, the music was energetic and moving, and the crowd simply loved it. DJ Damian of Nowhere’s Buddies Tuesday music party served as the perfect DJ, his musical “glue” in between acts and before the music even began was the perfect mood-setter for what would unravel as an unforgettable evening. Stay tuned for updates here or check out the “Phoenix Bar” and/or “Courage, My Love” Facebook pages for updates there, too. I'll post the upcoming acts and dates as soon as I can!

Pride March on my Phone

The recent weather having turned my brain to tapioca, I hadn't bothered to check the battery on my camera before getting to the March.  Hadn't touched it in days, and I still regularly forget that not using a battery these days doesn't mean it's just sitting there, waiting for you.  Just keep banging those rocks together, Patrick. 

I hadn't checked the battery on my fancypants new phone either, it was just dumb luck that it was still half-way juiced up.  So this meant I finally took the plunge, not merely taking photos with it, but actually uploading them as well.  Having done that, drunk with power and possibility, it wasn't until I sent them to various and sundry locales that I realized at least half of them have my finger prominently displayed in one corner.  Digital photography sure makes things nice and crisp though, doesn't it?  I mean, remember back in the day when you got your finger in the frame, and it would be this blurry, vaguely translucent pink blob and it took a little while to figure out what the hell it was?  No?  Is that just me? 

So the neanderthal still has some larnin' to do.  But here are a couple of images that didn't turn out too badly.  The other realization I had when looking at my photos was how many cool people I spent the march chatting with, without ever getting around to learning their names.  Again, I blame the heat and tapioca brain.  With any luck, I'll have another chance to introduce myself before next June.

Thanks to Tony and the Baad Lamb for organizing the group (and apologies to anyone I'm failing to thank out of ignorance.  Did I mention the tapioca?)

PRIDE Magazine

By Tony Adams

This year's PRIDE, the official magazine of InterPride, is available all over the city. It contains an article by yours truly entitled NYC On A Dime in which I recommend packing only black t shirts, and staying at the Upper West Side Y.

Perry Brass: Lost Gay New York: Gay Pride, 2010

Original Marchers in front of the Stonewall Inn, June 27, 2010
(l to r:) Bob Spiegel, Roberto Camp, Rick Landman, Jim Fouratt, Mark Segal, and Perry Brass.
Back right: John Knoebel with the GLF Banner.
(photo courtesy: Mark Segal) 

Yesterday was the Gay Pride Parade in New York, and I marched in a contingent known as the First Marchers. We were men and women who had marched in the first gay pride march on June 28, 1970. The contingent was organized by one of my Gay Liberation Front brothers Rick Landman, who took it upon himself to organize us in last year’s march, the 40th Anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, and this year for the 40th Anniversary of the Gay Pride Parade, which started out as the Christopher Street Liberation Day March to remember Stonewall.

We carried two banners: one provided by John Knoebel was a replica of the first banner GLF had carried in the first march; the other banner, provided by Mark Segal, publisher of Philadelphia Gay News, said, it all: “Original Marchers June 28, 1970. Christopher Street Gay Liberation Gay. Gay Liberation Front.”

Marching with this group, and these banners was a total joy. People cheered us and thanked us, and we cheered back and smiled, and sometimes cried remembering all those years between the first march and now, and who was there and who will never be here again.

I remember that first march very well, but remember even better the Gay Liberation Front meeting, in the spring of 1970, when Bob Kohler brought up an idea that had started with Craig Rodwell, the owner of Oscar Wilde Bookstore, to have such a march and to name it for Christopher Street, a street whose associations had become as clear and evident as other New York street names, like Broadway, Wall Street, Seventh Avenue, or Madison Avenue.

QNY Holiday Weekend Tip

By Tony Adams

Part of the proceeds go to support Marriage Equality New York:

New York, NY – (6/7/10) The Fugitive Kind (Michael Page, Artistic Director, Laura Caufield & Susan Molloy, Producers), in association with the Barrow Street Theatre, Burton T. Frey Jr., and Heather Levine, will present a new solo show, Gay Blues, by Matthew Cleaver for three performances only: July 2nd & 3rd at 10:00 p.m. and July 5th  at 7:30 p.m. at the Barrow Street Theatre (27 Barrow Street) 

Gay Blues is one man’s cantata about gay marriage.  Gay Marriage.  What the hell is gay marriage? Have you ever heard it called white people marriage? Or diabetic marriage? Or microbrew enthusiast marriage? Why the modifier? There’s something about the word gay in front of the word marriage that gets people mad.  Well, Matt Cleaver is mad too; mad that getting “gay married” is illegal.  He’s looking to change all that, nothing gives people that get up and go like wailing the blues. Gay Blues. Come get f***ing pissed.
“A brawl broke out in our constitutional congress, resulting in one of history's greatest declarations about equality and human rights,” Barrow Street Theatre producer Scott Morfee said. “This is why we celebrate the 4th of July – equal rights for all.  Gay Blues is not afraid to brawl, but through song and story, it eloquently reminds us that there is no such thing as gay rights...that was all figured out in 1776. Wasn't it?”
The new production company, The Fugitive Kind, produces and creates theatre that focuses on the narrative of people who have never felt comfortable in their own skin.  Following the ideologies of Tennessee Williams, the company is a non-profit that seeks to take socially progressive theatre to the next level by partnering with local charities and organizations to help promote the causes they are focusing on.   

Tickets are priced at $20 and can be purchased at www.smarttix.com, by phone at (212) 868-4444, or in person at the Barrow Street Theatre box office (open at 1 p.m. daily).   Barrow Street Theatre is located at 27 Barrow Street at 7th Avenue South in the heart of Greenwich Village.

(Special added activities, more info, photos after the break)

nyc pride

Memories of Gay Pride Day Gone by........

Joe (the blond on the left) was a friend of mine through the freelance makeup and hair stylists industry. I was glad to run into him on Christopher St. after the Pride Parade of 1988. Joe was a very talented artist besides being funny and handsome as hell, so when he suggested we go down to the Dance on the Pier together I said sure. As we got closer to the piers, Joe yells out "there's my boyfriend". I almost fainted at the sight of this dark haired sexy man with the moustache as I find Latino men very hot. After introducing me to Leon there was an immediate attraction between us. Now I start feeling guilty as this was my friends boyfriend, which to me meant, hands off.

The Piers were so crowed the three of us decided to just walk around a bit arm in arm. All the while Leon making it very clear he was interested in me sexually. Joe must have picked up on the energy between us and announced he had a headache, was tired, and wanted to go home and rest. For a moment it looked as if Leon and I would be left alone together. My head started spinning with temptation. Thankfully (or regretfully) Joe made it clear to Leon that he wanted him to go home too. And the three of us parted.

March With Us!

By Tony Adams

You are invited to march with the queer New York bloggers, writers and digital activists in the 2010 NYC Pride March on Sunday June 27. Let me know if you'd like to join us. I'm assembling an email list for last minute info.

Our group has been assigned an advantageous assembly point and a start time near the front of the march (Also, we are right behind the Gotham Knights Rugby team!): 

We are Group #15 in Section Two, assembling on 40th Street between Madison Avenue and Park Avenue. We step off at 11AM. If you'd like to march with us, you'll have to meet us at the assembly point before 11AM. (Well, it never really starts on time, but figure we should be movin' by noon. Hopefully.)

Last year, in front of Stonewall:

World Premiere: Florent "Queen of the Meat Market"

By Tony Adams

Last night was delightful!

We are pleased to invite you and a guest to join us as our guests on Thursday, June 24th at 8:00pm for the world premiere of Florent: Queen of the Meat Market. For one night only, taste a selection of original menu items from Restaurant Florent and watch the World Premiere of David Sigal's heartwarming film about the man behind the legendary restaurant. 

If you don't know the story of Florent Morellet and his fabled restaurant, here's some back story and another angle on last night. Throughout the screening I was wondering what place exists today in NYC that can compare to Florent. Where do you go at 5AM after a night out? Tonight's crowd was more lively than nostalgic, with Murray Hill shouting "Hey - Don't go anywhere with those fries!" And Jonathan Adler and I talking about how we rarely venture beyond our regular routes in the city and how dumb is that. And Michael Musto mumbling while having his yellow silk scarf adjusted. And Robin Byrd reporting that Om, her dog, is doing fine, thank you. And Andrew Tobias and I singing the praises of our mutual friend Mark King of MyFabulousDisease.com. The fresh mint in the signature drink of the evening, the "Spa Cooler", kept JMG and me afloat through the dazzling hours.


This slideshow of the evening is definitely NSFW whenever the Florent regulars hit the stage. If you view these photos here, you'll see the captions, names and descriptions.

Perry Brass: Lost Gay New York: Riis Park, a.k.a, “Screech Beach.”

Perry Brass and his sister Nancy at Riis Park, early 70s. 

My first summer in my new apartment in the East Village, 1967, I learned how to get to Riis Park, the gay beach in New York, known affectionately as “Screech Beach.” At that point, there were three places to go by the water in New York and be queer: Fire Island, difficult to get to; the Hampton, extremely snot-nosy and not yet invaded by share-houses; and "Screech." Riis was a small slice of the Rockaways, bordered by Belle Harbor, Queens. You got there using the subway and a bus, so it was utterly democratic. Much of Riis at that time was still very old-school Queens-Jewish, until you got to Bay One and Bay Two, two sections divided by jetties that had somehow been colonized by queer factions. Even these had designations: one part was very black and tough working-class lesbian, the other was for white guys, with a section for the lesbian allies of white guys.

Named for Jacob Riis, a pioneering photojournalist from the first decades of the twentieth century who captured tenement life in New York in a famous study called “How the Other Half Lives,” Riis was designed by Robert Moses as “the people’s beach,” and has a landmark Art Deco bathhouse, similar to its larger cousin at Jones Beach on Long Island, another Robert Moses gift to New York. Riis at the time of its building had the largest parking lot in the world, hard to believe but true. The park was designed to give working class New Yorkers a seaside playland of their own, since they couldn’t swim on the largely private beaches of Long Island and New Jersey.

What made Riis interesting was that it was extremely friendly. You could easily talk to 20 or 30 guys on the beach. Just being there was an act of defiance, and the cops regularly patrolled the boardwalk and sand to make sure no hanky-panky was going on. Zeroed in were guys who wore bathing suits that showed the cracks of their butts; you could be arrested for this, and hauled off in a paddy wagon. I actually saw this happen several times, and made sure that my suits covered this backside cleavage. Usually the guilty parties were either black or Latino, and their arrest by the cops would also be accompanied by the drama of their friends hissing and screaming at the police.

the happiest man you've ever seen

Tonight! - BLOWOFF

If you're in the mood to dance with hot furry men after the Tom of Finland show (and who wouldn't be?), come to the Canal Room tonight at 11:30. Kick off your Pride Celebration right when DJs Bob Mould and Rich Morel present BLOWOFF.

I've been going to these parties when they were underground at DC's 9:30 Club. They have grown over the last 5 years into a hugely popular dance party for guys who like an alternative to diva dance tracks. Check out the setlists on their website for proof.

Facebook Group.

Canal Room
Friday, Jun 25, 2010 11:30 PM EDT (11:30 PM Doors)
Canal Room, New York, NY

21 years and over

$20 Advance, $25 at the Door.

Tom of Finland and Then Some, 25 June – 31 July 2010 at Feature Inc

TOM OF FINLAND : Untitled (preliminary drawing), undated; graphite on paper (left)

RICHARD PRINCE : Untitled (original), 2009; original illustration, collage, cloth bandana (right)

Gay? Like art? Erotic Art?

Are you in New York City on this pre-Pride Friday night?

Then there is only one place to be between 6 and 9 PM: Feature Inc. Gallery, 131 Allen Street in the Lower East Side, at the opening of the group show "Tom of Finland and Then Some".

"Tom" as the title suggests, is the most mainstream artist in this amazing collection; his intentionally exaggerated, idealized and caricatured male figures are now common enough to barely raise an... eyebrow, especially in New York. But if other names listed in the gallery link below are not familiar, be forewarned, you may feel more than a tingle at this show. The "and Then Some" in the second half of the show's title hints at the extreme edges of eroticism and fetishism mined by many of these artists (you know how to google; try a couple names you don't know and see what you find).

While there, don't miss the tantalizingly twisted vision of these two Farmboyz favorites brought together in this show:

Robert Fontanelli, who effortlessly combines wit, style and mid-century modern furniture (!) with just the right dose of sexual innuendo. He'll have you questioning why you're aroused, and then wandering around looking for more.

Scooter Laforge, who is still fearlessly barreling ahead like a very horny puppy wherever his libido takes him (and therefore us). Often it's a place richly drenched with child-bright colors not so subtly hiding the purely adult theme within. Go there now.

Feature Inc. Gallery their site

Tom of Finland and Then Some (Go here for all the NSFW stuff)

Robert Fontanelli his site

Scooter Laforge his site

Summer Begins in NYC

A QNYer Reads At Barnes And Noble Tonight

QNY teammate Charlie Vazquez and my friend Manny Xavier will appear with El Diario/La Prensa Editor Gonzalo Aburto for an author reading.

Cutting edge Gay Latino writers Charlie Vazquez (Contraband) and Emanuel Xavier (If Jesus Were Gay) read from their fiction and poetry and discuss writing with El Diaro/La Prensa editor and WBAI host and producer Gonzalo Aburto.

Thursday June 24, 2010 7:00 PM

82nd & Broadway
2289 Broadway, New York, NY 10024, 212-362-8835

You still have time to get a t shirt for the Pride March

By Tony Adams

If you're thinking of marching with us, you certainly don't need a special t shirt, but if you want to get a QNY one, or one for your own blog, here's an easy way.

Today I went to the T shirt Gallery, 108 MacDougal Street 212 420-9261 with my design on a thumb drive and two light grey t shirts from American Apparel, and the nice man printed shirts for me and the Baad Lamb (while not losing track of the Australia/Slovenia soccer match!)  I also got one done for JoeMyGod with his logo and info. (I added my "Father Tony" name to mine on the front above the logo because that is how I appear on other blogs.) Also, as your group marshall I'll have backpack. The one below is for the Baad Lamb and has his logo on the back.



The price is $12 if you supply the shirt or $22 if you buy one of shirts at the shop (Forewarned: he doesn't have all sizes in all colors and brands, so you might want to call ahead.)

If you want to use this design, copy this:

Walking to the GWB: Riverside Park

Twelve Snapshots from a walk near my Harlem apartment. (Images may benefit from enlarging.)      

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Broadway Bares XX - Stripopoly!

By Tony Adams

With a VIP invite from JMG, QNY's Dr. Jeff and I attended the seriously fabulous twentieth annual Broadway Bares show at Roseland. This year's theme was Monopoly. From Playbill:

The two performances for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS boasted a host of special guest stars, including Nick Adams, Kevin Burrows, Charles Busch, Kevin Chamberlin, Tony and Emmy Award winner Kristin Chenoweth, Jennifer Cody, Tony Award winner Alan Cumming, Diana DeGarmo, Lea DeLaria, Felicia Finley, Tony Award winner Katie Finneran, Barrett Foa, Tony Award winner Debbie Gravitte, Julie Halston, Jackie Hoffman, Denis Jones, Tony Award winner Jane Krakowski, Sebastian LaCause, Reichen Lehmkuhl, Norm Lewis, Lucy Liu, Julia Murney, Christopher Sieber, Rachelle Rak, Andrew Rannells, Bruce Vilanch, Tony Award winner Lillias White and Vanessa Williams.

Broadway Bares is produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and executive produced by Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell.

Nearly 20 years ago, Tony winner Mitchell, who once danced nearly naked on a drum in The Will Rogers Follies, found himself inspired to take it all off to raise money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, and Broadway Bares was born. The first year, he and seven other Broadway dancers raised $8,000 for the charitable organization. Since that time, the fundraisers have brought in over $5.5 million for BC/EFA.

Next to us throughout the night was Hunter Bell, a Tony Award nominee for [title of show] which I loved. He told me that he and collaborator Jeff Bowen have sold a pilot to ABC. When I asked him what it was about, Hunter said he wasn't quite sure which is so [title of show].

You will want to review my complete set of NSFW photos of the evening, after the break. (I'll add some video later)

Perry Brass: My Big Gay Italian Wedding at St Luke’s Theater

 Classically handsome Reichen Lehmkuhl.
from My Big Gay Italian Wedding

            

Last Thursday I went to see My Big Gay Italian Wedding  at St Luke’s Theater on West 46th Street. It’s a big show—14 people in the cast—and there are moments when it's bust-out funny, as in hysterical, belly-rolling, cannoli-crunching laughter. The humor is broad, so broad at times that it sags, but it keeps a sweet endearing quality to it, which is what any decent wedding should be about, unless of course it’s one of the more ill-fated nuptials from “Sex and the City.”

A neat combo of “Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding” with some “La Cage au Folle” thrown in (one of the gay couple’s best guys goes in over-the-top drag, pinch-hitting as the too-tight-assed-to-attend mama of a groom, and of course ends up with her big wig off), despite making the word “stereotype” look . . . well, stereotypic, “My Big Gay Italian Wedding” has got some good things going for it.

Number one is Reichen Lehmkuhl, who even with an unpronounceable name is so classically handsome that he looks like he should be on a Greek coin. Despite the fact that Mr. Lehmkuhl does not burn up any boards with his acting ability, my only qualm was that there was no gratuitous nudity with him involved. It also has some funny people like Joe Scannio and Randi Kaplan who play the doting Italian Dad and drama-queen Mom of Ant’ny Pinnunziato (a real Anthony: Anthony Wilkinson) who’s going to marry Andrew Polinski (a Polish-Puerto Rican hunk, or something of that extraction) played by Mr. Lehmkuhl; Adam Zelasko as Mario, a queen with iced Grey Goose in his veins who delivers some of the best lines (and does drag); and a very shrill Brett Douglas as the diva-narcissist Wedding Planner of all time.

Folsom Street East - Not For The Faint of Tart

By Tony Adams

Earlier today on 28th Street

in Central Park - cast of Hair!

(assisted by JoeMyGod and QNY's Dr. Jeff)

Bruce Vilanch Backstage in Central Park

By Tony Adams

Lt Dan Choi Transformed

By Tony Adams

You really must watch this. There are moments when he can't seem to decide whether to call upon some divine power or just the end-of-day Diana Ross vowing that there ain't no mountain high enough. I was totally impressed. He doesn't need notes. This afternoon during the Pride Festival/Summer Stage free concert in Central Park. A great line-up featuring Bruce Vilanch, Martha Wash, Me'Shell Ndegéocello, Ari Gold, Wendy Williams and much more.

where the underworld can meet the elite, forty-second street

UNTOUCHED the photo book by Johnny Rosza

"In this never-before-seen collection of 160 untouched photographs of some of the biggest names in Hollywood before they were Hollywood-ized by plastic surgery and makeovers, luminary photographer Johnny Rosza offers intimate glimpses, capturing nearly 30 years of his work. Rosza has photographed for the likes of Vogue, the Sunday London Times, and Ritz. Just some of glamorous stars included in this collection include Muhammad Ali, Halle Berry, Daniel Day Lewis, and Winona Ryder."

I first met Johnny in Hollywood after he moved there from the UK. He has always been a fun, witty, queer photographer and this is his first book....a retrospective of his career.

Purchase here.

See Michael Hartney Tonight

I hear that this show is mined from the blog Michael Hartney used to do called So I Like Superman

So I Like Superman: A One-Nerd Show

Time:	6:00pm - 8:00pm
Location:	Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre NY
Street:	307 W. 26th Street
City/Town:	New York, NY
	View Map

Description

In 1938, at the height of the great depression, the world was introduced to the greatest hero of all time.

In 1982, at the height of my mother's post-partum depression, that character was introduced to the biggest, gayest nerd of all time.

In So I Like Superman, writer/performer/comic book nerd Michael Hartney tells the secret origin of his lifelong obsession with the Man of Steel, oddly mirroring the plot of "Superman: The Movie".

You will believe a nerd can believe a man can fly.

Directed by Chris Kelly
Videos by Dustin D'Addato
Phone Booth by Guy Patton
Tickets: A paltry $5

CNN's Gary+Tony Have A Baby

By Tony Adams

With JMG, I attended a preview of a CNN show Gary + Tony Have A Baby to be aired June 24 at 8PM ET/PT in which reporter Soledad O'Brien tracks two gay men, Tony Brown and Gary Spino, who spend a small fortune for an egg donor and a surrogate mother.

A panel discussion after the screening involved (left to right in the photo) Jarrett Barrios President of GLAAD, Tony Brown, Gary Spino and Soledad O'Brien, all of whom are raising children.

There was a general predisposition in the room to the merits of gay couples raising children and forming more traditional families, but I didn't feel any animosity to those who choose otherwise. In fact, there was repeated acknowledgment that many and varied are the ways to structure a great queer life. I've gotten a bit deeper into my reflection about this over on Perge Modo.

Joan Rivers - A Piece Of Work And The Face That Launched A Thousand Snips

By Tony Adams


Joan Rivers - A Piece of Work was released June 11th. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and my interview with Joan Rivers.

Happy Birthday Beau!

QNY's Beau has exited his "T" decades and entered his "F" decades. In his case, that stands for "fit and fabulous". I stopped by Bar-tini last night to celebrate with Beau and his partner Jeff.

Standing On Ceremony - The Gay Marriage Plays

By Tony Adams
A star-studded collection of short marriage equality plays and a champagne drenched full-tilt wedding reception benefitted Marriage Equality New York, The Human Rights Campaign and New York Theater Workshop last  night at the  Angel Orensanz Center on Norfolk Street. (One of the plays began with Matthew Broderick stating - in character -  "I like cock." Who could ask for more?) Two of my favorites were Kathy Najimy's Maddy Marriage which she wrote and performed, and London Mosquitoes by Moises Kaufman performed by Judd Hirsch. Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer was the Event Chair.

Judd Hirsch and Kathy Najimy

Gloria Steinem and Kathy Najimy

Robin Kradles and Jeffrey Wallach

More photos (including handsome B.D. Wong) after the break.

Perry Brass: Lost Gay New York: The Sloan House YMCA and the Old Vic bar

Perry Brass, painter Sal Monetti, and author Quentin Crisp, 1999.

It goes almost without saying that I left Jerry Borensky’s apartment on East Third Street quickly. He was in his forties, and fairly loathsome both to look at (he rather resembled a wart hog—snorts, warts, and all) and be with: the result I’m sure from being queer in a difficult time. Like Dick, he’d been in the Navy, but the experience drove him to a psychiatric discharge. After several explosive situations with him, I decided to get a place of my own. 

It was easy in December of 1966 to find a cheap place in the East Village. I quickly signed a lease for a 3-room railroad flat with a dingy bath in the back in a tenement on East 11th, between Avenues B and C. The building was disgustingly decrepit, a rat hole and cockroach pit; my rent was $73 a month. The tenement was owned by an ancient brother and sister team who had inherited it from their parents; the brother, Abe, was almost stone deaf, and his sister Maddy wore the same black wool shift year-round. She’d make unannounced blitz-kreig inspections of the apartments to make sure no one was doing things like putting up pictures with nails (against the rules) or painting the walls. I did all of these things, and after I moved in often ended up at shouting odds with her though she could do nothing about it.

But that was after I moved in.

Interestingly the apartment had not been occupied for several months, and Con Ed had turned off electricity for non-payment. After I signed the lease and was ready to move in, the utility told me that it would take four days for me to get electricity restored. It was the beginning of the weekend between Christmas and New Years, freezing, and I had no place to go. The evening I heard this news, I was in Julius’s and ran into Michael, a young man in his mid-20s I’d met during the year I lived in San Francisco, when I was 18. (I was now all of nineteen.)

Michael had been in the Air Force when I met him at a gay coffeehouse called Pearl’s, located behind the Gilded Cage, the legendary bar where Charles Pierce used to perform. Every night Pierce, in full Jeanette McDonald wig and dress, would signal the end of the show by belting out, “San Francisco, open your golden gates!” flying on a swing over the heads of the audience. I used to sneak in and watch him, until I'd be carded by the bouncer.

I liked Michael. He was dark, trim, Hispanic, and handsome. At Julius’s he told me his story.

Matt Alber Live at Rockwood Music Hall

By Brooklyn Bill

Matt Alber did a wonderful, short, free-except-for-tips, solo, acoustic set at Rockwood Music Hall on the Lower East Side last night. He went back and forth between piano and guitar on four songs from his album, Hide Nothing; two new songs; and two covers.

Matt started off with "Field-Trip Buddy" and also performed "Monarch," "End of the World," and "Rivers and Tides" from HN. He said he chose to set the video for EOTW in his barber's shop because it's a place for rejuvenation: You feel like a new man after you get your hair cut.

He dedicated a new song, "The River," to his boyfriend *sigh* of nine months, Phil, whom Matt said is selling his house in Iowa to move out to California, where Matt lives. His other new song was called, I believe, "Settling," and he sang that after talking about a bad date he once had.

Matt's two covers were of "High and Low" by Greg Laswell, whom Matt says he'd been listening to a lot on his iPod, and his favorite Elton John song, "Rocket Man," which Matt closed with. I bought Laswell's version of "High and Low" on iTunes before going to sleep late last night. I really dig it, and I'll be checking out more of his music in the days ahead.

Tonight: SAGE Launches NATIONAL RESOURCE CENTER ON LGBT AGING

By Tony Adams

In celebration of the opening of this landmark national resource center and SAGE¹s work in partnership to launch the National Resource Center on LGBT Aging, a reception will be held at the SAGE offices (305 Seventh Avenue, 6th floor) from 6:30-8:00 p.m. on Monday, June 14. This reception is free and open to the public.

Info after the break

Standing on Ceremony - The Gay Marriage Plays - Tonight

By Tony Adams

I'll be there, but don't expect reviews of the plays. Because they are new and in some cases just the "germ" of more fully evolved works, QNY has been asked to refrain from "reviewing" them. (If you can't make it, I will tell you who said what over champagne.)

Brooklyn Gay Pride Photos

By Tony Adam

So much fun. No police barriers. Very festive. Reminded me of Buenos Aires or Montreal Pride.

A Night in Vegas - A Review

Posted by David

A Night in Vegas, the latest light and frothy comedy from Alternate Theatre Company, is actually five nights (or their aftermath) portrayed in five, mostly unconnected, vignettes in a not-quite fabulous hotel room in that place where things that happen stay.  The Alternate Theatre Company, founded by Joe Marshall, was last represented in New York by The Gayest Christmas Pageant Ever.

Lieutenant Dan Choi at Brooklyn Pride

By Tony Adams

Well we didn't bump into Brooklyn Bill (see previous post), but we did catch up with Dan Choi who recently completed a fast in protest of Don't Ask Don't Tell.




More Pride photos to follow.

The Brooklyn Pride Parade

By Brooklyn Bill

My basset hound, Rudy,* and I went to the Brooklyn Pride Parade that Father Tony previewed in the post below. It was fun.**

It started out how every pride parade worth a damn starts: with dykes on bikes!

If it weren't for his T-shirt, I swear I wouldn't have known he was a lesbian.

Brooklyn Pride - This Saturday

This should be great fun. First the parade taking off from 14th Street and 5th Avenue at 7:30 PM and continuing along on 5th Avenue Street to the Reviewing Stand at 4th Street and 5th Avenue.  The Parade continues on to Union Street.

And then, the After Pride Dance Party at the BAMcafe.

Harlem Pride Events

Perry Brass: Lost Gay New York: Love at First Sight & The Walk Between the East & West Village

Peter Orlovsky & Allen Ginsberg, mid-60s.By Richard Avedon 

About six weeks after I moved into Jerry Borensky’s apartment in the East Village (still trying very hard to escape Borensky’s constant efforts to get into 19-year-old pants), I was at Julius’s one very packed Friday night. Suddenly from the depth of the crowd in the back of the bar, a young man emerged uttering the oldest pick-up line in the human race:

“Don’t I know you from some place?”

“I’m not sure,” I said. I looked at him. He was about six-foot-one, handsomely built, with very sweet regular features, blue-green eyes, dark silky hair, and a deep voice. I didn’t care where he knew me from; I smiled and he smiled back. But his next question was more direct.

“Can I go home with you?”

I did a slight double-take. I was used to men trying to pick me up—when you’re nineteen and been sneaking into gay bars since you were seventeen, you expect it. But this was fast. He was slightly older than I, maybe twenty-three.

I just shrugged. “Sure.”

So we left Julius’s, and I realized that I didn’t know his name, so he told me.

 
“Dick.”

Touring Bushwick

By Tony Adams

We took the L out to Bushwick for "Open Studio" weekend.

Most of the art was terrifically bad although a bit of it was refreshingly curious. You'll see that after the break.

Bushwick was more or less sacked during the 1977 Blackout rioting. No one has bothered to repair it, although a bit of it is lively. Given its scale and affordability, I think it should become a gay ghetto. Unfortunately, because we are now assimilated, gay gentrifiers have little of the old zeal for pioneering and renovating neighborhoods, and so Bushwick languishes.

We had a fine brunch at a restaurant called Roberta's that we never would have entered had not some locals recommended it. Photos of its delectibles and decor after the break.

Some of the art to follow is NSFW but it is counterbalanced by front yard shrines to Mary.

Musings on MacGruber

Posted by David

MacGruber, in case you didn't know, is a recently-released movie that is based on a recurring Saturday Night Live sketch of the same name.  The basic premise is centered on the character of MacGruber, a MacGyver-like fellow, who is always in the process of defusing a bomb but keeps getting bogged down in inter-personal issues leading to the detonation of the bomb and the death of all those involved.  Over and over again.

NOTE: There are spoilers that follow, so you have been warned.

How I got here........by Darling

The year was around 1973-4 and first I drove from San Francisco to New York with stop offs in Michigan and Montreal along the way. After spending a week in NYC I continued my drive down to Florida to stay with my parents, work to save some money, and lastly sell my car as I knew I wouldn't be needing it in Manhattan. Now I was ready to take a flight to the "big bad city" to find my fame and fortune.

Not really knowing anyone in the "big bad city" I decided to stay at a YMCA on West 23 street until I could find a job. Wanting to work as a hairstylist I found my way to the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57 Street to take a look around. Located a beauty salon called "CINANDRE" and walked in cold saying I was a hairdresser. They were very pleasant to me (little did I know Cinandre was THE hottest salon of the moment) and asked me to return another day with a model to show them my skills. As I walked out the door thinking to myself "a model! I don't really know a soul in this town much less a model."

Today's Upper West Side Sermon