From 60s pop star to 70s variety show headliner to 80s Oscar winner to 90s chart-topper to the endless farewell tour of the 2000s, Cher has continued to stay cool – and successful.
In her current decade, we have a Cher who is professionally productive again. She just produced and appeared in the TV special To Mom, Love Cher, has a single coming out in June and an album out in September – or so we’re told!
Here are images of Cher, through the decades in celebration of the birthday of an icon.
Last night’s An Evening With Women event at The Beverly Hilton was a star-studded affair hosted by Kathy Griffin to raise funds for the LA Gay & Lesbian Center’s programs and services.
I’ve been attending this event for at least seven years now and it has gotten to be a not-to-be-missed evening of music and laughs. This year’s musical performers were Sia, Natasha Bedingfield and Ozzy Osbourne and all sounded great!
It was a blast.
‘I’m the ‘A’ in LGBTQIA,’ Griffith said. ‘In my many, many interviews as a global superstar, (I am asked) why do you feel so connected to the community? I always say I feel we can learn so much from (gays) because as a woman, and as a woman in a man’s field, the gay community does a better job than straight women at sticking together.’
Griffin has long been an outspoken advocate for LGBT equality and against bullying.
She shared with the crowd that she is not fond of the word ‘tolerant’ when it comes to LGBT people.
‘I don’t like the word tolerant for you guys, I don’t find it acceptable. Imagine if you said, “Oh, maybe someday we’ll be tolerant of African-Americans.’ It wouldn’t be acceptable.” Goddamit, you’re lucky to have us!’
LA Gay & Lesbian Center Executive Director Lorri L. Jean, known for giving powerful and inspiring speeches at these kinds of events, did not disappoint on Saturday as she reminded people of the legislative and cultural victories LGBT people and their allies have achieved in the past year alone.
‘I think all of us would agree that we are living in extraordinary times – truly extraordinary times for LGBT people,’ Jean told the crowd.
Music producer Linda Perry has been the driving force behind the event in recent years and when she addressed the sold-out crowd after hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised, she grew emotional and at one point, barely held back tears.
She joked that after three months of down time, ‘the whole fucking thing starts all over again’ with planning for the next year’s event.
‘Kill me now, I can’t believe I’m going to do this again.’
But it’s a good thing she’s committed because Perry’s involvement has helped draw top-flight musical talent year after year from Cyndi Lauper to Christina Aguilera, among others.
This year’s trio of performers were outstanding starting with Sia who did an acoustic version of her song Titanium. I had not been real familiar with her music but now want to go out and buy a CD or download something!
Same for Natasha Bedingfield only I’d actually buy a ticket to one of her concerts after thoroughly loving every minute of her three-song set which included Unwritten and Purple Rain. I think she also sang Pocketful of Sunshine but not sure of the title.
Other stars I spotted either on the red carpet or in the ballroom were Meredith Baxter, Sara Gilbert, Sharon Osbourne, Peter Paige, Greg Rikaart, and Teri Polo and Sherri Saum who play a lesbian couple in the new ABC Family series The Fosters.
I’ll have to update later with how much money was raised last night. Besides tickets and silent auction items, I know that at least $62,000 was raised during the live auction (a trip to Bora Bora looked like a dream) and more than $130,000 was raised during the live fundraising drive which included a $10,000 contribution from Elton John via telephone.
Congrats to all involved including Kathy Griffin whose boyfriend is very cute and very young! I snapped a photo of them as they watched Ozzy perform on stage (see bottom photo).
Had so much fun putting this week’s Showtune Sunday feature together!
Smokey Robinson, the Motown legend, sure has a way with the ladies. From Jennifer Hudson at The White House a few years ago to Aretha Franklin on Soul Train decades ago, Smokey has dueted with most of the greats.
Here he is with Jennifer, Aretha, Diana Ross, Dionne Warwick and Whitney Houston.
At last night’s An Evening With Women event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, one of the items up for auction was a portrait of a young Errol Flynn.
He looked so damned handsome that I made a mental note right there and then: Morning Man Classic!
Known for his romantic swashbuckler roles in such Hollywood films as The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Dawn Patrol, Dodge City, The Sea Hawk, Adventures of Don Juan, The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, Santa Fe Trail and They Died with Their Boots On, among others.
He co-starred opposite Olivia de Havilland in eight films and made two films with Bette Davis with whom he famously quarreled.
Flynn certainly lived life to the fullest writing several books (including a memoir titled My Wicked, Wicked Ways) and working as a war correspondent during the Spanish Civil War in 1937.
He was also known for his womanizing and heavy partying and died of a heart attack at the age of 50.
This is wonderful news: Outfest will present its 17th annual Achievement Award to writer/director Kimberly Peirce (Boys Don’t Cry, Stop-Loss, Carrie).
The Achievement Award is Outfest’s highest honor and is presented in recognition of a body of work that has made a significant contribution to LGBT film and media.
The Achievement Award will be presented to Peirce prior to the Opening Night Gala screening of C.O.G. on Thursday, July 11 at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles.
“One of Outfest’s principal goals has been to celebrate the many voices of LGBT storytelling on film, and we couldn’t be more excited to honor Kimberly Peirce’s extraordinary filmmaking career,” said Outfest Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer.
Outfest has previously given this award to John Waters, Jane Lynch, Bill Condon, Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, Don Roos, Donna Deitch, Kenneth Anger, Gregg Araki, Todd Haynes, Jane Anderson, Christine Vachon, Rob Epsteinand Jeffrey Friedman, Gus Van Sant, Ian McKellen, John Schlesinger, and Strand Releasing.
Many of you know that Outfest is one of my very favorite times of the year so I’m very excited to share that the opening night film has been selected: Kyle Patrick Alvarez’s “C.O.G.,” the first film adaptation of David Sedaris’s work.
Here’s the plot: Recent college graduate David (Jonathan Groff of Glee fame) decides to get close to nature, and the working class, by spending a summer picking apples in Oregon with his friend Jennifer. Even after she blows him off, he charges ahead on a picaresque journey that will take him from orchard to processing plant to an arts and crafts workshop, guided along the way by an increasingly eccentric and motley bunch of mentors.
Whether trying to interpret the possible flirtations of co-worker Curly (Corey Stoll of House of Cards) or resisting the religious hard-sell from Bible-thumping Jon (Denis O’Hare of True Blood), David finds himself on the most complicated path of all — figuring out who he is and what he wants.
The film is writer-director Alvarez’s follow-up to his acclaimed debut Easier With Practice. The film premiered in competition at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Anyone who spends time with a lot of gay people knows we come in all shapes and sizes and have all kinds of personalities.
Some of us are a lot like Cam and Mitch on Modern Family and some are more like Will and Sonny on Days of Our Lives and some are nothing like either couple.
Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson is aware there are those who think Mitch and Cam aren’t a positive representation of LGBT people.
He begs to differ.
‘We’re always coming up against the criticism that our characters are stereotypical and don’t represent what it is to be gay,’ Ferguson tells The Advocate in a new cover story. ‘But my argument has always been, I know so many people who are just like Mitchell and Cam, and so many people who are nothing like them.’
‘We’re representing a very specific couple in gay America and do not represent the entire gay community with those characters.’
Ferguson knows whereof he speaks.
‘Mitchell is basically me, so when people tell me I’m stereotypical and cliché in that role, then Jesse Tyler Ferguson is stereotypical and cliché because I’m basically doing no acting at all. We’re all clichés of ourselves.’
He’s proud of the work and aware of Modern Family’s impact on the culture.
‘[Mitchell] is a character that I play with dignity and one that I think has helped change the landscape of what it means to be gay in America right now. Certainly, it’s provided a dialogue and a pop culture touchstone for a lot of people.’
He adds: ‘I feel like there are a lot of people who still aren’t comfortable with gay characters on television. But what I admire about our show is that it has a plethora of characters for people to attach to, and slowly those people are becoming attached to Mitchell and Cameron as well. It’s kind of like a Trojan horse. We sneak into a lot of people’s living rooms when they aren’t expecting it and maybe change some minds through the back door.’
I did find it odd that Herndon Graddick did not do the big speech at the GLAAD Media Awards in LA last month but Wilson Cruz did such a wonderful job at it I didn’t give it much more thought.
I should have.
It’s just been announced that Graddick has resigned as president of GLAAD after just over a year on the job.
The reasons are vague at this point.
Read more over at Gay Star News where I have just posted a story.
Some of the biggest stars to ever come out of American Idol are the ones that didn’t actually win the competition - Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry, Clay Aiken and, of course, Adam Lambert.
Adam returned for last night’s season finale and dazzled all.
There had been talk last year of him returning as a judge and, in hindsight, that would have been a terrific idea since the panel they did hire reportedly had no chemistry (or so I’ve heard – didn’t watch a single episode this season – and are all being replaced.
Ratings are down, down, down!
Anyway, Grammy nominee Adam, the first openly gay male to have an album debut in the number one position on the Billboard charts, returned to the show where during season 8, he finished as runner-up to cutie pie Chris Allen.
Last night, Adam and Top 3 finalist Angie Miller teamed up to perform Titanium by David Guetta and Sia.
Originally posted October 27, 2010 – here’s an encore presentation. Enjoy!
Mexican-Argentine actor Sebastian Rulli who has got to be one of the sexiest men on television.
I hadn’t heard of him until the other day when I saw him on another site and now, just like that, I think he’s the love of my life.
Here’s what I know about him: Before becoming the successful actor that he is today, Sebastián began his career modeling in many different countries in Europe, namely Spain, Italy and France as well as in Mexico and the United States.
In Mexico, he then enrolled in Televisa’s Centro de Educacion Artistica (CEA), where he studied acting. Rulli made his first appearance on Mexican television in the soap opera Primer amor… a mil por hora in 2000.
He has appeared in many other telenovelas, including Clase 406 (2002) and Rubi (2004), where he played “Héctor Ferrer.” His most recent role was in Televisa’s Un gancho al corazon as “Mauricio Sermeño,” one of the main characters, along with La Monita. Sebastian Rulli married his longtime girlfriend Cecilia Galeano on December 31st, 2007, in a small ceremony that was attended by about thirty friends and family.
First of all, I realize the photo I’m using has nothing to do with today’s scene and is more than two years old but isn’t it cute?
This scene has Sonny and Will having a couples talk and Will saying how sorry he is for bringing so much baggage into the relationship – especially, he says, since Sonny could have any guy he wants.
I’m going to be the first to admit that I don’t know a damned thing about the ins and outs of the NFL.
So I’ve heard from a few sports types that Chris Kluwe’s being let go from the Minnesota Vikings had nothing to do with his LGBT activism. It was all about salary caps and a subpar season last year.
I still don’t quite believe it.
But whatever.
Here’s the good news: Chris has been signed by the Oakland Raiders!
There had apparently been interested from the Cleveland Browns as well.
I thought he was just some hot underwear model with a lot of tattoos married to one of the Spice Girls.
Oh, of course I know he plays soccer – I’m just more interested in his underwear!
This is from The New York Times: David Beckham, the English midfielder who combined devastating free kicks, dashing good looks and savvy marketing to become one of the most recognizable athletes in the world, announced Thursday that he would retire from soccer at season’s end.
Beckham, 38, has played his final season for Paris St.-Germain, adding a French league championship to the ones he won in England with Manchester United, in Spain with Real Madrid and in the United States with the Los Angeles Galaxy. His achievements on the field and smart branding by his camp and the shoe company Adidas made him an icon of his generation and a household name everywhere the game is played.
“If you had told me as a young boy I would have played for and won trophies with my boyhood club Manchester United, proudly captained and played for my country over one hundred times and lined up for some of the biggest clubs in the world, I would have told you it was a fantasy,” Beckham said in a statement. “I’m fortunate to have realized those dreams.”
Beckham’s glory years came at Manchester United, where he won six Premier League titles, two F.A. Cups and the 1999 Champions League title under Manager Alex Ferguson, who coincidentally also retired this month. He joined Real Madrid in the summer of 2003 in a blockbuster transfer worth $45 million.
His next move was to the Los Angeles Galaxy, in 2007, where his mere presence lifted the profile of then-struggling Major League Soccer. And while he angered fans with two off-season loans to A.C. Milan in Italy, he delivered two league championships before leaving last year.
Beckham also made 115 appearances for England, a record for an outfield player, and represented his country in three World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006).
Dreamboat Matthew Morrison is partnering with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) in support of LGBT equality.
Partial proceeds from the pre-sale of his new studio album, Where It All Began, will benefit HRC.
“I’m thrilled to join HRC in their vital work to bring full equality to all Americans,” Matthew said in a statement. “At this decisive moment, when there is so much work still ahead, I’m standing with HRC and LGBT people across the country until this fight is won.”
The album will be released on June 4 and features an assortment of classic standards, many of which were first made famous in Broadway musicals.
The record marks the first release from 222 Records, the newly formed label from Adam Levine.
“It was so great working with Matthew on Where It All Began. He is an amazing artist and we are longtime friends,” Levine said in a statement. “We’re both huge supporters of the LGBT community and I’m glad that partial proceeds from the pre-sale of this album will go toward such a great cause.”
Matthew has also today released a video for HRC’s Americans for Marriage Equality campaign.
“Not only is Matthew a brilliant musical talent, but perhaps more importantly he is a fantastic human being,” said HRC President Chad Griffin.” “His support for equality at this critical time in our nation’s history is something that is important to all fair minded Americans.”
Originally posted April 2, 2009 – updated with additional photos
I like Reese Witherspoon but I’m a little bitter that she has stolen the heart of my perfect movie star man, Jake Gyllenhaal.
Jake is a dreamboat, pure and simple.
I’ve never met him but did get to speak with him on the phone briefly on the morning that the Academy Award nominations were announced in 2006. Jake was nominated for best supporting actor for his performance as Heath Ledger’s lover in Brokeback Mountain.
Jake has proven to be selective about his roles and has been superb in Donnie Darko, Jarhead (pictured above), Zodiac and was the best thing about Rendition.
His next film is Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.
I chatted with Shane Bitney Crone at the GLAAD Media Awards in LA last month and was so deeply moved after our conversation that I gave him a heartfelt hug.
He’s been through so much.
But he’s a strong gay man who after losing the love of his life, Tom Bridegroom, in a tragic fall, he decided not to remain silent about the horrendous way he was treated by Tom’s family and by the hospital where Tom was taken.
First he made the YouTube video It Could Happen to You which has led to the documentary Bridegroom.
‘Since I posted the YouTube video, for the past year I’ve been working on the documentary,” Shane says. ‘It’s hard you know. It just depends on the day. This has definitely been like a healing process for me and it’s good that something so tragic led to something that’s positive.’
Check out the full interview which I have posted over at Gay Star News.
This is episode six of the addictive web series on LOGO TV written and directed by Kit Williamson who is also one of the stars. How smart he was to write in a love scene with gorgeous Sean Maher!
Van Hansis, Constance Wu, John Halbach,Matthew McKelligon and the hilarious Stephen Guarino also star. And in this episode is David Blue who played Marc’s boyfriend on several episodes of Ugly Betty.
Ran into actor Ian Buchanan at The Abbey yesterday!
I was excited to see him and wanted to say hi. But first, I quickly tried to remember what the heck I had written about him when I featured him as a Morning Man in March!
Turns out the most gushy I got was when I wrote: “I saw Ian on the last two episodes of the web series Old Dogs & New Tricks where he was smiling and looking so sexy. Now I have a mad crush on him.”
Not too bad, coulda been worse!
Turns out Ian had seen the post and thanked me for writing it. He also could not have been nicer!
An Emmy winner for The Bold and The Beautiful, Ian recently resurfaced on General Hospital as Duke, one of his most famous roles. He’s also a cast member on Days of Our Lives, Port Charles and Twin Peaks.
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From 60s pop star to 70s variety show headliner to 80s Oscar winner to 90s chart-topper to the endless farewell tour of the 2000s, Cher has continued to stay cool – and successful.
Last night’s An Evening With Women event at The Beverly Hilton was a star-studded affair hosted by Kathy Griffin to raise funds for the LA Gay & Lesbian Center’s programs and services.
Griffin has long been an outspoken advocate for LGBT equality and against bullying.
Other stars I spotted either on the red carpet or in the ballroom were Meredith Baxter, Sara Gilbert, Sharon Osbourne, Peter Paige, Greg Rikaart, and Teri Polo and Sherri Saum who play a lesbian couple in the new ABC Family series The Fosters.
Had so much fun putting this week’s Showtune Sunday feature together!
At last night’s An Evening With Women event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, one of the items up for auction was a portrait of a young Errol Flynn.
This is wonderful news: Outfest will present its 17th annual Achievement Award to writer/director Kimberly Peirce (Boys Don’t Cry, Stop-Loss, Carrie). 
Anyone who spends time with a lot of gay people knows we come in all shapes and sizes and have all kinds of personalities.
I did find it odd that Herndon Graddick did not do the big speech at the GLAAD Media Awards in LA last month but Wilson Cruz did such a wonderful job at it I didn’t give it much more thought.
Well, what would Sue Sylvester think of this?
First of all, I realize the photo I’m using has nothing to do with today’s scene and is more than two years old but isn’t it cute?
I’m going to be the first to admit that I don’t know a damned thing about the ins and outs of the NFL.
What a minute – David Beckham plays soccer?
Dreamboat Matthew Morrison is partnering with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) in support of LGBT equality.
Originally posted April 2, 2009 – updated with additional photos
I chatted with Shane Bitney Crone at the GLAAD Media Awards in LA last month and was so deeply moved after our conversation that I gave him a heartfelt hug.
Ran into actor Ian Buchanan at The Abbey yesterday!
