My night at the LA premiere of “Bridegroom”

Yeah, that’s Adam Lambert in the photo to your left. It looks more like a painting! Well, I hurriedly snapped it as I was walking into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Samuel Goldwyn Theater last night for the LA premiere of Bridegroom.

It was a richly emotional evening and though I’ve seen the film before, I got even more out of this time.

I’ve written all about the premiere in a story posted over at Gay Star News so go over there to see what the film’s producer and subject Shane Bitney Crone had to say.

I’m so glad I captured the moment where he is receiving heartfelt words of support from Lily Tomlin as his proud and amazing mom, Cindy Bitney, looks on.

I invited my good friend Jim Key, who happens to be Chief Public Affairs Officer at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center, as my guest and we grabbed seats in the second row.

We bumped into so many people that one or the other or both knew including Wilson Cruz, Chad Allen, Producer Peter Marc Jacobson (The Nanny/Happily Divorced), and soap opera star journalist Michael Fairman, and Instinct Magazine Editor Jeff Katz, among others.

At the after-party downstairs, Jim and I managed to have a few seconds with Shane who literally had a crowd around him three people deep waiting to meet him. He was unfailingly polite and kind to each of them.

I’m so excited for Shane and was so touched that he personally got in touch a few weeks ago to make sure I was coming to the premiere.

He’s a very special guy.

I’ve posted the film’s trailer and Shane’s original It Could Happen to You video over at Gay Star News. But below is his It Gets Better video which I had not seen until today.

The way he has opened himself up to help others is such a beautiful thing: