April 16, 2015 Edition of the Bay Area Reporter by Bay Area Reporter

Gay man named to college board

ARTS

After 'Hedwig'

The Lexington's last days

The

www.ebar.com

Serving the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender communities since 1971

Sisters: Don’t call it Pink Saturday by Seth Hemmelgarn

he Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have decided that organizers of this year’s event can’t use the name Pink Saturday. The decision Tuesday night, April 14 Rick Gerharter concerning the annual pre-Pride parade Sister Selma Soul street event in San Francisco’s Castro district leaves the city, the LGBT Community Center, and E. Cee Productions with just over two months to figure out what to call this year’s party, which is expected to draw thousands of people to the neighborhood June 27. “The order has voted to retain the name ‘Pink Saturday’ and will pursue a new manifestation of Pink Saturday in a new venue in 2016,” Sister Selma Soul, who coordinated the event from 2012 through 2014, said in an email Tuesday night. “We wish the center the best with their new event in the Castro and look forward to hearing what they decide to call it.” Speaking for the center and E. Cee Productions Wednesday morning, Ruth McFarlane, the center’s programs director, said in an email, “The center will be choosing a new name for the party on Castro Street on the Saturday of Pride weekend. ... The Sisters have asked the center to choose a different name for the event this year. We expect to announce the new name next week.” Despite the vote from the Sisters, which own the Pink Saturday name, it’s likely that many will continue to use that moniker. Following years of concern about violence, in February the Sisters decided to end their oversight of the street party. In March, gay Supervisor Scott Wiener, whose District 8 includes the Castro, announced that the community center had agreed to oversee the event, with help from the city. The center has brought on E. Cee Productions to assist. Soul, who’s also known as James Bazydola, said in an interview last week that she was leaning toward voting to keep the Pink Saturday name for the Sisters. “They’ll still have a crowd,” Soul said of this year’s organizers, and they’ll “still have a great event,” but for more than 20 years, the Sisters “have put all our blood, sweat, and tears” into the party. “I personally don’t want to give up the name.” See page 10 >>

Vol. 45 • No. 16 • April 16-22, 2015

Work starts on LGBT senior housing by Matthew S. Bajko

raffiti covers the interior walls throughout Richardson Hall, a vacant historic Spanish Colonial Revival style structure at the corner of Laguna and Hermann streets built in 1925 as part of the now-defunct San Francisco State Teacher’s College complex. From a broken window pane in a second floor classroom wafts in the sound of construction on an adjacent major infill development named Alta Laguna where Wood Partners is building 330 units of housing, a portion of which will be below market rate. Soon the banging of hammers will reverberate from inside the abandoned college building at 55 Laguna as crews with James E. Roberts-Obayashi Corp. turn its classrooms and ground floor auditorium into 40 units of affordable housing for LGBT seniors. There will also be a new corner retail space fronting Laguna carved out of the existing building and new offices for Openhouse, a nonprofit that provides services to LGBT seniors that is the driving force behind the project. On Thursday Openhouse and its development partner, Mercy Housing California, will issue a notice to proceed on the rehabilitation of Richardson Hall, estimated to cost $16 million. It is the first phase in the construction of a total of 110 units of below-market-rate

Van Meter Williams Pollack architects

A rendering of Openhouse’s planned senior apartments at 55 Laguna Street.

housing for LGBT seniors at the site. “We are all very, very excited to see this construction and renovation get started,” said Openhouse Executive Director Seth Kilbourn as he gave the Bay Area Reporter an exclusive tour of the building in late March. “There is a lot of excitement and anticipation.” Kilbourn, a gay man who once took a statistics class in the building back in 1989,

said he encountered what looked like a “post apocalyptic” scene when he returned in 2013. “It was quite a mess in here. It looked like people were working in here, and then one day, they up and left,” recalled Kilbourn, who believes the last use of the building was for mock disaster training. As Ramie Dare, a real estate developer with See page 5 >>

Trans people face high costs to transition by Sasha Lekach

aclyn Mae came out of the closet when she was 21. When she told her family in Indiana that she was a transgender woman, she quickly realized they were not receptive to the idea and decided she had to get out of what she called an “abusive environment” at her mother’s home. A year after telling her family, she moved to New York and then followed her girlfriend, who is also a trans woman, to the Bay Area less than a year ago. “I haven’t looked back,” she said. “I’m not going to let them in my life again.” Now 26, the San Jose resident has turned to the Internet and the goodwill of strangers in hopes of funding her decision to go through with gender reassignment surgery. Although the state’s Medi-Cal insurance will cover most of the costs of major surgery, she is seeking $8,000 for ancillary procedures to make her transition complete. But even with growing government support, far from everything is covered. “Help save a transgirl’s life!” reads Mae’s online crowdfunding page, which has raised $300 so far (http://www.gofundme.com/cf7rxg). Mae’s appeal is just one of dozens of online pleas for money to help support trans men and women with the medical and other costs of their transition so they can physically present themselves, not as the gender they were born into, but as the gender with which they identify. For Mae and others who decide to

undergo surgery as part of things to be covered as well. their transition, this is less a “I’m pretty much doing cosmetic change than a lifeeverything I can or raising saving procedure. Despite the money I need,” said Mae, insurance, total costs quickly adding, “I don’t like taking reach into many thousands money from others.” of dollars. Changes in health care Gender reassignment law have helped assuage the surgery can reach into six mounting costs of transifigures without insurance tioning for both transmen coverage. For women beand transwomen. Through coming transmen, the basic the Affordable Care Act, procedures include surgical many people have become removal of the vagina (vagieligible for coverage and can nectomy) and construction no longer be excluded for of a penis (phalloplasty), transgender care. which can total $100,000. That sounds like a boon Courtesy Jaclyn Mae For men becoming transfor the transgender comwomen, there is surgery to Jaclyn Mae has turned to munity. But the benefits may remove testicles (orchiec- crowdfunding to help raise still be more theoretical than tomy) and create female funds for her surgery and other practical, said Dr. Dawn genitals (labiaplasty), which procedures. Harbatkin, the medical dimay total $75,000. rector of San Francisco’s LyAlthough such basic on-Martin Health Services, surgeries are increasingly covered by insurwhich sees trans patients. ance, that doesn’t include other procedures for “The reality of it is there just isn’t sufficient transwomen like breast augmentation, tracheal medical capacity to accommodate the number shaves to smooth the Adam’s apple, or lengthy of people who want care,” she said. and painful electrolysis to remove hair in unSan Francisco’s Health Plan, the local prowanted places. Transmen often also choose top gram for Medi-Cal recipients, is lauded as surgery to transform breasts into a chest. These one of the most progressive health coverage out-of-pocket costs can run an additional programs. But to qualify, patients have to meet $10,000 to $40,000. Advocates for the trans See page 6 >> community are lobbying for some of these

{ FIRST OF THREE SECTIONS }

FREE YO U RSE LF. Bank with us.

Federally Insured by NCUA.

SanFranciscoFCU.com 415.775.5377

<< Community News

2 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Kathleen Nemetz,

Certified Financial Planner ™ Practitioner Pre and Post Marital Planning Budgeting, Assets Management, Retirement Plans, Collaborative Divorce Financial Analysis Helping people ‘talk money’ with their partners. [Proudly] serving gay and straight couples. Available Fridays by appointment in San Francisco. Contact me for info. Kathleen Nemetz, MBA, CFP® , CDFA ™ McClurg Capital Corporation 950 Northgate Drive. #301, San Rafael, CA 94903 415.472.1445 x 306 • Fax 415.472.1427 knemetz@mcclurgcapital.com www.life-as-planned.com • CA ins. Lic. 0E71423 See my free downloadable planning kits, on my website.

Genuine & Personal Homecare offers compassionate care for LGBT seniors who want to age in place but need support to live comfortably in their own home.

Light Housekeeping • Companionship • Mobility Support Dementia/Alzheimer’s Care • Medication Reminders Fall Prevention • Shopping • Personal Appointments Eating Assistance • Menu Planning and Preparation Kevin Pete & Kenneth Boozer, Owners We invite you to contact us directly to discuss your needs or a FREE initial in-home assessment.

Call (510) 285-6484 www.GPinHomeCare.com

Worker sues US for same-sex benefits back pay by Seth Hemmelgarn

longtime federal employee who lives in the East Bay is accusing the government of not paying her back for health care costs because she’s married to a woman, despite a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling ordering federal recognition of samesex partnerships. In her lawsuit, Alameda resident Sarah Hudson, 37, a rehabilitation specialist who’s worked with blind people for the Department of Veterans Affairs since 2001, is claiming the Veterans Department, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, and those agencies’ directors are violating the federal laws concerning equal pay and back pay. “I would like for there to be a result that supports equality, and if there are others in this situation, they might be able to have a chance at gaining that equality,” Hudson said in an interview. “It’s definitely been a long journey in trying to do the right thing for my family,” said Hudson, who also remarked that “If I’d been married to a man,” there would’ve been “no problem.” Hudson, who filed her complaint April 3 in the U.S. District Court for Northern California’s San Francisco/ Oakland Division, is seeking reimbursement of no more than $10,000. Hudson’s health coverage is through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. She and her wife, Eli Hudson, were legally married in October 2008, and they had a son in July 2011. After the child’s birth, Sarah Hudson changed her coverage to a “Self and Family” plan to provide coverage for him. Eli Hudson quit her Gymboree Corporation job in January

our doctors = better care

Sarah Hudson, right, is suing the federal government to get reimbursed for money she paid to have her wife, Eli, insured.

2012 to be a stay-at-home mom. Hudson wasn’t allowed to get coverage for her wife through her plan, so that same month, they began paying about $598 a month in additional premiums through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, commonly known as COBRA. This was on top of the full premiums she was already paying for her employee plan. The complaint details Hudson’s years of work to try to remedy her situation. She made repeated requests to have Eli Hudson added to her “Self and Family” plan. Those requests were mostly denied. In one case, she didn’t get a response. In her complaint, Hudson says a male colleague has been able to include his wife through the agency’s plan. She wrote in April 2012 to the Government Employees Health

Thank you, Bay Area Reporter readers for choosing Kaiser Permanente as the “BEST HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.” At Kaiser Permanente our doctors are focused on more than practicing good medicine. They take the time to really listen. And give all members the personalized, culturally sensitive care they deserve. For more information call 1-800-464-4000.

Association asking for her wife to be added to her “Self and Family” coverage, saying the “discriminatory policy is hurting my family.” Hudson cited the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ In re Golinski ruling, which ordered the Office of Personnel Management to allow the same-sex spouse of a federal worker to enroll in her insurance plan. Like Hudson, that employee, Karen Golinski, was also covered by the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. However, the government health association responded with a letter denying her request. The organization cited an Office of Personnel Management direction stating “that the ruling in the Golinski case does not apply to anyone other than Ms. Golinski.” Then, in June 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act, which barred federal recognition of samesex marriages, is unconstitutional. Hudson was able to enroll her wife in her employee plan, but she hasn’t been able to get reimbursed for the money she spent on coverage for her wife before that. “I’ve always loved my job at the VA,” Hudson said in a news release. “Unfortunately, the discrimination I experienced in benefits hurt my family.” The Office of Personnel Management and the Department of Veterans Affairs didn’t respond to requests for comment. Neither agency has yet filed a response in court. Julie Wilensky and Nina Wasow from Lewis, Feinberg, Lee and Jackson, P.C., in Oakland and Judith Galat of the American Federation of Government Employees in Washington, D.C. are representing Hudson in the case, which is Hudson v. Office of Personnel Management et al.t

Queer youth benefit set for Mission High

Courtesy Taica Hsu

Queens of the Castro will perform at a benefit for LGBTQ youth.

by David-Elijah Nahmod

kp.org/thrive

colorful collection of people will don drag in order to show LGBTQ youth that high school doesn’t have to be a drag. The evening, which will include an afterparty hosted by Heklina at Oasis, is to teach high schoolers the differences between sexual orientation and gender identity, to raise awareness, and to promote acceptance. The event comes courtesy of Queens of the Castro, a group of gay male drag queens who work closely with high schools and youth organizations. The Queens offer performances in which they spread their message. Taica Hsu, a math teacher at Mission High School, is also known as

Honda Hybrid, a member of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Hsu is a founding member of the Queens of the Castro and an organizer of “High School is a Drag: But It Doesn’t Have to Be,” the Queens’ upcoming performance at Mission High School Saturday, April 25. Mission High teachers and students will take to the stage together. Hsu, 31, told the Bay Area Reporter that his coming out was simple and relatively easy. “I came out my first year of college to some of my closest friends,” he recalled. “They were extremely supportive, and by my sophomore year, I was fully out and started See page 8 >>

Community News>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 3

AHF lawsuit against city on hold by Seth Hemmelgarn

n AIDS-related nonprofit suing San Francisco over the city’s formula retail rules has agreed to put its lawsuit on hold. AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which is based in Los Angeles, has argued that its location at 518 Castro Street should not fall under the city’s guidelines for chain stores, but the nonprofit will file this month for a conditional use authorization on the site as formula retail, according to AHF President Michael Weinstein. The grand opening for the facility, known as AHF Healthcare Center-San Francisco, was in October. In what many said was an attempt to avoid local formula retail rules, the organization had proposed calling the new spot Castro Pharmacy instead of AHF Pharmacy. But in a brief phone interview Monday, April 13, Weinstein said, “Because we’re applying as formula retail, there’s no need to call it by a different name.” AHF agreed to stay the lawsuit because the agency’s purpose is to combine the health care center with its nearby pharmacy at 4071 18th Street, “and obviously the legal action is going to take a very long time to resolve itself,” he said. “We felt like it was a good compromise to stay the case” and return to it if “things are not handled appropriately,” Weinstein said.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation President Michael Weinstein

When AHF filed its lawsuit, he said, it was also concerned that “we would not be allowed to move into the clinic space at all.” Since it has been able to occupy the location and has been providing services there, though, “that concern went away.” The next case management conference with the court is set for November 11. Last March, the city’s Board of Appeals determined that because AHF operates more than two-dozen pharmacies, it triggered the formula retail rules and was required to seek approval from the planning commission. Under the city rules, any

business with 11 or more locations in the U.S. needs to seek a conditional use permit. Supervisor Scott Wiener, whose District 8 includes the Castro, had said the formerly suggested name change highlighted what he calls a “loophole” in the city’s rules. Along with Supervisors David Campos and Eric Mar, Wiener co-sponsored A fun legislation meant to close that loophole. The full board passed the legislation in July, and Mayor Ed Lee signed it into law. In August, the nonprofit filed its suit against Wiener, the city, and the Board of Supervisors in U.S. District Court for Northern California. AHF, which in 2012 had a budget of about $165 million, has claimed that Wiener is unfairly targeting it and that, at Wiener’s behest, the city has violated its equal protection, due process, and free speech rights. In a statement he provided Monday, Wiener said, “AHF tried to game our formula retail rules, and we closed the loophole AHF was trying to exploit. A broad coalition of HIV and neighborhood groups supported my legislation. AHF retaliated against me by naming me in its lawsuit,” which, he said, has “no merit.” “I will always advocate for our neighborhoods and for enforcing the rules,” Wiener said. “I won’t be intimidated by an abusive lawsuit.” Matt Dorsey, a spokesman for the city attorney’s office, declined to comment.t

A fun place to play… fab place to stay! Celebratingaour

LGBT PROGRESSIVE CATHOLICS † OUR FAMILIES & FRIENDS

Sexuality and Love as place to play… Gifts of God

ALiturgy funto place to play… a fab place stay! & Social: Every Sunday 5pm

a fab place to stay!

A fun

First Sunday Movie Night Second Sunday Potluck Supper Third Wednesday Faith Sharing Group 1329 Seventh Avenue † info@dignitysanfrancisco.org place to play… Follow us on Facebook!

a fab place to stay!

Make Castro your Make the home sweet home! Castro

your home Make Castro your Rachel sweetSwann home! home sweet home! Make Castro your

NCLR to honor Navy vet, Tennessee plaintiffs at gala

AMake fun place to your play… RachelCastro Swann home sweet home! fab place to stay! home sweetahome! REALTOR®,Top Producer Top 10% Citywide 415.225.7743 rachel@theswanngroupsf.com BRE License # 01860456 Rachel Swann TheSwannGroupSF.com

HIV exhibit at LGBT center

retired Navy veteran from Idaho and the plaintiff couples and legal team in the Tennessee marriage equality case will be honored at next month’s National Center for Lesbian Rights anniversary celebration in San Francisco. The gala, set for Saturday, May 2, usually draws a sell-out crowd of more than 2,000 people. Tickets for the dinner, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at the Marriott Marquis Hotel, 55 4th Street, are $300. Tickets to the party, from 9 p.m. to midnight at the nearby CityView Metreon, 135 4th Street, are $100. Navy veteran Madelynn “Lee” Taylor, 74, will receive NCLR’s Courage Award. She was discharged from the Navy in 1964 after it was discovered that she was a lesbian. In 2014, Taylor, with the help of NCLR, challenged Idaho’s marriage ban after the state-run veterans’ cemetery refused to allow her to be buried with her late wife. Late last year, after NCLR filed her lawsuit, the state reversed course, allowing her wife’s remains to be interred at the veterans’ cemetery, where the couple will be able to rest together. The plaintiff couples and legal team in the Tennessee marriage case will have just been at the U.S. Supreme Court for oral arguments a few days prior to the gala. The couples who will receive NCLR’s Justice Award are veterinarians Valeria Tanco and Sophy Jesty; Army Reserve Sergeant First Class Ijpe DeKoe and Thom Kostura; and Matthew Mansell and Johno Espejo. The attorney honorees are Abby Rubenfeld, Maureen Holland, and Regina Lambert, and the law firms of Sherrard and Roe PLC and Ropes and Gray LLP. “All of our honorees exemplify the bravery and perseverance of the

Navy veteran Madelynn “Lee” Taylor

entire LGBT community and what it has taken us to get to this historic step,” NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell said in a statement. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit http:// www.nclrights.org/NCLRAnniversary-Celebration/.

Castro Cares benefit

Castro area merchants, residents, and community leaders will come together for a benefit for Castro Cares Thursday, April 16 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Vanguard Properties, 555 Castro Street. Castro Cares was launched last fall. It’s under the leadership of the Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District and addresses quality of life issues in the neighborhood. It includes a homeless outreach team case manager, funded by the health department, as well as overtime San Francisco police officers, Patrol Special Police officers, and homeless outreach services. Donations will be accepted at the fundraiser, which will include nibbles and beverages provided by local merchants. To RSVP, email mark@vanguardsf.com.

An art exhibit to raise awareness of older people living with HIV will be on display next week at the San Francisco LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market Street. Well Beyond HIV, curated in collaboration with Walgreens and the Graying of AIDS, an independent documentary project, focuses on the challenges and triumphs of those aging with HIV through captivating portraits and insightful testimonials. The exhibit will be open to the public from Thursday, April 23, noon to 10 p.m. to Saturday, April 25, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

AOF to hold art and wine auction

The Academy of Friends, best known for its Oscar viewing parties, is holding its inaugural art and wine auction Friday, April 24 from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at 111 Minna Gallery in San Francisco. The event will feature silent and live auctions plus a selection of cocktails, wines, and bites. Live auction items will include amazing artwork, unique travel adventures, and a VIP tour of San Francisco. Silent auction items include restaurant gift certificates, theater tickets, and more. There will also be several door prize drawings throughout the evening. Money raised at the event will benefit local HIV/AIDS organizations. AOF provides grants to groups delivering a broad range of services to its beneficiaries, which this year include the AIDS Legal Referral Panel, Huckleberry Youth Programs, HIV/AIDS Nightline, HIV Story Project, LGBTQ Connection, Positive Resource Center, and Project Open Hand. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased online at www.academyoffriends.org and clicking on “Events Calendar.” See page 9 >>

Rachel Swann

REALTOR®,Top Producer Top 10% Citywide 415.225.7743 rachel@theswanngroupsf.com BRE License # 01860456 TheSwannGroupSF.com

REV 2014 Rachel Castro Festival Guide ad.indd 1

compiled by Cynthia Laird

REALTOR®,Top Producer Top 10% Citywide 415.225.7743 rachel@theswanngroupsf.com BRE License # 01860456 TheSwannGroupSF.com

9/14/14 5:12 PM

REV 2014 Rachel Castro Festival Guide ad.indd 1

9/14/14 5:12 PM

Make Castro your home sweet home! REV 2014 Rachel Castro Festival Guide ad.indd 1

9/14/14 5:12 PM

Rachel Swann

REALTOR®,Top Producer Top 10% Citywide 415.225.7743 rachel@theswanngroupsf.com BRE License # 01860456 TheSwannGroupSF.com

REV 2014 Rachel Castro Festival Guide ad.indd 1

9/14/14 5:12 PM

We fix your teeth with love. Sometimes we may ask you to open your mouth. A swanky full service dental practice focusing on care, fun and beauty. • Implant Abutment Crown (whole tooth) $2699.00 • New patient exam, oral cancer screening, xrays & the best cleaning you’ve ever had $129.00 See what we look like and believe in at

www.SmileDelightDental.com

SMILE DELIGHT DENTAL SOLUTIONS

490 Post St., Suite 1528 Union Square, San Francisco Dr. V.A. Skorupko

Free Consultation 415 992 5160

<< Open Forum

4 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Volume 45, Number 16 April 16-22, 2015 www.ebar.com PUBLISHER Michael M. Yamashita Thomas E. Horn, Publisher Emeritus (2013) Publisher (2003 – 2013) Bob Ross, Founder (1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird ARTS EDITOR Roberto Friedman BARTAB EDITOR & EVENTS LISTINGS EDITOR Jim Provenzano ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko • Seth Hemmelgarn CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Ray Aguilera • Tavo Amador • Race Bannon Erin Blackwell • Roger Brigham Brian Bromberger • Victoria A. Brownworth Brent Calderwood • Philip Campbell Heather Cassell • Belo Cipriani Richard Dodds • Michael Flanagan Jim Gladstone • David Guarino Liz Highleyman • Brandon Judell • John F. Karr Lisa Keen • Matthew Kennedy • Joshua Klipp David Lamble • Max Leger Michael McDonagh • David-Elijah Nahmod Paul Parish • Sean Piverger • Lois Pearlman Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota • Bob Roehr Donna Sachet • Adam Sandel • Khaled Sayed Jason Serinus • Gregg Shapiro Gwendolyn Smith • Jim Stewart Sean Timberlake • Andre Torrez • Ronn Vigh Ed Walsh • Cornelius Washington Sura Wood ART DIRECTION Jay Cribas PRODUCTION/DESIGN Max Leger PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland • FBFE Rick Gerharter • Gareth Gooch Lydia Gonzales • Jose Guzman-Colon Rudy K. Lawidjaja • Georg Lester • Dan Lloyd Rich Stadtmiller • Steven Underhil Dallis Willard • Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Paul Berge • Christine Smith ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION Colleen Small VICE PRESIDENT OF ADVERTISING Scott Wazlowski – 415.861.5019 ADVERTISING ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Lance Roberts NATIONAL ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE Rivendell Media – 212.242.6863

LEGAL COUNSEL Paul H. Melbostad, Esq.

BAY AREA REPORTER 44 Gough Street, Suite 204 San Francisco, CA 94103 415.861.5019 • www.ebar.com A division of BAR Media, Inc. © 2015 President: Michael M. Yamashita Chairman: Thomas E. Horn VP and CFO: Patrick G. Brown Secretary: Todd A. Vogt

News Editor • news@ebar.com Arts Editor • arts@ebar.com Out & About listings • jim@ebar.com Advertising • scott@ebar.com Letters • letters@ebar.com Published weekly. Bay Area Reporter reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement which the publisher believes is in poor taste or which advertises illegal items which might result in legal action against Bay Area Reporter. Ads will not be rejected solely on the basis of politics, philosophy, religion, race, age, or sexual orientation. Advertising rates available upon request. Our list of subscribers and advertisers is confidential and is not sold. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, and writers published herein is neither inferred nor implied. We are not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork.

Misguided Republican rhetoric

he 2016 presidential race has only just begun and already we lament the misguided and disingenuous rhetoric from Republicans that on the surface sounds inclusive but in reality is exclusive of LGBT Americans. When candidates – or likely candidates – use the cliche that they are for “every American” do they really mean it? “We need to create economic opportunity for every American, especially middle class families and those trying to rise out of poverty,” likely presidential candidate Jeb Bush said on Facebook a few months ago. The problem is, of course, that Bush doesn’t mean “every American,” because he does not include the LGBT community. That was apparent last month when Indiana Governor Mike Pence signed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act law for his state and promptly drew the ire of major companies and political leaders. Bush, on a swing through the Bay Area at the time, at first enthusiastically supported Pence’s stance. But when the number of tech and other business leaders who came out against the bill jumped to 100, Bush quickly backpedaled and told a gathering of Silicon Valley executives that “we shouldn’t discriminate based on sexual orientation.” Whether he will continue espousing that belief once he officially becomes a candidate remains to be seen. Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky entered the race this month. On some issues, Paul adheres to his libertarian leanings, but he does not extend that to same-sex marriage. Paul quickly

abandoned the libertarian “live and let live” philosophy when he told CNN that he believes in a two-tier system for marriage: weddings for straight couples, and contracts for same-sex couples. There’s nothing fair or equal about that. Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida formally announced his presidential candidacy this week, offering himself as “the next generation” of leadership. Yet, as gay Washington Post columnist Jonathan Capehart pointed out, Rubio’s views on marriage are rooted in the 1950s. Rubio didn’t mention LGBTs in his announcement speech, but he has said that he believes marriage is between a man and a woman. When he was in the Florida Legislature, he blocked efforts that would have allowed same-sex couples to adopt children. Most importantly, Rubio, when he was part of a group of senators that authored an important immigration reform bill

a few years ago, said a provision to give gay couples immigration rights “kills the bill.” It’s worth noting that today some gays receive those rights anyway after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed out a key provision of the anti-gay Defense of Marriage Act in 2013. There was a presidential candidate who announced this week who is supportive of LGBT rights. Democrat Hillary Clinton entered the race Sunday with the release of a video that captured plenty of regular people talking about their life changes. There were African Americans, Hispanics, families, single moms, men, small business owners, retirees, and yes, gay people. One was a gay couple saying they were looking forward to their wedding later this year. Another appeared to be a lesbian couple. It certainly was refreshing to see our community depicted in a campaign video for a major presidential candidate. Clinton didn’t always support marriage equality, and Bill Clinton signed DOMA back in 1996. But times change, and since President Barack Obama came out in support of same-sex marriage three years ago, it’s been clear that no Democratic candidate could run for the presidency without supporting marriage equality. A test of leadership is the ability to realize a policy is wrong, change position, and make it right. It’s something Rubio could do if he truly wants to represent the next generation. A new study from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law notes that public support for same-sex marriage will be at 40 percent or higher in every state by 2016. So far, however, the GOP presidential candidates are stuck in the past, and when they utter the phrase “every American,” they don’t mean it.t

Harris needs to step up in trans case by Theresa Sparks

around the country have held that it is unconstitutional for a prison ichelle-Lael Norsworthy, a to deny medical treatment – intransgender woman, is curcluding surgeries – that has been rently an inmate housed at Mule determined necessary to treat a Creek State Men’s Prison located in transgender inmate’s case of gender Ione, California. She was sentenced dysphoria. to state prison in the late-1980s. In Nine states, including California, the mid-1990s, Norsworthy received already require private insurers to Jane Philomen Cleland a medical diagnosis of gender dyscover medical care related to gender phoria and began hormone replacetransition and public insurance proCalifornia ment therapy. While in prison, she Attorney General grams like Medicare and Medicaid has been raped six times, includ- Kamala Harris cover this type of care. The Univering an incident in 2009 in which sity of California system’s insurance she was gang raped by nine inmates over a plan covers these procedures for all faculty, six-hour period. She subsequently developed staff and students, as do more and more of the hepatitis C. The high level of estrogen she had nation’s largest corporations. The City of San been prescribed for more than 15 years has Francisco employee health plan has covered now been substantially reduced as a result of transition-related care, including gender the hepatitis, as it could cause further damage confirmation surgeries, since 2001 to her liver. Unfortunately, the treatment Norand now provides universal health sworthy has received to date has not resolved care for all transgender enrollees the significant anxiety and distress she experiin Healthy San Francisco. ences as a result of gender dysphoria. On April 5, California Attorney The World Professional Association for General Kamala Harris, who is Transgender Health’s Standards of Care for running for retiring Senator Barthe health of transsexual, transgender, and bara Boxer’s (D-California) seat gender nonconforming people is the recognext year, filed an appeal with the nized criteria worldwide for the provision of federal appeals court to overturn health care to trans-identified individuals. Tigar’s ruling. There is no logical In the latest edition, the WPATH SOC state reason, financial or medical, for her to have that for some people surgery is “essential and done this. It can only have been political. medically necessary to alleviate their gender In 2003, Harris ran for, and won, her race dysphoria.” This standard is recognized by for district attorney of San Francisco. I was one nearly every medical organization worldwide, of the co-chairs of the Alice B. Toklas LGBT including the American Medical Association. Democratic Club at the time. Alice was the The California Department of Corrections first political organization in San Francisco to and Rehabilitation has a blanket policy denyendorse Harris in this election. Alice members ing gender confirmation surgery for inmates walked precincts for her and I recall accomand has denied this medically necessary care panying her on a merchant walk in the Castro to Norsworthy. to gain the critical support of the LGBT comAfter a lawsuit filed by the Transgender Law munity. She overwhelmingly won the election Center and the law firm of Morgan Lewis and with strong support from LGBT populated Brockius LLP, on April 2, U.S. District Court precincts. Alice and our community have conJudge Jon Tigar granted a preliminary injunctinued to support Harris is every subsequent tion ordering the CDCR to provide gender election she has run and won since 2003. Our confirmation surgery to Norsworthy, “as community has been loyal to Harris. promptly as possible.” The judge’s ruling also San Francisco elects political leaders, in part, stated that CDCR’s continual denial of Norbased on whether their values reflect our values, sworthy’s requests for surgery demonstrated San Francisco values. Boxer, House Minority officials being “deliberately indifferent” to her Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), Repmedical needs, disregarding her treatment resentative Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San physicians. Federal courts in several cases Mateo) are but a few who have proudly carried

those values to Washington, D.C. We need to ensure that Harris will indeed be one of those elected leaders. In today’s world, it is less heroic for an elected official to fully embrace the concept of marriage equality or to oppose a proposed initiative that is essentially the legalization of a gay turkey-shoot. Yet in the case of the proposed initiative that would allow people to kill gays, Harris has gone to court in an effort to prevent it from being on the ballot. It takes a great deal of courage, though, to face down institutional discrimination such as that displayed by the CDCR when it comes to trans-identified inmates. Ask gay state Senator Mark Leno (D), who has been on the tip of the sword for trans-rights since his first term in the Assembly in 2002. Time and time again, against difficult odds, Leno fought and won numerous legislative battles on our behalf. We need Harris to be our Leno in Washington, particularly in this time of record homicides and increasing youth suicides in the trans community. Typically, LGBT Democratic clubs consider early endorsements for certain political leaders who are champions of our community and values. The leaders of Alice and the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club are probably discussing this possibility right now when it comes to Harris and her bid to replace Boxer in the Senate. Before considering her for this early endorsement process, it is imperative we are absolutely certain she does share our values. We need to know why she filed an appeal in the Norsworthy case and to explain her reasoning for doing something so counter to one of our fundamental beliefs, health equality for all. Loyalty is also a core value we San Franciscans embrace. It’s like my grandfather, a lifelong Missouri mule-trader, told me, “Always leave the dance on the mule that brung ya.” We are currently at the dance and Harris needs to decide who is going to carry her to a successful finish.t Theresa Sparks is the executive director of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission. The views expressed here are hers alone and do not represent those of the SFHRC or any other organization with which she is affiliated.

Politics>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 5

Gay man fills vacancy on SF college board by Matthew S. Bajko

ayor Ed Lee appointed a gay Obama administration appointee this week to a vacancy on the City College of San Francisco Board of Trustees. Alex Randolph, 32, a well-known LGBT community leader and former City Hall aide, will serve in the seat that had been held by Natalie Berg. After 18 years on the community college board, Berg resigned for personal reasons. Lee swore in Randolph, who was joined by his fiancé Trevor Nguyen, to the seat at a City Hall ceremony Tuesday morning. His appointment comes as City College continues to deal with the fallout stemming from its accreditation being threatened with revocation by the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. Earlier this year the accreditation committee granted “restoration” status to CCSF, giving it two years to fully comply with the requirements needed to be in good standing. In the meantime, a city lawsuit against the commission is making its way through state court. “City College is critical to our city’s social and economic success, providing access to education and workforce training so our residents can compete and win in the 21st Century economy,” stated Lee. “Alex is a strong leader who brings a wealth of experience to the college at this critical time. He will be a voice for students and he shares my values of equal access to educational opportunities.” Randolph joins the college board’s president, Rafael Mandelman, as the second gay man currently serving on the oversight body. The two served together on the board of the city’s LGBT Community Center, during which time Mandelman was co-chair. Asked by the Bay Area Reporter in a phone interview shortly after his swearing-in ceremony why he wanted to join the college board amidst its accreditation travails, Randolph responded, “My question I always throw back is why not? This is the exact time people from all over the city need to come together and help city college move forward.” Born and raised in Hamburg, Germany, Randolph’s mother is German and his father, who is black, is American. The two met in Washington, D.C. when his mother came to visit her sister, who was married

LGBT senior housing

From page 1

Mercy Housing, unlocked the doors for a sneak peek at the building, she said reports from a structural engineer hired to assess the property found no damage from the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake that rocked the Bay Area. “It’s in pretty good shape,” said Dare, who 20 years ago also attended a class in Richardson Hall. “Because it’s a city landmark, we will restore everything on the exterior,” from the fenestration to the figures above the existing Hermann Street entrance. “I am really excited to work on it,” said Dare, a straight ally. “I am really flabbergasted this doesn’t already exist in San Francisco. We are going to add a lot of value to the community by building LGBT senior housing.” Work on Richardson Hall should

Jane Philomen Cleland

Mayor Ed Lee shakes Alex Randolph’s hand after swearing him in to a seat on the City College of San Francisco Board of Trustees.

to a mid-level State Department diplomat. His father disliked living in Germany and left the family to return to Maryland. At the age of 16 Randolph moved to San Diego to live with his sister. After graduating high school, he attended Grossmont College, a San Diego Community College, for three years while working full time. In 2003 he transferred to UC Berkeley, where he met Nguyen 10 years ago, and graduated in 2006 with a degree in political science and public policy. Nguyen, who grew up in Vietnam and moved to San Jose when he was 7 years old in 1991, attended Ohlone College in Fremont, part of the Ohlone Community College District, before transferring to UC Berkeley. “For various reasons we couldn’t afford going to a four-year college right away. That is why taking on this responsibility is very personal and serious for me,” said Randolph, who earned a master’s in public administration from San Francisco State University in 2012. “I believe students from today, and students in the future, need to have the same path of opportunities I had. Especially as a gay man of color, I am extremely sensitive to our community members in the LGBT community who are still facing significant barriers to higher education.” Randolph started his career in local politics in 2006 as the campaign manager for gay former District 8 Supervisor Bevan Dufty’s reelection bid. He then went to work for former Mayor Gavin Newsom as his LGBT liaison and representative for supervisor districts 7 and 8. In 2010 Randolph went back to

work for Dufty as a legislative aide, and then in 2011, he was hired as the deputy director of community and government affairs at the city’s recreation and parks department. Randolph had been expected to run for a college board seat in last November’s election but was precluded from doing so after he was named a special assistant to the regional administrator for the U.S. General Services Administration for Region 9 – Pacific Rim. He intends to resign from the federal position later this year in order to run for election this November to serve out the remaining year of Berg’s four-year term. He then plans to seek a full term in November 2016. Repeatedly mentioned as a candidate for supervisor in past years – Randolph is a District 8 resident – he did not rule out seeking a seat on the board when asked about his future plans by the B.A.R. “I am going to be honest, in all my life in public service, I have looked for opportunities where I could serve my community best. Now is the right time for me to be on the college board and provide my skill set. That is what I am going to be focused on,” said Randolph, whose wedding is planned for after the November 3 election.t

be completed by the spring of 2016, with the first residents moving into their units by next summer. Seniors age 55 and up, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, wishing to live there who meet the affordable housing requirements will be able to enter a lottery for the units next winter. Charlie Levan, 67, a gay man who has lived in San Francisco since 1970, hopes to be among the first seniors to move into the revamped building. He has been on waiting lists for three existing senior housing complexes in the city since 2013. “My roommate and I have lived together 13 years. We get along great, but eventually my health will be compromised in some way,” said Levan, who is single and volunteers at Openhouse. “I am OK now, but I don’t want to burden anybody else.” Yet with an estimated LGBT senior population of more than

25,000 in San Francisco, and with housing prices some of the most expensive in the nation, Levan said he knows there will be great interest in the Openhouse units and that his chances of being selected to move into 55 Laguna are “slim to none.” “I wouldn’t mind living in an apartment building like the one I have been with all straight people, but it would be nice to be with all gay people,” he said. The city of San Francisco has already contributed upwards of $8 million toward the first phase of the project. The remaining funds are coming from Bank of America through a program administered by the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, which encourages private investment in affordable rental housing. Construction on the second phase of the project, which entails See page 10 >>

Web Extra: For more queer political news, be sure to check http:// www.ebar.com Monday mornings at noon for Political Notes, the notebook’s online companion. This week’s column reported on a gay San Diego councilman’s bid for a state Assembly seat in 2016. Keep abreast of the latest LGBT political news by following the Political Notebook on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/politicalnotes. Got a tip on LGBT politics? Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 8298836 or e-mail m.bajko@ebar.com.

Barry Schneider Attorney at Law

family law specialist* • Divorce w/emphasis on Real Estate & Business Divisions • Domestic Partnerships, Support & Custody • Probate and Wills www.SchneiderLawSF.com

415-781-6500 *Certified by the California State Bar 400 Montgomery Street, Ste. 505, San Francisco, CA

CASTRO YOU’RE INVITED! To Raise Funds for the Castro Cares Program Improving Our Neighborhood Streets Increased Enforcement & Compassionate Care

Thursday, April 16th, 2015 5:00 - 8:00pm Vanguard Properties, 555 Castro Street Nibblies & Beverages Provided By Local Castro Merchants

RSVP: mark@vanguardsf.com Your Generous Donation Matters! For more Information www.castrocares.org Cash, Credit Cards and Checks Accepted

<< Commentary

6 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

ESCAPE TO PALM SPRINGS

t Sometimes, I forget I’m blind by Belo Cipriani

27163 SHADOWCREST LANE SHADOW CREST, CATHEDRAL CITY $239,000 | 3BD/3BA/1950SF | GATED COMMUNITY

35200 CATHEDRAL CANYON DRIVE, #H63 CANYON SHORES, CATHEDRAL CITY $177,000 | 2BD/2BA/1384SF | GATED COMMUNITY

760-832-3758 terrymurphy@windermeresocal.com www.MakeitMurphy.windermeresocal.com CalBRE #: 01346949

ebar.com

150407_6P BAR_3.75x7_Murphy.indd 1

4/6/15

hen I mention this to friends, they laugh and suggest the same interpretation for my confession. “Maybe,” they begin, their voices pensive, “you’re not always conscious of your blindness because you have no light perception – there are no fuzzy images and there’s no light to remind you of what you can’t see.” Although I don’t completely dismiss their analysis, I believe the main reason why I can live alone, teach, write, and go about my business without dwelling on my blindness is because of technology. I have an app that decodes paper money, another that describes the colors and patterns on my clothing, and I even have a talking microwave that always wishes me a great day. I’m constantly texting and emailing as my guide dog, Oslo, and I mosey through the city, and I’m only conscious of being blind when someone with vision points out my lack of sight. One day, I had just finished my lunch at a diner in downtown San Francisco, and was about to put a few bills on the table, when I heard an older woman say, “Let me get your lunch.” Puzzled, I shifted my face toward the unfamiliar voice and asked if she was the manager. She answered in the negative and explained she was just a customer. “You shouldn’t carry cash,” she continued. “You’re gonna get ripped off.” Her comment braced my nerves. Yet, I reminded myself that, like most people, she was probably not familiar with adaptive technology. 9:34 AM So, I decided to give her a demo. I took my phone out, scanned a bill and heard my cell read the currency. “Let me pay for your lunch. You’re blind and you need my help,” she said.

A Paid Study for People Who Are HIV+ Smallpox Vaccine Study

What A study to develop a vaccine against smallpox for people who are HIV positive Who HIV positive adults, 18 to 45 years of age, with t-cells below 500 Pay Participants will receive 2-3 vaccinations and up to $1350 Details For more information, please call Erika at Quest Clinical Research – (415) 353-0800 or email erika@questclinical.com

www.questclinical.com

Wondering if the volume on my cell was too low, I shook my head and asked Oslo to find the register. As I paid for my meal, I heard the woman speak from a few feet behind me, “I know how to help you. My favorite movie is The Miracle Worker.” I felt my face go hot. Helen Keller may have done some great things in her life, but as a modern man in the 21st century, I find it incredibly irritating to be compared to someone born in 1880. Not to mention, being deaf and blind is a completely different journey, as missing two senses is not the same as missing one. “I don’t need your help,” I huffed, walking toward the exit door. “I have Siri.” Weaving around a crowd on the sidewalk, I wondered why some people are unable to make the connection that, because of technology, being disabled is not what it used to be. The next day, I arrived at my Capoeira studio early and caught the tail end of an Afro-Brazilian dance class. Feeling inspired by the live drumming, I had Oslo sit next to the wall as I joined the samba session in the middle of the room. Smiling, I swayed back and forth, recalling my clubbing days in Rio. The music came to an end and the class was adjourned. Ambling my way back to Oslo, I felt a hand on my shoulder and heard a guy say, “You dance well. You remind me of that movie Dancer in the Dark.” “I hate that movie,” I said dryly. “It’s not accurate at all.” “But it won so many awards,” he defended. “Are you sure we’re talking about the same movie? It had Bjork in it.” I assured him we were referring to the same movie and then dove into what I didn’t like. “The character is not a believable blind person. I know plenty of blind people and I have never met one who walks on train tracks to avoid getting lost, or one that could fool their employer into believing

Our columnist is not a fan of this 2000 film, as he argues that the main character is not believable as a blind person.

they can see,” I said. “Well, how are people supposed to know what’s real and what is not?” he asked. I paused for a few seconds, unsure of how to answer. Flashing back to the woman from the diner, I said, “Well, one of the reasons why there are so many bad disability movies is because directors don’t cast real disabled people.” After class, Oslo and I arrived home and I began to scan my snail mail. As my laptop read an offer from my local pizza parlor, I realized that it isn’t just movies contributing to a false perception of disability, but also the lack of disabled faces in popular culture at large. Maybe someday there will be a hip show with a funny, romantic, or even slutty disabled protagonist. But, until then, I’ll just keep flashing my tech toys around.t Belo Cipriani is a freelance journalist, the award-winning author of Blind: A Memoir and Midday Dreams, a spokesman for Guide Dogs for the Blind, and the career expert for the “Ed Baxter Show” on Talk Radio San Francisco 910AM. Learn more at BeloCipriani.com.

Transition costs

From page 1

stringent financial criteria, such as living as a single city resident at or below the poverty line. At that point, proceeding with a major surgery, such as gender reassignment, is more difficult to organize. For some, the magnitude of costs means making some hard financial choices. Home builder Erin P., of Davis, California, decided to buy a house first, which required putting some of her surgeries on hold. “I could have gotten facial feminization surgery and that would have been nice,” said Erin, 28, who asked that her last name not be published for privacy reasons. “I do have bad days where people ‘sir’ me in the market, and that’s no fun,” she added. Erin came out to her family in 2011, and later on the job “because it reached a point where I could no longer keep up a charade.” She is calculating the costs of additional surgeries not covered by her Kaiser insurance and is keeping tabs on other costs in her transition. She called the expensive electrolysis hair removal “its own private nightmare.” She already has invested about $600 for laser hair removal on her face, but the more effective electrolysis costs about $70 an hour and totals thousands of dollars. Facial hair removal can take up to 30 hours, and genital hair removal takes an additional 20 hours. Years of weekly appointments may be required. The costs don’t end at the surgeon’s office. In Arizona, where Erin’s reassignment surgery is sched-

Jane Philomen Cleland

Lyon-Martin Health Services’ Dr. Dawn Harbatkin

uled, she’ll foot the bill for a hotel stay during the six weeks of recommended recovery time. Incidental expenses, from a new wardrobe and pricier hair care, to cosmetics and epilation, are other costs she didn’t initially tally. But there are tradeoffs: she no longer has to wear a suit, which she calls, “the grossest thing.”

Document costs

Transforming appearance is just part of transitioning. It also involves selecting a new name and changing one’s gender identity on a host of legal documents. Before July 2014, Erin was one of many transgender community members who spent hundreds of dollars on name and gender change costs. Name change petitioners had to put an announcement in a newspaper for $100. A court order and appearance followed for $425. For See page 9 >>

Sports>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 7

Most support plan to keep Gay Games focused on sports by Roger Brigham

vent costs, the inclusion of women and minority athletes, and the diversity of sports offerings were the major concerns raised by about 40 local LGBT sports representatives at a recent town hall meeting on the future of the quadrennial Gay Games and World Outgames. The meeting at Eureka Valley Recreation Center Saturday, April 11 was hosted by Team San Francisco so that local LGBT sports folks could hear a proposal from a committee of Federation of Gay Games representatives and reps from the Gay and Lesbian International Sports Association to supersede both events with an entirely new organization and new event in 2022; and Team SF’s counterproposal to keep both events

continuing but better focused on their respective core missions. Shamey Cramer of the FGG and Greg Larocque of GLISA served on the six-member committee that submitted the report recommending that both governing bodies form an entity to put on a joint event in 2022. Unlike the Gay Games but like the World Outgames, the proposed event would feature human rights conferences alongside sports and culture. The Team SF proposal currently being updated by the group’s board, and first advanced in 2009, invites GLISA to hold its World Outgames as a human rights conference event in conjunction with the Gay Games sports and cultural festival, and urges the FGG to work on reducing athlete costs and look at ways to bring in more women and minorities. Suggestions to reduce

costs included reducing the amount of time and money spent on opening and closing ceremonies and reducing the overall length of the event to one week or less.

Background history

The Gay Games were founded by the late Olympic athlete Dr. Tom Waddell in San Francisco and were first held in 1982. Waddell’s vision was to enhance the image and dignity of LGBT individuals by staging first-class sports events focused on inclusion and participation. Cultural events were included as a smaller supporting component because it was easier and less expensive to gain nonprofit status if the event were not strictly sports. The games grew quickly in size each of the first few quadrennial cycles as they traveled from the first two events in San Francisco on to Vancouver, New York, Amsterdam, and Sydney, eventually bringing in

more than 10,000 participants per event. But unlike the first two Gay Games in San Francisco, each of which finished with a modest profit, the next four Gay Games ended with staggering financial losses. Montreal organizers were selected to host Gay Games VII, but did not sign the license agreement after two years of negotiations and instead founded their own rival event, the Outgames. The FGG reopened the bidding to host Gay Games VII and eventually awarded the license to Chicago. Gay Games VII in 2006 in Chicago finished in the black and drew more than 10,000 participants. The Outgames two weeks later in Montreal drew around 8,000 participants, featured extensive conference and party schedules, and lost $4.3 million ($5.7 Canadian). Shortly after breaking away from

Courtesy Facebook

San Francisco Sailing Team member Heather Stewart

See page 9 >>

Longtime Gay Games advocate Marc Naimark dies by Cynthia Laird

arc Naimark, a gay man who was involved for many years with the Federation of Gay Games, died in Paris April 8. He was 54. FGG officials said that Mr. Naimark apparently took his own life. “Unbeknownst to us, the ever-present kindness and compassion that was Marc’s trademark masked a tortured soul, even from his loved ones,” Emy Ritt, former FGG co-president, said in an email about his death. A native of Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, Mr. Naimark, who was born December 17, 1960, moved to Paris in 1989. He was a journalist for Slate.com and other online media and was a talk radio host for a local Paris LGBT program.

But it was sports, particmark’s partner of 10 ularly the Gay Games, for years, Jimmy Masseron. which Mr. Naimark will be Mr. Naimark, who was remembered. News of his a volunteer at the time of death came last weekend, his death, was a former as Team San Francisco FGG board member, and members and others held a his involvement with the town hall forum about the organization goes back future of large, quadrennial many years, when he was Courtesy Federation LGBT athletic events. on the organization’s of Gay Games “Regarding Marc, we sports committee. He was have all lost a special per- Marc Naimark interested in developing son,” said FGG Co-Presia policy on performancedent Kurt Dahl of Chicago, who was enhancing drugs for the FGG, he in San Francisco for the meeting last wrote in a statement of qualificaweekend. “His passion and dedications that Ritt provided to the Bay tion to the FGG was limitless. He Area Reporter. He did develop FGG’s will be missed. Our thoughts are current health and well-being policy, with Jimmy and family and close which includes the PED guidelines. friends during this difficult time.” He was elected FGG sports officer Dahl was referring to Mr. Naiin 2007 and worked on the delivery

of the sports program for Gay Games VIII. He also introduced a bylaw amendment reserving one of the sport officer positions for a woman, as a way to enhance gender parity. Mr. Naimark was also a longtime member of FGG’s site selection committee, and was proud of the process he developed to increase transparency for choosing host cities and increasing the visibility of the games. It was back in 1998 that Mr. Naimark discovered Gay Games, when the event was held in Amsterdam. “Since then, I have been committed to sharing the message of the Gay Games, and giving back to the movement that changed my life, as it has changed so many others,” Mr. Naimark wrote in his FGG statement. On the issue of having one qua-

drennial sporting event, Mr. Naimark said that he was supportive but that the contributions of other groups, such as the Gay and Lesbian International Sports Association, needed to be respected; he favored a merger of FGG and GLISA. Ritt said that Mr. Naimark worked as an English teacher, translator, and photographer. He also founded a bodybuilding club, Le Coq Muscle, in Paris. Ritt said that final arrangements for Mr. Naimark were still being worked out. People who want to honor him can make a donation to the Gay Games, at the gaygames.org site or via paris2018.com.t Roger Brigham contributed to this article.

Your leadership makes California shine brighter Thank you for continuing to fight for a fair and just society We congratulate the recipients of this year’s Equality California community leadership awards throughout the state. Your tireless work toward achieving equality for all Californians is an inspiration. PG&E is proud of our own Brandon Hernandez, a recipient of the award, who serves as a director in corporate affairs and was recently honored by Equality California at its ceremony in Sacramento. We’re grateful for your continuous contributions to making our state a better place to live and work.

<< Community News

8 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Openhouse to honor Hernandez, Hormel at Spring Fling by Khaled Sayed

former San Francisco health director is among the honorees at this year’s Spring Fling, a benefit held by Openhouse, the city’s LGBT senior organization. Dr. Sandra Hernandez, president and chief executive officer of the California HealthCare Foundation, will receive Openhouse’s AdelmanGurevitch Founder’s Award at the luncheon Sunday, April 26. Former Ambassador James Hormel and his partner, Michael Nguyen, will receive the Trailblazer Award for their philanthropic work. The Spring Fling will also celebrate Openhouse’s 15th anniversary just as construction begins on the long-awaited 55 Laguna Street project, which will provide affordable senior housing. (See story, page 1.) Hernandez, who maintains a clinical practice at San Francisco General Hospital’s AIDS clinic, served as the city’s top health official for three years in the late 1990s and had worked in other positions in the Department of Public Health for several years. A Latina lesbian, she stepped into the middle of the AIDS epidemic at a time when newer medications were just coming on the market. She left the post to become CEO of the San Francisco Foundation, a job she held for 16 years until stepping down in late 2013 to take her

current job in January 2014. At the foundation, she oversaw a $700 million endowment. Seth Kilbourn, executive director of Openhouse, said that Hernandez was a crucial funder at the San Francisco Foundation, and an adviser and advocate. “We’re delighted to be conveying the 2015 Founders Award to Dr. Hernandez, in recognition of long-standing advocacy for healthy communities, including LGBT older adults,” Kilbourn said. “She has long understood the need for strong families of choice and community engagement for staying healthy. That’s what Openhouse is all about.” When Hernandez first heard about the vision of Openhouse she was working at the health department and later at the San Francisco Foundation. That perspective helped her understand the importance of stable housing, case management, and other services as a way to stabilizing communities. What attracted Hernandez to Openhouse was the way the organization “presented the best of the social entrepreneurial spirit that it had, to make sure that the community of gay and lesbian people could age in a place that was supportive, for people who had come to San Francisco to live their lives in that way,” she said. “The idea of getting culturally appropriate service and doing it in

Courtesy California HealthCare Foundation

Dr. Sandra Hernandez

a place where people appreciated your value is very important to our LGBT community,” she added. That is why Hernandez was one of the early supporters of the Openhouse idea. She recognized the need for it when LGBT people reach the age of retirement and want to stay in San Francisco. “It takes a village to open a house, and the villagers in this house have been extraordinary,” Hernandez said. “I’m honored that they want to appreciate the small role that I had. When you live in a community like this you try to find anyway to help an organization like this to succeed, and I’m glad to be a small part of it. I

Peter James Atanasio February 23, 1958 – March 17, 2015

just wanted to congratulate everyone there who did the hard work over these 15 years, because it takes more than a grant to make something like this a reality.” As Hernandez pointed out, the LGBT community has had pressing issues around HIV services, mental health, and other concerns. “Over time mental health became as important,” she said. “We are beginning to look at the aging LGBT population in San Francisco and recognizing that many of this community are living on limited income.” It’s only been in recent years that the focus of many people has shifted to older adults as the population ages. “Assuring that there was affordability of houses, and a community that would embrace your family and friends as you defined it, and that was able to create community around it, was very important, and imperative as our population was beginning to age,” she added.

Queer youth

From page 2

spending time with other LGBTQidentified students.” Hsu said that he got similar support from his mom and sister, but not from his dad. “My dad still refuses to acknowledge my sexual orientation,” he said. “He told me to ‘make the right decisions’ for years, which was his way of saying ‘be straight.’” Queens of the Castro, Hsu said, has its roots in a drag show assembly that Hsu put together at Mission High for Pride Month.

For eight years Peter managed the trading floor at the Pacific Stock Exchange, where he was loved and respected by his colleagues and staff. To a gritty and stressful work environment, Peter brought class, dignity and warmth, as he would continue to do throughout his life, whatever the situation. Peter left the Stock Exchange in 1991 at the height of the AIDS epidemic to begin volunteering at the AIDS Emergency Fund, which provides direct services to those most in need. He soon became one of their first employees, managing volunteers, client services and directly improving the lives of thousands of people living with AIDS for over a decade. In 2004 Peter added to his volunteer experience by working in the kitchen of Most Holy Redeemer Church in the Castro for their Wednesday Night Suppers. He regularly arrived early to prepare food and stayed late to clean up. In 2008 Peter fulfilled a lifelong dream of becoming a father when he and Lance welcomed twins Alison and Samuel Henderson Atanasio into the world. Becoming a dad was a long-awaited and proud achievement for Peter and he showed the same energy and passion for parenting that he did in all other aspects of his life.

Another dream was realized when on November 22, 2013 Peter and Lance were married at San Francisco City Hall. Peter was an easy friend, with adults and children alike finding him charming, helpful and fun to be around. He was always one of the best dressed anywhere he went, and also one of the kindest and most considerate. He loved hosting and meeting with friends, traveling the world, and seeing movies and shows, but his home, gardens and most of all, his family, were his greatest passions. Peter had ceaseless energy and natural talent for making his home beautiful and welcoming, and assuring that his children were happy and well loved. Peter is survived by his husband Lance, son Samuel and daughter Alison, his parents Mary and Bob Dalpe, his brothers Bob Dalpe, Mark Dalpe and Joe Atanasio and Joe’s wife Maria, his sister- and brother-in-law Charlie and Lori McDaniel and many nieces and nephews, including Alex, Alicia, Anna, Colin, Grace, Joey, Kenika, Luis and Maddie, and dozens of close friends who made up his San Francisco and East Bay families. He was predeceased by his brother Sam Atanasio in 1988. A memorial to his life will be held on Saturday, April 25th at the AIDS Memorial Grove at 1:00 p.m. Donations in Peter’s memory can be sent to the AIDS Emergency Fund where Peter volunteered and worked or to the AIDS Memorial Grove where a permanent tribute is planned in Peter’s memory. Peter will always be remembered as a beautiful man with a kind heart, sharp wit and willingness to slap a friend into reason whenever needed.

Hernandez praised Openhouse, which was started by Marcy Adelman, Ph.D., and her late partner Jeanette Gurevitch, a psychotherapist who died in 2003. “It takes a lot to start an organization, and in 15 years they have integrated well into the community,” Hernandez said. “It’s truly a success story, and philanthropy enables these things to happen. Fifteen years is a huge success for this organization and one I think that our community should be proud of.” The California HealthCare Foundation is an independent foundation with assets of more than $700 million, headquartered in Oakland. It’s dedicated to improving the health of the people in the Golden State.t Openhouse’s Spring Fling takes place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Four Seasons, 757 Market Street in San Francisco. Tickets are $200 or $500 for VIP. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.openhouse-sf.org.

“My friends Mitch, Gabe and Ben, who are also drag queens, started to help out at the event,” he said, referring to Mitch Laffins, Gabriel McClelland, and Benjamin Rodriguez. “Through the shared experience, we decided that all schools should have a similar celebration that creates a safer environment for LGBTQ students and teachers.” A few years later they implemented a scholarship program for LGBTQ senior students who have shown a commitment to creating safe spaces in their high schools. See page 10 >>

Obituaries >> Robert Charlesworth Agee July 5, 1937 April 3, 2015

Peter James Atanasio died on March 17, 2015 in San Francisco after a brief battle with cancer. He was 57. Born February 23rd, 1958 in Troy, NY, Peter was the second of five brothers. In the late 70s, he lived in Tampa, FL, where he worked as a DJ in local dance clubs. After returning to New York, Peter met his true love and partner of 35 years, Lance Henderson. Together they made their way to Boston and in 1982 to San Francisco.

Our dear friend, brother, father Robert Charlesworth Agee did go “gentle into that good night,” in his own bed, on Good Friday, April 3, 2015. A longtime HIV/ AIDS and cancer survivor, Bob was living fully until his passing. Those who knew him knew that he was a gentle man, an old soul, an inquisitive spiritual seeker. Bob was open minded, adventurous, valiant, forgiving. He had the rare wisdom to know how to move from anger to love, from strife to acceptance, from forlorn to lightbearing. Bob was born July 5, 1937, to an eastern Pennsylvania family that included two brothers, Bill and Tom Agee. His parents passed when Bob was in high school and that event shaped his life in ways that he did not at the time foresee. Bob served in the United States Army, with assignment in Germany. He was trained as a Morse code translator, and also worked as a chaplain’s assistant. At the University of Oklahoma, Bob majored in business and mathematics. Later he studied computer programming in San Francisco. He married and had one daughter, Laurie Agee, now a wellknown Gottman certified marriage and family therapist in San Francisco and Marin County. In the 1960s Bob moved to San Francisco, enamored with the countercultural revolution, in search of acceptance of his gay sexuality, and in pursuit of answering life’s most important question – who am I? In San Francisco, Bob developed his career at Decimus Corporation and Bank of America, and he helped write code for the first credit card authorization program. While working, he simultaneously began successfully investing in real estate and the stock market, and exploring his spirituality. From the 1960s until his passing Bob practiced meditation, studied theology and philosophy, from John the Baptist to Yogananda, from Buddha to Christ, from St Teresa of Avila to Carl Jung and Krishnamurti, to name a few. Bob was also a devout student of history, an avid traveler, and a walking enthusiast. He loved watching seagulls at Baker Beach, or walking in Golden Gate Park (especially Stow Lake) alone or with friends. Bob loved books, theatre, movies, music, museums, and antiquing. He was a member of San Francisco’s three major museums and visited them often. At home, on Chattanooga Street, Bob found the best refuge of all – his beloved garden.

For over 30 years, Bob and his brothers went fishing each summer in upstate New York. During those quiet times he could track his life with those who always knew him. He delighted to see how with each passing year his brothers seemingly grew to love and understand him from a perspective that was less encumbered with culture or ideology. Bob had two partners after divorcing his wife: Bobby Scott and Curt Wyatt, who predeceased him. The greatest love of his life, however, was his daughter, Laurie. He loved her in ways he did not always fully understand. He was never happier than when Laurie was happy. His heart was in perfect harmony when he and Laurie were aligned. In addition to his daughter and brothers, Bob is survived by many longtime friends, and his support group at the V.A. Hospital, for which he felt much gratitude. Sleep deeply, our dear Bob, and know that you live on in all who love you. A celebration of Bob’s life was held privately in San Francisco. Charitable donations to an AIDS service organization of your choice, or to the National AIDS Memorial Grove at Golden Gate Park, would be most appreciated by Bob’s family.

Don D. Harryman Jr. May 21, 1951 – April 5, 2015

Don D. Harryman Jr. was also known as Pete and Namakaokona. He was surrounded by loved ones when he passed away peacefully in San Francisco on Easter. He joins his sister, Sherry; brother, Johnny; niece, Julie; father, Don Sr.; and mother, Jean, in eternal peace. Don was born in Los Angeles and enjoyed living in San Francisco, Utah, Japan, and Hawaii. He was a linguist, a writer, an activist, an actor, a dancer, a Giants fan, and Employee of the Month multiple times. He spoke English, Japanese, and Hawaiian, devoting his career to providing various customer services for a diversity of people. With a witty sense of humor and a passion for equal rights, he helped and touched many people across the world. He loved the ocean and expressing himself through song and dance, including ballet and hula. He is survived by his sister, Lisa; brother, Michael; best friend, Todd; and adopted sister Nedra and her entire family. A celebration of his life memorial service will be scheduled on a date to be determined.

t <<

Community News>>

Transition costs

From page 6

various agencies, such as the Department of Motor Vehicles or Social Security Administration, there were countless forms, which totaled about $100 in change fees. Then California law changed with the passage of Assembly Bill 1121, which removed court requirements and fees and public notification in a newspaper in an effort to make identity changes easier and cheaper for the transgender community. “California has one of the most progressive policies in the country,” said Anand Kalra, program manager at the Oakland-based Transgender Law Center. Other states are more restrictive and costly, but it varies based on county filing fees, he said. Many states continue to require a publication notice and some states even require reassignment surgery before a gender change on documents, he said. Erin has yet to tackle her birth certificate and passport, but she is proud of the changes to her driver’s license, Social Security card, college diploma, and professional engineering certification.

Delicate issues

There’s also the delicate matter

Jock Talk

From page 7

the Gay Games, Montreal organizers founded GLISA to serve as a counterpart to the FGG. The formation of associations to stage continental Outgames was announced, and the Montreal event was dubbed the World Outgames. Then, at a convention of the Gay and Lesbian Athletic Foundation in Boston in March of 2004, GLISA representatives were prepared to announce that there would be a second quadrennial World Outgames, and it would be held in 2010, the same as Gay Games VIII. The evening before the formal presentation, many sports representatives who supported the Montreal event loudly rebuffed that proposal. They argued that staging the World Outgames in Gay Games years would be perceived as a clear attempt to destroy the Gay Games. The next morning, GLISA announced World Outgames 2 would be held three years after the inaugural event. World Outgames 2 were held in Copenhagen in 2009; drew about 5,000 participants, including conference registrants; and finished with a reported profit of about $228,000. World Outgames 3 were held in 2013 in Antwerp and projected estimates were that they would draw close to 5,000 athletes. But no reports have ever been publicized as to the final participation numbers or whether the event made or lost money. Four sports events were canceled in the months before the games, wrestling and martial arts were combined into workshops and their tournaments eliminated, and

News Briefs

From page 3

API group to honor Wilkinson

Chinese American educator and longtime community activist Willy Wilkinson will be honored at the Asian Pacific Islander Queer Women and Transgender Community’s 28th annual Lunar New Year banquet Saturday, April 25 from 5 to 11 p.m. at House of Banquet Restaurant, 939 Clement Street in San Francisco. Wilkinson will be the first trans person to receive APIQWTC’s Phoenix Award, organizers said. He is an award-winning writer and public health consultant who has been advocating for marginalized populations since the early days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. He is also

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 9

of deciding whether to provide for a possible biological legacy. Before surgery, Erin took the extra step of saving her sperm samples. She paid $1,200 for an initial setup and for the past three years has paid a $350 annual storage fee. “Once those samples are gone, you can never bring them back,” she said of her decision to preserve the opportunity to pass on her genes. For Mae, Erin, and others like them, planning surgery may require traveling long distances to find surgeons and health care providers. Another hurdle is getting the few specialist surgeons in California to contract with insurance plans that accept trans men and women’s insurance, Harbatkin from Lyon-Martin said. “It’s not that it’s not covered,” she said. “It’s about finding a surgeon who is contracted with the plan.” She said there are about a handful of surgeons who perform phalloplasty, or penis reconstruction, while there are many more options for top surgery. Most doctors and surgeons in this field follow the guidelines set by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, a professional association advocating evidenced based care for those in transition. WPATH asks for two letters of recommendation for major genital surgery.

In Marin County, Dr. Curtis Crane, of Brownstein & Crane Surgical Services, said it is “nearly impossible” for a trans person to pay for all necessary surgeries. He said his office is always working to get insurance companies to cooperate, even in states where there is a no exclusion mandate for those identifying as transgender. “The transgender movement is medical, social, and political,” he said. “Finally the community is being recognized as needing medically necessary surgery.” Crane’s patients hail from 40 states and 15 countries. Since opening the surgical practice two and a half years ago, Crane said 99.8 percent of his patients are transgender. The practice, with two surgeons and a third arriving this summer, books out about six months to a year. In Foster City, Dr. Joel Beck specializes in feminization surgeries, such as body contouring, breast augmentation, and facial reconstruction. These procedures are typically not covered by insurance despite advances in transgender law, according to a spokeswoman for Beck’s office who asked not to be named. By the time many transgender patients can afford these additional surgeries, many are in their 50s, 60s or older, the staff person said.

even the results in sports that held competition events are not available online.

lives. Several praised GLISA’s continental Outgames, which offer fewer sports, as a way to bring together critical masses of LGBT individuals in more repressed areas. And they all welcomed the idea of conferences at the Gay Games – as long as they were not organized and funded by the Gay Games hosts. Gene Dermody, president of Golden Gate Wrestling Club and a founding member of Team SF, delivered the news to the audience at the beginning of the meeting about the deaths last week of former Gay Games volunteers Jean Dolan and Marc Naimark. He praised Dolan for helping the FGG in the early 1990s in developing and adopting the Red Books for sports, which gives host cities the standards under which events must operate, and praised Naimark for helping the FGG adopt effective use of communications tools to spread its message. “What is particularly apropos today is that these Gay Games volunteers overcame adversity to brilliantly succeed in spite of obstacles, and then proceeded to volunteer where they could be most effective: the Gay Games movement,” Dermody said. “It speaks to the integrity and character of the Gay Games community when professionals like Jean and Marc step forward and give a major part of their lives as working volunteers for a cause they believed was effective.” Waddell, meanwhile, will be honored with Tom Waddell Day this Saturday, April 18, at his alma mater, Springfield College, which ran a seven-page spread on his life as a gay sports pioneer and humanitarian in its most recent alumni magazine.t

Off and on talks

FGG and GLISA have held talks off and on since 2005 about the possibility of merging events without resolution. Former FGG treasurer Alan Lessik, a local Gay Games figure skater who, as a consultant helped to restructure the federation a decade ago to make it more representative, spoke at Saturday’s meeting and said he thought the history and culture of both organizations indicated they could never co-host a joint event. Representatives of running, martial arts, swimming, water polo, sailing, cycling, and wrestling all spoke in favor of the Team SF counterproposal. Most of all, they shared personal stories of how the opportunity to participate in sports had impacted their lives. Heather Stewart of San Francisco Sailing Team noted that her sport, which is relatively expensive to stage and traditionally male dominated and homophobic, had never been able to find a home in the World Outgames, but in the Gay Games had been wildly successful and brought in a historic sponsorship. Even Larocque, who has never participated in a World Outgames, choked up while sharing his experience of going to the 2002 Sydney Gay Games to compete as a runner and bring his dying partner back to his native land. Repeatedly the representatives hammered home their desire to see the Gay Games continue to remain focused on sports and the impact sports inclusion has had on their recognized widely for his experience in trans issues, and has trained hundreds of community health organizations, businesses, and educational institutions on how to provide equal access for LGBT populations. He earned a master’s degree in public health from UC Berkeley and lives in Oakland with his wife, Georgia Kolias, and their three children. Tickets to the banquet are $49 for adults, and $25 for students (with valid student ID) and seniors. For more information, visit www. apiqwtc.org. Or email banquet@ apiqwtc.org.

‘Ugliest yard’ contest kicks off

The San Francisco Department of the Environment has announced the competition for San Francisco’s “ugliest yard,” which runs through

May 15, and welcomes residents to enter for a chance to win a grand prize yard makeover featuring naturally drought tolerant plants native to the city. The competition also kicks off the launch of the SF Plant Finder (http://sfplantfinder.org), which highlights drought tolerant plants and trees that thrive in the city’s microclimates. To enter, contestants need to take a picture of their ugly yard, upload it to the environment department’s website (http://www.sfenvironment.org/ ugliest-yard) or Facebook page (www. facebook.com/SFEnvironment) with a caption about why the yard needs a makeover, and then share the photo on social media to increase votes. Terms and conditions apply, and can be found on the website.t

Luca S. also has turned to online fundraising (http://www.gofundme. com/surgeryforluca). The 25-yearold San Francisco man, who asked that his last name be withheld to protect his medical privacy, said he has scheduled his top surgery before his 26th birthday in August so he can stay on his parents’ insurance. “It will only be possible if I make the money,” Luca said. “If I don’t have enough by the surgery date, I will either postpone it or see if I can pay the rest with credit.” Luca’s transitioning costs started with $600 for five sessions with a gender therapist. Once he was able to get

a letter from his therapist, he could begin testosterone injections, which he started in October. His insurance doesn’t cover the $120 10-milliliter vials of the male hormone, which each last him about six months. Crowdfunding seemed like the best option. “I have no other way of making the money in a timely manner,” Luca said. “With the amount of money I make, it would take years and years to save enough.” He is still waiting to see if his insurance will foot the bill for top surgery, but historically this procedure hasn’t been covered. As of early April, he had raised just over $1,000 toward his $10,000 goal.t

/lgbtsf

SAN FRANCISCO

COLUMBARIUM Meet Your Neighbors You’re invited to mix and mingle withwindow the people who will one There are only a few niches day share your permanent San Francisco address.

with stained glass available in Wine & Cheese Open House the original building. Friday, July 19, 2013 2—5pm

RSVP Required: (415) 752-8791 We’re offering a $4,500 discount and 0% financing, until 1 Loraine Court—San Francisco,April CA 9411829, 2015.

By reserving now, you can make the choice for your future. Cannot be combined with any other SF Columbarium offer.

Call 415.752.7891 Visit us at One Loraine Court, in the heart of the Richmond. COA 534

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

10 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Legal Notices>> SUMMONS SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT NOTICE TO DEFENDANT: BERNARDO RAMIRO FUENTES YOU ARE BEING SUED BY PLAINTIFF: IRMA ENCINAS CASE NO. CGC-12-526901

Rick Gerharter

A mural covers the ceiling of the first floor hallway at 55 Laguna Street.

LGBT senior housing

From page 5

building a new $24 million structure designated as 95 Laguna on what is now an old parking lot, is slated to commence in 2017. Seniors age 62 and over will be able to apply for the units – the state raised the age limit after financing was secured for the Richardson Hall rehab – with a move in date sometime in late 2018 for the selected residents. The seven-story building will contain 70 units of housing as well as an expected 7,500 square foot senior center, with activity areas and a dining room, where Openhouse plans to provide services to residents and any LGBT senior living in the city. It is currently working with its architect, Van Meter Williams Pollack, to finalize the design. “This is also a new home for the whole community really,” explained Kilbourn. “People may lose sight of that fact when they are looking at the designs and think it is just affordable housing that is not for me. We will have all these expanded services at the building for everybody.”

A long time coming

The idea for the project was born 17 years ago when Marcy Adelman, Ph.D., and her late partner, Jeanette Gurevitch, founded Rainbow Adult Community Housing. After Gurevitch’s death in January 2003, the agency rebranded itself under the name of Openhouse, which was selected through a community charette process that Gurevitch participated in. The housing plan languished for years as the agency cycled through executive directors, carried public support, and hunted for a site. In the meantime, the agency built up its services for seniors to keep them housed in their own homes and turned to training providers on the needs of LGBT seniors. Then the UC Berkeley Extension

Queer youth

From page 8

Hsu said that the Queens try to raise $10,000-$20,000 per year in order to give away as many scholarships as possible. They also raise money for gay-straight alliances at schools – Hsu runs the Mission High gay-straight alliance. The show promises to be quite an extravaganza, complete with song and dance numbers performed by a variety of people, including contestants from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Pink Saturday

From page 1

Soul said she’d like to see the 2016 event be in a youth-oriented site, possibly outside the Castro, “where we can actually maintain a perimeter” to keep the party safe. Details haven’t been worked out yet. McFarlane, who identifies as a cis-

announced in 2004 that it was entertaining development offers for its campus at 55 Laguna due to moving to a new home downtown. Developer A.F. Evans emerged with the favored proposal, which included teaming up with Openhouse to develop up to 80 units of market rate housing for LGBT seniors with 20 percent set aside as affordable. By 2008 the plans had evolved to include 88 units of LGBT senior housing, all of which would be affordable, and won the needed city approvals. The next year, amid a worsening recession, A.F. Evans went bankrupt, and Wood Partners took over the 55 Laguna project. It submitted new plans for city review, and by the time the current iteration of the entire infill project was approved in 2012, the LGBT senior housing component had grown to 110 units. Due to the insistence of neighborhood groups and housing activists, Openhouse and its development partners agreed to rent all of the apartments as affordable. It has a 99-year lease at the property and has vowed to keep all of the units at below market rate for as long as it oversees the housing project. “As you can imagine, I am completely thrilled. I am delighted that the housing piece of Openhouse’s mission and vision is about to happen,” said Adelman, 68, who does not intend to vie for one of the units in the building. “We are on the precipice to really finally realize our dream around building housing for LGBT seniors.” She stressed that any senior interested in moving into the 55 Laguna project should begin the process now to become eligible for the lottery. “It is very important for everybody, even if just slightly interested, to get involved with the lottery and get on the list so they have a real chance to win that lottery and be in that housing,” said Adelman. “Otherwise, they will have no chance at all.”t “Previous student scholarship winners will be honored, and teachers and students from SFUSD will also perform,” Hsu said. “There will also be a silent auction, which will benefit the scholarship fund.”t The show takes place from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. at Mission High School, 3750 18th Street. Tickets are $25-$50 and are available online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/1148922. For information, visit http://www. queensofthecastro.com.

gender lesbian (meaning her gender matches the sex she was assigned at birth), said the city, which for years had declined to directly fund the party, “has agreed to cover the cost of this year’s event.” The budget is being finalized. The 2014 festival cost the Sisters $80,000, though this year’s celebration is expected to cost more to produce.t

Notice: You have been sued. The court may decide against you without your being heard unless you respond within 30 days. Read the information below. You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this summons and legal papers are served on you to file a written response at this court and have a copy served on the plaintiff. A letter or phone call will not protect you. Your written response must be in proper legal form if you want the court to hear your case. There may be a court form that you can use for your response. You can find these court forms and more information at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp) your county law library, or the courthouse nearest you. If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the court clerk for a fee waiver form. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case by default, and your wages, money, and property may be taken without further warning from the court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an attorney right away. If you do not know an attorney, you may want to call an attorney referral service. If you cannot afford an attorney, you may be eligible for free legal services from a nonprofit legal services program. You can locate these nonprofit groups at the California Legal Services Web site (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), or by contacting your local court or county bar association. NOTE: The court has a statutory lien for waived fees and costs on any settlement or arbitration award of $10,000 or more in a civil case. The court’s lien must be paid before the court will dismiss the case. The name and address of the court is: San Francisco Superior Court, 400 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94102. The name, address, and telephone number of the plaintiff’s attorney, or plaintiff without an attorney, is:

ROBERT P. GARCIA, 12 GEARY ST RM 708, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108; (415) 648-3060 Date: Dec 11, 2012; Clerk Of The Court, by Steppe, Deputy.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036389900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: KOHLENBERG & ASSOCIATES VOCATIONAL COUNSELING SERVICES, 459 FULTON ST, #204, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BETTY KOHLENBERG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/1981. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/24/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036368400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: IPICKUP4U.COM, 2035 OAKDALE AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ASIANA CHAU NGUYEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/12/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/12/15.

MAR 26 APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036370700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MAC AND MILK SF, 8 RICHARDS CIRCLE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed LINDSAY BUSSEY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/13/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036389500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SKIN LOUNGE, 1640 BUSH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JENNIFER CLARK. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/13/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/24/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036382600

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-15-551033

In the matter of the application of: MEGAN ASHLEY GRIMM, 4540 CALIFORNIA ST #10, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner MEGAN ASHLEY GRIMM, is requesting that the name MEGAN ASHLEY GRIMM, be changed to MEGAN ASHLEY KUMAR. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Rm. 514 on the 2nd of June 2015 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036379700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PURPLE SCOOTER, 288 SANCHEZ ST. SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BARRY SYNOGROUND. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/19/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/19/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036381400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PERCENT JEWELRY, 1204 STEVENSON ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed THOMAS SCHWARTZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/19/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/19/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036374400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MV MEDIA, 171 LIBERTY ST, #201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MARSHA VDOVIN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/17/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/17/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036370200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: NINELUS BEAUTY SUPPLY, 4300 GEARY BLVD, #B, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NATALYA RINGO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/13/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/13/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036377200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MAKASIAN LAW, 1995 OAK ST, UNIT #3, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ROSS B. MAKASIAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/01/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036382800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SIRRON NORRIS STUDIO & GALLERY, 172 FAIRMOUNT, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131. This business is conducted by a general partnership and is signed SIRRON NORRIS AND LAURIE SCOLANI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/06/2010. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/20/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036378500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SOMA PIZZA, 483 3RD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed ISAM ABDULLAH DARWISH. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036375800

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036376700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LA LUCHA COFFEE BAR, 1600 17TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed JACK OF HEARTS LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036377000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RANGOON RUBY BURMESE CUISINE, 1608 POLK ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed RANGOON RUBY INVESTMENT, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/13/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036381200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: EDEN OF SAN FRANCISCO, 572 O’FARRELL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed HEREMBAG LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/19/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/19/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-035680300

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: SUNSET PLUMBING, 1858 45TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by YEHUDA GOLANI. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 02/25/2014.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-15-551034

In the matter of the application of: VISHAL AGARWAL, 4540 CALIFORNIA ST #10, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner VISHAL AGARWAL, is requesting that the name VISHAL AGARWAL, be changed to VISHAL KUMAR. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Rm. 514 on the 2nd of June, 2015 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036394700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SHARDS OF HISTORY, 1578 INNES AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GREG FREEMAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/26/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/26/15.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036358300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GRANNY PANTY DESIGNS, 215 SANTA YNEZ AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MARISSA CARTER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/10/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/10/15.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036396000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TRISKELIAN’S KEY, 399 ARGUELLO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed HERSCHELL LARRICK. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/27/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/27/15.

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036396500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: NATASHA GEORGIA, 5432 GEARY BLVD, #121, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NATALIA ZHOGLO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/20/15.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE UPS STORE 0546, 182 HOWARD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SAN FRANCISCO MAIL BOXES CORP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/13/2003. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PIZZA JOINT, 3088 BALBOA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JIHAD DABIT. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/27/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/27/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036385500

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036383900

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036363500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: AMX PLUMBING, 4739 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MAX NGUYEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/23/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/23/15.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BELLOTA, 888 BRANNAN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed THE ABSINTHE GROUP, INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/19/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/20/15.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: UBIQUITY RETIREMENT & SAVINGS, 101 GREEN ST, 2ND FLOOR, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94111. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed DECIMAL INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/12/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/12/15.

MAR 26, APR 02, 09, 16, 2015

APRIL 02, 09, 16, 23, 2015

▼

Read more online at www.ebar.com

Legal Notices>> FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036377100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TYCOON STATUS ENTERTAINMENT, 78 MARGARET AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JORELLE JONES. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/24/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/24/15.

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036404500

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036416500

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036405400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GIG TELECOMMUNICATIONS, 1225 JUDAH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed JIANG ZHI HUI & SHEN PENGYU & FUNG HUNG LAU GIMEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/02/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/02/15.

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036389800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PLEASANT AIRPORT TRANSPORTATION, 1931 QUESADA AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed GALAXY UNLIMITED SERVICES, INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/24/15.

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036402600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CHRISTOPHER’S AT THE PALACE, 3601 LYON ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed POFA CAFE, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/01/15.

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036384200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RED APRON PIZZERIA, 3214 FOLSOM ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed RED APRON PIZZERIA, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/15/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/20/15.

APRIL 09, 16, 23, 30, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036375500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ANITA BOWEN PHOTOGRAPHY, 1034 STANFORD AVE #1, OAKLAND, CA 94608. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ANITA BOWEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/17/10. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/17/15.

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036415700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: IDIOSYNCRATIC VISION, 857 CLAY ST #409, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ANTHONY WILCOX. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/07/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/07/15.

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036360800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SUN STAR, 2545 A NORIEGA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed HUA JIANG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/11/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/11/15.

Classifieds The

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036389000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: 1-2-3-4 GO! RECORDS, 1034 VALENCIA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed STEVEN PHILIP RAY STEVENSON. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/18/15.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PRACTISTRY, 945 IRVING ST #3, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed WENDIE SUE LASH & KAREN LEE ERLICHMAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/02/15.

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 11

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: A RAN, 161 THRIFT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed HANG RAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/08/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/08/15.

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036397600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SIN CHERRY, 1228 GRANT AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ORLANDO SANCHEZ ALVARADO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/30/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/30/15.

Blogs>>

Legal Services>>

Movers>>

Tech Support>>

Household Services>>

www.amongthehogs.com

Hauling >> HAULING 24/7 –

(415) 441-1054 Large Truck

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036402300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DOGO LOVE, 538 CASTRO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed MEERIYAGERD INC. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/01/15.

Pet Services>>

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036421300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE SPICE JAR, 2500 BRYANT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed TABELU LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/10/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/10/15.

APRIL 16, 23, 30, MAY 07, 2015 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-036398900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LAUNDRÉ, 1278 PAGE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed LAUNDRÉ LIMITED LIABILITY CO. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/30/15. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/30/15.

APRIL 16, 23, 30, MAY 07, 2015 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-035898800 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: SUN STAR, 2545A NORIEGA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by CHOI LIN IP. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 06/18/14.

APRIL 16, 23, 30, MAY 07, 2015 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-036157500

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: SPOT ON SF, 325 NEWHALL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business was conducted by a limited liability company and signed by HOGAN PENROSE LLC (CA). The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/17/14.

MACINTOSH HELP * home or office * 24 years exp * sfmacman.com

GROOMINGDALES –

Professional Dog & Cat Grooming * Gay Owned * Certified Master Groomers * All Brands * Friendly Service * Se Habla Espanol! 1130 Chula Vista Ave just off Broadway, Burlingame, CA. 650-340-8801 or groomingdalessfbayarea.com

VIP GROOMING –

Pet Grooming. Proudly Serving the LGBT Community. 4299 24th St, SF. 415-282-1393 or vipgroomingsf.com

R i c k 41 5. 82 1 . 1 792

Job Offered>>

CLEANING PROFESSIONAL –

ADMIN ASSISTANT –

Appointment Coordination, Event & Meeting Planning, Make Travel Arrangements, Record Keeping, Bookkeeping, Scheduling. Send Your Resume & Salary Expectations to: cowdinaaron@ gmail.com or call 562-666-3004

The

26 Years Exp. (415) 794-4411 Roger Miller

HOUSECLEANING SINCE 1979 –

Many original clients. All supplies. HEPA Vac. Richard 415-255-0389

Classified Order Form

Deadline: NOON on MONDAY. Payment must accompany ad. No ads taken over the telephone. If you have a question, call 415.861.5019. Display advertising rates available upon request. Indicate Type Style Here

XBOLD and BOLD stop here

APRIL 16, 23, 30, MAY 07, 2015

To place your Classiﬁed ad,

call 415-861-5019

Then go have a drink & relax...

APRIL 16, 23, 39, MAY 07, 2015 RATES for Newspaper and website: First line, Regular 10.00 All subsequent lines 5.00 Web or e-mail hyperlink 5.00 CAPS double price BOLD double price X-BOLD triple price PAYMENT:

ebar.com

Cash

Personal Check

Contact Information Name Address Number of Issues

Mail with payment to: Bay Area Reporter 44 Gough St. #204 SF, CA 94103

Credit Card Payment Name Card Number Expiration Date Signature Money Order

City Classification

OR E-MAIL: BARLEGALS@GMAIL.COM

Visa

MasterCard

AmEx

Telephone State Amt. Enclosed

Zip

WE FOCUS ON HIV TO HELP YOU FOCUS ON

TODAY

Ask your doctor if a medicine made by Gilead is right for you.

UNBC1839_MA1_BayAreaReporter_9.75x16.indd 1

3/27/15 3:33 PM

Cabaret man

Soap dish

Out &About

Big dance

O&A

Vol. 45 • No. 16 • April 16-22, 2015

www.ebar.com/arts

Separating from Hedwig by Richard Dodds

ena Hall won a Tony Award for playing a woebegone man in Hedwig and the Angry Inch. After more than a year of eight shows a week as the beaten-down Yitzhak, it’s not surprising that her first postHedwig endeavor is about cutting loose. See page 22 >>

Lena Hall played Yitzhak with all of the Broadway stars so far of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, including Hedwig creator John Cameron Mitchell. Joan Marcus

Jacob Lawrence’s “At Times it is Hard to Get a Table in a Pool Room” (left) is one of 56 works on display at the Cantor Arts Center on the Stanford University campus.

Jacob Lawrence’s A rhapsody in blues

by Sura Wood

master storyteller with a fine-tuned social conscience who used his gifts and a powerful artistic voice to become a leading chronicler of the African-American experience, Jacob Lawrence was a superb draftsman and visual thinker in an impres-

sive range of mediums. Fifty-six of his paintings, drawings, rare color etchings and prints dating from 1943-98 are currently on view in Promised Land: The Art of Jacob Lawrence, a new exhibition that emphasizes his figural strengths, narrative skills and a bold distinctive style characterized by a meld of Cubism and early 20th-century Social Realism. See page 19 >> Rick Gerharter

{ SECOND OF THREE SECTIONS }

45 eB AR .co

Our largest edition of the year publishes on June 25, 2015 and will celebrate Pride’s historic 45th anniversary.

eck newIt’s out the s, art Bay s, clas Are sifi a Rep eds orte , and r onl per ine son – als.

in Highlights taries, shorts. Arts features, documen

see

the of the Those were and memories section and the music See second

EPORTER AY REA Serving the

by Seth Hemmelg

gay, lesbian,

arn

bisexual, and

the 40th anis set to celebrate and celean Francisco LGBT Pride Parade to Sunthe June 26 niversary of weekend, Saturday, bration this stage talent day, June 27. as people enjoy main almost Boys or watch This year, the Backstreet that includes

▼

the anniversary historical parade contingents, to mind Pride’s 200 passing likely to call milestone is of the GLBT significance. executive director anniversary Paul Boneberg, said Pride’s 40th in events both Society, of the Pride Historical importance “shows the and around the world.” 24 San Francisco

page

es his

ive 10th ann Cassell

column afte arn by Seth Hemmelg

Jane Philomen

Reporter columhe Bay Area writing for the nist who’s beenwas founded in it paper since column today his 1971 is retiring 24). June (Thursday, a.k.a. Richard Walters, pubSweet Lips, B.A.R. founding roommates and the late Ross were his self-delisher Bob Lips started when Sweet column. Sweet Lips, and scribed gossip and people, bars, Reporter columnist He wrote about Polk and Bay Area with bar owner Marlena paper’s Francisco’s visits left, at the events in San He even worked in right, publisher Bob Ross, 2001 at the areas. B.A.R. party in April . Tenderloin led him 30th anniversary a few bars. Club Rendez-Vous health has now-defunct But declining page 4

NectArena executive producer Jade Williams, as Edaj. better known

Cleland

at this of the women t’s the year Francisco Pride Sunday’s San LGBT festival. San Francisco NectArena, Committee’s 10 Pride Celebration is celebrating women’s stage, In addition to the years of pride. two competing affiliated stage’s anniversary, events, not women’s Pride Committee – Eden with the Pride PrideFest – are and in the Bay to the celebration. [See adding glam in this month’s “Feast of Eden” stage, the BARtab.) NectArena The popular of its kind and also longest running

ies since 1971

s retir Sweet Lip r 39 years

celebrat NectArena rsary by Heather

. No. 25 . 24 June 2010

Pride has two most prominent one of the the world at stages in stages women’s L. idea of women’s “sparked the events,” said Kendall other Pride

▼

Rick Gerharter

S unfurl material a contingent rainbow Members of to the colors in the ing Parade. correspond the 2008 Pride flag during

Vol. 40

communit transgender

▼

34 wraps up Frameline final weekend’s The big 4-0! days: The politics of Pride parade.

As the only LGBT publication with an audited and verified circulation, the Bay Area Reporter offers the largest reach to LGBT consumers in the 9-county San Francisco Bay Area.

RESERVE YOUR SPACE TODAY!

▼

OUR 2015 PRIDE EDITION PUBLISHES JUNE 25. CALL 415-861-5019 or EMAIL ADVERTISING@EBAR.COM FOR MORE INFO. page 13

NS ECTIO REE S OF TH FIRST

<< Out There

14 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Books, props, kudos by Roberto Friedman

hat books are currently on your nightstand? That’s a question The New York Times Book Review asks a featured writer each week. In Out There’s case, they include the following two volumes. The Completely Unfabulous Social Life of Ethan Green by Eric Orner (Northwest Press): Orner’s comic strip ran in gay papers from 1989 to 2005, and most of the 300 installments are collected here. Ethan is gay, Jewish, lives in Boston, and suffers the usual indignities of a full sex life. Orner’s touch is light, text-driven, rings true. Some references (videostore, AZT) are dated, but most (exes, coupled friends) are not. Serious issues (serodiscordant couples) are treated seriously. For Ethan’s mother, the fact that Ethan is dating a Cirque du Soleil per-

Up Guys; costumes and props including the wedding dress and screen-used Keane paintings from Big Eyes; Chris Evans’ transformation costume from Captain America: The First Avenger; Donald O’Connor O’Connor’s trademark hat from Singin’ in the Rain; and costume designer Charles LeMaire’s original costume design drawings for Hollywood legends including Marilyn Monroe and Bette Davis vis. Quite a haul.

former (“an acrobat, or clown, or something”) is a serious issue. As the first rock critic for the Village Voice, Richard Goldstein had close encounters with Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, the Beach Boys and the Doors. His memoir Another Little Piece of My Heart – My Life of Rock and Revolution in the 60s (Bloomsbury) touches all the usual bases of a Boomer tell-all: Summer of Love, anti-war demos, civil rights, race riots. But as an emerging gay man and activist, his story has personal resonance as well. Of gay culture in the 60s: “Even at the Voice, which had hired homosexuals during the 50s, the queers kept a low profile. As for the music scene, forget it. For all its florid androgyny, rock was a very macho milieu, and even critics I knew to be bisexual didn’t send those signals in their writing – nor did I. It wasn’t just discretion

End note

or cowardice; I honestly didn’t feel gay. But there was one exception to my heteronormativity. I dug drag queens.”

Odd lots

The results from a Hollywood props auction aren’t exactly stopthe-presses news. But Premiere Props auctioned off over 700 props from movies and TV late last month at their headquarters in El Segundo, CA. OT eats this stuff up, so please indulge us. Items under the gavel included: a rare, screen-used Aries 1-B Lunar Spaceship model from 2001: A Space

$10 $10 OFF OFF

$10 offonly, Full Grooming $10 OFF for new clientsGrooming Full with this ad Full Grooming Valid For ALL Customers

With this Wise-Buys™ coupon. Valid For ALL May not be combined with any other offer or discount. Expires 3/31/12 Valid For ALL Customers

Customers

With this Wise-Buys™ coupon.

Odyssey; Kurt Russell’s screen-worn costume from Stargate; Brad Pitt’s stunt bowie knife from Inglourious Basterds; Meryl Streep’s screenworn costume from August, Osage County; Jennifer Lawrence’s screenworn costume from Silver Linings Playbook; Melissa McCarthy, Bill Murray and Naomi Watts’ screenworn costumes from St. Vincent; Jake Gyllenhaal’s screen-worn costume from Prisoners; Al Pacino’s screen-worn costume from Stand

Andrew Porter, a gay music critic, most famously for The New Yorker, who transformed the field, died at 86, in London on April 3. The numerous obituaries recognized the genius of this polymath individual and the improbable number of his accomplishments. They included a remarkable twoquarter stint as visiting Bloch Lecturer at UC Berkeley. But, at least so far, only Nicholas Kenyon’s obit, in the [UK] Guardian, has also captured the shy, charming, often socially awkward man whose endless personal interest and generosity will be most missed by those of us lucky enough to have known him.t

Charting the course

May not be coupon. combined with any other offer or discount. With this Wise-Buys™ 3/31/12 May not be combined with any other offer orExpires discount. Expires 3/31/12

To Build Your Business With Wise-Buy$®, Call (650) 344-6400

Serving the Castro since 1981

by Philip Campbell

DEAR ADVERTISER: We have followed your instructions and created thisAll Rights Reserved 112 • 2 ®, 2012 ©Wise-Buy$ ©Wise-Buy$®, 2012 All Rights Reserved 112 • 2 proof. Please review it and indicate if it is ok to print or if it needs any minor corrections. This is not an opportunity to redesign your ad. fax back or email approval 24 hours. Thank You. this and created this DEAR ADVERTISER: Weyour haveWe followed your instructions and created PHONE:650-344-6400 650-344-6400 Please EMAIL: wbcoupons@comcast.net DEAR ADVERTISER: havewithin followed your instructions PHONE: proof. Please reviewreview it and indicate it is ok to if print orok if itto needs any proof. Please it and ifindicate it is print or if it needs any FAX: 650-343-2540 FAX: 650-343-2540 ® minor corrections. This is This not anis opportunity to redesign your ad. ® INDICATE MINOR CHANGES: minor corrections. not an opportunity to redesign your ad. Please fax back or email your approval within 24 hours. Thank You. EMAIL: wbcoupons@comcast.net Please fax back or email your ST approval within 24 hours. Thank You. EMAIL: wbcoupons@comcast.net 15TH

®, Call (650) PHONE: ®, Call344-6400 To Build Your Business With Wise-Buy$ To Build Your Business With Wise-Buy$ (650) 344-6400 ®

650-344-6400 FAX: 650-343-2540

M AR

NOE ST

funny thing happened on the way to the San Francisco SymCafe | Restaurant | Catering INDICATE MINOR CHANGES: INDICATE MINOR CHANGES: phony last week. The cab driver, exPAY PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO: ❒ EXPIRATION DATE ❒ ADDRESS ❒ PHONE NUMBER ❒ OFFER pertly navigating rush-hour traffic 288 Noe❒Street, SF OK TO PRINT ❒ OK WITH CORRECTIONS to make a 6:30 p.m. start at Davies PAY B PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO: ❒ EXPIRATION DATE ❒ ADDRESS ❒ PHONEDATE NUMBER ❒ OFFER SIGNED Y ✘______________________________________ ___/___/___ (415) 431-7210 ST ❒ OK TO: TO PRINT ❒ OK DATE WITH CORRECTIONS PAY PARTICULAR ATTENTION ❒ EXPIRATION ❒ ADDRESS ❒16TH PHONE NUMBER ❒ OFFER Symphony Hall, wanted to know all ❒ OK TO PRINT ❒ OK WITH CORRECTIONS SIGNED Blamednoe.com Y ✘______________________________________ DATE___/___/___ about the upcoming concert so he SIGNED B Y ✘______________________________________ DATE ___/___/___ GROOMINGDALE’S COUPON NAME: AREAS: could share his own opinions on the WISE BUY$ IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS, CHANGES OR CORRECTIONS NOT INDICATED AT THIS TIME. La Mediterranee Noe QUANTITY: SIZE: SIDES: USE ONLY PAPER: GROOMINGDALE’S FOR PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT COUPON NAME: AREAS: scheduled repertoire, the featured @LaMedNoe 17TH ST artists and the early curtain-time. COUPON NAME: GROOMINGDALE’S AREAS: QUANTITY: SIZE: SIDES: PAPER: His smart and irreverent remarks QUANTITY: SIZE: SIDES: PAPER: were heartening. San Francisco still has a big and enthusiastic audience for “serious” music, and even if they cannot all be subscribers (it isn’t cheap), they are still listening when possible, and watching the arts calendars with interest. We talked about the two “modern” pieces opening the bill: the first SFS performances of John Adams’ witty and energetic Chamber Symphony (1992), and the much older Arnold Schoenberg Chamber Symphony No. 1, Opus 9b (1906), also WISE BUY$ ® IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS, CHANGES OR CORRECTIONS NOT INDICATED AT THIS TIME.

CASTRO ST

FOR PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT USE ONLY

WISE BUY$ ® IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ERRORS, CHANGES OR CORRECTIONS NOT INDICATED AT THIS TIME. FOR PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT USE ONLY

NEW CONSERVATORY THEATRE CENTER

“Briskly moving and bristles with suspense” N E W YO R K T I M E S

The sweetest revenge never ends

GL A AD ME DIA AWARD WINNE R

MICHAEL PERLMAN IN COLL ABOR ATION WITH

CRAIG WESLEY DIVINO, K ARL GREGORY, JIMMY KING AND A ARON ROSSINI DIR EC TE D BY

SARA STALEY S U P P O RTE D I N PART BY

NOW THRU APR 26 B U Y TICK E TS AT N C TC S F.O RG BOX O FFICE : 415 . 8 61 . 8 972 25 VAN N E SS AVE AT MAR K E T ST

receiving its first SFS hearing. The second half of the evening, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto (1873), served as a vehicle for the return of guest artist (we’ve lost count), American superstar Joshua Bell. The conductor was Pablo HerasCasado, who made his SFS debut in October 2010, and has returned every season since. The driver agreed the early start made it possible on a Friday (a workday for most patrons) to get a nice start on the weekend with a concert that still allows for the enjoyment of a late civilized meal or drinks. He also thought it might attract a younger crowd, but wondered if it was being marketed well enough. After all, this was the first he had heard of it, even though the 6.5 series has been around for years now. He voiced what I had been thinking about the talented guest artists. “They’ll come for Heras-Casado and Bell, but they’ll stay for Bell.” I added that putting the renowned instrumentalist on the second half of the program virtually guaranteed no deserters at intermission. I was actually looking forward more to Heras-Casado’s appearance. Another Joshua Bell triumph was easily predictable. I was not disappointed, and I wish I could have reported back to the taxi driver that the young Spanish conductor, named Musical America’s Conductor of Harold Hoffmann/DG the Year 2014, not only fulfilled my expectations, but also his forecast of Guest conductor excellence. Pablo Heras-Casado. The Adams Chamber Symphony was written, according to the comadding contemporary pulse on poser, as something of an antidote drums, and other soloists gleefully to the overwhelming attention, both intent on charting an absorbing negative and positive, given to his course through the whimsically controversial opera The Death of titled movements (Mongrel Airs and Klinghoffer (1991). Last year the Roadrunner, to name two), served Met found out Klinghoffer can still the author with verve, if not the provoke a tempest, so we say, Bon last degree of dash. The conductor chance, Berkeley Symphony, when seemed to be reining them in more you offer the Choruses from that than necessary, but it didn’t spoil opera on April 30 at Zellerbach Hall the effect, and the following piece alongside the Mozart Requiem. on the bill was probably at the back The SFS treated us to the amusing of his mind all the while. and altogether cheerier Chamber Schoenberg’s Chamber SymSymphony without the composer phony No. 1 was another big influ(or public furor) in attendance, ence on Adams, probably more than and Heras-Casado’s crisp and wellthe kinetic and aggressive cartoon timed interpretation reminded us scores of the 1950s, and Herasyet again just how ingenious and Casado’s carefully controlled treatsatisfying our local genius’ music can be. The musicians, with prinSee page 17 >> cipal percussionist Jacob Nissly

raising a 2,000-pound newborn.

Think your kids grow up fast? At birth, a 15-foot-long humpback whale calf weighs one ton and can grow more than a foot a month. Discover other massive facts at this new exhibit. Get tickets at calacademy.org Developed and presented by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. This exhibition was made possible through the support of the New Zealand Government.

24092_Whales Print_Baby_BayArea_9.75x16_NOW OPEN.indd 1

4/13/15 4:34 PM

<< Dance

16 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Dueling mixed bills delight

by Paul Parish

ell, I’ll be damned! It’s impossible to prefer one over the other of San Francisco Ballet’s mixed bills that opened last week at the Opera House. Both are extraordinary and diametrically opposed, tragic and comic, and alternate with each other through this Sunday. It’s a stunt, almost as if Matthew McConaughey were playing a starving junkie one night and the priest of the male strip-joints matinee and evenings. The big news is two-fold: they’re showing Alexei Ratmansky’s Shostakovitch Trilogy, which is without a doubt the greatest new choreography in the classical idiom for at least a decade, dancing even better than they did when they gave the West Coast premiere here last year. And they’ve introduced a splashy, mindblowing mixed-media spectacle, Yuri Possokhov’s Swimmer, to show a Twitterist go on an acid trip in search of his soul, “till human voices wake us, and we drown.” I’ve rarely seen programs argue so strongly for the power of a non-verbal art to deal with a broad spectrum of human possibility. Ratmansky deals with politics, life, love, art; Possokhov with suburban alienation, the madness of the rat race, high fashion, advertising, consumer fetishism. There’s a huge back-story to all this, which I do not have space to go into besides to say that both Ratmansky and Possokhov are Russian émigrés with roots in Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet school in Moscow, and they grew up nursed on the heroic Bolshoi idiom, which the Soviet Union used both as an export and for propaganda. Both also grew up under the shadow of repression –

Erik Tomasson

San Francisco Ballet dancers in Yuri Possokhov’s Swimmer.

Erik Tomasson

San Francisco Ballet dancers in Alexei Ratmansky’s Shostakovich Trilogy.

Soviet artists who made the commissars look good lived in luxury, with big apartments, fancy clothes, large cars. Those who did not lived in terror, or in the gulag, if they lived at all. Shostakovitch the composer walked a tightrope, and Ratmansky’s trilogy of ballets set to his 9th Symphony, Chamber Symphony, and Piano Concerto # 1, respond in the largest possible way to the moods and thoughts encoded in the music – which is not cryptic, but was evidently subtle enough to get past the censors. Davit Karapetyan repeated his stunning portrayal of

Shostakovitch in the central ballet. Possokhov’s premiere goes in entirely the other direction. He’s composed a bright satirical piece that opens in the style of a Broadway show. A movie is projected on a semi-transparent scrim, showing an Architectural Digest-worthy house with a snappy young professional jumping out of bed at stage left, shadowed behind the scrim by a dancer going through exactly the same moves. He does the shitshave-shower routine in the next room over, shadowed by a naked dancer whom we see nearly all of (except the naughty bits), throws

a sharkskin jacket on like Don Draper, rushes across to the kitchen, grabs a bite, and hits the road. The Mad Men prologue is so dazzling you’re stunned to see they’re able to keep this up. The interplay of film designs (by Kate Duhamel), the brilliant skeletal set designs (Alexander V. Nichols, who catches the essence of mid-century modern with astonishing accuracy), costumes (Mark Zappone) and wizardly lighting (David Finn) makes visions happen in the most extraordinary ways over and over again. The mind races to guess how they did that even as one episode succeeds another like dreams, with scary discontinuities and also the recurring crazy motif of the anti-hero trying to swim his way home through his neighbors’ swimming pools. Possokhov did not live through the era of John Cheever and John Updike in this country. He’s picked up on the drunken lostness of that generation through voracious

Stormy weather Matrimonial bliss by David Lamble

and of Storms This deliberately paced hot-boy triangle romance from Hungarian director Adam Csaszi pulls us seductively into the burgeoning erotic freedoms of the New Europe while casting a bittersweet glance back at another turbulent time in Eastern Europe. Boys and girls of my generation hoped that the youthful hijinks on display in the irreverent movies of the day would inspire an overthrow of gangster governments where “the devil has people by the throat.” The movie kicks off at a teen boys’ soccer game where pals and teammates Szaboics and Bernard begin fighting after a tough team loss. Szaboics (lean and sexy, bearded Andras Suto) quits the German team and flies back to his native Hungary. While life back home is simpler with an almost dreamlike pace, Szaboics soon finds himself back in boyfriend trouble when a naive, not out hunk, Aron (Adam Vargo), turns up at his roofing business. The filmmakers neatly juggle the sacred and the profane as the boys lock eyes in an ancient church sanctuary. Land of Storms is a special treat if you enjoy those Germanic queer dramas where fleeting domestic bliss comes at a dear price. The ending is reminiscent of the gayboys-under-Hitler classic Before the Fall, where a beautiful boy

slips out of life in a poignant moment. Fans of Paul Verhoeven’s exuberant 1980 boys’ motorbike sexcapade Spetters will also discover some pleasing parallels. Features: Widescreen, Stereo Dolby Digital, Hungarian w/English subtitles (TLA) Into the Woods This original-cast Blu-Ray is like one of those gas-guzzling Detroit goliaths that are all special features yet hollow at the core: not much in the way of transportation. You’d think a feature-laden edition of a famous Stephen Sondheim musical would be worth a few hours of your time, but this film version based on the original Broadway production (music & lyrics by Sondheim, book by James Lapine, inspired by Bruno Bettelheim’s The Uses of Enchantment) essentially mashes all the major Brothers Grimm tales into one awkward evening that’s not for children, but doesn’t have much appeal for adults. Perhaps the fact that this show is decidedly long in the tooth, with the stage production dating back into the Reagan years, accounts for its plodding pace and lackluster production values. But if you’re a fan and think me crackers for not being onboard, this disc does come with all kinds of behind-the-scenes goodies that are worth your time. Features: Filmmaker commentary, “Jump to Your Favorite Song” app, cast interviews, four makingof short features. (Disney)t

by Jim Piechota

Untangling the Knot: Queer Voices on Marriage, Relationships & Identity, edited by Carter Sickels; Ooligan Press, $16.95 s the United States Supreme Court nears its pivotal decision this summer to resolve the debate on gay marriage, tensions are running high and opposition to a supportive outcome has reached ludicrous proportions. Among the sensationalized, doomsaying news articles punctuating our Twitter and Facebook feeds, thankfully there is proactive, beneficial reading material on the subject: Untangling the Knot, award-winning Portland author Carter Sickels’ just-released collection of essays on the nature of love, same-sex relationships, and the golden egg of gay matrimony. “I believe queers can still queer marriage, turn it into something new, glittering with possibility,” Sickels writes. The 25 contributors in his compilation attest to this, and display their desires, fears, concerns, and joys in diverse ways, each addressing the issues confronted when marriage is actually achieved and the real work begins. Here in these pages, the opinions are raw and unflinching in their honesty, each a breath of fresh air within a hotly contested debate that, for many, has become claustrophobic. Portland educator Ben AndersonNathe opens with a meditation on the need to view same-sex marriage as unique from traditional marriage, and the dangers of lumping all marriages together as one. “Marriage equality is not a victory, not even an initial one,” he writes, “if it

comes at the expense of other queer families, my own included, which are deliberately and deliciously not like everyone else’s.” Emanuel Xavier addresses the poverty and homelessness within the gay community through a short, personal timeline of his life as a formerly indigent youth and hustler at the West Side Highway piers in New York City in the late 1980s, where “my only concerns at the time were a comfortable place to sleep at night, some money to buy food, and the fear of getting AIDS or being killed by a trick.” Oakland author Ariel Gore, whose frank memoir The End of Eve stunned readers in 2014, reflects on her days in the mid-1990s, when “it wasn’t safe to come out if you had an ongoing case in family court.” Her identity as a lesbian was on the back burner as well, with her priorities placed elsewhere. “Mostly I wanted to identify as someone who could

reading and immersing himself in American culture long after the fact, starting somewhere in the 1990s and catching up. So his version of the 60s is not much like mine, which was filled with the blues, the Civil Rights and anti-war movements. It’s a Russian looking at America – and if he sees it in a fun-house mirror, well, he does stuff that was there. Each episode takes him deeper into American alienation: there’s Lolita, there’s the Catcher in the Rye, trying to save all those children from falling off the cliff and not be phony. Possokhov has used many of the stars of the company in his vignettes. Perhaps it’s no accident that most of them were trained in Communist countries: Cuba (Taras Dimitro, in the recurring role of the swimmer; Lorena Feijoo); Russia (Maria Kochetkova, Gennadi Nedvigin); Estonia (Tiit Helimets); China (Yuan Yuan Tan). Perhaps that is just an accident. Everyone deserves high praise.t

pay her rent and keep the electricity on all month.” Marriage changed her feelings on those sentiments in drastic ways. Authors Chelsia Rice and Meg Stone make separate yet equal cases for same-sex partnered medical benefits after cancer diagnoses (and recovery processes) stretched their formerly unrecognized relationships across the official boundaries of what is considered “family.” A satisfying coda to both offers news that both women are now cancer-free and happily married in ceremonies that were “so much more than paperwork.” Joseph Nicolas DeFilippis argues against gay marriage being associated with other rights needed by LGBT people. His essay illustrates the possibility that gay marriage rights may limit the legal options of those seeking equal rights, but who don’t desire marriage. He appeals for “an adaptable variety of legal options to protect families, queer or straight, married or not,” instead of “making marriage mandatory in order to access benefits.” “There is still so much work to be done,” Sickels notes, referencing pop-up state-sanctioned measures legalizing discrimination, the blatant LGBT persecution in Russia and Uganda, ongoing homophobic and transphobic bullying in schools, and a host of other injustices. The voices here range from transgender partners working through inconsistencies in acceptance to religious writers reflecting on the disharmony of their desires. Sickels’ creative and often eye-opening compilation provides timely and relevant education on the current fight for LGBT equality.t

Music>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 17

Around the world in 80 minutes by David-Elijah Nahmod

is journey has taken him from the fields of Oklahoma to the West End of London, where he has produced and performed since he first moved to the UK 28 years ago. These days, Harold Sanditen is fulfilling his lifelong dream of performing in cabaret. On April 18 he makes his San Francisco debut when his show Flyin’ High appears at the beautiful Society Cabaret inside the Hotel Rex. The singer, who has a fondness for visiting faraway places, will take a comic look at travel as he belts out songs that will take his audience from Albuquerque to Africa. Sanditen covers a wide range of songwriters, including the Beatles and Burt Bacharach, and will include legendary names from the distant past such as Kurt Weill. It’s been quite a journey for Sanditen, who was once an investment banker. “Being a nice Jewish boy, I felt the pressure to do the doctor-lawyerbusiness route,” Sanditen explained to the B.A.R. “I received a business degree undergraduate, and moved to San Diego.” He later moved to Philadelphia, furthering his education at Wharton. His plan to return to San Diego never happened. A gentleman from Toronto came into his life, and Sanditen moved to New York

so they could explore a relationship. When his boyfriend got a job in London, Sanditen followed. “Now I love London,” he said. “I wouldn’t consider moving back to the States.” He began producing small shows in London, enjoying considerable success when three of his earliest shows moved to the West End. “I produced for 20 years,” Sanditen recalled. “Everything from the smallest productions to huge West End shows. My tastes were eclectic, but were primarily serious dramas, despite my interest in music and musicals.” Sanditen did produce one musical. The Slow Drag was a biographical show about Billy Tipton, a crossdressing jazz artist who spent her entire life in male drag, hiding the truth from everyone including her wife. Other gay shows produced by Sanditen include the London production of David Drake’s The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me, and several appearances by drag icon Lypsinka. But the desire to sing never left. “I dreamed of singing for years, but never thought it would be possible,” he said. “I sang everywhere I could. Around the house, in the shower, in the car – everywhere but on stage.” Eventually he had no choice but to give up producing so he could pursue his goal. Sanditen cites James Taylor, Car-

ole King, and the late cabaret singer Nancy LaMott as among his greatest musical influences. “Looking back, much of what influenced me musically was through osmosis, what you hear on the radio,” he recalled. “I wasn’t a huge Beatles fan, yet I put three of their songs into my shows over the years. My parents listened to a lot of music from the 20s to the 50s, loads of cha-cha beats, so those were soaked up as well.” Sanditen said that his husband accuses him of not singing anything past 1980. “But that’s not true,” he said. “There are some songs from the 80s. Maybe even the 90s!” Both Sanditen and his husband are avid travelers, and he’s visited 66 countries to date. “Flyin’ High is all about my love of travel,” he said. “The songs aren’t really travel-related, but reflect my feelings about the places I’m talking about.” His show features a variety of musical styles, including jazz and up-tempo songs. He said that there will be a lot of good humor during his performance. “Live life to the fullest,” Sanditen said. “You never know if you’ll make it till tomorrow, so seize chances now and have some fun!”t Harold Sanditen, Flyin’ High, Sat., April 18, 8 p.m., Society Cabaret at the Hotel Rex, 562 Sutter, SF. Info: societycabaret.com

Jack Ladenburg

Harold Sanditen, music man: ‘Seize chances now and have some fun!’

Big reveal on ‘Bold & Beautiful’ by David-Elijah Nahmod

CBS-TV

Karla Mosley plays Maya Avant on The Bold and the Beautiful.

SF Symphony

From page 14

ment of the lush Opus 9b made a good comparison. It was a splendid rendition that should have calmed anyone’s fears about Schoenberg’s atonality. Emphasizing the sensual and expressionistic elements of the work, Heras-Casado made a wonderful impression. Why on earth did it take so long to get a hearing at DSH? The two women seated behind me rose after the polite ovation that followed to head up the aisle for intermission. One said, “Well, we

could have skipped the first half.” Okay, Mr. Yellow Cab, you were right on that one, and I was disappointed at the mostly game audience’s subdued (but predictable) response. That’s why the formula of mix-and-match programming continues to keep the subscribers happy. They returned for a powerhouse reading of the mighty Tchaikovsky Concerto essayed by a genuine virtuoso. They heartily and deservedly rewarded him with a prolonged standing ovation. If they were begging for an encore, Bell pointedly took his calls sans instrument, but

hile The Bold and the Beautiful’s Maya Avant is not the first transgender character to appear on a daytime drama (that distinction goes to All My Children’s Zoe, played by Jeffrey Carlson in both pre- and post-transition stages in 2006), Maya is making history as the soap world’s first transwoman of color. She’s also the first trans role to be portrayed by a long-term contract player. As groundbreaking as AMC’s Zoe was, she was meant to be a short-term character. Jeffrey Carlson agreed to portray Zoe inbetween musical theater gigs, giving the AMC producers a firm departure date. Not so with Maya Avant. As portrayed by actress Karla Mosley since January 2013, Maya promises to be part of the B&B canvas for some time to come. For the first year of her B&B tenure, Maya was believed to be a cisgendered woman. Viewers enjoyed her often melodramatic romantic entanglements, as well as her glamorous life as a model. But last month Maya’s long-lost sister Nicole stumbled upon the truth about Maya’s past: Maya was once known as Myron, a brother Nicole had lost track of. “I was nervous,” Mosley told the B.A.R. “It kept me up at night. I was nauseous for three weeks, because I care about this story so much. I want to represent people correctly.” She said that friends of hers had to he earned a bit of a rest after his expert workout. We will never tire of visiting stars, especially when they are as appealing and accomplished as Joshua Bell. We will also be grateful that the SFS continues to bring more “difficult” musical experiences to a sophisticated but basically conservative audience. The cab driver said he was going to aim for Terrace seating the following night (still one of the best concert deals in town), and I hope he made it. Pablo Heras-Casado continues his guest stint this week with Debussy, Mozart and Stravinsky on the bill.t

“toss me off the ledge,” figuratively, so she could dive into the pool and play out this new storyline. “I do have friends who are trans,” she said. “I turned to them for advice and inspiration.” The storyline wasn’t all that shocking to American viewers, who might have been prepared for it by the emergence of transgender celebrities such as Laverne Cox and Janet Mock. Mosley was quick to point out that The Bold and the Beautiful is seen in over 100 countries, some of which do not yet have a visible trans community. “We’re seen in places where being LGBT is still illegal,” Mosley said. “It’ll be interesting to see the ripple effect around the world. I hope we open people’s hearts.” The actress said that studying the works of feminist icons assisted her in preparing for her portrayal of the “new” Maya. “It’s so wonderful researching this character by reading the works of modern feminist authors like Audre Lorde,” she said. “And now it’s exciting to see Maya living her life.” Mosley reported that the response

to Maya’s outing has been 80-90% supportive. “I tend to engage with people online,” she said. “I made a point to answer people’s questions. I get the best tweets!” She said that some of her Twitter followers have told her that she’s telling their story. “That means a lot.” Veronika Fimbres, a leader in the San Francisco transgender community, offered her critique of Maya’s coming out scene. Fimbres was generally satisfied with Mosley’s performance, but she did raise one issue. “I would like to have trans actors play trans people,” Fimbres said. “All too often, straight men and women play those parts and then attempt to get awards for them. There are enough trans men and women actors who are more than qualified and happy to play these parts.” Karla Moseley concurred. “It’s controversial for me to play trans when I’m cisgender,” the actress said. “I want to do justice to Maya’s story.”t The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays at 12:30 p.m. on KPIXTV.

<< Film

18 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Seductive imagery by David Lamble

hroughout my viewing of Cheatin’, the latest feature-length adult-content animation from the nimble pen of American animator Bill Plympton (I Married a Strange Person, Mutant Aliens, Mondo Plympton), my mind kept wandering to all the equally talented cutting-edge artists that the man’s work reminded me of, and boy, what a list! From the French avant-garde humorist Jacques Tati (Playtime) to the pathbreaking early Disney (Fantasia, the 1930s Silly Symphony shorts) to R. Crumb’s Fritz the Cat, Plympton is taking on the giants of the 20th century. But as I flipped through reference book after reference book while Cheatin’ was rolling on my big screen, I wondered whether the dude was fightin’ above his weight class. Plympton comes into the ring with a host of accolades and critical raves that would seem to make him a safe berth for the smart money. Indeed, Cheatin’ comes through the auspices of its own Kickstarter campaign, which reportedly exceeded its original goal. Also, as any aspiring filmmaker knows, shorts (particularly animated shorts) pad the resume, play the international festival circuit, and snag the low-hanging fruit of the awards world, but to pay the bills you gotta go for the feature-length sweepstakes. Having a highly visible big-screen theatre slot (if only for a week) alerts the paying public that they’ve not been flim-flammed, or “film-flamed” as Brokeback Mountain co-screenwriter Larry McMurtry wittily put it. The virtues of Cheatin’ – wellcrafted, naughty images, a sophisticated adult tale of seduction, betrayal and revenge – would seem best-suited for the largest possible screen, helping to create the delicious illusion that we’re “inside” the movie. The trouble

is that the content of Cheatin’ feels like a series of short “toon” loops, precisely the sort of distracted modern work that’s most likely to be consumed on a phone or tablet. I would not be surprised to be pressed up against a fellow Muni rider who’s streaming Cheatin’ on the way to work or another form of playtime. Cheatin’s story is simple and very adult (the MPAA has yet to issue a letter grade, although it’s hard to think it will be less than R, or maybe un-rated, today’s version of the early-70s X). The only way I can see the film working theatrically would be for the folks at San Francisco’s Roxie Cinema (where it opens April 17, and at the Elmwood in Berkeley) to run it continuously Noon to Midnight, and let folks enter and leave at times of their choosing. The story: A gorgeous young woman, Ella, is strutting through a carnival reading a book. A male barker hustles her into the bumper-cars ride, whereupon a big accident occurs. Ella is rescued by Jake, a thin-waisted, muscular creature whom only a cartoonist could bring to life. Jake and Ella bond, marry, and face an onslaught of jealous “other” women trying to peel Jake away. When Jake resists her, one of the women fabricates a snapshot of Ella surrounded by male mannequins. Jake is moved to despair, and relieves himself in a series of meaningless liaisons, the evidence of which enrages Ella. She hires a mean dude to kill Jake, but then decides to hire a magician whose machine allows her inside Jake’s bedroom to spy on his “cheatin’.” With plots and subplots borrowed from films as diverse as Woody Allen’s Alice, Stanley Kubrick’s Killer’s Kiss, and Derek Cianfrance’s The Place Beyond the Pines, Cheatin’ suffers from a form of cinema vertigo, a common dilemma in today’s movie world where almost everybody seems to be “sampling,” “borrowing,”

Courtesy Plymptoons

Scene from American animator Bill Plympton’s Cheatin’.

or “stealing” ideas and plots from everybody else. It’s a technique that’s worked well for hustlers from the worlds or rap and hip-hop, but here it feels close to exhaustion. There are some nice moments, particularly when Plympton freezes on a pair of emerald-green eyes, then keeps changing the faces to whom the eyes belong. As gay male viewers have come to expect, none of the R-rated images resembles the male member, since even for hetero hipsters like Plympton, this would go over the invisible but real line that separates the hip from the unacceptably gauche. In short, Cheatin’ is a whirling dervish of striking images, some of which are lovely enough to frame for your wall. Whether the whole 76 minutes of the film are compelling enough to be ingested in a single sitting is a whole other question.t

Bedtime story

by Brian Bromberger

In Springtime, a young man’s fancy turns to... the World’s #1 Source for Gay News, Photos, and Entertainment!

edgemedianetwork.com

here is that famous scene in the 1939 classic musical Babes in Arms. Realizing his parents are in terrible financial shape, Mickey Rooney conjures up a scheme to rescue them by telling the local neighborhood kids, including Judy Garland, “Let’s put on a show.” Three in a Bed, just released on DVD by TLA Releasing, has a similar situation. One senses a group of young British 20-something actors deciding, “Let’s make a movie.” But to mention Three in a Bed in the same breath as Babes in Arms is almost criminal. There are no Mickey Rooneys or Judy Garlands in this cast. The film has all the qualities of a third-rate neighborhood show, albeit an English one set in Manchester, featuring a miniscule budget with dreary results. Nate (Brandon Reece), a struggling musician with writer’s block, takes responsibility to care for his two sisters after their mother dies. They are all in their 20s and basically failures. Jay finds out her livein boyfriend has cheated on her, while Sammy gets pregnant by the married man she has been dating. At first, the English slang and dialect are so strong you miss a good part of the dialogue, and there is no subtitle option. But that’s not really a disadvantage, since the script is so poorly written. Both sisters move into Nate’s one-bedroom apartment and seem to share one bed, hence the title (like the rest of the movie, an empty promise). Meanwhile, Nate meets Jonny (Darren Bransford), the gaynext-door neighbor complete with

a Brazilian fag-hag roommate with a sour disposition, Adriana. Jonny seems to fall instantly in love with Nate, who is still deciding whether he is gay. He doesn’t want his sisters to know he is questioning his sexuality. There are several scenes with female admirers to prolong the “erotic” tension as well as the foregone conclusion. Jonny gets tired of waiting for Nate to resolve his identity issues. He runs off to France to erect tents rather than have erections with Nate. Nate realizes he misses Jonny, but is it too late for them to get back together? Will Nate overcome his writer’s block when asked to perform at a music festival? Will you still care before the merciful 81-minute end? Even the bigshow finale featuring the movie’s theme song fizzles emotionally. The chief sin of Three in a Bed is the depiction of all the women in the film as stupid harpies incapable of creating a life for themselves. Why any guy would want to date any of them is a mystery to me. I yearn for the day when there are intelligent women characters in gay male features instead of misogynistic stereotypes. Bed’s one redeeming feature is a sly, sexy chemistry between Reece and Bransford that is never fully explored. The soundtrack is also a miss. You hear snippets of some great songs, but they are so brief they can’t even be identified. And the sweet-gay-boy-finding-love, but-will-his-family-still-love-him plot should now be declared DOA. I suppose it is a comfort to discover that romantic comedies are in as much of a crisis in England as they are here. Gaywise, this is a genre ripe for artistic reinvention.t

Music>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 19

For your queer ears only by Gregg Shapiro

he best part of Clint Eastwood’s unnecessary film adaptation of Jersey Boys was adorable Mike Doyle’s flaming portrayal of queer songwriter and music legend Bob Crewe. Crewe wrote hit songs for Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and had his own hit with the Herb Alpert rip-off instrumental “Music To Watch Girls Go By” in the mid-1960s. Neither of Crewe’s two albums from the 70s, Street Talk and Motivation, did much for his cause. Newly reissued in the double-disc set The Complete Elektra Recordings (Real Gone Music), both albums deserve another chance. An early disco affair (from 1976, just before disco broke) arriving on the glittery heels of Labelle’s “Lady Marmalade” (cowritten by Crewe), “Broadwaybound disco-rock ballet” Street Talk is one of the great underrated gay masterpieces of the disco era. A camp epic telling the story of fresh-off-thebus-from-Nebraska “Cherry Boy,” whose ass is his “ticket to paradise,” it features “Menage a Trois,” “Back Alley Boogie” and “Ah Men,” set to a vintage disco beat. Queer twin sisters Tegan and Sara celebrate the 10th anniversary of their breakthrough album So Jealous with So Jealous X (Vapor/ Warner Bros.), which includes the original album and a bonus disc of remixes, demos, B-sides and covers of their songs performed by the White Stripes and others. The concert DVD It’s Not Fun. Don’t Do It is also included. The accompanying book is full of illuminating text and photos. “Walking with a Ghost,” “Where Does the Good Go?” and “Take Me Anywhere” hold up well 10 years later. Exquisitely packaged but in a different way, single gay dad Ricky Martin returns with A Quien Quiera Escuchar (Sony Music Latin), a new album sung entirely in Spanish. You don’t have to speak a word of Español to get the feeling that Martin gets across on the house of “Adios,” the ballad “Perdóname” and the rhythmic dance numbers “Isla Bella” and “La Mordidita.” The bandeon on “Cuánto Me Acuerro de Ti” and the banjo on “Disparo al Corazón” are not to be missed. The deluxe edition includes three bonus versions of songs. Most people will recognize Kate Pierson’s voice from her role as one of the vocalists in the pioneering new wave/pop phenomenon the B-52s. One of the five original members (four of whom identified as queer), Pierson’s dynamic vo-

Jacob Lawrence

From page 13

The show, which sketches the evolution of his six-decade career, is a jewel in the crown for the Cantor Arts Center; it now boasts the largest permanent museum collection of the artist’s work in the country. While that’s welcome news, Promised Land seemed to promise more. It’s somehow smaller than expected – it occupies one mid-sized upstairs gallery at the museum – and though the artist is known as a terrific colorist, many but by no means all of the show’s works are muted in terms of their palette, if not in the intensity of their emotional thrust. Lawrence offers a passionate perspective

cal range helped to make “Roam,” “Love Shack” and other songs unforgettable. Stepping out on her own for the first time on Guitars and Microphones (Lazy Meadow), Pierson teams up with the ubiquitous Sia Furler, who acted as executive producer, co-wrote all but one song on the album, and performs alongside Pierson on some tracks. Stomping opener “Throwing Down the Roses” gets things started on an energetic note. Less a trans anthem than a song for those who have been “betrayed by the mirror,” “Mister Sister” is sure to be embraced by LGBT folks. Other knockout tunes include “Bottoms Up,” “Time Wave Zero” and the ballad “Pulls You Under.” Victor Krummenacher’s name might not roll off your tongue, but you probably know Camper Van Beethoven and Cracker, two of the bands with which he has been closely associated. On Krummenacher’s latest solo release Hard To See Trouble Coming (Veritas), he begins with the bluesy title cut, then shifts to an Americana mood on “If I Could Only Close My Eyes,” “Chemtrails,” of the flourishing black culture of post-war Harlem, and of the contributions of African-American builders who shaped the country’s cities at the beginning of the 20th century, a subject strongly represented here. The painful, violent struggle against slavery is brought to rousing pointed life in The Legend of John Brown (1978), a series of 22 silkscreen panels with austere modern imagery that’s a controlled collision of the abstract and the figurative. The prints illustrate the true saga of the fanatical white abolitionist who believed he was a holy warrior anointed by god, the 1859 attack he led on Harper’s Ferry, and his own bitter demise at the end of a hangman’s noose. Although accompa-

“The Love o’ My Dreams” and “The Kildalton Cross.” Krummenacher rocks out on “If You Won’t Break My Heart, I Don’t Stand a Chance,” and goes for queer Tejana flair on “Tennessee & Pancho.” Sleater-Kinney goes from riot grrrls to riot womyn on No Cities To Love (Sub Pop), the queer trio’s breathtaking first album of new material in 10 years. Perhaps the most commercially viable album of the band’s 20-year career, No Cities To Love proves that the time between albums hasn’t dulled Sleater-Kinney’s social consciousness, as you can hear on opener “Price Tag,” “Bury Our Friends” and “No Anthems.” “Fangless” is a legitimate dance track, and they even conjure Chrissie Hynde on “Hey Darling.” Only closer “Fade” recalls the bombast of 2005’s The Woods Woods. Comeback of the year so far goes to SleaterKinney. Matt Zarley’s ambitious hopefulRomantic (Dylan Music Group) album is intended to accompany the award-winning short film of the same name. The Complete Set edition of the disc includes both the 11-track soundtrack and the nine-track pop album. “Constantly,” “Back to You” and “I Just Knew” are in a modern musical-theater vein, while dance-pop cut “Somebody for Everybody” is custommade for club play. Formerly romantically linked but still creatively teamed, THEESatisfaction (Catherine Harris-White and Stasia Irons) is back with Earthee (Sub Pop), finding inspiration in “Earth, Humanity, Reality and Insanity.” Cosmic as Erykah Badu and grounded as Meshell Ndegocello (who plays bass on “Universal Perspective” and “WerQ”), THEESatisfaction makes statement music on a higher plane. Throughout Johnny Mathis’ lengthy career, which began in the late 1950s, the celebrated crooner has been known to divert from the unexpected path (2010’s Let It Be Me: Mathis in Nashville). The double-disc compilation with bonus tracks Life Is a Song Worth Singing: The Complete Thom Bell Sessions (Real Gone Music) is another example. Teaming up with the legendary producer Thom Bell, Mathis incorporated the Philadelphia sound into his repertoire on I’m ComingBAR 3.75x5 online appointment ad v3.indd Home (1973) and Mathis Is (1977). With songs co-written by Bell and collaborator Linda Creed, I’m Coming Home is notable for Mathis’ renditions of “I’m Stone in Love with You” and “Stop, Look, Listen,” made popular by the Stylistics. On the expanded Mathis Is, highlights include “Lullaby of Love,” his rendition of “Break Up To Make Up,” and the duet with Patti Austin on “You Brought Me Love.”t nied by brief captions that summarize the action in each episode, the pictures tell the story. The fight for civil rights in the 1960s, and the barbarity it unleashed, resulted in some of Lawrence’s most visceral social protest works. “Ordeal of Alice” (1963) is a nightmarish visual screed filled with outrage at racial violence and compassion for its innocent victims during attempts to integrate the schools. The tempera painting renders a terrifying, hellish scene in which a confused, traumatized little black girl toting her schoolbooks is jeered and set upon by grotesque demons. Her white Sunday-school See page 22 >>

8/15/14 10:17 AM

BESTIES 20 15

THE LGBT BEST OF THE BAY

WINNER - Best Wedding Photographer

Steven Underhill

PHOTOGRAPHY

415 370 7152

WEDDINGS, HEADSHOTS, PORTRAITS

stevenunderhill.com · stevenunderhillphotos@gmail.com

<< Out&About

20 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

& ut O

A O& ut

bo A

On the bias by Jim Provenzano

Fri 17 Fifth of July

an I tell you what’s the most fun to do? Can I be a tad biased? Can you trust me as your cultural tour guide for the week? Know that some really fun events did not make the cut, are covered elsewhere, (if they’re nightlifey, find ‘em on pages 29-31) because, you know, space is a premium everywhere. David Allen

Thu 16 10 Percent @ Comcast David Perry’s online interviews, broadcast through the week; Ken Cleaveland of SF BOMA, and NCLR’s Kate Kendell (thru April 19). April 20-26: Rebecca Prozan and kike Arnel. Check for times on Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/10Percent/66629477326 www.ComcastHometown.com

Birthright? @ Brava Theater Center The Medea Project: Theater for Incarcerated Women’s 25th Anniversary presents a collaborative work between Rhodessa Jones’ Cultural Odyssey and Planned Parenthood, about motherhood, women’s prison and reproductive rights. $10-$50. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 3pm. Thru April 19. 2781 24th St. at York. 641-7657. www.brava.org

Blackademics @ Thick House Crowded Fire Theater’s production of the West Coast premiere of Iris Goodwin’s new play full of searing wit, pop-culture humor, and psychological menace in an absurdist take on “post-racial America,” when two African American scholars argue over a dinner reservation. $10-$35. Wed-Sat 8pm. Thru May 2. 1695 18th St. 746-9238. www.crowdedfire.org

The Book of Mormon @ Orpheum Theatre The mega-hit musical comedy (nine Tony Awards and a Grammy) by Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Robert Lopez returns. $60-$225. Tue-Sat 8pm. Sat 2pm. Sun 1pm & 6:30pm. Thru June 27. 1192 Market St. (888) 746-1799. www.BookofMormonTheMusical.com www.shnsf.com

Bouquets to Art @ de Young Museum The 31st annual installation of floral displays inspired by works of Modern Art opens. Demos, luncheons and exhibits; $40-$70. Thru April 19. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, Golden Gate Park. www.famsf.org

Brandon Flowers @ Rickshaw Stop The Killers front man performs/DJs at PopScene’s 20th anniversary gala. $40-$45. 8:30pm. 155 Fell St. at Van Ness Ave. www.rickshawstop.com

Comedy Returns @ El Rio Enjoy laughs galore with comics Steve Lee, Loren Kraut, Priyanka Wali, Nate Blanchard, and MC Lisa Geduldig. $7$20. 3158 Mission St. at Precita. (800) 838-3006. www.KosherComedy.com www.ElRioSF.com

The Cry of Jazz @ YBCA New documentaries about jazz music visionaries, with restored ‘80s documentaries and new films. Thru April. Also, Dark Horse: Film Noir Westerns. $10. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission St. ybca.org

Dakha Brakha @ SF Jazz Center

Nick & Nora @ Eureka Theatre

Ukranian pop-folk art band with a theatrical edge performs. $25. 7:30pm. Miner Auditorium, 201 Franklin St. www.dakhabrakha.com. ua www.sfjazz.org

The lighthearted 1991 musical by Arthur Laurents, Charles Strouse and Richard Maltby, based on Dashiel Hammet’s 1930s The Thin Man, gets a production by the vintage musical revival ensemble. $25-$75. Wed & Thu 7pm. Fri 8pm. Sat 6pm. Sun 3pm. Thru April 19. 215 Jackson St. 2558207. www.42ndStMoon.org

In a Word @ Tides Theater Lauren Yee’s drama about a mother who loses her son. $20. Thu 7pm. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sat 3pm. Thru April 25. 533 Sutter St., 2nd floor. 677-9596. www.sfplayhouse.org

Jewels of Paris @ Hypnodrome Thrillpeddlers’ new production is a “revolutionary” Parisian-themed musical revue, with original music and lyrics by original Cockette Scrumbly Koldewyn, including characters based on Picasso, Cocteau, Josephine Baker and even Marie Antoinette. $30-$35. Thu-Sat 8pm. Thru May 2. 575 10th St. www.hypnodrome.org

Let There Be Love @ Geary Theatre American Conservatory Theatre presents Kwame Kwei-Armah’s family drama about a West Indian immigrant and a Polish young man, whose lives connect, despite prejudices (Out With A.C.T. April 22). $20-$105. Tue-Sat 8pm. Wed, Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru May 3. 415 Geary St. 749-2228. www.act-sf.org

Michelangelo Signorile @ Books Inc. The gay political writer and radio host reads from and discusses his latest book, It’s Not Over: Getting Beyond Tolerance, Defeating Homophobia, and Winning True Equality. 7:30pm. 2275 Market St. www.booksinc.net

Miriam Cabessa @ Dryansky Gallery Opening reception for an exhibit of works by the New York-based lesbian artist. 7pm-10pm. Reg, hours: WedSun 11am-5pm. 2120 Union St. at Webster. 932-9302. www.miriamcabessa.com www.thedryansky.com

Sun 19 Barney Frank

Queer Fashion Week @ Various Venues Enjoy fashion shows of works by more than 20 LGBTQ designers, with exhibits, shows, sales, parties and live performances. Thru April 19. www.queerfashionweek.com

Speechless @ Public Works Techies have a laugh at the hilarious parody of office presentations, where finalists in the “Powerpoint karaoke” improv competition make up a tech demo as random images and charts are projected; featuring finalists comics Caitlin Gill and Calum Grant, and Nintendo data analyst Edwin Zee. $12-$20. 8pm. Full bar and food for sale. 161 Erie St. at Mission. www.speechlesslive.com

Steve Tyrell @ Feinstein’s at the Nikko The Grammy-winning vocalist perfroms in a special two-week engagement at the elegant intimate cabaret nightclub. $35-$45. 8pm. Thu & Fri 8pm. Sat & Sun 7pm. Thru April 19. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (866) 663-1063. www.stevetyrell.com www.ticketweb.com

Talley’s Folly @ Harry’s Upstage, Berkeley Aurora Theatre Company restages Lanford Wilson’s lyrical uplifting two-actor drama. $30-$50. Tue 7pm. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 7. 2081 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 8434822. www.AuroraTheatre.org

Fri 17 Arcadia @ Cinnabar Theatre, Petaluma Tom Stoppard’s masterpiece play, a comedy, mystery and love story with 12 actors, is produced by the North Bay company. $9-$25. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Extended thru April 26. 3333 Petaluma Blvd. (707) 7638920. www.cinnabaetheater.org

The Braggart Soldier @ Custom Made Theater Custom Made Theatre Company’s updated version of Plautus’ Roman satirical comedy (which served as the inspiration for Sondheim’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum ). $20-$40. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 7pm. Thru April 26. 1620 Gough St. at Bush. 798-2682. www.custommade.org/braggart/

Dr. Zebrovski’s Public Prophesy @ Oasis The wacky “dance psychic from the 13th dimension” returns to our plain for a night of cabaret oddities, with Nahid Elgadi, Baruch PorrasHernandez and Kevin Seaman, La Chica Boom, Lil Miss Hot Mess and musical guest Major Arcana. $14.99. 7pm. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 7953180. www.sfoasis.com

Edgewise: A Picture of Cookie Mueller @ The Magazine Book release party for Chloé Griffin’s work about the John Waters actor and writer, with cocktails, cookies, short films and a look-alike contest. 7pm. 920 Larkin St. at Geary. Also April 20, 7pm at MAC/Modern Appealing Clothing, 387 Grove St. at Gough (hosted by Green Arcade Books). www.cookiemuellerbook.com/ www.themagazinesf.com

Fri 17

From White Plains @ New Conservatory Theatre Center Michael Perlamn’s suspenseful drama involves a film director who outs a high school bully in his Oscar speech, leading to a confrontative reunion. $30-$40. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru April 26. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. 861-8972. www.nctcsf.org

SF Underground Short Film Festival @ Victoria Theatre Odd, strange, short, and silly cinema (including Michael Phillis’ awardwinning Mini Supreme ), with hosts Peaches Christ and Sam Sharkey, plus a live show, too. $12-$45. 7:30pm & 9:30pm. 3121 16th St. www.peacheschrist.com

Sister Play @ Magic Theatre John Kolvenbach’s play about family conflicts and relationships. $20-$60. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2:30pm. Tue 7pm. Thru April 19. Fort Mason Center, Bldg D, 3rd floor, 2 Marina Blvd. at Buchanan sts. 441-8822. www.magictheatre.org

Stereotypo @ The Marsh Don Reed’s new solo show, subtitled Rants and Rumblings at the DMV showcases the banal automotive office as a showcase of diverse characters. $20-$100. Fri 8pm, Sat 8:30pm. Extended thru April 25. 1062 Valencia St. 282-3055. www.themarsh.org

Tartuffe @ Berkeley Repertory Dominique Serrand directs the awardwinning East Bay theatre company’s modern production of Moliere’s classic satire of religious hypocrisy. $29-$79. Tue, Thu-Sat 8pm. Wed & Sun 7pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru April 12. Roda Theatre, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 647-2949. berkeleyrep.org

Sat 18 Antigonick @ Ashby Stage, Berkeley Guggenheim and MacArthur fellowship-winning playwright Anne Carson’s take on Sophocles’ Antigone is produced by the innovative Shotgun Players. $20$35. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 5pm. Wed 7pm. Extended thru May 3. 1901 Ashby Ave., Berkeley. (510) 8416500. www.ShotgunPlayers.org

Edgewise: A Picture of Cookie Mueller

Fifth of July @ Aurora Theatre, Berkeley Lanfod Wilson’s “Talley Trilogy” continues with a production by the East Bay theatre ensemble; Ken Talley returns to his Missouri home after losing his legs in the Vietnam war, where he reminisces and makes decisions with his family and friends. $20-$50. Previews. Opens April 23. Thru May 17. Tue 7pm. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm & 7pm. 2081 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org

The Flamin’ Groovies @ The Chapel The funk rock band performs their entire new album Shake Some Action, with guest Kelley Stoltz. $20-$22. 9pm. 777 Valencia St. www.thechapelsf.com

Head of Passes @ Berkeley Reperotry Theatre Tarell Alvin McCraney’s poignant poetic drama about a Mississippi family’s trials of faith and tribulation. $29-$79. Tue, Thu-Sat 8pm. Wed & Sun 7pm. Sun 2pm. Thru May 24. Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 647-2949. berkeleyrep.org

King Lear @ Emerald Tablet Independent Eye’s unusual twoman, 30-puppet production of Shakespeare’s classic family drama about royalty, seniority,madness and family betrayal. $20-$25. Fri & Sat 8pm. April 26, 2pm (closing day). 80 Fresno St. www.independenteye.org

Beach Blanket Babylon @ Club Fugazi The musical comedy revue celebrates its 40th year with an ever-changing lineup of political and pop culture icons, all in gigantic wigs. Reg: $25$160. Beer/wine served; cash only; 21+, except where noted. 678 Beach Blanket Babylon Blvd (Green St.). 4214222. beachblanketbabylon.com

Botticelli to Braque @ de Young Museum Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland, an expansive exhibit of classic paintings; thru May 31. Also, Embodiments: Masterworks of African Figurative Sculpture, thru July 5; photographer Janet Delaney: South of Market, thru July 19. Other exhibits of modern art as well. Free/$25. Thru May 31. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive. www.famsf.org

Dr. Darieck Scott @ MOAD The GLBT Historical Society presents the scholar who discusses aspects of Black male superhero imagery in the Blade film trilogy and comics. 10am. Museum of the African Diaspora, 685 Mission St. www.glbthistory.org www.moadsf.org

Dis/Play @ SOMArts Cultural Center Expansive exhibit of works in several media by more than 30 Bay Area artists and groups (Artful Steps, NIAD Art Center, Sins Invalid) who expand the depiction of disability; includes special performances thru the run. Events ASL-interpreted, and wheelchair accessible. Reg. hours TueFri 12pm-7pm. Sat 12pm-5pm. Thru April 23. 934 Brannan St. 863-1414. www.somarts.org

Out&About>>

Harold Sanditen @ Hotel Rex Flyin’ High, the witty cabaret musician’s show about world travels, traverses Bacharach ot The Beatles. $25-$45. Cocktails and small plattes available. 8pm. 562 Sutter St. at Powell. 856-1896. www.HaroldSanditen.com www.SocietyCabaret.com

Hostel Comedy @ Piano Fight Andrew Roberts’ weekly comedy show with visiting comics and backpacking tourists telling funny stories. Free. 7pm. Thru April 25. 144 Taylor St. www.pianofight.com

Lear’s Shadow @ The Marsh Geoff Hoyle’s new solo take on Shakespeare’s King Lear, from the perspective of the unemployed Fool. $15-$35. Wed & Thu 8pm. Sat 5pm. Thru May 30. 1062 Valencia St. 2823055. www.themarsh.org

Oakland East Bay Gay Men’s Chorus @ Odell Johnson Theater, Oakland Stage & Screen is the theme of the chorus’ new concert (songs from Kinky Boots, Lion King, Cabaret and more), with featured singer Misa Malone (Beach Blanket Babylon), under the direction of Carl Pantle. $20. 7pm. Also April 19, 4pm. Laney College, oebgmc.org

Queer-Nami @ Rolling Out Queer lit readings by Michael Aleynikov, Blythe Baldwin, Andrew Demcak, Rick May, Colleen McKee, Vincent Meis, and Genanne Walsh, Tchaikovsky on piano by Run Yang Liu, and pastries. 6:30pm. 1722 Taraval St. 513-6054. www.rollingoutcafe.com

Stupid F#cking Bird @ SF Playhouse Aaron Posner’s satirical Hollywood update on Chekhov’s The Seagulls. $20-$120. Tue-Thu 7pm. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sat 3pm. Sun 2pm. Thru May 2. 450 Post St. 677-9596. sfplayhouse.org

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 21

Barney Frank @ Nourse Theatre The outspoken returned gay congressman discusses politics and life, and his new memoir Frank: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage. $27. 4pm. 275 Hayes St. 392-4400. www.cityboxoffice.com

Carolyn Mark & the New Best Friends, Feral @ Various Venues Enjoy Canada’s country cabaret trio, and the local Americana ensemble, at the fun Thee Parkside (April 19, 4pm, no cover, with Feral, 1600 17th St. www.theeparkside.com ); April 20: Mark performs solo at The Makeout Room on Sad Bastard Night (3225 22nd St. www.makeoutroom.com): April 21, Mark/Friend w/ Feral and Bermuda Triangle Service at El Rio (7pm, 3158 Mission St. www.elriosf. com). www.carolynmark.com www.musiciansareferal.com Also April 19 FCCFreeRadio show with Lily Cat: www.fccfreeradio.com

Kate Mulgrew @ The Chapel Books Inc. presents the acclaimed actress in conversation with Michelle Richmond (author of Golden State ). $40 includes a signed copy of Mulgrew’s memoir, Born With Teeth. 4pm. 777 Valencia St. www.thechapelsf.com

Katya Presents @ Martuni’s Katya Smirnoff-Skyy showcases talented cabaret singers; this month, Michelle Elaine Ianiro and pianist Tom Shaw. $11. 7pm. 4 Valencia St.

SF Hiking Club @ Mt. Diablo Join GLBT hikers for a 10-mile hike along Wall Point Ridge to Rock City at Mt. Diablo State Park; through rolling meadows, chaparral, woodlands, grasslands, and oak forests. Bring water, lunch, hat, layers, sturdy shoes, sunscreen. Carpool meets 9:00 at Safeway sign, Market & Dolores. 794.2275. www.sfhiking.com

Spring Hoedown @ Healdsburg Shed Third annual celebration fo the gardening, farming, food and fun, with live music, line dancing, food demos. 1pm-5pm. 25 North St., Healdsburg. (707) 431-7433. www.healdsburgshed.com

Mon 20 Candace Bergen @ Nourse Theatre The five-time Emmy-winning actress discusses her career. $27. 7:30pm. 275 Hayes St. 392-4400. www.cityboxoffice.com

Porchlight Storytelling @ Verdi Club Last One to Leave, Please Turn Out the Lights, a night of stories about living in (and maybe leaving) San Francisco, with Arline Klatte, Marc Capelle, Beth Lisick, Tim Redmond, David Talbot, Cammy Blackstone, Ed Wolf, and Rene and Rio Yañez. $15-$20. 8pm. 2424 Mariposa St. www.porchlightsf.com www.verdiclub.net

Fri 17 Head of Passes

Bay Area Cabaret presents the comic singing star of Broadway ( Kinky Boots) and TV (The Masters of Sex) in Lost in the Stars, her West Coast cabaret debut, an eclectic repertory of pop and musical theatre classics, with Will Van Dyke and the Whisky 5 Band. $50 (buffet dinner $44). 5pm. Fairmont Hotel, 950 Mason St. 392-4400. bayareacabaret.org

Cuong Nguyen, Carl Dobsky @ John Pence Gallery

Exhibits about Bay Area LGBTQ people, history and communities. 7pm. Free (members)-$5. Reg hours: Mon, Wed-Sat 11am-7pm. Sun 12pm5pm. 4127 18th St. 621-1107. www.glbthistory.org

Dual exhibit of the accomplished realists painters’ works. Mon-Fri 10am-6pm. Sat 10am-5pm. Thru May 2. 750 Post St. 441-1138. www.johnpence.com

Tue 21

A decade of the photos by prolific Rich Stadtmiller, leather community photographer extraordinaire, is the subject of the Leathermen’s Discussion Group. 7:30pm. 1800 Market St. www.RichTrove.com www.sfldg.org

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater @ Zellerback Hall, Berkeley The acclaimed dance company returns for its annual residency, four Bay Area premieres and some classic favorites, in three different programs. $40-$96. Tue-Sat 8pm. Also Sat 2pm, Sun 3pm, thru April 26. UC Berkeley campus, Bancroft Way at Dana St., (510) 6429988. www.calperformances.org

Lambda Literary Awards Finalists @ SF Public Library

Sun 19

Annaleigh Ashford @ Venetian Room

Queer Past Becomes Present @ GLBT History Museum

Multimedia exhibit of visuals and storytelling by young African American men of the East Bay. Thru June 20. 1453 Mission St. www.ciis.edu

Brian Copeland returns with his popular solo show, about the tensions of considering suicide, and waiting for approval to buy a gun. $30-$100. Saturdays 5pm, Sundays 5:30pm. Extended thru May 31. 1062 Valencia St. 282-3055. www.themarsh.org

Enjoy weekly same-sex tango dancing and a potluck, with lessons early in the day. $7-$15. 3:30-6:30pm. 1970 Chestnut St., Berkeley. (510) 8455352. www.finnishhall.com

The Braggart Soldier

The Griots of Oakland @ CIIS

The Waiting Period @ The Marsh

Abrazo, Queer Tango @ Finnish Brotherhood Hall, Berkeley

Fri 17

Memory of Trees @ SOMArts Cultural Center Kathryn Cook’s exhibit of photos commemorating the Armenian genocide. Thru April 22. Reg hours mon-Fri 12pm-7pm. Sat & Sun 12pm5pm. 934 Brannan St. www.somarts.org

Seduction: Japan’s Floating World @ Asian Art Museum New exhibit of ancient art from the John C. Weber Collection. Thru May 10. Also, The Printer’s Eye: Ukiyo-e, from the Grabhorn Collection. Other fascinating exhibits as well. Free (members, kids 12 and under)-$15. Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. 200 Larkin St. www.asianart.org

Letters to Afar, Poland and Palestine: Two Lands and Two Skies @ Contemporary Jewish Museum Dual exhibit of new Jewish cultural documentation (thru May 24); also, Havruta in Contemporary Art (thru April 14). Other exhibits ( Tzedakah Box, Bound to be Held: A Book Show, Lamp of the Covenant), lectures and gallery talks as well. Free (members)-$12. Fri-Tue 11am-5pm, Thu 11am-8pm (closed Wed). 736 Mission St. 655-7800. www.thecjm.org

Local finalists in various categories of this year’s prestigious literary award (to be announced in NYC June 1) read from their works: Dan Lopez, Susie Hara, Katie Gilmartin, Abdi Nazemian, Jim Provenzano, Chaz Brenchley, A.F. Gore. Lambda Literary Foundation Executive Director Tony Valenzuela MCs. Free. 5:30pm reception, readings 6pm. 100 Larkin St., Latino/ Hispanic Meeting Room, lower level, www.lambdalit.org www.sfpl.org

Rich Trove 10th Anniversary @ LGBT Center

Thu 23 48 Hills First Anniversary @ Verdi Club Enjoy food and drinks with the founders Tim Redmond and Marke B, celebrity guest hosts, performers (comic Dhaya Lakshminarayanan) and Bay Area artists and activists to celebrate the first year of the nonprofit independent news and culture website. Comp beer & wine. $50, $100 and up. 6pm-9pm. 2424 Mariposa St. www.48hills.org

Damien Rice @ Fox Theatre, Oakland The lyrical Irish folk-pop singer performs. Marketa Irglova opens. $50-$60. 8pm. 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. www.thefoxoakland.com

Drag Me to Bingo @ Jack London Square, Oakland The new monthly Bingo game with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence returns. $10. 7pm. Jack London Square. www.jacklondonsquare.com

The Facts of Life @ Oasis

Wed 22 At Large: Ai Weiwei @ Alcatraz Island The internationally acclaimed Chinese sculptor’s exhibit of seven site-specific multimedia installations; the largest art exhibit ever hosted by the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. $18-$30. Daily thru April 26. Ferries to and from Pier 33 at Embarcadero. www.AiWeiWeiAlcatraz.org www.alcatrazcruises.com/website/ ai-weiwei.aspx

Tue 21 Alvin Ailey American Dance Company

Those wacky queens who gave you Sex & the City are now doing drag parody versions of two episodes from the cult classic schoolgirl sitcom. $25$30. 7pm. Thu-Sat thru May 16. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarishinha @ Modern Times Bookstore In Bodymap, the Lambda Literary Award-winning writer sings a queer disabled femme of colour love song filled with hard femme poetics of survival, joy and disability justice. 7pm. 2919 24th St. 282-9246. www.mtbs.com

The Ultimate Adventure @ New Conservatory Theatre Center Teen Performance Ensemble performance of Homer’s Odyssey, adapted and directed by Stephanie Temple. $10-$15. Thu & Fri 7:30pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru May 3. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. www.nctcsf.org To submit event listings, email jim@ebar.com. Deadline is each Thursday, a week before publication. For more bar and nightlife events, go to On the Tab in our BARtab section, online at www.ebar.com/bartab

Mike Strong

<< Theatre

22 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Lena Hall

From page 13

Just four days after her final performance in Hedwig on April 4, Hall debuted a cabaret show at Cafe Carlyle that defies expectations that come with the “cabaret” label. That show, dubbed Sin and Salvation, is now bringing her to Feinstein’s at the Nikko on April 24 and 25. It will be the first time she has performed in her hometown since a touring company of Cats swept her away 17 years ago. When Cafe Carlyle first reached out to Hall to perform in a room where Elaine Stritch, Barbara Cook, and Bobby Short made themselves at home, Hall had her doubts. “I said, ‘Well, do you guys know how and what I sing, because this isn’t going to work if you expect me to be singing show tunes?’ And they said, ‘No, just do what you want.’ Now we’ll see how everybody feels about it.” Hall was talking from New York a couple of days before her final Hedwig performance and a week before opening at Cafe Carlyle. The subsequent reviews have mostly been enthusiastic, and universally have praised her powerful voice and her ability to tailor her Led ZeppelinJanis Joplin predilections to the usually staid surroundings. “I’m not going to be wild and in jeans or anything like that,” Hall said. “I’ll be wearing a Zac Posen dress that has a very 1930s look and is so completely opposite of what I’m singing. It’s like I’ve stepped out of an old movie, and then I’m singing these blues and soul and rock songs that come from the depths of my being.” Hall is covering songs first sung by such artists as Elton John, Paul McCartney, Jack White, David Bowie, James Brown, and Robert Plant, and she terms much of the repertoire as “male-centric,” although Tori Amos, Erykah Badu, and Janelle Monae are

Michael Wilhoite

Tony Award winner Lena Hall will change up the usual cabaret vibe when she performs April 24 & 25 at Feinstein’s at the Nikko.

also represented. “A lot of the songs come from a man’s perspective, and I never feel that’s any kind of issue,” she said. “I don’t change the pronouns or anything like that.” Asked about her attraction to a male-centric vibe, she riffed on her reasoning. “OK, I’m doing this song called ‘Maybe I’m Amazed,’ and there are lyrics like, ‘Maybe I’m a man, maybe I’m a lonely man,’ and it will be, like, yeah, in the context of how I interpret the song, I think because I’ve been playing a biological male for so long, I feel that gender is no longer here nor there. So if I’m singing about that, maybe I am a man deep down inside. It all makes sense in my weird world.” Hall probably had something of a weird childhood growing up in San Francisco, but it seemed fine to her. “My mother and father still live in the

Haight-Ashbury house where I grew up, and when I use the term ‘hippie’ to describe them, I mean hippie for real,” Hall said. “My parents always wanted me to stay in the arts, and anytime I suggested maybe I didn’t want to be in the arts, they would just stare.” She’s a graduate of the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, and her classmates knew her then as Celina Carvajal. She had just turned 18 when she auditioned at an open call for the touring company of Cats, and was soon on the road as the feline known as Demeter. “I cried so hard on the plane because I was so scared. I was suddenly an adult.” Hall eventually moved to the Broadway company of Cats, then landed ensemble roles in the Broadway casts of 42nd Street, Tarzan and Dracula. She then walked away from Broadway. “I was just so not happy,” she said. “I knew there were people out there who would be thrilled to be in my shoes. But being in the ensemble doesn’t give you any opportunity to be creative, and I wanted to be

more in control and to be passionate about things I give so much time to.” Hall took on smaller theater projects that stoked her passions, and also made music with the rock band The Deafening that is still part of her creative life. She finally returned to Broadway in Kinky Boots, playing the image-conscious fiancee of the callow young man who has inherited a failing shoe factory. When the Broadway production of Hedwig starring Neil Patrick Har-

ris was announced, Hall aggressively pursued the role of Yitzhak, Hedwig’s roadie husband, who comes into his/ her own at the end of the musical. Hall worked with all four Hedwigs to date: Harris, Michael C. Hall, Andrew Rannells, and John Cameron Mitchell. Despite pleas from fans, Hall does not include any Hedwig songs in her cabaret show. “It was time to separate myself from that and do my own thing,” Hall said. But she’s not turning her back on Broadway or the theater. “There are tons of things coming my way. I just did a workshop of a new David Byrne musical about Joan of Arc that’s right up my alley. But I need a little time off from the eight-shows-a-week schedule.” She also needs some time for her body to repair itself from a year of masculinity. Suggesting a male posture in Hedwig has done a number on her back and shoulders, and she has ripped tendons from the heavy lifting required of the character. “And my hands,” Hall said, “they used to be really pretty and feminine, and now I have man hands.” Hall did get to keep the rubber penis that gave her a manly bulge. “Neil Patrick Harris autographed it,” she said. “It was with an indelible marker, but it wore off anyway.”t Lena Hall will perform Sin and Salvation at Feinstein’s at the Nikko on April 24 & 25. Tickets are $40-$55. Call (415) 394-1100 or go to www.ticketweb.com.

Rick Gerharter

Jacob Lawrence’s “Nights After Night” (right) is one of 56 works on display at the Cantor Arts Center on the Stanford University campus.

#dolsf

Dine out at a participating restaurant and help fund lifesaving HIV services in San Francisco. Find your restaurant. Support the cause today!

DOLSF.ORG SPONSORED BY

SILVER SPONSOR: Blue Shield of California OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSORS: Bay Area Reporter

SF Station

Jacob Lawrence

From page 19

pinafore is stained with blood where arrows of hatred have pierced it, a hooded blue gargoyle cloaked in black stands nearby, and a howling apparition the color of dried blood hovers on the upper right. Lawrence believed that irrational hatred, especially when directed at children, turned men into beasts. While growing up in Harlem, a locale that put him at the epicenter of the Harlem Renaissance, Lawrence was surrounded by artists, writers and intellectuals, not to mention the streets inhabited by all manner of characters on sidewalks and stoops. The community made its flavorful way into works such as “At Times it is Hard to Get a Table in the Pool Room” (1943), a rhapsody in blues enveloping a neighborhood hangout. It’s a study in improbable abstract geometries and skewed perspective. One can peer through the doorway and spy hustlers in indigo pants and peach T-shirts caressing their cues inside the joint as a policeman patrols the entrance. Lawrence, a Southern transplant, didn’t fit the standard art-world mold, but he surged to prominence in the 1940s after producing Migration of the Negro (1941), a major series reunited for a show that opened earlier this month at MoMA in New

York. It was one of several narrativepainting sequences, a format at which he excelled, that would make his reputation. In 1989, Lawrence completed The First Book of Moses, Called Genesis: King James Version (1989-90), a large-format illustrated book project that tells the Biblical story of Creation. An Artist’s Proof edition is displayed in a glass vitrine adjacent to eight chapter-like silkscreen passages from The Book of Genesis that were printed separately; their complex tonal qualities were achieved by utilizing as many as 21 screens for each print. They portray an animated, histrionic preacher at the pulpit in front of a rapt congregation, raising the rafters, throwing his body and soul into a fire-andbrimstone sermon, perhaps similar to one delivered by the consummate showman Adam Clayton Powell, Sr., whom Lawrence witnessed at the Harlem Baptist church in his youth. The rich colors of the preacher’s robes change as the story progresses, and through high church windows one can see birds, rising ocean waves or starlit skies over the hills beyond. The artist’s favorite motif, the toolbox, an emblem of building, growth and human labor, appears in every print, sometimes resting on a windowsill, on the floor near a pew or floating on air.t Through August 3.

On the Tab

Justin Sayre

NIGHTLIFE

SPIRITS

DINING

Under the collar

SOCIETY

ROMANCE

LEATHER

PERSONALS Vol. 45 • No. 16 • April 16-22, 2015

www.ebar.com ✶ www.bartabsf.com

Friends hang by the pinball machine at the Lexington Club.

The Lexington’s last days Lesbian bar to close this month by Andre Torrez

Matt Baume

Dallis Willard

ris Triska –the bartender– is mixing drinks, adding a dash of bitters and serving cold ones early on a Saturday evening. She tells me what we all already know: the Lexington Club is closing its doors for good April 30. The bar probably won’t get too crowded, she explains, since a lot of the ladies headed to See page 25 >> Palm Springs for Dinah Shore Weekend.

Seattle slew Seaside fun up north by Matt Baume

elcome to Seattle, northern travelers! The Pacific Northwest welcomes you with arms wide, and beards bushy. There’s no better city for a cozy getaway: it’s close, it’s walkable, and the locals couldn’t be See page 26 >> more accommodating to visitors.

Hunks at the Cuff Complex.

{ THIRD OF THREE SECTIONS }

45 eB AR .co

Our largest edition of the year publishes on June 25, 2015 and will celebrate Pride’s historic 45th anniversary.

eck newIt’s out the s, art Bay s, clas Are sifi a Rep eds orte , and r onl per ine son – als.

in Highlights taries, shorts. Arts features, documen

see

the of the Those were and memories section and the music See second

EPORTER AY REA Serving the

by Seth Hemmelg

gay, lesbian,

arn

bisexual, and

▼

page

es his

ive 10th ann Cassell

column afte arn by Seth Hemmelg

Jane Philomen

NectArena executive producer Jade Williams, as Edaj. better known

Cleland

ies since 1971

s retir Sweet Lip r 39 years

celebrat NectArena rsary by Heather

. No. 25 . 24 June 2010

Pride has two most prominent one of the the world at stages in stages women’s L. idea of women’s “sparked the events,” said Kendall other Pride

▼

Rick Gerharter

S unfurl material a contingent rainbow Members of to the colors in the ing Parade. correspond the 2008 Pride flag during

Vol. 40

communit transgender

▼

34 wraps up Frameline final weekend’s The big 4-0! days: The politics of Pride parade.

As the only LGBT publication with an audited and verified circulation, the Bay Area Reporter offers the largest reach to LGBT consumers in the 9-county San Francisco Bay Area.

RESERVE YOUR SPACE TODAY!

▼

OUR 2015 PRIDE EDITION PUBLISHES JUNE 25. CALL 415-861-5019 or EMAIL ADVERTISING@EBAR.COM FOR MORE INFO. page 13

NS ECTIO REE S OF TH FIRST

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

24 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Saying Goodbye Lexington owner on the club’s closing by Jim Provenzano

“I

t’s been a really emotional time leading up to announcing it,” said Lila Thirkield, owner of the Lexington Club, which will close at the end of April. “This process has been going on for many months, and I need to be distinct about the difference between sad and emotional.” Thirkield’s announcement of the famed lesbian/queer bar’s closure came in October 2014 on the bar’s Facebook page. Her essay was republished by 48 Hills, the nonprofit news website comprised of ousted SF Bay Guardian writers and editors. Thirkield remains “thankful,” despite the clear sign of the times. Speaking of signs, the Lex’s neon will be removed, but the sign itself will remain. By thankful, Thirkield mentioned the bar’s rich history, and its legacy, which will live on outside the bar. “There have been so many shared stories about The Lex,” she said in a phone interview. “The beauty of it, its history, fills me, not with sadness; that’s been amazing and I didn’t fully expect it.” Still, she admitted it is a difficult time. “To have to lose something like this, yes; but what people are talking about most are the good times. But as its getting closer, I’ve become really sad about it as well.” Our discussion of local economics, displacement, and cultural changes came down to a clear realization. “The Mission has changed and our part of the Mission has changed drastically,” said Thirkield. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said, ‘I can’t believe how things have changed on Valencia Street.’” The imminent demise of The Lexington Club came down to one thing. “Our clientele doesn’t live in that area anymore,” said Thirkield. “Queer women, musicians, artists; the clientele goes beyond just lesbi-

Lexington Club owner Lila Thirkield.

ans. We still need a space to foster community, and that group of people no longer lives there.” Despite the shift, Thirkield kept the bar open as along as possible. “Change is gonna happen, and I think I did a pretty good job of keeping it going,” she said. “There was no lesbian bar in San Francisco when I opened it, and it is not an easy thing. But certainly there are so many factors. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the Guardian shut its doors a week before I announced this. There is clearly something going on here. It’s definitely part of a larger change in the Mission, San Francisco and in cities in the U.S.” Thirkield noted how larger economic shifts have changed individual patronage. “The reality is that it’s a lot harder for folks who make less money to keep businesses alive in the face of changes like this,” she said. “Our sales dipped because the people

that frequent the club no longer live here. Our clientele is displaced. It used to be that you had thousands of dykes in one block, and if 20 or 30 stopped in, we were golden.” Since its opening in January of 1997, the Lexington Club attracted women and queer people. Thirkield, a New Yorker who moved to San Francisco after her college years in Iowa, recalls the ‘90s scene she encountered. “I got here and there was no lesbian bar; it was all club nights, which was fun. But I love bars. I participated but slowly started hanging out at my neighborhood bar and wished it would be filled with women. I think it was also a conversation at the time for me and my friends, about there not being a ‘seven day a week’ place.” At 25, Thirkield, who had worked in cafes and restaurants, added her construction and carpentry skills to renovate the slightly divey bar into the Lexington Club. “We did an insane amount of work in six weeks,” said Thirkield of the resurfacing, and removing Formica to showcase some beautiful mahogany woodwork. Thirkield’s productivity extended to the recently re-made Virgil’s Sea Room, another Mission bar, coowned with Tom Temperano and Jill Fitzgerald. “We opened Virgil’s almost two

years ago,” said Thirkield. “I’m hoping that in terms of our clientele, we can find a home for some people. It’s a different bar, not like it’s going to become The Lex. It’s a very mixed space and meant to be for everyone, but it has a super queer atmosphere.” After the neon goes down, the name will remain. “That is something I do get to keep,” said Thirkield of her plans to produce events under the name Lexington Presents. Planned events include benefits at El Rio for the Dyke March in May, and other parties with Uhaul and House of Babes. “It’s something we’ve talked about as a staff, creating a future to keep the name alive,” she said. “To keep communication in the community, and support parties and things that do still exist. The Dyke March is lesbian space; it’s an important thing. I still wanna do those things and be present to support nightlife and events for queers.” Asked about the identity of bars that are specifically gay, lesbian, queer or not so clearly defined as gay culture becomes more assimilated, Thirkield said, “ I think it’s some-

thing else. I think there’s room for both. There was a time when people started to use queer to include trans people. We can understand those shifting identities. There is also a movement for a more inclusive gay community. Men and women were very separate; I feel like that’s changed greatly and I’ve embraced that. We started adding ‘queer’ years ago as a way of being inclusive.” Thirkield offered a perspective that’s both philosophical and practical. “Let’s move toward something beyond the male/female divide. Events like Hard French, I find super inspiring. Working with Tom [Temprano] has that sense of everybody-ness. The lines don’t have to be so binary.” As she prepares for the last few weeks of closing parties at The Lexington Club, Thirkield sounded hopeful for the future, or a future that could be created. “Who’s to say there won’t be something that comes along in a few years that’s more inclusive? I think there’s still a space for it. I think that community is still here and belongs here.”t

Hannah Cairns

Lexington fans in its heyday.

Hannah Cairns

A uniform party in 2012.

Amy Petrarca Hannah Cairns

A New Year’s Eve toast in 2011.

Julip and Sunny at the Lexington in June 1997.

Georg Lester

Bartender Natalie in 2013.

Read more online at www.ebar.com

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 25

Dallis Willard

closes at the end of the month. Sam Potts, a law school student who’s been coming for the last 14 years, answers cautiously. I can tell she’s got something way more colorful on her mind, but she errs on the side of caution and safely answers, “The sing-alongs.” “Most of my peers didn’t grow up in an urban environment,” says Potts. “It’s a bar, but you experience community. I love that it’s not antimale or gay male. It’s queer.” Another reason the bar sits comparatively emptier than it has in its 18-year history has everything to do with the old adage that lesbians nest up and stop going out once they meet their partner. There’s no new blood, so to speak, to replenish the pool. This may hold true and a few ladies talk about the notion of shacking up.

The Lexington Club on an early Saturday night.

Lexington Club

From page 23

The event, celebrating its 25th anniversary of “fun in the sun,” is equated to being the lesbian version of Pride. While you’re there, over the span of five days, you can enjoy such events as “Cabana Girl” pool parties, paired with throwback performances from the likes of Crystal “Gypsy Woman” Waters (la-da-dee-la-doo-dow…). The flyer for the opening party shows two women, wearing what looks like lacy Victoria’s Secret lingerie with a few bucks tucked into their waistlines, about to embrace. Of course I’ve never heard of such an event, likely because of my own ignorance or because San Francisco’s male-dominated gay experience has a tendency to focus on Castro events catered to the boys. Still, they enjoy the same kind of Bacardi, Orbitz and Uber corporate sponsorships as just about anyone else. But we’re hundreds of miles north at the iconic Mission District dyke bar, where the mood during its final stretch is somewhat subdued. Festive tunes blaring from the jukebox contradict the tone and run the gamut of ‘90s hip-hop and R&B. Selections include; Tone Loc’s “Wild Thing,” Positive K’s “I Got A Man” and Bell Biv Devoe’s “Poison.” The few patrons who are there seem to be into the music, some sing along, but I imagine it’s much tamer than what’s going on down south. The questions in my mind are: How can this be San Francisco’s only full-fledged lesbian bar and why is it closing? Will the city’s nightlife scene suffer a lesbian extinction? “It’s definitely really sad. I honestly don’t know where I’ll go.” Terra Haywood has been coming to the bar for the past ten years. She moved to the Bay Area from Lansing, Michigan when she was 20 years old. Like many other patrons, she sentimentally refers to the bar as “queer Cheers,” noting the strong sense of community, and echoing others that the Lexington is like a “rite of passage.” She identifies as a butch lesbian, dressing the part, looking comfortable in her baseball cap and cleancropped haircut. A woman dressed in a sailor’s uniform is milling about and Rodeo –somebody’s dog– is going up to just about anyone, soaking up attention, snagging playful caresses here and there. Up at the bar, a shot of Jameson wafts past my nose and I notice one of the outnumbered males in attendance livens up the place by going topless for a minute. It’s not even eight o’clock. “I’ve been to Switch at Qbar. It’s not my scene,” says Haywood, referring to one of the Castro bar’s female-oriented nights. “I feel like the soul of San Francisco is gone. [Queer] women cannot afford to live here anymore.” She’s touching on overlooked economic factors of how gender in-

equality plays into the LGBT community. While studies have shown women in same-sex couples individually earn higher incomes than their heterosexual female counterparts; one study by a UCLA think tank, which culled data from the U.S. Census Bureau, also concluded that gay men are earning less than heterosexual men. But no matter how you slice it and with how discrimination works, men on average still earn more than women. Haywood, who freelances as an art director and works in film, calls the bar “transformative.” Soon it will undergo its biggest transformation yet. The dive bar’s buyer is confirmed to be PlumpJack Group, a hospitality firm founded by Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, and will be taking on a new concept; likely one that doesn’t specifically

The glow of the Creature From The Black Lagoon pinball machine sitting in the corner beckons. I at least get multi-ball and match for a free game while AC/DC’s “Back In Black” slightly changes the vibe. I take a break and head to the bathroom where the scent of paint fumes lingers in the air. The smell could be worse, but someone decided to freshly tag a surface. Searching for their work is no use. The door, walls and countertops are covered in graffiti, each representing a distinct memory, much like the memories people have of that bar. But in a similar way, those physical renderings are temporary and will soon be wiped away or rebuilt, like the bar. I can’t seem to get anyone to talk about their favorite Lexington moment. They all seem preoccupied with how much it sucks that the bar

Dallis Willard

Rodeo gets some affection.

provide a safe space for women, lesbians, genderqueer and transgender folks. The economic climate in San Francisco has allowed an alarming amount of queer spaces to shutter, pushing them out and taking its clientele with them. I tell Haywood on my way to the Lex, I had passed Bond Bar, the old spot for Esta Noche. The muted colors are nothing like its atmosphere of not too long ago, and even though it’s been open a few months, a quick glimpse inside still shocked my system. We talk about how the Lexington’s fate may be similar: just another bar trying to blend in with its new community. Haywood jokes that there are more dyke bars when she goes back to Lansing than there are here now. Most of the people I talk to consider Bernal Heights’ Wild Side West to be more for the neighborhood. It doesn’t seem to have the same clout within the community as the Lex. Haywood struggles to think ahead about her future bar options and lists El Rio and Virgil’s Sea Room (co-owned by The Lexington’s owner, Lila Thirkield) as places she feels comfortable.

2016

Tania Texidor has called the Lexington hers for the past 13 years, but it was in 2011 that she met her wife, who was visiting from London, at the bar. “She knew to come here and to look for a girlfriend or whatever. People know about the Lex. It’s that moment of connection in a safe space.” They maintain a long-distance marriage and Texidor’s wife hopes to move to America soon. Institution is an often overused term, especially when describing bars and restaurants in this city. But for what it’s worth, the Lexington is just that and has provided company within the community and a personal identity to so many. “To close is so premature,” says Texidor. “That’s where you find the sadness. Nothing will ever be this.”t

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

26 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Matt Baume

Pals at Pony.

Seattle slew

From page 23

You can visit by plane (we like Alaska Air for the SFO to SEA trip), but if you’re not in a hurry, it’s a pleasant two or three-day drive. Your trip up the I-5 will take you through Redding and across Shasta Lake, where the views are tremendous and the hotels are adorably woodsy. You should book a hotel in advance during tourism season, but if you’re traveling during offmonths (fall and spring) you can get

away with using Priceline on your phone to find nearby deals whenever you feel like stopping. Watch out for hotels that allow smoking, lest you be stuck in a smelly room. Once you cross the border into Oregon, you’ll find yourself in the Cascade-Siskiyou National Park, where you can take a little diversion to hike the Soda Mountain Wilderness. If you’ve got a full day to spend in Oregon, divert up Route 62 to the gorgeous Crater Lake National Park, and enjoy a lovely lunch at Crater Lake Lodge as you gaze out over the pristine water. Beware of winter storms that can render the roads treacherous, and of deer that may leap at your car at any time of year. Further up the 5, Portland offers a little preview of the Seattle pleasures that lie just a few hours north. Visit Voodoo Doughnut for provisions, as a box of a dozen robust snacks from this place will feed a family of four for a week. While in Portland, swing by Ground Kontrol, a classic video arcade with an acceptable selection of beers and bar food. Visit on Monday for Metal Night, or check out Darcelle XV, a classic drag palace. Once you finally make your way up to Seattle, you have a choice to make: to do it like a tourist or like a local. There’s no shame in being a kitschy tourist! Just like San Francisco, some of Seattle’s finest attractions are the most obvious. Head up to the top of the Space Needle for an amazing view, and try to time your visit to an hour before sunset (which is around 4pm in the winter) so you can see the sun go down. Ride the ridiculous monorail. Gawk at fish-tossers at the Pike Place Market. Take a duck tour. Do it

all and get it out of your system. Just don’t visit the country’s oldest Starbucks, because you have better things to do with your time than wait half an hour for unremarkable coffee. If you’d like to get off the beaten tourist path, take a trip up to Fremont, the Berkeley of the PNW. This Seattle neighborhood has officially designated itself “the center of the known universe,” and who are we to say otherwise? Visit the troll under the bridge, a weird concrete sculpture; and hang out by the giant Lenin statue. A cluster of pleasant cafes, restaurants, and trinket shops may keep you busy for an hour or two around 34th Street and Fremont Ave. Seattle’s gay history goes way back: Pioneer Square was known as “Fairyville” back in the 1920s, and featured the only west coast bar that allowed same-sex dancing. There was a drag cabaret called The Garden of Allah in the ‘40s and ‘50s, and a court system like San Francisco’s that dates back to the ‘70s. The city also has a fairly robust trans community, with a group called The Gender Justice League hosting events, forums, and pride parties. Surprisingly, there’s no LGBT center, but the Gay City Health Project can take care of your HIV and STI testing. Seattle’s gay ghetto is only gayish: trudge up to Capitol Hill and you’ll see gays capering about, but it’s no Castro or West Hollywood. The few gay bars are outnumbered by straight bars, so you have two options: either confine yourself to a few queer watering holes, or suck See page 27 >>

Matt Baume

Woofy cubs at Arf! at the Seattle Eagle.

BESTIES 20 15

THE LGBT BEST OF THE BAY

WINNER Best Wedding Photographer

Steven Underhill

PHOTOGRAPHY

415 370 7152

WEDDINGS, HEADSHOTS, PORTRAITS

stevenunderhill.com · stevenunderhillphotos@gmail.com

Top Left: Seattle’s spectacular skyline includes the Space Needle. Top Right: Pioneer Square’s historic totem pole. Bottom: The famous fish-tossing Pike Place Market.

t <<

Read more online at www.ebar.com

Seattle slew

From page 26

it up and mingle with the breeders. Our favorite breeder bars include the divey Montana, where they make ginger beer from scratch; and Hopvine, which has excellent food and an astounding variety of local seasonal beers. Definitely get a BeeHaven mead if it’s in season. Also worth a visit is The Twilight Exit, which has yummy snacks (tater tots!) along with board games and pinball to keep you occupied. If you’re in the mood for something queer, check out The Cuff Complex for a leather crowd. Friendly and inclusive, The Cuff offers everything from bondage demonstrations to karaoke to darts to fried food. Chop Suey hosts SF’s Bootie party when travel north, and has excellent dancing throughout the week.” But you might be taken aback if you wander into The Eagle: unlike other bars of that name, Seattle’s Eagle is less gear-and-grizzle and just sort of generally hipster-divey. Every third Friday is a party called Dickslap, which is a must-attend. And on fourth Saturdays is Insert Coin, a queer video game party with playable consoles. But if you’re looking for hardcore rubber, leather, pups, or rope, try the Cuff Complex, or fetish night at CC Attle’s. If the weather’s warm and dry, head over to Pony to enjoy some time on the patio. Indoors, you’ll find gay porn projected on the wall, and occasionally karaoke. Or head over to Diesel, where bears congregate and the drinks are strong enough to tranquilize the burliest

wildlife. R Place has dancing, drag, and the occasional wet underwear contest; and Neighbors can happily accommodate bachelorette parties. Down the street, Purr is a little slice of West Hollywood with trendy outfits and slick video monitors. Lesbians will want to check out Wildrose, which has one of the best jukeboxes in town. Just west of Capitol Hill, there are two hotspots of queer nightlife, located right next to each other. Rebar has been hosting theater, poetry slams, theme nights, and dance events for decades; Flammmable, their Sunday night house music event, run uninterrupted for 20 years. Recently opened in the same complex of buildings, Kremwerk’s a quirky underground space that you can count on for strange performances and music you’ve never heard before. You have two options for making more intimate friends: Steamworks Seattle and Club Z Gay Baths. Like most Steamworks establishments, Seattle’s is cozy and intimate and clean (relatively speaking) with the usual steam rooms and lockers and music. Club Z is a bit more old-fashioned, and very large; three stories, with a maze and a mixed crowd. There’s hiking aplenty just outside the city, and although a few trails are bus-accessible, you’ll need a car to get to most of them. Local favorites include Deception Pass, Snoqualmie Falls, Tiger Mountain or Little Si. Check road conditions ahead of time in the winter. And if you just want to take a nice nature stroll in the city without having to drive too far, linger amongst

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 27

Matt Baume

Cuff Complex kinky capers.

the trees along Lake Washington Blvd, or the views of the city from Beacon Hill. After a few days in Seattle, you might forget you’ve even left San Francisco: it’s creative, damp, hilly, and politically leftish. The only difference is that the rent is several orders of magnitude cheaper. Don’t all move there at once.t Matt Baume is a writer and photographer living in Seattle. Follow him at @mattbaume or at www.mattbaume.com

WARNING HOT GUYS! San Francisco

415.430.1199 Oakland

510.343.1122 San Jose

408.514.1111

FREE to listen and reply to ads! FREE CODE: Reporter

For other local numbers call:

1-888-MegaMates

Matt Baume

Cosplay fun at Insert Coin.

Matt Baume

Bay Area Bootie DJ Adrian Roberts hosts a holiday romp at Chop Suey.

2586

<< On the Tab

28 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

eON THE –TAB f April 16 23

★

Queer Fashion Week @ Various Venues Enjoy fashion shows of works by more than 20 LGBTQ designers, with exhibits, shows, sales, parties and live performances. Thru April 19. www.queerfashionweek.com

Spring Gala @ Exploratorium The VIP dinner ($500 and up, 6pm9pm) and after-party ($150-$350; 9pm-12am), turn the museum into a nightclub. Pier 15, Embarcadero at Green St. 528-4385. www.exploratorium.edu

Boy Bar @ The Cafe Gus Presents' weekly dance night, with DJ Kid Sysko, cute gogos and $2 beer (before 10pm). 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Dr. Zebrovski's Public Prophesy @ Oasis The wacky "dance psychic from the 13th dimension" returns to our plain for a night of cabaret oddities, with Nahid Elgadi, Baruch PorrasHernandez and Kevin Seaman, La Chica Boom, Lil Miss Hot Mess and musical guest Major Arcana. $14.99. 7pm. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 7953180. www.sfoasis.com

Red Hots Burlesque @ El Rio The saucy women's burlesque revue's weekend show; different musical guests each week. $10. 7:30pm. 3158 Mission St. 672-4735. Also Wed nights at Oasis. www.redhotsburlesque.com www.elriosf.com

Rock Fag @ Hole in the Wall Enjoy hard rock and punk music from DJ Don Baird at the wonderfully divey SoMa bar. 12pm-2am. 1369 Folsom St. 431-4695. www.hitws.com

Steve Tyrell @ Feinstein's at the Nikko The Grammy-winning vocalist performs in a special two-week engagement at the elegant intimate cabaret nightclub. $35. 8pm. Thu & Fri 8pm. Sat & Sun 7pm. Thru April 19. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (866) 663-1063. www.stevetyrell.com www.ticketweb.com

Sat 18

That '70s Ho @ Oasis

Beatpig @ Powerhouse

“A

re you goin’ out tonight?” “Where are we going?” What’s happening?” Sift through the echo chamber of wondering where to go, why to go, and how to get there, and just go.

Thu 16 Brandon Flowers @ Rickshaw Stop The Killers front man performs/DJs at PopScene's 20th anniversary gala. $40-$45. 8:30pm. 155 Fell St. at Van Ness Ave. www.rickshawstop.com

Bulge @ Powerhouse

The Monster Show @ The Edge

Drink specials, Top 40, gogo studs and no cover. 9pm-2am. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

My So-Called Night @ Beaux

Disco guru DJ Bus Station John spins grooves at the intimate retro music night. $4. 10pm-2am. 133 Turk St. at Taylor. www.auntcharlieslounge.com

Carnie Asada hosts a new weekly '90s-themed video, dancin', drinkin' night, with VJs Jorge Terez. Get down with your funky bunch, and enjoy 90cent drinks. '90s-themed attire and costume contest. No cover. 9pm-2am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

Fauxgirls @ Infusion Lounge

Nap's Karaoke @ Virgil's Sea Room

Fuego @ The Watergarden, San Jose Weekly event, with Latin music, halfoff locker fees and Latin men, at the South Bay private men's bath house. $8-$39. Reg hours 24/7. 18+. 1010 The Alameda. (408) 275-1215. www.thewatergarden.com

Thirsty Thursdays @ The Cafe

The dearly missed Cookie Dough's weekly drag show continues, with gogo guys and hilarious fun. $5. 9pm2am. 4149 18th St. at Collingwood. www.edgesf.com

Grace Towers hosts the weekly gogotastic night of sexy dudes shakin' their bulges and getting wet in their undies for $100 prize (contest at midnight), and dance beats spun by DJ DAMnation. 10pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com Classic drag show with Victoria Secret, Alexandria, Chanel, Mini Minerva, Kipper, Ruby LeBrowne, and Lulu Ramirez. No cover. 8pm; dinner seating 7pm. 124 Ellis St. 421-8700. www.fauxgirls.com www.infusionlounge-sf.com

Benefit for Anna Conda, with performances by Frieda Laye, Phatima, intenchanelJ, Joie De Vivre, Dam Dyke, Ferosha Titties, Hoku Mama Swamp, and Pristine Condition with DJ Muthachucka $5 and up. 7:30pm. Followed by Sexitude, D'Arcy Drollinger's aerobic dance cocktail combo (9pm). 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Sing out loud at the weekly least judgmental karaoke in town, hosted by the former owner of the bar. No cover. 9pm. 3152 Mission St. 8292233. www.virgilssf.com

Nightlife @ California Academy of Sciences Themed event nights at the fascinating nature museum, with DJed dancing, cocktails, fish, frogs, food and fun. $10-$12. 6pm-10pm, 55 Music Concourse Drive, Golden Gate Park. 379-8000. www.calacademy.org

Tubesteak Connection @ Aunt Charlie's Lounge

Fri 17

VIP @ Club 21, Oakland Hip Hop, Top 40, and sexy Latin music; gogo dancers, appetizers, and special guest DJs. No cover before 11pm and just $5 after all night. Dancing 9pm-3am. Happy hour 4pm8:30pm 2111 Franklin St. (510) 2689425. www.club21oakland.com

Fri 17 Beach Blanket Babylon @ Club Fugazi The musical comedy revue celebrates its 40th year with an ever-changing lineup of political and pop culture icons, all in gigantic wigs. $25-$160. 678 Beach Blanket Babylon Blvd (Green St.). 421-4222. www.beachblanketbabylon.com

Dr. Zebrovski’s Public Prophesy @ Oasis

The Flamin' Groovies @ The Chapel The funk rock band performs their entire new album Shake Some Action, with guest Kelley Stoltz. $20-$22. 9pm. 777 Valencia St. www.thechapelsf.com

Happy Friday @ Midnight Sun The popular video bar ends each work week with gogo guys (starting at 9pm) and drink specials. 4067 18th St. 861-4186. www.midnightsunsf.com

Full Frontal Comedy @ Lookout Enjoy a night of comedy (3rd Thursdays) at the fundraiser for #berobin, with Paco Romane, Karinda Dobbins cohosts Yuri Kagan and Valeria Branch, and other guests. $5. 8pm. 3600 16th St. www.lookoutsf.com

Hardbox @ Powerhouse Gehno Aviance Sanchez' manly night at the cruisy SoMa bar; theme is boxing, so bring your boxing, boxer shorts and gloves or sports gear for a free drink, prizes. Kapow! Grooves by Gehno and Guy Ruben. $5 door goes to AIDS LifeCycle Team Magnet. 10pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

Funny Fun @ Club 21, Oakland LGBT comedy night hosted by Dan Mires. $10. 8pm. 2111 Franklin St. Oakland. (510) 268-9425. www.club21oakland.com

Latin Explosion @ Club 21, Oakland

Gym Class @ Hi Tops

The festive gogo-filled dance club, with host Lulu, features Latin pop dance hits with DJs Speedy Douglas Romero and Fabricio; no cover before 10pm. Enjoy the club's new third dance floor. $6-$12. 9pm-4am. 2111 Franklin St., Oakland. (510) 268-9425. www.club21oakland.com

Enjoy cheap/free whiskey shots from jock-strapped hotties and sexy sports videos at the popular sports bar. 10pm-2am. 2247 Market St. 551-2500. www.HiTopsSF.com

Some Thing @ The Stud Mica Sigourney and pals' weekly offbeat drag performance night. 10pm-2am. 399 9th St. www.studsf.com

Swagger Like Us @ Oasis The queer hip hop dance night is graced by the Bay Area return of Big Dipper, plus DJs Davo & boy_friend. $10. 10pm-2am. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Uhaul @ Beatbox Women's dance night (3rd Fridays) is themed "Emoji Costume Party" with DJs Jibbz and China G at the Bestiewinning SoMa club. $10. 9pm-2am. 314 11th St. www.beatboxsf.com

Sat 18 21st Anniversary @ Hole in the Wall The funky gun gay biker-style bar celebrates becoming "legal." All day specials. 1369 Folsom St. 431-4695. www.hitws.com

After Dark @ Exploratorium

Sing your heart out at the free lively night. 8pm-2am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Gogo-tastic dance night starts off your weekend. $5. 9pm-2am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

The adult party at the touch-andexperience science museum this time showcases Off the Screen: The Joshua Light Show with Linda Perhacs and Julia Holter: live groovy music and a trippy projected liquid light show. $15-$20. 8pm. Pier 15 at Embaracdero. www.exploratorium.edu

Mary Go Round @ Lookout

Midnight Show @ Divas

Bearracuda @ Beatbox

Karaoke Night @ Club BnB, Oakland

Suppositori Spelling, Mercedez Munro and Holotta Tymes host the weekly night with DJ Philip Grasso, gogo guys, drink specials, and drag acts. 10pm-2am. 3600 16th St. www.lookoutsf.com

Manimal @ Beaux

Thu 16 Brandon Flowers @ Rickshaw Stop

Weekly drag shows at the last transgender-friendly bar in the Polk; with hosts Victoria Secret, Alexis Miranda and several performers. Also Saturdays. $10. 11pm. 1081 Polk St. www.divassf.com

The husky manly set dances it up and strips down at Underwear Night, with DJs John LePage and Medic, at the Bestie-winning club (Best Dance Floor). $10. 10pm-3am. 314 11th St. www.beatboxsf.com

On the Tab>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 29

Club Rimshot @ Club BNB, Oakland Get groovin' at the weekly hip hop and R&B night at their new location. $8-$15. 9pm to 4am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Cocktailgate @ Truck Suppositori Spelling's wacky weekly drag show at the cute lil gay bar. 10pm-2am. 1900 Folsom St. 571-0925. www.trucksf.com

Gameboi @ Rickshaw Stop Monthly dance night popular with gay Asian guys and their pals. $8$15. 9:30pm-2am. 155 Fell St. at Van Ness Ave. www.rickshawstop.com

Golden Dildeaux Awards @ SF Eagle

Fri 17 Big Dipper at Swagger Like Us @ Oasis

Beatpig @ Powerhouse

Beer Bust @ SF Eagle

Walter, Juanita and Side Kick's monthly event gets leathery with grit and glamour. $5 benefits the Transgender Law Center. 9pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

The classic leather bar's most popular Sunday daytime event now also takes place on Saturdays. 3pm-6pm. 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

Beer Bust @ Hole in the Wall Saloon Beer only $8 until you bust. 4pm-8pm. 1369 Folsom St. 431-4695. www.hitws.com

La Bota Loca @ Club 21, Oakland DJed tunes, gogo hotties, drag shows, drink specials, all at Oakland's premiere Latin nightclub and weekly cowboy night. $10-$15. Dancing 9pm-4am. 2111 Franklin St. (510) 268-9425. www.club21oakland.com

The Golden Gate Guards' 43rd annual hilariously bawdy community awards show and fundraiser for the AIDS Emergency Fund; featuring performances by Raquela and the Guards. 7pm10pm. 398 12th St. Vote online at www.ggguards.org www.sf-eagle.com

Harold Sanditen @ Hotel Rex Flyin' High, the witty cabaret musician's show about world travels, traverses Bacharach to The Beatles. $25-$45. Cocktails and small plates available. 8pm. 562 Sutter St. at Powell. 856-1896. www.HaroldSanditen.com www.SocietyCabaret.com

Mother @ Oasis Heklina's weekly drag show night at the fabulous renovated SoMa nightclub; plus DJ MC2 and guests. April 18: Ladies of the '90s. $10. 10pm-2am. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Sugar @ The Café Dance, drink, cruise at the Castro club. 9pm-2am. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Sun 19 Annaleigh Ashford @ Venetian Room Bay Area Cabaret presents the comic singing star of Broadway ( Kinky Boots) and TV ( The Masters of Sex ) in Lost in the Stars, her West Coast cabaret debut, an eclectic repertory of pop and musical theatre classics, with Will Van Dyke and the Whisky 5 Band. $50 (buffet dinner $44). 5pm. Fairmont Hotel, 950 Mason St. 3924400. www.bayareacabaret.org

Beer Bust @ Lone Star Saloon The ursine crowd converges for beer and fun. 4pm-8pm. 1354 Harrison St. www.lonestarsf.com

Beer Bust @ SF Eagle The classic leather bar's most popular Sunday daytime event in town draws the menfolk. 3pm-6pm. Now also on Saturdays! 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

Big Top @ Beaux Joshua J.'s homo disco circus night, with guest DJs and performers, hotty gogo guys and drink specials. 9pm2am. 2344 Market St. www.BeauxSF.com

Brunch @ Hi Tops Enjoy crunchy sandwiches and mimosas, among other menu items, at the popular sports bar. 2247 Market St. 551-2500. www.HiTopsSF.com

Carolyn Mark & the New Best Friends, Feral @ Various Venues Enjoy Canada's country cabaret trio, and the local Americana ensemble, at the fun Thee Parkside (April 19, 4pm, no cover, with Feral, 1600 17th St. www.theeparkside.com ); April 20: Mark performs solo at The Makeout Room on Sad Bastard Night (3225 22nd St. www.makeoutroom.com): April 21, Mark/Friend w/ Feral and Bermuda Triangle Service at El Rio (7pm, 3158 Mission St. www.elriosf. com). www.carolynmark.com www. musiciansareferal.com Also April 19 FCCFreeRadio show with Lily Cat: www.fccfreeradio.com

Daytime Realness @ El Rio Partake in a special "Gays of Thrones" edition of the daytime drag dance party at the Bestie-winning bar, with DJs Stanley Frank, Carinta, guests Guy Ruben and Gossip Cat, hostess Heklina, and acts by Ruby Blue GenderBender, Laundra Tyme, Grace Towers, Sugah Betes and Valentine. Don your medieval Game of Thrones drag! $6-$8. 2pm-8pm. 3158 Mission St. 672-4735. www.elriosf.com

Disco Daddy @ SF Eagle Enjoy DJ Bus Station John's disco dance party that follows the popular beer bust. It's supremely groovy. $5. 7pm-12pm. 398 12th St. at Harrison. www.sf-eagle.com

GlamaZone @ The Cafe Pollo del Mar's weekly drag shows takes on different themes with a comic edge. 8:30-11:30pm. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Jock @ The Lookout The weekly jock-ular fun continues, with special sports team fundraisers. DJed dance music 3pm-7pm. 3600 16th St. www.lookoutsf.com

See page 30 >>

Justin Sayre brings Sodomite satire to Oasis by David Elijah-Nahmod

fter years of performing in New York, where he’s become an underground sensation, Justin Sayre brings his show The Meeting to the Oasis. Sayre will be at the hot nightspot on Saturday, April 25. He couldn’t be happier about making his debut in the Bay Area. “San Francisco is still the gay dream capital,” Sayre said, speaking by phone from the East Coast. “Gay history is still so present there; I’m

honored to be playing there.” Sayre’s show is called The Meeting. It promises to be an outrageously funny, if thought-provoking peek inside the monthly meeting of The International Order of Sodomites. Hosted by Sayre, The Order promotes LGBTQ culture. They also have a fabulous bake sale. “The Meeting came out of this premise that a secret gay organization was running everything,” Sayre explained. “A behind the scenes gay mafia. I’m the chairman.”

Christian Coulson

Justin Sayre

Though laced with humor, The Meeting might leave audiences with much to think about. “What the show allows me to do is to talk about social issues and gay culture, whether or not it’s thriving or dying at the moment,” Sayre said. “Within that structure it also allows me to take to task the overt bigotry that gays experience as members of the community. I take a serious look in a humorous way at how we treat each other.” Gay men of a certain age might recall the Hanky Code that was popular during the 1970s and ‘80s. Guys of that era would display a prominent, specifically colored handkerchief outside the back pocket of their jeans in order to let other horny cruisers know whether they were a top or a bottom, into leather, golden showers, or other fetishes. “We’ve reinstated the hanky codes for your emotional issues.” Sayre said. The Meeting will also touch upon various topical issues of the current era. “I’m always a little critical of gay marriage,” Sayre said, wondering if we’ve become too much like straight society. “But I’m far from anti-marriage. We can have these legal rights. Not having had them for so long, we have to retain the knowledge we’ve gained from our relationships outside of marriage. We don’t have to conform to marriage. We can inform it.” The show celebrates gay history, with tributes paid to a variety of LGBT icons; the subject changes from month to month. “We make them as diverse and representative as possible,” Sayre promised. Sayre, who hails from Pittsburgh, has been preparing for The Meeting

Justin Sayre at Joe’s Pub.

his entire life. He said that his family figured him out long before he had figured himself out. “As early as five or six, they said that I was going to be trouble later on!” he recalled. He moved to New York at 17. “I was called a queen the minute I got off the bus,” he said. And now, more than fifteen years later, Sayre is well on his way to becoming one of the gay icons he pays

homage to in his show. “At its core, it’s about the community in a very tangible way,” he said. “It’s also about how we create gay culture, continue it, and pass it on.”t The Meeting: The Monthly Gathering of the International Order of Sodomites, hosted by Justin Sayre. Saturday, April 25, 7:30pm. The Oasis, 298 11th St. www.sfoasis.com

<< On the Tab

30 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Tue 21

On the Tab

From page 29

Block Party @ Midnight Sun

Katya Presents @ Martuni's

Weekly screenings of music videos, concert footage, interviews and more, of popular pop stars. 9pm-2am. 4067 18th St. 861-4186. www.midnightsunsf.com

Katya Smirnoff-Skyy showcases talented cabaret singers; this month, Michelle Elaine Ianiro and pianist Tom Shaw. $11. 7pm. 4 Valencia St.

Liquid Brunch @ Beaux

Bombshell Betty & Her Burlesqueteers @ Elbo Room

No cover, no food, just drinks (Mimosas, Bloody Marys, etc.) and music. 2pm-9pm. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

The weekly burlesque show of women dancers shaking their bonbons includes live music. $10. 9pm. 647 Valencia St. 552-7788. www.elbo.com

Salsa Sundays @ El Rio Salsa dancing for LGBT folks and friends, with live merengue and cumbia bands; tapas and donations that support local causes. 2nd & 4th Sundays. 3pm-8pm. 3158 Mission St. 282-3325. www.elriosf.com

Cock Shot @ Beaux Shot specials and adult Bingo games, with DJs Chad Bays and Riley Patrick, at the new weekly night. No cover. 9pm-2am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

Sundance Saloon @ Space 550

Ronn Vigh hosts the weekly LGBT and gay-friendly comedy night. One-drink or menu item minimum. 9pm. 500 Castro St. at 18th. 431-HARV. www.harveyssf.com

Gay Skate Night @ Church on 8 Wheels

Sunday Brunch, Xtravaganza @ Balancoire

Sunday's a Drag @ Starlight Room Donna Sachet hosts the weekly fabulous brunch and drag show. $45. 11am, show at noon; 1:30pm, show at 2:30pm. 450 Powell St. in Union Square. 395-8595. www.starlightroomsf.com

Mon 20 Cock and Bull Mondays @ Hole in the Wall Saloon Specials on drinks made with Cock and Bull ginger ale (Jack and Cock, Russian Mule, and more). 8pmclosing. 1369 Folsom St. 431-4695. www.hitws.com

Drag Mondays @ The Café Mahlae Balenciaga and DJ Kidd Sysko's weekly drag and dance night, 2014's last of the year. 9pm-1am. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Switch @ Q Bar Weekly women's night at the stylish intimate bar. 9pm-2am. 456 Castro St. www.QbarSF.com

Trivia Night @ Hi Tops Play the trivia game at the popular new sports bar. 9pm. 2247 Market St. 551-2500. www.HiTopsSF.com

Una Noche @ Club BnB, Oakland Vicky Jimenez' drag show and contest; Latin music all night. 9pm-2am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Underwear Night @ Club OMG Weekly underwear night includes free clothes check, and drink specials; different hosts each week. $3. 10pm2am. Preceded by Open Mic Comedy, 7pm, no cover. 43 6th St. www.clubomgsf.com

Funny Tuesdays @ Harvey's

Dance it up at the popular twiceweekly country-western night that includes line-dancing, two-stepping and lessons. $5. 5pm-10:30pm. Also Thursdays 6:30pm-10:30pm. 550 Barneveld Ave. at Industrial. www.sundancesaloon.org

Weekly live music shows with host Galilea and various acts, along with brunch, mimosas, champagne and more, at the stylish nightclub and restaurant; shows at 12:30pm, 1:30pm and 2:45pm. After that, T-Dance drag shows at 7pm, 10pm and 11pm. 2565 Mission St. at 21st. 920-0577. www.balancoiresf.com

Sun 19 Annaleigh Ashford @ Venetian Room

Epic Karaoke @ White Horse, Oakland

Mash Up Mondays @ Club BnB, Oakland

Mondays and Tuesdays popular weekly sing-along night. No cover. 8:30pm-1am. 6551 Telegraph Ave, (510) 652-3820. www.whitehorsebar.com

Weekly Karaoke and open mic night; RuPaul's Drag Race screenings, too. 9pm-2am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 7597340. www.club-bnb.com

Irish Dance Night @ Starry Plough, Berkeley Weekly dance lessons and live music at the pub-restaurant, hosted by John Slaymaker. $5. 7pm. 3101 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. www.thestarryplough. com

Karaoke @ The Lookout

Monday Musicals @ The Edge

LGBT night at the former Sacred Heart Church-turned disco roller skate party space, hosted by John D. Miles, the "Godfather of Skate." Actually, every night is gay-friendly, including Saturday's Black Rock night (Burning Man garb encouraged). Also Wed, Thu, 7pm-10pm. Sat afternoon sessions 1pm-2:30pm and 3pm5:30pm. $10. Kids 12 and under $5. Skate rentals $5. 554 Fillmore St at Fell. www.churchof8wheels.com

Ink & Metal @ Powerhouse Show off your tattoos and piercings at the weekly cruisy SoMa bar night. 10pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www. powerhousebar.com

Wed 22 Bingo @ Club OMG Michael Brandon hosts the board game night (3rd Wed). 7pm. 43 6th St. www.clubomgsf.com

Booty Call @ QBar Juanita More! and her weekly intimate –yet packed– dance party. $10-$15. 9pm-2am. 456 Castro St. www.qbarsf.com

Bondage a GoGo @ Cat Club The (mostly straight) kinky weekly dance night, where fetish gear is welcome; DJs Damon and Tomas Diablo play electro, goth, industrial, etc. 9:30pm-2:30am. 1190 Folsom St. www.bondage-a-go-go.com

Bottoms Up Bingo @ Hi Tops Play board games and win offbeat prizes at the popular sports bar. 9pm. 2247 Market St. 551-2500. www.HiTopsSF.com

Mon 20

Sing along at the popular musical theatre night; also Wednesdays. 7pm2am. 2 for 1 cocktail, 5pm-closing. 4149 18th St. at Collingwood. www.edgesf.com

Your Fearless Leader @ Brick & Mortar

Name That Beat @ Toad Hall

Paul K hosts the amateur singing night. 8pm-2am. 3600 16th St. at Market. www.lookoutsf.com

BeBe Sweetbriar hosts a weekly musical trivia challenge and drag show. 8:30-11:30pm. 4146 18th St. at Castro. www.toadhallbar.com

Mahogany Mondays @ Midnight Sun

No No Bingo @ Virgil's Sea Room

Honey Mahogany's weekly drag and musical talent show starts around 10pm. 4067 18th St. 861-4186. www.midnightsunsf.com

Mica Sigourney and Tom Temprano cohost the wacky weekly game night at the cool Mission bar. 8pm. 3152 Mission St. www.virgilssf.com

Opulence @ Beaux New weekly dance night, with Jocques, DJs Tori, Twistmix and Andre. 9pm-2am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

Piano Bar 101 @ Martuni's Sing-along night with talented locals, and charming accompanist Joe Wicht (aka Trauma Flintstone). 9pm. 4 Valencia St. at Market. www.dragatmartunis.com

Underwear Night @ 440 Strip down to your skivvies at the popular men's night. 9pm-2am. 440 Castro St. 621-8732. www.the440.com

Your Fearless Leader @ Brick and Mortar

Sun 19 Carolyn Mark @ Various venues

SF-based alt-rock trio headlines a bill with Desert Island Friend (fun pop) and The Missing Famous (ripping good covers). $5-$10. 9pm. 1710 Mission St. www.yflband.com www.brickandmortarmusic.com

Meow Mix @ The Stud The weekly themed variety cabaret showcases new and unusual talents; MC Ferosha Titties. $3-$7. Show at 11pm. 9pm-2am. 399 9th St. at Harrison. www.studsf.com

Naked Night @ Nob Hill Theatre Strip down with the strippers at the cruisy adult theatre and arcade; free beverages. $20. 8pm. 729 Bush St. at Powell. 397-6758. www.thenobhilltheatre.com

Retro Night @ 440 Castro Jim Hopkins plays classic pop oldies, with vintage music videos. 9pm-2am. 44 Castro St. www.the440.com

Showdown @ Folsom Foundry Weekly game night for board and electronic gamers at the warehouse multi-purpose nightclub. 21+. 6pm12am. 1425 Folsom St. www.showdownesports.com

B.P.M. @ Club BnB, Oakland Olga T and Shugga Shay's weekly queer women and men's R&B hip hop and soul night, at the club's new location. No cover. 8pm-2am. 2120 Broadway, Oakland. www.bench-and-bar.com

Dream Queens Revue @ Aunt Charlie's Lounge The classic drag show features Collette LeGrande, Ruby Slippers, Sophilya Leggz, Bobby Ashton, Sheena Rose, Kipper, and Joie de Vivre. No cover. 9:30pm. 133 Turk St. www.dreamqueensrevue.com

Miss Kitty's Trivia Night @ Wild Side West The weekly fun night at the Bernal Heights bar includes prizes, hosted by Kitty Tapata. No cover. 7pm-10pm. 424 Cortland St. 647-3099. www.wildsidewest.com

See page 31 >>

On the Tab>>

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 31

Sat 18 After Dark @ Exploratorium

On the Tab

From page 30

Open Mic/Comedy @ SF Eagle Kollin Holts hosts the weekly comedy and open mic talent night. 6pm-8pm. 398 12th St. www.sf-eagle.com

Damien Rice @ Fox Theatre, Oakland The lyrical Irish folk-pop singer performs. Marketa Irglova opens. $50-$60. 8pm. 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. www.thefoxoakland.com

The Facts of Life @ Oasis

Weekly women's happy hour, with allwomen music and live performances, 2 for 1 drinks, and no cover. 5pm9am. 2344 Market St. www.beauxsf.com

Yes, it's true. Those wacky queens who gave you Sex & the City are now doing drag parody versions of two episodes from the cult classic schoolgirl sitcom. $25-$30. 7pm. Thu-Sat thru May 16. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Rainbow Skate @ Redwood Roller Rink

Funny Fun @ Club 21, Oakland

Pussy Party @ Beaux

Weekly LGBT and friends skate night, with groovy disco music and themed events. $9. 8pm-10:30pm. 1303 Main Street, Redwood City. www.rainbowskate.net www.facebook.com/rainbowskating/

Red Hots Burlesque @ Oasis The saucy women's burlesque revue weekly show at the new SoMa nightclub; different musical guests each week. $10-$20. Wednesdays at 8:30pm-11:30pm. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 795-3180. www.sfoasis.com

Shit Talk @ Oasis Yuri Kagan's uncensored comedy night, with special guests. $5. 7:30pm. 298 11th St. at Folsom. 7953180. www.sfoasis.com

So You Think You Can Gogo? @ Toad Hall The weekly dancing competition for gogo wannabes. 9pm. cash prizes, $2 well drinks (2 for 1 happy hour til 9pm). Show at 9pm. 4146 18th St. www.toadhallbar.com

Way Back @ Midnight Sun Weekly screenings of vintage music videos and retro drink prices. Check out the new expanded front window lounge. 9pm-2am. 4067 18th St. 8614186. www.midnightsunsf.com

Weekly LGBT and straight comedy night hosted by Dan Mires. $10. 8pm. 2111 Franklin St. Oakland. (510) 2689425. www.club21oakland.com

Gym Class @ Hi Tops Enjoy cheap whiskey shots from jock-strapped hotties and sexy sports videos at the popular new sports bar. 10pm-2am. 2247 Market St. 551-2500. www.HiTopsSF.com

Karaoke Night @ Club BnB, Oakland Sing your heart out at the free lively night. 8pm-2am. 2120 Broadway. (510) 759-7340. www.club-bnb.com

Karaoke Night @ Club OMG Dana leads the weekly amateur singing night. 8pm. No cover. 43 6th St. 896-6473. www.clubomgsf.com

The Monster Show @ The Edge The dearly missed Cookie Dough's weekly drag show conitnues, with themed events and cute gogo guys. $5. 9pm-2am. 4149 18th St. at Collingwood. www.edgesf.com

Wooden Nickel Wednesday @ 440 Buy a drink and get a wooden nickle good for another. 12pm-2am. 440 Castro St. 621-8732. www.the440.com

Wrangler Wednesday @ Rainbow Cattle Company, Guerneville The Russian River bar's country music night attracts cowboys and those who like to ride 'em. 8pm-1am. 16220 Main St., Guerneville. (707) 869-0206. www.queersteer.com

Bulge @ Powerhouse Grace Towers hosts the weekly gogotastic night of sexy dudes shakin' their bulges and getting wet in their undies for $100 prize (with a contest at midnight), and dance beats spun by DJ DAMnation. 10pm-2am. 1347 Folsom St. www.powerhousebar.com

Thu 23 Damien Rice @ The Fox

Nora Jane Struthers & The Party Line @ Brick & Mortar Bittersweet rock and witty country music vocalist and her band; also on the bill, The Lady Crooners, Ben and Alex Morrison. $10-$14. 9pm. 1710 Mission St. www. brickandmortarmusic.com

Thirsty Thursdays @ The Café Drink specials, Top 40, gogo studs and no cover 2for 1 cocktails til 10:30pm. 2369 Market St. www.cafesf.com

Thump @ White Horse, Oakland Weekly electro music night with DJ Matthew Baker and guests. 9pm-2am. 6551 Telegraph Ave, (510) 652-3820. www.whitehorsebar.com

Tubesteak Connection @ Aunt Charlie's Lounge Eleventh anniversary of the retro disco night with a fun diverse crowd, and disco master DJ Bus Station John. $4. 10pm-2am. 133 Turk St. at Taylor. www.auntcharlieslounge.com Want your nightlife event listed? Email events@ebar.com, at least two weeks before your event. Event photos welcome.

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

32 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Under the collar Symbolic statement, bonding icon or just fashion?

by Race Bannon

friends lately. Here are my thoughts on the topic. hese days you can’t go to any of Once upon a time, at least in the our leather or kink events, bars gay men’s leather scene, collars were or venues and not see many people not a common sight. Occasionwearing collars. Even a walk down a ally you would see a guy wearing a San Francisco street will reveal the locked chain collar and you figured prevalence of collars. The use of colthe key was held by someone else. lars within our scene is at an all-time There were a few permutations of high, yet perhaps their meanings are this concept, but generally that’s more muddled than ever. what you thought. The meanings and purposes Today, that assumption behind collars seem to be can lead to a lot of mischanging with the times. communications. EsI am specifically referpecially with so many ring here to the types people wearing collars of collars worn conwith varying meantinually or regularly by ings. Hopefully this someone, not the kinds column will clear up that might be used prisome potential misunmarily during a BDSM derstandings regarding or kink play scene. collars and make navigatIf you wear a collar ing them within our scene or someone in your life does, what a bit easier. does it mean to you? What is its I currently observe collars worn purpose? How do you navigate their to indicate a wide variety of meanuse? What social graces do you feel ings in our contemporary scene, should be adhered to when dealing such as... with collars? How do you interpret Partners wearing matching colwhat a collar on someone else actulars as a symbol of their partnership ally means? These are the questions (not necessarily dominant/submisI’ve asked myself and my circle of sive in nature). Guys wearing collars they put on themselves to indicate their submissive nature. Pup collars, some with locks and some not, to indicate pup status, but not necessarily with any power dynamic attached to it. Collars with open locks indicating they’re open to the idea of someone taking control (locking the lock). Chain collars with no lock (dog style choker collars for example) worn simply to engender a masculine look telegraphing an interest in edgier sex or kink. Leather thongs tied in a knot around the neck used as a trial “dating” collar. Collars that symbolize boy status, but with no ownership attached. Collars that symbolize a dominant/submissive relationship, but not necessarily ownership. Collars that symbolize a master/slave relationship, indicating ownership. And many other variations. In short, the meanRich Stadtmiller ings of a collar have Collared bear; is he taken? changed and people have adapted them to suit their

Rich Stadtmiller

A kissing couple with collars up close.

Race Bannon Rich Stadtmiller

Collared dude at a leather beer bust at the SF Eagle.

own particular erotic or identity needs. The many meanings of collars these days have proven controversial for some. There are those kinksters who feel that collars are sacred and their meanings more fixed and less fluid than others might consider them. My own personal stance is that all subcultural symbols are a product

of that subculture, and our leather and kink subculture is clearly signaling that such symbols need to change to meet certain people’s needs. I’m okay with that. Change is the norm and we have to accept that we can’t remain transfixed by a supposed rigid leather past when such symbols might have had more narrow interpretations.

Rich Stadtmiller Rich Stadtmiller

Four gents show off various collars.

Kink retailers like Mr. S Leather have realized the popularity of collars and stock a wide assortment of them.

Fashion or full-out kink at 2014’s Folsom Street Fair. Note the chain from collar to belt.

But we still have to honor and navigate all those meanings. How do you do that? There are three specific things I think everyone needs to do when encountering someone wearing a collar, and they’re pretty basic and simple. See page 34 >>

Rich Stadtmiller

Women with open and locked collars at the 2014 Up Your Alley street fair.

Read more online at www.ebar.com

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 33

Furgency by John F. Karr

y writing about Furry Guys Fucking may lack sparkle, but in self-defense, I’ll claim that only reflects the film itself. So often while taking in the high gloss product of the mainstream companies, I’ve ragged on the director as cheerleader, urging his performers to evermore intense and frenzied athleticism that can make the excitements of sex seem performed instead of felt. An excess of high voltage can falsify the sexual exchange, providing little room for the more personal aspects of what’s going down. Energy may not be a talent, but it sure counts for a lot in porn, where sex either strikes sparks, or is defused.

Furry Guys Fucking has the latter problem, even as there’s much promise in the DVD’s string of six twenty-minute scenes. For one thing, I doubt you’ve seen any of these guys before (with the single exception of Nick Moretti). I find it a real treat to encounter a brand new bunch of guys, especially when they’re uniformly young (again, excepting Moretti, they all seem to be in their early 20s), attractive and nicely-cocked. Also, I liked the way the guys keep up the near constant connection of kissing. And they do sport the promised fur. So, on the movie’s behalf, we’ve got youth, kissing, cocks, and flocculence. What more could a movie need? How about a little pep? A similarity of action among the scenes

Pornteam

Mop-haired Ryan is a main attraction in Furry Guys Fucking.

Pornteam

Ryan and Knox begin getting to know each other, in Furry Guys Fucking.

Pornteam

They don’t appear together in Furry Guys Fucking, but Ryan and Axel make a swell team elsewhere.

makes the controlling hand of a director obvious. But perhaps it’s been too controlling. In lieu of a stirring up, this uncredited person has offered tamping down. Though music would be out of place in this kind of reality porn, the prevailing silence presses down on the blankly anonymous motel room in which the encounters occur. There’s only a couple words spoken in the entire flick, and there are hardly even any moans. A slightly elevated exhalation of breath is the most information we get. Much of the kissing, and portions of the cocksucking and rimming are slow and savory. But the prevailing sex made for pro forma sex. This leads to orgasms arriving by JO; not a single one blasts in the midst of a fuck. Here’s another of my standard, though somewhat minor complaints. The models strip each other out of their underwear without taking advantage of their erotic potential—except for a brief moment of brief ’s bliss in one scene when a boner trapped in tented red tighties is mouthed and gnawed at through its cotton entrapment. But Furry Guys Fucking can be a refreshing alternative to our daily fare, so perhaps I’ve over elaborated my critique. Here are some of the anthology’s plusses. Top of the list is a guy named Ryan. He’s a mop-haired cutie with a button nose above sweetly pristine lips. He has a scruffy beard, dark hair running the length of his torso, and real mainstream potential. “You gotta nice dick,” he murmurs in the movie’s most prolix moment, as he admires partner Lance’s domeheaded, creamy tube. Lance’s furriness includes that weird sort of beard that starts at the chin line and runs backward below it. I can only guess some guys go for this style because it’s different. But it’s never flattered anyone, and doesn’t flatter Lance. Still, with a dick so entrancing, we’re hardly dwelling on his beard. And Ryan sure is a honey. There’s Mano, a butch dude with shaved head and soul patch below his lip. His especially sturdy body is matched by an excessively sturdy cock upon which young Kyle implants himself for a swell ride. His climax is seen twice, the second camera’s view particularly revealing that it was quite a squirt. I laughed at the way Daniel holds his crucifix back from banging Jesus against his partner’s bone. And I liked his 69 with hot, hot Axel—in the movie’s first of only two showing the act that makes one boy of two, completing a circle in the nearly sacred position that can offer psychological as well as physical impact on the viewer. For full enjoyment, the moment is savored, not rushed. Knox is the fellow with the distended red undies. His partner is the creatively named Scotland, who sports a similar bulge, although nothing is done with it. Handsome Scotland is an attentive cocksucker, with Knox providing a good cock for him to work on. Scotland and Knox tangle up in the movie’s second 69. Nick Moretti’s scene is the collection’s solitary bareback event. I skipped over it as an unsafe anomaly. Finally, even though I, a guy who stops doing anything that breaks a sweat, generally rouses more energy than the lads of Furry Guys Fucking have been allowed to exhibit by their director, you may find the reality quotient of the movie’s scruffy boys entertaining.t www.Pornteam.com

Pornteam

Solid Mano in action, in a scene from Furry Guys Fucking.

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

34 • BAY AREA REPORTER • April 16-22, 2015

Personals

The

Massage>>

People>> HOT LOCAL MEN

CENTRAL FULL BODY MASSAGE 415-350-0968

Browse & Reply FREE! SF - 415-430-1199 East Bay - 510-343-1122 Use FREE Code 2628, 18+

SEXY ASIAN $60 JIM 415-269-5707

*EXCELLENT NUDE MASSAGE*

Tall blond inshape CMT nr SF/ Dolores Park 60/90/120 min sessions, Swedish, Prostate, Erotic, or Hypno-Massage from $90. Strong hands. Call Heron: 415-706-9740

Model/Escorts>> HANDSOME 9X7!

MEN TO MEN MASSAGE

Vic $150 Call 1-415-735-4548

I’m a Tall Latin Man in my late 40’s. If you’re looking, I’m the right guy for you. My rates are $80/hr & $120/90 min. My work hours are 10 a.m. to midnite everyday. 415-515-0594 Patrick call or text. See pics on ebar.com

“To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else.” — Emily Dickinson

Leather

From page 32

First, never reach out and touch someone’s collar. Never. Ever. It is an invasion of someone’s personal space, but you might also be violating a sacred or cherished meaning for the collar. It’s considered downright rude and disrespectful to touch someone’s collar without first asking the person. And honestly, why do you need to touch it at all? If you have the inclination to reach out and touch someone’s collar without asking, stop. It’s simply bad manners to do it. Second, make no assumptions when you see someone wearing a collar. It is human nature to make such assumptions, but try to resist that tendency. It might be an important relationship totem or it might be a personal statement for an evening. Or it might be one of many other personal or relationship statements. There’s just no one assumption that’s likely to be correct. So try to keep an open mind about what a collar might mean. Also, in spite of what anyone might say, there is no such thing as a correct way to collar someone or to wear a collar. Everyone makes up their own process by which they offer or take a collar, or wear one on their own without anyone else’s involvement. Do what works for you and allow others to do the same. Regardless of the fact that many leather and kink folk are wearing collars of varying meanings, some still make a quick assumption. One friend said to me, “For me, a collar means the person is owned. I don’t speak to that person without their owner’s permission.” If one were to proceed with this assumption 100% of the time, you’d be wrong much of the time. A Daddy-identified friend said, “If one of my boys is wearing my

collar, it’s a sign of mutual obligation and protection.” Notice there’s no mention of ownership or dominance in what he said. Another friend said, “It merely means a commitment to me, similar to a promise ring.” This is a more generalized assumption and while likely to be more correct than other assumptions. It’s also not always going to be correct. Someone else I talked to discounts collars entirely because they feel they are nothing but a fashion statement. I can personally attest to the fact that many collars are by no means a fashion statement, although I’m not upset myself if someone chooses to wear a collar as some sort of personal statement, whatever that statement might be. Third, if you’re unsure of what a collar on someone’s neck means, ask. Yes, ask. It’s so simple, but so many people don’t to it. Something pretty basic like, “I really like your collar. May I ask what it means to you?” will suffice. I’ve yet to encounter anyone who was unwilling to answer that question. In fact, many people wearing collars are so enthused about it that they enjoy telling others what it means. Navigating our use of collars might be a bit more complicated than it once was, but it’s heartening to me to see folks taking ownership of their own symbols and using them in ways that best resonate with their own particular erotic or identity style. I think our scene is richer for it. If everyone abides by a few politeness guidelines, there’s no reason the collared and uncollared can’t all coexist quite nicely.t Race Bannon is a local author, blogger and activist. You can reach him on his website, www.bannon.com.

ebar.com Personals

To place your Personals ad, Call 415-861-5019 for more info & rates

Leather Events, April 16 – May 3, 2015 Fri 17, 24

Wed 22

Thu 30

Sober Kink Together @ Castro Country Club

Leathermen’s Discussion Group @ SF LGBT Community Center

Hot Draw! @ Mark I Chester Studio

Officially a CMA meeting, but open to all Anonymous 12-step Fellowship members, 4058 18th St., 9:30pm.

Gear Party @ 442 Natoma

Richtrove.com 10th anniversary - in conversation with founder, Rich Stadtmiller. 1800 Market St., 7:30pm. www.sfldg.org

Gear play party (leather, rubber, harnesses, etc.) for gay men. 442 Natoma St., $15 (requires $5 membership), 10pm. www.442parties.com

Leather/Gear Buddies @ Blow Buddies

Sat 18

Sat 25

43rd Annual Golden Dildeaux Awards @ SF Eagle These humorous awards are intended to poke fun at various sexual activities while at the same time provide a unique charity fundraising opportunity. 398 12th St., 7pm. www.ggguards.org

Device @ SF Eagle Get your leather out and bring a dirty playful mood and get sleazy at this event. 398 12th St., 9pm. www.sf-eagle.com

Mon 20, 27 Ride Mondays @ Eros A motorcycle rider and leathermen night at Eros, bring your helmet, AMA card, MC club card or club colors and get $3 off entry or massage. 2051 Market St. www.erossf.com

Erotic fun for leather and gear guys, $15, 933 Harrison St., 8pm. www.blowbuddies.com

The 15 Association Men’s Play Party @ SF Citadel A men’s BDSM play party during their Associate’s Weekend. 181 Eddy St., 8pm. www.the15sf.org

Sun 26 The 15 Association Men’s Play Party @ Alchemy A men’s BDSM play party during their Associate’s Weekend. 1060 Folsom St., 2pm. www.the15sf.org

Tue 28 GameGear @ Wicked Grounds Game night hosted by Rubber Men of San Francisco. 289 8th St., 7:30pm. www.rmsf.org

Erotic, leather, fetish poses for gay male sketchers of all skill levels. 1229 Folsom St., 6:30pm. markichester.com/hotdraw

Fri 1 SCCLA Bar Schmooz @ Renegades Bar Informal social where friends, prospective members and anyone else who wants to relax, laugh, talk and hang out with like minded people, 501 W. Taylor St., San Jose, 9pm.

Boots Leather Cigars @ SF Eagle Boots Leather Cigars @ SF Eagle. Social gathering for men into boots, leather, uniforms and cigars. 398 12th St., 9pm-midnight.

Sober Kink Together @ Castro Country Club Officially a CMA meeting, but open to all Anonymous 12-step Fellowship members, 4058 18th St., 9:30pm.

Gear Party @ 442 Natoma Gear play party (leather, rubber, harnesses, etc.) for gay men. 442 Natoma St., $15 (requires $5 membership), 10pm. www.442parties.com

Read more online at www.ebar.com

Shooting Stars

April 16-22, 2015 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 35

photos by Steven Underhill REAF at Bloomingdales

lothing fans, shirtless hunks and patrons of the (renamed) Richmond/Ermet Aid Foundation enjoyed afternoon cocktails and DJed grooves in downtown San Francisco as Bloomingdale’s hosted a Spring Shopping Event benefitting REAF. Local models in stylish spring garb, and a few shirtless hunks showing off swimwear, tempted shoppers. Don’t miss the touring cast of The Book of Mormon at the next REAF benefit concert May 18 at Marines’ Memorial Theatre. For more info, visit www.reaf.org See more photos on Bestie-winning Steven Underhill’s album page on SmugMug. More event photo albums are on BARtab’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife. See more of Steven Underhill’s photos at www.StevenUnderhill.com.

||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

For headshots, portraits or to arrange your wedding photos

call (415) 370-7152 or visit www.StevenUnderhill.com or email stevenunderhillphotos@gmail.com

COCK?