February 2, 2012 edition of the Bay Area Reporter by Bay Area Reporter

Trigger owner paying off fines

SFGH foundation has 'Hearts'

SF Ballet's 'Onegin'

The

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

Vol. 41 • No. 04 • February 2-8, 2012

One year later, Lyon-Martin still open

SFPD likely to O promote gays

by Seth Hemmelgarn

espite being known for decades as a haven for gay men, San Francisco doesn’t have any out gay men ranking above sergeant on its police force. But Police Chief Greg Suhr said recently that would change “by the end of the year.” In an interview last week at the Bay Area Reporter’s Rick Gerharter offices, Suhr said that he’s “very proud” Police Chief that Sergeant Peter Greg Suhr Thoshinsky, 52, is expected to be promoted soon to lieutenant. Asked about what being an out gay male lieutenant in the department meant to him, Thoshinsky said he’d hope his fellow officers “would see sexuality as independent of being a good cop, and that being a man and being brave and honest are independent of your sexuality.” Thoshinsky, who’s been with the San Francisco Police Department for 30 years and came out in 2008, said the agency’s “extremely accepting.” Thoshinsky isn’t the only person in the SFPD likely to get promoted to lieutenant. Suhr said that Sergeant Chuck Limbert, the longtime LGBT liaison at Mission Station, is in the top 40 of candidates. Suhr, himself a 30-year veteran of the SFPD, has noted that beginning in the 1980s the force was decimated by AIDS, and many gay men didn’t live to see being promoted to higher ranks. In the next three years, however, there likely will be significant departures due to retirements, the chief said. Besides filling the personnel gaps, Suhr also faces a number of other tasks, including ensuring safety at Pink Saturday this June – which will mark two years since a man was killed there – and cracking down on robberies, among other issues. But one of the looming issues is staffing. The city has 2,000 police officers, but “We’re going to have in the neighborhood of 350 officers leave in the next three years,” Suhr said. “It’s not lost on anybody right now that we need cops,” he said. See page 20 >>

ne year ago, in late January 2011, Lyon-Martin Health Services’ board of directors shocked the city when it announced the clinic was more than $500,000 in debt and would close within days. The board had neither established a transition plan nor informed city health officials, and the San Francisco agency’s closure would have meant the abandonment of about 2,500 patients. Community supporters quickly rallied to save the clinic, and in the months following the near-collapse, fundraising efforts brought in $600,722. One year later, Lyon-Martin is still heavily in debt, and its survival isn’t guaranteed, but there have been some improvements in the financial situation, and officials appear fairly confident about its future. The clinic, at 1748 Market Street, serves women and transgender people, regardless of their ability to pay. The agency, which has a tentative budget of $2.4 million, is named after pioneering lesbians Phyllis Lyon, and her wife, the late Del Martin, who died in August 2008. “The clinic continues to be in demand and we continue to provide excellent services,” Marj Plumb, Lyon-Martin’s board chair, said in a recent interview. “We believe the community needs and wants the clinic to stay alive, and we’re thrilled we’ve had the last 12 months,

Jane Philomen Cleland

Lyon-Martin interim Executive Director Dr. Dawn Harbatkin and board chair Marj Plumb say the agency has improved its financial situation since it nearly closed a year ago, although much work remains.

thanks to the community,” she said. Plumb was once Lyon-Martin’s executive director and returned as board chair last April. No one who was on the board in January 2011 remains. Asked whether there’s still a danger of the clinic closing, Plumb said it’s “a complicated question.” She said they’re going to negotiate

with the people to whom they owe money to give the clinic another year. Dr. Dawn Harbatkin, Lyon-Martin’s interim executive director and medical director, said the near-meltdown last year “has made us more rigorous in the way that we monitor See page 21 >>

Report: Black gays need more than marriage equality by Michael K. Lavers

new report from the Center for American Progress suggests that marriage equality alone cannot address systemic inequalities among black gay and transgender people. The report – “Jumping Beyond the Broom: Why Black Gay and Transgender Americans Need More than Marriage Equality” – specifically examines socioeconomic, educational, and health disparities among these populations. Recent statistics paint a sobering picture. The National Transgender Discrimination Survey found that 34 percent of black trans people have an annual income of less than $10,000. Black LGBT parents have children at twice the rate as white LGBT adults, but they are twice as likely to live in poverty. Only 35 percent of black lesbians had mammograms over the Courtesy Christina DiPasquale last year, compared to 62 percent of Aisha Moodie-Mills of the Center for American Progress discussed white lesbians. the center’s recent report on black gay and transgender people. The Centers for Disease Control

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and Prevention indicate that new HIV infection rates among black men who have sex with men between the ages of 13-29 rose 48 percent between 2006 and 2009. More than 7 percent of black Washingtonians were living with HIV/AIDS at the end of 2008, according to statistics from the District of Columbia’s HIV/AIDS Administration. “All of these statistics together show us that we need more than marriage,” said the Center for American Progress’ Aisha Moodie-Mills, who wrote the report, at a forum at the organization’s Washington, D.C., office last month. “We need more than marriage because over the last decade, in spite of the number of gains that we’ve had in the LGBT movement in general and the rights of LGBT people, we haven’t seen very much change in these disparities for black gay and transgender folks. So somehow they’re falling through the cracks and there’s something there that’s missing.” See page 20 >>

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2 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Trigger bar paying off $50,000 in fines by Seth Hemmelgarn

ity officials and neighbors of San Francisco’s Trigger nightclub are expressing frustration with the bar’s owner as he works to pay off $50,000 in fines he accumulated because he wasn’t complying with conditions he agreed to in 2008. Greg Bronstein, who owns Trigger, said he preferred not to talk about the penalties. “It’s a fine we have, and we’re paying it off,” Bronstein said. “It’s history. Right now, we’re making sure our operations are perfect.” Bronstein met with Supervisor Scott Wiener – whose District 8 includes Trigger, at 2344 Market Street – and other city officials, along with members of neighborhood groups, on January 19. Bronstein’s been given until mid-February to make changes. The fines hit $50,000 by March 2011, after Bronstein was penalized $250 a day. On March 11, 2011, the planning department sent a letter to him and others stating that the agency had received complaints about the property since 2009. According to the letter – headed “Administrative Penalty Reminder #3” – the bar was in violations of conditions agreed upon by Bronstein and club neighbors in June 2008. The stipulations in question mainly addressed containing noise, including bass and vibrations, within the building. In 2008 Bronstein proposed, and the city’s Planning Commission approved, the expansion of Bronstein’s existing Jet bar into the adjacent first floor commercial space. The approved project also included a smoking patio. The first enforcement notification appears to have been issued in

Jane Philomen Cleland

Trigger, a popular bar in the Castro, has been the subject of complaints by neighbors and enforcement actions by city departments.

November 2009 after planners received a complaint that conditions were being violated. The March 2011 notice, which the planning department provided to the Bay Area Reporter, indicates city officials and neighbors worked for several months to try to get the problems fixed. In April 2010, the letter says, Bronstein submitted a plan for installing sound mitigation measures. Kate Conner, the planning staffer assigned to Trigger at the time, wrote that the department was “supportive of the improvements,” but “the amount of time that it has taken for compliance is excessive. The violation has been confirmed numerous times by Entertainment

Commission staff.” Conner added, “Planning staff continues to receive multiple complaints from the neighborhood stating that the noise associated with Trigger bar is [a] nuisance and that Trigger bar is unresponsive to their requests to adjust the music and bass levels.” In May 2010, the planning letter said, an Entertainment Commission staffer reported that sound level coming from the club had improved but noise from the smoking section “is still very high.” After a December 2010 Planning Commission hearing, the smoking patio had to be enclosed, but problems have persisted. Planner See page 20 >>

Arrest made in 1983 murder by Seth Hemmelgarn

man is set to be arraigned today (Thursday, February 2) in San Francisco Superior Court for allegedly killing another man in 1983. San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón announced this week that William Payne, 47, would be charged with first-degree murder in the death of Nikolaus Crumbley, a 41-year-old Texas resident. According to the DA’s office, on November 16, 1983, Crumbley was found dead at the intersection of John Shelley Drive and Mansell Street in John McLaren Park. The San Francisco Medical Examiner’s office ruled the death a homicide and the cause of death from ligature strangulation, the DA’s staff said. In a statement Tuesday, January 31, the San Francisco Police Department said that during the initial investigation, biological material and other evidence was recovered from the crime scene. The department’s homicide cold case unit, working under a federally funded DNA grant, investigated the incident and identified Payne as the suspect. According to the DA’s office, the California Department of Justice notified the city’s crime lab that via their DNA database, a match was identified between the DNA evidence sample taken from Crumbley and Payne. On Monday, January 30, police said, Payne was arrested on the 800 block of Hayes Street by Inspectors Joe Toomey and Holly Pera, as well as members of the violence

Courtesy SFPD

Murder suspect William Payne

reduction team. He was booked into San Francisco County jail on the charge of murder. Police said that Toomey, the lead investigator in this case, is a retired veteran homicide inspector who was brought back on a part-time basis to work under the federally funded grant on cold case homicide investigations. A statement from the department said that Toomey “was selected, in part, because of his wealth of knowledge and experience in homicide investigations. He continues to serve as a resource to other homicide investigators.” Gascón stated, “Cold hit DNA is integral to bringing criminals to justice. Almost three decades later, we have charged the person responsible for this horrific murder. This case shows that at times justice can be delayed but it cannot be denied.” Officials couldn’t immediately say

Courtesy SFPD

Murder victim Nikolaus Crumbley

whether either of the men was gay. Citing an affidavit supporting Payne’s arrest warrant, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Tuesday that Crumbley’s pants “were pulled below his knees and his pockets were inside out.” DNA taken from semen found on Crumbley’s body matched Payne’s DNA profile, according to the Chronicle. The paper also reported that Toomey wrote in the affidavit that Payne denied knowing Crumbley or ever having sex with a man. Anyone with additional information is encouraged to contact Toomey at (415) 553-1145 or the Department of Operations Center after hours at (415) 5531071. The SFPD anonymous tip line is (415) 575-4444. People with information in the case can also text a tip to 847411 (TIP411). Type “SFPD” and then the tip.▼

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February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 3

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4 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Openhouse expands LGBT senior services by Matthew S. Bajko

or close to a decade the agency known as Openhouse has been most closely associated with building San Francisco’s first senior housing project dedicated to LGBT people. It has been a signature goal for the nonprofit since it was

launched nine years ago under the name Rainbow Adult Community Housing. What often goes unnoticed is that the agency has since morphed into the city’s largest provider of services for LGBT seniors, whose numbers are estimated to be at least 25,000. Its programs, spread over five

different sites, vary from discussion groups and exercise programs to film screenings and twice-monthly free lunches. Even with the expanded offerings, advocates for LGBT seniors argue the needs will only grow as the population is expected to number 50,000 by 2030. “There are more San Francisco LGBT senior services available today than ever before. But with a weakened economy and a growing aging population there is an increased demand for LGBT welcoming housing, services, and programs at a time when there are decreasing resources,” stated Marcy Adelman, Ph.D., an out lesbian who founded Openhouse, in emailed remarks circulated prior to a special January 26 hearing on LGBT senior needs at City Hall. (See story, page 5.) Hosting special gatherings for LGBT seniors has always been a component of Openhouse’s work from the start. But the scope of its programs drastically increased following the demise of New Leaf: Services for Our Community in the fall of 2010. Late that year the city transferred to Openhouse’s auspices many of the senior programs New Leaf was funded to offer. One of the first things Openhouse did, said the agency’s Executive Director Seth Kilbourn, was survey the seniors accessing the programs to determine what services to keep and what to jettison in order to provide new offerings its clients wanted. “We continued those that were popular and initiated some of our own,” said Kilbourn. “We ramped up extraordinarily quickly. The expansion of the numbers of people who participate in the programs went up by 20 to 30 percent. “ For the 2011-2012 fiscal year, Openhouse has an $185,000 contract

about the work that we do and the resources that are available.”

Not easy to find

Openhouse Executive Director Seth Kilbourn

from the city to provide services to older LGBT people. The agency estimates it now serves 600 seniors a year and pegs the total cost of its programming at $300,000. Openhouse, which has a total budget this fiscal year of $600,000, uses private donations and foundation support in addition to the city funds to pay for the programs. The agency has the capacity to serve even more clients, added Kilbourn, who is hopeful that the city contract will be maintained during the upcoming budget talks. “We can handle more people,” he said. It is still trying to get the word out about its expanded purview to LGBT seniors who may continue to solely associate Openhouse with its affordable housing project planned for the 55 Laguna property near the LGBT Community Center. “Openhouse for many years has been known as an organization building housing and we are continuing to do that. But in the last two years we have really vastly expanded our services and ability to work with LGBT seniors on a whole host of other issues, including housing,” said Kilbourn. “It is incumbent upon us working with our partners to get the word out

Part of the problem is that anyone searching for LGBT senior programs in San Francisco who doesn’t know to visit Openhouse’s own website will be hard pressed to find event listings. The city’s Department of Aging and Adult Services states on its webpage for the Castro Senior Center, located at 110 Diamond Street, that it “has also added services specifically for LGBT seniors.” But it does not specify what those are or the times for the programs, which are provided by Openhouse and include a men’s writing group, an LGBT discussion group, and a thrice-weekly exercise program. Instead, the center’s website directs people to call the center to learn about the programs. Nor does the LGBT Community Center readily identify on its webbased calendar the senior programs Openhouse offers at its building at 1800 Market Street. The listings for February activities, for instance, make no mention of the senior lunches held there the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month or the weekly Saturday game days and art groups. After the Bay Area Reporter recently pointed out the omissions to Kilbourn, he pledged to reach out to the various agencies and city departments Openhouse collaborates with to update their websites so they have more information about the programs available and include direct links to Openhouse’s own website. “We plan to look at all the different places somebody could go looking for LGBT senior services and make sure those different portals have references and links back to Openhouse,” said Kilbourn. For a list of Openhouse’s various programs, visit its events web page at openhouse-sf.org/event/. Those interested can also sign up for the agency’s monthly email newsletter, which includes information on special events, at the site.▼

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February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 5

City Hall backs LGBT senior initiatives by Matthew S. Bajko

gencies that receive city funding to provide services to the elderly in San Francisco will likely be required to undergo cultural competency training on the unique issues that LGBT seniors face. A new LGBT senior advisory group that would be tasked with pushing for specific policy proposals is set to be established, though under which city department’s purview it would fall remains unclear. And should an affordable housing measure go before city voters this November, advocates for LGBT seniors intend to see that the proposal carves out funding to address a burgeoning elderly population fearful of being priced out of San Francisco. The three policy initiatives are some of the immediate steps advocates for LGBT seniors and the Board of Supervisors’ threeperson LGBT caucus plan to pursue following a hearing last month that focused attention on the challenges facing older LGBT people. Gay District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener said he and his colleagues, gay District 9 Supervisor David Campos and bisexual District 5 Supervisor Christina Olague, plan to meet with advocates who helped organize the January 26 hearing in order to develop a set of next steps. “Some issues are very deep, systemic issues, like housing affordability and access to healthcare, that don’t have a simple fix,” said Wiener. “We want to make sure we have a well organized list of what the key takeaways from the hearing are and what can be addressed in the short term and longer.” What none of the supervisors wants to see happen is another task force be formed to look at the issues confronting LGBT seniors that leads nowhere. “We don’t want to start a task force just for the sake of it,” Olague told the Bay Area Reporter. “The findings are there. We want to move these things along.” The issue has already been studied both locally and nationally. In 2003 the city’s Human Rights Commission held hearings on the issue and issued a report titled “Aging in the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Communities.” Training on LGBT senior issues for service providers was among the report’s more than 60 recommendations. “We are at the point where enough studies have been done. We already have the information, now is the time to act,” Campos said. “I know Scott, Christina and I are committed where legislation is needed, we are ready to introduce it.” The first measure will likely be to require community-based organizations that receive funding from the city’s Department of Aging and Adult Services undergo cultural competency training on LGBT senior issues. “If you get city money to work with this population, it should be required that you will treat LGBT elders with dignity,” said Campos. The aging department already offers the training on an optional basis and has a $40,000 contract with Openhouse, a nonprofit focused on LGBT seniors, to provide it. “We don’t require it but we’ve had so much compliance around it. The providers really like it,” said Anne Hinton, the aging department’s director. Openhouse Executive Director Seth Kilbourn told the B.A.R. that the demand for the training outstrips his agency’s current capacity to provide it. As it is,

“I cry and my heart breaks for all those people out there who don’t have the good fortune I have.” –Maggi Rubenstein

Jane Philomen Cleland

Longtime bi activist Maggi Rubenstein was one of many LGBT seniors who spoke at a Board of Supervisors’ committee about the need for affordable housing and other issues.

Openhouse has sought private funds in the past to supplement the city contract. “We find demand is much greater than we are actually able to do,” he said. It can provide the training to up to 20 different agencies per year. Since the contract began in 2004, Openhouse has trained 180 separate agencies and roughly 1,600 individual people. “In terms of having a requirement for cultural competency training, that kind of requirement absolutely is worth discussing. But it needs to include how such training gets paid for,” said Kilbourn. Funding will be a key issue going forward on whether the aging department will be able to implement any specific LGBT senior initiatives, Hinton said. Her department’s budget this fiscal year is $165 million, and like all city agencies, she has been asked to identify budget cuts totaling 10 percent over the next two years. “We are probably not doing enough on any of the issues, although San Francisco has been very generous with our department,” said Hinton. “We have done pretty well through these budget times. There is never enough money in any community, frankly, to do all the things that need to be done.” She is open to forming an LGBT senior advisory group under the auspices of her department’s Aging and Adult Services Commission. Hinton said she would like to pull together members of several informal groups that already advocate for improving access to services for older adults, including LGBT seniors, and people with disabilities to determine how to form such a group. “What might be good for us, since we staff all of those groups, is to internally meet with those players in those groups and see how we proceed,” said Hinton. “The people are already there. We just need to figure out what kind of a reporting relationship it will have.” Kilbourn added that he would want to include the Human Rights Commission’s LGBT advisory group in those discussions, as its members have been pushing for city action on LGBT senior needs for years. “I would want to see what the advisory group would do and be mandated to do,” he said. “If we can get the groups together and have really clear purposes for an advisory committee, I am all for it.”

Housing needed As the B.A.R. reported last week, one of the key concerns many LGBT seniors have is the lack of affordable housing options there are in the city. It was a refrain many speakers repeated during last week’s hearing. Maggi Rubenstein, an 81-yearold bisexual who owns a house in

Glen Park, said she knows she is lucky to still be living in her own home, which doesn’t have stairs. She also has two children, now in their 50s, and friends on whom she can rely. “I cry and my heart breaks for all those people out there who don’t have the good fortune I have,” she said. “I urge the board to take immediate action on this.” Senior Action Network board member Betty Traynor said the housing situation is particularly acute for those who live in singleroom-occupancy hotels. Many lack working elevators, which Traynor noted becomes a problem for residents as they age. There are few options for those wanting to move, though, as openings in government supported senior housing developments are hard to come by. “I know how frustrating it is when people call about affordable housing. They are put on a waiting list. The key word there is waiting,”

she said. “That is not easy when you are a senior.” Openhouse has started housing clinics to work with LGBT seniors in need of affordable housing. Since people need to sign up for various waiting lists in order to get into either public housing units or subsidized low-income housing, the process can be confusing, said Kilbourn. “It is not easy at all,” he said. “We are working and meeting with LGBT seniors one-on-one to do a

needs assessment and find housing that is affordable to them.” The recent appointment of gay former Supervisor Bevan Dufty as the city’s new homeless czar was seen as a boon to efforts on addressing the housing needs of LGBT seniors. Many see Dufty as playing a key role in ensuring the issue is addressed, especially if a housing bond comes before voters. “The timing is perfect as there is going to be a push to make that See page 21 >>

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6 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

Volume 41, Number 05 February 2-8, 2012 www.ebar.com

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Komen’s race to the bottom T

he Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation, the nation’s leading breast cancer charity that runs the popular Race for the Cure fundraisers, decided Tuesday to defund Planned Parenthood, which has used the hundreds of thousands of dollars it has received in grants over the years to fund breast exams and related breast health services. Planned Parenthood also provides abortion services, which has made it a constant target of right-wing politicians. But Planned Parenthood does not use the Komen funds for abortion services and this gap in funding likely will have severe consequences for low-income and uninsured women who depend on the organization for breast health services. It is no coincidence that less than a year ago Komen hired as its senior vice president for public policy Karen Handel, a Republican who ran for governor of Georgia in 2010 on an antiPlanned Parenthood platform. While she wasn’t successful in winning the governor’s race, she managed to accomplish one of the goals she set out during her campaign: defund Planned Parenthood, as blogger John Aravosis astutely observed. Komen said it was withdrawing its grants – $680,000 in 2011 and $580,000 in 2010 according to the Associated Press – because it has adopted a policy of not funding organizations that are under investigation by Congress. In a purely political move last fall, a conservative Republican congressman, Cliff Stearns of Florida, just happened to launch an investigation of Planned Parenthood at the behest of anti-abortion groups. Republicans in Congress have long tried to cut off Planned Parenthood’s federal funding, which is used for family planning and preventive screenings; now, the group is facing the loss of significant private funding that was never used to provide abortions, but to help save women’s lives. There’s something terribly wrong with this picture. Jeanne Rizzo, the out leader of the Breast Cancer Fund, told us that her organization followed the story as it unfolded Tuesday. On the group’s Facebook page, women (and men)

lashed out, angry at the Komen Foundation and vowing to withhold financial support. “Our breasts are not political footballs,” one woman wrote, adding that she would give the money she would raise for Komen to Planned Parenthood. “We know that breast cancer itself is nonpartisan,” Rizzo told us. “It crosses every political, socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic boundary and devastates the lives of hundreds of thousands of women – and those who love them – every year. We also know that those in greatest need rely on agencies like Planned Parenthood for breast health services.” Rizzo added that Komen’s decision has “created a firestorm of polarized responses, including those of women worrying about how and where they will receive the care they need.” The Komen Foundation has been criticized by some breast cancer advocates over the years for its “pinkwashing” – the use of breast cancer philanthropy and the widely recognized pink ribbon by corporate marketers as cover to promote products that might be unhealthy – in

return for a donation. Komen benefits greatly from these corporate tie-ins, raking in some $55 million annually, yet it cuts off less than $1 million in funding to Planned Parenthood for breast exams and related services. Rizzo said that unlike the Komen Foundation, Planned Parenthood is its ally in the Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families Coalition, a diverse group of organizations united by a common concern about toxic chemicals in people’s daily lives. “Planned Parenthood supports us by sharing our message of breast cancer prevention and we support their efforts to advocate for women’s health and well-being,” Rizzo added. Breast exams are one of the most effective ways to detect breast cancer. Uninsured and poor women need access to these services. It’s unconscionable that Komen hired an antichoice politician to head up its policy division who then used her position to cut off money to an organization that serves the very women most in need of free or low-cost services. Women, gay and straight alike, should consider Komen’s defunding decision next time they buy something with a pink ribbon on it or are asked to support a participant in Race for the Cure. Komen’s move is clearly a race to the bottom.▼

New beginnings for Castro Country Club by Rebecca Prozan and Crispin Hollings

ounded by the late Steve Harris in April 1983 in the heart of the Castro as a social alternative to the bars for gay men and lesbians, the Castro Country Club quickly became a popular hang-out and an important source of support for those facing not only the lifethreatening diseases of alcoholism and addiction but also HIV and AIDS. The CCC has helped countless people achieve and maintain sobriety by providing a safe refuge for newcomers and old-timers in recovery to help each other. We provide unstructured peer counseling, job training, and skills building, as well as social support and fellowship. For nearly 29 years, we’ve operated with volunteer support from the LGBT recovery community and without government assistance. The CCC is the only space in the Castro dedicated to people in recovery and their supporters. Today, we are celebrating a new beginning. After much struggle, we are confident that we will be able to continue to serve this important role for many years to come. In 2009, upon the death of the longtime landlord, the Victorian building that houses the club was put up for sale, leaving us with an unstable tenancy and future. Supporters of the club launched the Keep the Steps in the Castro campaign with the purpose of raising funds “to purchase, secure a long-term lease, and/ or modify space to suit the needs of the club.” As it has done so many times in the past, the community has met adversity with strength, turning lemons into lemonade. Dozens of events were organized – from garage sales to drag shows to galas – to advocate on behalf of maintaining and strengthening this clean and sober space in the Castro. Many generous supporters have stepped up to give between $10 and $100 monthly. Despite the bad economy and no organizational experience with fundraising, the incredible outpouring of support

and goodwill from the community has put the club on much more solid footing than it was at the start of the campaign. Working together, we have raised a significant amount of money and remain committed to reserving these funds for their stated purpose. With our profile increasing due to the building sale and the fundraising campaign, we realized another level of management was necessary. During this time, an advisory board was formed to oversee the operations of the club and to administer the Keep the Steps in the Castro fund. Recently, we achieved our first step: the building we call home has been sold to a local businessman who intends to keep the club in the building. This is great news for both the Castro Country Club as well as the LGBT recovery community. While originally the Keep the Steps in the Castro campaign was created to address the threat of losing our space, through this campaign we’ve come to realize that securing a long-term lease is just one of several steps needed to achieve the larger goal of financial stability and a solid foundation for the Castro Country Club. First, we need to identify a new fiscal agent. Since the early 1990s, we have had a fiscal relationship with the nonprofit Baker Places, which provides residential treatment services to people in recovery, as well as people with HIV/AIDS and mental health diagnoses. Baker Places has been instrumental in allowing us to maintain and expand our services, but the CCC is clearly outside its core programs and we have agreed to separate at the end of June. Currently, with timely support from the Horizons Foundation’s new Intentional Change Fund, the CCC is beginning a deliberate process of evaluating our options, including identifying a new fiscal sponsor or establishing ourselves as an independent nonprofit. Another step will be operational funding. Over the last few years, CCC programs have expanded dramatically. The number of 12-step groups meeting at the club every week has more

than tripled. We now have a full-service Peet’s espresso bar, fully staffed by able volunteers and open to the public from early morning until late at night. The club hosts social events and parties every week. Still, additional revenue is needed and our goal is to achieve and sustain longterm financial health. We are working diligently to cultivate relationships, identify potential funders, and procure necessary funding to keep our doors open for future generations. Progress is being made on both fronts and we hope to provide detailed information about these efforts at a special community meeting scheduled for Sunday, February 5. We do this work because we keep our mission statement in mind: It is estimated that approximately 45 percent of the LGBT community abuses alcohol. (2009, Drug Abuse Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration study). Addictions to alcohol, crystal meth, and other substances and behaviors continue to destroy lives and the health of our community. By offering an alcohol- and drug-free space, the Castro Country Club has become a refuge and a community center for people seeking recovery in San Francisco. People need us. While we have come a long way since 1983 – and since 2009 – we have a long way to go. Our path has had some potholes, and some fits and starts along the way, but we believe we are on solid footing to achieve our next steps. We urge all of you to join us on February 5 from 1 to 3 p.m. at Most Holy Redeemer Catholic Church, 100 Diamond Street, for the Castro Country Club community meeting. We have called this meeting to update people on our progress, to elect one of our advisory board members, and to invite new participation in the next level of development for the club. We hope to see you there! For more information, please visit our website at www. castrocountryclub.org.▼ Rebecca Prozan and Crispin Hollings are members of the Castro Country Club’s advisory board. The other board members – Christopher Altman, Mike Marshall, and Mike Shriver – co-wrote this piece.

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Letters >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 7

Statistics correction The common parlor game of “telephone” can be quite fun. In it, people sit in a circle and whisper something in a person’s ear, then it is whispered into another ear and so on. It can be funny to hear what was originally said and how it came out at the end. Not so funny is how a statistic on HIV and aging is making the rounds. Last Thursday (January 26) at one of the forums in San Francisco that day relating to LGBT aging issues, one of the speakers said (incorrectly) that in 2011 the percentage of people in San Francisco (city proper) HIV-positive who were over age 50 was more than 50 percent. Not true (or at least, not verifiable at this time). The source of the misquoted and misstated statistic was the late Randy Allgaier’s statement in the June 2010 (written) and October 2010 (oral presentation) HIV and Aging 2010 report: “In San Francisco, the aging nature of the HIV/AIDS epidemic is significant. In 2004, the population 50 years of age and older accounted for approximately 30 percent of all HIV/AIDS cases. Just four years later, this population accounted for approximately 40 percent of all HIV/AIDS cases. In 2008, 47 percent of San Franciscans with an AIDS diagnosis were 50 years of age and older and of these 13 percent were over 60 years of age.” (Source: SF HIV Planning Council Report 2010, which can be accessed via www. sfcarecouncil.org/Documents/documents.htm [scroll down to and click on “HIV and Aging Policy Paper 2010 PDF]).” Allgaier further stated, “By the end of 2012, if current trends continue 50 percent in S.F. will be over the age of 50.” (Source: SF HIV Planning Council Report 2010 [PowerPoint version]). In effect Allgaier was linear extrapolating past numbers into a linear trend projection for the end of 2012. Again this was a projection, based on past statistics and was a linear projection, not an actual statistic. For now 2011 and 2012 statistics are not available from the San Francisco Department of Public Health, so the assertion is currently either not true or not verifiable. This projection by Allgaier, based on SF Dept of Public Health statistics, got picked in the press without the details and qualifiers and methods as to how it was calculated as a quick sound bite-like quote. Apparently last week’s speaker picked up the sound bite and further stretched 2012 to say 2011. Now it is on the record as a “fact” presented at a public forum, i.e. the untrue assertion that last year the percentage of HIV-positive cases aged 50-plus is over 50 percent in San Francisco (again not true or not verifiable). Now that will probably get misquoted again in the press, going full circle like a game of telephone. While this may seem on the surface to be nit-picking (and yes, regardless of the misquotes, the percentages of those with HIV in SF aged 50-plus is high), the caviler use of statistics, well intentioned or not, detracts for the validity, authenticity, and impact of the message by casting doubt on the issue and the messengers trying to present the issue. I hope that people will become aware of the source of

the misquote, be careful when quoting this statistic in the future, and go to the original sources before quoting such statistics in public. Loren Meissner San Francisco

[Editor’s note: According to a Bay Area Reporter February 3, 2011 article, 53 percent of San Francisco AIDS cases in 2010 were among people 50 and older. In December health officials reported that people 50 and older accounted for a majority of living HIV and AIDS cases.]

What would Harvey do? I attended the January 23 hearing at City Hall on Supervisor Scott Wiener’s legislation to address neighbors’ concerns about behavior at Harvey Milk and Jane Herman plazas [“Castro plaza rules inch closer to passage,” January 26]. I spoke for the provision that would make the spaces tobacco-free. Here’s my pet peeve: several of those who testified in opposition to other provisions invoked Harvey Milk’s ghost to claim he would have opposed the legislation for one reason or another. Oh, please. I’m sure most of those folks never met Milk, including the 8-year-old boy who was trotted out to testify that, “Harvey wouldn’t like this.” Harvey was a good person, with a host of political viewpoints. Pretending to know how he would come down on a nuanced bill is an exercise in absurdity, and even if you got it right, so what? Argue the merits of an issue instead of calling upon the Holy One to show that you’re on the side of the angels. Harvey wouldn’t like it. Naphtali Offen, Tobacco Documents Researcher Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences UCSF

Plazas should be tobacco-free Freedom From Tobacco is concerned about inaccuracies in the article “Castro plaza rules inch closer to passage.” The article states: “The issue has pitted antismoking activists and Castro residents against homeless advocates and a neighborhood nonprofit that offers services to LGBT youth.” Freedom From Tobacco is not against anyone in our community. We are against Big Tobacco, which has targeted LGBT people to the point where queers smoke twice as much as the general population. We are here to support the vast majority of smokers who want to quit by encouraging the creation of more smoke-free spaces, which may help to give them the last push they need to break free from tobacco. We were not at the hearing to speak either in favor of, or in opposition to, the ordinance, since our expertise does not extend to the other aspects of the proposal. Clearly, we would like to see the plazas be smoke-free, but whether this or different legislation is the best way to do that is not for us to decide. Lastly, the article repeatedly refers to cigarette smoking, when our concern extends to all forms of secondhand tobacco smoke, including cigars and pipes. Brian Davis, Project Director Freedom From Tobacco San Francisco

Warner plaque dedication Sat. compiled by Cynthia Laird

he plaque dedication for Jane Warner Plaza in the Castro will be held Saturday, February 4 at 2 p.m. The public parklet was named in honor of Warner, a longtime San Francisco Patrol Special Police officer who died of ovarian cancer May 8, 2010. Warner, 53, an out lesbian, had been a fixture in the gayborhood and was known as “Officer Jane.” She also wrote the Bay Area Reporter’s local crime column for many years. Saturday’s dedication is a culmination of months of private fundraising for the plaque. As the Bay Area Reporter reported on its blog last month, it was in November that Castro community leaders and the patrol specials announced that they had raised enough money to cover the cost of the approximately 30 inches by 26 inches sign and ordered one from Bocci Memorials in Colma for $5,000. The plaque will be attached to the side of one of the plaza’s concrete planters that faces south down Castro Street near the entrance to the Twin Peaks

bar. The event is open to the public. Among the officials expected to be on hand are: state Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), Supervisor Scott Wiener, and former Supervisor Bevan Dufty, who now oversees the mayor’s homeless policy efforts.

Gay relationship series starts tonight The Community Initiative, a grassroots organization for Bay Area queer men, will present a three-part series on gay male relationships that begins tonight (Thursday, February 2) in the Gazebo at Davies Medical Center, 14th and Castro streets in San Francisco. All the workshops in the series, “Perfecting Your Search for Mr. Right,” run from 7 to 9 p.m. and will be led by queer community matchmaker Soniyah Singh. The workshops are free and open to all. The first one will look at how men can get beyond feeling invisible in the middle of the gayest neighborhood in the country. The workshop will explain what men can do to “amp things up a notch and get noticed.” The second workshop, on February 23, will examine the art

of great conversations. “If you’ve always focused on getting to first (or second, or third) base, you’re setting yourself up to strike out. Learn a different way to go about things,” the announcement for the workshops stated. Finally, on March 27, the final workshop will look at how gay couples keep things fresh and interesting and explore how to keep the man you’ve met. For more information, email info@ thecommunityinitiative.org or leave a message at (415) 820-9606.

Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day The 12th National Black HIV Awareness Day is Tuesday, February 7 and in San Francisco, the Department of Public Health AIDS Office will join with community organizations for the local observance. At 4:30 p.m. people will gather at Black Coalition on AIDS, 2800 Third Street, for remarks by AIDS advocates and community leaders, followed by a candlelight march to the Bayview Opera House, 4705 Third Street. There will also be HIV and sexually transmitted infections testing available for free. The event is open to the public. Public health officials noted that HIV/AIDS still has a looming See page 18 >>

<< Politics

8 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Board adopts revised rules for Castro plazas by Matthew S. Bajko

an Francisco supervisors adopted rules governing the Castro’s two outdoor plazas after several revisions were made to placate homeless advocates’ concerns about the regulations. Once signed into law by the mayor, the rules will clarify various restrictions users of either Jane Warner or Harvey Milk plazas at the intersection of Market and Castro streets will have to abide by, such as no smoking in either of the outdoor spaces. The rewritten legislation is similar to regulations for San Francisco parks. The divided 6-5 vote during the Tuesday, January 31 meeting came after Board President David Chiu pushed through an elimination of a ban on large shopping carts in the plazas. Critics had claimed the rule would mean anyone pushing such grocery carts through the area would have had to circumnavigate the plazas. “It is a modest piece of legislation,” said Chiu before casting his vote. “I think this legislation reiterates what is in our parks codes and reiterates that we will treat our parklets as we do our parks. I think that is reasonable.” Despite his objection to rescinding the shopping cart ban, gay District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener voted with the majority to adopt the measure. The revisions were not enough, however, to overcome concerns expressed by the board’s other two out members. District 5 Supervisor Christina Olague and District 9 Supervisor David Campos voted to oppose the rules. Wiener did support three other changes made to the initial legislation,

which he had introduced on behalf of the Castro Community Benefit District. The rules specify that the CBD, which oversees maintenance of the plazas, will lock up removable street furniture it provides at the plazas between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m. But the regulations now clarify that anyone can bring and sit on their own chairs in the plazas anytime. Rather than a 24-hour ban, sleeping in the plazas will now be prohibited between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. Firsttime offenders would have their tickets cleared if they accept services within 30 hours. The change means daytime napping will be allowed. The ban on camping at both plazas remains. But the language barring tents and sleeping bags was revised so any offense is considered an infraction and will not lead to jail time. How stiff the penalties those caught camping in the plazas would face had become a flash point in the debate over the rules. Last Friday night the police cited Bob OfferWestort, a human rights organizer at the Coalition on Homelessness, with violating state penal code after he set up a tent at Jane Warner Plaza. If convicted of the misdemeanor, Offer-Westort could face a $1,000 fine, six months in jail or both. He was given a court date of March 19 but likely won’t be prosecuted for what some saw as merely a publicity stunt. Homeless advocates hailed the rule revisions as a “huge victory,” though the coalition’s executive director, Jennifer Friedenbach, added that, “The whole thing was ridiculous to begin with.” Had Wiener reached out to the larger community, rather than just

Rick Gerharter

Board President David Chiu

merchants and property owners, before introducing the measure, she said most of the complaints about the proposal could have been addressed. “I think the struggle for public spaces should continue. This has not solved the debate,” said Friedenbach. “If there had been an engagement of the community in the process to begin with, we probably would have arrived at these compromises. The biggest lesson learned in this is we should be talking to each other about solutions everyone can jump on the bandwagon to support.” Andrea Aiello, the CBD executive director, told the Bay Area Reporter that she was “very disappointed” in seeing the large shopping cart exclusion be eliminated. Although she conceded it hasn’t really been an issue to date, Aiello pointed out that even just two carts can become a problem due to the parklets’ small sizes. “It just is another tool that could have been implemented to help the CBD maintain the plaza,” she said. As for the other changes, Aiello said she could live with them. “I really don’t think people will

be bringing their own personal chairs into the plaza, but if they do, maybe it will stop them from sitting in the planter beds in the middle of the night,” she wrote in an email following the vote. “And as I said, the decrease in penalties is fine. So, I guess we have something we can work with that can help us keep the plazas enjoyable for all.” She did invite members of the homeless coalition to assist the CBD in keeping Harvey Milk Plaza clean, as Aiello said it “is often a disgusting mess in the morning, more than our cleaning company can handle, so we invite anyone ... to go there early in the a.m. to help keep it clean and inviting for all.” Community groups that had opposed the rules plan to hold a rally at 2 p.m. this Saturday (February 4) at Jane Warner Plaza. The time coincides with the dedication of a memorial plaque honoring the parklet’s namesake, a former lesbian patrol special police officer who died in 2010 after a battle with ovarian cancer. Wiener is among those expected to speak at the ceremony. “I would’ve preferred if the regs had been rejected altogether, but we got the best outcome we could have gotten. And we sent a message that we will continue fighting against anti-homeless legislation in the Castro and throughout the city,” queer housing activist Tommi Avicolli Mecca told the B.A.R. “Public space is for everyone. The plazas are for everyone. Homeless queers need housing, jobs and health care, not criminalization.”

LGBT question may be added to commission applications One concern shared by both progressive LGBT leaders and Wiener is the dearth of out members on the city’s various oversight bodies. As the B.A.R. pointed out in an online story last month, there are few LGBT people serving on many of the most powerful commissions. The one exception is the Entertainment Commission, where there is a four-person queer majority on the seven-member panel. Oversight bodies for the port, police, and redevelopment each have just one out member. There are no LGBT people on the fire, airport, or ethics commissions. Now the planning commission likely will be added to the list of panels with zero LGBT members. Last Friday Chiu nominated Cindy Wu, a community planning manager for the nonprofit Chinatown Community Development Center, to fill a vacant planning seat. The vacancy was created when Olague, who is bisexual, stepped down to become a supervisor following the resignation of Ross Mirkarimi. He left to become sheriff and is fighting charges that he abused his wife. The board’s Rules Committee will vote on Wu’s appointment at its meeting today. Wiener said this week that he has heard from several LGBT people upset with the lack of LGBT representation on the planning commission. He declined to say if he would oppose Wu’s nomination when it comes before the board. But he did tell the B.A.R. that he is “disappointed we will now have another major commission, perhaps the most powerful, without an LGBT representative.” Chiu said he considered several LGBT applicants for the seat, but in the end, felt Wu was the best qualified. He expressed support of naming an out candidate the next time an opening occurred. “Certainly, I looked at LGBT candidates who were very strong candidates. But Cindy has a very

impressive background,” said Chiu. He did name two lesbians to serve on other panels. Chiu nominated artist Debra Walker to serve another term on the Building Inspection Commission. He also appointed Arcelia Hurtado, executive director of Equal Rights Advocates, to serve on the Board of Appeals. A mother of two sons with her partner, Nicole Solis, Hurtado served on the board of Our Family Coalition and co-chaired the annual dinner for Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom. “I wish I could have appointed more individuals but I only had a handful of nominations to make,” said Chiu, who as president makes nominations to board-designated seats. “I have literally, over the last week or so, been asking folks for candidates who have wonderful qualifications who happen to be LGBT.” Part of the problem in finding LGBT candidates lies in the fact that the application to be a city commissioner does not ask about sexual orientation. The forms do have boxes where applicants have the option to specify their ethnicity and gender. When asked by the B.A.R. if he would support adding a question about sexual orientation, Chiu pledged to look into how to make the change. “This is the first time this has been raised with me,” he said. Wiener also was unaware that the forms do not ask people if they identify as LGBT until asked about it this week. “I didn’t even realize that,” he said, “and we absolutely should” have a box asking about sexual orientation.

LGBTs urged to support Obama’s re-election Supporters of President Barack Obama’s re-election bid are urging LGBT Bay Area residents to purchase tickets to his upcoming local fundraisers. Obama’s campaign is hosting a reception at 6 p.m. Thursday, February 16 at the Regency Center, 1300 Van Ness Avenue in San Francisco. The lead singer of the group Soundgarden, Chris Cornell, is slated to perform. While VIP tickets are going for as much as $10,000 (it includes a photo reception for two), individuals can buy $100 general admission tickets. “We are hoping to have a large LGBT contingent in attendance, both at the $100 ticket price section, as well as in the $1,000 VIP/ preferred seating section,” Kathy Levinson, an out lesbian from Los Altos who is co-chair of the Obama for America LGBT National Finance Committee, wrote in an email. To make sure LGBT contributors’ dollars are bundled together, Levinson asks that they buy their tickets through the webpage at my.barackobama.com/Fe bruary16SanFranReception?cust om1=205504. The box that asks “Who encouraged you to make this contribution?” should have the following information added to it: 205504 Kathy Levinson. There will also be a small 60-person dinner at the home of Nicola Miner and Robert Mailer Anderson in San Francisco prior to the ballroom event. The dinner is $35,800 per person and will include remarks and Q&A with the president. Tickets can be bought at donate. barackobama.com/page/contribute/o2012-february16sanfrandinn er?custom1=205504. Once again, LGBT donors are asked to make sure “205504 Kathy Levinson” appears in the box asking about who urged them to contribute.▼

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Community News >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 9

Mayor hires Dufty as homeless czar by Matthew S. Bajko

ayor Edwin M. Lee has hired former gay District 8 Supervisor Bevan Dufty to oversee his administration’s homeless policies. Dufty will serve as the director of the newly named Housing Opportunity, Partnerships and Engagement, or HOPE for short. His first day will be Monday, February 13 and his starting salary will be $156,000. It is similar to the pay of departing city homeless policy director Dariush Kayhan, who is headed to a new job with the Department of Public Works. “We need for the people on the streets to know where is their hope coming from,” said Lee, who introduced Dufty in his new role during a press conference Friday, January 27 at Larkin Street Youth Services. “We want to end homelessness, that is our goal. I know Bevan is eager to get to work.” Surrounded by members of the Board of Supervisors and public safety officials, a beaming Dufty said he does not plan to maintain “the status quo” in terms of the city’s homeless programs. He singled out the need to specifically address transgender people, veterans, and families who are homeless but was vague on specifics. “We don’t want San Franciscans to think we aren’t making a difference. I have hope in this job,” said Dufty, “We can do much, much better. This is the beginning; we have an ambitious agenda.” The news was hardly a surprise, as Lee had told the Bay Area Reporter last fall during the mayoral race he would welcome Dufty being a part of his administration if he won election to a full four-year term. Dufty was one of the only mayoral candidates who

Bill Wilson

Bevan Dufty listens to Mayor Ed Lee after Lee announced last week that the former supervisor would oversee his administration’s homeless policies.

did not attack Lee over the course of the campaign, a sign many took that the single father was angling for a City Hall job. During his eight years on the Board of Supervisors, Dufty was a vocal advocate for homeless services citywide and in his Castrocentered district. He helped establish the Castro Young Adult Housing Collaborative for 22 homeless youth at a single-room-occupancy hotel on Market Street and fought for funding of neighborhood-based homeless outreach/case management teams. He also backed establishing case managers at the Main Library and secured board approval for the controversial Community Justice Center, which diverts people out of the courts and into services. Among those in the crowd last week was Jennifer Friedenbach, the executive director of the Coalition on Homelessness. She said she welcomes working with Dufty, whom she has known for years. “He is really responsive. He really listens and addresses people’s concerns,” she said. “He is very openminded.”▼

<< National News

10 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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HUD announces anti-bias rule for federal housing programs by Michael K. Lavers

haun Donovan, secretary of Housing and Urban Development for the Obama administration, used the Creating Change conference on Saturday, January 28 as the backdrop for his announcement that the agency would codify its proposed ban on anti-LGBT discrimination in federal housing programs this week. “I am proud to announce a new equal access to housing rule that says clearly and unequivocally that LGBT individuals and couples have the right to live where they choose,” said Donovan, who received a standing ovation from those who gathered inside the Hilton Baltimore’s ballroom to listen to his speech. “This is an idea whose time has come.” More than 3,000 activists from across the country descended upon Baltimore for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s 24th annual Creating Change conference from January 25-29. The new federal housing rule will be published this week and go into effect 30 days after that, according to a statement from the National Center for Lesbian Rights. The rule makes several critical changes to current housing and housing-related programs including: prohibiting owners and operators of HUD-assisted or HUD-insured housing from discriminating against an applicant or occupant of a residence based on sexual orientation or gender identity; prohibiting all lenders offering Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgages from considering sexual orientation or gender identity in determining a borrower’s eligibility; and clarifying the definition of “family” to ensure that otherwise eligible participants in any HUD programs will not be excluded based on marital status, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Creating Change took place only days after Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley introduced a bill that would allow same-sex couples to legally marry. The introduction of marriage equality measures earlier in the month in New Jersey and Washington state pushed the issue to the forefront during the four-day gathering. Donovan came out last November in support of marriage equality, becoming the first sitting cabinet official to do so. Equality Maine organizers highlighted efforts to secure passage of a referendum in November that

Michael K. Lavers

Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, delivered her State of the LGBT Movement speech in Baltimore on January 27.

would allow same-sex couples to marry in that state. [See story below.] Conversely, activists from North Carolina and Minnesota discussed strategies that they hope to use to defeat proposed constitutional amendments that would bar nuptials for gays and lesbians in their respective states. “We will have to play both offense and defense this year with marriage in play here in Maryland and in Washington, New Jersey, Maine, Minnesota, and North Carolina,” said Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey in her annual State of the LGBT Movement speech that she delivered January 27. “We will be called to lead.” NAACP President Benjamin Jealous and Maryland first lady Katie O’Malley officially opened Creating Change on January 26.

Other issues Even though marriage for samesex couples has dominated headlines in recent weeks, Carey cautioned activists that they have an obligation to fight for other issues. “The LGBT movement is not a movement for marriage only,” she said. “It is a movement for the full dignity of our lives, for a transformed society.” Gautam Raghavan of the White House Office of Public Engagement and other Obama administration officials discussed the repeal of the ban on openly gay and lesbian service members and other LGBT-specific advances that have taken place since the president took office three years ago. Gay Men’s Health Crisis, the AIDS

Community Research Initiative of America, Service and Advocacy for GLBT Elders, and Chicago’s Center on Halsted presented a workshop on public policy and advocacy on behalf of older people with HIV/AIDS. Gender Rights Maryland provided an overview of a bill that would add transgender-specific protections to the Free State’s anti-discrimination laws. The Task Force’s Pedro Julio Serrano, University of Puerto Rico student Damian Cabrera, and transgender activist Sophia Marrero spoke about the island’s LGBT rights movement. Nearly 30 LGBT Puerto Ricans have been killed since authorities found gay teenager Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado’s decapitated, dismembered, and partially burned body along a remote roadside in November 2009. The Puerto Rico Senate sparked outrage in late November when it approved a proposed provision to the penal code that would remove sexual orientation and gender identity and expression from the island’s hate crimes law. “We have been passing through some hard times,” said Marrero, who further expressed optimism that the situation for LGBT Puerto Ricans on the island would improve.

International LGBT rights issues The global struggle for LGBT rights took center stage throughout the weekend at Creating Change. Cary Alan Johnson, executive director of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, moderated a panel on January 28 that included Nisha Ayub of the Pink Triangle Foundation of Malaysia; Ugandan LGBT activist Val Kalende; and Joel Simpson, founder and cochair of the Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination in Guyana. Mira Patel, special adviser on LGBT and women’s rights at the State Department, noted that the panel coincided with the first anniversary of Ugandan gay activist David Kato’s murder. She noted global rates of antiLGBT violence continue to increase, and anti-sodomy laws remain on the books in nearly 80 countries. Patel cited the landmark speech on LGBT rights that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered in Geneva in December to commemorate International Human Rights Day as proof of the administration’s See page 19 >>

Maine marriage advocates plan return to ballot by Lisa Keen

quality Maine and its supporters announced last week that they will submit more than 105,000 signatures to the secretary of state to put on the November ballot a measure seeking to establish marriage equality for same-sex couples. The group had collected the signatures more than a month ago, according to a spokesman, but were deliberating over the decision of whether to seek the citizens initiative this year. In a press release Thursday, January 26 Equality Maine said its polling showed that 54 percent of those surveyed support same-sex marriage in Maine. “Many Mainers have changed their minds and want a chance to bring equality and fairness to our

Betsy Smith of Equality Maine

state,” said Betsy Smith, executive director of Equality Maine. Maine voters in 2009 narrowly approved a measure to ban a marriage equality

law approved by the legislature. According to Equality Maine, the title of this year’s measure will be “An Act to Allow Marriage Licenses for Same-Sex Couples and Protect Religious Freedom.” The group proposed for the wording of the ballot measure to read: “Do you favor a law allowing marriage licenses for same-sex couples, and that protects religious freedom by ensuring that no religion or clergy be required to perform such a marriage in violation of their religious beliefs?” That wording will have to be approved by the secretary of state. Ben Dudley, executive director of Engage Maine, noted that his group, Equality Maine, and several other organizations working on the measure collected more than twice the 57,000 required to reach the ballot.▼

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Community News >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 11

2012 ‘Hearts’ benefit features out artists by David Duran

wo San Francisco-based out artists are set to contribute to the seventh annual Hearts in San Francisco benefit for the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation. The public art raises funds by auctioning the hearts – both large and tabletop sizes – and this year the Heroes and Hearts luncheon and auction takes place on the field of AT&T Park Thursday, February 9. A total of 14 artists are participating. The money raised will support lifeenhancing programs at San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center. Henry Jackson, one of the two out artists, is a San Francisco native. Jackson has received several awards for his art, including the artist-inresidency, full Fellowship Award at Monte Azul in Costa Rica in 2007, 2009, and 2011. He is the first recipient of the Heritage Artist Residency Program Award at the San Francisco Zoo (2010). Jackson uses a combination of both the abstract and the familiar, incorporating a passionate palette that teeters on discord while maintaining unification and compatibility. His work creates a distinct energy that draws the viewer into a world of emotional unrest. Jackson told the Bay Area Reporter that his partner, Adam Gendell, a photography dealer, was the one who suggested he consider submitting to

Irja Elisa Photography

Henry Jackson used red for his “Elemental Heart.”

Heroes and Hearts. “After reviewing the submission request and learning more about what the program funded and how monies raised from the sales help fund vital programs that may otherwise not get funded at SFGH and Trauma Center, it was a no-brainer,” he said. Jackson’s original idea for his design came directly from how he approaches his work in general – abstract expressive with a strong focus on color and composition. “Being that the heart has always been a symbol of our emotional center, ever changing, ever hopeful, my natural approach to painting seeming like the logical direction,”

Irja Elisa Photography

Rex Ray used blue for the basis of his heart.

said Jackson. Jackson thought the obvious choice of red was necessary considering how red signifies life and strength. “With red being the driving force, the overall composition began to ironically reveal that of the earth,” he explained. Jackson decided on titling his art, “Elemental Heart.” His heart is on display at the Stockton Street window of Macy’s in Union Square. The second out participant, Rex Ray, is a San Francisco-based fine artist whose collages, paintings, and design work have been exhibited at galleries and museums, including the San Francisco Museum of Modern

Art. He has created work for Apple and DreamWorks and has also created package designs for several musicians, including David Bowie, according to a press statement from the hospital foundation. Ray’s heart will be unveiled at the luncheon. In an email, Ray said that he became involved several years ago through his gallery. “I’ve always thought it important to contribute locally and helping SF General is a great cause,” he said. Ray said that in his design, he “applied some of the more lyrical aspects of my work to the heart.” He added that he’s not used to working with three-dimensional

pieces, such as the hearts, so it was a challenge. Hospital foundation officials praised this year’s participating artists, one of whom is Lori Chinn, a 15-year-old student at Lowell High School. “Heart artwork by the 2012 Hearts in San Francisco artists is not only important for the art community, it’s also meaningful for the city of San Francisco,” said foundation board President Matt Carbone in a statement. “The funds raised by the hearts, which are often seen in Union Square, support vital programs at San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center.” The artists who were selected created either large (5 feet tall by 5 feet 9 inches wide by 3 feet 3 inches deep) or tabletop (14 inches tall by 17 inches wide by 8 inches deep) hearts that will be auctioned. Select large hearts may remain on display in Union Square and locations throughout the city. The entire project has raised nearly $7 million for the foundation since 2006. Tickets for the February 9 Heroes and Hearts luncheon start at $300. Doors open at 11 a.m. and the festivities start at 11:30. A nighttime Hearts After Dark event also takes place February 9 from 7 to 10 p.m. at the ballpark. Tickets for that are $75 general admission, $150 VIP. To purchase tickets, call (415) 206-4478 or visit sfghf.net/hh/index.html▼

AEF gears up for 30th anniversary by David Duran

“The notion that one becomes poz and takes their medicines then skips on their merry way with the rest of their lives, that was not me,” Devine said. Devine had the unfortunate experience of severe medication complications. He had to stop teaching and take a modest

or the past three decades the AIDS Emergency Fund has provided one thing – emergency financial assistance – to people disabled by HIV/AIDS who are too sick to work. Now, one of the most stable AIDS service organizations in San Francisco is making plans to mark a milestone year and to expand its donor base. At a 30th anniversary kick off party held at the San Francisco Armory on January 25, AEF announced that at least 31 people have pledged to hold individuallyhosted fundraising parties, appropriately titled, “Parties with a Purpose!” At the armory, which is home to famous porn studio kink.com, a festive affair took place in the most interesting of settings. To most, the fourth floor was elegantly decorated, but it was the hidden decor that took some by surprise when they began to casually glance above and pay more attention to details, including chains and rings hanging from the ceiling and kinky statues behind promotional materials. It made for a fun evening for guests. AEF officials announced that their fundraising goal for this year is $300,000. Toward that end the Bob Ross Foundation has again stepped up as the largest annual donor, officials said. “Even since his passing, through his foundation, he has continued to be just as generous,” Mike Smith, AEF executive director, said of Ross, who died in 2003. The foundation, named for the Bay Area Reporter’s founding publisher, is now run by current publisher, Thomas E. Horn. The foundation makes a yearly commitment of $30,000. Horn has stepped forward to have the foundation provide an additional $30,000 matching gift this year as AEF uses the house party concept to bring new donors into the fold and to bring back lapsed donors, Smith explained.

Joseph Driste Photography

AIDS Emergency Fund Executive Director Mike Smith, left, talked with District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener at the agency’s launch of its 30th anniversary year.

“This is an extraordinary gesture on the part of the Bob Ross Foundation,” Smith said. Horn said it’s important for the agency to attract new donors. “Admittedly, there is donor fatigue around HIV/AIDS fundraising,” Horn said. “The only way to support ongoing need is to find new donors.” Horn said that the house party concept, geared to new donors, is something Ross would have supported. Smith explained that given the present economic and political climate, it is unlikely that federal funds will be able to sustain organizations and expressed the importance of being there for “our own community.” Over the years, AEF has been fortunate to have many people do private events in order to raise money. For 28 years, the Bare Chest Calendar for example, has raised more than $100,000 a year in the past couple of years. AEF is a beneficiary of the calendar along with Positive Resource Center. AEF also has long ties to the leather community. The Leather Walk celebrated its 20th walk last year, and was started by Art

Tomaszewski, a past AEF board president. Additionally, the organization benefits from other fundraisers, such as “Songs of the Season,” a holiday cabaret favorite from producer Richard Sablatura and Donna Sachet, the B.A.R.’s society columnist. District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener attended last week’s launch, and talked about the importance of AEF. “For many people in San Francisco, they really need a lifeline like AEF as well as dozens of other organizations that are truly a community of support,” said Wiener. AEF sends a message to the community that the people being served by AEF are valued. “Clients feel love and support,” continued Weiner. Some AEF clients were on hand last week as well. One of them, Jerry Devine, took a few moments to express his gratitude to AEF, the people who work there, and the people who donate to the agency. Devine left New York in 1997 to continue his work in public education here in San Francisco. Shortly after arriving, he was diagnosed as HIV-positive.

disability check. “I was feeling ashamed and they helped me pay my bills and most importantly, were kind to me,” he said of AEF. Over the course of 30 years, AEF has helped 35,000 people facing See page 17 >>

12 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

Read more online at www.ebar.com

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 13

14 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

Read more online at www.ebar.com

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 15

<< Community News

16 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Connie Wolf takes helm of Stanford’s Cantor Arts Center by Heather Cassell

onnie Wolf, the longtime former head of the Contemporary Jewish Museum, started the new year with a new job as the John and Jill Freidenrich director of Stanford University’s Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts. She followed the footsteps of the center’s founding director Thomas K. Seligman, who retired last year after a 20-year career at the Cantor Arts Center, said Matthew Tiews, executive director of arts programs for the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford and one of eight members on Wolf ’s hiring committee. CJM hasn’t announced who will fill Wolf ’s shoes. The museum’s board formed a search committee last July, chaired by Mark Schlesinger. Wolf is excited about the change, she said, but she never truly left Stanford. Throughout her career she stayed in touch and at times worked on community projects at her alma mater. A hallmark of her career that she’s most proud of is the deepening of the relationships and partnerships she’s developed throughout the Bay Area and beyond over the years, she said. She imagines she will have a similar relationship with CJM as a “member and a supporter,” calling the museum’s community her “friends and family.”

Full circle “There was something very organic about the shift ... Stanford has always held a very, very important part of my life,” said Wolf, who obtained a bachelor’s degree in East Asian studies from the university in 1981. “So, to go from a place that I feel so passionate about ... and so committed to, then moving to Stanford that holds a certain weight for me ... the connection is very authentic and very present,” said Wolf. Tiews and Wolf declined to state what her new salary is or the center’s budget. Wolf ’s last day at CJM was December 2. Wolf, 51, an out lesbian, stepped into her former role as chief executive officer of CJM in San Francisco 12 years ago, when the museum was still housed at the base of the Jewish Community Federation on San Francisco’s Embarcadero. Wolf returned to the San Francisco Bay Area, settling in the gay mecca, to lead CJM after stints in New York. She was the associate director for public programs and curator of education at the Whitney Museum for American Art. At the Rockefeller Foundation she was a research associate in school reform and a Warren Weaver Fellow in the arts and humanities division. She also held posts at Boston’s Museum

Kira Sugarman

Cantor Arts Center director Connie Wolf

of Fine Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. Through her leadership CJM grew from a small staff of six to 60, a robust 41-member board of trustees, and she moved the museum out of its humble community-based home into its modern $85 million location in the heart of San Francisco’s art district in 2008. Under her deft vision, she placed the museum on the map as an artistic and cultural destination with significant exhibits featuring Harry Houdini, Gertrude Stein, Marc Chagall, Andy Warhol, Margret and H.A. Rey, to name a few within the past three years. Since its founding in 1984, the museum has commissioned more than 125 new works of art, staged more than 20 exhibitions, and welcomes nearly 125,000 visitors annually, reported j., the Northern California Jewish weekly magazine. Wolf also insured the future of the museum by establishing a $25 million endowment, reported Stanford Report in July announcing the change of the Cantor Arts Center’s leadership. “We were able to really think afresh about the program and the exhibitions and the role that we wanted to play in this community,” said Wolf, about her accomplishments at CJM. She feels the foundation was set in making CJM an institution that engages the local community as well as the many visitors who come to San Francisco yearly. “I feel really proud, like anything that grows up in the world it is standing strong and firm and will go on to great things,” said Wolf.

Once an ‘outsider’ One of only seven Jews in her high school class of 300 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Wolf knows what it feels like to be an “outsider” and “excluded,” she told the Bay Area Reporter in 2008. The outsider was left behind when she stepped into Stanford’s diverse world. Wolf doesn’t wave the big “L” on her unique position of being one of the few openly lesbian directors in the male dominated art field. She is waiting for the day when “no one has to ask these questions,” she said, claiming that she never encountered homophobia or sexism personally. “Being a lesbian has never been a barrier. I don’t let it be a barrier,” she told the B.A.R. She is much more focused on her work than her gender, religion, or sexual orientation. “I want to be judged on what I accomplish. I want to be viewed and valued for what I do,” she said. Yet, a hint of the outsiderness and the diverse world she entered in her youth remains in the form of emphasizing “inclusiveness and tolerance” at the institutions she’s led.

Most recently, this was displayed when Wolf hosted a “Hand Holding Day” at CJM that brought out the LGBT community. The San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band performed “I Want to Hold Your Hand” at the event in response to a homophobic incident at the museum last summer. In July, a lesbian couple was asked to leave the museum while viewing the Gertrude Stein exhibit by a contract security officer from Guardsmark, who reportedly told the two women that holding hands wasn’t allowed. The irony – Stein was a lesbian and the partner of Alice B. Toklas – wasn’t lost on local residents. In addition to Hand Holding Day, sensitivity training for San Francisco Guardsmark security officers was also conducted, said Wolf and Daryl Carr, a museum spokesman. Guardsmark repeatedly shuffled the B.A.R. back and forth between its headquarters in New York and its San Francisco office without a response to a request for comment. In 2008, when asked why she loves artists and the arts, Wolf responded that artists ask “you to think about the world from a different perspective, and to be respectful of others.” “I want every visitor to feel included, no matter where they’re from. I want them to feel safe, to feel welcome, that they’re in an environment where they can explore and think out of the box,” said Wolf.

Change of pace Wolf is excited about her new position at the Cantor Arts Center. The center is Stanford’s “centerpiece” as the university reaffirms its commitment to being a leader in the artistic community, she said. The center is the leading academic art institution and the most visited university museum in the country, according to Wolf. Last year, Stanford acquired the Anderson Collection, one of the most outstanding private collections of 20th century American art in the world, among its other works of art in its impressive collection. In addition to the art acquisition, it announced the Diller Scofidio and Renfro firm as the architect of the McMurtry arts building, which will be the new home of the university’s art and art history department. Stanford has long been an innovative leader in art since before the university’s founding. Railroad baron Leland Stanford had an interest in arts and technology. He hired photographer Eadweard Muybridge who produced the iconic photographs of movement at Stanford, the university’s museum was a part of its original grand scheme, and today the university boasts its Center for Computer Research for Music and Acoustics among its other talents, said Tiews. “Museums are very important places for scholarship and research,” said Wolf, who believes that museums in an academic environment provide a “unique experience looking at art” and creating art in a “very different way,” especially being in the heart of the technology center of the world. Wolf ’s artistic goals and vision were in line with the university’s initiatives for the 21st century, Tiews said. Wolf ’s energy, innovation, and success at CJM as well as her profound love for the arts and the Bay Area’s artistic community made her a star with committee members. “We are really looking at the See page 17 >>

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Community News >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 17

Bill Wilson

Ammiano, archbishop share stage T here was a coming together of sorts last weekend when Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), standing, one of the city’s most prominent gay politicos, joined with religious leaders, including San Francisco Archbishop George Niederauer, fourth from left, one of the city’s anti-gay leaders, to call on Governor Jerry Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris to reform the state’s participation in the Secure Communi-

ties, or S-Comm, deportation program. Ammiano plans to introduce legislation later this spring. The faith leaders joined Ammiano to express their concern that S-Comm is undermining public safety. Under the program, the fingerprints of everyone arrested – even survivors of domestic violence – are sent to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which then picks up immigrants for deportation.

UN head calls for African leaders to respect LGBT rights by Heather Cassell

nited Nations SecretaryGeneral Ban Ki-Moon this week called for African nations to respect the human rights of LGBT citizens during remarks at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Reflecting upon the aftershocks of the Arab Spring, Ban reminded the 54 members of the African Union of their responsibility to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He held up the lack of LGBT human rights as an example of a form of “discrimination that has been ignored or even sanctioned by many States for far too long” that has “prompted some governments to treat people as second-class citizens, or even criminals.” “Confronting this discrimination is a challenge. But we must live up to the ideals of the universal declaration,” Ban, who entered his second term and sixth year as head

Cantor Arts Center

From page 16

way that we are moving art to the forefront of what we do,” Tiews said about the new art district being created at the entrance to Stanford. Wolf is most interested in “connecting people with ideals and art,” she said. “I don’t have a prescribed path

AEF anniversary

From page 11

financial hardship while battling HIV/ AIDS and provided more than $30 million in the form of cash assistance to its clients. Board President Cynthia Hester said in a statement that the agency is looking to expand its donor and community outreach programs as part of its anniversary year.

Parties with purpose For the Parties with a Purpose house soirees, each host has committed to raising at least $3,000

of the U.N., told the members on January 29. Many African nations legally discriminate against and criminalize LGBT citizens with severe penalties and punishment. African leaders haven’t immediately responded to Ban’s call for LGBT human rights. During Ban’s opening remarks at a press conference for the African Union Summit, he pointed out that “Africa was the epicenter of an earthquake for social justice, democracy, respect for human rights and dignity,” with the Arab Spring in 2011. “The shockwaves are still being felt around the world.” The Arab Spring that saw riots and the resignations of some longtime leaders of African nations also brought a wave of criminalization of LGBT citizens in some African nations and other human rights violations. This year Africa remains in flux as 25 countries will hold key elections

that I want to take us on, rather I want to make sure the questioning and discussion is always vibrant and always alive. So, as technology advances in the ways in which we learn and experience and connect that the museum is a step ahead and always there to facilitate that,” Wolf said about her goals for the museum. Whatever Wolf ’s plans, the

for the organization. Smith said with 31 parties currently committed and the Bob Ross Foundation gift AEF has commitments of $120,000 toward its goal. The small parties likely will include house gatherings, trips, small dinners, bar crawls, and any other creative ideas the hosts come up with. Hosts are encouraged to choose a theme to get guests excited about the event. Anything from an elegant intimate dinner at home to a more risque party are some of the ideas available to those interested. AEF is ready and willing to help

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon

at presidential, legislative, and local levels. African nations’ adherence to international human rights law in the wake of the Arab Spring were of particular importance, especially with leadership changes in so many countries and at the African Union. By the end of the summit the African Union hadn’t selected its new commissioner and postponed the elections until the next summit in Malawi in June, according to media reports January 30. In the interim, Erastus Mwencha, See page 19 >>

public will have to wait. Like most museums, the center’s exhibition schedule is already mapped out for the next two to three years. Wolf ’s primary goal this year will be to learn as much as she can about the institution to help her envision its future.▼ To learn more, visit museum. stanford.edu/.

provide hosts with the resources to help their party be a smash and to help them reach their fundraising goals. They can provide promotional material as well as a possible photographer so that the parties can be showcased at the AEF gala later this year. The gala is scheduled for late November. AEF is also planning a community event for World AIDS Day, December 1.▼ For more information about AEF, including a party tool kit, visit www.aef-sf.org.

<< The Sports Page

18 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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LGBT athletes on display by Roger Brigham

e celebrate Groundhog Day with news and notes from the world of sports as we decompress from the 49ers amazing season and await the first sounds of spring training.

Window dressing Hope you all got a chance to see the LGBT sports window display this past month at 4143 19th Street. The pictures in the antiques store window of straight sports allies, openly gay athletes, and memorabilia of local LGBT sports clubs and athletes is part of the planned Rainbow Honor Walk, co-founded by shop owner Isak Lindenauer. Gay Games founder Tom Waddell is one of the first 20 honorees to be recognized by the project for their community contributions. [For more on the Honor Walk, see story below.] The Bay Area is home to so many recreational LGBT sports participation options that I think sometimes we take them for granted and forget all of the volunteer hours decades ago that helped created our little sports. It was nice to see the visual reminder. The best record of Bay Area LGBT

sports was the exhibition put together by current Bay Area Reporter assistant editor (and former sports columnist) Jim Provenzano for the GLBT Historical Society prior to the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago. A new noteworthy addition to the sports archives is a timeline of British LGBT sports put together by world champion powerlifter Chris Morgan for this year’s LGBT Month in Great Britain, covering the founding of different clubs, notable athletes and watershed moments. The timeline can be found at www.lgbthistoryuk.org/wiki/index. php?title=Timeline_of_LGBT_Sport.

Olympic pride and prejudice Not everyone is pleased with plans for a Pride House at this year’s Summer Olympics in London. Pink News reports that Friends of Clapham Commons, which was formed in the 1990s to protest the “number of large and poorly managed events” that were routinely staged in the area, told the local government council that the Pride House will likely be a “magnet for undesirable elements of the gay community” and would not “raise a decent income for Lambeth since much of it will be for charitable

purposes benefiting the LGBT causes.” Melanie Oxley, chairman of the Friends of Clapham Commons, denied the group was homophobic in making its objection. “We have absolutely nothing to hide and are emphatically not homophobes,” she told Pink News. “Our objections are based on the scale and length of the event. There are undesirable elements in any community. We fear greatly that numbers will get out of hand and the availability of alcohol for such a long duration will simply fuel an impossible situation for the police and the event organizers.” Pride House organizers say they expect some 20,000 visitors to the house during its two-and-a-half week run. “Reference to ‘undesirables’ is incredibly offensive and exposes the real motivation for this objection,” said Christopher Wellbelove, a member of the local council. “This is a huge opportunity for Clapham and Lambeth to participate in London 2012, showing their support to Team GB during the games, together with LGBT athletes from around the world. The event will also be a stance against homophobia such as the very unfortunate comments in the objections by the Friends, which I would be surprised if it was truly representative of the Friends as a whole.”

Courtesy Rainbow Flags Over Margaret Court Arena Facebook page

Australian tennis fans show their pride in protest of former tennis great Margaret Court, who made an anti-gay comment.

Court gestures After former tennis great Margaret Court showed the world her views were as ancient as her game by saying that homosexuality tarnishes women’s tennis, she drew swift admonition from critics and calls for Tennis Australia to rename Margaret Court Arena to something less offensive. She also inspired a protest movement billing itself “Rainbow Flags Over Margaret Court Arena,” with its own Facebook page. It mission? “To provide peaceful, non-disruptive support for the gay community by inundating MCA with rainbow flags during the Australian Open.” Laura Robson, who two years ago raised eyebrows by referring to some of her fellow players as “sluts”

in a magazine interview, did not join the protest, but during her loss on that court to Jelena Jankovic wore a rainbow colored hairband to make her own accessory statement. “I wore it because I believe in equal rights for everyone,” Robson said in a post-match press conference. “That’s it. It’s not a protest, it’s just a hairband.”

Spin drills Speaking of Facebook, fans have been using social media to try to get Olympic diving great Greg Louganis on the television show Dancing With the Stars. Hey, Facebook fans got Betty White on Saturday Night Live, so go for it. And who knows: if Louganis does well on Dancing, maybe Tony Kornheiser will interview him on ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption.▼

LGBT history walk launches design contest by Matthew S. Bajko

he backers of a history project in the Castro have launched an international contest to seek a design for plaques that will memorialize influential LGBT people. A year ago this month organizers released the names of the first 20 people to be honored as part of the Rainbow Honor Walk. The honorees include local LGBT advocates, such as lesbian pioneer Del Martin and gay Asian activist George Choy, and world-famous icons such as novelist James Baldwin and Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. A marker embedded in the sidewalks of the city’s gayborhood

News Briefs

will be dedicated to each individual. But just what the signage will say or look like remains undecided. The project leaders are asking the public for help in making their decision. They are seeking design proposals from around the world and are offering a $1,000 cash prize to the winning entrant. “The first 20 names are not limited to the local LGBT community. It is a memorial with an international scope and we wanted to open it to everyone,” said co-founder David Perry, a gay Castro resident who also chairs the project’s board. “We see it not only as a tribute but, quite frankly, we are hoping people who visit San Francisco from around the

presence in the African American community, both in San Francisco and nationally. The purpose of the march is to raise awareness of the continued impact AIDS has in black communities and to underscore the importance of work that remains in fighting HIV/AIDS locally. Following the march, a community discussion will be held at the opera house with keynote speaker Kenneth Monterio, Ph.D., dean of ethnic studies at San Francisco State University. For more information, contact Vincent Fuqua at the AIDS Office, (415) 554-9073 or Vincent.Fuqua@ sfdph.org.

en, African Americans, and as workers. For more information, email baradicalwomen@earthlink.net. On Friday, February 17, the Freedom Socialist Party will host a screening of the film, Freedom Riders, a documentary that recounts the 1961 efforts of black and white activists who risked their lives to challenge segregation laws in the South. The civil rights activists remain an inspiring example for these times as the struggle against racism continues. The program starts at 7 p.m. at New Valencia Hall. A $3-$5 donation is requested. Snacks and popcorn will be available for a small donation. For more information, call (415) 8641278 or email bafsp@earthlink.net.

Black History Month programs

Krewe de Kinque Mardi Gras party

From page 7

Two progressive groups will be holding programs in recognition of Black History Month. First up is Radical Women, who will hold a public meeting on “Female Leadership in the Civil Rights Struggle,” on Thursday, February 9 at 7 p.m. at New Valencia Hall, 747 Polk Street in San Francisco. Supper will be served at 6:15 for a $7.50 donation. The group will hold a discussion on the threefold nature of black women’s fight for freedom as wom-

Krewe de Kinque will hold its Bal Masque IX, an annual Mardi Gras-themed costume party and fundraiser for HIV/AIDS nonprofits, on Saturday, February 18 from 6 to 10 p.m. at Trigger, 2344 Market Street. This year’s beneficiary will be AIDS Housing Alliance/San Francisco, said Gary Virginia, Krewe de Kinque founder. This year’s theme is “Occupy Bourbon Street – Party with the Naughty-Nine Percent.” Virginia thanked Trigger owner Greg Bronstein for donating its

Rick Gerharter

Rainbow Honor Walk co-founder David Perry

venue, staff, and food and beverage support. “Having the benefit in the Castro also supports other small businesses, from costume shopping at Cliff’s Variety to restaurants and other bars for pre- and post-ball revelry,” Virginia said. Tickets for Bal Masque IX are $50 for VIP hosts and $20 general admission. They are available at Under One Roof, 518A Castro Street.

Broadway composer to join gay chorus Three-time Oscar winner and four-time Grammy winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz will join the 275 singers of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus for two performances of his Broadway musical hits and film tunes in “Enchantingly Wicked” on March 20-21 at Davies Symphony Hall. Tickets are now on sale for this special event. Concert highlights include iconic songs from the musicals Wicked and Godspell (currently enjoying a revival on Broadway) and the films Enchanted, The Prince of Egypt, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Pocahontas. Anchoring the program will be “Testimony,” Schwartz’s world premiere composed specifically for the Gay Men’s Chorus. Schwartz worked with Dan Savage, founder of

world come to see the walk.” The design contest begins today (Thursday, February 2) and runs through May 1, when all proposals are due. Each entry costs $100, though the fee will be waived for one student from each school in the San Francisco Unified School District. Four finalists will then be selected and judged by a jury comprised of curators from San Francisco cultural institutions plus LGBT community leaders and a member of the San Francisco Arts Commission’s Civic Design Committee. The four finalists will be presented to the Rainbow Honor Walk board, which will select the winner. The

San Francisco Arts Commission, which has final say on all structures placed on public property, must then approve the chosen design. “The Rainbow Honor Walk will not only be an inspiring educational tool for future generations, but an important, ongoing and permanent part of San Francisco’s cultural landscape,” stated Tom DeCaigny, a gay man who is the city’s newly named director of cultural affairs. “We are honored and pleased to support this project, and look forward to assisting in any way we can.” Perry, who owns an eponymously

the It Gets Better Project, in selecting texts from those who have shared their stories. Tickets are $15-$75 and available at City Box Office (www.cityboxoffice.com). Show times are at 8 p.m. each night. Davies is located at 201 Van Ness Avenue. For more information, visit www.sfgmc.org.

for the sixth poet laureate, to succeed Diane di Prima, whose term has expired. Poet laureate nominees must be San Francisco residents, have a substantial body of published work, including at least one full-length book (minimum 48 pages, not selfpublished or vanity press) or CD, or 20 or more published poems in established publications, print or online, over the past five years. City Librarian Luis Herrera said the public library is involved in the process for the selection of the next poet laureate. Responsibilities of the poet laureate include: deliver an inaugural address to the public at the library; participate in community-based poetry events, including a youthcentered event; work on one or more poetry-centered events in cooperation with the public library; do a reading at Litquake. Nomination forms can be found online at www.sfpl.org/poetlaureate or at any library branch. The nominations should also include a two- or three-paragraph statement on why the nominee should be poet laureate and include a bibliography of published works or performance history. Nominations are due February 29 and should be sent to Luis Herrera, City Librarian, SF Public Library, 100 Larkin Street, San Francisco, CA 94102 or citylibrarian@sfpl.org.▼

Support group for adult survivors of child abuse A support group for adult survivors of child abuse will be held Thursday, February 9 from 6 to 7:15 p.m. at the Embarcadero YMCA, 169 Steuart Street in San Francisco. Led by trauma recovery coach Rachel Grant, the workshop, to be held the second Thursday of each month, is an innovative and effective support program designed specifically for adult survivors of physical, sexual, or emotional child abuse or neglect. The program’s basic components are individually reading and working with a support manual. There is a sliding scale fee from $5 to $10. For more information, contact Grant at (415) 513-0700 or coach@ rachelgrantcoaching.com.

Lee calls for poet laureate nominations Mayor Ed Lee and the San Francisco Poet Laureate Nominating Committee are seeking nominations

See page 19 >>

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Obituaries >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 19

Richard Chicotel, CFO of Shorenstein Properties, dies by Cynthia Laird

ichard A. Chicotel, the chief financial officer of Shorenstein Properties, one of the country’s oldest real estate organizations, died unexpectedly at his San Francisco home January 10. He was 52. A cause of death was not released. Known to many as Rich, Mr. Chicotel, who was openly gay, also was active in various LGBT causes and regularly opened his home for fundraisers. Friends said that Mr. Chicotel tended to keep his business and private lives separate, and few of his friends realized that he was the CFO and thus third-in-rank at Shorenstein Properties. The firm is active in major American cities in the ownership and operation of high-quality office

Out in the World

From page 17

deputy chair of the commission, and who is from Kenya, will take over former incumbent Jean Ping’s seat until the next elections, according to media reports. Ban once again urged African leaders to listen to their citizens in two addresses, one to the assembly and the other to the press, on January 29 and 30, respectively. Last year Ban called for African heads of states to take “bold measures” toward reform “before it was too late.” This year he pointed to the consequences, “Today, those changes are taking place, with or without those leaders,” he said. “Events have proved that repression is a dead-end. Police power is no match for people power seeking dignity and justice,” he said.

HUD

From page 10

ongoing commitment to advance this movement outside of the United States. “As a gay woman of color, I am proud the State Department and the United States are taking the lead to confront the circumstances LGBT people face just going about their daily lives,” she said, noting she was with Clinton when she delivered her speech. “The United States is finally on the right side of history.”

Back to California Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center CEO Lorri Jean described Donovan’s speech to the Bay Area Reporter during a Washington

LGBT history walk

From page 18

named public relations firm, joined forces with Castro business owner Isak Lindenauer to push forward the project. The honor walk board would like to announce the plaque design by gay Pride in late June, said Perry, and have the first plaques installed by October 11, which is National Coming Out Day. The timeline is ambitious, he acknowledged, considering the city approval process and fundraising needs. It is estimated that each plaque will cost $5,000, depending on the winning design and materials it is made out of, with a total then of $100,000 for the first set of 20. As of now the project has raised $6,500. It is set to become its own 501(c)3 as of this month, said Perry, and will start to ramp up fundraising efforts. Until now the project has used the Castro Community Benefit District as its fiscal sponsor. “All the paperwork has been filed, so we are a registered nonprofit,” said Perry.

properties. (Shorenstein’s local properties today include the Russ Building at 235 Montgomery Street and 50 California Street.) As CFO he was in charge of Shorenstein’s financing activities, its insurance, and its reporting to investors; Mr. Chicotel rose to be CFO after working at Shorenstein since 1988. In 2007, he was named by the San Francisco Business Times as the San Francisco Bay Area CFO of the Year for Privately-owned Companies. In his private life, Mr. Chicotel was known as an enthusiastic and dynamic person, and as a supporter of many LGBT organizations such as Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund and Horizons Foundation. He was also known as the proud owner of his unusual and beautiful

“The women and men protesting in streets and public squares across the region are both an inspiration and a reminder. A reminder that leaders must listen to their people ... that all of us must do more.”

New U.S. LGBT asylum guidelines released U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services released new guidelines for handling LGBT individuals seeking asylum. The module, “Guidance for Adjudicating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Refugee and Asylum Claims,” was developed in December 2011 and handed out to asylum workers at a workshop in Washington, D.C. January 24, said Steve Ralls, director of communications of Immigration Equality. Victoria Neilson, legal director

home at the corner of Church and Cumberland streets, which he generously loaned out often for favorite charities to stage fundraising events.

Mr. Chicotel was a member of the Neighborhood Parks Council (recently renamed San Francisco Parks Alliance), and a major supporter of plans (now under way) to renovate and improve Dolores Park, across the street from his home. One of the many charities that benefited from his help was his alma mater Harvard College (where he earned his B.A. in 1981). Mr. Chicotel co-chaired the local drive to raise money for a visiting professorship in LGBT studies at Harvard – an effort that had a wellremembered gathering in his back yard and succeeded in raising the money needed for the Matthiessen professorship, his friends said. (See: http://hglc.org/matthiessen.html.) Mr. Chicotel was born August 20, 1959 and was raised in Huron, Ohio,

a city of less than 8,000 people on the shore of Lake Erie near Sandusky. He graduated from Huron High School. After college, Mr. Chicotel obtained an MBA at Stanford Business School. A celebration honoring Mr. Chicotel will be held on Wednesday, February 15 from 6 to 8 p.m., in the Buena Vista area. Please send an email to celebratingrichc@gmail. com and the organizers will reply with directions to the meeting place. If you would like to contribute to the cost of the refreshments at the celebration, please indicate that in your email. A memorial fund in Mr. Chicotel’s name has been established at Horizons Foundation, 550 Montgomery Street, Suite 700, San Francisco 94111. For information email rdoughty@horizonsfoundation.org.▼

of Immigration Equality, who has worked with the USCIS on the module off and on since 2003, believes it’s important. “It is really important and significant that USCIS recognizes that their officers need to be particularly sensitive in these types of cases and understand the terminology that makes the applicants feel more comfortable,” said Neilson. “The fact that [USCIS] recognize this as an important category of asylum seekers, I think, is very significant as a step toward recognizing gay rights as human rights,” added Neilson. The new guidelines don’t change the definition of refugee, which is regulated by the Immigration and Nationality Act. Neilson is uncertain how the new guidelines might affect binational couples, as

asylum historically has been treated as separate from immigration, she said. Under the new guidelines, LGBT couples who flee their countries together and are seeking asylum might be allowed to interview together, Neilson said, which isn’t possible for opposite sex couples. “It’s helpful that USCIS is acknowledging that it can be helpful to couples to be interviewed [together],” said Neilson. She hopes the module will provide consistency and sensitivity to LGBT issues where there “haven’t been guidelines before about the kinds of questions that should be asked and about what constitutes persecution in the context of LGBT cases,” she said. It is particularly important in cases where an officer reaches a conclusion that is contrary to the guidance.

Immigration Equality won 101 asylum cases in 2011, but has a number of cases pending and waiting for resolution, said Ralls. He estimated that the organization potentially handles up to 200 asylum cases annually. There are about 250 cases of LGBT people escaping persecution and seeking asylum in the U.S. every year, he estimated. The 66-page training module developed in consortium between USCIS and Immigration Equality provides an exception to the oneyear filing deadline, HIV/AIDS status, and provides clear and specific guidance and training examples for handling LGBT refugees seeking asylum. The module addresses basic issues, such as definitions, LGBT

Richard A. Chicotel

See page 21 >>

Blade-sponsored reception on January 28 as an “extraordinary indicator” of the progress that LGBT Americans have made since the first Creating Change took place in Bethesda, Maryland in 1988. She said she would return to California with a strengthened resolve to fight against a likely ballot measure this fall that would repeal the state’s Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful Education Act. Jean further stressed that activists need to support President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign. “We all need to be focusing on making sure that President Obama gets re-elected,” she said. “If we have a President Romney or a President Gingrich, it’s going to be horrible bad news for our community.”▼

According to the design competition guidelines, the proposals must include the name, birth and death dates, and a brief description of the person being honored. The plaque size is listed as 3 feet wide by 3 feet long and the materials to be used are either bronze or terrazzo, a concrete that has color added to it. With the theft last fall of a bronze memorial plaque from the Castro Muni station, concerns have been raised about protecting similar signage in the area. Perry said the board has discussed the issue. “I can’t imagine anything more heinous than someone stealing a memorial to someone who has passed away or is a hero to the LGBT community,” he said. “It is up for discussions and we will make sure with DPW these are safe and secure.” The full set of guidelines for how to submit design proposals to the competition can be found on the project’s website at rainbowhonorwalk.org/. The site includes the full list of the first 20 honorees. Any questions can be emailed to contest@rainbowhonorwalk.org.▼

www.ebar.com

<< Community News

20 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

SFPD

From page 1

Of those leaving, Suhr said that 262 are in the department’s Deferred Retirement Option Plan. The department is working on a five-year hiring plan to bring in more people. Suhr, who was sworn in as chief last April, said they’re especially interested in people who live in the city, whether or not they were born here, because “it gives you a stake in San Francisco.” When the department recently posted a notice for applicants on its website, Suhr said there were recently so many inquiries that the site crashed. The issue of gay male officers earning promotions has long been acknowledged in the SFPD. Currently there are no out gay male officers above the rank of sergeant. Out lesbians in the department have been regularly promoted. Three lesbians serve on Suhr’s command staff. The department is “open to everyone,” Suhr said. “I want us for sure to be a department that looks like the city we serve.”

Pink Saturday Pink Saturday, which draws tens of thousands of people to the Castro neighborhood, is held on the night before the city’s LGBT Pride Parade and celebration and falls on June 23

Black gays

From page 1

Data, changes needed Activists, public policy officials, and service providers who took part in the Center for American Progress panel that Colorlines.com news editor Jamilah King moderated stressed the need for LGBT-specific data that can provide a more accurate picture of the issues that this and other underrepresented groups face. Specifically, they called for an LGBT-inclusive U.S. census and the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity on state and local surveys. “Most data collected from federal agencies – the data sets that I rely on to tell the story and uncover disparities and think about the resources that we need – do not do an adequate job of collecting sexual orientation and gender identity information,” said Nicole Dixon, executive director of the Women of Color Policy Network at New York University. “As a result,

Trigger

From page 2

Adrian Putra said there are still issues with noise from outside crowds. “Everybody’s losing patience with Trigger,” said Christine Haw, a planning department code enforcement supervisor. However, she said that after the meeting with Wiener, “I’m really optimistic that this time we are going to get some compliance.” Haw said her agency’s instituted a six-month payment plan for the fines, and Bronstein began making payments in November. Haw said that if Bronstein doesn’t make good, the standard policy would be to turn collection of the money over to the city’s Bureau of Delinquent Revenue. “They have significant authority,” she said. She said that at the meeting with Wiener on January 19, it was agreed that the club would be given 30 days to comply with its conditions of use. Haw said that Bronstein agreed to hire a noise consultant, essentially to reduce the bass vibrations. Bronstein’s also pledged to work on crowd control, she said. If the bar doesn’t comply with their conditions, Haw said the

▼

Thoshinsky, the sergeant who’s

expected to be promoted, has been at the department’s field training office, working with new recruits, for the past month. Before that, he worked in the Southern Station, which includes South of Market and other neighborhoods. He may be moved once he’s promoted, although “that’s really not my decision,” he said. Thoshinsky said, “I would like to go back to the Tenderloin.” He was last assigned to the neighborhood in the 1990s. The area is home to some of the city’s poorest residents, including many people living with HIV and AIDS. He said the Southern Station and the Tenderloin share the same types of issues, and “98 percent of police services in the Southern police district are spent on delivering social services” related to drug abuse, alcoholism, and mental health troubles. “We’re the safety net,” he said. He added, “Oddly enough, I find people in low-income neighborhoods, especially the Tenderloin” are friendlier and more cooperative with police than residents of districts such as the Mission, which includes the largely gay Castro area. “When you’re already down at the bottom, 911 is your last resource,” he said. Thoshinsky’s current salary is $110,000. It would increase to

approximately $130,000 when he’s promoted. Suhr was in the Tenderloin along with City Attorney Dennis Herrera on Monday morning, January 30, to announce the filing of civil lawsuits against Barah Market, 200 Leavenworth Street and Razan Deli, 391 Ellis Street. Herrera claims the shops have been engaged in drug trafficking and dealing in stolen merchandise. The two shops were the subjects of a combined 182 calls for police service during 2011 alone, Herrera said, and are suspected in playing a role in hundreds of other incidents. He’s seeking court orders to close both businesses for a year, along with $2,500 “for each act of unlawful business practices,” and other penalties. At Barah Market, across the street from where the press conference was held, a cashier said there hadn’t been illegal activities and looked bewildered as reporters poured into the shop. Tony Montesinos, a case manager at the nearby Hospitality House, walked in and said he does all his shopping there. He said that maybe there are things going on at the shop at night, but he’s not aware of them doing anything wrong, and said the police should instead focus on the drug dealing, drinking in public, fights, and other problems in the neighborhood. Razan Deli was closed.▼

we do not know what’s going on in communities and we do not understand the distance we have to go to close the gaps.” While the report acknowledges a lack of data on black LGBT people, it noted common themes within existing research. These include health research that largely focused on HIV/AIDS among black men who have sex with men and the majority of recommendations to reduce disparities among LGBT people of color centered around marriage equality. “That’s interesting because when we really dig deep into the statistics, we see that there are a whole lot of issues happening that are related to relationship recognition, but also economic insecurity, educational attainment issues, and health and wellness disparities,” said MoodieMills. One challenge into which the panelists delved is how can groups that directly serve people of color effectively integrate LGBT-specific

issues into their work. “Reproductive justice and LGBTQ liberation, for us, is very much interconnected and so we started those core values of bodily autonomy and integrity and self-determination and our membership really helps us to figure out a broader view of what does real justice looks like,” said Kierra Johnson, executive director of Choice USA, a pro-choice organization based in Washington. “Everyone has an opportunity to have selfdetermination as it pertains to their ability to create family, their ability to access education, their ability to decide when and if to have sex, when and if to be pregnant, when and if to be a parent.” Hate crimes is another issue on which these organizations can find common ground. “Writing ‘nigger’ on someone’s garage or writing an epithet that speaks to their gayness is a hate crime,” said Gary Flowers, chief executive officer of the Black Leadership Forum. “If we advance our advocacy against

hate crimes, than we are closer.” Framing the issue in a way that reaches a broader group of people is also important, and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other advancements during the civil rights movement of the 1960s provide a potential roadmap. Stressing the impact of discrimination is another method to bridge these gaps. “The only way you can do that and not discriminate is to evolve on marriage,” said Michael Wilson, national director of Americans for Democratic Action, recalling conversations about insurance and hospital visitation rights he had with marriage equality opponents who said they also oppose discrimination. “If you want to discriminate, that’s what you say. If you want to be against discrimination, this is how you do it. There’s always a teachable moment.” While the message is certainly important, organizers and others who work among LGBT communities of color said they must acknowledge that people living in

those communities often carry a variety of identities. This is especially true among people under 30. “They absolutely expect to bring themselves as queer people, as women, as feminists, as environmentalists ... into the room and expect policy and organizing and advocacy reflect all of who they are and who their communities are,” said Johnson. Dixon said this needs to trickle down to the policy level. “Our policies should start from the intersections – if we design policies that lift up the most vulnerable in our society, everyone will benefit,” she said, noting she believes marriage is a fundamental right. “Without an adequate education, access to affordable health care, economic security, housing and feeling safe, it is a right that many LGBT people of color will not be able to fully realize or enjoy.”▼

case would go to the department’s zoning administrator, and to Planning Director John Rahaim. The department “would certainly consider taking this back to the Planning Commission,” Haw said, although she said she didn’t have the authority to make such a recommendation. That panel could revoke Bronstein’s conditional use permit, and Trigger “cannot operate without a valid conditional use permit,” she said.

Bronstein went to the Board of Appeals to try to have the amount lowered. The panel rejected his bid, she said. Bronstein confirmed that he’d appealed the fines, but in a Tuesday, January 31 interview, he said he wanted to discuss “the good things we’re doing. The fines are in the past.” He said that he’s added staff and retrained people, among other adjustments. Bronstein also said, “We spent additional thousands of dollars on the inside doing additional soundproofing” work over the past three to six months. He said a consultant would be coming in to address noise. Often, “the noise on the streets is not coming from my club,” but from people passing by, Bronstein said. He said he and his staff “do everything we can” to keep customers’ and non-customers’ voices down. He said he couldn’t say how much of the $50,000 he’d paid off but it’s “a substantial portion.” Neighbors have said things sometimes improve, only to get worse again, but Bronstein said, “I don’t believe that. I feel we’ve made consistent progress, and have been compliant.” When a reporter visited the club at about 12:30 a.m. Friday, January

27, it appeared to be one of the more mellow spots in the neighborhood. Outside, a handful of people chatted, and no music could be heard coming from inside the club. In the bar, several men who appeared to be Trigger staff quietly escorted outside a drunken patron who was having trouble standing. Outside, sitting on the sidewalk, he searched for a ticket so he could reclaim his jacket and said, “I’m not hurting myself. I’m not hurting anybody else. I’m a good person.” The bar personnel hushed passers-by who started yelling, and one staffer gently reminded people to use their “inside voices.”

said the club’s music can get “really loud” between midnight and 2 a.m., patrons are sometimes screaming, and there have been several fights. Giordano said it sometimes gets better, but “at least once a week, you’re going to be having some trouble out there.” He said that one of the ways he’s sure that the problems are coming from Trigger is that the club has special parties on Tuesday nights, and those are the evenings when there will “definitely” be problems. San Francisco Department of Emergency Management records provided by Patrick Crogan, another Trigger neighbor, show there have been more than 60 calls for service at the club’s address since January 2011. The calls included noise complaints, assaults, and fights, among other problems. Neighbors aren’t the only people who are frustrated with Trigger. Jocelyn Kane, executive director of San Francisco’s Entertainment Commission, said, “We’ve spent a lot of resources on this problem, and we don’t have any more to spend, and we can’t find a solution.” Kane said that if she felt there were adequate grounds for her commission to pull Trigger’s entertainment permit, “we would

this year. Safety concerns around the evening have been an issue, especially after 2010, when Stephen Powell, 19, was shot to death around the time the street party ended. In an email to a Castro area resident who said that partygoers beat him last year, and who filed a complaint against police over alleged mistreatment by officers, Suhr said, “The flavor of the crowd the last two years was decidedly different. It gave me an anxious feeling.” Asked about the remark last week, Suhr, who used to serve as captain of Mission Station, noted that five people had been shot near Market and Seventh streets just before the pre-Pride festivities were about to begin this year. “That’s not exactly the way I’d planned my evening,” he said. Suhr said that this year, officers from the SFPD’s violence reduction team would join regular police at the festival. He said officers would continue “searching for those people looking for trouble” and get them away from the event, and there will be “a decided police presence” this year, although he also doesn’t want officers to be the focus of the evening. The former Halloween street parties in the Castro, which like Pink Saturday were marred by violence, have ended, with bars and restaurants open but no street closures or other activities. People from outside the

No ‘death penalty’ Wiener said that even before he took office in January 2011, he knew there were tensions between Trigger and some neighbors, and attempts at solutions. He said that last year, people indicated to him that they were going to go to the Planning Commission to try to get the club shut down. “I asked them to hold off,” he said, and he convened mediations. Wiener said, “Frankly, when you’re talking about a death penalty kind of enforcement ... you want to be careful.” He said that Trigger is a business that employs people and a “significant nightlife venue in the neighborhood.” “You don’t want to shut down a business unless you have no other options,” he said. Haw said that at one point,

community are encouraged to stay away as part of the city’s “Home for Halloween” campaign. Suhr said he’s personally a“nostalgic purist” for the old Halloween parties in the Castro, when they still mainly drew costumed LGBT people from the neighborhood, but he doesn’t think that event will be returning to the area. “I don’t think there’s the community support for it,” he said.

Robberies Every day in San Francisco, people are robbed of cellphones, wallets, and other possessions. Guns and knives are often used in the crimes. Suhr said the incidents are “absolutely all about” iPhones, other smartphones, and other electronic equipment. He noted that the robberies often occur when people are walking down the street talking on their phones. Suhr compared the habit to openly carrying several hundred dollars in one’s hand, and said, “You would never walk down the block counting your ATM withdrawal” and there’s “no reason to be horsing around” with electronics. “If we can reduce the supply, we can reduce robberies wholesale,” he said.

Lieutenant-to-be eyes Tenderloin

Follow-up planned Alan Beach-Nelson, who can’t hear noise from Trigger at his home several blocks away, is the president of the Castro/Eureka Valley Neighborhood Association and was at the meeting with Wiener. “We’ve given them a month, so we’ll have a follow up meeting on February 16,” Beach-Nelson said. “I’d love for Trigger to thrive and be a good neighbor, but if they’re not going to be a good neighbor, I don’t think they should be in business,” he said. Carmine Giordano, 75, who’s lived on 16th Street – behind Trigger – for more than 30 years,

To read the full report, visit www.americanprogress.org/ issues/2012/01/black_lgbt.html.

See page 21 >>

▼ <<

Community News>>

Lyon-Martin

From page 1

and report to the board about our finances and about our projections. I think that it has encouraged a greater degree of transparency in all our communications internally and externally.” She added, “The most important thing for me is it has made it so very clear how important this resource, this clinic is to the community that it serves.” She said it also enhanced connections between staff, the board, and the community.

Debt Plenty of work remains on the agency’s finances. The clinic’s total debt is $1,154,974. That includes about $550,000 it owes on a loan. During 2011, the clinic paid off $114,005. “There are things ahead of us that we just don’t know,” Plumb said. “We know we’re going to have to pay back over a million dollars at some point,” and she and others wonder if they’ll be able to bring in enough money through fundraising to pay that off. “If there’s anything that’s potentially a problem in the future, it’s when we get to the point where we start paying debt, if monthly debt payments are more than we can bring in in a month, in either client fees or clinic fees or fundraising,

Out in the World

From page 19

culturally sensitive questions, terminology pitfalls to avoid, to providing instruction on analyzing complex issues using LGBTspecific examples of harm that may constitute persecution from laws to a plethora of economic and social abuse, pressure, and violence, according to an Immigration

Trigger

From page 20

have done that,” but they’re working with Wiener’s office “to try again.”

Liquor license The liquor license for the Trigger space is set to expire February 29, 2012, according to data from the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The license shows that the state Board of Equalization placed a hold on the license in April 2008 – when the space was still Jet – indicating that there were tax problems. The California Employment

LGBT seniors

From page 5

happen citywide and I know the LGBT supervisors will make sure if something is approved it requires an LGBT component,” Campos said. Dufty told the B.A.R. he would be working to see that the establishment of a city housing trust fund meets the needs of LGBT seniors. And he wants to address other issues LGBT seniors in affordable housing face. “I will be looking at outcomes for individuals living in city-funded housing, which includes public housing,” said Dufty. The opening of an affordable

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 21

then we have a problem again,” Plumb said. The IRS, to which Lyon-Martin owes hundreds of thousands of dollars, has deemed the clinic current and non-collectible. It is paying payroll taxes, but the federal agency didn’t feel that entering into a payment agreement was yet possible for Lyon-Martin, according to Harbatkin. An IRS spokesman has declined to comment on the details of LyonMartin’s situation. It is expected to do another evaluation in one to two years. Explaining why the clinic’s debt hasn’t budged much, Plumb said, “The intent last year wasn’t to pay down debt.” She said, “2011 was about rebuilding the clinic. The announcement in January that the clinic was close to closure meant internally the board at that time decided to have a hiring freeze and also close the clinic to new clients.” By around June, when the new board decided to try to keep the clinic open, “all the effort at that point was to rebuild the clinic, rehire staff, open to new clients, and to build the systems up that needed to be built to protect from this type of thing happening again.” Plumb said it’s “highly possible” the clinic won’t pay down much of the debt in 2012. The clinic is current on payments, so there’s no

looming threat, she said. “We are negotiating with the people we owe money to that we need more time before we can start paying them back,” Plumb said. “We’re confident they’re going to work with us in good faith to give us the time we need to pay them back.” Another potential hurdle is the impact of changes in government health care policy. “It’s really unclear what health care reform is going to affect us,” Harbatkin said. She said their concerns revolve around electronic records. Things like how reimbursement for services is going to work is “very unclear,” Harbatkin said.

Equality news release. Neilson said that she didn’t know how many other LGBT organizations that work on asylum and human rights issues were consulted for the training module. Representatives of Organization for Refuge, Asylum, and Migration and the National Center for Lesbian Rights were unavailable for comment, according to the organizations’ spokespeople.▼

To learn more, visit www.immigrationequality.org/wp-content/ uploads/2012/01/Microsoft-Word-RAIO-Trng_LGBTI_ LP_Final-2011-12-27-_2_.pdf.

Development Department put a hold on the license in March 2011. In an email, ABC spokesman John Carr said the location had no disciplinary history and no violations. He said he couldn’t comment on the holds from the other agencies. Yian-Chian Saetern, a BOE spokeswoman, declined to comment on Trigger. EDD Spokeswoman Patti Roberts said in an email, “Specific employer tax information” maintained by her agency is confidential. However, she said, the department is authorized to request from the state alcohol agency “that a hold be placed on

certain types of liquor licenses if liability is owed to EDD.” She added, “A hold establishes a priority to any monies received from the sale of the liquor license and prevents the transfer of a liquor license from the seller to the buyer until the conditions of the hold have been met.” About 20 minutes into his interview with the B.A.R. this week, Bronstein said he had to end the conversation, but he said he’d take down questions regarding the liquor license and other issues and respond via email. He hadn’t done so by Wednesday morning, February 1.▼

housing complex run by Openhouse at 55 Laguna near the LGBT Community Center will likely also be at the top of Dufty’s to-do list. Last February the Mayor’s Office of Housing awarded the agency $575,000 toward preliminary design work for the project. Kilbourn said he expects to begin hosting community meetings to gather feedback on the design sometime in late March or early April. Then Openhouse would seek final city approval for the design by the fall. “It is our hope we will be able to get final approval from the Planning Commission this year in order to move forward on the project,” he said.

“Once we get the final approval from planning, then we can go back to the city to ask for additional money to get it to be shovel ready.” As of now the 109-unit facility is estimated to cost $56 million. Openhouse hopes to obtain the funding from local and federal sources for affordable housing projects. Should a local housing trust fund be established, Kilbourn said Openhouse would certainly seek financing from that pool of money. “The city desperately needs additional sources of financing for affordable housing. It would help not just 55 Laguna but other projects,” he said. ▼

Write-offs Lyon-Martin’s net income for 2011 was $416,050, compared to a loss of $1,466,782 in 2010. Most of that loss is attributable to writing off bad debts. When the clinic billed for services, the total amount often wasn’t actually paid – and debt piled up. “Our accounts receivable was increasing and increasing over the course of the year, so most of that write-off was money that should have been written off earlier,” Harbatkin said. Some of it should have been taken care of in 2009, but clinic officials decided not to restate the audit for that year, she said. Explaining the problem,

Got international LGBT news tips? Call or send them to Heather Cassell at 00+1-415-221-3541, Skype: heather.cassell, or heather@whimsymedia.com.

bartabsf.com

Harbatkin talked about Blue Cross as an example. There are visits where Lyon-Martin doesn’t know how much exactly Blue Cross is going to pay them. If the visit costs $200, and Blue Cross only pays $100, “That other 100 needs to be written off, because we’re not going to get it,” she said. Plumb said the previous board members didn’t fully know they weren’t getting reimbursed completely, because the accounts receivable kept increasing. “Not knowing the truth of the accounts receivable can really hurt you,” she said, because the agency is expecting money it’s not going to get. As of the end of November 2011, Lyon-Martin’s accounts receivable was about $170,000. Officials haven’t determined how much of that would be written off. Harbatkin said their billing system is “much better,” and they just received funding to do a program to help them maximize the revenue they get from each visit.

More money Despite Lyon-Martin’s troubles, the types of services it provides haven’t changed. The clinic still offers primary medical care, mental health services, and primary care services for people with HIV and transgender people. In order to help bring in more money, though, the clinic has worked

to change its payer mix. Harbatkin said last year LyonMartin served around 2,100 patients. A large portion of the clients are self-pay – people who don’t have insurance and rely on Healthy San Francisco (which is not insurance) or who are uninsured and from another county. When the crisis hit last year, more than half of the clinic’s visits were by self-pay patients paying an average of $5 per visit. As of November, less than half the patients were self-pay, and the clinic was getting an average of $25 per visit. The mix is “slowly changing, and it’s going to continue to be slow,” Harbatkin said. She also said, “No one is turned away because they can’t pay.” Stacy Pike Long, who joined LyonMartin’s board in April and is also a patient, said one of her biggest concerns is that the clinic needs more patients who are covered by Medi-Cal and Medicare, so they can bring in more money. Long said that when she goes to the clinic, “I usually contribute between $30 and $50 per visit, which is what I can afford.” Another of Long’s primary concerns is continuing to raise money. She said it’s important that the people who have supported them in the last year “don’t abandon ship on us.”▼

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

22 • Bay Area Reporter • February 2-8, 2012

Classifieds

Legal Notices>>

The

Legal Notices>> City and County of San Francisco February, 2012 Monthly CALL FOR ARTISTS: DAGGETT PARK PUBLIC ART PROJECT REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS The San Francisco Arts Commission is currently seeking artists for a new public art project, which will be located in Daggett Park, a planned open space sited in a triangular parcel bounded by 7th Street, 16th Street, and Hubbell Street in the Showplace Square neighborhood. Deadline for applications is Friday, February 3, 2012 (11:59 PM Pacific Daylight Time). For further information and eligibility, visit sfartscommission.org/pubartcollection. SAN FRANCISCO DEPT. OF THE ENVIRONMENT The City & County of San Francisco along with the San Francisco Green Business Program is proud to congratulate and honor the 49 newly recognized Green Businesses of 2011! The 49 green businesses recognized at the 6th Annual SF Green Business Awards Reception are made up of architects, designers, retail spaces, clean technology firms, law offices, commercial printer, CPAs, caterers, nonprofits, and more. Some of these green businesses are large with multifloor operations and others are small home offices. The one thing they all have in common is that they have all met extremely stringent environmental standards set forth by the San Francisco Green Business Program in areas such as waste reduction, energy efficiency, water conservation, and pollution prevention. By implementing these green standards in their business practices, these awardees have shown their commitment to making a positive environmental impact to improve their business and their community. To see a list of San Francisco Green Businesses and find out more about the Green Business Program visit www.SFGreenBusiness.org. SAN FRANCISCO COMMISSION ON THE ENVIRONMENT Commission on the Environment Policy Committee meeting is scheduled for Monday, February 13, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. at City Hall, Room 421, San Francisco, CA 94102. 2012 BOARD of SUPERVISORS Regularly Scheduled Board Meetings OPEN TO THE PUBLIC – Come see your San Francisco government in action. Tuesdays, 2:00pm, City Hall Chamber, Room 250. January 10, 24, 31; February 7, 14, 28; March 6, 13, 20, 27; April 3, 10, 17, 24 INFORMATION ABOUT BOARD of SUPERVISORS COMMITTEES All meetings are held at City Hall in the Chamber (Room 250) or Room 263.Please check the website for further details, including agendas and minutes: http://www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=193 **Meeting days and times are subject to change; please consult the website to confirm weekly scheduled meetings. http://www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=2314 Budget & Finance Supervisors Chu, Avalos, Kim - Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. weekly City Operations & Neighborhood Services Supervisors Elsbernd, Chu, Olague - 2nd and 4th Monday at 10:00 a.m. Government Audit & Oversight Supervisors Farrell, Elsbernd, Chiu - 2nd and 4th Thursday at 1:00 p.m. Land Use & Economic Development Supervisors Mar, Cohen, Wiener - Monday at 1:00 p.m. weekly Public Safety Supervisors Avalos, Olague, Mar - 1st and 3rd Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Rules Supervisors Kim, Farrell, Campos - 1st and 3rd Thursday at 1:30 p.m. City and School District Supervisors Campos, Olague, Chiu - 2nd and 4th Thursday at 3:30 p.m. The City and County of San Francisco encourage public outreach. Articles are translated into several languages to provide better public access. The newspaper makes every effort to translate the articles of general interest correctly. No liability is assumed by the City and County of San Francisco or the newspapers for errors and omissions.

notice of application TO SELL alcoholic beverageS Dated 01/12/12 To Whom It May Concern: The name(s) of the applicant(s) is/are : 20 SPOT MISSION, LLC. The applicants listed above are applying to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control at 71 Stevenson Street, Suite 1500, San Francisco, CA 94105 to sell alcoholic beverages at 3565 20th St., San Francisco, CA 94110-2420. Type of license applied

41- On-sale BEER AND WINE eating place jan 19,26,feb 2, 2012 statement file A-034027800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BAY AREA CARE GIVERS,907 Greenwich St., SF,CA 94133.This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Mindy Tsoi. 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 12/30/11.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 statement file A-034020700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as DIRECPARK LLC,1101 Sutter St., SF,CA 94109. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Shuli Yao. 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 12/23/11.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 statement file A-034031800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as EXCELSIOR QUALITY AUTO,4380 Mission St., SF,CA 94112.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Pedro F. Fiori Jr.. 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 01/04/12.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 state of california in and for the county of san francisco file# cnc-12-548356 In the matter of the application of KATE SOLODKY for change of name. The application of KATE SOLODKY for change of name having been filed in Court, and it appearing from said application that KATE SOLODKY filed an application proposing that his/her name be changed to KATE SOLODKY ROZENVASSER. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Room 514 on the 22nd of March, 2012 at 9:00 am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted

jan 19,26,feb 2,9,2012

statement file A-034061000

statement file A-034059100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as COCODRILO RECORDS,1438 Hudson Ave., SF,CA 94124.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Miguel A. Ramirez. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/18/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/18/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034051400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SILUETA 845 East 12th St., Pittsburg, CA 94565. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Haydee F. Nunez. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/12/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/12/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034043700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BE QUAKE READY NOW,180 Beaver St.,#3,SF,CA 94114.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Richard W. Mytton. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/10/12.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 statement file A-034051700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as FIVE DOLLAR TRANSPORTS,473 Lynbrook Drive, Pacifica, CA 94044.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Franz Vargas. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/12/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/12/12.

jan 19,26,feb 2,9,2012 statement file A-034051300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CS DESIGN MANAGEMENT,499 Alabama St.,#117, CA 94110.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Carol Satriani. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/12/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/12/12.

jan 19,26,feb 2,9,2012 statement file A-034051600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.CORONA HEIGHTS CONSULTING GROUP, 2.SLOMAN CONSULTING 1222 Clayton St., #11,SF,CA 94114.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Mark Sloman. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/30/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/18/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as LAST STOP SOUVENIERS,498 Beach St., SF,CA 94133.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Ulises C.Napuri. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/01/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/12/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034030200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as SUN MAY GIFT CO., 1151 Grant Ave., SF, CA 94133. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Reagan Huang. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/4/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/4/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE 2 BANDITS,230 Oak St.,#44, SF,CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Tamar Wider. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/03/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/03/12.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 statement file A-034042900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.TEV LEE 2.TEV LEE PHOTOGRAPHY,135 South Park St., SF, CA 94107.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Steven Lee. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/09/12.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012 state of california in and for the county of san francisco file# cnc-12-548367 In the matter of the application of CHARLES ULYSSES TATE II for change of name. The application of CHARLES ULYSSES TATE II for change of name having been filed in Court, and it appearing from said application that CHARLES ULYSSES TATE II filed an application proposing that his/her name be changed to CHARLOTTE URSULA TATE. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Room 514 on the 8th of March, 2012 at 9:00 am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034035000

jan 19,26,feb 2,9,2012 statement file A-034032600

jan 19,26,feb 2,9,2012 statement file A-034059000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as JAMBER,858 Folsom St., SF,CA 94107. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Jessica Voss. 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 01/18/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034060800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MISSION PIZZA, 2074 Mission St., SF, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Hatem Chouaieb. 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 01/18/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 Statement of abandonment of use of fictitious business name: #A-0319547-00 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as SLOMAN CONSULTING,1222 Clayton St.,#11, SF,CA 94114.This business was conducted by a general partnership, signed Mark Sloman. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/28/09.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034060100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as STOCKCARS TO ZEBRAS – SPORTS,NOVELTY, JEWELRY,760 Market St.,#731,SF,CA 94102.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Thore Aatlo. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/05/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/05/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as SIGSBEE’S,371 Waller St.,#10, SF,CA 94117. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Jennifer Jett. 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 01/18/12.

jan 12,19,26,feb 2,2012

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012

statement file A-034051200

statement file A-034081700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as L. STONE & CO., 1446 41st Ave, SF,CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Laurel Moore. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/12/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/12/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as AT CONSULTING, 2636 Judah St. #207, SF, CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Alex Tico. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/26/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034067700

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034066500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as AUTOWORLD COLLISION,5550 Mission St., SF,CA 94112.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Roger Wong. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/20/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as ROYAL SEAFOOD RESTAURANT COMPANY, 2241 Judah St., SF, CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Xiong Hua Xie. 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 01/20/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034045200

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034038500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as CASSAVA BAKERY & CAFÉ,3519 Balboa St., SF,CA 94121.This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Yuka Ioroi. 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 01/10/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as DOUBLE INFINITY, 88 Perry St. #205, SF, CA 94107.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Thomas Burns. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/06/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/06/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034064000

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034083800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.TUMMY MORSELS,2.TUMMY MORSEL,3. TUMMYMORSELS.COM.,1012 Kirkham Ave., Apt.4,SF,CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Brian Lasofsky. 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 01/20/12.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as VFORTAL CLEANING SERVICES, 5214F Diamond Heights Blvd. #712, SF, CA 94131-2175. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Viviane C. Cavalcante. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/26/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/12.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 Statement of abandonment of use of fictitious business name: #A-0339749-00

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034089900

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as CORONA HEIGHTS CONSULTING GROUP,1222 Clayton St.,#11, SF,CA 94114.This business was conducted by a general partnership, signed Mark Sloman. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/30/11.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 Statement of abandonment of use of fictitious business name: #A-0335185-00 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as STAR 16, 2074 Mission St., SF, CA 94110.This business was conducted by an individual, signed Michael Wannaviroj. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/26/11.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 Statement of abandonment of use of fictitious business name: #A-0332973-00 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as A BOOK IN THE HAND, 1454 Cortland Ave., SF, CA 94110.This business was conducted by a general partnership, signed Cathleen O’Brien. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/11.

jan 26,feb 2,9,16,2012 statement file A-034062500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MB ELECTRIC, 243 Chenery St., SF, CA 94131. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Michael T. Ballingall. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 02/15/86. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/19/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A- 034063300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as NORTHERN CALIFORNIA ASSET LIQUIDATORS, 243 Parnassus Ave. #4, SF, CA 94117.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Frederick Gulotta. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/19/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/20/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 notice of application to sell alcoholic beverages Dated 01/24/12 To Whom It May Concern: The name(s) of the applicant(s) is/are : CYBERNIB CORPORATION. The applicants listed above are applying to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control at 1515 Clay Street, Suite 2208, Oakland, CA 94612 to sell alcoholic beverages at 225 Frederick St., San Francisco, CA 94117-4017. Type of license applied

21- OFF-SALE GENERAL FEB 2, 2012 statement file A-034081800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PRIORITY PERSONAL SERVICES, 2636 Judah St. #207, SF, CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Alex Tico. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/26/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012

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The following person(s) is/are doing business as GREEN MEADOWS JANITORIAL SERVICE, 658 Linden St., SF, CA 94102.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Beverly Hull. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/30/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/30/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034084000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as LA BOHEMIA PRODUCTIONS, 2905 23rd St., SF, CA 94110.This business is conducted by an individual, signed Carlos Disdier. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/26/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034079300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MSN INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGY, 711 Market St. 2nd Fl., SF, CA 94103.This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Masud Husain. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/24/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/25/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034089200 The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.J&T COMPANY,2.FAITH SANDWICH, 548 6th Ave., SF, CA 94118.This business is conducted by a husband and wife, signed Jack Duong. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/27/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/30/12.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034076100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as FOX MARKET, 570 Larkin St., SF, CA 94102.This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Dipak Gandhi. 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 01/24/12

FEB 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034080400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE DUBLINER, 3838 24th St., SF, CA 94114.This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Cheuk Yan Yeung. 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 01/25/12

FEB 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 statement file A-034082600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GYROTONIC® PACIFIC HEIGHTS, 2999 Washington St., SF, CA 94115.This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Kathy Van Patten.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/26/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 01/26/12

FEB 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012 Statement of abandonment of use of fictitious business name: #A-0339393-00 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as PRIORITY CARE SERVICES, 2636 Judah St. #207, SF, CA 94122.This business was conducted by an individual, signed Alex Tico. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/09/11.

feb 2, 9, 16, 23, 2012

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February 2-8, 2012 • Bay Area Reporter • 23

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Vol. 42 • No. 05 • February 9-15, 2012

San Francisco Ballet’s thrilling ‘Onegin’ by Paul Parish

San Francisco Ballet’s Vitor Luiz and Maria Kochetkova in John Cranko’s Onegin.

Erik Tomasson

n Onegin, a three-act ballet new to us by the gay South African choreographer John Cranko, San Francisco Ballet have a hit on their hands, a romance that belongs in an opera house. Onegin tells a story without words but with thrilling, intricate, and very bold use of ballet technique. And there’s music by Tchaikovsky. By the end of the show last Friday, when Tatiana had renounced the love of her life and thrown him out of her house, it might as well have been Tosca – the thousand people sitting on

the orchestra floor rose and cheered as if this gave a new meaning to the word ballet. I did not feel that way myself, though I’d admired the dancers’ conviction and their delivery of the thrillingly dangerous choreography, as well as the delightful score and how exquisitely the musicians played. I’d found it absorbing only in the great moments and puzzling at many moments. Why are these young ladies dancing with the field hands? Why do the porch columns have to cramp the dancing? Why

do all those birch trees cut up the stage picture so you can’t see the outlines of the dancers? Why are there unskilled mimes botching these important minor roles? Certainly, the piece is a great acquisition for the company. SFB has the dancers to put this ballet across. The costumes and sets are rented, they can find better; they could draw from their stock of character dancers to fill in the background. Onegin gives tremendous dramatic roles to the principal dancers, and sweeping expansive

choreography to the corps, that use the steps and technique of ballet itself to advance the drama in every significant way. And it tells a story we can relate to: how an emotionally damaged, fatally attractive man (Onegin) awakens deep longings in a young girl’s heart (Tatiana), emotions he can’t reciprocate, and through social pressures he can’t master fails to meet the situation honestly, rejects her abruptly in public – at her birthday party, no See page 36 >>

A Sundance dozen & change Queer eye on indie cinema’s latest contenders by David Lamble

ere are a dozen films from the 28th Sundance Film Festival crop, leading with a queer pick to click; a romantic comedy, Liberal Arts, I screened as part of the Festival’s outreach to indie cinema; and several films that have garnered distribution, or that have good pedigrees based on their creators’ résumés. Keep the Lights On Memphis-raised filmmaker Ira Sachs has continued to confound anyone who expects a certain kind of film from an openly gay filmmaker. Sachs, in a Sundance blurb, explains his approach to this quasiautobiographical, erotically charged drama.

“It’s about the highs and lows in the relationship between these two men [Thure Lindhardt and Zachary Booth]. You can be in a relationship that you should have left but you don’t have the perspective to know why. I was in a relationship for 10 years in New York City, and on the day it was over I knew it was a story that was different from other things I’ve seen. “It’s very sexual, there’s nudity, also there’s an emotional nakedness. It was pretty obvious once we saw Thure and Zach that they had something that would surprise most people: something dangerous and unknown and unexpected. You See page 30 >>

Thure Lindhardt in gay filmmaker Ira Sachs’ Keep the Lights On.

{ SECOND OF TWO SECTIONS }

<< Out There

26 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

▼

We live to love & we love us an olive by Roberto Friedman

he Right to Love: An American Family, a feature-length documentary directed by Bay Area filmmaker Cassie Jaye, will have its world premiere at the Castro Theatre on Mon., Feb. 6, with screenings at 11:30 a.m., 4 p.m. (free to students), and a redcarpet event starting at 6:30 p.m. The film follows Jay and Bryan Leffew, a legally married gay couple living in Santa Rosa, and their two adopted kids, Daniel and Selena. After Proposition 8 passed in 2008, the Leffew family began posting their home videos on a YouTube channel called Gay Family Values to show how normal and loving a gay family could be. As they pursue their American dream, the opposing political, social and religious opinions that pervade society attempt to strip it from them. Can a loving commitment last if everything surrounding them is trying to tear them apart? The director,

producers, the Leffew family and others involved in the film will be in the house. Tickets and more info can be found at www.brownpapertickets. com/event/221824. We hear tell that the next offering from gay filmmakers Jeffrey Friedman and Rob Epstein, currently in production, is titled Lovelace, based on the true story of classic sex-film star Linda Lovelace. The film boasts a knock-out cast: besides Amanda Seyfried as Linda, they’ve got James Franco signed on as Hugh Hefner, Sharon Stone, Chloe Sevigny, Eric Roberts, Wes Bentley, Hank Azaria, Bobby Cannavale, Chris Noth, Adam Brody, and until her recent alleged epic bout with a canister of whip-its, Demi Moore. Now Moore is out on her ass, and the Fried/Ep team has replaced her with the great Mary Louise Parker in the role of feminist icon Gloria Steinem. Anyway, a little birdie told us that the filmmaking team of Jeff and Rob

Courtesy the Leffews

The loving Leffew family, living in Santa Rosa: legally married gay couple Jay and Bryan and their two adopted kids, Daniel and Selena. They’re the subject of The Right to Love: An American Family.

felt a little out of their depth when it came to portraying straight sex, so a research trip to the San Francisco Armory headquarters of Kink.com was very first on the agenda. Look for the film, if not the kink, to be released next year. Out There attended the AIDS Emergency Fund’s 30th anniversary campaign launch in the upstairs rooms of that self-same SF Armory last week, a swank cocktail affair. Funny, OT always thought our first experience at Kink HQ would involve us getting tied up in Japanese bondage. We made this observation to a fellow partygoer, and he gestured to a corner of the room: “Well, there’s a St. Andrew’s Cross right there.” “Thanks, but my people have suffered enough.”

Gods and Monsters (dir. Bill Condon, USA, 1998); Law of Desire (dir. Pedro Almodovar, Spain, 1987); Trash (dir. Paul Morrissey, 1970, USA), Farewell My Concubine (dir. Chen Kaige, China, 1993); Fire (dir. Deepa Mehta, Canada/India, 1996); and Montreal Main (dir. Frank Vitale, Canada, 1974). This year’s installments in the series are Death in Venice, on director Luchino Visconti’s 1971

Olive love O

Queer film lit Three years ago, Arsenal Pulp Press in Vancouver launched its Queer Film Classics series, edited by queer film critics Thomas Waugh and Matthew Hays. This is a series of books filled with critical essays about important and influential films by and about LGBTQ people, produced in eight countries between 1950 and 2005. Previously released were books on

to the American director, author, actor and art photographer during a special evening on Sat., April 14, at the Sonoma Veteran’s Memorial Building. The night’s events will include Waters’ one-man “vaudeville” act that celebrates the film career, tastes and obsessions of the man William Burroughs once called “the Pope of Trash.” More info is at www. sonomafilmfest.org.

film adaptation of the Thomas Mann novel, by Will Aitken; Zero Patience, on director John Greyson’s film musical about AIDS from 1993, by Susan Knabe and Wendy Gay Pearson; and Word Is Out, on the groundbreaking 1977 documentary about gay men and lesbians, by Greg Youmans. Still to come in the series, to be published over the following four years, are critical studies on: Arabian Nights (dir. Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italy, 1974); Before Stonewall/After Stonewall (dir. Greta Schiller, USA, 1985/89); C.R.A.Z.Y. (dir. Jean-Marc Vallée, Canada, 2005); Female Trouble (dir. John Waters, USA, 1974); Forbidden Love: The Unashamed Stories of Lesbian Lives (dir. Lynn Fernie and Aerlyn Weissman, Canada, 1992); I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing (dir. Patricia Rozema, Canada, 1987); L.A. Plays Itself (dir. Fred Halsted, USA, 1972); Ma vie en rose (dir. Alain Berliner, Belgium, 1997); Manila by Night (dir. Ishmael Bernal, Philippines, 1980); Paris Is Burning (dir. Jennie Livingston, USA, 1990); Scorpio Rising (dir. Kenneth Anger, USA, 1963); and Strangers on a Train (dir. Alfred Hitchcock, USA, 1951). Whew, what an exhaustive list; we look forward to the whole series. Speaking in passing of John Waters, the 15th annual Sonoma International Film Festival, coming up on April 11-15, will pay tribute

Last Saturday night found Out T There happily tableside at the SSonoma Valley olive season’s 11th aannual Feast of the Olive Dinner h held in the Ramekins Culinary S School in Sonoma. Olives are the V Valley’s second-largest crop, and t feast was a multi-course olivethe i inspired dinner prepared by 18 tops shelf chefs such as John Toulze of t girl & the fig, Bruno Tison of the t Michelin-starred Santé, Jeffrey the L Lloyd of Café La Haye, and Jason R Rose of the new Carneros hotspot R Ram’s Gate Winery. We ate creations like braised D Duroc pork cheeks, Taggiasca olive rrisotto and olive-orange gremolata (by the Depot Hotel’s Antonio Ghilarducci), Principe Parma Prosciutto, heirloom beets, olive pesto, warm goat cheese and blood orange salad (by Carlo Cavallo of Sonoma-Meritage Martini Oyster Bar

& Grille), a Delice de la Vallee cheese course with honey pomegranate molasses olives (from the Epicurean Connection’s Sheana Davis) and a pot du crème with lemongrass, Castelventrano olives and an olive oil Madeleine (by Saddles Steakhouse’s Dana Jaffe) while getting to know Sonoma magazine society editor Manuel R. Merjil and other Valley socialites. If Napa County is the more famous destination, Sonoma County struck us as a close-knit community, with an unexpectedly vibrant gay presence. It’s definitely not the olive pits.▼

Read more online at www.ebar.com

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 27

<< Theatre

28 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

▼

Differing destinies by Richard Dodds

utting it together: add a pinch of Twain, mix in some Capra, sprinkle with Sondheim. The Story of My Life doesn’t hide its inspirations, though the name Stephen Sondheim is not mentioned. But anyone with more than a passing knowledge of Sondheim musicals, specifically Merrily We Roll Along and Sunday in the Park with George, can’t help but feel his presence in the musical that recently opened at New Conservatory Theatre Center. Quite possibly, librettist Brian Hill and songwriter Neil Bartram themselves recognized their creation’s Sondheim parallels and

even intended them. Of course, you can’t out-Sondheim Sondheim, but the results have their own charms rooted in an intimate scale and a big heart. There is also the portrait of a relationship that most of us have likely had, but that has not been theatrically over-mined. The Story of My Life, which had a short Broadway run in 2009 after more successful regional engagements, has only two characters who present decades of their lives on an unchanging set (by Kuo-Hao Lo) of intentional minimalism. One of the characters is actually dead, but no spoiler alert is necessary because the other character is delivering his eulogy as

the lights come up. Or at least trying to write the eulogy he had promised years ago to deliver should his friend predecease him. That Thomas is a bestselling author doesn’t help him with encomium block as he tries to assess his friendship with Alvin. It’s complicated, and flashbacks make up most of the 90-minute show. Thomas and Alvin were childhood friends, doing nerdy stuff and observing rituals like creating oddball Halloween costumes and watching It’s a Wonderful Life together every Christmas. Their hometown might as well have been Bedford Falls, but BFF means different things to each character as he grows older. Thomas heads to the big city, while Alvin remains behind tending to his late father’s musty bookstore. With less and less in common, semi-celebrity and apparently heterosexual Thomas finds more and more reasons to limit contact with the non-evolving Alvin, who has a likely but unspoken crush on his old friend. The adult Alvin even yearns to once again make snow angels with Thomas. There are swatches of spoken dialogue, but much of the story is revealed in music and lyrics. They are pleasing to the ear, but after a few passages early in the show that can identifiably be called songs – the type of construction that prompts applause at their conclusion – the music ebbs and flows in rhythmic

Lois Tema

Coley Grundman and William Giammona play lifelong friends who share a celebratory moment in the musical The Story of My Life at New Conservatory Theatre Center.

patterns that don’t display much variety. But these limitations are mitigated by performers William Giammona and Coley Grundman, who continually reel us in with appeal, talent, and their credible connection to the story. Giammona, with a rich voice, plays Thomas with the slightly forced hauteur of someone who can’t quite shake his goofy youth, or the debts he wishes he didn’t owe his friend Alvin. As Alvin, Grundman conveys the lonely likeability of a character whose childlike charms seem increasingly desperate as his former comrade-in-arms tries to negate their connection. Director Dennis Lickteig has

staged the musical with befitting simplicity, a smooth presentation, and a respect for the material’s emotional content. Musical director Joe Simiele provides accompaniment from an offstage piano, and the strength of his contributions is audibly present in the production’s quality musicianship. The Story of My Life tells a tale of a simple surface and entangling roots. “Why do relationships have to improve?” asks Alvin. “I like it here.”▼ The Story of My Life will run at New Conservatory Theatre Center through Feb. 26. Tickets are $25-$45. Call 861-8972 or go to www.nctcsf.org.

Worldly affairs by Richard Dodds

tirfry Theatre hasn’t pulled any punches in finding the first vehicle for its mission of showcasing Asian-American actors in shows that have no specific Pacific leanings. Which means no Flower Drum Song or Pacific Overtures or The King and I. But who’d have predicted a musical in which a bar mitzvah is the centerpiece event? That would be Falsettoland, which, of course, is about more than a bar mitzvah, but certainly isn’t the kind of culturally neutral piece that would be the easier choice. The suspension of disbelief that is necessary in all theatre, and is pressed more into service here, at least at first, falls more and more into the background as the story unfolds. When you have a cast of capable, committed actors and a well-told story with a heart that translates cultural specifics into universals, it’s not hard to go with the flow. Falsettoland was songwriter William Finn and librettist James Lapine’s 1990 follow-up to March of the Falsettos, coming almost a decade after the musical about a husband and father who comes to grips with his gay orientation and moves in with another man. The two short musicals were later combined

Diana Torres-Koss

Alex Hsu, Romar De Claro, Jean Harriet, and Nicole Tung gather to sing about life and death in Stirfry Theatre’s production of William Finn and James Lapine’s Falsettoland.

for Falsettos on Broadway. Several major developments drive the sequel. The now-divorced Marvin (Alex Hsu) and Trina (Jennifer Oku) are arguing over the details of son Jason’s approaching bar mitzvah, which leads Jason (the remarkably assured Andrew Apy) to declare that everyone would be happier if he opted out of his official ascension to manhood. Jason is also the catalyst who reunites Marvin and ex-lover Whizzer (Romar De Claro), which further stresses Marvin’s exwife despite her conjugal habitation with Marvin’s former psychiatrist (Lawrence-Michael C. Arias). But the year is 1981, and the lesbian doctor (Jean Harriet) who lives next door with her koshercaterer partner (Nicole A. Tung) sings that “something bad is happening” as she notices more and more men arriving at the hospital with an undeciphered illness. “Bachelors arrive sick and frightened; they leave weeks later unenlightened.” Whizzer is one of the early patients carrying a virus that soon would be known as AIDS, bringing sorrow to all the characters before young Jason provides the means for a brief but joyous conclusion.

Falsettoland is being presented in the appropriately named Alcove Theatre near Union Square, and its official designation is “staged concert.” That means no sets, and the characters who aren’t in a particular scene remain on stage in chairs watching and reacting to the action. But there is plenty of imaginative physicality to the proceedings, with choreography by Alex Hsu, and again the suspension of disbelief finds its footing in Lawrence-Michael C. Arias’ staging. This is an all-sung musical, so credit is also due musical director Diane Torres-Koss and pianist Doug McGrath. With a couple of different cast members, Stirfry’s Falsettoland was first staged in San Jose in 2010. Last summer, the company held auditions for the James LapineStephen Sondheim musical Passion. While there is no word yet on how that project is progressing, there is no question that Stirfry is a company that thinks way outside the box.▼ Falsettoland will run at the Alcove Theatre through Feb. 12. Tickets are $15-$25. Call (408) 782-4373 or go to www.stirfrytheatre.com.

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February 2-8, 2012 â&#x20AC;˘ BAY AREA REPORTER â&#x20AC;˘ 29

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<< Film

30 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Before Carol Channing passes by by David Lamble

ebar.com

ight at the beginning of Dori Berinstein’s valentine to San Francisco native Carol Channing, appropriately titled Carol Channing: Larger than Life, we see perhaps Broadway’s grandest dame chatting up three lovely boys from the then (2010) newly Tony-anointed hit musical Memphis. During an intermission from their own matinee turns, Channing marvels at how the multi-racial cast members were able to feel the love adorned merely in white T-shirts. “Such a costume, it has no diamonds on it. How can you get the audience without –?” “Well, the rest of it is inside. We’ve got the big bling inside.” “Believe me, we should pay them, and here I am, I’m almost 90 and I’m still doing shows. [The boys clap.] I don’t know why you applaud that, it just happens, I mean I had nothing to do with it!” Berinstein’s celebratory glimpse at a great show-woman’s last lap lapses not infrequently into hagiography, or the kind of for-fans-only goulash that we expect from Regis Philbin’s last daytime show, or should expect when Barbara Walters ceases her celebrity wa-wa. But as Walters herself notes, it’s possible that nobody left standing has anything but love for the star of arguably the last hurrah for brassy American musicals, Jerry Herman’s Hello Dolly! I’m the last one to mind a tabloidfree zone where we get close but not intrusively so to a genuinely lovely human being. While I wouldn’t have minded nasty dish on the crummy husband/Svengali manager of 42 years, and at least a cup of bitters about why Barbra Streisand

Carol Channing with Memphis chorus boys in the new film Carol Channing: Larger than Life, opening Friday in the Bay Area.

got to steal Channing’s Dolly for a vastly inferior Hollywood version, the filmmakers instead showcase Channing’s remarkable reunion/ marriage to a childhood sweetheart, and one juicy story on Herman’s magical show-doctoring that salvaged a shaky tryout run, producing the memorable showstopper “Before the Parade Passes By.” For queer fans, there are tears appropriately shed for memories of Channing’s embrace of her chorus boys in the 1994 Dolly revival. She was especially attentive to a dancer whose health issues caused him to have to depart some performances in midstream. There are also fond memories of Channing treating the boys to movie nights out, including personally dispensing candycounter treats and her delightfully idiosyncratic review of Interview with a Vampire. Carol Channing: Larger than Life can occasionally seem stuck in a present-moment gear where the indomitable lady shows her fragility, but then there are the glorious flashbacks to that memorable six-year run (1964-70) when Channing’s Dolly Levi seemed to share the pop spotlight with only The Beatles. There’s a cute montage of all the presidents who came a-wooing, with LBJ’s command performance White House-staged

Sundance 2012 From page 25

need to have an extreme intimacy with the material, but also a certain distance – it’s not a confessional because it has the perspective of an artist. I’m not nervous about showing it, I’m interested in the conversations it will generate.” First Birthday Hopefully Frameline will find this queer Sundance short appealing. A gay Korean American is plagued by family issues. Excision The prospect of a John Waters cameo whets our appetite for a strange teen’s unorthodox path to ridding herself of her nettlesome virginity. Beasts of the Southern Wild This highly original drama won the Festival’s unofficial buzz competition, garnering the Grand Jury Prize for US Drama for director Benk Zeitlin, while scoring a distribution deal from Fox Searchlight. Set in a Southern Louisiana still devastated by Katrina, the story is told through the eyes of a six-year-old African American. Liberal Arts “Nobody feels like an adult – it’s the world’s dirty little secret.” It helps that the “author’s message” in this uneven but at times terrifically appealing romantic comedy bursts forth from an aging, newly retired college professor, played with a cockeyed mix of glee and resignation by

Dolly, and the one-term-fated Jimmy Carter especially awed by Channing’s popularity as his own faded quickly. While Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work is must-viewing for youngsters pondering whether the vicious show-biz mosh-pit is really for them, Carol Channing: Larger Than Life is, let’s face it, nostalgia writ large. And what’s wrong with that? This is the movie for San Franciscans proud of their heavenly berg’s claim to its own rich theatre history: see Channing’s treasured memories of her Christian Scientist Mom’s introducing her, at seven, to the darkened splendor of the Curran Theatre (Mom was leaving Christian Science propaganda for the actors in the lobby). This is surely the movie for incurable romantics who will lap up shots in the back seat of the limo, of Channing and her high school sweetheart and now late husband Harry Kullijian as they obsess over each other on the way to one of their many charities. This is also a movie for recovering New York theatre addicts who recall when there were still cheap seats in the balcony, when you could catch Lee Jordon spinning freshly minted soundtrack recordings on the Music of Broadway Sunday mornings on WCBS Radio, while it was still possible to believe that hits like Dolly would just keep on coming.▼ the maestro of mid-life fuck-ups, actor Richard Jenkins. It doesn’t hurt that filmmaker Josh Radnor’s aging 30something pretty boy, Jesse, returning to his college to get his life back on track, gets to have a profanity-laced night in the sack with an austerely bitter classics professor (a deliciously foulmouthed Allison Janney). Like his film debut happythankyoumoreplease, Radnor’s newest has its highs and its longueurs: the core quickie romance with quirky coed Elizabeth Olsen feels a little facile (offset by a hilarious math lesson produced by their 16-year age gap), but Jesse’s ability to ditch his narcissistic neediness long enough to mentor a suicidal prodigy (John Magaro) pays off in some guiltypleasure one-liners. “Don’t you love that you can call yourself a poet here and nobody will punch you in the face?” The Surrogate John Hawkes, Helen Hunt and William H. Macy notched a Grand Jury Prize for Ensemble acting for dramatizing a paralyzed poet’s wish to lose his virginity with a surrogate; plus the Audience Award for US drama for director Ben Lewin. For Ellen Paul Dano draws on his moves as lead singer for the indie band Mook to fuel his portrait of a self-aggrandizing musician out to wrestle custody of his young See page 36 >>

▼

Music >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 31

Paul Labelle

Concert musician Pinchas Zukerman appeared as instrumental soloist and conductor at Davies Hall.

International blend by Philip Campbell

he San Francisco Symphony has been busy performing the duties of a very classy back-up band for some equally talented guest artists in recent weeks. Two series of subscription concerts at Davies Symphony Hall could not have been more dissimilar, but they definitely highlighted the orchestra’s high level of versatility and professionalism. Pinchas Zukerman took the podium most recently, also appearing as instrumental soloist on both viola and violin. His nearly all-Mozart program proved to be a predictably warm and satisfying evening spent with a genial and accomplished musician. As conductor, Zukerman is an able director but hardly an interpretive innovator. With music as familiar as Mozart’s, that is probably the wisest course of action, and the distinguished visitor (some 20 times at DSH over the years) attempted little more than to maintain pace and shape contour. The orchestra followed his minimal direction with customary support. I have always liked Zukerman’s sweet and full-bodied tone. It may not always suit the more impassioned pieces, but it certainly added a lovely roundness to the selection of Mozart scores. And there was a gratifying fervor to the violinist’s cadenzas in his fullthrottle performance of the Violin Concerto No. 3 in G Major. The only non-Mozart on the bill was the brief (almost too brief) Trauermusik for Viola and Strings by 20th-century composer Paul Hindemith. Here was a good example of Zukerman’s rich tone adding warmth to a piece

by a writer often accused of being academic. The Music of Mourning was an agreeable addition to the program without an upset to the flow. The week prior, an altogether different kettle of fish was being served at DSH. An international blend that featured European composers and a transplanted Russian from the early-to-middle 20th century and some exciting guest artists turned the heat up to boiling. Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado made his SFS debut in 2010, and he has become Principal Conductor of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s this year. His return to Davies was eagerly anticipated, and he didn’t disappoint with a stirring program that also managed to showcase the considerable talents (and pulchritude) of two female guest artists. A very tailored and crisp performance of Stravinsky’s Concerto in E-flat Major for Chamber Orchestra, Dumbarton Oaks (1938), opened the show. It was a beautifully voiced rendition of the witty and often melodic score, written after the composer had moved to the United States. It set the tone for the rest of a night that would continue to delight and seduce the listeners. Young Georgian pianist Khatia Buniatishvili made her SFS debut with Ravel’s wonderful Piano Concerto in G Major, and she almost eclipsed her own excellent performance by appearing in a dress that showed a whole lot more guest artist than is usually seen in these parts. Still, there is no crime in flaunting it if you got it (just Say Yes to the Dress!), and the 24-year-old has certainly enough musical talent

Courtesy SFS

Conductor Pablo Heras-Casado delivered a stirring program.

to match her gym-toned physique. The only drawback to her jazzy and amazingly muscular touch in the outer movements was her ultra-slow take on the exquisite central Adagio assai that seemed willfully slow, almost halting the performance. It was a minor flaw in a dazzling tour de force, and nothing can make that wistful Adagio anything less than touching anyway. After intermission Heras-Casado (who is no slouch in the looks department either, muchas gracias) returned with another impressive soloist, flamenco singer Marina Heredia. They partnered to give a sensual, stirring performance of Manuel De Falla’s El Amor Brujo (Love, the Sorcerer). The impressive singer was dressed appropriately for the part, and she has that idiomatic smoky tone and full-throated soprano-with-an-edge quality that is so necessary for authenticsounding flamenco. She was not in the best of voice, resorting to sips of water for a pesky dry cough that she aimed at the audience. It was not enough to spoil her contributions. The crowd was with her every step of the way, and there was a small but vocal group of fans that cheered her lustily at the beginning and end. The orchestra followed the young conductor’s persuasive lead with a mixture of suavity and unbridled enthusiasm. The famous “Ritual Fire Dance” didn’t become a staple of the classical pops for no good reason, and the SFS played it and all of the lesser-known episodes with aplomb.▼

<< Out&About

32 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

Thu 2 >>

Sat 4 >>

Comedy Bodega @ Esta Nocha

Acknowledged @ SF Public Library

The new weekly LGBT and indie comic standup night’s hosted by “Mr. Gomez” (retired Telemundo extra and “associate” of comic Marga Gomez). 8pm-9:30pm. 3079 16th St. at Mission. www.comedybodega.com

Joe Ramos’ exhibit of 50 photo portraits of local Project Homeless Connect clients. Exhibit thru March 25. Jewett Gallery, 100 Larkin St. www.joeramosphotography.com www.sfpl.org

O&A Out &About

Vision Beyond the Badge

Politicular

✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ by Jim Provenzano ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮

olitics and the arts often mix in fascinating ways. Internet piracy vs. privacy, marriage and sexuality, even bicycle parking can be subjects of political movements and artwork. Here’s a tip sheet for your ballot of politically-themed art. You have the freedom of choices to see, hear and enjoy.

✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮✮ ✮✮✮✮ Feb 3. Visions Beyond the Badge @ Harvey Milk Photography Center

Sat 4 . Ghost Light @ Berkeley Repertory

The opening reception for an exhibit of photos (see above) by members of the San Francisco Fire and Police Departments. 6:30-9pm. Thru March 1. 50 Scott St. 554-9522. www.harveymilkphotocenter.org

Jonathan Moscone and Tony Taccone’s haunting fictional drama is based on the assassination of San Francisco mayor George Moscone. $15-$73. Tue-Sat 8pm. Wed & Sun 7pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru Feb 19. Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St. (510) 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org

Feb 2. Jimmy Wales @ Fairmont Hotel

Feb 4. Collected @ Museum of the African Diaspora

The founder of Wikipedia discusses Internet open content technology and web censorship; sponsored by Hult University. 6:30pm. Grand Ballroom, 950 Mason St www.hult.edu

Jimmy Wales Feb 3.

At War @ SOMArts Gallery Peter Max Lawrence and Truon Tran’s multi-media installed and live art/performance about identities in conflict ranges from ethnic, gender, and sexual identity to conflicts of artistic identity, with 100s of paintings, drawings, videos, and sculptures which incorporate religious elements, assumptive queer histories, and war iconography. Opening reception/ performance Feb 3, 6pm. Tue-Fri 12pm-7pm. Sat 12pm-5pm. Thru Feb 29. 934 Brannan St. www.somarts.org

Subtitled Stories of Acquisition and Reclamation, this exhibit displays more than 100 objects that help narrate the struggles and contributions of African Americans in California. Special events: Feb. 4, 2pm: Rev. Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. discusses the formation of the first American black churches in the 1800s. Feb 5, 2pm: film screening: Midnight Ramble: Oscar Micheaux and the Story of Race Movies. Free-$12. Thru March 4. 685 Mission St. at 3rd. 358-7200. www.moadsf.org

Feb 6. The Right to Love @ Castro Theatre Concerned about marriage equality rights? Attend the world premiere of a new film about gay families and marriage equality. 7pm. 429 Castro St. www.castrotheatre.com

Feb 7. Elect to Laugh @ The Marsh

Feb 3. Cabaret @ Fort Mason The new local production of the Tonywinning Cander/ Ebb musical based on gay writer Christopher Isherwood’s stories about pre-Nazi Berlin is staged in an up-close cabaret-style Cabaret setting, like the recent Broadway revival. $25-$45. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 7pm. Thru Feb 19. 381-1638. Young Performers Theater, Bldg C, 3rd floor. 381-1638. www.CabaretSFwordpress.com

Feb 3. Gene Youngblood @ YBCA The author of Expanded Cinema presents a lecture, Secession from the Broadcast: The Internet and the Crisis of Social Control, about online censorship and expansion. $6-$10. 7:30pm. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission St. www.ybca.org

Will Durst

Will Durst welcomes comic commentator pals to a new weekly political humor night. $15-$50. 8pm. Tuesdays thru Nov 6. 1062 Valencia St. at 21st. 282-3055. www.themarsh.org

Feb 8. Love on Wheels @ Public Works In a city known for politics and environmentalism, cycling has become a political football. But the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition’s annual fun party, with a Dating Game-style show for gay, straight and lesbian contestants, plus valet bike parking and tasty drinks, will win you over. $5-$10. 7pm. 161 Erie St. at Mission. www.sfbike.org/?love

Feb 8. Seeing Double @ City Hall Gallery See political art in the city’s political arena. The San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery’s Art at City Hall program presents Seeing Double: The Best of DOUBLEtruck Magazine. Opening reception Feb 8, 5:30pm. Exhibit thru May 18. Ground floor, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place. www.sfarts.org

Dwayne Newton

Dengue Fever @ Great American Music Hall, Slim’s Unique Cambodian-American band, with gorgeous lead singer Chhom Nimol, play fan faves and music from their new album, Cannibal Courtship; bill shared with Secret Chiefs 3. GAMH Feb 2; $20-$45 (with dinner). 8:30pm. 859 O’Farrell St. 885-0750. Also at Slim’s, Feb 3; $20-$45. 8:30pm. 333 11th St. 255-0333. www.gamh.com www.denguefevermusic.com

Donnell Rawlings @ The Razz Room Stand-up comic and featured performer on The Chapelle Show performs. $25. 8pm. Also Feb 3, 9pm; Feb 4 & 5, 9pm & 11pm. 2-drink min. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com

Love Hurts @ City Art Gallery Opening reception for a group show of gay and straight artists who visualize the notso-sweet side of love. 7pm-10pm. Thru Feb. 25, Wed-Sun, 12pm-9pm. 828 Valencia St. 970-9900. www.cityartgallery.org

San Francisco Ballet @ War Memorial Opera House Onegin is the winter season work, the passionate story of a Russian aristocrat’s love affair, based on a Pushkin verse novel, set to the music of Tchaikovsky; choreographed by John Cranko. $66-$89 Feb 2 & 3, 8pm. 301 Van Ness Ave. 865-2000. www.sfballet.org/niteout

SF Sketchfest @ Various Venues 11th annual comedy festival includes films, stand-up panels, and celebrity-filled hilarity. Thru Feb 4. www.sfsketchfest.com

Sat 4 The Rocky Horror Picture Show @ Castro Theatre Barry Bostwick (Brad Majors) is the celebrity guest at Peaches Christ’s dragtastic pre-show event and screening of the classic film adapation of the “sweet transvestite” musical; Ray of Light’s Rocky Horror cast and local Rocky Horror shadow casts perform (not an audience-participation screening, so don’t bring any toast or other props). $20. 8pm. 429 Castro st. www.peacheschrist.com www.sfsketchfest.com www.castrotheatre.com

autobiographical solo show about growing up in a circus family. $10-$85. 8pm. Tue-Sat 8pm. Wed, Sat & Sun 2pm & 7pm. Thru Feb. 5. 415 Geary St. 749-2228. www.act-sf.org

Jesus in India @ Magic Theatre Lloyd Suh’s contemporary reimagining of the lost years of Jesus of Nazareth as a teen stoner’s vacation to the East. $30-$60. Tue 7pm. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2:30pm. Thru Feb 19. Building D, Fort Mason center, Marina Blvd at Buchanan. 441-8822. www.magictheatre.org

Marga Gomez @ The Marsh

David Perry’s talk show about LGBT people and issues. Mon-Fri 11:30am & 10:30pm. Sat & Sun 10:30pm. www.comcasthometown.com

Unusual Films @ Oddball Films

Mary Stallings @ The Rrazz Room

Lamp/Lamb Live, a screen-off curatorial battle between Andrew Lampert and Jeff Lambert. 8pm. Feb 3, 8pm; Red. Hot. Love., a collection of passionate shorts and trailer. Feb 4, Oscar Oddities, Academy Award nominated live action (7pm) and animated (9:30pm) short films. $10. 275 Capp st. 5588117. www.oddballfilms.blogspot.com

Fri 3 >> Arcadia @ Live Oak Theatre, Berkeley Actors Ensemble of Berkeley perform Tom Stoppard’s intriguing mystery/history play about love, desire, Lord Byron and landscape architecture. $12-$15. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru Feb 18. 1301 Shattuck Ave. (510) 649-5999. www.aeofberkeley.org

Becky Shaw @ SF Playhouse Gina Gionfriddo’s comic play about straight couples’ blind dates and misadventures. $15-$35. Tue-Thu 7pm. Fri & Sat 8pm, and Sat 3pm. Thru March 10. 533 Sutter St. www.sfplayhouse.org

Body Awareness @ Aurora Theatre, Berkeley Aurora Theatre company performs Annie Baker’s comic play about a lesbian couple whose lives become unraveled by their new male housemate. $30-$55. Tue 7pm. WedSat 8pm. Sun 2pm & 7pm. Thru March 4. 2081 Addison St. (510) 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org

Falsettoland @ The Alcove Theatre Stir Fry Theatre, a new Asian-American performing ensemble, revives the acclaimed William Finn operetta about a New York gay couple and their friends facing the impending AIDS epidemic. $15-$25. Fri & Sat 8pm. Feb 5 & 12 at 2pm. Thru Feb 12. 414 Mason St., 5th floor. (408) STAGE.SF www.stirfrytheatre.com

Glengarry Glen Ross @ Actors Theatre David Mamet’s dark comedy about smalltime real estate swindlers gets a local production. $26-$40. Wed-Sat 8pm. 855 Bush St. at Taylor. Thru March 24. www.actorstheatresf.org

Seeing Double at City Hall

Alexander String Quartet @ Herbst Theatre

Everyone’s favorite lesbian Latina comic returns with her new hit solo show Not Getting Any Younger. $15-$35. Fri 8pm. Sat 5pm & 8:30pm. Thru Feb 25. Studio Theater, 1062 Valencia St. at 22nd. 282-3055. www.margagomez.com

Ten Percent @ Comcast 104

Humor Abuse @ A.C.T. American Conservatory Theatre presents Pickle Family Circus veteran Lorenzo Pisoni’s

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Composer-pianist Jake Heggie and mezzosoprano Joyce diDonato join the quartet in a 30th anniversary concert or works by Debussy, Hahn and Heggie/Scheer. $45-$70. 8pm. 401 Van Ness Ave. www.sfperformances.org

Food Stories @ Z Space John Fisher directs Word for Word theatre company in performances of two short stories; satirist T.C. Boyle’s “Sorry Fugu” and Alice McDermott’s “Enough.” $20-$40. Wed & Thu 7pm. Fri & Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru Feb. 5. 450 Florida St. (800) 838-3006. www.zspace.org

Maharaja @ Asian Art Museum The Splendor of India’s Royal Courts, an expansive exhibit showcasing textiles, jewels and items from the heyday of the early Indian empires. Also, Sanjay Patel’s Deities, Demons and Dudes with ‘Staches: Indian Avatars; Tateuchi Thematic Gallery, 2nd floor. Special events thru exhibit run. $7-$17. Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. Thu til 9pm. Thru April 8, 2012. 200 Larkin St. 581-3500. www.asianart.org

Matter + Spirit @ de Young Museum The Sculpture of Stephen De Staebler, thru April 22. Also, Masters of Venice, Bernini’s Medusa thru February 19. Golden Gate Park, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive. 750-3600. www.famsf.org

Party of Three, Tom Shaw Trio @ Martuni’s Vocal trio performs jazzy covers of pop classics with the Tom Shaw Trio accompanying. $7. 7pm. 4 Valencia St. www.partyofthreetrio.com

Reason to Party @ W Hotel

Singer with a rich family history in music sings jazz standards and classics. $30. 7pm. Also Feb. 4, 7pm and Feb 5, 5pm. 2-drink min. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 3803095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com

Winter gala and fundraiser for Maitri Hospice, DJed music and live ambient performances, featuring black light décor, cocktails (complimentary vodka drinks), $30-$100. 9pm-2am (VIP reception 8pm). 125 3rd St. www.reasontoparty.org

Precious Drop @ CounterPulse

SF Hiking Club @ San Francisco

Mohamed Lamine Bangoura with Jaara Dance Project and Bu Falle African Drum and Dance perform an African music and dance work with contemporary themes. $15. 8pm. Also Feb 4. 1310 Mission St. 626-2060. www.counterpulse.org

Enjoy the 9-mile trek across the city peninsula from the breakers to the bay with other LGBT hikers. Meet 9am at the Safeway sign, Market St. at Dolores, or 9:45 at the end of the N-Judah MUNI line. 794-2275. www.sfhiking.com

Richard Boswell @ Magnet

Sun 5 >>

Opening reception for an exhibit of the artist’s works, The Silence of Light. 8pm. Thru Feb. 4122 18th St. www.magnetsf.org

The Story of My Life @ New Conservatory Theatre Center

California Dreaming @ Contemporary Jewish Museum

Neil Bartram and Brian Hill’s new melodic musical comedy about best friends and the personal cost of success; one man recounts his friend’s life while writing his obituary. $22-$36. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru Feb. 26. 25 Van Ness Ave. at Market, lower level. www.nctcsf.org

Jewish Life in the Bay Area from the Gold Rush to the Present, an exhibit about the lives of historic Western American Jewish people, from Levi’s jeans and Ginsberg’s Howl to Gump’s and LGBT synagogues. Also, Houdini: Art and Magic. $5-$12. Thu-Tue 11am-5pm. 736 Mission St. at 3rd. 655-7800. www.thecjm.org

True West/ Buried Child @ Boxcar Theatre

Kronos Quartet @ Hertz Hall, Berkeley

Gritty dramas of battling brothers and family secrets; the first and second of four Sam Shepard plays the company will perform in repertory thru April 26. True West and Buried Child thru April 7. $15 (preview), $25-$35, or $85-$120 full pass. 505 Natoma St. 967-2227. www.boxcartheatre.org

The acclaimed music ensemble performs with the Alim Qasimov Ensemble in a concert of works by Azerbaijani singer-songwriters. $50. 7pm. Bancroft Way at College Ave., UC Berkeley campus. (510) 642-9988. www.calperformances.org

Vice Palace @ Hypnodrome Theatre The darkly comic Cockettes musical, expanded and revised by the talented Scrumbly Koldwyn, returns by popular demand after a successful brief tour to New York City. See the musical update on The Masque of the Red Death, with many LGBT local talents. $30-$35. Fri & Sat 8pm. Thru March 3. 575 10th St. at Bryant/Division. 377-4202. www.thrillpeddlers.com

Winter Choreographers Showcase @ Dance Mission Theater Local established and new choreographers and dances present works-in-progress. $14. 8pm. Also Feb 4. 3316 24th St. 826-4441. www.dancemission.org

Sunday’s a Drag @ Starlight Room Donna Sachet and Harry Denton host 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.harrydenton.com

Super Bowl XLVI: Men in Tights @ Roxie Theatre Annual pre-kick-off event for IndieFest, the SF Independent Film Festival; enjoy the big game on a theatre-sized screen, with snarky MST3K-style comments by local comic-types, plus Madonna’s halftime show! 3pm. 3117 16th St. www.sfindie.virb.com www.roxie.com

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Out&About >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 33

Con Funk Shun @ The Rrazz Room R&B six-piece band performs their dance party hits and new music. $35-$40. 8pm. Also Feb. 10 & 11, 7pm & 10pm. 2-drink min. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com

Left in the Dark @ SF Public Library Portraits of San Francisco Movie Theatres authors Katherine Petrin and R.A. McBride present a “then-and-now” slideshow with commentary. Free. 6:30pm. Koret Auditorium, lower level. 100 Larkin St. at Grove. www.sfpl.org

The News @ SoMarts Gallery

Fri 3 Arts of Pacific Asia @ Fort Mason Center Large-scale show of contemporary and traditional artworks, including art brought by galleries from Jiangsu and Guangdong provinces in China, that have never exhibited in the San Francisco area before. (Preview gala benefit Feb 2, 7pm-10pm; $185). Reg. admission $15. 11am-7pm. Thru Feb 5 (11am-5pm). Festival Pavilion, Buchanan St. at Marina Blvd. www.caskeylees.com www.asianart.org

Mon 6 >> Absolutely Fabulous @ Logo TV Second new episode of the Jennifer Saunders BBC comedy. Edina gets a “Job.” 10:30pm. www.LogoTV.com

Cabaret of Love @ Stage Werx Theatre Picklewater Clown Cabaret’s clownish variety show about the foibles of falling in love. $10-$15. 7pm & 9pm. 446 Valencia St. at 16th. www.picklewater.com

Dishing the Dirt @ New Conservatory Theatre Center Waiting for Giovanni playwright Jewelle Gomez discusses the back story behind developing her play, with Artistic Director Ed Decker. Free. 7pm. 25 Van Ness Ave. lower, level. 861-4914. www.nctcsf.org

Maria Volonte @ The Rrazz Room Argentine singer-composer returns with her concert, Blue Tango, a spiritual mix of blues and tango. $30. 8pm. 2-drink min. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com

Men’s Contact Improv @ Heartwalker Studio, Berkeley German-Brazilian dancer Ralf Jaroschinski leads three weekly free-form dance classes for men, focusing on sensuality and touch. $25. 7:30pm. Mondays thru Feb 20. 4920 Telegraph Ave., Berkeley. (510) 495-4988. www.heartwalkerstudio.com

Of Mice and Men @ Oakland School of the Arts Student production of John Steinbeck’s drama based on his classic novel about a

pair of troubled migrant workers. $5-$10. Thru Feb 4 at 7pm. also Feb 4 at 2pm. OSA Blackbox Theatre, 530 19th St., Oakland. www.oakarts.org

Q Comedy @ Martunis Comics Morgan, Pippi Lovestocking, Paul Pratt, Charlie Ballard and host Nick Leonard perform gaily funny stand-up. $5-$15. 8pm. 4 Valencia St. at Market. www.Qcomedy.com

Queer Ancestors @ LGBT Center Group exhibit of local artists’ portraits and interpretive art about famous LGBT leaders. 7pm-9pm. Thru Feb 16. 1800 Market St. www.sfcenter.org

RuPaul’s Drag Race @ Deco Lounge Weekly viewing party of the fab drag queen ‘reality’ show’s new season, with (live and local) Ruby Holiday, and Ginger Snap at the bar. 510 Larkin St. at Turk. 346-2025. www.decosf.com

Stephen Kladder @ Castro Country Club Exhibit of the artist’s portrait paintings at the LGBT sober space. 2pm-3pm. Thru Feb 29. 4058 18th St. www.castrocountryclub.org

Tue 7 >> The Air We Breathe @ SF MOMA Group exhibit of works by 30 contemporary artists and eight poets who explore the issues of legalizing same-sex marriage. Also, The Design Ethos of Dieter Rams; Thru Feb 20; and Sharon Lockhart’s Lunch Break, photos and installation of images of industrial workers. Other exhibits ongoing. Free-$18. 151 Third St. 357-4000. www.sfmoma.org

Sat 4

Showcase of new visual and performing LGBT artists, including Rotimi Agbabiaka, Diamanda Kallas, II Dia Dear, La Chica Boom, Peter Max Lawrence, Marissa Majick, the Brontez Purnell Dance Company, Kolmel WithLove, and Shaunna Vella. $5. 7:30pm 934 Brannan St. at 8th. www.somarts.org

Queer Comic Artists @ Cartoon Art Museum Exhibit of work by several LGBT comic artists. Free-$7. Thru March 4. Reg hours Tue-Sun 11am-5pm. 655 Mission St. www.cartoonart.org

Radar Reading @ SF Public Library Author/host Michelle Tea welcomes writers Ellyn Maybe, Nick Krieger, Morgan Bassichis, and Micha Cardenas. 6pm. Latino/Hispanic Room, lower level, 100 Larkin St. www.sfpl.org

Wed 8>> Aphrodesia After Hours @ Conservatory of Flowers Mixed romantic party with hand-brewed cocktails. Live music by Le Quartet de Jazz and gourmet chocolates, all in the lush botanical garden. $10. Cash bar. 6pm-10pm. Golden Gate Park, 100 JFK Dr. 831-2090. www.conservatoryofflowers.org

Gems From the Archives @ SF Public Library Jenni Olsen curates and hosts a screening of clips from the Frameline San Francisco LGBT Film Festival archives. 6pm. Koret Auditorium, lower level, 100 Larkin St. www.sfpl.org

Our Vast Queer Past @ GLBT History Museum See the fascinating exhibit from the GLBT Historical Society, with a wide array of rare historic items on display. New miniexhibit focuses on the legacy of activist and performer Jose Sarria. Free for members-$5. Wed-Sat 11am-7pm. Sun 12pm-5pm. 4127 18th St. www.glbthistory.org

Thu 9 >> Cupid’s Back @ Supperclub Join a few hundred single guys to mix, mingle and dance at the sixth annual –and popular– benefit for the GLBT Historical Society. Juanita More hosts and DJs. Wear red or pink! $30-$35. 8pm-12am. 657 Harrison St. www.cupidsback.kintera.org www.supperclub.com

Hearts After Dark @ AT&T Park San Francisco General Hospital Foundation hosts an evening of hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and live music by DJs Hubert Keller, Kevin Michael Wong and A Plus D. $75-$1000. 7pm-10pm. 24 Willie Mays Plaza. 2064478. www.sfghf.net

Leif Ove Andsnes @ Herbst Theatre Highly acclaimed pianist performs works by Haydn, Bartók, Debussy and Chopin. $45$75. 401 Van Ness ave. 392-2545. www.sfperformances.org

SF Indie Fest @ Roxie Theater Festival of independent cinema. Thru Feb 23. 3117 16th St. www.sfindie.com

Tribal & Textile Arts Show @ Fort Mason Large-scale exhibit and sale of traditional arts and crafts; rugs fabric and more. Preview 7pm-10pm. Reg admission $15. 11am-8pm. Thru Sun Feb. 12, 11am-5pm. Festvial Pavilion, buchanan at Bay sts. (310) 455-2886. www.caskeylees.com www.fortmason.org

Bob Mizer Films @ YBCA The Golden Age of the American Male: Films From Bob Mizer’s Legendary Athletic Model Guild, presented by Billy Miller. First in a seven-part film series, Bros Before Hos: Masculinity and Its Discontents. $6-$8. 7:30pm. Also, Feb 9, 7:30pm; The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts screening room, 701 Mission St. 978-2787. www.ybca.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 www.bartabsf.com

<< Society

34 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

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Noir City nights by Donna Sachet

ilm Noir took the Castro Theatre by storm last week with lines up and down the block, enthusiastic audiences, and celebrity sightings, including the evocative Angie Dickinson and impresario Eddie Muller. The next Castro Theatre extravaganza is on Valentine’s Day when local wunderkind Marc Huestis hosts a screening of the iconic film Love Story and a rare personal appearance by actress Ali MacGraw! Also entertaining on stage will be Mx. Justin Vivian Bond and Katya Smirnoff-Skyy. Don’t miss it! Trannyshack’s 13th annual Star Search certainly lived up to its exalted reputation with a crowdpleasing competition last Friday at DNA Lounge. Co-emcees Heklina and Peaches Christ presented over 10 contestants in widely varying but always attention-getting performances, and the audience gave each its adulation. We’ve never seen so many confetti guns! A featured performance by the Ethel Merman Experience brought the house down! A combination of a late start, long competition, and tardy arrival deprived last year’s winner, Rotissary Ethnicity Jackson Houston-Ross, of her step-down performance, but those who stayed until the bitter end saw the Trannyshack Star Search crown go to Diamanda Callas. Last Sunday’s first monthly Confession attracted a sophisticated crowd to Vessel, an amazing downstairs club near Union Square with soaring ceilings, exposed brick walls, sexy lighting, and a seductive sound system. This is a project of reasontopar t y.org, a highly motivated group of young professionals committed to supporting worthy charitable causes while hosting LGBT mixers

Steven Underhill

The irresistible Angie Dickinson arrives at the Castro Theatre during Eddie Muller’s Noir City film festival.

in upscale settings. Started by Ari Kalfayan, they’ve received nationwide attention, including Forbes magazine and NBCTV. Guests were greeted at the door by Honey Mahogany, A Plus D DJed the party, and funds were raised for Love, Honor, Cherish.

The stylized confessional-booth photo setting attracted nonstop attention, destined for Facebook publication. We socialized with Zach Wahls (20-year-old son of a same-sex couple and Internet sensation), Adam Bouska & Jeff Parshley (photographers of celebrities with NOH8 stenciled on their faces), Rafael Mandelman, See page 35 >>

Coming up in leather and kink Thu., Feb. 2: Daddy Thursdays at Kok Bar (1225 Folsom). Shot & drink specials. 10 p.m.-close. Go to: www.kokbarsf.com. Thu., Feb. 2: Bare Chest Calendar Contest #2 at The Powerhouse (1347 Folsom). 8 p.m.-10 p.m. Go to: www.barechest.org. Thu., Feb. 2: Underwear Night at The Powerhouse (in conjunction with the Bare Chest Calendar contest). $5 to benefit Project Inform. 10 p.m.-close. Go to: www. powerhouse-sf.com.

shenanigans. 9 p.m. to close. Go to: www.edgesf.com. Sat., Feb. 4: All Beef Saturday Nights at The Lone Star (1354 Harrison). 100% SoMa Beef! 9 p.m.-close. Go to: www.facebook.com/lonestarsf. Sat., Feb. 4: Boot Lickin’ at The Powerhouse. It’s all about the boots! 9 p.m.-close. Go to: www.powerhouse-sf.com. Sat., Feb. 4: Men in Gear Beer Bust at Kok Bar. Wear and celebrate your gear! $8 if in gear, $10 if not. 3-7 p.m. Go to: www.kokbarsf.com.

Thu., Feb. 2: Your First Scenes with Angela and Iain at the SF Citadel (1277 Mission). $15-$25 sliding scale. 7:30-10:30 p.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org.

Sun., Feb. 5: Truck Bust Sundays at Truck. $1 beer bust. Warm Bar, hot men, cold beer. 4 – 8 p.m. Go to: www.trucksf.com for details.

Fri., Feb. 3: Truck Wash at Truck (1900 Folsom). 10 p.m.-close. Live shower boys, drink specials. Go to: www.trucksf.com.

Sun., Feb. 5: Nasty at The Powerhouse. Get nasty and dirty! 10 p.m.-close. Go to: www.powerhouse-sf.com.

Fri., Feb. 3: Michael Brandon presents Locker Room at The Edge (4149 Collingwood). Celebrate your fetish for sports gear: giveaways, drink specials, go-go boys. 9 p.m.-Midnight. Go to: www.edgesf.com. Fri., Feb. 3: Newbie Munch at the SF Citadel. For those curious about the Citadel. 5-7 p.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Fri., Feb. 3: Bent at the SF Citadel. For kinky “youth”: 18, 19, 20s & 30s. Theme is Under Construction. $20. 8 p.m.-close. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org for details. Fri., Feb. 3: Fuzz at Kok Bar. Come hang with the hairy dudes! No cover. $2 off first cocktail for shirtless dudes, and specials all night if you stay shirtless. Go to: www. kokbarsf.com. Sat., Feb. 4: Gear Up Weekend presents Cocks in Jocks: 2012 Registration Kick-Off Play Party at 385A 8th St. $20, $15 for students and military with valid I.D., a men’s-only play party. 10 p.m.-2 a.m. Doors close at Midnight. Go to: www.gearupweekend.com. Sat., Feb. 4: Open Play Party at the SF Citadel. 8 p.m.-1 a.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Sat., Feb. 4: Steamworks at The Edge. Come join the fun with the Steamworks boys, including specials and

Sun., Feb. 5: Rope Peer Workshop at the SF Citadel. Hosted by Madame Butterfly and Mr. Madame Butterfly. $10 donation. 7:30 p.m. Doors close at 8:30. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Mon., Feb. 6: Trivia Night with host Casey Ley at Truck. Featuring prizes, insane fun and ridiculous questions! 8-10 p.m. Go to: www.trucksf.com. Tue., Feb. 7: Safeword: 12-Step Kink Recovery Group at the SF Citadel. 6:30 p.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Tue., Feb. 7: Top Psychology for Bottoms (Tops welcome) at the SF Citadel. Presented by Michael Blue. $20. 7-10 p.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org Tue., Feb. 7: Ink & Metal at The Powerhouse. 9 p.m.close. Go to: www.powerhouse-sf.com. Wed., Feb. 8: Nipple Play at The Powerhouse. Drink specials for the shirtless. 10 p.m.-close. Go to: www. powerhouse-sf.com. Wed., Feb. 8: Golden Shower Buddies at Blow Buddies (933 Harrison), a male-only club. Doors open 8 p.m.12 a.m. Play till late. Go to: www.blowbuddies.com. Wed., Feb. 8: Paideia Playshop at the SF Citadel. Paideia is Greek for “learning through play.” $15-$25 sliding scale. 7:30-10:30 p.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org.

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DVD>>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 35

Blasphemous blast by Ernie Alderete

liked the cover of classic Dark Alley Media porn Passio at first glance. A slim, young, nude man is crucified against a darkening sky. Of course, the image is meant to shock and repulse as well as arouse. It accomplishes all of its goals admirably. Unfortunately, the supporting cast of Passio veers sharply away from the attractive cover model. A sexual satire of the Last Supper with Jesus Christ and his 12 apostles all too soon devolves into a purely sexual romp. The heavily tattooed, balding apostles are sweaty, and their brutish faces are flushed beetred, as if they’re on speed or have rosacea. Neither condition is the least bit conducive to a viewer’s arousal. The next scene is even more profane, but it’s more gratifying on a sexual if not spiritual level. A middle-aged, redheaded priest approaches the naked Messiah on his cross, and begins to abuse his crucified victim, lashing him with a cat-o-nine-tails. This surprisingly only serves to arouse the man on the cross, giving him an instant boner! Of course, it doesn’t take the padre long to deep throat his blessed savior’s prick, which seems to pain the writhing king of kings. Soon the priest becomes

On the Town From page 34

Mark Rhoades, Xavier Barrera & Kirk Hahn, Graig Cooper & Suzan Revah, Patrik Gallineaux, Scott Miller, and many others. The AIDS Emergency Fund has been serving the Bay Area for 30 years, and in order to continue their work, they are planning a year of special activities and fundraisers. Kicking off the year was a party last Wednesday at the Armory on Mission, now headquarters of kink.com, in a decadently decorated room on the fourth floor generously donated for the event. Picture something out of the old West with red flocked wallpaper, well-worn antique furniture, and low lighting! Incredible passed hors d’oeuvres were prepared on site by Glennon Sutter, Gavin Middleton, & Eric Byrne. The crowd of loyal supporters included Supervisor Scott Wiener, Lu Conrad, Jeff Doney, Al Baum, Tom Horn, Roberto Friedman, Jerome Goldstein & Tommy Taylor, Graig Cooper, Troy Brunet, Lance Holman, and Ed Mathews. Executive Director Mike Smith, longtime supporter Lenny Broberg, and SF dynamo Suzan Revah led the short program, which included the presentation of the Zachary Long award to Richard Sablatura for his years of volunteer service to Songs of the Season, the annual holiday cabaret benefiting AEF for 19 years. A generous matching grant from the Bob Ross Foundation was announced, and guests were invited to sign up to host 30 individual house parties specifically to raise money for the AEF. A line of excited hosts quickly formed, and the goal was reached within minutes. Look for your invitation to one or more of these creative events! Stay tuned to this column for an

affectionate with his victim, tenderly caressing his face. Compassion seems to overcome his sadistic heart, because the priest now unties the wrists of his prisoner, and lets him down from his wooden cross. Then the most surprising and shocking scene in Passio unfolds. The holy redeemer pulls the pants off the priest and rapes him! It’s a memorable rape, a superb, deep-thrusting fuck that

event-packed February, including a week of Imperial Court events culminating in Coronation 47 on Sat., Feb. 25, at the Galleria Design Center, and the Academy of Friends 32nd Annual Gala on Sun., Feb.

w would stand on its own completely apart from the sacrilegious context. For the grand finale, the Nazarene blows his w wad, an incredible shower o of jizz worthy of the man ffrom Bethlehem. This last ssegment is not only good ssex, it’s finely acted with a n nuanced performance, in p particular by Dark Alley M Media exclusive Danny Fox a God incarnate. But his as t tormentor turned victim, p played by Adam Faust, a also delivers a bravura p performance. Passio runs two hours, in fo four half-hour segments. B only the final 30 minutes But is worth watching. In the o days someone could be old ex excommunicated for even su suggesting material such as t contained in Passio. But that it’s worth the risk of eternal condemnation to the fires of Hell just to watch the last segment. You can go to confession on Saturday, and pray a dozen rosaries in the nude for penance. How much the film offends you depends on how religious you are and how seriously you take religious matters. It didn’t bother me, but I could see how many people could get ticked off to say the least. Passio is a textbook example of blasphemy.▼ $59.99 from the Dark Alley website. You can also view a free 30-second clip or see Passio streamed by Video on Demand: www.passiothemovie.com

26, in the same location. Get that tuxedo to the cleaners, shop for a new glamorous gown, or get creative with a combination of items already in your closet, but be sure to be dazzling!▼

Steven Underhill

This year’s model for the Noir City film festival poster strikes a pose with a vintage automobile outside the Castro Theatre.

www.ebar.com

Serving the LGBT communities since 1971

36 • BAY AREA REPORTER • February 2-8, 2012

▼

Books >>

Telling tales by Gregg Shapiro

intimacy, yet I had the freedom to make them very different kinds of people, in looks and personalities. I am estranged from my own brother, so I guess I was exploring what it would be like to be close to a brother.

ongtime San Francisco resident and winner of the Northern California Book Award for Fiction for Ivan and Misha (TriQuarterly Books/Northwestern), gay writer Michael Alenyikov knows how to tell a story. Ivan and Misha, a fictional work of connected stories about twin brothers, is a compelling read. I spoke with Alenyikov earlier this year. Gregg Shapiro: Which story in Ivan and Misha came first, and what made you want to write more stories about these characters? Michael Alenyikov: It began as a stand-alone story about Russian twin brothers and their father. It seemed I was done with them and moved on to another story about a gay UN Peacekeeper in East Timor. An editor in NYC saw the seven stories I’d written and suggested I write more stories focusing on secondary characters. I don’t like being told what to write, and for a year I worked on another project. My agent would check in to remind me how much that editor liked what we call “the phone booth story,” and I realized that he wasn’t dictating what stories to write, just suggesting which characters to write about. I started a story about their father and his oddcouple friendship with a neighbor. I was excited to learn my characters had much more life to them than I’d realized, and with each story I learned more about them. How much of Michael Alenyikov is in Ivan and Misha? A friend of mine said that if all

Sundance 2012 From page 30

daughter from his ex-wife. Writer/ director So Yong Kim cites a wisp of memory about a solitary childhood visit by a mysterious stranger she later learned was her Dad. The New York Times’ Manohla Dargis says Dano’s “twitching and preening like a bottom-drawer Robert Plant [gives] the film solidity and a jolt of energy.” Red Hook Summer Director Spike Lee insists this is not a sequel to his explosive 1991 summer-rage drama Do the Right Thing, but the buzz has Lee back to his old prickly rabble-rousing cinema as an African-

Ivan and Misha author Michael Alenyikov: ‘I felt a connection.’

of me was in a wet washcloth and it was wrung out, it would be Ivan and Misha. That said, there’s very little that’s directly autobiographical except for one character who is based closely on a friend of mine. But I did live in the East Village as an adult, and Brooklyn, and I did drive a cab in Boston; and after my mother’s death, I grew up with a single father and a younger brother, as did Ivan and Misha. Ivan and Misha: why twins and not simply brothers? In retrospect, I think writing about fraternal twins was a way to heighten the intimacy between siblings. Twins, almost by definition, have to be very close and enmeshed in each other’s lives. As fraternal twins, they both had that heightened

American kid trades his childhood comfort zone in Hotlanta for an equally warm but decidedly weirder slice of Brooklyn. Simon Killer Mysterious Skin’s “battered boy” Brady Corbet reveals more of his thespian dark side in a recent college grad’s descent into a Parisian bourgeois sewer. Arbitrage Nicholas Jarecki takes on the global financial crisis in a drama that has Richard Gere as an aging hedge-fund manager whose slippery business practices are about to unravel big time. The House I Live In Meanwhile, brother Eugene Jarecki argues that America’s “War on Drugs” has squandered enormous resources,

There have been studies on gay twins and the odds of one or both being homosexual. Why did you choose to make Ivan and Misha gay? When I first began to write fiction, I wanted to create gay characters and find my own distinctive way to make them unabashedly gay but not like anyone else’s gay characters. The title story is told by Misha, so inevitably he was going to be gay; Ivan’s sexuality is ambiguous in the title story. It wasn’t until I wrote the story “Whirling Dervish” from Ivan’s point of view that I grappled with his sexuality and he emerged as bisexual. Ivan will have sex with almost anyone who captures his imagination. The book has some taboo elements: incest and HIV transmission. Oh, you noticed that! The incest was much harder to write about. It was never my plan. But I let the characters lead me, and they led me to a place I didn’t want to go. I stopped working on the book for several months to avoid going there.

But I tried to do the best I could to not make it sensationalized, to be sure that it would seem an inevitable outgrowth of the story. As to HIV transmission and unsafe sex, that was easier to write about. HIV, safe sex, unsafe sex, all the choices and consequences have been in the background of every gay man’s life since the early 1980s. Even when we don’t actively think about it, we are thinking about it. So even if you write a story set in the age of AIDS and you don’t mention it, its absence is a presence. It would be like setting a novel during WWII and not mentioning the war.

Scene from filmmaker Spike Lee’s Red Hook Summer.

J before I read your Just b book, I read Rebecca M Makkai’s debut novel The Borrowers, which also f features Russian/Jewish i immigrants making their w in America while way a attempting to erase the p of their homeland. past I come from a family that to no stories about that told p past. Three grandparents d before I was born. They died w all from towns outside were o Kiev. The one grandparent of I knew, my mother’s mother, n never spoke of the past. S She’d come to the U.S. at 14 w with her sister, leaving her m mother and siblings behind. M father was as taciturn My as they come. None of my au or uncles spoke of the aunts pa Yet I felt a connection to past. R Russia and the Russian Jewish ex experience there. There’s a w wonderful book, Passage to Ararat by Michael Arlen. His father was a survivor of the Armenian genocide, but he knew nothing about that history until his father died and he tracked down his father’s friends. What he learned is how there’s a degree to which people feel they deserve the punishment meted out to them, and when safe in another country they want very much not to pass that on to their children. That requires burying the past. When I wrote about Ivan and Misha’s father Louie/Lyov, it gave me a chance to explore what he knows and remembers vividly of his life in the Soviet Union, and how little he will tell his sons.▼

produced over 45 million arrests, and put a huge contingent of African American men behind bars, only to discover that street drugs are more available and of a purer quality than ever before. Winner of the Grand Jury Award for Best US Doc. The Invisible War Director Kirby Dick received the Audience Award for Best US Doc for a film that investigates the epidemic of sexual assault in the American military against soldiers of all genders. Predisposed Jesse Eisenberg and Melissa Leo star in a mother/son meltdown. Jesse plays a talented pianist facing a crucial audition, while needing a timeout from Mom.▼

Onegin From page 25

less. Onegin then impulsively acts out his compulsive need to charm, goes on to flirt with her sister Olga at the party, wins her fancy, thus driving Olga’s fiancé mad with jealousy, who grows furious and challenges him to fight. Oh, and Lensky is Onegin’s best friend, and it was he who introduced Onegin to the family. And in the duel, Onegin kills him. The story was first told by Alexander Pushkin, the first great genius of Russian literature, in a series of poems published serially in magazines in the 1820s; in all, there are about 400 sonnet-like stanzas, which many Russians have literally learned by heart. Nabokov’s translation has two whole volumes of notes. When Tchaikovsky came to make an opera of it, he identified with both Onegin and with Tatiana, since he had yearnings like hers (though they were for young men), and he had had young women throw themselves at him; indeed, he agreed to marry one, and then nearly killed himself trying to get out of the suffocating relationship. The tremendous things in this ballet all flow from these tensions.

Erik Tomasson

San Francisco Ballet’s Gennadi Nedvigin and Clara Blanco in choreographer John Cranko’s Onegin.

San Francisco Ballet’s Maria Kochetkova and Pascal Molat in choreographer John Cranko’s Onegin.

Cranko turned letters and speeches brilliantly into pas de deux. Tatiana’s letter to Onegin, Cranko turned into a dream-vision where he steps through a mirror into her life and sweeps her off her feet. The lifts are breathtaking – he throws her overhead, over his back, then lays her down gently on the floor, as if he had the strength of a vampire and the tenderness of a lover. Again and again, he rings changes on these unbelievable lifts (which require partnering skills of unsurpassed community of intention). They are an objective

classicist, as an elegy for himself; he knows he is doomed, like Wilfred Owen. Vitor Luiz gave tremendous depth to Onegin’s alienation. All paths are blocked for him. He has no way out. He’s not just a cad. He has seen a ghost. His spirit may have died with Napoleon and the last hopes of the French Revolution; what he’s lost it’s impossible to say, but when he returns from exile and finds Tatiana married and happy, and suddenly feels some emotion, Luis made us feel it was the first time in a long time that he’d felt

correlative for young love. It’s no accident that choreography like this – the pirouette that turns into a caress, the leap that ends in racking sobs – developed in the 1960s, during the era of flower power. Cranko had already made a glorious Romeo and Juliet; had he lived (he died in a freak allergic-reaction accident), what would he have made? What we do have is these duets, and some equally wonderful solos; Lensky’s long lamentation before the duel was gloriously danced by Gennadi Nedvigin, our finest

anything except guilt and remorse. Maria Kochetkova soars through the lifts of the first act, she suffers in the second, she becomes very powerful in the last. As of this writing, I have seen only one cast. There were four, and each is likely to have danced in a different way. Our Olga, Clara Blanco, was promoted within SFB to soloist that night. The next day’s Olga, Dores Andre, was also promoted to soloist on the spot. Clearly, this ballet is in our future, and we can look forward to seeing them grow into these roles.▼

▼

TV >>

February 2-8, 2012 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 37

Culture of outrage A

h, the culture of outrage. There are so many examples of it on the tube these days. Some of it is important, like the protests in Syria, some of it frivolous, like Newt Gingrich blaming TV reporters for reminding people he left his first wife when she had cancer, cheated on his second wife when she was diagnosed with MS, and spent the first months of his presidential campaign buying his third wife little blue boxes at Tiffany’s to the tune of a nearly half-a-mil, and then taking a tour of the Greek islands. He does seem to have found his soulless mate in wife #3. But was the Jan. 26 episode of NBC’s 30 Rock a take-down of the culture of outrage? We think not. The episode, a two-parter with the previous one, attempted to lampoon one of its stars, Tracy Morgan (who plays a version of himself on the show, Tracy Jordan), by referencing last summer’s controversy over Morgan’s anti-gay shtick during one of his stand-up routines. Timely it wasn’t. In case you were off the planet when the Morgan story broke (and who of us wouldn’t like to be now and again, especially in an election year?), Morgan said he would “pull out a knife and stab” any son of his who was effeminate. This “joke” was so outrageous that even GLAAD noticed and demanded an apology, which Morgan gave. The former SNL star also did the whole community punishment – oops, we meant service – thing, talking about how bad it is to be a bigot. Unconvincingly. That was last summer. Did we mention it was last summer? So last week, at the end of January, seven months later, 30 Rock decides to take on the controversy. Talk about immediacy. If Tina Fey had to take time off to have a baby, probably best to just drop the whole idea. Because what the show decided to do was water down what Morgan said to, “Being gay is stupid! If you want to see a penis, take off your pants! If I got turned into a gay, I’d sit around all day and look at my own junk!” Seriously? So then there’s Big Gay Outrage to the faux Tracy’s comments and Liz (Fey) tells Tracy, “The gays are the most organized of all the communities. They make the Japanese look like the Greeks.” Oh good: something to offend everyone! Now that’s humor we can get behind. We’re not quite sure what the point of this was, but cutting-edge self-parody it was not. Rather, it just pointed out how a show that was once witty and urbane has become dull-witted and incapable of taking risks. Given that 30 Rock is up against powerhouse shows on the biggest ratings night of the week (Grey’s Anatomy, with actual queer characters; Person of Interest, one of the best and edgiest new shows; the brand-new Bones spin-off The Finder; and a coterie of teen eyecandy female and male witches in The Secret Circle), it might make sense to snap out of the dated torpor and make some actual statements. Certainly the woman who took down Sarah Palin should be able to deal with anti-gay bigotry better than this. Especially since so many of us thought Morgan should have been fired from 30 Rock at the time. Months ago. This not only didn’t make it better, it just reminded us of how angry we still are. First of all, there’s nothing wrong with outrage. Second, turning honest outrage into parody just

seems wrong. But then maybe we’re too sensitive since we’re, you know, queer. And not to put too fine a point on it, but should a straight guy named Tracy ever be telling jokes about gays? Speaking of gays, Tim Gunn, one of the most beloved queens ever to grace the small screen, delivered quite the bombshell on the Jan. 24 episode of his new show, The Revolution. We admit, we aren’t thrilled that this show replaced One Life to Live, a classic and queerfriendly soap, two weeks ago. That said, we’re happy to see Gunn on daytime (catch him in prime time on Project Runway, one of the best reality shows ever). He’s so good at makeovers. He really likes to make people feel good about their looks, even when it’s obvious to the audience that there’s not much to feel good about. He really puts the style in style queen. The Revolution focuses on life improvements: weight loss, eating healthy, home and style makeovers. The Jan. 24 show was devoted to improving your sex life. Gunn told the audience, “I haven’t had sex in 29 years.” He asserted, however, “Do I feel like less of a person because of it? No, not even remotely,” adding, “I have feelings. It’s not as though I’m some barren forest. I don’t want to imply to anyone that I have a mandate that says no sex.” And we always thought Gunn was a domineering daddy in those perfect pinstripe suits. Gunn, 58, was deeply emotional during the discussion and explained that he’d had an intense relationship for a long time with a man who had broken up with him. “He was impatient with my sexual performance,” Gunn said, looking as if he might cry. He added that this was during the height of the AIDS epidemic, and that many people retreated from sexual intimacy at the time. Gunn said it was the right choice for him. “I’m happy to be healthy and alive, frankly.” No doubt there will be blowback at Gunn for acknowledging his celibacy as a choice, but there was no renunciation of being gay. If anything, Gunn’s reveal makes it clear that sexual identity has nothing to do with sexual activity, but with orientation. Gunn’s as queer as the proverbial three-dollar bill despite not having had sex with anyone else since he was 29. Kudos to him for opening that closet door. We can only imagine how many men are now lining up to prove they can turn him back onto sex, or teach him some new tricks, so to speak. Some queer reveals are helpful, others, not so much. Tennessee State Senator Stacey Campfield, sponsor of a bill to keep any discussion of homosexuality out of the schools in the state that gave us the Scopes trial, had a few head-shaking things to say about queers, including this stunner, which he opined to Mike Signorile on his Sirius show: “Homosexuals represent about 2-3% of the population, yet look at television and plays and theaters. It’s 50% of the theaters, probably more than that, 50% of the theaters based on something about homosexuality.” Okay, where to begin with this one. Unless the only cable network Campfield gets is Logo (to which we could only say, that’s our idea of hell: nothing but the inaptly name A List and re-reruns of Queer as Folk to watch 24/7. And even though we like RuPaul, how much of him can we watch?), 50% of TV is not and has never been gay. We only wish that were the case. Even Glee isn’t half gay, and that’s the gayest show on the tube. And not to mix Adam’s

Tracy Morgan plays a version of himself, Tracy Jordan, on NBC’s 30 Rock. Was a recent episode a take-down of the culture of outrage?

apples and tea bags, but is there a lot of gay theater in Tennessee? Because there isn’t even that much gay theater in San Francisco and New York, the West and East Coast gay capitals of the U.S. But this alleged 50% is all part of the general “glorification” of homosexuality, Campfield said. Maybe he’s just listening to too much Lady Gaga? Campfield also noted that AIDS was caused by men screwing monkeys, saying, “Most people realize that AIDS came from the homosexual community. It was one guy screwing a monkey, if I recall correctly, and then having sex with men. It was an airline pilot, if I recall.” (We suggest Campfield reread Randy Shilts, and not just the right-wing Cliff ’s Notes version this time.) “My understanding is that it is virtually – not completely, but virtually – impossible to contract AIDS through heterosexual sex.” Sen. Campfield, the 1980s called and they want their discredited, bigoted AIDS transmission theories back. Might we say that a straight man named Stacey whose last name is Campfield has some cojones joking about gays? We would also add here that much of what Campfield says mirrors continued comments by presidential doubtful Rick Santorum (still in the running at press time) that have received no criticism in the mainstream TV media. Nor did the MSTVM feel the need to call out Newt Gingrich, who believes that marriage is only between one man and one or two or three or possibly more women, on this statement he made on Jan. 26: “It’s pretty simple: Marriage is between a man and a woman. This is a historic doctrine driven deep into the Bible, both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, and it’s a perfect example of what I mean by the rise of paganism. The effort to create alternatives to marriage between a man and a woman are perfectly natural pagan behaviors, but they are a fundamental violation of our civilization.” [h/t to Right Wing Watch for the transcript.] Perhaps Gingrich should watch the Nightline interview between his second wife Marianne and ABC Senior Correspondent Brian Ross. Sounds like Newt was the one with the pagan lifestyle, since she alleges that he asked her to be in an open marriage with his current wife as his mistress. Wife #3 Calista had an affair with Gingrich for six years

before he got his divorce. So yeah, we’ll listen to you on marriage when hell freezes over. Speaking of ABC, Primetime: What Would You Do? took on bigotry about same-sex marriage on the Jan. 27 episode. A man proposed to another man in a restaurant, prompting a male customer to go into an anti-gay diatribe. The refreshing part? Other people not only stood up for the gay couple, they called out the bigot. We often find this show a creepy vigilante version of Candid Camera, but we enjoyed this episode, which bolstered the perception that the majority of Americans are becoming more supportive of marriage equality. Unlike Newt. Because we don’t think he’ll be around that much longer and we have despised him for a long time, we wanted to revel in the fact that the most vitriolic attacks on Newt came from his own party. Not in the quiet of the Interwebs, either, but right out there on Fox, CNN and NBC. The most anti-Newt diatribe we heard on the tube this week came from Ann Coulter. On Fox and CNN, Coulter slammed South Carolinians for voting for him, saying their votes typified a mob mentality. Warning Tea Baggers, Coulter said, “With Newt Gingrich,

PERSONAL TRAINER

by Victoria A. Brownworth

you throw out the baby and keep the bathwater.” Bob Dole climbed out of his crypt to tell CNN that he helped Gingrich get a $150,000 line of credit to pay off his ethics fine. “It’s his way or the highway,” the former contender said irritably. And a Republican congressional source who declined to be named told NBC’s David Gregory on Meet the Press that Gingrich has “100 ideas: 97 are good, and three will blow up the world.” Hearing these comments almost makes us glad that Roll Call revealed this week that the Sunday morning talk shows are using Republicans rather than Democrats more than half the time for commentary. So you weren’t having a bias attack, it’s true. Speaking of bias attacks, we wish we could recommend Touch, the new Kiefer Sutherland drama on Fox about a relationship between a father and his autistic son who may be able to see into the future, but we keep expecting him to attack the kid and torture him. 24 really ruined Sutherland for us. But Fox’s other two new mid-season series, Alcatraz and The Finder, are worth a look. Alcatraz is the latest in JJ Abrams’ what-dimension-is-this series. Not as complex as Lost, but compelling with a strong interracial cast and an intriguing plot-line that involves mind control and government dirty-dealing, plus Alcatraz. It’s set in the City by the Bay: could there be a better reason to watch? Apparently since the show began airing, visitors to the prison have gone off the tour in search of what the series purports to show. And on Feb. 7, Steven Spielberg’s latest foray into the small screen debuts, The River on ABC. Created by Oren Peli of Paranormal Activity fame, it’s an eight-episode thriller with possibly supernatural overtones. Definitely worth a look. That same week NBC premieres its latest Show Most Likely to Be Cancelled with Smash, also exec produced by Spielberg. Anjelica Huston, Debra Messing, Katherine McPhee and Megan Hilty star in this series about putting on a Broadway show about Marilyn Monroe. The audience for this one is 12-year-old gay boys, Marilyn wannabes, former contestants from The Voice and Ryan Seacrest. The acting is terrific, but we give it three episodes. Finally, Rachel Maddow was a Jeopardy answer with a difficulty factor of five this week. Not one contestant could identify her from her photo. Which is one more reason you really must stay tuned.▼

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