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Summer deals in Palm Springs
Lyon-Martin director quits
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Mike Mills on 'Beginners'
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Serving the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender communities since 1971
CDC: Stigma hurts LGB youth
Lee open to reducing Pride’s debt by Matthew S. Bajko
I
nterim Mayor Ed Lee is willing to discuss ideas on how to reduce the amount of money Pride organizers still owe the city for services rendered during the 2010 celebration. As Rick Gerharter of June 1, the San Francisco LGBT Interim Mayor Pride Celebration Ed Lee Committee had yet to repay nearly $51,000 to the Department of Public Works for last year’s event. Pride recently paid the remainder of $1,200 it had owed the Recreation and Park Department when it submitted its deposit payment to use Civic Center Plaza for this year’s event, which takes place Saturday, June 25 and Sunday, June 26. Its total debt load for accounts payable to various vendors and
by Dana Rudolph Lydia Gonzales
LifeCycle riders on the move T
he 10th annual AIDS/LifeCycle ride left the Cow Palace early Sunday morning, June 5, as 2,350 bicyclists and 600 volunteer roadies began the weeklong, 545-mile trek to Los Angeles. The ride, a fundraiser for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, broke its fundraising record this
year, officials with both agencies said, with more than $13 million raised for the two organizations. The opening ceremonies, occurring on the 30th anniversary of the first reported AIDS cases, were heartfelt, as people honored those who have died and celebrated their commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS.
See page 20 >>
New SF police chief discusses Pink Saturday, gay officers
Lee says he doesn’t S want full term
by Seth Hemmelgarn
by Matthew S. Bajko
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ith the filing deadline to run for mayor two months away, pressure continues to mount to see interim Mayor Ed Lee jump into the race and seek a full term. But Lee insisted during an interview in late May with the Bay Area Reporter that he isn’t interested in occupying Room 200 at City Hall for the next four years. His focus, he said, is on working with supervisors to pass a balanced budget by July 1 and then convincing voters to adopt a pension reform measure he hammered out between city leaders, union officials, and business interests. That task will be easier, said Lee, by his not seeking the mayor’s post this fall. “I think people, and I understand if we See page 21 >>
Vol. 41 • No. 23 • June 9-15, 2011
Bryant Street. He referred to Pink Saturday as “a pure event” that doesn’t really draw “a lot of bridge and tunnel folks.” Outsiders “stick out” there, he said, and cited as an example someone who doesn’t appear to be enjoying the event. Suhr indicated more officers will be assigned to the annual street festival this year, and he encourages partygoers to talk to police if they see anything suspicious. Police have indicated they suspect people from outside the neighborhood were involved in the Powell shooting. The investigation remains open.
an Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr is looking forward to a safe Pink Saturday and the eventual promotion of out gay officers, he told the Bay Area Reporter last week. Discussing plans for Pink Saturday Suhr, 52, who was once the captain of Mission Station, which oversees the largely gay Castro neighborhood, said, “I consider myself somebody from the community,” and “I wouldn’t miss” the event. Pink Saturday is held on the night before the city’s LGBT Pride Parade and Gay promotions celebration and falls on June The issue of gay male 25 this year. officers earning promotions Safety concerns around has long been an issue the evening have been an Rick Gerharter in the SFPD. Currently issue, especially after last San Francisco Police Chief there are no out gay male year, when Stephen Powell, Greg Suhr officers above the rank of 19, was shot to death around sergeant. Out lesbians in the time the street party the department have been regularly promoted. ended. Suhr, a 30-year veteran of the department “It’s all about making sure it’s as safe an who was appointed chief by Mayor Ed Lee in event as it’s ever been,” said Suhr during the interview, which took place at his office at 850 See page 21 >>
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esbian, gay, and bisexual youth are more likely than their heterosexual peers to be at increased risk for unhealthy behaviors such as tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use; sexual behaviors that could lead to infection with Researcher HIV and other sexually Laura Kann transmitted diseases; attempting suicide; and violence, according to a groundbreaking new federal study. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, released the results of the study, “Sexual Identity, Sex of Sexual Contacts, and Health Risk Behaviors Among Students in Grades 9-12 in Selected Sites – Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance, United States, 2001– 2009,” on Monday, June 6. It represents the first time the federal government has conducted such a far-reaching analysis of LGB youth. Laura Kann, chief of the Surveillance and Evaluation Research Branch within the CDC’s Division of Adolescent and School Health, said that she attributes the “disproportionate” risks of LGB youth to the social difficulties they face, such as stigma, discrimination, and rejection by their families. This creates an environment that contributes to their “disproportionate” health risk behaviors. “If these kids had physically, emotionally acceptable environments – home, school, community, it’s unlikely that they would be practicing health risk behaviors at these rates,” she said. She noted that their increased risk of being involved in violent behaviors is “not because of who they are, but because of what they’re pushed into.” She explained, “It’s a response” to the social disapproval, rejection, and bullying they may face. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius also addressed the CDC report at Monday’s LGBT Youth Summit in Washington. “A study our department is releasing today found heightened levels of ‘unhealthy risk See page 20 >>
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June 9-15, 2011
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Oakland Pride on the horizon
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hile this month’s San Francisco LGBT Pride Parade and celebration is grabbing most of the media attention, organizers in Oakland held a fundraiser for that city’s Pride festival, which is planned for Sunday, September 4. Rosalyn Penelton, left, and her daughter, Christian, relaxed for a moment during the June 4 benefit at the Bench and Bar. For more information about Oakland Pride, visit www.oaklandpride.org.
Jane Philomen Cleland
SF Pride fixing finances by Seth Hemmelgarn
A
ebar.com
s the 41st annual San Francisco LGBT Pride Parade and celebration approaches, officials with the organization continue working to straighten out the organization’s finances. This year’s festivities are June 25-26. In December, the city controller’s office released an assessment of Pride that showed the organization was $225,000 in debt, among other problems. The agency recommended that board members gain better financial oversight skills. Pride interim Executive Director Brendan Behan said this week that Pride’s debt is at $141,000 so far this month, but they’re about to cut that figure further. “We have a deficit that’s manageable,” said Behan. “It’s sizable, but it’s manageable.” He said the nonprofit, which runs one of the world’s biggest LGBT events, has
Jane Philomen Cleland
Pride Interim Executive Director Brendan Behan
$56,000 in the bank. Behan said he and board members “are working very closely on all the numbers.” He said “just about every day,” he and others, including board treasurer Bill Hemenger, discuss budget items. Behan noted that Hemenger’s background includes financial knowledge he gained from his unsuccessful bid for the city’s Board of Supervisors last year. “We’re very optimistic. It’s going to
be a great Pride this year.” Hemenger said. Pride’s budget is $1.7 million. The current corporate sponsorship income is almost $507,000. Besides Hemenger, who joined Pride’s board in April, other recent additions to the governing body include Louise “Lou” Fischer, who has a degree in economics. Fischer said she sees it as “a great opportunity for me to contribute to Pride and help them turn things around.” Behan was named interim executive director in April. His involvement followed a tumultuous year for Pride. Among other changes, ex-executive director Amy Andre and Mikayla Connell announced their resignations in October. Andre’s last day was in November, and her position had remained open since then. The departure of Andre helped bring payroll expenses down. For the period October 1, 2009 through May 20, 2010, Pride’s payroll expenses were about $288,000. From See page 21 >>
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Defrocked Methodist minister to visit Bay Area by Ian Barrera
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straight former Methodist minister who was defrocked for marrying same-sex couples 12 years ago will be in the Bay Area this weekend to talk about his new book. Jimmy Creech and his wife, Chris Weedy, are longtime allies in the fight for marriage equality. Creech has just written a memoir, Adam’s Gift: A Memoir of a Pastor’s Calling to Defy the Church’s Persecution of Lesbians and Gays (Duke University Press). “The Christian hostility toward gay people comes from a fear of sexuality, not from the teachings of Jesus or the Bible,” Creech wrote in an email to the Bay Area Reporter. He said the involvement of the religious community is crucial in ending the discrimination, because the discrimination began with the religious community. Creech was defrocked by the United Methodist Church in 1999 after performing holy unions for same-sex couples. Now retired and living in Raleigh, North Carolina, Creech continues to speak out on civil rights issues. “He was a human bridge and his integrity strengthened our resolve to be gay and straight together,” said the Reverend Jim Mitulski, pastor at New Spirit Community Church in Berkeley and a longtime friend of Creech’s. “New Spirit Church reflects this shift – the era of gay people standing alone, being segregated voluntarily or involuntarily into gay separatist churches is over.” Creech’s book came about because of an experience he had in 1984, when he had a conversation with a parishioner named Adam, who was leaving a church that overtly rejected him because he
Natalia Weedy
Former minister Jimmy Creech
was gay. Creech instinctively sided with Adam and re-evaluated his own belief that homosexuality was a sin. How the conversation with Adam transformed Creech’s life and ministry is the subject of his book. “People who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender are oppressed by an insidious violence disguised as Christian morality. The cruelest aspect of this oppression is that gay people internalize this violence and hate themselves. This is spiritual violence perpetrated by the Christian church,” Creech writes. Creech is currently board chairman of the North Carolina Social Justice Project, and a board member of Faith in America. He was recently in Paris for last month’s observance of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. He was on a panel about Africa, where American See page 16 >>
Lyon-Martin director leaving by Seth Hemmelgarn
T
he interim executive director who had stepped in to try to help save the struggling LyonMartin Health Services clinic is quitting. Eric Fimbres had joined LyonMartin around late February. His last day will be July 1. In an email to a Save Lyon-Martin message group Friday, June 3, board Chair Marj Plumb wrote that Fimbres had recently notified her that he was ending his engagement working to try to turnaround the San Francisco clinic. “Basically, he’s been doing this work mostly pro bono, and it’s time for him to move on, and look for paid work,” Plumb said in a June 6 interview. Shortly after joining LyonMartin, Fimbres said that broken down hourly, he was being paid “probably no more than $10 or $12 an hour.” He had estimated the number of hours he’d be working each week at 60, but he’d indicated he might not bill for all of that. News of Fimbres’s departure reached the Bay Area Reporter last Thursday, June 2. But asked that day whether he was still with the clinic, Fimbres said he was, and said, “Why do you ask?” He kept the phone call short, apparently because he was working on an analysis for the board. In a later phone call, he indicated he still didn’t have time to talk. He didn’t respond to subsequent phone messages. Asked if Lyon-Martin would try to replace him, Plumb said that would be part of a special board meeting on Sunday, June 12. “Eric has done a great job for us, and we’re in the process of really
Rick Gerharter
Eric Fimbres
looking at a lot of his assessments in determining next steps,” said Plumb. “I’m confident we’ll be able to bring on whoever needs to be brought on to help us with those next steps.” In late January, Lyon-Martin’s board made the surprise announcement that the clinic was more than $500,000 in debt and would have to close in days. The move would have meant the abandonment of almost 2,500 clients, mostly women and transgender people. Supporters stepped in and have helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep the doors open. Overall, the clinic still has an estimated $1.1 million in debt. That includes money owed to the IRS. Asked how much longer the clinic could stay open, Plumb said, “If I knew that, I’d make a lot more money than I do in my consulting work.” See page 16 >>
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June 9-15, 2011
Volume 41, Number 23 June 9-15, 2011 www.ebar.com PUBLISHER Thomas E. Horn Bob Ross (Founder, 1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird ARTS EDITOR Roberto Friedman ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko Seth Hemmelgarn Jim Provenzano CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Dan Aiello • Tavo Amador • Matt Baume Erin Blackwell • Roger Brigham Scott Brogan • Victoria A. Brownworth Philip Campbell • Heather Cassell Chuck Colbert • Richard Dodds Raymond Flournoy • David Guarino Liz Highleyman • Brandon Judell John F. Karr • Lisa Keen • Matthew Kennedy David Lamble Michael McDonagh Paul Parish • Lois Pearlman Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota • Bob Roehr Donna Sachet • Adam Sandel • Jason Serinus Gregg Shapiro Gwendolyn Smith Ed Walsh • Sura Wood
ART DIRECTION Kurt Thomas PRODUCTION MANAGER T. Scott King PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland Marc Geller Rick Gerharter Lydia Gonzales Rudy K. Lawidjaja Steven Underhill Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Paul Berge Christine Smith
GENERAL MANAGER Michael M. Yamashita DISPLAY ADVERTISING Colleen Small Scott Wazlowski CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING David McBrayer
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News Editor • news@ebar.com Arts Editor • arts@ebar.com Advertising • advertising@ebar.com Letters • letters@ebar.com A division of Benro Enterprises, Inc. © 2011 Published weekly. Bay Area Reporter reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement which the publisher believes is in poor taste or which advertises illegal items which might result in legal action against Bay Area Reporter. Ads will not be rejected solely on the basis of politics, philosophy, religion, race, age, or sexual orientation. Advertising rates available upon request. Our list of subscribers and advertisers is confidential and is not sold. The sexual orientation of advertisers, photographers, and writers published herein is neither inferred nor implied. We are not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork.
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HRC’s wasted opportunity L
eave it to the Human Rights Campaign to render itself irrelevant in the 2012 presidential race. On May 26, just before the start of the long Memorial Day weekend, the nation’s largest LGBT lobbying organization quietly sent out a news release endorsing Barack Obama for re-election. HRC’s decision, while not surprising, means that the leading national voice for LGBT equality will be on the sidelines in the upcoming Republican presidential primary race. The move gives GOP presidential candidates no reason to appeal to gay voters; in fact, we believe the candidates will only feel freer to rail against same-sex marriage and the impending repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Some, such as virulently anti-gay former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, likely will do nothing but bash gays. Currently, the Republican presidential field is largely a who’s who of anti-gay conservatives: Santorum, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Other official candidates include businessman Herman Cain and perennial contender Texas Representative Ron Paul, who has libertarian views on some issues. Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman are likely, but have not announced officially yet. And there’s also gay GOP candidate Fred Karger, who despite raising more money than Pawlenty, was not invited to CNN’s debate this Monday because he did not score high enough in public opinion polls. (Part of the reason is that, as the Bay Area Reporter noted last month, polling firms often leave his name off when they do their surveys.) Due to the group’s early endorsement of Obama, now every time an HRC spokesman is called for comment on the GOP field, it will be noted that the organization is backing the president, which will diminish its message. While it’s true that HRC has endorsed far more Democratic than Republican candidates over the years, the explanation is that more Democratic politicians support LGBT equality. A shift is occurring, however, as some Republicans publicly support marriage equality (see: Mehlman, Ken) and several GOP politicians voted to repeal DADT last year. It would behoove HRC to take advantage of this
opening, rather than pigeon-hole itself. We’re not naive enough to think that the Republican presidential candidates would suddenly start supporting equal rights to garner an endorsement. But we do think that HRC jumped the gun and took away any reason for a GOP candidate to consider modifying his or her view. And there is one Republican candidate that gay voters should be watching: Huntsman is on record as supporting civil unions, which, while not the same as equal marriage rights, sets him miles apart from the other candidates at this point. But it’s not just the Republicans who get off easy with HRC’s endorsement. The president himself now has virtually no impetus to continue doing more for equal rights – he received HRC’s endorsement based entirely on work already accomplished. While some gay political observers believe that Obama might actively support marriage equality leading up to his reelection race next year, he has no reason to do so now. Had HRC withheld its endorsement, the group could have used the only leverage it has to persuade or cajole the president into doing the right thing. In its release, HRC mentioned the Obama
administration’s accomplishments regarding LGBT rights. These include, of course, pressing for passage and signing legislation to repeal DADT; pressing for passage and signing an inclusive hate crimes law, which is the first federal statute to explicitly include LGBT individuals; determining that the administration believes Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act to be unconstitutional and refusing to defend the discriminatory law in court; and requiring hospitals nationwide to adopt LGBTinclusive non-discrimination policies regarding visitation. HRC also pointed out, among other policy changes, that the president launched the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, allowed the Census Bureau to release data on married samesex partners; and extended a number of benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees possible under existing authority. These are all important steps and shifts in national policy that the community has never seen under any previous administration, Democratic or Republican. Yet there remains so much more work to do. It’s unfortunate that HRC chose not to look to the future and instead made a hasty decision that is a disservice to LGBT voters.▼
Our new straight allies (are right next door) by Abby Dees
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ne Sunday, while I was doing my usual shopping at the local farmers market, I got into a yelling match with a scary homophobe. I had stopped to chat with a guy collecting signatures for same-sex marriage, when suddenly a large man stepped between us, shoved a finger in Signature Guy’s chest, and loudly called him a child-recruiting pervert. I lost it, and started shouting random agog things, being otherwise speechless except for the yelling: “What is wrong with you?!” and “What the hell are you doing here?!” I couldn’t believe that a threatening bully homophobe was in my neighborhood, poking my people. Fury overwhelmed any more thoughtful, perhaps more constructive, response I could have offered. Both the homophobe and I retreated in opposite directions after a few more useless invectives and by the time I passed my favorite artichoke monger a wave of regret and defeat came over me. Couldn’t I have used my (clearly) superior mind and vocabulary to coolly vaporize the homophobe? Shouldn’t I have thought a moment about the safety of Signature Guy? Will hateful people ever go away and how will I stay sane in the meantime? So I walked back to Signature Guy to apologize for making things worse. He was now surrounded by a dozen or so concerned-looking shoppers and as soon as I said, “Hey, I’m really sorry...” they all seemed to interrupt me at once. “You don’t have anything to apologize for,” I heard, while a few other people agreed, “Absolutely” and “He was an a--hole.” A man, there with his wife and toddler, shook his head and said solemnly, “I hope we can look back one day and wonder what the big deal was about gay rights.” Signature Guy agreed and I appreciated
Attorney and author Abby Dees
the kindness after such an ugly scene. But for hours I still had the sensation of being slimed. Then I realized that I’d been focusing on the wrong thing. The homophobe wasn’t the meaningful encounter that morning – after all, there have always been hateful bigots in the world – the important thing was that my straight neighbors were there for me too, people who were as offended by the homophobe as I was. I had taken them for granted. Twenty-five years ago I don’t believe that so many people would have instantly stepped up on behalf of a gay signature collector (and a blathering lesbian with her jaw unhinged), even in my upscale urban neighborhood. Instead, the whole thing would have gone down more like Jerry Springer in the open air. Ooh, a fight by the beeswax candles! Sometime in the last few years – I’m not sure exactly when – a critical mass of straight people went from being on the sidelines of our
struggle to taking it personally. Even in the time between Proposition 8 and now, enough straight people have shifted their thinking about LGBT people that if it were put to a vote today, Prop 8 likely wouldn’t pass. Again, it’s easy to take this for granted when we see the homophobes still in our communities, on TV, dismantling our rights. We can feel utterly without allies when 39 states have outright banned same-sex marriage, and many places have stripped LGBT people of all legal protections. But let’s shift our attention for a moment. Americans who support marriage equality are now in the majority for the first time – 53 percent, according to a May Gallup poll. This is a 9 percent increase in the last year. As you’d guess, attitudes are split predominantly along generational lines. A cynical view would be that this change is only because people are dying. I’d argue the converse, that young people are increasingly of the “what is the big deal” school of thought, which I’ll take, even if it means they have no idea how hard the struggle’s been so far. These new supporters of our rights (I’ll assume that if they support marriage, they support LGBT rights generally, but there could be some wacky exceptions) aren’t just the people who limply punch out a chad every few years. These are our next allies – the people who are offended by an a--hole spouting hatred in our communities and willing to stand up about it. They may not all march on Washington; or be Gavin Newsom; or Ted Olson, the Bush-defending attorney who is also defending LGBT rights in federal court as I write; but we shouldn’t ignore their role in our unfolding history. While I despair at news of a proposed Tennessee law that bans all references to homosexuality in the school curriculum, I remember, too, that there are PFLAG moms in that good state taking on those bigoted See page 7 >>
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Letters >>
June 9-15, 2011 •
AOF did not understand core mission It’s sad that Academy of Friends is melting, melting like a character in the Wizard of Oz [“AOF not paying partners,” May 26]. Unlike that character, AOF is an organization that has done so much good over so many years. But what is even sadder is how disconnected the board seems to be from both the core mission of the organization and the core purpose of sitting on a board. Infidelity to these two organizational imperatives spells ultimate doom for even the most historically successful amongst us. AOF board Chair Alan Keith writes: “The gala is the core of who we are.” I thought the core mission of AOF had to do with friends who share a passion for film arts, and compassion for those who have HIV or at risk of contracting HIV. Glitz and glamour may – or may not – follow. The AOF board, well connected to the corporate world, failed to see the import of the worldwide financial crisis and subsequent recession on its ability to retain high value corporate donors who could finance a glitzy gala. A gala that in better years enhanced their cause, but that in bad years became an albatross that sunk them. Had the board understood its core mission and properly performed its financial oversight functions, AOF might have re-imagined the annual event in a way that strengthened the organization rather than destroying it. It may be too late for AOF, but it serves as a lesson for boards of other struggling organizations to think deeply about their mission and the viability of their business models. John Bare Former Academy of Friends underwriter San Francisco
Kicking AOF when it’s down I feel compelled to respond to the tone and slant of your front page article and lead editorial regarding the financial situation at Academy of Friends [“Lights out at AOF,” Editorial, May 26]. It really seems like you are kicking them when they are down. One would think that the many millions of dollars they have given away over 30-plus years would cause you to regard this all volunteer organization with a bit more respect. The nonprofit directors you quoted from groups like Project Inform and Maitri certainly did. Why do you allude to financial mismanagement on the part of the board without any depth of reporting as to the why the organization is raising less money or proof of actual improper actions. Did you really need to call these hard working volunteers “cowering animals” who “sneaked away” from your demands for information? What is the upside to AOF in promoting their situation in the press, especially to the B.A.R., which seems to have an odd desire to see the group cease operation. I think it stems from the fact that HIV is sadly no longer seen as an urgent problem. Money that used to go to AOF now goes to fighting Proposition 8, to Lambda Legal, or to the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, as community members feel that attaining marriage equality, fighting employment discrimination, or improving media exposure seems more important to people’s day-to-day lives. Gay men under 30 weren’t around to have friends die from AIDS or see people on the streets with lesions. Of all people, I would think the B.A.R. would be leading the charge to remind people how vital groups like AOF continue to be to the tenuous funding of HIV nonprofits and remind the community not to lose focus on what is still a major issue for LGBT people. The losers, as you correctly pointed out, are those suffering from the disease. It’s the easiest thing in the world to point fingers without lifting one. I would encourage concerned community members to get involved with AOF as a volunteer or board member. You’ll meet some incredible people who selflessly do great work for the community. It’s in the AOF mission statement to continue fundraising “until there’s a cure,” not “until no one gives a shit.” I hope the board can find a way to continue, and they can count on my continued support. Robert Murray, AOF Board Emeritus 2003-06 San Francisco
Cleve Jones never let up This is a thank you to Cleve Jones. We are all lucky he has moved back to San Francisco. He is a living link to our neighborhood’s illustrious past and the LGBT movement’s struggle for equal rights. I was talking with Jones in front of the old Human Rights Campaign’s store on 19th Street soon after its current move had been announced. Jones was intent on speaking about the need for the future location to serve more than the simple sale of HRC merchandise. He wanted the new space, which was Harvey Milk’s camera shop 30-plus years
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Guest Opinion From page 6
legislators. In Texas, the land where everything is big except for LGBT rights, Atticus Circle, an organization of straight allies, is promoting the “Gay? Fine by Me” campaign to increase LGBT awareness on college campuses. And last week, my slightly insane Marine veteran neighbor
ago, to house something more. He wanted LGBT youth who did not feel welcomed by our neighborhood to have a center or point of reference and entry into our community here. While we were talking, a phone call came in from the director of HRC and soon Jones was lobbying on the line, stressing the importance of including the creation of something substantive in that regard in the space HRC would come to occupy. Seasoned activist that he is, Jones never let up. That is to his great credit, a list of which keeps on growing. Now we have the Trevor Project housed in the back of Milk’s old camera shop. Thanks, certainly go to HRC, which had the understanding of the need and the willingness to work with Jones, Dustin Lance Black, and the Trevor Project to bring this important resource to our neighborhood. In its own quiet, everyday way, it brings experienced counsel to LGBT youth in crisis wherever they may be. It continues to shape as well as save lives every day. Milk’s legacy of hope lives on in his old shop in the Castro he helped to found. He would be proud to see that his community still cares about those of us who are just coming up and struggling to come out as we did. His good friend, Cleve Jones, saw to it. Isak Lindenauer San Francisco
EQCA timing is off Thanks, Seth Hemmelgarn. Beautifully crafted bio on new Equality California executive director, sir, and your deliciously snarky closing just made me spit coffee ... a perfect moment to reflect on EQCA’s idiotic timing of the announcement: just as the “outreach” town hall events happen without the new leader in attendance [“EQCA names new ED,” May 19]. Such a huge and unsubtle indicator of more likely horrid and unprofessional vital organizational management to come, it would seem. Great reporting of important issues unanswered. Michael D. Moore Sacramento, California
Childish article I find that your article published in the June 2 edition of the Bay Area Reporter is very petty and I wonder why you don’t focus your attention on matters that are more important [“Local artist curates exhibit while facing charge”]. I think that you need to be the adult in the matter and not use the upper hand that you guys have in media matters to settle personal issues with. I am deeply disappointed with the lack of professionalism that is demonstrated by your actions; frankly it is very childish. Bryan Gambogi, Chief Operating Officer Creative Monster Productions
Thanks to Herth A heartfelt thanks goes out to Herth Real Estate for hosting the successful beautification benefit and art show to fundraise for hanging flower baskets on Castro Street. The evening turned out to be a wonderful community event. The art featured local artists, was of an incredible high quality and at one point the estimate was that between 200-300 people came through to view the art and make a donation. Thank you to all those who donated to the Flower Basket campaign. Tax deductible donations to support Flower Baskets on Castro Street can still be made securely online at www.castrocbd.org or by mailing a check to Castro Community Benefit District, 584 Castro Street #336, San Francisco, CA 94114. Checks should be made out to the Castro CBD, with flower baskets noted on the check. Andrea Aiello, Executive Director Castro/Upper Market CBD San Francisco
Residents make eatery feel welcome The staff and owners of Criolla Kitchen would like to say thank you to all of our friends and neighbors in the Castro quarter that have made us feel so welcome. We feel privileged and fortunate to be full to the brim every night with the coolest, nicest, most fun guests on the planet. Thank you, thank you, thank you! It was our early hope that Criolla Kitchen would be a real “neighborhood joint;” your kind words and repeat visits make us feel like we are well on our way. Thank you Castro for your warm embrace, we hope to prove ourselves worthy of your support and kindness for many years to come.
proudly stood up for all of us at his barbershop when a fellow patron squealed about the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” I’ll take it all. When you’re in a minority, you can’t win the fight without allies, as our civil rights forbears well knew. While we still have so much work ahead, it is time to expect our straight allies to be alongside us – and to let them know
Chef Randy Lewis, Stephen Weber, Stephen H. White, and Michael Patterson San Francisco
how much it matters.▼ Abby Dees is a Los Angeles-based civil rights attorney, editor, and author. She has been involved in lesbian, gay and bisexual rights and awareness work for 25 years. She has written a book called Queer Questions Straight Talk. For more information, please visit www. queerquestionsstraighttalk.com.
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June 9-15, 2011
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The Cats’ resort by Raymond Flournoy
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hey say that when the cat’s away the mice will play, but when the owner’s away, what are a cat’s play options? Mission: Cats, a new queer-owned cat hotel in the Mission neighborhood offers kitties a “summer camp” experience that mixes individualized care with hightech conveniences. Owned by life-partners Genna Darby and Ash Wilkie, Mission: Cats opened its doors in March and already has found a dedicated client base. “We were expecting business to grow slowly over time, but after a few weeks things really took off. Recently we’ve had weeks with no open reservations,” said Wilkie. They are looking into hiring extra staff to keep up with the demand, but Wilkie and Darby have no plans to expand yet. The 1,200-square foot facility houses a maximum of 20 cats, with the centerpiece being three large, themed playrooms. The sleeping quarters include individual “studio apartments” or six-foot high “loft apartments” that kitties can optionally share. For owners who want to check up on their charges, the Mission: Cats website hosts streaming “cat cams” of the various rooms. For an additional charge, owners can also request email or text message updates. If you are not a cat owner, Darby and Wilkie can help out with that situation as well. They have partnered with Wonder Cat Rescue to foster rescue cats and have already successfully placed eight cats with adoptive homes. Visit missioncats.net to see the cat cams and to make online reservations. For information on Wonder Cat Rescue, visit www.petfinder. com/shelters/wondercatrescue.html.
Cliff’s defies the rain, celebrates 75 years Cliff’s Variety was not going to let a rainy forecast ruin their party. On Saturday, June 4, the staff of the Castro landmark celebrated the store’s 75th anniversary in business with a day of activities that ended with customers literally dancing in the aisles. In the morning, the AIDS Emergency Fund feted a roster of honorees, including Cliff’s owners Martha and Ernie Asten, at a ceremony at Toad Hall (4146 18th Street). At noon, Cliff’s hosted a family matinee of The Love Bug at the Castro Theatre (429 Castro Street). But unseasonal showers almost jeopardized the centerpiece of the day – a retro tea dance, scheduled at 2 p.m. in the parking lot behind the theater. With the quick thinking of the Cliff’s staff, the dance was relocated indoors and soon customers and employees alike were disco dancing among the merchandise. The day’s events netted approximately $10,420.65 for three beneficiaries: AEF, the Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy, and the Rainbow Honor Walk. “Our neighborhood is amazing and we are so grateful for their support. But it truly could not have been done without my amazing employees who helped pull together and execute a rainy day plan that we didn’t know we were going to need and didn’t even have until Thursday afternoon,” said general manager Terry Asten Bennett.
Steven Kasapi
Mission: Cats co-owners Ash Wilkie and Genna Darby pose with hotel guest Shadow and rescue kitty Ghost in the jungle-themed playroom.
with a performance by the Saddle Cats western swing band. The free concert begins at 1 p.m. The concerts are sponsored by the Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District and are scheduled to occur throughout the summer on the second Sunday of each month. Future performers include T Mambo Afro-Cuban Band, Andre Theirry and Zydeco Magic, and swing vocalist Belinda Blair.
Advocating for financial health On June 15 from 7 to 9 p.m., Wells Fargo Bank is hosting the Advocate Money Minute Event Series at Sir Francis Drake Hotel (450 Powell Street). The seminar will feature legal and financial experts discussing the peculiarities of financial and estate planning for LGBT individuals. The seminar is a production of the gay newsmagazine the Advocate, which also produces the online Money Minute video series, providing financial advice for the gay community on a variety of topics. For more information and to reserve a space, visit the event’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ event.php?eid=184817418232965.
Ike’s on top Castro eatery Ike’s Place appears to have taken first place in ESPN’s Fanwich competition, in which Facebook users were invited to vote for their favorite sports-themed sandwich. As of the final day of voting on June 5, Ike’s “Matt Cain: World Championship Edition” sandwich led the field of 192 entrants by a margin of 1,700 votes. The sandwich celebrates the San Francisco Giants pitcher with a combination of salami, turkey, roast beef, fried cheese, and onion rings.
Pride exposed
Castro swings into summer
On June 23 from 5 to 8 p.m., the Golden Gate Business Association hosts the ninth annual Pride Business Expo at the Hotel Whitcomb (1231 Market Street). The event is a showcase for LGBTowned businesses from around the Bay Area. A portion of the proceeds from the evening benefit the eQuality Scholarship Network, a scholarship program for students from northern and central California. The event is co-sponsored by the Bay Area Reporter, Barefoot Wine and Bubbly, Blue Angel vodka, and the Hotel Whitcomb. For information on becoming an exhibitor, visit ggba.com. ▼
The summer music series Sunday Music in the Castro returns to the Jane Warner Plaza on June 12,
Contact Raymond Flournoy at castroshopper@yahoo.com.
â–ź
Politics >>
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 9
Maps hold good news for gay South Bay candidates by Matthew S. Bajko
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he state’s Citizens Redistricting Commission is set to release its draft maps for Assembly, Senate, and congressional districts Friday, June 10 and if preliminary outlines hold true, there likely will be good news for two gay South Bay Assembly candidates. According to early mockups released this week, called “visualizations� by the consultants helping the commission do its work, it appears out Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager and openly gay Campbell City Councilman Evan Low will no longer reside in the same state Assembly District seat. Should the redrawn maps hold, then the two men would not have to run against each other next year. Low has already launched his bid for the 24th Assembly District seat held by Jim Beall (D-San Jose), who will be termed out in 2012. As the district now covers the section of San Jose where Yeager lives, he has been exploring a run for the seat. But the proposed maps show that San Jose would have its own Assembly seat, while Campbell would be combined with the towns of Saratoga, Cupertino, and Santa Clara to make up a Silicon Valley Assembly seat. If those district boundaries are adopted, then the South Bay’s LGBT community will have the chance to elect two of its own to the Statehouse next fall. Yeager said he is hopeful that will be the case but will not know
Rick Gerharter
Ken Yeager
for sure until more detailed maps are released showing the exact boundary lines. His home is right near the border with Burbank, an unincorporated area that appears to fall within the Silicon Valley district. “It is impossible to know exactly which district my house is in,� said Yeager, who has been waiting to make a final decision about an Assembly run based on which district he will live in. “It is possible they put my house in that San Jose district and put Burbank into Silicon Valley, but I can’t really tell.� Low now faces the likelihood of being in the same Assembly District as his boss, Assemblyman Paul Fong (D-Cupertino). Fong currently represents the 22nd Assembly District and has another
two years before he is termed out of office. He could opt to seek a state Senate seat next year, thus avoiding running for the same Assembly seat as Low. “He is thinking about whether or not to pursue a run for Senate. There are many moving factors as it relates to the Assembly seat. If he runs for re-election, I am not going to run against my boss,� said Low. Fong currently represents the 22nd Assembly District and has another two years before he is termed out of office. He could opt to seek a state Senate seat next year, thus avoiding running for the same Assembly seat as Low. As for the potential of a gay versus gay match up, it would still exist but wouldn’t happen until 2018. For should Low and Yeager be elected to their respective Assembly seats and then opt to run for state Senate when they are termed out, they likely would find themselves adversaries as the unofficial maps have the two Assembly Districts nested within the same Senate seat boundary. In San Francisco, as expected, the city’s two state Senate Districts have given way to one Senate District, with Daly City and Colma making up the southern boundary, based on the initial outline. Marin County and parts of Sonoma County would no longer be grouped in with half of the city, and instead, have their own Senate seat. It remains to be seen how the San Francisco district will be numbered to correlate with one of the seats now held by the city’s Democratic senators, Mark Leno or Leland Yee. The openly gay Leno could See page 19 >>
You Have Dreams. Aspirations. Goals.
Building Dreams Together
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ebar.com
10 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< Summer Travel
June 9-15, 2011
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Summer deals heating up in Palm Springs by Ed Walsh
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he continuing sluggish economy and the slower summer season has translated into some great deals in Palm Springs. The fourth annual Summer Splash discount program began this month and continues through September 15. All you need to do is pick up a free Summer Splash card when you get into town. The hotels that are participating in the program will all have the cards available when you check in and you will find them in other participating businesses around town. The cards list all the places where you can use them for discounts. For a list of hotels that are also participating in the deal, visit the Summer Splash website at www. palmspringssummersplash.com. There are a couple dozen resorts that cater to gay men and two that are marketed for lesbians. You don’t have to be afraid of the summer heat at the resorts. All have misters that make it possible to sit out in the sun even when mercury pushes 100 degrees and beyond.
Ed Walsh
Leon Aaron, left, and Tony Gallardo are the owners of the new Rainbow Bar and Grill in Palm Springs, which opened earlier this year.
What’s new in Palm Springs? The city’s newest gay resort, Pura Vida, is scheduled to open this summer and its owner, David Reid, has promised it will be the most upscale gay resort in Palm Springs. That is a tall order considering some of the other very high-end resorts in town, including its neighbor in the Warm Sands neighborhood, the Hacienda, and on the north side of town, the East Canyon Hotel and Spa. Pura Vida is in place of the old Bacchanal Resort, across the street from InnDulge. Reid, who is from Vancouver, bought the property last year and has obviously poured an incredible about of money into it. About the only remnants of the old Bacchanal property is the shape of the pool. Everything else in the eight-room property is new and very upscale. The property is not clothing optional, but if you are itching to sunbathe au-naturel, all rooms have a private patio. The resort also has a liquor license. Free booze and soft drinks are included, as is an expanded continental breakfast. Another new addition to the gay Palm Springs scene is the Rainbow Bar and Grill in the gay business district on Arenas Road near Indian Canyon Drive. The old Rainbow Cactus went out of business three years ago and people were beginning to wonder if the space would ever be occupied again. Business and life partners Leon Aaron and Tony Gallardo bought and rehabbed the space, opening it this year on St. Patrick’s Day. The couple will continue to run the popular Leon’s Bar and Grill and Leon’s at the Canyon in Palm Springs’ Indian Canyons. What kind of hotel deals can you expect in Palm Springs over
bartabsf.com
Ed Walsh
A statue of Marilyn Monroe, draped in a rainbow flag, greets customers at Pinocchio in the Desert in Palm Springs.
the summer? The biggest chunk of visitors to Palm Springs drive in from Los Angeles and San Diego. Most of those come in for a weekend getaway, so most resorts limit the discount to weekdays, but a few also will give you weekend deals. Some hotels are offering discounted weekday stays as low as $69 while others are offering free nights if you stay two or more nights. Some of the gay hotels not listed on the Summer Splash website will also give you deals. For example, the lushly landscaped Vista Grande Resort is offering a free night if you stay two nights from Sunday through Friday beginning July 6 through August 30. The fabulous Santiago resort has $99 rooms every day in the summer.
Nightlife deals Hunters and Streetbar, in the heart of the gay Arenas Road area, are offering one of the best deals around. Show your card for a free T-shirt. The Arenas Road video bar, Spurline, is offering 2-for-1 drink specials. In Warm Sands, show your
Splash pass at the Tool Shed and get happy hour prices anytime for your first well drink or domestic beer. Restaurants have also gotten into the act. A number of gay-friendly restaurants are offering specials that allow you to chow down on the cheap. Billie D’s will give you 20 percent off with the Splash pass. Sign up on Hamburger Mary’s Facebook page to get the Summer Splash deals. Bongo Johnny’s is offering $1 mimosas until 5 p.m. The fabulous Trio restaurant is offering 10 percent off after 6 p.m. and before 6, you can get its prix fixe three-course meal for $19. For breakfast and lunch, be sure and check out Pinocchio in the Desert. It’s easy to spot with the statue of Marilyn Monroe in front draped in a rainbow flag. It’s famous for its bargain $3 drinks and $3.95 bottomless champagne. The Palm Springs Art Museum is offering another great deal for Splash pass holders. Just show your pass for free admission for two, plus you will get a 10 percent discount at the museum store. ▼
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Community News>>
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 11
Pink triangle organizers seek volunteers compiled by Cynthia Laird
I
t’s Pride Month and that means Patrick Carney and others at Friends of the Pink Triangle are looking for volunteers to help with this year’s installation. This year marks the 16th installation of the pink triangle on Twin Peaks. The triangle is intended to help educate the public to what can happen when hatred and bigotry become law; the symbol was used by the Nazis to identify gay prisoners during World War II. Carney said that about 100 people are needed Saturday, June 25 from 7 to 10 a.m. Volunteers are asked to bring a hammer and to wear closed-toe shoes and sunscreen. Then at 10:30 a.m. the dedication ceremony will take place featuring local political leaders, Pride Parade grand marshals, the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band, and others. The pink triangle will be up for two days. Carney said that people are also needed to help take it down on Sunday, June 26 beginning at 5 p.m. Sponsors for this year’s installation include the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee, Toad Hall owner Les Natali, the Castro Lions Club, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and the Grand Ducal Council of San Francisco. To volunteer, email friends@ thepinktriangle.org. For more information, visit www.thepinktriangle. org.
SF Dyke March volunteer meetings The San Francisco Dyke March will host two meetings open to the public June 11 and 13 for volunteers who want to work on June 25, the day of the march Roaring back from the brink of being canceled this year, the 19th annual San Francisco Dyke March is on schedule, said Happy/L.A. Hyder, a core committee member of the group. “Our community has responded just magnificently,” Hyder told the Bay Area Reporter. This year’s “Better Together”themed march is a response to the It Gets Better anti-bullying campaign that is in the news. Organizers hope “to turn that passive statement into a call for action that engages Bay Area lesbians,” according to a statement provided by Hyder. There is a suggested $5-$10 donation for the event. Volunteers are still needed to ensure that the march goes off
smoothly. Individuals interested in volunteering can attend the meeting and trainings, Saturday, June 11 from 3 to 5 p.m. and Monday, June 13 from 6 to 8 p.m. in the ceremonial room at the San Francisco LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market Street. For more information, visit www. thedykemarch.org or email info@thedykemarch.org.
Patrick Carney, left, looks over at volunteers during an installation of the pink triangle on Twin Peaks.
Courtesy Patrick Carney
Panel to discuss dotcom boom’s effect on the Castro The late 1990s was a turning point for the Castro as the dotcom boom saw rents soar as some landlords looked for ways to get rid of long-term, rent-controlled tenants, many of them people living with HIV/AIDS who had lived in the neighborhood since the 1970s. Queer activists joined with Metropolitan Community Church-San Francisco to help youth and others priced out of the gayborhood with a variety of services. On Thursday, June 16, from 7 to 9 p.m., some of those activists will hold a discussion at the GLBT
History Museum, 4127 18th Street. Joining moderator Paola Bacchetta will be longtime activists Tommi Avicolli Mecca and Gabriel Haaland. They will be joined by the Reverend Jim Mitulski, who was the senior pastor at MCC-SF during that time and is now pastor at New Spirit Community Church in Berkeley. The panel will discuss the pickets and other actions that regularly took See page 19 >>
12 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
June 9-15, 2011
Serving the LGBT communities since 1971
Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 13
14 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
June 9-15, 2011
Serving the LGBT communities since 1971
Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 15
16 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< Community News
June 9-15, 2011
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Defrocked minister From page 4
missionaries have contributed to a dangerously homophobic environment, most notably in Uganda. “The most potent power lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender [people] have to make positive change – to achieve full civil and human rights and social acceptance – is their belief in their inherent dignity and integrity and their courage to let the world know who they really are. Those who have this belief and courage will change the world,” Creech stated.
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Lyon-Martin From page 4
But she said the clinic’s “in bad shape.” “We’re on the edge of the cliff,” she said. “A strong wind and a good shake of the ground and we may not be able to make it. Everybody still has their shoulder to the wheel trying to see if we can keep this going.” She said Fimbres’s departure wouldn’t impact whether the clinic stays open. “It can’t be just about one person,” said Plumb. “It’s a bigger clinic than that.” She said the move was completely his idea. The meeting Sunday will be public from 12:30 to 2 p.m. The rest will be in executive session. Plumb didn’t provide location information by press time. In related news, Melyssa Mendoza and Stacy Pike Long, whom Plumb said are members of the group Save Lyon-Martin, have joined the board. Board members Kimberly Gillette and Patrick Noonan have left the board, although their resignations
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Creech’s upcoming visit to the Bay Area is being organized in part by the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry at the Pacific School of Religion. On Saturday, June 11 at 5:30 p.m. CLGS and New Spirit Community Church at PSR will host a reception where Creech and his wife will be receiving a CLGS Leading Voices Award for their collaborative ministry. The event takes place at Easton Hall, Church Divinity School of the Pacific, 2451 Ridge Road, Berkeley. Following the reception Mitulski will be joined by Emma Donohew, Randall Miller, and the Reverend Karen Oliveto and the panel will talk
about the significance of Creech’s work in a historical and theological context; Creech will also talk about his work. On Sunday, June 12 at 11 a.m. Creech will deliver the sermon at New Spirit Community Church’s Sunday service, joined by clergy from several denominations. The church is located at 1798 Scenic Avenue, Berkeley. At 7 p.m. that evening he will be preaching at Metropolitan Community ChurchSan Francisco, 150 Eureka Street, in the Castro. His Facebook page lists his public events http://on.fb.me/ JimmyCreech.▼
won’t be effective until July, said Plumb. She said former board chair Lauren Winter resigned a couple weeks after she became the new chair. That leaves four board members. Plumb said they’re working to recruit more people, and she’s invited others from Save Lyon-Martin and senior clinic staff to Sunday’s meeting. The clinic’s website didn’t reflect the changes as of Wednesday morning, June 8. Long and Mendoza confirmed they have joined the board. Gillette and Winter didn’t respond to requests for comment. Noonan couldn’t be reached. Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi had proposed a loan of $150,000 for the clinic, but his move hasn’t made it past a Board of Supervisors committee. Unless the clinic can assure it is viable, there likely won’t be any financial help coming from the city, interim Mayor Ed Lee told the B.A.R. last month. While Lyon-Martin has “earned its reputation because of its past sustained level of service,” said Lee,
“we are now at the point that is in question.” Lee has not been directly involved in the matter, but said he is “cognizant” of the situation. The city’s number one concern, he said, remains seeing that the clinic’s current clients receive care. “The first thing to do is make sure patients are taken care of. That is the number one thing,” said Lee. “I wanted to make sure that was done and then see what is sustainable with that institution. Is it sustainable on its own? Does it have good management?” If the answers to those questions are no, then Lee suggested it doesn’t make sense for the city to loan the clinic money and other solutions may be the right answer. “If they are not sustainable, is this the time to merge their operation with another agency? That is where we are at in our discussions” said Lee. “We have to discuss alternatives other than just floating them a loan.”▼ Matthew S. Bajko contributed to this report.
Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 17
18 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< The Sports Page
June 9-15, 2011
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Courtroom operatics by Roger Brigham
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he cold, wet days that have cursed our early June have been the perfect excuse to stay inside, curl up with some good reading material, and pray for sunnier days to come. Lacking good reading material, I turned to a few thousand pages of legal documents for two upcoming court trials of great import to the LGBT sports world. By comparison, my brief break to see San Francisco Opera’s Götterdämmerung was a refreshingly light-hearted romp. A partial summary judgment issued last week by U.S. District Judge John Coughenour, allowing the Gay Softball World Series rule, which allows a “maximum of two heterosexual players on a GSWS roster,” to stand was hailed by supporters of the segregationist policy. Less reported is that the judge also ruled that the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance event falls under public accommodation laws – something the association had contested. The trial, now moved to August 1, will consider the propriety of how NAGAAA enforced its rule and its discriminatory implications. “I think the court’s First Amendment analysis is somewhat of a surprise,” said Christopher Stoll, a senior staff attorney at the National Center for Lesbian Rights. “We’re very happy with his ruling that NAGAAA is covered by the law against discrimination. The court order does not resolve or dismiss any of the claims now that are moving forward. We’re looking forward to having our guys vindicated.” The lawsuit is on behalf of three
NCLR attorney Christopher Stoll
men of color from the D2 softball team that was disqualified after playing in the championship game of the 2008 GSWS. Players John Russ and Steven Apilado and player/ coach LaRon Charles said they and a few white players were called in for an interrogation that was personally invasive and upsetting, requiring them to discuss their sexual practices and inclinations. Despite giving the same answers as some of the white players, they were the ones who were ruled “not gay.” “The court finds that NAGAAA is a public accommodation, but that the First Amendment protects their right to exclude those whose membership would negatively impact their expressive activity,” Coughenour wrote. “Plaintiffs’ allegations about defendant’s treatment of bisexuality remain of central importance to this case. And defendant could still be liable for its actions. Whether or not defendant’s treatment of plaintiffs at the protest hearing is deserving of First Amendment protection remains to be seen.” NAGAAA had argued it was a “distinctly private club,” which would give it exemption from the anti-discrimination laws. But Coughenour wrote that rather than being private, “NAGAAA’s mission statement celebrates inclusivity and states that its mission is to promote amateur competition ‘for all persons regardless of age, sexual orientation or preference, with special emphasis on the participation of members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community.’” The judge did rule that NAGAAA, like the Boys Scouts of America, is an “expressive organization,” but that although deference is given to such a group’s view of how its expression would be impaired, “This deference is not absolute. Associations like NAGAAA cannot ‘erect a shield against anti-discrimination laws simply by asserting that mere acceptance of a member from a particular group would impair its message.’” Now, NAGAAA’s defense of its policy is that it was created as a response to sports environments that were hostile and dangerous for people perceived as gay. And yet, many other sports organizations were formed for very much the same reason and have thrived quite nicely without similar discriminatory language. Running, track and field, basketball, wrestling, rugby, aquatics ... organizations in a boundless number of disciplines have strong LGBT identity and expression without restricting straight involvement, and many of them come together every four years in the world’s biggest participatory multisport event, the Gay Games. In fact, softball is played in every Gay
Games with no screening for sexual identity. NAGAAA’s rule also presumes a person is either heterosexual or homosexual. Would that the world were colored with such black and white certainty. The rule does not accommodate bisexuals, intersex individuals or people who are not certain, asexual, or not inclined to label themselves. And NAGAAA did not claim the players were wearing “Yes on Prop 8” or “Not Adam and Steve” T-shirts. These are players who actively support gay softball in San Francisco, are part of our community and accepting of others. They simply failed to pas the inquisitors’ sniff test. Didn’t seem gay enough. Knock the defenders of the NAGAAA policy off their soapbox and the reason for the ruling distills down to one four letter word. Fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of those who are different. Fear of openness. Fear of being free of labels and stereotypes to hide behind. Sounds a lot like the homophobia it is supposed to be fighting. So unnecessary, so locked into the pass rather than reaching for the future.
On to Cleveland Interestingly, the participation of straights in LGBT sports at an organizational level is raised in the lawsuit that will play out on the shores of Lake Erie in July. There, Cleveland Synergy Foundation, which in 2009 had won the bid to host Gay Games IX in 2014, is suing the Federation of Gay Games, the Greater Cleveland Sports Foundation, and the city of Cleveland and one of its employees for their alleged roles in the FGG’s decision last year to terminate CSF’s Gay Games license. Thousands of pages of documents purported to be copies of trial depositions obtained through public information requests that give conflicting accounts of CSF’s fall from grace have been posted on the Internet. As I read them, I had moments of laughter, moments of anger, but mostly a feeling of sadness. There are repeated mentions of FGG’s internal dissatisfaction with the CEO of the 2010 Gay Games as the FGG and CSF were negotiating the final terms of their license agreement and the dynamics of CSF’s involvement with Cologne. There are questions about the propriety and motivation of the creation of a profit enterprise simultaneously by the founders of CSF’s nonprofit entity. There are reports of arrogance and discourtesy, of people scheming and lobbying to make money, and of an organization that was supposed to be focused on getting ready for the state’s biggest sporting event ever too stretched by ancillary projects. All of which has a dreadful tedium to it and I will wait for the court to sort it out. The items of more emotional resonance are the protests raised by CSF with the organization created to replace it as the host, the Cleveland Special Events Group Corporation, and alleged homophobic language and attitudes exhibited by some of the people who will now be involved in the event. The objection to CSEG, which involves most of the partners who sat on the CSF council but not the founders of CSF, is that it is not essentially an LGBT group, a requirement for bidding on the Gay Games. The objection to the language and attitudes exhibited is that they are inappropriate always and in conflict with the Gay Games See page 19 >>
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Obituaries>>
Bernice Becker August 13, 1921 – May 10, 2011
Bernice Becker was born on August 13, 1921 in Brooklyn, New York. She died of pneumonia on May 10 surrounded by family and friends after a long struggle with declining health. She was predeceased by son Marty and is survived by daughters Joanie and Bobbie; grandchildren Julia and Gabe; her sister Adele; and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends. Despite her regret that she could not afford to attend college she was self-educated in health issues, history, current events, and politics. While raising her three children in Brooklyn, she fought for schools, safe streets, tenants’ rights, and racial equality in her community. Upon moving to San Francisco in 1976, she worked for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. As cofounder of the San Francisco chapter
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Political Notebook From page 9
find himself without a seat to run for next year if the Senate District is given an even number as he now represents an odd-numbered district. Of course none of this is set in stone and could still be changed. The commission’s draft maps will be available on its website Friday at wedrawthelines.ca.gov. It will be holding a meeting in San Francisco the Monday evening after Pride, June 27, to gather input on the boundaries before making its final decision later this summer in August.
SF mayoral events this weekend A who’s who of progressive LGBT leaders have signed on to the Queers for Avalos group helping to elect Supervisor John Avalos as San Francisco’s next mayor. The straight, married Avalos, a former social worker, is among the top tier of nine contenders vying for Room 200 at
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News Briefs From page 11
part in the Castro in the activists’ fight against gentrification.
How the red ribbon came to be Bay Area Physicians for Human Rights will hold a program Friday, June 10 that looks at the group’s history in the development and genesis of the red ribbon, which has come to be an international symbol of AIDS awareness. There will also be a video viewing of Dr. Paul Volberding’s film Life Before the Lifeboat: San Francisco’s Courageous Response to the AIDS Outbreak. The evening begins with a hosted bar at 6:30 p.m., followed by the program at 7. It takes place at the Gazebo located on the California Pacific Medical Center, Davies Campus, Castro and Duboce streets in San Francisco. BAPHR is the first physician group supporting the LGBT community. The affiliated BAPHR Foundation
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Jock Talk From page 18
mission. On the other hand, CSEG does have significant LGBT involvement, and the language and attitudes objected to are some of the very reasons why the FGG voters chose Cleveland in the first place: to march in and change attitudes, to educate by example. My sadness comes from the fact that I was one of the FGG delegates who voted for Cleveland. I know the impact the Gay Games
of Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, she encouraged parents of gays to understand and accept their gay children. On a personal level she was a fierce proponent of peoples’ rights and fought injustice wherever she saw it. She believed that “there is no such thing as impossible if struggles occur on the people level.” It can truly be said that no one who met Bernice will ever forget her. Rest at last. Memorial to be held in July. For details, send your contact information to bernicememorial@hotmail.com.
Robert Milan Rendulic August 23, 1943 – May 29, 2011
Robert Milan Rendulic (a.k.a. Roxy) of Hayward, CA, went to be with the Lord on May 29. He was the beloved brother of David A. Rendulic (Kathleen), and Daniel Rendulic (Linda), both of Port Vue,
City Hall. Some of the notable names from the LGBT community backing his campaign include Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco); Supervisor David Campos; Paul Melbostad, legal counsel for the Bay Area Reporter; former Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club presidents Rafael Mandelman, David Waggoner, and Gwenn Craig; and former Ethics Commissioner Eileen Hansen. They are among the hosts behind a kick-off event for the Queers for Avalos group that will feature a chance to meet the candidate from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, June 10 at Dolores Park Cafe, 501 Dolores at 18th Street. On Saturday, June 11 former Supervisor Bevan Dufty, the only out candidate so far running for mayor, is officially opening his new campaign headquarters in the Castro. Volunteers are invited to join him for a pancake breakfast before spreading out into the city’s gayborhood to help collect enough signatures so Dufty
has granted over $1.2 million to LGBT organizations for health and wellness programs since its inception in 1978. For more information, contact Dr. Kevin Fukuda at (415) 515-9772 or kafmd@comcast.net.
BCA to host benefit The Black Coalition on AIDS/ Rafiki Wellness will mark its 25th anniversary with its Soulful Summer Soiree Friday, June 17 from 6 to 9 p.m. at its main office, 2800 Third Street (at 24th) in San Francisco. Tickets are $50. The event will commemorate BCA’s 25 years of service to San Francisco’s African American community, celebrate the agency’s accomplishments, and acknowledge the support of the past year’s top volunteer, donor, and leadership award recipients. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.bcoa.org.▼ Heather Cassell contributed to this report.
can have in Cleveland and the Midwest. I believed in the people who presented the bid, I liked them, and I continue to like them. Almost every Gay Games host goes through an internal transition after the bid presentation as different skill sets come to the fore to work on the actual staging of the event, and this seems to be a case where such a needed transition was bungled. Sad. Looking forward to resolution and sunnier days to come. Good night, Valhalla ▼
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 19
Pennsylvania; Thomas G. Rendulic (Norene) of Curtis Bay, Maryland; and Carole L. Wiskeman (Larry) of Lower Burrell, Pennsylvania. He was preceded in death by his parents, William and Louise Rendulic and brother William J. Rendulic (Wilma Jean), all of McKeesport, Pennsylvania. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews and one great-great nephew, all of whom loved him dearly. Robert was born on August 23, 1943 and was a 1961 graduate of McKeesport High School. He was a U.S. Navy veteran. Following his discharge, he settled in his beloved Bay Area. Robert was employed by DecisionOne as a senior service technician. He was very active in Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous in the Bay Area. He loved his family and was an extremely loyal friend. He loved the opera and music of any kind. Funeral arrangements are incomplete at this time in the Bay Area. A memorial service will be held at a later date locally.
can avoid paying the filing fee to appear on the ballot in November. His campaign HQ is located in the second floor space at 2280 Market Street where Tower Records was formerly housed. The event begins at 10 a.m.▼ Web Extra: For more queer political news, be sure to check www. ebar.com Monday mornings around 10 a.m. for Political Notes, the notebook’s online companion. The column returns Monday, June 13.
On the web Online content this week includes: Wockner’s World column, a photo from the KQED Local heroes reception, a story on gay GOP presidential candidate Fred Karger, and an update on the Wisconsin Senate seat. www.ebar.com
ebar.com
20 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< From the cover
June 9-15, 2011
<<
Pride debt From page 1
community partners is $141,000. The Pride Committee has arranged a repayment plan with DPW that permits it to pay back $25,000 of the amount owed prior to this year’s event, which it is on schedule to fulfill, according to Pride interim Executive Director Brendan Behan. “The remainder we have committed to pay between July of 2011 and June of 2012,” he told the B.A.R. In an interview last month with the Bay Area Reporter, Lee said the idea of forgiving the debt entirely was not on the table. But he added he is open to suggestions. “The word ‘forgive’ hasn’t resonated yet,” said Lee in his first interview with the gay press since being appointed in January to fill out the remainder of former Mayor Gavin Newsom’s term. Lee said he plans to have “good discussions” with the city’s two gay supervisors, Scott Wiener and David Campos, about Pride’s outstanding city bills to “see where we can help.” “I am very committed to help resolve this the best we can,” said Lee, who plans to walk in this year’s parade. “I would say if we put our heads together, and certainly with the intelligence Supervisors Campos and Wiener have, ... we can probably come to some resolution on this. Right now forgiving, that may be too strong.” Before any proposal could be adopted, said Lee, he would need to carefully examine the strength of the Pride organization. The producers of the largest LGBT outdoor event on the West Coast were beset with a string of leadership shakeups,
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www.ebar.com
LGB youth From page 1
behaviors’ like tobacco use, substance abuse, and suicidal behavior in LGBT youth,” Sebelius said in remarks prepared for delivery. “But we know that these behaviors are not a result of who these young people are, they are a result of the discrimination, bullying, violence and poor relationships at home they can experience in their day to day lives. That’s a tragedy. And that’s why we need to continue to build support for LGBT youth and create the protective environments needed to reduce these behaviors.” Researchers analyzed data from Youth Risk Behavior Surveys of seven states – Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin – and six large urban school districts – Boston, Chicago, Milwaukee, New York City, San Diego, and San Francisco. The CDC funds these surveys of high school students every two years at the national, state, and local levels. States and school districts may choose to collect data on the students’ sexual identity (heterosexual, gay or lesbian, bisexual, or unsure), the gender of their sexual contacts (both genders, opposite gender only, or same gender only), or both. The states and districts studied by the CDC had collected data on sexual identity and gender of sexual contacts for at least two survey cycles. (Most surveys do not ask about gender identity, however, and therefore the CDC could not study transgender youth as a distinct group.) The CDC found that gay and lesbian students (and those who have sex only with a person of the same gender, regardless of how they identify themselves) had higher risks than heterosexual students in seven of 10 major health risk categories: behaviors related to violence (which could include not going to school because of safety concerns), attempted suicide, tobacco use, alcohol use, other drug use, sexual behaviors, and weight management. Bisexual students (and those who
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including the resignation of former executive director Amy Andre, following the fiscal problems that emanated from the 2010 event. [See story, page 2.] Since then a number of new board members have been brought on board to help with fundraising and Behan agreed to return to the organization. He previously had worked as Pride’s deputy director but left several months after Andre was hired in 2009. “I want to see where the management of Pride is, what their commitment is, what their vision is, what their plans are to both recover from their debts and where they want to go,” said Lee. “I think it is always healthy to make sure we are all doing our part.” So far Lee has not met directly with Pride officials to discuss the matter. Told of the mayor’s comments, Behan said he was heartened to hear the mayor was willing to work with the Pride committee to resolve its monetary issues. “With the debt we do have, every amount we can eliminate just gives us more opportunity to focus the event proceeds to our community partners. I would welcome any opportunities to have those discussions,” said Behan. Pride has not asked to be forgiven of its debts and is “absolutely” committed to repaying the city back, said Behan. “We haven’t asked for any forgiveness of debt because it looks like we are going to be able to pay off the deficit and bills owed to the city,” he said. Any help the city can provide in reducing those payments, however, would be welcome, said Behan. Pride officials have been in talks with Wiener and Campos on various ways
the city can support it, he said. “We continue to have conversations around possible decreases in certain bills. That to us is what our thinking is; it is an ongoing conversation,” said Behan. “For right now those are options that the city could introduce. Both the board and myself would be thrilled to talk about that.” Pride is looking at ways to decrease the amount of money DPW will charge it during this year’s festivities. Behan said the bill is based largely on how much cleanup there is for city workers to do once the party ends Sunday night. “The cleanup of Civic Center Plaza depends on how much work there is. We do a pretty good job of fielding a sizeable recycling team that picks up trash during the event,” said Behan. “This year we are looking at what we might be able to do to step that up.” Due to Pride’s impact on the city – it not only draws international media attention each year but is also a major tourist draw – Lee said it was appropriate for City Hall to ensure the event remains viable. Pride’s contribution to the city’s own budget, he said, “is huge and the parade brings in so many people.” It also symbolizes the city’s leadership in the fight for LGBT rights, added Lee. “We are a leader not only in gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights, it is a pride the city has in being a leader and leading voice in everything from AIDS funding to fighting discrimination to celebrating diversity,” he said. “It is why we are going to pay attention to what happens with Pride and make sure they are focused not on long term survival but long term success.”▼
have sex with both genders, regardless of how they identify themselves) had higher risks than heterosexual students in eight of the 10 categories: behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries (such as not wearing a seatbelt), violence, attempted suicide, tobacco use, alcohol use, other drug use, sexual behaviors, and weight management. LGB students showed no significant differences from their heterosexual peers in dietary behaviors (e.g., eating vegetables three or more times per day) or amount of physical activity.
• Providing professional development programs for school staff and others who work with sexual minority youth. • Adding questions about sexual identity and the sex of sexual contacts to youth risk behavior surveys in other states and districts. The CDC itself encourages states and districts to include such questions in their surveys, but does not require them to do so. In 2009, 10 states and seven large urban school districts added questions to their survey questionnaire about sexual identity, sex of sexual contacts, or both. In addition to funding the surveys, the CDC provides funding and technical assistance to 49 states, the District of Columbia, 16 large urban school districts, six territories, and one tribal government to help schools and school districts develop programs to reduce sexual risk behaviors among all youth. Twenty-four state education agencies and 15 local education agencies used these funds in 2010 on specific activities to address LGBT youth, according to the CDC, including training staff on LGBTinclusive health curricula, establishing gay-straight alliances and conferences, and developing guides to community resources for LGBT youth. “If youth are going to thrive in their communities and in their schools,” Kann said, “they need to feel safe socially, emotionally, and physically. The schools and communities need to take concrete steps to establish these safe and supportive environments.” She added, “I think this is a multifaceted problem that can be addressed at multiple levels.” Congress is now considering eight bills that would help protect LGBT youth and reduce bullying and harassment of students because they are or are perceived to be LGBT. The CDC released its report in conjunction with the federal government’s firstever summit devoted to LGBT youth, Creating and Maintaining Safe and Supportive Environments for LGBT Youth in Washington, D.C.▼
Confirms other studies The CDC findings confirm previous studies conducted by other researchers, including the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s 2009 National School Climate Survey, which found that nearly 9 out of 10 LGBT students experienced harassment at school in the previous year and nearly twothirds felt unsafe because of their sexual orientation. A study in the May issue of the Journal of School Health, by Stephen T. Russell, Ph.D., distinguished professor at the University of Arizona, and Caitlin Ryan, Ph.D., director of the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University, found that anti-LGBT bullying at school “is strongly linked” to negative mental health for its victims. Among those risks are an increased frequency of suicide attempts and increased risk for engaging in behaviors that can lead to infection with sexually transmitted diseases and HIV. The increased risks exist not only while the victim is in adolescence, but also in young adulthood. Based on its report, the CDC recommends: • Improving public health and school health policies and practices to create “safe and supportive environments for sexual minority students.” These policies might include ones to address stigma, discrimination, family disapproval, social rejection, and violence.
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Community News>>
Pride finances
From page 2
the beginning of October 2010 through Monday, June 6, payroll expenses are down to approximately $97,000. Besides Behan, there are two other paid staff, as well as a temporary assistant. “Part of the work we’re doing right now is making sure we are making as much progress as we can while eliminating expenses we can afford to cut out from the budget,” said Behan. Another front the organization’s been trying to make headway on
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Lee From page 1
are successful in accomplishing as complicated issues like this, maybe they believe it gets rewarded with a shot of running for the mayor’s office. I actually think the opposite; I am privileged to get success because I am not running,” said Lee. “A lot more people are engaged with me on what the issues are and trying to resolve it in a very un-political way because we are not approaching things politically.” The mayor’s long-term budget plans hinge on seeing the city’s pension system reformed. And he is fighting against Public Defender Jeff Adachi, who has put forward his own pension reform measure that would reduce costs $500 million more than the one proposed by the mayor. Lee’s proposal is estimated to save the city up to $1 billion in pension costs over the next decade. The city would still be on the hook for $7.6 billion in pension payouts during that time, however, according to the
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Police chief From page 1
late April, quickly moved to assemble leaders in the department. Within his first month, Suhr promoted out Lieutenant Lea Militello to his command staff. Militello, who had most recently headed the homicide unit, now leads the department’s Municipal Transportation Agency operations. At a February meeting where community members told police commissioners what they wanted to see in the next chief, Militello said it’s “ridiculous” that there are no out gay men higher than the rank of sergeant. During last week’s interview, Suhr himself expressed a desire to see out police move up the ranks. “The AIDS epidemic of the 1980s took many of my friends that were gay men,” he said. “We lost a generation” of officers who would have at least been lieutenants and captains, he said. However, said Suhr, there are “some incredibly competent gay men” on the force, such as Sergeant Chuck Limbert, LGBT liaison for Mission Station. The chief referred to Limbert as “the mayor of the Castro.” He said the next tests for police hoping to become lieutenants is approaching and “in the next 18 months, there might be many gay male lieutenants.” “We will be able to put the needle back on the record,” said Suhr.
Recent scandals The new chief also addressed allegations in recent months by Public Defender Jeff Adachi that include officers falsifying reports and stealing property from people. Suhr asked that people “think about all the cops they know” who are “honest” and “hard working.” “If the videos [of the incidents] are proven, I’ll dismiss them from
involves other nonprofits. Pride still owes about $38,000 to community partners, including some who received thousands of dollars less than they’d expected after last summer’s event. Behan said this year’s celebration would include the same number of venues as last year. Pride will have more than 20 community stages and venues. Main stage entertainment includes actress and comedienne Sandra Bernhard, and musical acts such as Luciana and Jessica 6. For more information, visit www. sfpride.org.▼
city controller’s calculations. His running for mayor would only complicate getting his pension reform passed, said Lee. “You can’t convince people that is where you are working at if political office is involved in that,” said Lee. Lee said his goal is to once again be hired as city administrator. The board is expected to pass legislation that would grant Lee a waiver from ethics rules that bar politicians from being hired to city positions until one year after leaving office. Of course, there is no guarantee the new mayor would hire Lee for his old job. But Lee said he has little time to worry about that now. “I haven’t given that much thought,” he said. “I will be thinking about that toward the fall.” Due to his future employment being up to the next mayor, Lee is unlikely to be endorsing anyone to be his successor. “I have avoided that so far. Probably appropriate continuing to avoid it, especially if I am going to ask the winner for my job back,” said Lee.▼
the police department, that’s a nobrainer,” said Suhr. He said other officers would “demand that from me.” If it’s a matter of “sloppy” policing, more training is in order, he said, adding that that’s already under way. However, he said, if the officers are exonerated, an apology is owed. He said the department has put mechanisms in place to help prevent problems, including equipping officers with small video cameras. He said the cameras could help defend officers against allegations, and also would “show the public what officers have to contend with.” A pilot program will soon start for plainclothes supervisors, Suhr said.
June 9-15, 2011 • BAY AREA REPORTER • 21
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Homicide investigations Besides Powell’s shooting, homicide inspectors have also been investigating the deaths of Mariah Qualls and Philip DiMartino. Qualls, a 23-year-old transgender woman who died from a traumatic head injury, was found in her residential hotel in December 2009. Lee recently authorized a $75,000 reward for information leading to the identification, arrest, and conviction of whoever killed her. DiMartino, a 36-year-old gay man, was found stabbed to death in his apartment in August 2010. Asked about additional resources being put toward such cases, Suhr said, “Our homicide unit has performed beyond all expectations of late.” He praised Militello’s work in homicide, calling her a “rock star.” Lieutenant Hector Sainez is replacing Militello at homicide. Sainez, who’s been with the police department for 20 years, said he would be speaking with investigators to familiarize himself with their cases.▼ A longer version is online at ebar.com
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22 • Bay Area Reporter • June 9-15, 2011
t
Legal Notices>> nOTICE OF APPLICATIoN for change in ownership of AlCOHOLIC BEVERAGE license To Whom It May Concern: The name(s) of the applicant(s) is/are : 1500 MAJESTIC 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 1500 SUTTER St., San Francisco, CA 94109-5307. Type of license applied for:
47- On-sale GENERAL eating place jun 9, 2011 statement file A-033565900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as OUR HOME CHURCH, 1590 Broadway,#08S, San Francisco, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a an unincorporated association other than a partnership, signed Telema W. Okobi.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/15/96. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/16/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033547000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as WALCOTT CONSULTING,1236 Hopkins St., Berkeley, CA 94702. This business is conducted by an individual. signed David Walcott.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/00. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/06/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033565300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PHOTOBOOTH, 1193 Valencia St., San Francisco, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Michael Shindler. 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 05/16/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033548700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ALL PHASE TILE, 35 Dorman Ave., #1,San Francisco, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, signed John Ma.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/09/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/09/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033499500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as DARK GARDEN, 321 Linden St., San Francisco, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Automn Adamme. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/18/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/19/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033549100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as IRISH NETWORK BAY AREA,856 14TH St., San Francisco, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Nick Ginger. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/12/07. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/09/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 nOTICE OF APPLICATIoN to sell AlCOHOLIC BEVERAGEs To Whom It May Concern: The name(s) of the applicant(s) is/are : GODDARD TRUBNICK LLC, PATRICK JOSEPH MOUNSEY. 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 620 Post St., San Francisco, CA 94109-8222. Type of license applied for:
42- On-sale beer and wine – public premises jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033568300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BEEFY & CO.,39 Lobos St.,San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Menh Voong.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/17/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/17/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033544200 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SAN FRANCISCO SOLAR POWER,5530 Mission St., Apt.#8, San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Carlos A. Aguirre.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 05/05/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 statement file A-033554700 The following person(s) is/are doing business as WEST COAST PEDICAB, 1455 Market St., San Diego, CA 92101. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Eric Wesselink.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/11/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/11/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011
statement file A-033584800
statement file A-033590700
The following person(s) is/are doing business as CUTE TANK, 300 Buchanan St., #207,San Francisco, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Eden Slezin.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/24/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/24/11.
The following person(s) is/are doing business as VITORIA ROOTER AND PLUMBING, 1438 34th Ave., San Francisco, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual,signed Hai Yuan Huang.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/26/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/26/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033568500
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033590100
The following person(s) is/are doing business as EVA LINDA’S CLEANING SERVICE,194 Flournoy St., San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Michael Mellegers.The registrant(s)commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/17/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/17/11.
The following person(s) is/are doing business as JAZZ CELLARS,1406 ST.Kitts Lane, Foster City, CA 94404. This business is conducted by an limited liability company,signed Joseph J. Lazzara.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/26/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/26/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033572300
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033594000
The following person(s) is/are doing business as DIEP CONTRACTOR,462 Otsego Ave., San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Tai Phu Diep.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 05/18/11.
The following person(s) is/are doing business as EB AUTO SPORT,1939 Oakdale Ave., San Francisco, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a general partnership,signed Meelan Bravo. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/23/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/27/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033573600 The following person(s) is/are doing business WENJIAN TRADING,759 Cayuga Ave.,San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Wennaun Chen.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 05/18/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033531400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as FIVE STAR WINERY TRADING COMPANY, 181 Taraval St., San Francisco, CA 94116, This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Derrick Luu.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/02/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/02/11.
may 12,19,26,jun 2, 2011 statement file A-033571300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MYSTIC INVESTMENTS, 228 Arlington St., San Francisco, CA 94131. This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Benedict Cerney The registrant(s) Commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/15/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/18/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033576200 The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.S.F. MAD LAB,2.SAN FRANCISCO MAD LAB, 2050 Bryant St.,Loft #8,San Francisco, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Robert W. Caughlan IV. 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 05/19/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033519400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS, 152 Jules Ave.,San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed John Sommerfield. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/01/06. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/27/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033582800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as NOB HILL FLORIST, 1396 California St., San Francisco, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Terence L. Calhoun.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/11/83. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/23/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 Statement of abandonment of use of ficticious business name: #A-0331938-02 The following persons have abandoned the use of the ficticious business name known as ALL-PHASE TILE,33 Dorman Ave., Suite 100, San Francisco, CA 94124.This business was conducted by an individual, signed Peter Mar. The ficticious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 03/05/10.
may 12,19,26,jun 2, 2011 statement file A-033519900
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033587900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ORPHAN ANDY’S, 3991 A 17th St., San Francisco, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Dennis Ziebell.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/18/77. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/25/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033598500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as EMC BUILDING MAINTENANCE, 1185 Shawnee Ave., San Francisco, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Enrique Nacias.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 06/01/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033553300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TAREK SAIDI CHEF SERVICE, 2290 Stockton St., #309, San Francisco, CA 94133. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Tarek Saidi. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/09/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/10/11.
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 statement file A-033603800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as HEALTHY PRODUCE,645 Clement St., San Francisco, CA 94118. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Karen Wong. 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 06/0211.
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 statement file A-033613000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BAY BLASTING, 4130 Cesar Chavez St., San Francisco, CA 94131. This business is conducted by an individual, signed James Hickey.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/07/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 06/07/11.
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 statement file A-033599300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as READINGS BY NINA, 2157 Lombard St.,San Francisco, CA 94123. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Stephanie Wain.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/05/06. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 06/01/11.
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 statement file A-033598400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as NO SMALL CHANGE,911 Rockdale Drive, San Francisco, CA 94127. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Manuel Gregory Quiroga. 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 06/01/11.
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 statement file A-033595200
The following person(s) is/are doing business as CHURCHILL, 198 Church St., San Francisco, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Anthony Healy-London. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/27/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/27/11.
The following person(s) is/are doing business as JAMAJAZ FAMILY DAY CARE, 180 San Pablo Ave., San Francisco, CA 94127. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Venetia H. Gatus.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/23/10. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/31/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011
jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011
statement file A-033499300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as 1.AVERY REAL ESTATE GROUP,2.ATELIER 360, 3053 Fillmore St., #265, San Francisco, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a general partnership, signed Golriz Natasha Shahabi.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/19/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 04/19/11.
may 19,26,jun 2, 9, 2011 Second amended summons:Breanna M. Moore v. Barbizon Modeling School of San Francisco et al. case #1318600 superior court of california county of Santa barbara, 312 c-East cook Street, Santa Maria, CAlifornia 93454, cook division. NOTICE TO DEFENDANT: BARBIZON MODELING SCHOOL OF SAN FRANCISCO, INTERNATIONAL MODELING & TALENT ASSOCIATION, INTERNATIONAL PERFORMING ARTS ASSOCIATION, 1-10 DOES. YOU ARE BEING SUED BY PLANTIFF BREANNA M. MOORE NOTICE – You have been sued. The court may decide against you without your being heard unless you respond within 30 days. Read the information below. You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this summons and legal papers are served on you to file a written response at this court and have a copy served on the plaintiff. A letter or phone call will not protect you. Your written response must be in proper legal form if you want the court to hear your case. There may be a court form that you can use for your response. You can find these court forms and more information at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), your county law library, or the courthouse nearest you. If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the court clerk for a fee waiver form. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case by default, and your wages, money, and property may be taken without further warning from the court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an attorney right away. If you do not know an attorney, you may want to call an attorney referral service. If you cannot afford an attorney, you may be eligible for free legal services from a nonprofit legal services program. You can locate these nonprofit groups at the California Legal Services web site (www. lawhelpcalifornia.org), the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/ selfhelp),or by contacting your local court or county bar association. Note: The court has a statutory lien for waived fees and costs on any settlement or arbitration award of $10,000 or more in a civil case. The court’s lien must be paid before the court will dismiss the case. The name and address of the court is :
superior court of california county of Santa barbara, 312 c-East cook Street, Santa Maria, CAlifornia 93454 The name, address, and telephone number of the plantiff’s attorney, or plantiff without an attorney, is.
Breanna M. Moore, 2775 Summer Ranch Road, Paso Robles, CA 93446. 805-237-1355 may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033584400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as DACHSTAR, 3927 26th St.,San Francisco, CA 94131-2001. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Clinton Alexander Werner.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/24/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/24/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033584500 The following person(s) is/are doing business as H.K. FIRE PROTECTION INC, 3447 Mission St.,San Francisco, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Shun Kit Ha.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/06/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/24/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033581900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MARYLIN FASHION DESIGN, 654 Jackson St., Apt 1,San Francisco, CA 94133. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Lin Huang. 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 05/23/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033582700
The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE PRODUCER’S LOFT, 2773 Folsom St., Suite 101,San Francisco, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, signed Vic Ferrer. 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 05/23/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011
statement file A-033582400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as YORKIES BRAND BRIEFS, 860 Corbett St., #202, San Francisco, CA 94131. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Patrick H. York.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/12/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/23/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 statement file A-033548300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GREENWICH STREET DESIGN, 287 28TH Ave., San Francisco, CA 94121. This business is conducted by co-partners, signed Ann B. Morris. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/09/11.
may 26,jun 2, 9,16, 2011 state of california in and for the county of san francisco file# cnc-11-547777 In the matter of the application of DANIEL CANDELARIO SANTIAGO for change of name. The application of DANIEL CANDELARIO SANTIAGO for change of name having been filed in Court, and it appearing from said application that DANIEL CANDELARIO SANTIAGO filed an application proposing that his/her name be changed to DANIEL SANTIAGO CANDELARIO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Room 218 on the 28th of JULY, 2011 at 9:00 am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033534000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TAKES OF YOU, 4249 18th St., San Francisco, CA 94114. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Floyd Walls.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/03/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/03/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033533900 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TAKES OF YOU, 538 Castro St., San Francisco, CA 94114. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Floyd T. Walls.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/03/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/03/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033589400 The following person(s) is/are doing business as LATITUDE 19, 3118 22nd St., San Francisco, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, signed James B. Lappin Jr.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/26/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/26/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033591800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as IMPROV CONSULTANTS, 5808 California St., San Francisco, CA 94121. This business is conducted by an individual, signed Lisa Safron. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/27/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/27/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033589000 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CHRIS’ SPA NAIL 3821 Geary Blvd., San Francisco, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual,signed Cuc Thi Tran.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/25/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/25/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033540600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SAN FRANCISCO BROKERS CLUB, 564 Market St.,Suite 721, San Francisco, CA 94104. This business is conducted by an individual,signed Stephen Larwence.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/04/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/04/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011 statement file A-033593800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PASEO PROPERTIES,355 Vista Linda, Mill Valley, CA 94941. This business is conducted by a limited liability company,signed Porter Farthing. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/15/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/27/11.
jun 2, 9,16,23, 2011
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FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION (415) 543-9338 703 Market Street, Suite 1109 • Sanfile Francisco, CA 94103 statement A-033605000 SAN FRANCISCO BAYwww.bklawclinic.com • patrick@bklawclinic.com The following person(s) is/are doing business
AREA RAPID TRANSIT as LAW OFFICE OF CHRISTOPHER PEIL, 555 DISTRICTNOTICE TO PROPOSERS - GENERAL Fulton St., #108, San Francisco, CA 94102. This INFORMATION The SAN business is conducted by an individual, signed FRANCISCO BAY AREA RAPID Christopher Peil.The registrant(s) commenced to TRANSIT DISTRICT (“District”), transact business under the above listed fictitious 300 Lakeside Drive, Oakland, California, business name or names on 01/01/07. The is advertising for proposals for Calibration and Repair of Electronic Test Equipment, statement was filed with the City and County of Gauges and Measuring Tools (RFP) No. San Francisco, CA on 06/03/11. 6M3184, on or about June 3, 2011, with jun 9,16,23,jul 7, 2011 proposals due by 2:00 PM local time, Tuesday, July 12, 2011. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES TO BE PROVIDED The District is soliciting the services of a contracting firm to provide Calibration and Repair of Electronic Test Equipment, Gauges and Measuring Tools. A Pre-Proposal Meeting will be held on Thursday, June 30, 2011. The PreProposal Meeting will convene at 10:00 AM at the District’s Offices located at 300 Lakeside Drive, 18th Floor, Conference Room #1800, Oakland, California 94612. At the Pre-Proposal Meeting the 395 Ninth Street S.F. CA District’s Non-Discrimination Program for Subcontracting will be explained. All questions regarding MBE/WBE PHONE 415.861.5019 FAX 861-8144 participation should be directed to Ruby Smith, Office of Civil Rights at (510) 4646324 – FAX (510) 464-7587. Prospective proposers are requested to make every effort to attend this only scheduled PreProposal Meeting, and to confirm their attendance by contacting the District’s Contract Administrator, telephone (510) 464-6543, prior to the date of the PreProposal Meeting. WHERE TO OBTAIN OR SEE RFP DOCUMENTS (Available on or after June 3, 2011) Copies of the RFP may be obtained: (1) By written request to the District’s Contract Administrator, 300 Lakeside Drive, 17th Floor, Oakland, CA 94612. Reference RFP NO. 6M3184 Calibration and Repair of Electronic Test Equipment, Gauges and Measuring Tools and send requests to Fax No. (510) 464-7650. (2) By arranging pick up at the above address. Call the District’s Contract Administrator, (510) 464-6543 prior to pickup of the RFP. (3) By E-mail request to the District’s Contract Administrator Aminta Maynard, amaynar@bart.gov Dated at Oakland, California this 31st day of May, 2011. /s/ Patricia K. Williams for Kenneth A. Duron, District Secretary San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District 6/9/11 • CNS-2112313# BAY AREA REPORTER
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statement file A-033594800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TRISTAR HOME LOANS, 88 Kearny St.,3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, signed Brett McGovern.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/20/11. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/31/11.
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'Tales' retold
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Leatherman legend
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O&A Out &About The
Vol. 41 • No. 23 • June 9-15, 2011
www.ebar.com/arts
Beginner’s
Director Mike Mills on his own gay dad story
luck
by David Lamble
Christopher Plummer in Mike Mills’ Beginners. Andrew Tepper
T
he new film Beginners (opening Friday) puts a vivid and very odd twist on the traditional parent-child coming out story. A couple of viewings and a chat with its creator Mike Mills caused me to reflect on the power movies have to reinforce lessons that real life can leave murky and unsatisfying. My dad was dead before I came out even to myself, and as for my mom, I didn’t so much come out to her as merely skip town. When she finally made it to Texas as a ward of my sister, I
took it upon myself to show her queer Dallas: a Meg Christian concert, movie nights at my duplex with my gay support group, and finally, a raucous kind of art happening that ended with great sex with my aspiring-painter, soon-to-be ex-boyfriend, while mom snoozed in the next room. In Beginners, Mike Mills ups the stakes for an equally idiosyncratic intergenerational coming out party by flipping the premise – in this case, detailing the eruption of gay consciousness that
exploded from his retired museum director dad when his wife of 45 years died. In my grumpy family, coming out didn’t produce some miracle of understanding, spiritual epiphany or emotional catharsis. They weren’t homophobic as much as simply resentful that some grand new drama had been introduced into our ongoing domestic battlefield that wasn’t about them. With Beginners, Mills employs the wit, precision for telling complicated personal
stories with a great acting ensemble, and peculiar straight-boy sensitivity to queer issues he displayed with his 2005 debut feature, Thumbsucker. He puts us inside an arid marriage of convenience seen from the point of view of a scared little boy who grows up to be a relationship-phobic adult man. In slapdash flashbacks, we see the boy becoming substitute partner for his moodswinging mom who doesn’t get enough from See page 33 >>
Divergent showcases
San Francisco Ballet School students in Myles Thatcher’s Timepiece.
San Francisco Ballet School students & Royal Danish Ballet ~ by Paul Parish ~
T
he big dance event this past week, Cal Performances’ presentation of the first visit of the Royal Danish Ballet to the Bay Area in 50 years, came and went so strangely that I am still wondering how so many things could have gone wrong. Many of us were hoping it would be “the dance event” of the year. What were we all expecting, anyway? Meanwhile, the students of the San Francisco Ballet School gave a recital that
looked better at their best than some of the Danish repertoire did at its worst. It must be said, San Francisco Ballet, school and company, owe a great deal to the Royal Danish Ballet and its great school. Indeed, Balanchine brought a succession of great Danish dancers to New York (including Helgi Tomasson), where they ruled the roost as principal dancers. For three
Erik Tomasson
See page 28 >>
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26 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< Out There
June 9-15, 2011
▼
Good Sandra Bernhard vibrations by Roberto Friedman
O
ut There just scored a phone interview with the great comedienne/actress/singer Sandra Bernhard, who’s coming to San Francisco later this month for some shows and appearances. She called us at our offices from her home in New York City at the appointed time, completely punctual. Roberto Friedman: Hey Sandra! Thanks for doing this interview, and thanks for calling right on time. Sandra Bernhard: Well, I have to. I have three interviews to do in a row. You’re coming to San Francisco for our gay Pride celebrations, a fancy Pride party, and also to do a few dates at the Marines Memorial Theatre in your new show I Love Being Me, Don’t You? Yeah, I’ll be there for the whole gay pride extravaganza. It will be rocking.
I love your last album Whatever It Takes. I still listen to it. You’ve always been a kick-ass rock performer. Thank you, that means a lot to me! This new album [also called I Love Being Me, Don’t You?] is a little more comedic, but it still has some music on it. I like to keep making the rounds between observational stuff and songs, but there will always be music in what I do. Who are you listening to these days? Adele? Gaga? I listen to all the new people who are worthy of being listened to, I try to avoid the ones who aren’t. And I listen to the stalwarts: Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, Dusty Springfield, Laura Nyro, old Stones. I’m very eclectic, but I branch out. What kind of material are you going to do in SF? Classic stuff, pieces interweaved in and out of music, topical observations, anecdotes. So do you have any little secret
hideaway you like to go to when you’re in San Francisco? Oh yeah, if I had more time, I’d visit the redwoods, the surrounding environs, down to Carmel, up to Mendocino. But when I have so much stuff to do like I will this time, I’ll stay in the city. Are you mostly in LA these days? Oh no, I’m based in New York now, it’s better suited for me. It’s the center of things that matter. You’ve always been the kind of celebrity who isn’t superficial. Like, I bet you even read books! I do read. I like historical fiction, stories of what could have been, should have been, might have been. Here, I’m walking to my bedroom, to tell you what’s on my night-table right now. My friend Justin Bond has a book coming out, called Tango, I’m reading now. We’re working on a musical together. I’m also reading Roseanne’s new book, Roseannearchy: Dispatches from the Nut Farm. Also the memoir by Christopher Buckley, about his parents. I started that Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, but I couldn’t stand it. Marlene Dietrich’s ABC, this weird book where she tells you things like, “Absence makes the heart go sharper. Accordion: a sound my ear likes, because it reminds me of France.” I love that you’re literate. Oh yeah. My girlfriend is a worldclass reader. And my daughter does book reports now, she’s in the seventh grade. We’re all readers. Well, thanks for taking the time out to chat! We’re all looking forward to having you here in SF. Me, too! Shabat Shalom! The details: Bernhard’s new album was released this week. Her Marines’ Memorial performances are on Fri.Sat., June 24 & 25. She’ll also be appearing on SF Pride’s mainstage performing a 15-20-minute musical set. On Thurs., June 23, the VIP Kick-off Party to Celebrate Pride 2011 will transpire at the elegant Bentley Reserve in SF, 6-9:30 p.m., with hostess Bernhard performing. That soirée will be presented by PG&E and host Mark Rhoades, and it’s benefiting the Gay & Lesbian Leadership Institute. Among those expected to attend are the man-abouttown Wilkes Bashford, Joie de Vivre CEO Chip Conley, nightclub king Harry Denton, Levi-Strauss CEO Robert Hanson, Banana Republic
Performer Sandra Bernhard: ‘I’m very eclectic, but I branch out.’
CEO Jack Calhoun, SF socialite Joy Bianchi, NCLR executive director Kate Kendell, and possibly even little old Out There. What a guest list to put together. You go, Mark and Sandra!
June bugs Yes, it’s already LGBT Pride month here in SF, the slightly rainbedraggled rainbow flags festoon Market St. Hope you’re preparing to get busy, because things become multifarious and relentless really fast. First thing upcoming is the free, 7th annual Queer Women of Color Film Festival, June 10-12 at the Brava Theater in San Francisco. This year’s fest will be bigger than before, with five different film screening programs and a special panel discussion. The Festival Focus this year has been given the rubric, Igniting the Intersections: LGBTQ People of Color. Thinkers & Troublemakers is a panel of veteran queer women of color activists and artists such as former Black Panther and political prisoner Professor Ericka Huggins, playwright Jewelle Gomez, journalist Helen Zia, former political prisoner Olga Talamante and filmmaker Pratibha Parmar. QWOCFF is also presenting a number of films by queer women of color, and by and about transgender men of color, and those that feature transgender women of color. For more info, go to www.qwocmap.org. Two red-letter dates in Gay Rights history figure in a free double screening presented by KQED at the Castro Theatre on Tues., June 28. Those would be the six-day riot ignited by a police raid on the Stonewall Inn on June 28, 1969, and
the even earlier resistance by drag queens fighting back at Compton’s Cafeteria in the Tenderloin, SF, in August 1966. Stonewall Uprising (2010, directors Kate Davis & David Heilbroner) screens at 7 p.m.; Screaming Queens: The Riot at Compton’s Cafeteria (2005, directors Victor Silverman & Susan Stryker) screens at 9 p.m. More info is at www. kqed.org/stonewall. If you missed the slide presentation and installation of artifacts that celebrate the Bay Area Reporter’s 40th anniversary that showed at the GLBT History Museum this past April, all is not lost. The commemorative exhibit is currently on display in the main branch of Union Bank, 400 California St., SF. It’s free and open to the public every weekday, 9 a.m.5 p.m., through June 30. The grand old banking hall is of pre-earthquake vintage, and it’s a great chamber of finance. Go and see it! Meantime, the celebrities just keep on coming to see the resuscitated Cockettes musical Vice Palace at the Hypnodrome. Attending a performance late last month were master puppeteer Basil Twist (The Pee Wee Herman Show and The Addams Family on Broadway, Martha Stewart’s Halloween TV special), dress designer Mr. David, Pam Tent (a.k.a. Sweet Pam, a Cockette who was in the original production of Vice Palace, and who wrote a book on her life with the Cockettes, Midnight at the Palace) and celebrated bean & noodle artist Jason Mecier. The show runs Fri. & Sat. at 8 p.m., and Sun. at 7 p.m. through July 31. We’re told that it will not extend.▼
Scott Wazlowski
Part of the installation of the B.A.R. 40th anniversary commemorative exhibit in Union Bank’s California St. headquarters.
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Theatre >>
June 9-15, 2011 •
BAY AREA REPORTER • 27
San Francisco tricks & treats by Richard Dodds
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here are 201 shopping days left till Christmas, but American Conservatory Theater has presented San Francisco with an open-me-first gift that turns summer into a season of smiling faces and a celebration of Baghdad by the Bay. I’m talking, of course, about the long-awaited, much-anticipated musical version of Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City. That ACT snapped it up when potential Broadway producers stepped away, and then went on to gather up donations for a project far beyond the theater’s regular budgets deserves a big wet kiss under the herbal mistletoe I’m sure festoons Mrs. Madrigal’s doorway at 28 Barbary Lane. For many San Franciscans, what Maupin began creating in 1976 as a newspaper serial is an iconic statement of its times. The stories’ adaptations into a series of novels and then a trio of mini-series helped spread their stories’ fame, and emphasized San Francisco’s idiosyncratic wonders around the world. But for the next several months it will be the local populace that will be earnestly, emotionally, and ferociously debating the merits of Tales of the City in its musical incarnation. As one small voice in the din, let me say first that the musical displays abundant affection for the original material, and is true enough to it that, in stylistic musical-theater terms, it could have been written before the ink had dried on the first installment 35 years ago. This is surprising and not necessarily positive. It may be a tall order, but the spirit of the bygone era needs to be interpreted through
Kevin Berne
Judy Kaye plays landlady Anna Madrigal, who wants to live life to its fullest in the new musical based on Tales of the City.
a fresh evocation that reflects where musical theater has traveled over the past 35 years. It’s a having-yourcake-and-eating-it-too assignment, and its chefs seemed right for the job. The youthful, gay, and quirkily minded librettist Jeff Whitty and director Jason Moore, who made the Sesame Street formula magically modern in Avenue Q, seem awkwardly hidebound in their efforts to put Maupin’s twisting, intertwined plots through the kind of grinder that could produce exciting musical theater for today’s audiences, as well as warm-hearted nostalgia for those who have lived through Tales of the City. Storylines, character development, and emphases can be adjusted if the project goes beyond San Francisco, but more fundamental reconceptions may
Kevin Berne
Mary Birdsong and Wesley Taylor, as two residents of 28 Barbara Lane, prepare for a night on the town in the musical version of Tales of the City at ACT.
be needed, both to loosen up the libretto from the source material and to stage key scenes with payoffs that can go lacking. But the biggest surprise in all of this is just how conventional the musical score comes across, a surprise because the songwriters come with the hippest credentials and the fewest ties to standard-issue musical comedy. Jake Shears, stage name for Jason Sellards, is the lead singer and frequent songwriter for the Scissor Sisters, and with touring bandmate John Garden, wrote the songs for Tales of the City. With their postdisco, glam-rock, and alt-pop sounds, the Scissor Sisters would seem a perfect fit for Tales. Some pop and rock artists have tried to adapt to the musical theater with poor results, but in a sense, Shears and Garden have adapted too well. This may be an arcane reference, but the Broadway music that
the Shears-Garden sounds most evoked in my showtune-soaked brain belonged to Lee Adams and Charles Strause, who aimed at a pseudo-rock in such 1960s musicals as Bye Bye Birdie and It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman. There are some big-ballad numbers that rouse the crowd, but murky and even commonplace lyrics undercut those moments. And choreographer Larry Keigwin, heretofore unknown to me, apparently best-known for his work in modern dance movement, offers musical staging of such familiar steps that the musty throwback vibe is further reinforced (and troubled by budget-conscious evocations of Halloween in the Castro). But let’s return to some good news. I was disappointed when Betty Buckley, who participated in the show’s workshops, didn’t continue in the role, but Judy Kaye
really does make for an emotionally delicious landlady Mrs. Madrigal. There is competent and appealing work from Betsy Wolfe as SF newbie Mary Ann Singleton, Mary Birdsong as Barbary Lane resident Mona Ramsey, and Wesley Taylor as the coming-out Michael “Mouse” Tolliver. Extra kudos to Diane J. Findlay as the elderly whorehouse madam with a foul mouth and a heart of gold. Set designer Douglas W. Schmidt keeps thing simple and adaptable, and costumer Beaver Bauer is the imaginatively evocative costumer. Tales of the City carries baggage both good and cumbersome. For those who lived through the blessed times depicted in the musical (with AIDS hovering in the future, but so blissfully absent from the story), and for those who were either too young or located in less glorious surroundings, the musical provides a snapshot of San Francisco as a leader in breaking sexual and social freedom boundaries. But it’s also a story that needs to be told in a theatrical form that can excite anew those who lived through those happy days, as well as arouse outsiders new to this place and those times. Tales of the City was revolutionary, in a casual, daily-newspaper sort of way. But it needs a new revolution to come alive on stage in 2011. That, despite all the goodwill expended and appreciated by this writer, doesn’t quite happen on the ACT stage. But the gift of the show is appreciated with deeply felt thanks.▼ Tales of the City will run at ACT through July 24. Tickets are $47-$127. Call 749-2228 or go to www.act-sf.org.
Please join us. Bay Area Reporter’s 40th Anniversary Retrospective Exhibit; A Provocative Journey Through LGBT History. San Francisco Main Branch 400 California Street San Francisco, CA 94104 415-765-3434 Exhibit open to the public free of charge Monday – Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. LGBT Pride Month June 1-30, 2011 unionbank.com/heroes
©2011 Union Bank, N.A.
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<< Dance
June 9-15, 2011
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Erik Tomasson
San Francisco Ballet School students in Parrish Maynard’s Promenade.
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SF Ballet School From page 25
decades now, Tomasson has lived here in SF, where he’s made the SF Ballet internationally famous using some of the principles he learned in Denmark: make the moves clear, honest, accurate, don’t cheat the transitions, do it right, show finesse and personal modesty. Both SFB and the Royal Danish Ballet are men’s companies, where the elegance and beauty of form show up, as in the bird world, most of all in the male of the species. I saw the SFB Student Showcase on the last night of its run, when all the nerves were over, and all the kids could dance their hearts out. The only rough patch was the dance for the five guys from Tomasson’s Ballet d’Isoline, which was way too hard for them, and even then they never whined or gave up but kept dancing throughout. Like in “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” you’d have to say someone had blundered, but it wasn’t them. The boys were brave, so bravo to them. But the nine SFB trainees looked fantastic in Timepiece. It’s got clubdancing attitude, snaky moments in the spine, huge, drastic changes of balance, and was set to music by Broken Social Scene (et al.) by the very cool SFB corps dancer Myles Thatcher. It made them look killergood. It was great to see Alexander Reneff-Olson, who moonlights as a photographer and has taken pictures of many of us on Gay Night Out at the Ballet, looking so good himself at the center of this ballet. The advanced students made Tomasson’s ballet Beads of Memory look fresh, clean, better than the company did when it was introduced 20-odd years ago. Jeanette Kakareka looked a total diva as the ballerina; her partner Henry Sidford, soloist Emma Rubinowitz, the demis Margaret Tompkins, Danielle Peterfy, Christopher Warhuus, and Nicholas Losada danced flawlessly. Much credit goes to former ballerina Tina LeBlanc, who teaches in the school and staged the work for them. Finally, a grand essay in symphonic ballet by former principal (now teacher) Parrish Maynard came off splendidly. Promenade was a huge success in the manner of Balanchine. Maynard’s invention never flagged, and the dancers looked magnificent, especially the leads, Lauren Parrott and Wei Wang.
Stepping stones The Danes, alas – suffice it to say, they’re the Queen’s own company in Copenhagen, they’re established at home, and they don’t have any experience touring. They need to do advance work. They underestimated difficulties of every magnitude: how to get over jet-lag, how to get their unwieldy sets onto and off the stage and out of the rain, 45-minute
(((((((((
intermissions, strobe lights that got out of control, stages that felt slippery compared to the one at home, resulting injuries, little lectures to fill the gaps that told us nothing or gave misinformation. They are so used to showing their core repertory at home that they’ve dressed the famous pieces in costumes that make the steps hard to see. The great glory of the RDB is the footwork. Danish dancers, men and women, have feet that are more articulate than most people’s hands. Traditionally, they’ve worn white tights and special shoes, blackrimmed with a white diamond down the instep, which makes the pointing of the foot flash like a bolt of lightning. The optical illusion created when the knee straightens and the foot points completely makes the line of the leg look much longer than it is in fact, which is why a ballerina standing on pointe looks radiant, like a star. The pointe shoe allows a dancer to create that finished line that goes out to infinity, which otherwise can only be created by tearing the body away from the floor altogether by jumping. The Danish technique contains as many kinds of jumps as Inuit has words for snow: there are tiny jumps, medium-sized jumps, grands jetes. Furthermore, the style has many very small steps against which the jumps can stand out. It was perverse of them to hide the men’s gorgeous legs in black socks and black shoes in their most famous ballet, La Sylphide, set in a Scottish farmhouse – think guys in kilts, OK? Jumps, pirouettes, and the skirts fly up, got the picture? The stage was crowded, the scenery dark, the kilts ugly, the lower legs hidden in black socks. If you knew the ballet, you could see the fantastic lightness and intricate footwork of Ulrik Birkkjaer, who danced the young laird who falls in love with a sylphide and abandons his bride-tobe on his wedding day, This is not a gay fantasy of our boy running off with the guy he really loves, but it’s very close, and indeed he dies, so does the Sylphide, when all the forces of conventional marriage get deployed, including the embittered older woman who does the dirty work of patriarchy. It’s a great ballet, one of the very greatest, and contrary to what their notes and lectures suggested, it is not their peculiar treasure, danced only in Copenhagen. Auguste Bournonville’s Sylphide is danced all over the world, in SF, Moscow, St. Petersburg, New York, Atlanta, I could go on. The Danes don’t seem to know this, nor what is great about it. They jazzed it up, danced everything slightly too fast, and with false modesty, hid the beauty of their legs, which is one of the great glories of the civilized world. The new rep they showed, which they danced very well, is ephemeral. Still, it is a great company, may they soon come back.▼
www.ebar.com )))))))))
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<< Film
June 9-15, 2011
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Iconoclastic movie-making by David Lamble
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part from our legendary LGBT film festival, the action for film buffs this month will be at 2575 Bancroft Way in Berkeley, home to the UC Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive, which from June 10-29 will screen dueling retrospectives to American film icons George and Mike Kuchar (Cult of the Kuchars) and the late Hollywood iconoclast Arthur Penn. My Kuchar coverage is based on a one-hour phone chat with George from his vacation HQs in El Reno, Okalahoma (the heart of Tornado Alley), where he indulges his fascination for extreme weather. George Kuchar Selects: Burlesk King George explains his love for Filipino director Mel Chionglo’s melodrama about his country’s adult entertainers. “This candycolored and body-greased soap opera of male strippers, street hookers, family values, and a bit of
urban crime makes one also want to hit the streets.” (6/11) The Devil’s Cleavage George’s homage to Douglas Sirk features the late Curt McDowell trapped in a tacky Oklahoma motel peopled with sexy tramps and no-accounts. “Curt and I would trade actors for our films at the Art Institute. Eventually we had an affair all the while we were making movies like mad. These characters had this terrible angst – they were afraid to wake up because they were going to be miserable. I would write this florid dialogue, and the only way it would play was for me to put this sappy music behind it.” (6/11) Weather Diary 1 “I was very interested in weather as a kid, and I used to read books by Eric Sloan. He was an artist who drew clouds with sort of an aesthetic of the sky. But why just read books? So I flew to Oklahoma City and checked in at the Y, and watched the clouds and the storms moving in.”
David Lamble: It’s May 1986, and you’re in this cheap motel. Kids are playing outdoors in the water, and there’s “Runt,” the dog you feed, and neighbors you like, and you’re surviving on Dinty Moore Stew. It captures a moment. George Kuchar: That place was razed, and the people who owned it are dead. The kid grew up to be a big, burly guy on a motorcycle. You do this wonderful direct address to us, with snapshots of the lives of working-class Oklahomans, including tornado pictures taken by the local weather guy. I’m getting away from my life here, and since I don’t have cable TV, I get to watch a lot of cable TV. I love your ad-lib about “beating your meat” before bedtime. Did you find any tricks? Once I was picked up by this exmilitary guy, and he drove outside of town, where I got a blowjob.
Scene from Filipino director Mel Chionglo’s Burlesk King.
Sorry to be so graphic. I have had moments when I’m walking along the highway and somebody will call out from the bushes, “Hey you!” I don’t usually talk this way in public, but in the video diaries, I become this other character. (6/23) Hold Me While I’m Naked “My most popular picture really put me on the map. It was my first 16mm sound picture. It was all my voice, because by the time I shot it, I was too tired to dub the other actors’ voices. So I played my mother and all the guys in the picture. It was going to be a lurid drama about a mother and daughter vying for the same man, but my star got ill, so I turned the picture onto myself, about a filmmaker not being able to make a movie.” (6/15) A Liberal Helping: Arthur Penn This tribute to a passionate lefty shows the stage/TV-trained Penn’s unique ability to bring out the best in his eclectic ensembles, and how even the shakiest of his films contributed to the culture of intelligent, truthful cinema. Alice’s Restaurant This immensely entertaining travesty gets so much wrong about a clan of rambunctious hippies raising hell in 1969 Stockbridge, MA, that perversely, it becomes a moving comic elegy to a social movement that rocked this nutty country. Penn was a fan of Arlo Guthrie’s talking-blues ballad “Alice’s Restaurant,” and decided to use it for a film that would salute the anti-war movement. While Penn completely misunderstood the hippies, injecting melodramatic fictional tropes to make them more palatable to a mainstream audience, his ability to unleash Guthrie’s sly, sexy, and subversive mojo preserves the sense of what it was like to stand naked among your peers for a military induction physical. Four decades later, Guthrie’s witty insolence, fashion sense and nobullshit panache remind one of how wonderful it was for emerging queer boys to observe sexy, long-haired straight boys. Implicitly, there are clues here to the popularity of
Giants ace Timmy “The Freak” Lincecum. (6/18) Night Moves This latter-day noir showcases the misguided, homophobic, ex-jock LA private eye Harry Moseby (Gene Hackman) as he attempts to rescue a frisky sex kitten (teenage Melanie Griffith) from a posse of predatory adults. Harry gets the ultimate blow to his wounded masculinity when he observes his wife betraying him at an Eric Rohmer movie. The sting of hearing Harry rip into her “faggot friend” reminds us that when queers first got overt attention from Hollywood, it merely made explicit the subtext directed against America’s lavender menace. Griffith’s debut alongside a young James Woods prepares us for their glorious 1998 reunion in Larry Clark’s Another Day in Paradise. (6/26) Little Big Man Dustin Hoffman’s cheeky performance as the oldest survivor of Custer’s Last Stand gives a Bob Hope-worthy comic tone to this uneven if brave satire on the fate of Native peoples in America. (6/26) The Missouri Breaks Marlon Brando delivers an over-thetop portrait as a cross-dressing bounty hunter who sadistically assassinates a gang of incompetent horse-rustlers led by a sassy Jack Nicholson. This totally unhinged romp, with moments as pleasurable as anything in Butch Cassidy or Unforgiven, anticipates the Coen Brothers’ sardonic oaters No Country for Old Men and True Grit. (6/29) The Left Handed Gun This cockeyed version of the Billy the Kid myth (based on Gore Vidal’s play) shows the debt Paul Newman owed to the early death of James Dean. (6/10) Bonnie and Clyde It smashed American film taboos about sex and violence while demonstrating a young Warren Beatty’s unique power as actor/producer. But Beatty also cut allusions to Clyde’s bi side. (6/18)▼ More info: www.bampfa.berkeley.edu
Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde.
Read more online at www.ebar.com
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BAY AREA REPORTER • 31
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<< Theatre
June 9-15, 2011
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Liberated or not? by Richard Dodds
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he theater program for The Pride informs you that the play shuttles between 1958 and 2008, and the same set of three actors plays different characters but with the same names in the different decades. Because Kuo-Hao Lo’s living-room set at New Conservatory Theatre Center is furnished in a style that could be either 1950s contemporary or 21st-century retro chic, we’re not sure in which decade the opening scene is taking place. Nor does the brittle but polite repartee of the characters provide a timeframe clue, though we increasingly sense something is amiss among the sardonic husband (Michael Cassidy), his eager-to-please wife (Maura Halloran), and a fussily polite guest (Joseph Salazar) who has hired the wife to illustrate his children’s book. Playwright Alexi Kaye Campbell seems to be channeling both Noel Coward and Harold Pinter in this opening scene, as clever banter grows mysteriously ominous. We begin to see the light as only the addition of a laptop computer to the set signals that we have moved from ’58 to ’08 for the second scene, though the scene opens with a startling tableau of a Nazi soldier
ordering a cowering, shirtless young man to lick his boots. It turns out to be a role-playing scene, quickly terminated by the pseudo-victim, who has hired the costumed hustler from a website. But the timing is horrid, as the young man’s estranged lover arrives to pick up some of his belongings, and the young man pleads for reconciliation even as the Nazi-for-hire casually changes back into his street clothes. The two men of the first scene and the second not only share the same names, but are at least partially parallel versions of the same characters as they would be in the different social norms of the 40-year span between their existences. Playwright Campbell seems to be saying that as benighted as were earlier times in relationship to homosexuality, the liberalized attitudes of recent years create a different set of complicated parameters. The Pride debuted in London in 2008, and created considerable buzz for its first-time playwright. A New York production came two years later, again with respectful attention being paid, and NCTC’s artistic director Ed Decker swapped out a previously announced play in the theater’s Pride series when it became available locally. It was a good
decision, for The Pride is one of the meatiest explorations of human behavior filtered through a gay lens that the theater has presented. The playwright is a bit of a trickster, as his opening scenes for each of the decades depicted are packed with laughs along with their disquieting underpinnings. But humor slips away as conversations turn into debates, overly wordy at times, with the children’s book author in the 1958 scenes showing signs of gay pride, but unable to convince the conflicted husband of his collaborator that homosexuality is anything but a horrid aberration. As time jumps ahead, the husband of the earlier-set scenes becomes the conservative lover of the writer, whose proto-liberated attitudes have expanded to sexual addiction. There is a third component in each set of time-shifted scenes: the reserved but canny wife of the suppressed gay character of the ’50s, and the level-headed friend of the estranged lovers in the modernday scenes. She’s a duped woman in the closet era who can become a facilitator of same-sex love once the closet doors have been yanked open. Director Arturo Catricala has done exquisite work in both smoothly staging the play that can
Lois Tema
Tensions are high between a closeted husband (Michael Cassidy) and his suspecting wife (Maura Halloran) in the 1958 scene of Alexi Kaye Campbell’s decade-spanning play The Pride at New Conservatory Theatre Center.
quickly switch in time and place (and costumes, thanks to Keri Fitch), and eliciting finely tuned performances from his cast, whose personalities must both change yet maintain glimmers of their other-era selves. There is also brashly distinct work from Shane Fahy as the faux Nazi, a bombastic magazine editor, and a grim 1950s doctor committed to aversion therapy for homosexuality. It falls to the sole female in the cast to address most potently the shift in attitudes in the four-decade
span of the show. “Life becomes like a horrible fancy-dress party,” the 1958 wife laments as she perseveres in her sham of a marriage. The tables have turned in 2008, when she offers her sex-addicted gay friend this simple piece of wisdom: “You have to stop sucking the dick of your oppressor.”▼ The Pride will run through July 3 at New Conservatory Theatre Center. Tickets are $24-$40. Call 861-8972 or go to www.nctcsf.org.
Health scare by Richard Dodds
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s you flip through the program before the lights go down signaling the start of Let Me Down Easy, you’ll come across a page headlined “From FDR to Obama: A Brief Timeline of Health-Care Reform in America.” Read it, if you please, but don’t let it sink your heart before Anna Deavere Smith has had a chance to bring the first of many characters to life in her latest one-woman play at Berkeley Rep. Health-care reform is a fundamental contemporary issue, but its saturation level probably doesn’t have audiences begging for more hectoring, horror stories, and Blue Cross-bashing after they’ve turned off the news and headed to the theater. What Smith has created does inevitably wander into the unfathomable inequities of the business of staying healthy, but her overarching theme is much larger and looser than that. Too loose, really, to encapsulate in a single sentence, except to say it’s about holding on, letting go, and finding your own way from cradle to grave. As she did with Fires in the Mirror, about racial and religious tensions that erupted in Brooklyn’s Crown Heights in 1991, and Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992, about the unrest following the Rodney King verdict, Smith presents a series of monologues in character regardless of gender, race, or age, based on wide swathes of interviews she conducted with people somehow touched by these troubling events. But there is no single event that unifies the 14 or so individuals under whose skins Smith briefly inhabits. Smith, who plays the crusty hospital administrator on the cable series Nurse Jackie, doesn’t really do impressions in the Rich Little sense. Some of her subjects are celebrities whose voices will be familiar to many in the audience, and quickly we see that the attempt is not about mimicry. In a way, Smith takes the verbatim transcripts and interprets them through her own version of that person’s tics, mannerisms, and vocal distinctions at various levels of exaggeration. It’s not always flattering, as Lance Armstrong comes across as a spoiled egotist
Joan Marcus
Anna Deavere Smith plays a multitude of characters examining the life force in Let Me Down Easy at Berkeley Rep.
as he talks about his battle against cancer and his need to win, and supermodel Lauren Hutton languishingly revels in the high-end health insurance her contract with Revlon provided. But most of Smith’s subjects come with neither that level of fame nor sense of entitlement. A doctor recalls the horrors of the forgotten patients at New Orleans’ Charity Hospital after Katrina, a boxer wins a championship bout but almost loses his life, a minister ponders on a special relationship with death that African Americans seems to possess, and a music scholar examines the amazing output of Franz Schubert once he discovered he had incurable syphilis. Somehow Eve Ensler, author of The Vagina Monologues, gets a moment as she explains the life-giving force of “being in your vagina” like a Tina Turner, or the alternative of pursuing a fashionably desiccated life on a diet of a raisin a day. On an attractively appointed set by Riccardo Hernandez, director Leonard Foglia gracefully guides
Smith’s seamless transitions into the diverse characters with maybe an identifying prop or a minor alternation in costume. Those elements remain on stage after she discards them to move to the next character, and in her curtain call she gestures to each one in tribute to the people, some still alive, others not, who have shared a piece of their lives with her. Because Smith is such an appealing and accomplished performer, the amorphous themes of this current work become something of as asset. Any personal agenda is subtly woven into the changing scenes, and if a specific premise is still required, it is provided by the title. Whatever one’s station in life happens to be, and to whomever or whatever we direct our innermost desires, whenever the end does come, please, our primal voice pleads, let me down easy.▼ Let Me Down Easy will run at Berkeley Rep through July 10. Tickets are $17-$93. Call (510) 647-2949 or go to www.berkeleyrep.org.
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Film >>
June 9-15, 2011 •
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Focus Features
Ewan McGregor in Mike Mills’ Beginners.
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Beginners From page 25
her art-museum curator, deeply closeted husband. In the film’s present tense, Dad (a wonderful Christopher Plummer) bursts forth and embraces gay life with gusto, including time-sharing a much younger boyfriend. Ewan McGregor, as the grown son, fusses and frets as dad shrugs off stage four cancer. “There’s no stage five.” A brilliant transition device has Oliver commiserating with Dad’s now-orphaned Jack Russell terrier Cosmo, who has scene-stealing sad eyes and New Yorker cartoon-witty subtitled rejoinders like, “I have a vocabulary of up to 150 words, but I don’t talk.” But the Anna-andOliver part of the movie flounders a bit in a sea of heartfelt but emotionally dodgy mumblecore. The characters consume screentime without advancing towards any clearly defined goals. My introduction to Mills’ reallife queer family came about accidentally when a question I asked in our 2005 chat about
Thumbsucker’s boy hero’s (Lou Taylor Pucci) relationship to his possibly closeted high school debate coach (an unusually vulnerable Vince Vaughn) produced an unexpected mini-bio of his thenrecently demised gay dad. “My dad came out – my parents were married for 45 years. They are the WWII-era generation. He was gay in a world where that just was a very hostile place, and the limited place and the limited life you could have as a gay person really freaked him out. He and my mom were friends since high school, and they really did love each other on some level, and tried to work it out, and god knows exactly what he did for 45 years. He was with her and not with other people. When he came out, he was 75 years old, and he came out full guns, not just intellectually. He really wanted to be gay in every way, and have a relationship. It was a very beautiful, sad, crazy part of all our lives. And it’s definitely a part of my life, because he definitely was an odd father figure, a closeted gay man. See page 37 >>
www.ebar.com
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Serving the LGBT communities since 1971
June 9-15, 2011
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woman caught in a complex love triangle. $24-$40. Wed-Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm thru July 3. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. 861-8972. www.nctcsf.org
Queer Women of Color Film Fest @ Brava Theater The seventh annual festival of short and feature fims and videos made by lesbians, bi, trans and queer women, includes screenings, plus panels with noted artists. Free. Thru June 12. Various times. 2789 24th St. www.qwocmap.org www.brava.org
The Real Americans @ The Marsh Dan Hoyle’s moving and funny solo show, with multiple characters based on Midwesterners on the right and Coasters on the left, asks how a politcially divided America can survive. $25-$35. Fri 8pm, Sat 8:30pm. Thru July 24. 1062 Valencia St. at 22nd. 282-3055. www.themarsh.org
Sat 11
Reborning @ SF Playhouse
Thu 16
by Jim Provenzano
The tenth anniversary showcase of vibrant diverse LGBT talents includes Vogue Evolution (photo, above), Sean Dorsey Dance, Shawna Virago, GAPA Men’s Chorus, Storm Miguel Florez, Natasha Muse, Na Lei Hulu I Ka Wekiu, same-sex ballroom dancers, poets, trapeze artists and more. $15-$20. 8pm. Thru June 19 (7pm). 450 Florida St. at 17th. www.freshmeatproductions.org
70mm Films @ Castro Theatre Celebrate 70mm widescreen films; Hitchcock’s Vertigo June 8-10 at 2pm, 5pm, 8pm. Lawrence of Arabia June 11 & 12 at 2pm, 7pm. $10. 429 Castro St. www.castrotheatre.com
Another Hole in the Head @ Roxie Theater Annual festival of strange, horror, scifi and thriller flicks from the underground, with parties and other events. Thru June 17. 3117 16th St. at Valencia. 820-3907. www.sfindie.com www.roxie.com
Assassins @ Eureka Theatre Ray of Light Theatre (acclaimed recent productions of Jerry Springer the Opera, Tommy, The Rocky Horror Show ), presents the controversial Stephen Sondheim musical about assassins. $20-$36. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 25. 215 Jackson St. at Battery. www.roltheatre.com
Blue Man Group @ Golden Gate Theatre Touring production of the popular theatrical show with music, percussion and lots of splashy drums full of glowing goo. $30-$200. Tue-Sat 8pm. Wed, Sat, Sun at 2pm. Thru June 19. 1 Taylor St. at Market. (888) SHN 1799 www.shnsf.com
Dance Continuum @ Dance Mission Theater Local company premieres new works and repertory by Pete Litwinowicz and Jose Ivan Ibarra. $20. 8pm. Thru June 12. 3316 24th St. www.dancecontinuumsf.org
The Edenites @ Exit Stage Left Stuart Bousel’s new comedy about gay, bi and straight relationships in San Francisco’s dot com boom era. $12-$25. Thu-Sat 8pm. thru June 25. 156 Eddy St. www.horrorunspeakable.com
Fighting Mac! @ Thick House New gay play about 19th-century gay general Hector McDonald, and contemporary Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policies; written and directed by John Fisher. $15-$30. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 3pm. Thru June 19. 1695 18th St. (800) 838-3006. www.therhino.org
The Legend of Hedgehog Boy @ LGBT Center Comic artist Rene Capone’s endearing series about a runaway boy and his friends, animal and human, gets a staged reading with projections of the art work. $12. 7:30pm. Rainbow Room, 1800 Market St. at Octavia. www.renecapone.com www.sfcenter.org
Risk is This @ Exit Theatre
Fresh Meat Festival @ Z Space
Fri 10 >>
Zayd Dohm’s unusual play about a dollmaker whose new demanding client may be her long-lost mother. $20-$50. Tue-Wed 7pm. Thu-Sat 8pm. + Sat 3pm. Thru June 11. 533 Sutter St. 677-9596. www.sfplayhouse.org
Joe Goode Performance Group @ Novellus Theater Innovative local dance-theatre creator’s new work, The Rambler, about the the restless spirit of the iconic American wanderer, with puppeteer Basil Twist and intricate lighting design. $19-$49. 8pm (June 12, 7pm). Thru June 18. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission St. at 3rd. 561-6565. www.joegoode.org www.ybca.org
Little Shop of Horrors @ Boxcar Theatre Local production of the hit Off-Broadway musical by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman based on the ‘60s B-movie about a carnivorous talking, singing alien plant. $20-$50. Tue-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 26. 505 Natoma St. at 6th. www.boxcartheatre.org
Mark Curry @ The Rrazz Room Comic and TV actor ( Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper) does stand-up. $26. 10pm. 2-drink min. 21+. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com
Marty Epstein @ Castro Country Club Opening reception for Eye See, an exhibit of photos of San Francisco’s LGBT community. 5pm. Partial proceeds benefit CCC. 4058 18th St. www.castrocountryclub.org
The Mystery of Irma Vep @ 6th St. Playhouse, Santa Rosa Charles Ludlam’s hilarious drag parody of Gothic melodramas with two actors playing 30 roles. $15-$32. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru June 26. GK Hardt Theatre, 52 West 6th St. (707) 523-4185. www.6thstreetplayhouse.com
Nobody Move @ Intersection for the Arts Campo Santo ensemble performs Dennis Johnson’s play, based on his book, about a gambler facing a metaphysical trial. $20-$35. Thu-Sun 8pm. Thru June 12. 626-2787. 446 Valencia St. www.theintersection.org
The Pride @ New Conservatory Theatre West Coast premiere of Alexia Kaye Campbell’s innovative play about two men and a
Cutting Ball theatre company’s experimental plays festival, with comic, serious, odd and unusual themes; most plays run two nights. Free. $20 reserved. $50 five-play donation. Thru June 25. 277 Taylor St. (800) 838-3006. www.cuttingball.com
Eric Lane Barnes’ satirical musical revue about fundamentalist drag queens, er, ladies, who try to save their outed gay organist. $15-$40. Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 25. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. 861-8972. www.nctcsf.org
Beach Blanket Babylon @ Club Fugazi
12-mile sunset hike with LGBT outdoorsy folk. Carpool 12pm at Safeway sign, Market St. at Dolores. (5100 910-8734. www.sfhiking.com
Berkeley Gay Comedy Festival @ The Marsh, Berkeley
Tales of the City @ A.C.T.
Ali Mafi and Marga Gomez tear it up with gay comedy. Other events thru June 18. $15-$50. 8:30pm. 2061 Allston Way at Shattuck. www.themarsh.org
American Conservatory Theatre’s funny and sweet world premiere musical adaptation of Armistead Maupin’s first novel in his popular series, with book by Jeff Whitty ( Avenue Q ) and music/lyrics by Jake Shears and John Garden (Scissor Sisters). $48-$123. Extended thru July 24. Tue-Sat 8pm. Wed, Sat & Sun 2pm. 415 Geary St. 749-2228. www.act-sf.org
Teatro Zinzanni @ Pier 29 Caliente is the new show at the theatre-tentdinner extravaganza, with twin acrobats Ming and Rui, Vertical Tango rope dance, plus magic, comedy, a five-course dinner, and a lot of fun. $117-$145. Saturday 11:30am “Breve” show $63-$78. Wed-Sat 6pm (Sun 5pm). Pier 29 at Embarcadero Ave. 438-2668. www.teatrozinzanni.com
Sun 12 Brendan Perry, Robin Guthrie @ Bimbo’s
Thrillpeddlers, the fabulous ensemble that brought us Pearls Over Shanghai and Hot Greeks, now brings forth the last Cockettes musical, the saucy 1972 revue of songs and sordid silliness, a very loose Fellini-esque parody of Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death. $30-$35. Fri & Sat 8pm Sun 7pm. 575 10th st. at Bryant/Division. Thru July 31. www.thrillpeddlers.com
4 AD fan alert! The innovative musician-composers behind Dead Can Dance and Cocteau Twins perform in a shared concert. $25. 8pm. 21+. 1025 Columbus Ave. 474-0365. www.bimbos365club.com
Wish We Were Here @ New Conservatory Theatre
Care of Trees @ Ashby Stage, Berkeley
Michael Phillis’ one-man -and one-genieshow (with Sara Moore) tells the story of a man who finds a genie in his hookah; hilarity ensues. $20-$32. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 25. 25 Van Ness Ave., lower level. 861-8972. www.nctcsf.org
Shotgun Players’ production of E. Hunter Spreen’s drama about two people whose lives become connected via an ancient oak tree, and how the environment and a mysterious ailment alter their lives. $17-$26. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 5pm (Wed 7pm from June 1). Thru June 26. 1901 Ashby Ave. (510) 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org
Sat 11 >>
Dance Q @ Magnet
Anna Deavere Smith @ Berkeley Rep
Free lessons in a variety of same-sex partnering and social dances; each 2nd Saturday. 7pm. 4122 18th st. 305-8242. www.QueerBallroom.com www.MagnetSF.org
Acclaimed solo performer brings her new show Let Me Down Easy, about healthcare and many other issues, to the stage. $17-$73. Tue-Sat 8pm (Wed 7pm) Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru
East 14th @ The Marsh, Berkeley True Tales of a Reluctant Player, Don Reed’s autobiographical solo show about being raised as a God-fearing church boy whose father was a pimp. $20-$35. Sat 8:30pm, Sun 7pm. Thru Aug. 7. 2120 Allston Way. (800) 838-3006. www.themarsh.org
The God Project @ The Jewish Theater
Eve Marie Saint @ The Rrazz Room
Outlook Theater Project’s LGBT-themed collective work-in-progress play about gender, sexuality and spirituality. $15. 8pm. Also June 10, 8:30pm. 470 Florida St. www.brownpapertickets.com/event/171919
Academy Award-winning actress performs A.R. Gurney’s musical duo show Love Letters with Jeffrey Hayden. $40. 3pm. Also June 12. 2-drink min. 21+. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com
The Great Confusion @ Oddball Film
Metamorphosis @ Aurora Theatre, Berkeley
The celebrated local singer-actress brings back her witty and earnest Judy Garland show, with “Judy” doing pop songs by Lady Gaga, Amy Winehouse and more, plus classics, too. $32.50. 8pm. 2-drink min. 21+. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com
Kent Taylor
Strange and hilarious short films about Buster Keaton, Dr. Seuss, madness, schizophrenia and witch doctors. $10. 8:30pm. Also, June 11, Asian Trance ritual films from Bali and Java. 8pm. 275 Capp St. 558-8117. www.oddballfilm.com
Connie Champagne @ The Rrazz Room
Exhibit of personal artwork, collected work and archival materials showing how the lesbian poet’s life, mostly in Paris, changed over the decades before and after WWII. Free-$10. Thru Sept. 6. 11am-5pm daily (closed Wed), Thu 1pm-8pm. 736 Mission St. 655-7800. www.thecjm.org
The Steins Collect @ SF MOMA
[title of show] @ Mountain View Center for the Arts
Vice Palace @ Hypnodrome
Mon 13
Seeing Gertrude Stein: Five Stories @ Contemporary Jewish Museum
Matisse, Picasso, and the Parisian AvanteGarde, an exhibit of pivotal artworks originally collected by lesbian poet Gertrude Stein and her family. 4th floor galleries. Free (members)-$25. Thru Sept. 6. 11am-5:45pm daily. Closed Wed.; open til 8:45pm Thu. 3574000. www.sfmoma.org
Unusual theatre, dance and hybrid performance works presented at Z Space, Theatre of Yugen and Fools Fury Theater. Various ticket prices. Thru June 26. www.foolsfury.org
American Conservatory Theatre’s world premiere of Craig Slaight and Creighton Irons’ commissioned musical about World War II teens fleeing Germany and attempting to find a new home. $20.50. Wed-Sat 7:30pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Thru June 25. Yerba Buena Gardens, Fourth & Howard sts. www.act-sf.org
SF Hiking Club @ Point Reyes
Musical comedy revue, now in its 35th year, with an ever-changing lineup of political and pop culture icons, all in gigantic wigs. $25$130. Wed, Thu, Fri at 8pm. Sat 6:30, 9:30pm. Sun 2pm, 5pm. (Beer/wine served; cash only). 678 Beach Blanket Babylon Blvd (Green St.). 421-4222. www.beachblanketbabylon.com
The Stops @ New Conservatory Theatre
Fury Factory Theatre Festival @ Various Theatres
Homefront @ Zeum Theatre
June 26. LGBT Night Out July 10. 2015 Addison St. (510) 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org
Aurora Theatre Company’s production of Mark Jackson’s absurd and horror-tinged play based on Franz Kafka’s classic book about a salesman’s transformation into a giant insect. $10-$55. Previews thru June 14. Opening June 16. Tue 7pm; Wed-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm & 7pm. Thru July 17. 2081 Addison St. (510) 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org
Picasso @ de Young Museum Masterpieces from the Museé National Picasso, Paris, a new exhibit of classic early modern works by the Spanish master painter. Free (members)-$25. Tue-Sun 9:30am5:15pm. Wed 9:30am-8:45pm (the Aug). Thru Oct. 9. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive. 750-3600. www.famsf.org
Hunter Bell and Jeff Bowen’s hilarious musical within a musical about the making of a Broadway hit, which, by the way, actually became a Broadway hit. $24-$42. Tue-Wed 7:30. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sat & Sun 2pm. Sun 7pm. Thru June 26. 500 Castro St., Mountain View. (650) 463-1960. www.theatreworks.org
Welcome Home, Jenny Sutter @ Marion E. Greene Theater, Oakland Julie Marie Myatt’s play about a female African American solider who loses a leg in Iraq, and how she adjusts to returning home. $15. Thu-Sat 8pm. Sun 2pm. Thru June 19. 531 19th St. at Telegraph. www.theatrefirst.com
Sun 12 >> All-Stars II @ The Garage Kevin Seaman, Harvey Rabbit and Dante Baylor perform mixed-genre dance-performance works with themes about dreams, sexuality, queer identity and more. $15. 8pm. Also June 13. 975 Howard St. 518-1517. www.975howard.com
Balenciaga and Spain @ de Young Museum Fashion exhibit focusing on the influence of Spain on the work of haute couture master Cristóbal Balenciaga. Thru July 4. $6-$17. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, Golden Gate Park. 750-3600. www.famsf.org
Bali @ Asian Art Museum Art, Ritual, Performance, an expansive exhibit of more than 100 historic art works in exhibits that showcase the practicality of the performing and visual arts in this beautiful culture. Special performances and interactive workshops throughout exhibit run. Reg. admission: $7-$17. Reg. hours Tue-Sun 10am-5pm. Thu til 9pm. Thru Sept. 11. 200 Larkin St. www.asianart.org
Bijou @ Martuni’s Tom Orr ( Dirty Little Showtunes ), Ben Kranz (Jerry Springer: the Opera co-producer), Joan Brady, and puppet Mister Bones send up Broadway songs with accompanist/singer Tom Shaw. $5. 7pm. 4 Valencia St. at Market. www.dragatmartunis.com
Happy Hour @ Energy Talk Radio Interview show with gay writer Adam Sandel as host. 8pm. www.EnergyTalkRadio.com
Naked Girls Reading @ Center for Sex & Culture Carol Queen, Lady Monster, Ophelia Coeur de Noir, Cherry Galette, Kirya Traber and Daphne Gottlieb read sexy prose, perhaps without much clothing. $15-$20. 8pm. 1349 Mission St. www.ngrsf.eventbrite.com
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Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 •
Thu, 8pm. Sat & Sun 5pm. Thru July 10. 1062 Valencia St. at 22nd. (800) 838-5750. www.themarsh.org
Marriage Equality Tasting @ Orson Wine tasting with samples from countries that have legalized LGBT marriage (Spain, Portugal, South Africa, Argentina). Proceeds benefit Marriage Equality New York. $15-$20. 6pm-8pm. 508 Fourth St. at Bryant. www.orsonsf.com
Romare Bearden @ Museum of the African Diaspora From Process to Print: Graphic Works by Romare Bearden, one of the greatest 20thcentury collage artists; exhibit includes 85+ lithographs, prints and displays showing his process, and inspiration in capturing Black culture, jazz and urban and Southern scenes. $5-$10. Thru July 3. Wed-Sat 11am-6pm. Sun 12pm-5pm. 685 Mission St. at 3rd. 358-7252. www.moadsf.org
SF Hiking Club @ Berkeley Meadow
Fri 10 Incirculo @ SF Circus Center See lively aerial acts, clowning and more performed by students of the famed circus school. $15-$50. 7:30pm. Also June 11, 2pm, 7:30 (special fundraiser with food, wine and beverages, auctions and desserts). June 12 2pm. 755 Frederick St. www.circuscenter.org
After-work, 3-mile hike with LGBT hikers. Meet at 6:15 at Berkeley Meadow entrance at University & Frontage roads. (510) 910-8734. www.sfhiking.com
Thu 16 >> American Fabulous @ SF Public Library
Opus Q @ Julia Morgan Arts Center, Berkeley
Trans March Benefit @ Buck Tavern
Mens’ a cappella ensemble performs music by Handel, Copland, Verdi, Pink and songs from the musical Wicked. $5. 6pm & 8pm. 2640 College Ave. www.opus-q.org
Storm-Miguel Flores, Shawna Virago, Tommi Avicolli Mecca and others perform at a nohost no-frills fundraiser for the annual Trans March. 6pm-9pm. 1655 Market St. at Gough.
Filmmaker Reno Dakota will be present for a Q&A at a screening of his 1991 cult fave indie documentary about a down and out queen. 12pm. Koret Auditorium, lower level. 100 Larkin St. www.sfpl.org
Outlook Video @ Channel 29
Tue 14 >>
Feel Mighty Real @ SF Public Library
Monthly LGBT news show; Steve Bass of San Jose Pride, Gabrielle Antolovich of Voices United, and the Framline LGBT film fest preview. 5pm. www.outlookvideo.org
Sunday’s a Drag @ Starlight Room
Alex MacLean @ Robert Koch Gallery Exhibit of large prints of aerial American landscapes. Thru July 2. Tue-Sat 10:30am5:30pm. 49 Geary St. 5th fl. 421-0122. www.kochgallery.com
Donna Sachet and Harry Denton host the fabulous weekly brunch and drag show. $45. 11am, show at noon; 1:30pm, show at 2:30pm. 450 Powell St. in Union Square. 3958595. www.harrydenton.com
Bearmusement @ Magnet
We Are Family Day @ Lake Merritt Bandstand, Oakland
Exhibit of artist Noel’s bear-centric graphic art. Thru June. 4122 18th St. www.bearmusement.com www.magnetsf.org
Kid-friendly open-air concert with SF’s Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band performing selections from Beauty and the Beast , Annie, plus kids’ activities for LGBT parents and families. Free. 3pm. Lake Merritt, Oakland. www.sflgfb.org
Funny Tuesdays @ Harvey’s
Mon 13 >>
Kim Nalley @ The Rrazz Room
B.A.R. Retrospective @ Union Bank Rick Gerharter curated this new exhibit of images, video and ephemera from the four decades of the Bay Area Reporter ’s history. Free. Mon-Fri- 9am-5pm. Thru June. 400 California St., 1st floor. www.unionbank.com
Marga’s Funny Mondays @ The Marsh, Berkeley Marga Gomez, “the lesbian Lenny Bruce” (Robin Williams), brings her comic talents and special guests to a weekly cabaret show. $10. 8pm. 2120 Allston Way. (800) 838-3006. www.margagomez.com www.themarsh.org
Queer Comedy Night @ El Rio Host Lisa Geduldig welcomes comics Matina Bevis, Julia Jackson, Nate Blanchard and Joan Howard at a night of gay and lesbian laughs. $7-$20. 8pm. 3158 Mission St. 522-3737. www.koshercomedy.com www.elriosf.com
Ten Percent @ Comcast 104 David Perry’s talk show about LGBT local issues. Mon-Fri 11:30am & 10:30pm, Sat & Sun 10:30pm. www.davidperry.com
Ronn Vigh hosts the weekly LGBT and gayfriendly comedy night. One drink or menu item minimum. 9pm. 500 Castro St. at 18th. 431-HARV. www.harveyssf.com
Acclaimed local singer performs her musical tribute to Nina Simone. $35-$37.50. Wed, Thu, Sat 8pm; Fri & Sun 7pm. Thru June 17. 2-drink min. 21+. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. (800) 380-3095. www.TheRrazzRoom.com
Wed 15 >> Aaron E. Terry @ Ever Gold Gallery Amusing exhibit of large prints of friends dressed as a costumed Yeti in different Bay Area settings, and the “Yeti’s” cave installation. Thru June 23. 441 O’Farrell St. 796-3676. www.evergoldgallery.com
David King @ Inclusion Gallery Exhibit of large collage work by the acclaimed local gay artist. Wed-Fri 2pm-8pm. Sat & Sun 12pm-6pm. Thru June 19. 627 Cortland St. 817-1493. www.DavidKingCollage.com www.InclusionGallery.com
Geezer @ The Marsh Veteran clown and actor Geoff Hoyle’s witty solo show about his young life in England and his ruminations on aging. $25-$50. Wed &
Marvin K. White, Alan Miller, Stewart Shaw and other contributors to the new Black LGBT prose anthology read from their work. Free. 6pm. 100 Larkin St., lower level. www.sfpl.org
Frameline 35 @ Various Theatres Opening night of the 35th anniversary LGBT international film festival. Gun Hill Road (7pm) and The Sleeping Beauty of East Finchley (10pm) at the Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St. Also at Roxie Theater, 3117 16th st, Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St., and Rialto Cinema Elmwood, 2966 College Ave. $10-$50. Admissions vary. Thru June 26. www.frameline.org
Not a Genuine Black Man @ The Marsh, Berkeley Brian Copeland’s longrunning autobiographical solo show about racism in San Leandro. $20-$50. 7:30pm. Thru July 14. (800) 8383006. www.themarsh.org
Our Vast Queer Past @ GLBT History Museum New exhibit from the GLBT Historical Society, with a wide array of rare historic items on display. Free for members-$5. Wed-Sat 11am7pm. Sun 12pm-5pm. 4127 18th St. www.glbthistory.org
Rocked by Women @ African American Art & Culture Complex Sarah Bush Dance Project’s multimedia dance performance celebrates the history of women’s music. Special post-show panel discussion with Holly Near, Krissy Keefer, Sarah Crowell and others TBA. $15-$35. 8pm. 762 Fulton St. www.sarahbushdance.com
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
Sat 11 SF Ethnic Dance Festival @ Zellerbach Hall, Berkeley If only politicians could get along the way dancers do, the world would be a peaceful place. The first section of the annual festival of dance includes Gadung Kasturi Balinese Dance and Music, Shabnam Dance Company, African Heritage Ensemble, Parangal Dance Company, Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose and San Jose Taiko,Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco, Ballet Folklórico Mexico Danza, and Hui Tama Nui. 8pm. Also June 12 at 3pm. $18-$58. Bancroft at Telegraph, UC Berkeley campus. Other shows at different venues thru July 3, including a day-long participatory dance with indigenous Native American dancers at YBCA. www.sfethnicdancefestival.org
BAY AREA REPORTER • 35
36 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
June 9-15, 2011
Serving the LGBT communities since 1971
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Books >>
June 9-15, 2011 •
BAY AREA REPORTER • 37
Who’s your Big Daddy? by Dr. Jack Fritscher Leatherman: The Legend of Chuck Renslow by Tracy Baim and Owen Keehnen; Prairie Avenue Productions, $24.99
I
n Casablanca, “sooner or later everybody comes to Rick’s.” In Chicago, the world comes to Chuck’s. Since 1950, Chuck Renslow, now 82 and one of the most famous gay men on the planet, has safely hosted thousands of GLBT visitors at his 30 venues, from his legendary Gold Coast bar (1960-88) to his International Mr. Leather Contest (1979) and his prestigious Leather Archives & Museum (1991). For 60 years, Renslow, a politically aggressive Democrat in the Chicago Machine, has been a person of interest to cops, politicians, fans, and frenemies. Rather than review Leatherman, I can best, as a SoMa historian, serve as local tourguide to this bespoke book with its candid backstage drama of leathermen, lesbians, and Mafia wise-guys shaping homoculture two decades before Stonewall. I came out on Renslow’s 1950s Kris Studio photography and his Gold Coast, where, beginning a 10-year union, I married his handsome bartender, photographer David Sparrow. As eyewitness, I appreciate the authenticity of Leatherman, into which my two-bits was invited by leather-village griots Owen Keehnen and Tracy Baim. Renslow’s strategic business mind led gays politically into a new age. He saw first what others only saw eventually. As an occult practitioner of magical thinking, he intuited the private necessity of coming out, and the public necessity of founding safe venues to do it. Starting Kris Studio (1953), he first courted homomasculine men by creating butch social destinations, which he eventually diversified to all genders: his 2010 IML winner was FTM wheel-charioteer Tyler McCormick. Pioneering locally, he built a nationally sustainable model proving gay-owned businesses key to building community, politics, and social networks. Born a year before Harvey Milk and politically active 20 years before Milk hit Castro, Chicago native Renslow evolved a transforming 1950s heartland identity that defied city, state, and federal laws. In 1954, with lifelong muse Dom Orejudos, the artist “Etienne,” he bought Triumph gym, photographed musclemen, created magazines, was busted by the Post Office for mailing obscene material, and helped push toward the Supreme Court decision that frontal nudity could be sent via US mail. Without that 1967 ruling, subscription mailing of 1970s sexidentity publications could not have reached readers, and Drummer would never have become SF’s longest-running gay magazine. Synergizing business with art, Renslow’s pre-Stonewall Chicago
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Beginners From page 33
“In many points of my life, it would have been advantageous to be gay, going to art school, being in the New York art scene. But I never really felt that was what I was. At the same time, I can often identify with gay guys more than straight gays as far as sensibility, interests and friendships with women.” During a recent joint news conference with his star Ewan McGregor, Mills expanded on the implications that his dad’s coming out had on his family, including Mills’ older sisters, whose stories are left out of the movie.
style, driven by his can-do “Renslow Family,” helped stimulate SF’s 1970s immigrant boom. For instance, Etienne, Renslow’s esthetician, painted the Gold Coast walls reconceptualizing bars as galleries, beginning the Muralist Movement whose “Rushmore Four” included Tom of Finland, Drummer art director A. Jay, and SoMa’s Chuck Arnett, whom Robert Opel and I dubbed Drummer’s “Lautrec in Leather.” In 1962, Etienne tutored Arnett, who, speeding off to SF, painted his avatar mural at the Tool Box. When Life magazine pictured that mural, five years before Stonewall, it invited gays nationwide to bring all regional lifestyles to melt in San Francisco’s pot. Within the extended Renslow Family, B.A.R. columnist Mister Marcus regularly alerted Western readers to Renslow’s Midwestern entertainments, from his annual White Party to Castro diva Sylvester singing on Renslow’s “K-Y Circuit” stages. As an IML judge for 28 years, Marcus flew to O’Hare with SF entourages, often including Folsom’s divine IML emcee Queen Cougar. Always, folks returned to SFO energized in local activism by the annual leather-family reunion that is IML. After winning “Mr. IML 1985,” SF’s Patrick Toner, using that celebrity, established the AIDS fundraiser, the Dore Alley Fair. In 1991, Renslow and Anthony DeBlase, the SF publisher of Drummer and creator of the Leather Pride Flag, founded the IML Trustfunded Leather Archives & Museum,
with Joseph Bean, editor of SF’s Bear magazine, as executive director. In 1978, creating SoMa’s first gallery, Oscar streaker Robert Opel chose veterans Etienne and A. Jay to launch Fey-Way Studio’s opening exhibit, featuring emerging talent like Robert Mapplethorpe, who told me, when assigning him his first magazine cover (Drummer 24), how his own 1970s photography was influenced by the 1950s beefcake of Renslow, who was “genius at lighting his models.” Becoming Drummer editor, I purposely injected Renslow’s masculine, but not separatist, heartland values into the founding of that magazine, which helped create the very SF leather culture it reported on. Drummer 9 featured the “Gold Coast 15th Anniversary,” and, imitating Renslow’s first IML, Drummer kick-started the “Mr. Drummer” contest, which soon anchored the Folsom Fair. In 1980, Renslow’s business manager Patrick Batt moved to SF, helped Bob Damron found the Eagle bar, and became manager of Drummer during our editorial shift to safe sex. Forthrightly, Leatherman dares dish dirt, such as how the rift between thwarted S&M lovers Renslow and Sam Steward, both filmed separately by Kinsey, caused Steward to move his Chicago tattoo parlor to Oakland (1964), establishing Steward as famous SF author “Phil Andros.” And those are just some local GPS links to this entertaining documentary about 20th-century gay American history.▼
“I have two sisters, who aren’t in the story, which gives you an idea of how much it is fiction, and when I turned 18, my sister said, ‘You know pop’s gay,’ or, key word: was gay. I did not know this! Because my dad, born in 1925, wore a suit, voted for Reagan, disciplinarian in the family, art historian, smart dude. Doesn’t seem like he ever had sex, first of all, with anybody, and secondly, that he wasn’t gay. He was an art historian, did buy my mom a lot of clothes, did wear a little cravat and all the little clichés you could associate with that. But he felt more like a Victorian, turn-of-the-century person than anything else. “In the end, his coming out was
amazing for me. I loved my dad so much, he was so awesome and so much more engaged with me and taught me so much more about my ‘straightness’ than my ‘straight’ dad did. I mean we talked about sex, like details of sex, and what you can hope for in a relationship, in a way that we never did when he was straight. Just imagine: my mom has just died, and my second parent seems like he’s about to die, and all of sudden he’s like 40, he’s got a trainer, he’s wearing all-black, he’s really alive. And there’s this pool of guys who are so sweet to him, and then, when he did get sick, they were the first ones at the hospital. So everything about his gayness I really cherish.”▼
www.ebar.com
38 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< Society
June 9-15, 2011
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Tales of the pretty by Donna Sachet
L
ast Wednesday, June 1, the magical allure of 70s-era San Francisco hung tantalizingly in the air at American Conservatory Theater’s Opening Night Gala of Armistead Maupin’s Tales of the City. Before sunset, a wide swath of red carpet lured elegantly dressed benefactors from Charlotte Schultz and Jo Schuman to John & Marcia Goldman, colorful Thrillpeddlers, Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and other celebrants like Leah Garchik and Joy Bianchi into a tented reception and seated dinner in Union Square. Guests were treated to a hilarious tribute performance by cast members of Beach Blanket Babylon, musically acknowledging the legion of financial and creative hands behind this bold new theatrical work. It was truly Armistead’s night, as Carey Perloff, Laura Linney, and others lauded this San Francisco treasure. While dining on crab, bay shrimp, filet mignon Diane, and Blum’s coffee cake, we chatted with Marilee Gardner, Alec Hughes & Gavin Hamilton, Mario Diaz, Ken Henderson & Joe Seiler, Selisse Berry & Cynthia Martin, Joe D’Allesandro, Al Baum, Jan Wahl, Paul S. May & Frank Stein, Tim Whalen, and Charles Zukow. Shortly before 8 p.m., uniformed San Francisco police guided 750 dinner guests on a brisk stroll from Union Square to the gleaming Geary Street theater for the world premiere of Tales of the City. We wholeheartedly recommend this new musical for a rollicking evening of rich characterizations, gorgeous singing, startling staging, playful choreography, emotional peaks, and incredible music and lyrics by Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears and John Garden. During intermission, we caught up with James Hormel & Michael Nguyen, Les Natali, Kevin Lemons, Ken McNeely, Supervisors Scott Wiener and Jane Kim, and Mayor Ed Lee. After an enthusiastic standing ovation, the crowd spilled out of the theater and meandered to Ruby Skye for
Steven Underhill
Actress Laura Linney and author Armistead Maupin at the Tales of the City opening gala, last Wednesday night in Union Square.
drinking, dancing, and dishing. The magical sweep of this rare San Francisco evening was summed up for us by a glimpse of gracious and elegant Cissie Swig on the balcony above, overlooking tuxedoed, tiedyed, gyrating, and smiling dancers below. Yes, she was smiling, too. The following night we saluted local LGBT heroes at a KQED and Union Bank ceremony taped for later viewing during LGBT Pride Month. The deserving awardees are Selisse Berry of Out & Equal Workplace Advocates, Ed Decker of New Conservatory Theatre Center, Mike Smith of AIDS Emergency Fund and Breast Cancer Emergency Fund, and Max Philp of Gay-Straight Alliance, who was driven directly from his high school graduation earlier that evening to attend this ceremony at the KQED studios. The resounding theme of all their acceptance speeches was humility as each thanked a myriad of partners, supporters, and contributors integral to their success. Adding a bit of entertainment to the evening were Jewelle Gomez reading excerpts from an upcoming original play, Jerome Clay providing atmospheric keyboard music in the lobby, and Michael Grossman accompanying this columnist for
a couple of songs. Watch for the evening telecast of the event on Sun. and Mon., June 26 & 27. Saturday exploded with events, starting with AIDS Emergency Fund’s morning celebration and awards presentation at Toad Hall. Honorees here included Bevan Dufty, Mr. SF Leather Lance Holman, Martha & Ernie Asten, owners of Cliff ’s Variety Store, and Roger Gross, executor of the estate of Sylvester, who willed part of the proceeds from his music to AEF. The early morning hour did not dampen the spirits of attendees, including Emperor Jerry Coletti, Empresses Alexis Miranda and Galilea, Keith Truitt, Lu Conrad, Dave Mohr & Wayne Ross, Suzan Revah & Craig Cooper, and B.J. Stiles. Visiting Sharon McNight provided the perfect light musical entertainment. That afternoon, the planned outdoor Castro Tea Dance celebrating 75 years of Cliff ’s Variety Store in the Castro and benefiting AEF, the Harvey Milk Academy, and the Rainbow Walk of Honor, was not cancelled by the inclement weather, but repositioned inside the store itself. Employees spent hours removing fixtures and constructing a platform in the center of the store, a DJ booth was assembled upstairs in the business office overlooking the store interior, See page 39 >>
Coming up in leather and kink Thu., Jun. 9-Sun., Jun. 12: Fist Fest Weekend at the Cathedral City Boys Club (68-369 Sunair Rd., Cathedral City, CA). This is the largest men’s fisting even in the world. Includes the International Mister Hole Competition. Go to: www.fistfest.net. Thu., Jun. 9: Locker Room Thursdays at Kok Bar SF (1225 Folsom). 9 p.m.-close. Jockstraps, gear, singlets, etc. Free clothes check. Go to: www.kokbarsf. com. Thu., Jun. 9: Underwear Night at The Powerhouse (1347 Folsom). 10 p.m. Wet undie contest and drink specials. Go to www.powerhouse-sf.com. Thu., Jun. 9: First Hand: Spanking & Paddling Playshop at the SF Citadel (1277 Mission). 7:30-10:30 p.m. Doors open at 7 p.m. $15-$25 sliding scale. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org.
Star (1354 Harrison). 100% SoMa Beef & Co. 9 p.m.2 a.m. Go to: www.facebook.com/lonestarsf Sun., Jun. 12: The Edge’s 20th Anniversary Party. 1 p.m.-? Be there to celebrate and enjoy the fun in the Castro’s best neighborhood bar. Go to: www.edgesf.com. Sun., Jun. 12: SF Men’s Spanking Party at The Power Exchange (220 Jones St.). This is a male-only event. You must be 18+ with valid ID. 1-6 p.m. Go to: www.voy.com/201188. Sun., Jun. 12: Castrobear presents Sunday Furry Sunday at 440 Castro. 4-10 p.m. Go to: www.castrobear.com. Mon., Jun. 13: Dirty Dicks at the Powerhouse. Starts at 4 p.m. $3 well drinks. Go to: www.powerhouse-sf.com.
Fri., Jun. 10: Truck Wash at Truck (1900 Folsom). 10 p.m.-close. Live shower boys and drink specials. Go to: www.trucksf.com.
Tue., Jun. 14: Beginning Animal Roleplay presented by Azalea at the SF Citadel. 8-10:30 p.m. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. $20. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org.
Fri., Jun. 10: Michael Brandon presents Edging at The Edge (4149 18th St). 9 p.m.-12 a.m. Sexiest Happy Trail contest, spanking demo, hot go-go dancers, shot specials, and more! Go to: www.edgesf.com.
Wed., Jun. 15: Underwear Buddies at Blow Buddies. This is a male-only club. Doors open 8 p.m.-12 a.m. Play til late. Go to: www.blowbuddies.com.
Fri., Jun. 10: Master’s Den: Auction at the SF Citadel. 7:15 p.m.-1 a.m. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Sat., Jun. 11: Folsom Street Events Beer Bust at The Edge. 4-7 p.m. Money raised will go to the Folsom Street Events charities. Raffle prizes provided by Mr. S Leather, Steamworks, Nasty Pig and more! Go to: www. facebook.com/event.php?eid=202534656450169. Sat., Jun. 11: All Beef Saturday Nights at the Lone
Wed., Jun. 15: Naughty Knitters Ladies’ Crafting Social Time at the SF Citadel. 7-9 p.m. $5 admission. Go to: www.sfcitadel.org. Wed., Jun. 15: Bear Bust Wednesdays at Kok Bar SF. $6 all you can drink Bud Light or Rolling Rock drafts. Go to: www.kokbarsf.com. Wed., Jun. 15: Nipple Play at The Powerhouse. 10 p.m.-2 a.m. Specials for shirtless guys. Go to: www.powerhouse-sf.com.
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Karrnal >>
June 9-15, 2011 •
BAY AREA REPORTER • 39
by John F. Karr
H
ere it is, boys: The Other Side of Aspen VI, the initial release from Falcon Studios since its historic merger with Raging Stallion. Christopher Ward Enterprises is the banner that now waves over the whole conglomerate shebang, making Ward the kingpin of porn. What’s he gonna bring to Falcon? Expect a broader range of age and body types, and an invigorating influx of new directors. And a new mindset, too. In a review several weeks ago about one of the last of the premerger Falcon titles, I complained (once again) about the movie’s hurtful language. It’s not just this movie, but so many others, from most companies. I asked why we castigate ourselves with “faggot” and “bitch.” And I got, pronto, this promise from Chris Ward: “I agree with your recent review [of the Jocks movie]. We are now almost fully complete with releasing all of the titles that were filmed before we [RSS] took over. I am sure you will enjoy the RSS-produced Falcon movies much more. ‘Fag’ is not a word you will hear again.” We’re off to a good start – the words sure aren’t heard in OSoA VI. Matter of fact, very little dialogue is heard at all, and that’s just one of the reasons I find the movie so likable. The Other Side of Aspen VI isn’t an evolutionary event in porn but a nod to a classic tradition that’s been upgraded with technical resources and updated in sensibility. As an initial salvo, it sure is heartening. And sure to be hardening of cocks across the land. With an all-star cast, and for nearly three well-paced hours, Aspen VI has sex that’s blue-ball urgent, hungry urgent, lovingly and even fun urgent. There’s an all-star cast of choicely mated performers who never appear to be acting; they’re right there, in the moment. The connections are strong and true. Securely accomplished POV videography is nicely mingled with traditional views. Best of all, the sex is nonstop. Slurpy, deepthroated cocksucking is highlighted, with no short shrift to the fucking, and rowdy, cock-flapping RCs are
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plentiful. I relish the position – it puts so much in view. Ward now wears the RC crown. Used to belong to Chi Chi LaRue, but not after the ones featured here. A pair of pleasing, up-tempo scenes comes first. Adam Killian and Tony Buff flip-fuck with athletic abandon, then nastily funky Colby Keller appears at his most appealing topping husky Heath Jordan. With Jordan skewered on his lap, Colby’s a hard-plugging fucker, and I quivered in empathy when he reached around to jerk Jordan’s cock. Then he cums all over the place. After those two high-energy scenes, the pace smoothes out for Cameron Adam’s topping by Landon Conrad, who is so hot when first seen, with his hard-on sticking up very hard indeed from under the waistband of his jeans. In a movie full of good cocksucking, what these guys do stands out. One complaint here – for the second time in the movie, there’s a continuity-negating jump into the fucking. The guys reel us back in, though, and jeesh, when they screw they make a lot of sexy noise. I’ve had reservations about Conrad, and finally figured out why – he doesn’t project character when he fucks. Sexually, he gives his all, but the effort occupies him fully, leaving him unable to project much personality. Regardless, I love watching Landon land his prey. He comes back later, pounding Brandon Bangs in a hot tub – it’s pretty, what with the snowy background and the tub’s steamy mist giving his pale body and especially his cock a hot sheen. The climactic orgy is the most memorable of the Aspen series, and unusually focused. It builds one performer at a time, as it develops from a solo jack-off into duo, trio, quintet and greater formations. It’s
Falcon Studios
Steam in the snow
Landon Conrad kisses Brandon Bangs in the steamy outdoor hot tub in The Other Side of Aspen VI.
mighty hot along the way, and boils over when the entire ensemble rocks it. The guys include Angelo Marconi, a real wow when spit-roasted, along with Gavin Waters, Shane Frost, and Brandon Bangs, plus the Misters Killian, Buff, Colby and Conrad. There are three Bonus scenes that are as strong as any in the movie. I didn’t expect Aspen VI to be so fine, but there you have it – it just is.▼
On the Town From page 38
with speakers faced out of windows onto Castro Street, and a crowd quickly gathered outside and in. Kudos to Sharon McNight and the Hayes Valley Follies, led by Galilea, for putting their all onstage into this creative solution to uncontrollable weather problems, and to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for gathering donations outside and sainting Terry Asten inside. Over $10,000 was raised through raffle tickets sales, and scores of prizes were awarded. Years from now, someone will mention this event and only those who were there will truly believe it happened. That night, Cabaret Lunatique at Teatro ZinZanni attracted a festive Midnight crowd with entertainment from Twilight Vixen Revue, Boylesque, Cassandra Cass, Stephen Camarota, Oliver Paveck, Ling Rui, the full TZ band, and this humble columnist. This new monthly concept from the successful TZ team offers latenight party people the full circustent experience without the time or expense commitment of the earlier dinner show. Watch for additional upcoming Cabarets Lunatique featuring local talents.▼
Steven Underhill
Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters at the Tales of the City gala in Union Square.
bartabsf.com
40 • BAY AREA REPORTER •
<< Music
June 9-15, 2011
▼
Spirit & buoyancy by Tim Pfaff
N
ow that pianist Mitsuko Uchida has gone back to Mozart, the repertoire in which she made her name, most other pianists would be advised to cede the turf to the master. No one seems to have told gay pianist David Fray, who steps bravely into the land where angels tread with his latest recording, of Mozart’s Piano Concertos Nos. 22, K. 482, and 24, K.503 (Virgin Classics), with the Philharmonia Orchestra under Jaap van Zweden. That later concerto, in C Major, is the first I ever heard Uchida play live, in San Francisco, in the weekly radio broadcasts of the SFS performances you could tape and live with. The
wonders of her C Major never ceased, at least until someone broke into my car and made off with the cassettes only. (I had to credit the thief with taste.) What struck me most about it was its theatricality – how much, in short, it sounded like Mozart’s operas of the same time, particularly Le Nozze di Figaro. I don’t remember putting that in print, and anyway, Fray probably wasn’t alive yet, but when I spun his new C Major – individual in every way, to be sure – I was also reminded of Uchida’s performance, more than anything else for its spirit. So imagine my sense of recognition to read, in Fray’s own liner notes, “We find in K. 482 the same dynamic contrasts as in the opera overtures.
This is pure theatre – a wordless aside, a movement of the spirit – no longer the character himself moving, but his spirit moving. “The brilliance of Mozart’s operas is also due to the fact that they inhabit these two symbolic places – the court and the chamber. These two concertos are for that reason their closest cousins.” Fray’s “spirited” playing is already his signature, and well-known to San Francisco audiences, and it has greater buoyancy than ever in these two major-key concertos. But what’s been enhanced beyond anything he’s done in the studio to date is the deftness with which he negotiates the hairpin turns of the composer’s modulations. It’s alert, involving,
even infectious playing that somehow embodies the 30-yearold’s contemporaneity with the composer, age-wise, while he gives a pert, unslavish nod to his elders. Kindred of bygone spirits, he plays the cadenzas of late piano legends Edwin Fischer and Friedrich Gulda in Nos. 22 and 25, respectively. If Uchida’s new recording of Concertos Nos. 20, K.466, and 27, K. 595 (Decca), at first seems denser stuff, it’s in part because she opens with K. 466, the only minor-key concerto of the four, in D minor, a key tinged with fate and death for Mozart. More to the point, she’s burrowed her way more deeply into the core of these works over the decades, and though her interpretations are by no means “heavier,” they’ve acquired a new specific gravity that gives them a new and even more transporting spin. I can’t improve on the Financial Times’ Andrew Clark’s observation that Uchida’s Mozart becomes, by the day, at one and the same time “more grounded and more unearthly.” As with her last CD, she’s conducting, from her lidless Steinway, the Cleveland Orchestra in live performances, this time from a year ago April. To judge her work as a conductor, look no farther than those eerie, unsettling opening measures of the D minor when the music seems to be reaching out of the dark for the clear voice of the piano. The revelatory work she’s done in Beethoven in recent years illuminates that composer’s cadenzas to the D minor, its culminating watery runs
(superbly articulated by Uchida) and menacing trills intensely characterized. But the quality that has been a central focus of her playing from the beginning – melody at its most elemental and sublime, always rendered as if sung – makes these new performances burn from within. Although it was likely written earlier, the B-flat Major Concerto, K. 595, received its performance in 1791, the year Mozart died, and was in fact the last thing he played in public as a pianist. But rather than sentimentalize it, Uchida plays it with a spare, pure touch that allows the music to shine without a sense of its having been given a polish.
No one knows better than Uchida the degree to which this supernal music can speak for itself, and she largely eschews even her own deft, unerring sense of piano color to let the notes speak. How passagework can be as clean and pellucid as hers – yet with rhythms so free, sped up and slowed down more by changes in articulation than in meter – is as impossible to miss, and not be affected by, as it is to explain. Mozart is in good hands.▼
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Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 •
BAY AREA REPORTER • 41
TV>>
Wieners & whiners by Victoria A. Brownworth
J
ust when we thought it might be a dry season with no new political scandals on the tube to add a touch of reality to reality-TV summer, some big ones splashed onto the news cycle in a matter of days. Gay soldier and alleged Wikileaks whistleblower Bradley Manning was treated to a smackdown when his father, Brian, was on Nightline Memorial Day, saying some notso-nice things about his son. Brian Manning pretends Bradley isn’t his son when people ask, and said his biggest fear is that his son is guilty, because then he would have to disown him. Nice. And nice that ABC thought castigating Bradley was a good move for Memorial Day. For more on Manning, who has yet to be tried for anything, but who has been in prison for over a year, check out the PBS Frontline on him. Meanwhile, Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), one of the only Democrats who has retained both his balls and his spine, got caught in a bizarre sexting scandal despite being a few generations past the sexting stage. The congressman first claimed his Twitter account was hacked and a photo alleged to be him, in gray boxers with an erection, was sent to a college coed. Or was it? At first Weiner wasn’t sure if that was his wiener or “a manipulated version” of his wiener. Sometimes the jokes really do write themselves, but that didn’t stop TV hosts from The View to Jimmy Kimmel Live from making their own. Weiner, who has been known to make his own wiener jokes on C-Span (“No one makes wiener jokes but me. And who’s Boehner trying to kid? Should I call myself Wayner?”), wasn’t laughing, and took the heads off TV news reporters who were trying to get an answer about whether that was indeed his wiener in the photo. The usually transparent congressman was especially harsh with ABC’s Capitol Hill reporter Jonathan Karl, who just wanted a yes or no answer. The best jokes came from Jon Stewart, a friend of Weiner’s, who began talking about a “member of
Congress” and ended by noting that he definitely “leans hard to the left.” Some were calling for an investigation, but Weiner said taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for that. Imagine Weiner’s relief when he went from top news story to also-ran when another Democrat’s sex scandal took center stage. Former senator, VP candidate and presidential hopeful John Edwards was indicted June 3. This scandal involves not just a wiener, but a baby and a whole lot of campaign money. Plus lies. Lots and lots of lies. Here’s what we remember, because TV news video is forever: We remember Edwards being a possible VP candidate for either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. We remember Edwards holding a press conference with his wife Elizabeth, announcing that she had cancer again, but that they were still going forward with the campaign. We remember Edwards holding Hillary and Obama hostage for his endorsement, then timing his endorsement to the 6:30 evening news, and all networks carrying it live as he met with Obama. We remember these things vividly, because each one happened while Edwards knew that he wasn’t just having an affair (an affair his wife knew about and lied about as well) but that his mistress was pregnant with their child. A child he would deny having on camera to ABC’s Bob Woodruff as he sat in his living room. A child he would deny having again while talking with Oprah. Edwards told his lies repeatedly on camera, for TV. He told them during one of the most important presidential elections in recent history, and he told them knowing that the scandal could blow up in his face at any time and possibly take the Democratic Party down with him. And he didn’t care. Edwards’ scandal isn’t the worst political scandal in American history, but it’s some of the most egregious made-for-TV lying we’ve seen. If convicted, Edwards could face five years in prison and more than $1 million in fines. We think that punishment would pale, however, against knowing his daughter will
grow up seeing her father deny her existence over and over again for the cameras. It’s never about the sex, boys. It’s always about the lying. Speaking of lying, one of the worst TV storylines we’ve seen in forever has been playing out on CBS’ glitzy soap, The Bold & the Beautiful. This show is the most popular soap worldwide, shown all over in Spanish and English. It has a stellar cast, including Susan Flannery, who plays matriarch Stephanie Forrester but also directs many of the episodes. Flannery (rumored to be queer) has taken the show in some very interesting directions, including adding cinema verite episodes dealing with homelessness in LA, where the show is set, with real homeless people instead of actors. How can a show with such guts have lowered itself to such a trashy level with the recent tale of Brooke, the show’s heroine, and her fashionmogul husband Ridge’s barely grown son, Thomas? The two have not had sex. But Thomas, in an effort to gain larger control in the family’s company, lied to his father and said they did. Since Brooke practically raised the boy from infancy when his mother was presumed dead, this is closer to incest than Woody Allen and SoonYi. This show has never had a queer storyline in over 20 years on the air, despite being all about the fashion industry, yet they foist this creepy incest storyline on viewers. Let’s take a moment to kvetch about The Young & the Restless. Kudos to the show for recognizing Memorial Day as one of the characters went off for his fourth tour in Afghanistan (talk about realism!), but boo-hiss for bringing back the show’s two gay characters, Rafe and Phillip, and having them do absolutely nothing. Why have gay characters who assert they are gay, then not let them have a life? Speaking of not having a life, we are mesmerized by ABC’s new reality show, Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. It’s inspirational, focusing on people who are morbidly obese. The first candidate was more than 350 lbs., lost 161 lbs. in a year, and looks gorgeous. The next candidate was so heavy (over 450 lbs.) that he had to be weighed on a freight scale. Shows like this and NBC’s Biggest
Congressman Anthony Weiner.
Loser may inspire people to lose weight. But what’s disturbing is these people are not anomalous freaks, but representative of our super-sized nation. One of our favorite reality shows is back for another season. The three judges Howie Mandel, Sharon Osbourne and Piers Morgan on NBC’s America’s Got Talent really judge, and the contestants really do have talent. It’s not all singing and dancing, and the producers aren’t afraid to showcase queer contestants (yes, we’re talking to you, American Idol). Each season, at least one queer makes it to the top 10. And unlike Idol, which gets more diluted every season, AGT gets the winner right. Why is ABC promoting its new summer series Combat Hospital as if it were M*A*S*H? This show about life in the current war zone is anything but funny. We’re not sure who the audience for this one is, but we’re pretty sure everyone should watch it, since we are, you know, at war. CH has elements of Grey’s Anatomy to it, but doesn’t have the high-tension drama of 24. Yet if we are going to continue to be a nation at endless war, then we should have at least one war show on the tube. Now a few things to note on the
DVR. The Closer has started its final season, and according to sources at TNT, it’s going to be very dark. We love Brenda Lee Johnson, and we think Kyra Sedgwick deserves those Emmy nods. Also back for another season is the very dark, queer and sexy True Blood. We also can’t help suggesting a glance at Teen Wolf, which just debuted on MTV. This show is to werewolves as Glee is to queer kids. Except everybody is very pretty. Especially the boys. Showtime has become as queer a network as Logo, it just costs a lot more. But we recommend checking out Pride Comedy Jam and Beyond Gay: The Politics of Pride. The Tony Awards are June 12, with Neil Patrick Harris as the hostess with the mostess. Since it’s the closest most of us gleeks will be getting to Broadway, we recommend watching. Harris is a fabulous host and never disappoints. He’s like Ellen with better clothes and smoother dance moves. Finally, we’d like to note that the first week of June marked 30 years of AIDS. And none of the news networks saw fit to mention it. Showtime aside, we remain invisible in many ways. But since you never know when we might turn up on the tube, be sure to stay tuned.▼
Coming,” “Good Thing Going,” “Waiting for the Girls Upstairs,” “Losing My Mind,” “Not a Day Goes By,” “Being Alive,” “Children Will Listen,” and “Send in the Clowns,” is left to Barbara Cook, Vanessa Williams, Tom Wopat and the rest of the cast. On Out With the Old (Thumbcrown), gay, guitar-slinging and tattooed singer/songwriter Eric Himan takes a seat at the piano to reinterpret his own songs in a new and different setting. Himan revisits 11 songs, including “One Night Stands,” “Until the Road Unwinds,” and “Bartender,” giving the songs a fresh perspective. He closes the disc
with newly released track “Gonna Make it Work,” bringing something new to the table. La Cage Aux Folles, the 1983 musical version of the 1978 hit gaythemed film co-written by two gay men, Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein, received the revival treatment in 2010, and went on to win a few Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical. The New Broadway Cast Recording (PS Classics) features not only politically conservative actor Kelsey Grammer as Georges and Tony winner Douglas Hodge as Albin, but also classic numbers “I Am What I Am” and “The Best of Times.”▼
Music>>
Open to interpretation by Gregg Shapiro
T
he exciting various artists recording First Things Last (Yellow Sound), on which an impressive array of artists perform songs written by queer composer Lance Horne, is almost enough to earn the songwriter forgiveness for his involvement (as musical consultant) in the bomb known as Burlesque. Nine of the 15 songs, beginning with opener “American” performed by out actor/singer Alan Cumming, are taken from shows written by Horne, such as “The $trip,” “The Center,” “The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone” and “The Cosmopolitan.” The remainder is more straightforward pop numbers. Other out performers can be heard on the songs “Strange Bird” (Cheyenne Jackson), “Hurry Up and Take Your Time” (Lea DeLaria), “The Little Prince” (Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls) and “Little White Asparagus Blues” (performed by Horne himself). Names that will also be familiar to listeners include Ricki Lake (singing “Haircut”) and Daphne RubinVega (doing “Orpheus”). The
songs run the gamut of emotion, striking a balance between drama (“Last Day on Earth”) and humor (“The Little Prince”). Horne’s songs transcend theatrical trappings and function as freestanding pop songs, and the artists all sound as if they are enjoying the experience of interpreting his tunes. A veritable who’s who of Broadway entertainers, including out performers Gavin Creel, Malcolm Gets, David Hyde Pierce and Christopher Sieber, lend their voices to Love on a Summer Afternoon: Songs of Sam Davis (PS Classics). Davis, the out composer of musicals including A Good Boy (with Brian Spitulnik), Dysfunctional Fables (with Sean Hartley) and Mina and Colossus (with Ron Nyren), is paid tribute to over the course of 14 tracks. The all-male line-up gives the disc an especially queer twist, with men singing songs about both women and men. Davis’ songs contain both heartbreak and humor. Recommended tracks include “The Cookie Boy,” “Greenwich Time,” and the rocking “A Kilt Is Not a Dress.”
The late, gay musical genius Arthur Russell is feted with the “morphing collective of musicians” known as Arthur’s Landing. On their self-titled debut album on Strut, the musicians in Arthur’s Landing (who worked with Russell at one time or another in his assorted musical units) perform a dozen of Russell’s songs, some familiar, some having their premiere on the disc. Known for his dance masterpiece “Is It All Over My Face,” Russell’s trademark tune is revised and revived as “Love Dancing.” Other dance-floor cuts include “Your Motion Says” and “Miracle 2” (a reimagining of “In the Light of the Miracle”). Gay musical genius Stephen Sondheim doesn’t sing on the double-disc set Sondheim on Sondheim: Original Broadway Cast Recording (PS Classics), but he does provide delightful and informative commentary. The singing of Sondheim standards including “Comedy Tonight,” “Something’s
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42 • Bay Area Reporter • June 9-15, 2011
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Read more online at www.ebar.com
June 9-15, 2011 • Bay Area Reporter • 43
“Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory.” -Ghandi
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The
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