Category: Round-Up

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News Round-Up: April 2, 2020

L-R Pete and Chasten Buttigieg (screen capture)
Some news items you might have missed: • Furball of the Day: Former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg (above) brought #BeardEdgeEdge to reality in a recent Instagram Live broadcast about the coronavirus pandemic sporting a newly-buzzed head and a woofy, scruff-tastic beard. • CNBC: Initial jobless claims for last week surged to more 6.6 million, the Labor Department said Thursday. That brings the two-week total to about 10 million due to the coronavirus-induced economic shutdown. Prior to the COVID-19 catastrophe, the highest week for claims was 695,000 in 1982. #SoMuchWinning • Boy Culture: The Adonis Lounge in NYC is usually very hands-on but the legendary strip joint, featuring the world’s best lap dances, is going hands-off during the COVID-19 crisis by hosting a virtual party on Friday, April 3, at 11 p.m. EST.
(GIF via Giphy)
• NY Post: The MTA and its largest union want bus riders to “cover their noses and mouths with bandanas or scarfs… if they do not have masks.” Listening to medical experts on TV today, my takeaway was that the main point of masks is to keep infected people from spreading the virus to others, not so much protect the wearer of the mask from getting infected. But we’re also now hearing that the virus can be transmitted through not just coughing or sneezing but talking or even just breathing. • Reuters: The U.S. Navy on Thursday relieved the commander of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote a scathing letter that leaked to the public asking for stronger measures to control a coronavirus outbreak onboard his warship. Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Captain Brett Crozier was being relieved not because he wrote the letter and sent it up through the chain of command but because the Navy believes he leaked it to the media. • Cocktail Hour: Food Network star Ina Garten has gone viral with her recipe for the “perfect Cosmopolitan.” This Instagram video has gotten over 2.4 million views in a day. #MyFavoriteThingToday

 

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It’s always cocktail hour in a crisis! Recipe on barefootcontessa.com #staysafe

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News Round-Up: March 27, 2020

Ryan Worley (image via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Chippendales’ Ryan Worley (above) has the right idea for a Friday night. Man, this week kinda kicked my butt… How are you folks doing? Thinking best thoughts everyone’s way. • Fox News: Former Vice President Joe Biden bests President Donald Trump by nine points in a 2020 ballot test, in the first Fox News Poll since Biden became the de facto Democratic nominee. Notably, Biden has an eight-point edge in battleground states (48-40 percent). However, Biden’s advantage grows to 25 points, 57-32 percent, in close counties (where Hillary Clinton and Trump were within 10 points in 2016). • NewNowNext: Click over to read a deep dive into the many husbands of “Joe Exotic,” one of the stars of the bizarre docu-series Tiger King. I watched the first two episodes last night after seeing everyone talk about it. It’s quite the odd assortment of big cat ‘private zoo’ characters. • Out Music: Bounce into the weekend with this new cut from Bright Light Bright Light – “This Was My House,” a sugar-rush of dancefloor pop featuring Madonna’s longtime backing vocalist duo Niki Haris and Donna De Lory. “The song is about how the safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community have been fractured of late with a palpable uprising of anti-LGBTQ+ and xenophobic rhetoric, which is scarily even more real now as these public spaces are closed for the foreseeable future due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said the artist.

• NY Daily News: New Yorkers should be prepared for the city to remain in “pause” due to coronavirus through May even as President Trump gives Americans “false hope” the country will reopen by Easter next month, Mayor de Blasio said Friday. “We have to be ready for that and I think it’s going to spread in the country,” de Blasio said when asked if the city would be closed through May. “This idea of Easter is, unfortunately, a false hope. It would be better for the president to be blunt with people that we’ve got a really tough battle ahead.” • KIT212: Kenneth rounds up the best of local gay rags in the U.S. and around the world including DNA Magazine featuring Nordic hottie Patrik Isoaho (below).

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News Round-Up: March 26, 2020

Max Emerson and friend (photo: Charlie Nunn)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Cutie Max Emerson (above) offers this important public service announcement – “If you foster a doggo you don’t have to quarantine alone. Shelters need your help now more than ever, so if you’re one of the lucky people still financially stable please consider it.” • The Gaily Grind: A “traveling musical minister” who dismissed the COVID-19 threat as “mass hysteria” has just died from complications due to the virus. • Washington Blade: A cadre of 17 senators — including six former presidential hopefuls and one current candidate — are calling on the Food & Drug Administration to take another look at the ban prohibiting gay and bisexual men from donating blood amid the coronavirus crisis. • New Music: Pop sensation 5 Seconds of Summer drops their latest single, “Wildflower,” an 80s-inspired, upbeat power-pop bop. The band says they left out words from the chorus so that people can “make the chorus kind of a choose-your-own-adventure. Expect to hear “WildFlower” all over the place this spring and summer.

• Deadline: NBC has set 9 p.m. Thursday, April 23, for the series finale of Will & Grace and will precede it with a half-hour retrospective special hosted by Eric McCormack. The special will chronicle the series’ guest stars and its history-making moments from over the years, including the first male-to-male kiss on network television. Elton John and Norman Lear also will appear. • NewNowNext: In addition to her Las Vegas shows being postponed due to the coronavirus threat, Lady Gaga has announced she will also delay the release of her upcoming album, Chromatica, as well. “While I believe art is one of the strongest things we have to provide joy and healing to each other during times like this, it just doesn’t feel right to me to release this album with all that is going on during this global pandemic.” • Advocate: The gays asked for it, and #BeardEdgeEdge is here. During an Instagram Live session on Wednesday with Dr. Dara Krass, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg was looking pretty fur-tastic.

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News Round-Up: March 25, 2020

Dan Tai (via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Woofy Dan Tai (above) asks, “So, you ever just have those days when you’re super productive? It was one of them! How was your day?” How about you, readers? Amid all this self-isolation, do you feel like you’re getting some of those tasks you’ve put off accomplished? • Outsports: Denis Finnegan is a champion. A national champion. And he’s been a national champion 10 times over. That’s some real dominance. Few people in the world, in any sport, can claim that many titles over a decade. Finnegan also happens to be gay. • CBS News: As unemployment claims surge, Starbucks CEO and President Kevin Johnson announced this week his commitment to pay all workers in the U.S. and Canada for the next 30 days, regardless of whether they come into work or the stores they work at temporarily close. • Song of the Day: For some reason, this song by Barbra Streisand, released in 1981, has been “coming in and out” of my mind as we all self-quarantine. Gorgeous vocals and it reminds we’ll all be back in each other’s lives in real person soon. Please take a moment to hit play and chill.

• People: In his new book, The Bachelor star Colton Underwood revealed that he questioned his sexuality through his teen years, after relentless bullying from teammates. Underwood says he remembers searching online “Am I gay?” as far back as Elementary School. • BBC: The Prince of Wales has tested positive for coronavirus, Clarence House has confirmed. Prince Charles, 71, is displaying mild symptoms “but otherwise remains in good health.” • Hollywood Reporter: In 2018 and 2019, booking Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos was a top priority for producers at Fox News. So much so that one Fox News producer sought to reassure Devos’ press secretary that host Maria Bartiromo would go easy on the Secretary if she sat for an interview, which she did six days later. “Ps remember any question she doesn’t feel comfortable answering — she can choose to not answer and pivot the topic. This will be an easy interview and enjoyable.” • Gaily Grind: President Trump used his daily White House coronavirus briefing on Wednesday to rail against the press and Democrats, arguing that the main reason they oppose his idea to potentially reopen businesses by Easter is that they want the economy to fail to hurt his reelection prospects. #srsly Check out the exchange with CBS News journalist Paula Reid below.

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News Round-Up: March 23, 2020

Former Mayor Pete Buttigieg (screen capture)
Some news items you might have missed: • Instagram: Pete and Chasten Buttigieg have started live-streaming on the Gram. While their chat with actress/singer Mandy Moore was fun today, the big news is that #BeardEdgeEdge (above) is happening! #Yassss! • Reuters: Andorra, a nation of 80,000 people on the border of France and Spain, is set to legalize gay marriage, highlighting that eastern European countries with anti-LGBT laws are “on the wrong side of history”, leading human rights specialists said on Monday. A bill presented by the ruling coalition of Andorra will remove the legal distinction between same-sex civil unions and heterosexual weddings. • Out Music: Singer/songwriter Philp La Rosa’s latest single, “Paradise,” was inspired by his 7-year relationship with his boyfriend. Says La Rosa, “The journey of our love has honestly been like running through Paradise. But even in Paradise, we can trip and fall sometimes. The beauty of being in a loving relationship is we get to pull each other up, point out where we went wrong and keep running.” The synth-pop track has a mellow, chill vibe that partners well with La Rosa’s winning, winsome vocals. Hit the play button below. • US News & World Report: Addressing a shortage of ventilators for the coronavirus pandemic, Donald Trump said on Saturday, “General Motors, Ford, so many companies — I had three calls yesterday directly, without having to institute like: `You will do this’ — these companies are making them right now.” Fact check: No automaker is anywhere close to making medical gear such as ventilators. • Science Magazine: Infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci on dealing with Trump’s coronavirus exaggerations and lies during pressers: “I can’t jump in front of the microphone and push him down. OK, he said it. Let’s try and get it corrected for the next time.” • Gay Star News: Pride in London, the UK’s biggest LGBT+ Pride event, has announced it is postponing its 2020 event. The march, rally and official street parties were all due to take place on Saturday 27 June this year. Moreover, Pride bosses are also postponing the festival in the run-up to the main day. • Business Insider: Dow dives 582 points as impatience over pending coronavirus bill outweighs new Federal Reserve stimulus. #SoMuchWinning

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News Round-Up: March 20, 2020

Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Woofy Steve_in_LA (above) looks handsome as ever self-isolating in style as he works from home. • LGBTQ Nation: At least four LGBTQ people who were at the Winter Party – a huge circuit party held in Miami earlier this month – have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Other partiers have also developed symptoms. • CNBC: The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 913 points lower, or more than 4%, after rallying more than 400 points earlier in the day. The S&P 500 slid 4.4%. The Nasdaq Composite closed 3.8% lower after jumping more than 2%. • KIT212: Kenneth’s weekly round-up of the what’s what in local gay rags like Scissor Sister’s lead singer Jake Shears in the latest issue of GRAB. • Washington Post: U.S. intelligence agencies were issuing ominous, classified warnings in January and February about the global danger posed by the coronavirus while President Trump and lawmakers played down the threat and failed to take action that might have slowed the spread of the pathogen, according to U.S. officials familiar with spy agency reporting. • CNN: Economists at Goldman Sachs predict next week’s unemployment report will show 2.25 million Americans filing for their first week of unemployment benefits this week — eight times the number of people who filed last week and the highest level on record. • New Music: Scottish singer/writer ONR (pronounced “honor”) shares new track and video “Human Enough,” the latest from his forthcoming Must Stop EP.

ONR says of the new track: “I liked the idea that ‘being human’ wasn’t a defining quality, but rather a sliding-scale… that you could consider yourself ’not human enough’ to be someone else’s equal. The video is dark, confused, frustrated; it exists within this fantastical alternative reality where the concept of being human is (literally) different from our own.”

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News Round-Up: March 16, 2020

Sean O’Donnell (via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • InstaHunks: Cutie Sean O’Donnell (above) says, “Day 6 of self-isolation. I have done my skincare routine 47 times, eaten everything in sight, can almost levitate and have played maybe 100 hours of video games.” How about you folks? How’re you doing? • CNBC: Former Vice President Joe Biden is the apparent winner of Washington’s Democratic primary, NBC News reported Monday, chalking up another victory in a string of recent upsets over Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. With 99% of results in, Biden led with about 38% of the vote, edging out Sanders at 36%. Biden will win at least 42 of the state’s delegates, while Sanders will receive 40 delegates. • NowThis News: This Italian opera singer serenades a quarantined Florence, Italy from his balcony every night. There are now 24,747 diagnoses of coronavirus in Italy with 1,809 confirmed deaths.

• RealClearPolitics: Democratic voters go to the polls in Illinois, Florida, Arizona, and Ohio tomorrow for their states’ primaries. Biden leads by an average of 29.5 points in Illinois, 18 points in Arizona, 22.5 points in Ohio, and 39 points in Florida. • ABC News: Donald Trump says guidelines to combat the coronavirus outbreak could last until July or August, if not longer. • Global News: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday that Canada will be closing its borders to foreign travelers in an attempt to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus. Trudeau said the restrictions will go into effect Wednesday but exceptions will be made for aircrews, diplomats, immediate family members, and U.S. citizens. • OUT: On April 7th, when the finale of Schitt’s Creek airs, it will be joined by an hour-long special. Titled Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: A Schitt’s Creek Farewell, that special includes behind the scenes footage and commentary by Levy and the team on creating special Schitt’s moments.

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News Round-Up: March 13, 2020

Matt Moran in ‘Stranger Hearts’ now streaming on Dekkoo
Some news items you might have missed: • Dekkoo: Matt Moran (above) stars as Billy, a smooth-talking media mogul by day/leather bar aficionado by night, who finds his life turned upside down when he’s faced with an unexpected health crisis in the new drama Stranger Hearts now streaming on the gay-centric platform. Read my review of the series here. • Axios: Louisiana is the first state to delay its primary in response to the novel coronavirus. The contest has been moved from April 4 to June 20. Arizona, Florida, Illinois and Ohio have announced their March 17 primaries will go on as scheduled. • KIT212: Don’t miss Kenneth’s weekly round-up of gay rags in the U.S. and abroad including Connor Jessup covering Attitude Magazine (below). • The Hill: Democratic Senate candidate Mark Kelly (D) has a 12-point lead over Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) in the Arizona Senate race, according to a Univision poll released Friday. Kelly garnered 48 percent support versus McSally’s 36 percent. • Snopes: At today’s press conference regarding the coronavirus, PBS Newshour’s Yamiche Alcindor asked Donald Trump about closing the National Security Council’s pandemics team in 2018. That group would have been on the ready to coordinate responses to any possible pandemics. Today, Trump denied knowing anything about the team’s dismissal.

• Buzzfeed News: Donald Trump’s announcement that the US will suspend all travel from Europe to the US for 30 days sent Americans traveling in Europe into hysteria trying to get home when he failed to mention the ban wouldn’t affect U.S. citizens. • Washington Post: Donald Trump tried to blame the current coronavirus threat on former President Barack Obama. Folks weren’t having it.

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News Round-Up: March 12, 2020

Kumail Nanjiani (images via Instagram)
Some news items you might have missed: • Men’s Variety: After getting into incredible shape for the upcoming Marvel film The Eternals, Kumail Nanjiani (above) says his new fitness led him to develop a subtle form of body dysmorphia. “I’d look in the mirror and I’d see my abs—and when I looked again, they would fade. I would just see the flaws.” • Sun-Sentinel: The inaugural LGBTQ+ Pride of the Americas, which would have been something of an international Pride event, has been postponed until the fall. The weeklong schedule of concerts, parties, street festivals, conferences, symposiums as well as a parade, fashion show, awards banquet and 5K run was to take place at various venues throughout Broward County. • NBC News: Former Vice President Joe Biden delivered a speech on combating the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading across the country. Biden drops this badass line at the 5:33 mark – “President Trump is welcome to adopt all of it today.”

• LGBTQNation: People who booked an Atlantis cruise for next week are getting angry that the company hasn’t canceled the cruise and won’t refund them if they don’t go, even though other major cruise lines are canceling due to coronavirus. • Twitter: You don’t get any more badass than Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) as she adds up the costs for a battery of coronavirus tests, then reads the federal regulations that gives the CDC director the authority to authorize paying for these tests for all Americans. And then gets him to commit to doing so. Watch below.

• Reuters: Gay dating apps like Grindr and Scruff are warning users to take precautions to avoid contracting coronavirus but are expecting an uptick in traffic as millions of people move online to talk rather than meet face-to-face in bars and clubs. • TalkingPointsMemo: Speaking at the White House today, Donald Trump falsely claimed that all people returning from Europe are being tested for Coronavirus and being quarantined if they are positive.

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News Round-Up: March 9, 2020

L-R Michael Caprio, Barry Manilow, me
Some news items you might have missed: • Las Vegas: Hubby Michael and I were invited to an industry night at the Westgate Hotel here in Las Vegas where pop music legend Barry Manilow is still thrilling audiences. In a fast-paced 90 minute show, Barry belts out hit after hit, inspiring standing ovation after standing ovation. If you’re heading to Sin City, I highly recommend you check out this truly authentic star who continues to knock it out of the park. • NY Times: A year after the “London Patient” was introduced to the world as only the second person to be cured of H.I.V., he is stepping out of the shadows to reveal his identity: He is Adam Castillejo. “This is a unique position to be in, a unique and very humbling position,” he said. “I want to be an ambassador of hope.” • CTV News: Legislation has been introduced in Canada that would make it illegal to cause a minor to undergo conversion therapy; to remove a minor from Canada to undergo conversion therapy in another country; cause a person to undergo conversion therapy against their will; profit from providing conversion therapy; or advertise an offer to provide conversion therapy. • Spokesman-Review: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has signed into law a bill that prohibits defendants from using a “panic defense” in court to justify violence against a member of the LGBTQ community. Washington is now the 10th state to ban so-called “gay panic” or “trans panic” defenses. • The Hill: Former 2020 Democratic contender Michael Bloomberg gave $2 million to a nonprofit working to Collective Future, a nonprofit working to registering black voters ahead of November’s general election. The group is working to register 500,000 black voters in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin. • Passing: Openly gay playwright Mart Crowley, author of the groundbreaking play The Boys in the Band, about a group of gay and bi friends in New York City, has died at age 84. The play, a hit off-Broadway in 1968, went on to become a feature film directed by William Friedkin in 1970. Crowley finally received a Tony Award for his opus when an all-star cast brought the play to Broadway in 2018. Hollywood super-producer Ryan Murphy is now bringing that production to Netflix in the foreseeable future. RIP Mart Crowley.