Ryan Murphy’s ground-breaking new series Pose may have been snubbed by the Emmy Awards, but within hours of the nominations announcement FX picked up the LGBTQ-centric series for a second series.
The series examines New York City’s LGBTQ ball culture scene of the 1980s with a focus on the Black and Latinx LGBTQ communities that shaped it.
We’ve got amazing news, #PoseFX family! Get ready to snatch more trophies and tissues because season 2 is coming! pic.twitter.com/P8oRj8puRp
As regular readers of The Randy Report know I have a famously short attention span.
While I may love the ride of an awesome movie, sometimes the ‘commitment’ of sitting down for two hours to watch something can feel like I’m trapped.
And so you’ll understand my appreciation for web series/digital series. These bite-size morsels of entertainment perfectly suit my inability to concentrate for a long time.
Check out the first episode of the new web series, West 40s.
Here’s the official description: A Midtown, midlife comedy about 5 gay friends stumbling through their 40s in Hell’s Kitchen NYC. In the Episode 1, a 40th birthday party for Luis (the “baby” of the group who’s also a baby daddy) goes hilariously awry, and the gang ends up in places they never expected.
Creators Mark Sam Rosenthal and Brian Sloan said, “In their 30s, they’d meet strangers on the Hell’s Kitchen sidewalk and have sex in less time than it took to climb the four flights up to their apartments. But now past 40 they’re all wondering what they want for the long haul – and questioning whether they can still make it up those stairs!”
The series stars Dalton Blaine, Dan Domingues, Jeff Hiller, Matthew Montelongo, John-Andrew Morrison, and Rosenthal.
Earlier today, FBI agent Peter Strzok resoundingly denounced the approach and tone House Republicans took during his testimony before the House Oversight Committee.
This is amazing.
“Sir, I think it’s important when you look at those texts that you understand the context in which they were made, and the things that were going on across America. In terms of the texts that, ‘We will stop it.’ You need to understand that that was written late at night, off-the-cuff and it was in response to a series of events that included then-candidate Trump insulting the immigrant family of a fallen war hero, and my presumption based on that horrible, disgusting behavior that the American population would not elect somebody demonstrating that behavior to be president of the United States.
“It was in no way, unequivocally, any suggestion that me, the FBI, would take any action whatsoever to improperly impact the electoral process, for any candidate. So I take great offense and I take great disagreement to your assertion of what that was or wasn’t.
“As to the ‘100 million to one’ that was clearly a statement made in jest and using hyperbole, I of course recognize that millions of Americans were likely to vote for candidate Trump. I acknowledge that is absolutely their right, that is what makes our democracy such a vibrant process that it is.
“But to suggest somehow that we can parse down the words of shorthand textual conversations like they’re some contract for a car is simply not consistent with my or most people’s use of text messaging. I can assure you, Mr. Chairman, at no time, in any of these texts, did those personal beliefs ever enter into the realm of any action I took.
“Furthermore, this isn’t just me sitting here telling you you don’t have to take my word for it. At every step, at every investigative decision, there are multiple layers of people above me, the assistant director, executive assistant director, deputy director and director of the FBI, and multiple layers of people below me, section chiefs, supervisors, unit chiefs, case agents and analysts, all of whom were involved in all of these decisions. They would not tolerate any improper behavior in me any more than I would tolerate it in them.
“That is who we are as the FBI. And the suggestion that I in some dark chamber somewhere in the FBI would somehow cast aside all of these procedures, all of these safeguards and somehow be able to do this is astounding to me. It simply couldn’t happen. And the proposition that that is going on, that it might occur anywhere in the FBI, deeply corrodes what the FBI is in American society, the effectiveness of their mission, and it is deeply destructive.”
And when he finished, there was applause in the chamber.
Strzok is accused of anti-Trump bias during the 2016 while investigating possible Russian interference in the election.
A late night text to a colleague has been the basis of personal attacks against him.
As has been established, there is no law preventing an FBI agent from having a personal opinion as long as it doesn’t come into play with their work.
Watch below.
Watch Peter Strzok take Rep. Trey Gowdy to task over his attacks on the FBI.
The GOP-led House Appropriations Committee has passed an amendment which would allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny LGBTQ families the ability to adopt a child based on religious objection.
By a vote of 29-23, the committee approved the amendment to a government funding bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. The amendment would allow child welfare agencies to discriminate against prospective parents, including same-sex couples, based on the agency’s religious beliefs.
U.S. Rep. Scott Taylor (R-Va.) was the lone Republican to oppose the amendment. All Democrats on the committee voted against the language.
The amendment, introduced by Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.), would bar the federal government and state or localities from denying funds to adoption agencies that have “declined or will decline to provide, facilitate or refer for a child welfare service that conflicts with, or under circumstances that conflict with, the provider’s sincerely held religious beliefs of convictions.”
The measure would empower the secretary of health and human services to withhold 15 percent of federal government funds from state and localities if they penalize adoption agencies for acting on their religious beliefs in terms of child placement.
The amendment mirrors new laws in several states allowing taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny placement into homes, including LGBT households, over religious objections. Currently, nine states – Alabama, Michigan, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Oklahoma and Kansas – have adopted similar policies.
In a statement to The Washington Blade, legislative director for the American Civil Liberties Union, Ian Thompson, denounced the amendment on the basis it would anti-LGBT discrimination.
“The ACLU strongly opposes the amendment because it essentially privileges the religious and moral beliefs of providers over the best interest of children who are in their care,” said Thompson.
Thankfully, there’s a strong possibility the amendment won’t survive the legislative process. The corresponding Senate committee has already approved its version of the bill without the anti-LGBTQ amendment. This means the two bills will have to be hashed out in conference between the two chambers and experts feel the amendment would most likely be stripped out.
The Democratic National Committee’s LGBTQ Media Director Lucas Acosta issued this statement:
“House Republicans are pandering to their far-right base at the expense of LGBTQ people and children in need of a home. Rather than focusing on empowering families or uniting children with their parents, Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee voted to give child welfare agencies a license to discriminate against qualified potential parents.
“Across the country, LGBTQ candidates are running for office and taking a stand against the Trump-GOP agenda, which seeks to roll back the progress we have made. In November, voters will stand together in the face of this bigotry and hate and elect Democrats up and down the ticket.”
The nominations for the 70th Emmy Awards are out this morning and there’s great news for LGBTQ artists and projects.
Looming large was the gay-centric mini-series The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story with 16 nominations including one for “Outstanding Limited Series” plus two nods for out uber-producer/director Ryan Murphy.
“Of course it’s thrilling to see this series attract so much recognition, and I am forever grateful to Tom Rob Smith for his brilliant take, to my producing partners Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson and Brad Falchuk for their collaboration and friendship, and to our talented cast who breathed such humanity into these characters. This was a heartbreaking story to tell, made more so by the fact that we continue as a culture to grapple with homophobia and shame and intolerance.”
Ricky Martin also scored his first Emmy nod in the “Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie” category for his work in the series. Martin gushed via Twitter:
Yes yes yes!!!!!! I’m so happy and humbled about this nomination. I think my head is about to explode. Joy joy joy THIS IS CRAZY!!! Thank you @MrRPMurphyhttps://t.co/GZvYKlVQ2l
RuPaul’s Drag Race received 10 nominations including one for “Outstanding Reality Competition” and a third-in-a-row nod to Mama Ru for “Outstanding Host for a Reality Competition.”
Plus, RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked was honored with two nominations including “Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program.”
“Making RuPaul’s Drag Race is a labor of love. The fact that members of the Television Academy have recognized that passion by nominating us for 12 Emmy’s is a true honor. It takes a village, people. I want to recognize the hard work and dedication of my partners at VH1 and World of Wonder, our dedicated cast and crew, and most of all, the amazing queens that help us celebrate the heart and soul of drag. Condragulations to our fellow nominees.”
The return of NBC’s Will & Grace was graced with 5 nominations including Megan Mullally for “Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series” and Molly Shannon for “Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series.”
Also in the “Outstanding Guest Actress In A Comedy Series” are Wanda Sykes (Black-ish) and Jane Lynch (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel).
Lynch was also honored in the “Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program” category for Hollywood Game Night as was Ellen DeGeneres (Ellen’s Game of Games).
Out actress Lily Tomlin was nominated for her work on Grace & Frankie, as well as Sarah Paulson for her performance in American Horror Story: Cult. Cherry Jones got a nod for her role in the much-lauded The Handmaid’s Tale.
Kate McKinnon was nominated for “Supporting Actress In A Comedy Series” for her work on Saturday Night Live.
Evan Rachel Wood celebrates her nomination in “Outstanding Lead Actress In A Drama Series” for her work on HBO’s Westworld.
Out actor Titus Burgess received an nom for “Supporting Actor In A Comedy Series” in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.
Netflix’s reboot of Queer Eye received 4 nominations including “Outstanding Structured Reality Program.”
For Broadway musical lovers, you’ll be happy to know the rapturous Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert received 13 well-deserved nominations.
Surprisingly, FX’s Pose was completely snubbed receiving zero nominations. This writer was hoping to see both transgender director/writer Janet Mock and out actor Billy Porter get some Television Academy love for their powerful work on the ground-breaking, LGBTQ-centric series set in the 1980s.
The 70th annual Emmys Awards will air Monday, September 17, on NBC. For more information, head over to the Emmy Awards official website here.
Here’s the list of this year’s nominees:
Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie: Antonio Banderas (“Genius: Picasso”) Darren Criss (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) Benedict Cumberbatch (“Patrick Melrose”) Jeff Daniels (“The Looming Tower”) John Legend (“Jesus Christ Superstar”) Jesse Plemons (“USS Callister”)
Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie: Laura Dern (“The Tale”) Jessica Biel (“The Sinner”) Michelle Dockery (“Godless”) Edie Falco (“The Menendez Murders”) Regina King (“Seven Seconds”) Sarah Paulson (“American Horror Story: Cult”)
Lead Actor in a Comedy Series: Donald Glover (“Atlanta”) Bill Hader (“Barry”) Anthony Anderson (“Black-ish”) William H. Macy (“Shameless”) Larry David (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) Ted Danson (“The Good Place”)
Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: Pamela Adlon (“Better Things”) Rachel Brosnahan (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish”) Allison Janney (“Mom”) Lily Tomlin (“Grace and Frankie”) Issa Rae (“Insecure”)
Lead Actor in a Drama Series: Jason Bateman (“Ozark”) Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”) Ed Harris (“Westworld”) Matthew Rhys (“The Americans”) Milo Ventimiglia (“This Is Us”) Jeffrey Wright (“Westworld”)
Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Claire Foy (“The Crown”) Tatiana Maslany (“Orphan Black”) Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”) Keri Russell (“The Americans”) Evan Rachel Wood (“Westworld”)
Reality Competition: “The Amazing Race” “American Ninja Warrior” “Project Runway” “RuPaul’s Drag Race” “Top Chef” “The Voice”
Variety Sketch Series: “Saturday Night Live” (NBC) “Portlandia” (IFC) “Drunk History” (Comedy Central) “Tracey Ullman’s Show” (HBO) “At Home with Amy Sedaris” (TruTV) “I Love You, America” (Hulu)
Variety Talk Series: “The Daily Show With Trevor Noah” “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee” “Jimmy Kimmel Live” “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” “Late Late Show with James Corden Late Show with Stephen Colbert”
Limited Series: “The Alienist” “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” “Genius: Picasso” “Godless” “Patrick Melrose”
Comedy Series: “Atlanta” (FX) “Barry” (HBO) “Black-ish” (ABC) “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO) “GLOW” (Netflix) “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon) “Silicon Valley” (HBO) “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” (Netflix)
Drama Series: “The Handmaid’s Tale” “Game of Thrones” “This Is Us” “The Crown” “The Americans” “Stranger Things” “Westworld”
Supporting Actor in a Drama Series: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (“Game of Thrones”) Peter Dinklage (“Game of Thrones”) Joseph Fiennes (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) David Harbour (“Stranger Things”) Mandy Patinkin (“Homeland”) Matt Smith (“The Crown”)
Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Alexis Bledel (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) Millie Bobby Brown (“Stranger Things”) Ann Dowd (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) Lena Headey (“Game of Thrones”) Thandie Newton (“Westworld”) Yvonne Strahovski (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Louie Anderson (“Baskets”) Alec Baldwin (“Saturday Night Live”) Tituss Burgess (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) Tony Shalhoub (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) Kenan Thompson (“Saturday Night Live”) Henry Winkler (“Barry”)
Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Zazie Beetz (“Atlanta”) Alex Borstein (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) Aidy Bryant (“Saturday Night Live”) Betty Gilpin (“GLOW”) Leslie Jones (“Saturday Night Live”) Kate McKinnon (“Saturday Night Live”) Laurie Metcalf (“Roseanne”) Megan Mullally (“Will & Grace”)
Television Movie: “Fahrenheit 451” (HBO) “Flint” (Lifetime) “Paterno” (HBO) “The Tale” (HBO) “Black Mirror: USS Callister” (Netflix)
Structured Reality Program “Antiques Roadshow” (PBS) “Fixer Upper” (HGTV) “Lip Sync Battle” (Paramount) “Queer Eye” (Netflix) “Shark Tank” (ABC) “Who Do You Think You Are?” (TLC)
Unstructured Reality Program: “Born This Way” (A&E) “Deadliest Catch” (Discovery) “Intervention” (A&E) “Naked and Afraid” (Discovery Channel) “RuPaul’s Drag Race: Untucked” (VH1) “United Shades of America With W. Kamau Bell” (CNN)
Host for Reality/Reality Competition Program: W. Kamau Bell (“United Shades of America With W. Kamau Bell”) Ellen DeGeneres (“Ellen’s Game of Games”) RuPaul Charles (“RuPaul’s Drag Race”) Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn (“Project Runway”) Jane Lynch (“Hollywood Game Night”)
Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie: Jeff Daniels (“Godless”) Brandon Victor Dixon (“Jesus Christ Superstar”) John Leguizamo (“Waco”) Ricky Martin (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) Edgar Ramirez (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) Michael Stuhlbarg (“The Looming Tower”) Finn Wittrock (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”)
Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie: Sara Bareilles (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert”) Penelope Cruz (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) Judith Light (“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”) Adina Porter (“American Horror Story: Cult”) Merritt Wever (“Godless”) Letitia Wright (“Black Museum” (Black Mirror)
Guest Actor in a Drama Series: F. Murray Abraham (“Homeland”) Cameron Britton (“Mindhunter”) Matthew Goode (“The Crown”) Ron Cephas Jones (“This Is Us”) Gerald McRaney (“This Is Us”) Jimmi Simpson (“Westworld”)
Guest Actress in a Drama Series: Viola Davis (“Scandal”) Kelly Jenrette (The Handmaid’s Tale”) Cherry Jones (“The Handmaid’s Tale”) Diana Rigg (“Game of Thrones”) Cicely Tyson (“How to Get Away With Murder”) Samira Wiley (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Guest Actor in a Comedy Series: Sterling K. Brown (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”) Bryan Cranston (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) Donald Glover (“Saturday Night Live”) Bill Hader (“Saturday Night Live”) Lin-Manuel Miranda (“Curb Your Enthusiasm”) Katt Williams (“Atlanta”)
Guest Actress in a Comedy Series: Tina Fey (“Saturday Night Live”) Tiffany Haddish (“Saturday Night Live”) Jane Lynch (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) Maya Rudolph (“The Good Place”) Molly Shannon (“Will & Grace”) Wanda Sykes (“Black-ish”)
Donald Trump holds press event as he departs NATO summit
Although he has not held a proper press conference in over a year on American soil, as Donald Trump departed the NATO summit in Brussels, he took questions from reporters for over half an hour.
Along the way he reiterated that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not an enemy, dismissed concerns of protests during his visit to Britain, and claimed the other NATO allies had agreed to up their defense spending thanks to his requests to do so.
At one point, a journalist asked, “We understand your message, but some people ask themselves, will you be tweeting differently once you board the Air Force One?”
Trump responded, “No, that’s other people that do that I don’t. I’m very consistent. I am a very stable genius.”
In front of the whole world. Jesus.
Watch below.
Donald Trump is asked whether he’ll be saying one thing at NATO and tweeting another after he departs.
‘Everybody in the room thanked me. They thanked me a lot. I have made Nato stronger. I’m a very stable genius’. The narcissism of the US President at the Nato summit
— Fionna O’Leary #FBPE #BrexitBetraysBritain (@fascinatorfun) July 12, 2018
It was all on display folks. Trump insanity. “Very stable Genius” is so laughable. He causes a problem, changes his mind and says “I alone fixed it”. Like with families on the border. I expect to see him wheel out his dead Mom like in Psycho “I alone can keep his mommy with him”.
• So, he has lots of clothes on – I know, I know – but this InstaHunk (above), med student Marco, makes my days with pics like this. That face, those arms… #dang
• Israel’s Parliament has voted down a proposed amendment that would have allowed same-sex couples the right to have children via a surrogate. #Boo
• According to a new poll by Pew Research, when asked “What president has done the best job in your lifetime?” more than four-in-ten (44%) say Obama is the best or second best president of their lifetimes, 33% say Bill Clinton and 32% say Ronald Reagan. The Donald was only considered “best” by 19% of respondents.
This photo is the perfect metaphor. Donald Trump clearly sees the world the wrong way when compared to other NATO leaders. Is it because he’s a moron, because Putin tells him to or a mixture of both? pic.twitter.com/RRGCN0Hw70
Belgian tennis star Alison Van Uytvanck had much to celebrate last week during her 5th appearance at Wimbledon.
The 24-year-old celebrated her qualifying for the octafinals by running up the the stands to smooch her girlfriend, fellow pro tennis player Greet Minnen, live on TV.
Earlier this year, the tennis star – currently ranked 47th in the world – came out after winning the Hungarian Ladies Open in Budapest.
At a press conference after the match, Uytvanck was asked if she felt like a role model by coming out and if coming out lifted a weight from her shoulders. Her response was spot on:
“I don’t think it actually changed something about that – being ‘more free’ or something. We just decided to not make it personal and keep it for ourselves. I’m happy anyway if it is with a woman or a man. I just feel like we don’t have to be ashamed of this. And that’s why I also want to be free. I mean, I’m not sick, I don’t have a disease but I feel like its good that I could come out as a gay person.”
Watch Uytvanck handle the question with ease below:
Alison Van Uytvanck talking about coming out as a gay tennis player. This is important guys
You’ll recall woofy out Olympic freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy made headlines around the world when he kissed his boyfriend, Matt Wilkas, after a successful run at this year’s Winter Olympics.
Former White House photographer Pete Souza has announced a new book of his photography titled, Shade: A Tale of Two Presidents.
In announcing the book earlier this year, the publisher shared that the book would contrast the two presidents with “unforgettable images of President Obama delivering new power and meaning when framed by tweets, headlines, quotes, and other material from the first 500 days of the Trump administration.”
In revealing the cover via his Instagram, Souza wrote, “If OBAMA: An Intimate Portrait is a coffee table book, then SHADE is an every table book. If you’ve been following my Instagram feed since the last inauguration, then you have an idea what this book is about (but of course there will be some surprises.”
With a drop date of October 16, you can pre-order the new book here.
The photographer, who currently has almost 2 million followers on Instagram, regularly uses the platform to troll Donald Trump via photos from Obama’s presidency and contrasting with whatever is in the current news cycle.
At one point last year, he shared a series of 15 Time Magazine covers captioned: “Someone has a lot of catching up to do.”
If you don’t follow him there, you should. He’s very clever.
Janet Mock made history earlier this week as the first transgender woman of color to write and direct an episode of TV with the recent Pose episode, “Love is the Message.”
The series, which explores the lives of LGBTQ people in the underground ‘ball scene’ alongside the emerging Donald Trump era in the go-go 1980s, artfully brings not only sexual orientation and gender identity to a mainstream TV audience, but also factors in the intersectionality of race.
“The ballroom is a black and brown space before it’s a trans and queer space. So you can’t just say we have this great trans and queer show, you have to add in the layer of the race stuff… had to be very clear that a white trans girl’s experience is very different than a black trans girl’s experience — especially a black trans girl that’s struggling with economic resources in 1980’s New York City.”
“So we gave Elektra (Dominique Jackson’s character) more pointed lines about whiteness, or Angel (Indya Moore) started calling Stan (Evan Peters) a white suburban boy. We had to put that stuff in there.”
A post shared by Janet Mock (@janetmock) on Jul 8, 2018 at 9:07am PDT
At this year’s VH1 Trailblazer Honors, Ryan Murphy spoke with love and deep respect regarding his experience working with Mock. He also shared that he pushed the trans icon into her first directing gig.
“I said, ’No, Janet, you have to direct. You have to!’ And she wasn’t sure, and I pushed her and pushed her. She did it. And I’m so honored and thrilled to say that it is perhaps the best hour of television in my entire career that I have been associated with.”
“And I say, to Janet, thank you and I’m in awe of you.”
The series has really captured my attention not only for its subject matter but for the quality of the series. The writing, the performances, the production – it all adds up to very powerful, revealing story-telling.
