LGBTQ news and entertainment
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I needed something ‘lighter’ and soothing; something to take a break from the world of politics.
I think Olympic UK diver Tom Daley and Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black are quietly charming talking about the evolution of their romance.
From Tom Daley’s documentary ‘Diving for Gold.’
Take a minute and relax in someone else’s bliss.
Right-wing journalist Ben Shapiro described his former boss at Breitbart News, Steve Bannon, as a “turd tornado” upon hearing the news that Donald Trump had hired Bannon to head up his beleaguered presidential campaign.
Via Raw Story:
Shapiro, who left Breitbart after the website took a pro-Trump turn earlier this year, accused Bannon of turning “Breitbart into Trump Pravda for his own personal gain.”
“Steve is basically going to tell Trump to be more militant, to double down, to be more focused,” Shapiro explained to CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Wednesday. “It does demonstrate the Republican or Trump-media complex that Bannon has helped to create in direct contravention to what Andrew Breitbart once called the Democrat-media complex.”
“As you probably know, I think Donald Trump is a turd tornado, but I also know that he has no capacity whatsoever to control himself and be the sort of staid politician that so many people want him to be,” he continued. “So, telling him to double down is not necessarily terrible strategy. If he’s going to go down, he’s going to go down being Trump.”
“A what tornado?” Keilar asked.
“A turd tornado,” Shapiro repeated.
“What is that?” Keilar pressed, immediately wishing she hadn’t.
“Well, it’s like a Sharknado, except with poop,” Shapiro revealed.
“Okay, that’s not quite what I expected,” the CNN host admitted.
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| Zac Efron with the U.S. Women’s gymnastic team |
Ok, this is about the cutest thing ever.
With the caption “We just met Zac Efron,” Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez shared the most exuberant news that the team’s all-time fave showed up to celebrate the women’s gymnastic team’s most awesome performances at the Rio Olympics.
It’s become an internet meme that golden girl Simone Biles is over the moon for the hunky movie star, complete with life size cardboard cut out of him in her bedroom closet. So, just imagine this moment 🙂
I’m thrilled for the girls – they deserve every treat available. And I definitely call Zac a tasty “treat.”
Surprise!! #Rio2016 #Gold #FinalFive pic.twitter.com/yUswjZeHsa— Zac Efron (@ZacEfron) August 16, 2016
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| Zac Efron with Olympic gold medalist Laurie Hernandez |
Zac Efron surprising the Final Five #ZacEfron #FinalFive #SimoneBiles #LaurieHernandez pic.twitter.com/A3Te4aAS2o— Rachel (@sparkles_chalk) August 17, 2016
Zac Efron surprising the Final Five #ZacEfron #FinalFive #SimoneBiles #LaurieHernandez pic.twitter.com/A3Te4aAS2o— Rachel (@sparkles_chalk) August 17, 2016
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| Stephen Bannon |
Shakeups in political campaigns never mean things are going great.
So take the news that Stephen Bannon, executive chairman of Breitbart News LLC, becoming the new Trump campaign chief executive as a red flag.
We’ve heard rumblings that Trump’s crew couldn’t reign the Trumpster in, and we’ve also read numerous reports of the Donald resisting his approach to the campaign trail singing the classic, “I gotta be me.”
Cue the new team.
From the New York Times:
Stephen Bannon, the executive chairman of Breitbart News LLC, will become the Republican campaign’s chief executive, and Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser and pollster for Mr. Trump and his running mate, Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana, will become the campaign manager.
Paul Manafort, the campaign chairman, will retain his title. But the staffing change, hammered out on Sunday and set to be formally announced Wednesday morning, was seen by some as a demotion for Mr. Manafort.
Conway told reporters Wednesday morning that the moves weren’t so much a “shakeup” as they are an “expansion” for this phase of the general election.
In related news, more stories continue to dog Paul Manafort about his financial connections and payments of unreported millions to Washington lobbying firms.
Donald Trump’s campaign chairman helped a pro-Russian governing party in Ukraine secretly route at least $2.2 million in payments to two prominent Washington lobbying firms in 2012, and did so in a way that effectively obscured the foreign political party’s efforts to influence U.S. policy.
The revelation, provided to The Associated Press by people directly knowledgeable about the effort, comes at a time when Trump has faced criticism for his friendly overtures to Russian President Vladimir Putin. It also casts new light on the business practices of campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
Under federal law, U.S. lobbyists must declare publicly if they represent foreign leaders or their political parties and provide detailed reports about their actions to the Justice Department. A violation is a felony and can result in up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
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Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
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Three time Olympic medalist Danell Leyva made a powerfully bold statement back in June (wearing a powerfully bold pro-LGBT t-shirt – “Make America Gay Again”) on his Instagram back in June in the aftermath of the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 dead and dozens more injured.
The love within the LGBT community is so much stronger than the hatred against it. And it is our responsibility as non-LGBT people to emulate this love and create a world where LGBT people don’t need to crate their own safe spaces. That is a promise I’m making.”
Leyva goes on to stand up not only for gay and lesbian rights but for transgender rights for the dignity to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity.
Big thanks to LGBT activist Aaron Baldwin for the heads up. We knew Danell rocked, but it’s very important and powerful that we see these full throated messages from our LGBT allies.
Oh, and by the way, how about his 2 Olympic silver medals today at the Rio Olympic games??? Winners rise.
Congrats to Danell for showing us greatness inside and out. Watch his message of unity below.
After a sold-out national tour of his show Straight Outta Oz and over 400 million views on YouTube, Todrick Hall will be putting on his thigh-high, candy red “Kinky Boots” as he takes on the role of “Lola” in the Broadway smash hit musical.
Hall has previously appeared on the Great White Way in Memphis and The Color Purple.
Kinky Boots producers Daryl Roth and Hal Luftig said in a statement, “We’re so thrilled to have Todrick join the company and get to show off his incredible talent to Broadway audiences.”
The musical, directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell with a score by Cyndi Lauper and book by Harvey Fierstein, won six Tony Awards in 2013 including one for leading man Billy Porter in the role of “Lola.”
Remember when the American electorate was told over and over that Donald Trump would “pivot” from primary “beast” mode into general election mode to be able to attract moderates and independents?
Yeah, no surprise to learn that ain’t gonna happen.
Trump told Wisconsin news station WKBT-TV in a Tuesday live interview, “I don’t wanna change. Everybody talks about, ‘Oh well, you’re gonna pivot, you’re gonna’ — I don’t wanna pivot. I mean, you have to be you. If you start pivoting, you’re not being honest with people.”
That being said, Trump still points to his “yuuge” crowds as proof that he’s doing well in the general election even as polls show him tanking.
The Trumpster told Fox News reporter John Roberts, “I actually think I’m doing good. I have the biggest crowds,” Trump said. “You’re there, you see them. Nobody’s ever had crowds like this, they say. Somebody actually reported it the other day.”
Ego, ego, ego…
TRUMP: “Everyone talks about oh well you’re going to pivot, you’re going to—I don’t want to pivot.” pic.twitter.com/5ycRpJNSjG— Alan Kestrel (@AlanKestrel750) August 16, 2016
Caitlyn Jenner shared the news via Twitter that her E! Network reality show will not be continuing on for a third season after a dramatic decline in ratings.
Gay Star News has more:
E! Entertainment in a statement that it is ‘incredibly proud of the two seasons of I Am Cait’ which the cable channel described as ‘a groundbreaking docu-series that sparked an important and unprecedented global conversation about transgender people, their struggles and triumphs.
‘Caitlyn and E! have mutually decided not to move forward with another season at this time. She will always remain a part of the E! family, and we look forward to continue following her journey as she appears on Keeping Up with the Kardashians.’
Some news stories you may have missed:
• Today is Madonna’s birthday. And Ricky loved Madonna. (You really must read this.)
• Is NBC’s Olympic coverage homophobic?
• Lifelong registered Republican and CEO of MGM Resorts is endorsing Hillary Clinton for president.
• Aetna will look to reduce participation in 11 of 15 Obamacare exchanges because many policyholders are actually sick and need treatment.
• Latest polls shows Hillary Clinton leading in Virginia by 14 points and in Florida by 9 points.
• The Daily Beast reporter Nico Hines, who authored the homophobic Grindr report from the Rio Olympics, has had credentials revoked and sent home to London.
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| The Daily Beast’s Nico Hines |
David Hernandez, American Idol season 7 alum, drops his new single and music video, “Beautiful.”
In an exclusive interview with OUT, Hernandez says the theme of the track is to remind folks that they are beautiful just as they are. “If you’re missing a leg, you’re still beautiful. If you’re overweight, you’re still beautiful. If you are 75 years old, you’re still beautiful,” Hernandez says.
In 2008, Hernandez made it onto the reality competition series American Idol, landing in the top 12 before being eliminated. Rumors, however, quickly started circulating about the “real reason” Hernandez was sent home. Viewers bombarded Hernandez with comments about his past as a male stripper and soon questioned his sexuality, wondering if it influenced his exit from Idol.
Hernandez has said members of the show were fully aware of his past from the very beginning. But still, the media was relentless. “It was hard to go online and not read something negative about myself.”
People were more interested in rumors and scandals than the music.
Though Hernandez now believes he has the strength and self-confidence to handle a lot of backlash, his younger self did not, and the Idol drama took a toll on himself and his family.
“My dad still knew nothing about my sexuality or my profession. So when it’s plastered all over CNN that’s not how somebody really wants to go down.”
The song is imminently listenable – sexy tribal drum beat with tons of visual diversity lighting up the screen makes this a big, vocally bold anthem for celebrating all dimensions of ethnicity, sexuality, age and whatever flavor you can think of.