LGBTQ news and entertainment
Some news items you might have missed: • OUT: Sabrina Carpenter dropped the music video for her latest single “Taste,” and while the entire thing is a hot girl horror fest, there’s one moment that has everyone talking: her kiss with Jenna Ortega. Continue reading “Sabrina Carpenter’s Video Kiss + Kari Lake Told ‘Get Off Stage’ + More News”
Ramon Ventura (via Instagram)
Jordan Torres (via Instagram)
Kike Gil (image via Instagram/credit – Pedro Pieroco)
Star Trek: Discovery star Wilson Cruz covers OUT Magazine (photography by The Riker Brothers)
This year’s honorees make up one of the most diverse lists in Out magazine’s history, spanning several generations and a multitude of intersections from 18-year-old rap sensation Kidd Kenn and 99-year old trans WWII U.S. Navy fighter pilot Robina Asti to MSNBC journalist Rachel Maddow, who in a year of political tension was a voice of reason for the LGBTQ+ community.
From fashion legend André Leon Talley, headlining musician Lizzo, comedian Wanda Sykes, actors Jeremy Pope and Cheyenne Jackson to modeling industry heavyweight Ivan Bart, the creators of Queer Eye, and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’s very queer team Jamal Brown, Reggie Greer, and Karine Jean-Pierre, inclusivity and progress are the driving force behind this year’s list.
In a Facebook post, OUT’s cover man Wilson Cruz wrote, “I’m so grateful to OUT Magazine for including me in this year’s #OUT100 list and for the honor of gracing the cover.” “All I can think about is the kid who still lives inside of me who once stalked a newsstand for a week in order to work up the nerve to purchase an OUT Magazine!” 
(photo: Riker Brothers)
“{I hope} I used whatever talent and ability I had to tell the story of my community so that people would see us for the life-affirming, love-expanding community that we are, as opposed to the decades of misinformation and lies that were told about us. And that I use [television] to invite people in so they would actually know us. And if they know us, they’ll understand us. And if they can understand, they’ll accept us and celebrate us. And that’s all any of us want.”
On Saturday, November 21, OUT Magazine will celebrate the first-ever 2020 Out100 Virtual Honoree Induction Ceremony, live at 5 p.m. Pacific (8 p.m. Eastern) at Out.com/Out100Live, and available on all Revry live channels and on-demand at 6 p.m. Pacific (9 p.m. Eastern) at watch.revry.tv. See the full Out100 list here.
Some news items you might have missed: • CBS Sports: Major League Baseball is set to return starting either July 23 or 24, the league has announced. It’s worth noting that 40 MLB players and staff members reportedly tested positive for the novel coronavirus in recent days. • Billboard: Former President Barack Obama is set to deliver a special message to the LGBTQ community for the 3rd annual Stonewall Day virtual event. He will be joined by major stars such as Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato, Katy Perry and more, who will be offering their own messages of support, while pop superstars Kesha and Hayley Kiyoko will take to the digital stage for special performances. The Stonewall Day 2020 livestream on Logo’s YouTube and Facebook pages from 12:45 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET on Friday, June 26. • NewNowNext: Also on Friday, the cast of FX’s Pose will reunite for “Pose-A-Thon,” a commercial-free, one-hour online kiki with the cast and creative team of Pose. The event will raise awareness for three LGBTQ organizations: GLSEN, Hetrick-Martin Institute, and Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund. The “Pose-A-Thon” will air Friday, June 26 at 10pm ET on FX, Freeform, and the “Pose-A-Thon” website. • New Music: Lauv drops a surprise new EP titled Without You. The 4 tracks were all written and produced during quarantine. The global hottie also releases the quarantine made video for “Dishes,” the totally chill-vibe lead track for the EP. p.s. He also recently launched Breaking Modern Loneliness, an episodic podcast where each episode is a new open forum discussion on all things human relationships, mental health, and technology.
• Zillow: The massive real estate website has announced all Zillow listings will now provide information regarding local LGBTQ protections to help home buyers and renters identify which communities provide protection for all. Currently, only 22 states and the District of Columbia have laws against housing discrimination that include sexual orientation and gender identity. • Reuters: American approval of Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic has dropped to the lowest level on record since Reuters/Ipsos polls started asking the question at the beginning of March. With new COVID-19 cases surging, 58 percent said they disapproved. • Out: Actor and activist Wilson Cruz (My So-Called Life, Star Trek: Discovery) offers this subtle reminder that at the young age of 46-years-old, he ain’t playing.
Set a reminder on your calendars, folks… GLAAD, the world’s largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, today announced that Billy Porter, Pete & Chasten Buttigieg, Rosie O’Donnell, Jonathan Van Ness, Brian Michael Smith, Ross Mathews, and Tyler Oakley will join GLAAD’s livestream event, “Together in Pride: You are Not Alone,” on Sunday, April 26 at 8pm ET on GLAAD’s YouTube channel and Facebook Live. GLAAD also announced that Billy Eichner and Lilly Singh will co-host the event, which will include special performances from Alex Newell, the cast of Broadway’s “Jagged Little Pill”, as well as previously announced performances from Kesha and Melissa Etheridge. Mj Rodriguez and George Salazar, who previously co-starred in ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ at Pasadena Playhouse, will also perform. “Together in Pride: You are Not Alone” will highlight the LGBTQ response to COVID-19 and amplify messages of acceptance and affirmation to the LGBTQ community and people living with HIV during this unprecedented time. The livestream will raise funds for LGBTQ community centers that are members of CenterLink. GLAAD previously announced special guests including Matt Bomer, Adam Lambert, Bebe Rexha, Dan Levy, Wilson Cruz, Kathy Griffin, Gigi Gorgeous, Nats Getty, Michelle Visage, Javier Muñoz, Sean Hayes, Sharon Stone, and Tatiana Maslany. The livestream event will feature performances, interviews, video messages, and interviews with front-line LGBTQ doctors and leaders of local LGBTQ community centers. Actor and producer Erich Bergen is creating the event with GLAAD. The “Together in Pride: You are Not Alone” livestream will also raise critical funds for CenterLink, a coalition of more than 250 LGBTQ community centers from 45 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, as well as Canada, China, Mexico, and Australia. CenterLink strengthens, supports, and connects LGBTQ community centers, which serve over 2 million people each year. Participating community centers will also share the livestream on their social platforms. I’m proud to be a media sponsor for the event 🙂 Follow GLAAD on Twitter and Facebook for links to watch the event.
Wilson Cruz (via Instagram)Checking in with the men of Insta: Wilson Cruz (above) spent his New Year’s celebration in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, and came out the other side as a well-rested human (below). #LoveSomePV
Rodiney Santiago met a new friend inspiring him to share his thoughts on being vegetarian:
Gus Kenworthy ignored the camera as he gazed pensively at the horizon in Tahiti:
Aaron Kodak admired Phi Phi Island from a distance but no one seems to see any island in this photo:
Someone was playing sportsball somewhere:
Wes Dupee found a cute new look for his last weekend in LA:
In case you’re wondering – no, I never saw anyone just stroll down the street in Beverly Hills looking like Ignacio Pérez Rey when I lived there:
And speaking of Beverly Hills, Emmy Award winner Billy Porter shares his first lewk of the awards season, which he calls ‘Handmaids Tale Realness:’
Some news items you might have missed:
• Happy, happy birthday to my awesome godson Josh (above), who I am certain hung the moon.
• Police in Colorado have arrested a woman for trashing a gay man’s apartment over his “gay behavior.” She faces charges of causing non-serious bodily injury, domestic violence, criminal mischief, and assault in the third degree, with possible bias crime enhancements.
• Outsports has named Gus Kenworthy’s slope-side kiss with boyfriend Matt Wilkas at the Olympics the “gay sports moment of 2018.”
• Thanks to the Trump Shutdown, as of midnight tonight, 42,000 Coast Guard members won’t see another paycheck until mid-January at the earliest. Other military branches are unaffected by the partial government shutdown but the Coast Guard falls under the Homeland Security Department.
• Out comedienne/TV host Ellen DeGeneres snagged a Top 10 spot (8th) on Gallup’s “Most Admired Women” poll this year. She’s the only LGBTQ person to appear on the list.
• Star Trek: Discovery star Wilson Cruz shows us how to turn a fierce 45-years-old. Just a simple wave of the hand, “45 and…”
Come out, come out, wherever you are!
Today, on National Coming Out Day, the LGBT community celebrates the single most powerful action you can take to make LGBT equality a reality. And that is to come out as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.
Every step forward we’ve seen in the past several years is directly related to the increased visibility our community has when we proudly step up and out as who we are. People who know someone who is openly gay are more likely to support equal rights for LGBTs.
Coming out inspires friends, family, and allies of the LGBT community to stand up for what is right, even in the face of discrimination, bigotry, and violence.
And on the most personal level, coming out improves our mental health, self-esteem, success, and happiness.
Even if the first step you can take today is to come out to yourself, please know millions support your courage to live life authentically.
One of the most powerful moments I’ve experienced writing The Randy Report was when a regular reader reached out to me to come out on National Coming Out Day. I was honored that they trusted me to share the beginning of their journey.
Here’s hoping a lot of folks begin their own journey today.
Be brave. Be proud. Be you.
Check out Laverne Cox and Wilson Cruz sharing their coming out experiences below, along with social media messages from several Randy Report favorites.
It’s #NationalComingOutDay! Come out as gay. Come out as trans. Come out as supporting equality. We need your voices now.— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) October 11, 2017
Someday we’ll no longer need #NationalComingOutDay. But for today, if you’re ready to come out and tell your story, know we’re here for you.— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) October 11, 2017
I’ll keep fighting for a world where everyone feels safe to be who they are and love who they love. #NationalComingOutDay pic.twitter.com/acho7T1Qgi— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) October 11, 2017
“I always danced to the beat of a different drummer.” @RuPaul #NationalComingOutDay #OutIn60 pic.twitter.com/Jz59Xl8Xtb— RuPaul’s Drag Race (@RuPaulsDragRace) October 11, 2017