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A DAY
WITH HIV
IN AMERICA
page 14
WINDY CITY
TIMES
THE VOICE OF CHICAGO’S GAY, LESBIAN,
BI AND TRANS COMMUNITY SINCE 1985
Aug. 31, 2011
vol 26, no. 47
www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com
Solmonese leaving HRC
HALL OF FAME
CHANGES
MAY COME
page 12
ELMHURST
COLLEGE
MAKES HISTORY
By Lisa Keen
Keen News Service
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) announced in a press
release Aug. 27 that its president, Joe Solmonese, “will
not renew his contract, which expires March 31, 2012.”
Rebecca Tillet, a co-chair of HRC’s Board of Directors,
noted in the press release that the board had asked Solmonese to give them six months notice before leaving
his position, “and he’s done that.”
Solmonese had not responded to this reporter’s request
for an interview by the press deadline but said in the HRC
press release, “Leading HRC has been an inspiring experience and a complete privilege.”
“I could not be more proud of our staff, our volunteer
leadership and of the extraordinary progress we’ve made
together as a community.
“HRC has never been stronger and after nearly seven
years, this is the right moment for me to move on.”
Joe
Solmonese.
Photo by
Rex
Wockner
Solmonese took the helm of the nation’s largest LGBT
political organization in 2005, following an 11-month
stint by his predecessor, Massachusetts state Sen. Cheryl
Jacques. Jacques followed a nine-year tenure by Elizabeth Birch. Prior to Birch, the organization was lead by
its founder, Steve Endean; its first executive director, Vic
Basile; and Basile’s successor, Tim McFeeley.
Solmonese hinted he would be exploring “new professional possibilities” and would continue to be involved
in such activities as fighting marriage bans and “ensuring
President Obama is reelected for a second term.”
That latter comment will almost certainly fuel speculation by some that Solmonese is bucking for a position
with the Obama White House or re-election campaign.
In HRC’s press release, Anne Fay, a co-chair of the
HRC Foundation board of directors, called Solmonese an
“outstanding leader” and credited him with putting HRC
Turn to page 4
Lesbian icon, ‘Glee’ star talk with WCT
page 8
WC&F
thrives
page 29
world series
begins
page 34
Kelly McGillis made many hearts flutter when co-starring in such movies as Top Gun (above, left) with Tom Cruise; see her interview on page 27. Meanwhile, Windy
City Times also chats with Dot Jones (above, right), who has gone from arm-wrestling champion to being a star in her own right on TV’s Glee; that discussion is on
page 31. Right photo by Tyler Golden and Oxygen Media
2
Aug. 31, 2011
WINDY CITY TIMES
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
3
this week in
WINDY CITY TIMES
NEWS
Calif.’s teaching-law opponents
LGBT students: Any safer now?
Judge asks Prop 8 question
Victory Fund’s Robin Brand
Lakeview fire; Legacy Project Quigley and ENDA; Lambda event
ALMA picnic; Lovefest
Hall of Fame; Cocktail sold
More departures at HBHC
Gay in the Life
AIDS @ 30 Views with Monroe; letters 4
5
6
7
9
10
11
12
12
13
14
22
ENTERTAINMENT/EVENTS
Scottish Play Scott
Theater reviews
Knight: The Debt; Don’t Be...
Kelly McGillis interview
Dish; Celebrations
Women & Children First
Dot Jones of ‘Glee’; Bent Nights
Billy Masters
23
24
26
27
28
29
31
33
OUTLINES
Real estate; classifieds
Calendar Q
Sports: World Series
30
32
34
Photos on cover (left, from top): Photo of Richard Cordova by John Gress; photo of Kit Duffy by
Helen Adamopoulos; photo of Elmhurst College courtesy of Sara Ramseth; photo of Linda Bubon
by Kat Fitzgerald; photo of Ben Cohen by Ross Forman
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page 14
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page 34
SERIES
Go to www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com
to download complete issues of Windy City Times and Nightspots.
Then click on any ad and be taken directly to the advertiser’s Web site!
when co-starring
who has
flutter
right),
hearts
(above,
Media
made many Dot Jones
and Oxygen
with
Kelly McGillis
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city Times
right photo
page 31.
online exclusives at
WindyCityMediaGroup
www.
.com
women’s day
Read about and see photos of a rally held to
mark Women’s Equality Day.
Photo by Joe Franco
TAKE A QUEER
LOOK AT CHICAGO
In 1906 police arrested Julius Duc for dressing in women’s clothing in public. At the
station, a Daily News photographer snapped a series of photographs that remained
unpublished until now.
Discover the city through the lens of gender, sexuality and nonconformity
at Out in Chicago — a groundbreaking exhibition that explores 150 years
of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Chicagoans and their
quests for self-identity, family, community and political action.
OPEN THROUGH MARCH 26, 2012
See photos of
Equality Utah’s
recent Allies
Dinner, which
featured Calif.
Lt. Gov. Gavin
Newsom (above)
OVER THE RAINBOW
UIC’s Gender and Sexuality Center
recently held its Rainbow Social. See
pics from that.
Photo from
Brandie Balken
GENERAL ADMISSION $14
FREE FOR MEMBERS
See pics from
AIDS Legal Council
of Chicago’s
“Orient Express.”
Photo by
Steven Chaitman
How you doin’?
shop ‘til you drop
Clark Street at North Avenue 312.642.4600 www.chicagohistory.org
The Magnificent Mile Shopping Festival
takes place through Sept. 8. Get the
lowdown on the event.
PRESENTING SPONSORS:
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
This week’s entertainment round-up
includes items on Hugh Jackman, Amy
Winehouse and Queen Latifah.
plus
DAILY BREAKING NEWS
Talk-show host Wendy Williams was in
Chicagoland recently—and WCT was
there to greet her.
Photo by Jerry Nunn
The Lakeview
controversy
nightspots
Celebrate the
end of summer
with
#1050 • August 31, 2011
with reporter Kate Sosin
nightspots
Continental
divide
Labor Day weekend
brings Mr. and Miss
Continental to town.
page 7
AK Miller’s
new column,
Being
Continued.
Show
#432
Parlour marks
one year.
page 14
page 26
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EQCA: Teaching law
opponents are
‘extremists’
by Rex Wockner
The people who want to repeal California’s
new law requiring teaching of LGBT history are
“extremists” who persecute gays, says Roland
Palencia, head of Equality California.
Palencia’s organization hopes to keep the
group “Stop SB 48” from collecting 504,760
valid signatures from registered California voters by mid-October.
The signatures would force a voter referendum
on the teaching law, also known as Senate Bill
48, on next June’s ballot.
California law requires that social-studies curriculum include information on many different
minority groups, but LGBT people were just added to the list this year.
In signing SB 48, Gov. Jerry Brown said, “History should be honest.”
“I think that one of the things that we’re
going to take on is defining them (the opponents),” Palencia said Aug. 25 in a telephone
interview with five journalists.
“Who gets to paint whom?” he asked. “We
want to start engaging the conversation about
painting them in the corner about how dangerous these people are to the people of California, and really expose their agenda—how these
campaigns are persecution. ... We need to define
them as the extremists that they are.”
Palencia said that despite the opponents’
rhetoric in the new campaign—and in the
2008 campaign to re-ban same-sex marriage in
California—schoolchildren are not harmed by
hearing about the existence of gay and lesbian
people.
Indeed, it is people who want to ban gay issues from schools who “are a danger to children
and families,” he said.
EQCA has suggested that inclusive teaching
about LGBT history will reduce anti-gay bullying
in schools.
On the same telephone call, EQCA’s communications director, Rebekah Orr, said the opposition is using “the same sound bites they’ve been
Indiana lawmaker
in gay sex scandal
Indiana state Rep. Phil Hinkle has admitted
that he paid 18-year-old Kameryn Gibson $80
on Aug. 6 for sex, according to the Indianapolis Star. However, not only is Hinkle refusing to
say that he is gay, but he is refusing calls for
him to step down.
Gibson, who said he was looking for a “sugga
daddy” on Craigslist posting, told The Star that
he attempted to leave the JW Marriott hotel
room where they met. Gibson added that Hinkle tried to keep him from leaving, exposed
himself and then, after his sister arrived, offered them $100 cash, an iPad and Blackberry
to keep quiet.
Hinkle disputes Gibson’s version, with the
legislator saying that he never exposed himself and that Gibson stole those items when
Hinkle was in the bathroom. Both agree that
money exchanged hands but no sex act took
place.
House Speaker Brian Bosma has stripped
Hinkle of his committee chairmanships and
has joined other GOP officials who have asked
him to resign. However, Hinkle said that it’s
not up to party leaders to make that decision.
Hinkle also said that he’s not gay.
playing for 20 years.”
Reminded that those old sound bites seem to
work, Orr said: “We are going to have a richer
set of input in terms of research and how to
move communities and speak to them in culturally competent ways.”
“We don’t have a silver bullet on the children
(meme),” she acknowledged. “We have no illusions about the monumental task before us.
... We’re going to need to do much more robust
pieces of research, and we will not be able to
say anything definitive, certainly, until we’re
done with that.”
EQCA’s Andrea Shorter said on the call that
signature-gathering on the repeal referendum is
taking place “within their base.”
“Their activities are largely behind the closed
door of their churches,” Shorter said.
EQCA and other groups have launched a website to protect SB 48 at faireducationaction.
com. The other side’s site is stopsb48.com.
Teen dies after
alleged hate crime
BY KATE SOSIN
A 19-year-old Iowan has died from injuries from
an altercation during which attackers allegedly
yelled anti-gay slurs at him.
However, police say the incident likely will not
be investigated as a hate crime.
Marcellus Andrews, of Waterloo, died Aug. 21
after being removed from life support. Andrews
was allegedly beaten by a group of people who
yelled anti-gay slurs at him in the early hours of
Aug. 19.
Lieutenant Michael McNamee of the investigative police division in Waterloo, confirmed that
the fight started an exchange of words, but said
that any slurs hurled were the result of a daylong dispute between two groups of people, not
the start of anti-gay violence.
“There were some things that happened there
earlier in the day between parties involved in
the altercation,” McNamee said. “At this point,
I don’t anticipate it being prosecuted as a hate
crime.”
According to McNamee, approximately 10 people were involved in the altercation at 220 Cottage Street.
Police have interviewed several suspects but
have yet to make arrests.
“We do have people of interest we’re looking
at,” McNamee said.
A Facebook page in Andrews’ honor had exceeded 1,700 subscribers by Tuesday. Friends
expressed their hopes that Andrews would find
peace and justice. Others expressed outrage over
the alleged anti-gay murder.
“I will never forget the laughs and encouraging
words you gave me,” wrote on friend. “Everything
I do will be in your memory…Love you so much
and I’m blessed to have experienced your friendship.”
Windy City Times will update as more details
become available.
SOLMONESE from cover
Roland Palencia. Photo by Rex Wockner
Gay man takes
over Apple
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
Tim Cook, a gay man, is the new CEO of Apple after Steve Jobs resigned Aug. 24, according to Advocate.com.
The company said the switch was made during a meeting of the board of directors; Jobs
specifically asked for Cook to replace him.
“The board has complete confidence that
Tim is the right person to be our next CEO,”
said Art Levinson, chairman of Genentech, on
behalf of Apple’s Board in a statement.
Windy City Times reported that Cook was a
de facto CEO earlier this year after Jobs went
on medical leave. It was also noted that Cook
has sold and/or amassed approximately $136
million in corporate shares. He is seen as a
quiet workaholic who gets up at 4:30 a.m. and
eats energy bars constantly.
According to Apple’s website, Cook earned
an M.B.A. from Duke University, where he was
a Fuqua Scholar, and a bachelor of science
degree in industrial engineering from Auburn
University.
The Chicago Tribune reported that Apple has
awarded Cook 1 million restricted stock units
that were worth about $383 million at the end
of Aug. 26. Cook will get half of the stock after
being CEO for five years; he gets the rest after
10 years.
in “the best place the organization has ever
been.”
“Not only has our community secured historic victories,” said Fay, “but our membership
is larger and more active than at any time in
our history, and our financial health is secure
even in these difficult economic times.”
The press release also credited Solmonese
with leading HRC at a time when the LGBTrights movement has seen many gains—including repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,”
passage of hate-crimes legislation and the
legalization of marriage equality in New York.
Critics, no doubt, will also point out that, with
Solmonese at the helm of the largest and most
influential LGBT political organization in the
country, there has been little to no real movement on the Employment Non-Discrimination
Act; stinging ballot-box losses on marriage
equality in California and Maine; and no prospects for building significant Republican Party
support for LGBT issues at a time when control of Congress is split between the two major
parties.
According to the press release, HRC’s membership grew from 750,000 to “more than
1,000,000” under Solmonese, who took over
the helm of the organization from then Executive Director Elizabeth Birch in 2005.
The organization issued the press release a
day after lesbian blogger Pam Spaulding (at
pamshouseblend.com) posted an entry saying
that she had learned “from a trusted source
in a position to know” that Solmonese would
leave in December. The HRC press release indicated the organization has formed a search
committee to select a new president. The release does not indicate when Solmonese will
leave.
ONLINE AT
WINDYCITYMEDIAGROUP.COM
NATIONAL NEWS
—GOP senator
resigns over
Grindr photos
—Rick Santorum (left):
Gays are at
war with me
—Rabbi blames
disasters on gays
Marcellus Andrews.
HRC has a deep bench on staff. Managing
Director Susanne Salkind, the organization’s
number two, is an experienced attorney with
political and management experience. She
has served as deputy for the 2004 campaign
to defeat the Federal Marriage Amendment; is
liaison between the staff and boards; and has
been heavily involved in electoral programs.
HRC National Field Director Marty Rouse has
been responsible for mobilizing the group’s
one million supporters and members to take
action at the local, state and federal levels.
Before joining HRC in 2006, he headed
MassEquality.
In addition, David Smith served as communications director for the organization from
1995 to 2003, then became vice president for
programs, directing policy and strategy for
the organization. He has experience on Capitol Hill as a former aide to U.S. Senator Ted
Kennedy, and deep ties to other national LGBT
groups, including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance
Against Defamation and the Los Angeles Gay &
Lesbian Center.
Longtime HRC official and supporter Hilary
Rosen said she thinks HRC now needs to be
both a “visionary” and a “political strategist.”
“Elizabeth [Birch] was a visionary who shone
a light to the straight world at a time when we
were more invisible,” said Rosen. “Joe was a
political strategist at a time when we had a
President and a Congress who wanted to work
with us to get things done. The next leader,”
said Rosen, “will have to be able to do some
of both….”
The HRC press release says the organization’s four volunteer co-chairs will select the
search committee and hire an executive search
firm to help with the effort.
©2011 by Keen News Service. All rights
reserved.
WINDY CITY TIMES
LGBT students:
Safer this year?
Aug. 31, 2011
by Dana Rudolph
Keen News Service
Anti-LGBT bullying took the national stage last
fall after the highly publicized suicides of several
teens bullied for being gay or perceived to be. The
relentless bullying, many believe, may have been
one of the contributing factors in their decisions
to attempt suicide, and their deaths led to an
surge of anti-bullying awareness campaigns and
media coverage.
But will LGBT students entering school this fall
be any safer after a year of heightened awareness
about the issue? Two LGBT leaders are doubtful,
although they acknowledge some positive changes.
Eliza Byard, executive director of the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN),
said, “Last fall, the nation as a whole woke up to
the potential consequences of this problem.” This
year, “more schools are aware of what they need
to do, and there are more resources out there.”
However, while “we’ve made progress” in people’s understanding of anti-LGBT bullying and
“ideas and policies are getting traction,” Byard
said, there is still “a lot of work to be done.”
David McFarland, interim executive director/
CEO of The Trevor Project, the leading national
organization providing crisis intervention and
suicide prevention services to LGBT (and questioning) youth, said, “We’re not there yet because
we’re continuing to see anti-LGBT rhetoric and
movement across this country that has a negative
effect on young people. ... There is greater awareness around this issue, but LGBT students still experience bullying and harassment at an alarming
rate.”
Research has shown the negative effects of
bullying. GLSEN’s 2009 National School Climate
Survey found that nearly nine out of 10 LGBT
students experienced verbal or physical harassment at school in the previous year, which was
related to increased depression and anxiety and
decreased self-esteem.
Also, a study in the May 2011 Journal of School
Health found that anti-LGBT bullying at school
“is strongly linked” to negative mental health for
its victims, including an increased frequency of
suicide attempts and increased risk for engaging
in behaviors that can lead to infection with STDs
and HIV. The increased risks exist not only while
the victim is in adolescence, but also in young
adulthood.
Federal actions taken over the last year to address anti-LGBT bullying include, most prominently, an anti-bullying conference hosted by the
While House in March 2011, at which President
Obama told attendees that bullying is “more like-
VALEO
Eliza Byard (left) with country singer Chely
Wright. Photo obtained through Facebook
ly to affect kids that are seen as different,” including those who are different because of sexual
orientation.
The U.S. Department of Education has also issued a number of letters to educators, reminding
them:
—that federal laws require schools to take action against bullying—including gender-based
and sexual harassment of LGBT students.
—that schools receiving federal funds must
provide equal access to school resources for all
student groups, including gay-straight alliances
(GSAs), and that GSAs “can help make schools
safe and affirming environments for everyone.”
—that effective state anti-bullying laws include ones that specify “actual or perceived characteristics of students who have historically been
targets of bullying,” such as sexual orientation
and gender identity.
On the state level, since last fall, Arkansas,
Colorado, Connecticut and Rhode Island enacted
anti-bullying legislation that explicitly prohibits
bullying based on sexual orientation and gender
identity, as recommended by the Department of
Education, making a total of 14 states that do
so. The others include California, Illinois, Iowa,
Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina,
Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. An additional
two, Massachusetts and Wisconsin, specify sexual
orientation, but not gender identity.
Chicago’s Dedicated and
Comprehensive LGBT Program
AT CHICAGO LAKESHORE HOSPITAL
Valeo at Chicago Lakeshore Hospital
provides comprehensive psychiatric
and addiction-related treatment for
gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender
and questioning (LGBTQ) individuals.
The program offers a safe, affirming
therapeutic environment for members
of the LGBTQ community. The Valeo
staff is comprised of well-trained,
experienced gay and gay-sensitive
behavioral health professionals from
a wide variety of disciplines.
4840 N. MARINE DRIVE
CHICAGO, IL 60640
1-800-888-0560
www.chicagolakeshorehospital.com
North Dakota and Texas enacted anti-bullying
laws in the last year, but those laws do not enumerate sexual orientation and gender identity.
And Byard said there has been “tremendous activity at district and local levels” across the country to address bullying.
McFarland, too, stressed the importance of local action.
“Schools and communities need to take concrete steps, creating safe spaces where youth can
receive support from caring adults,” he said.
Both the Trevor Project and GLSEN are among
the organizations that provide training to help
them do so.
Byard said, however, that, “The biggest problem
we have right now is that schools are in crisis
because of the economy. We’ve got to make sure
schools that want to do the right thing are not
prevented because of a lack of resources.”
It may be tough going. The federal Fiscal Year
2011 budget drained more than $100 million from
the two primary federal grant programs that address bullying. And state education budgets continue to face cuts.
McFarland noted that, in some districts, the
problem may be attitudinal as well as budgetary,
especially in states and school districts with “no
promo homo” laws or policies preventing schoolbased instruction that could be interpreted to be
positive about homosexuality.
Eight states—Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and
Utah—have such laws statewide, according to
‘Civilized
Celebrations’
Aug. 31 at The Joynt
The Civil Rights Agenda will hold its first in
a series of “Civilized Celebrations”—honoring
those who were joined in civil unions at the
organization’s June 3 ceremony—Wed., Aug.
31, 5:30-9 p.m. at The Joynt, 650 N. Dearborn.
The couples Jayson Bernard & Roberto Rosario and Erica & Vanessa Feliciano will be featured. A short program will take place at 6:30
p.m.
Tickets (“Roommates” level) are $50 each;
there are also “domestic partnership” ($250
host), “civil union” ($500 sponsor) and “marriage” ($1,000 chair) levels.
Purchase tickets at http://tinyurl.com/
civilizedcelebration. Send checks to The Civil
Rights Agenda, 2129 N. Western Ave., Chicago,
Ill., 60647. For more info, email [email protected] or call 773-398-6986.
Celebration of life for
RJ Chaffin Sept. 10
A celebration of life for longtime community
activist, volunteer and businessman RJ Chaffin
will take place Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Center
on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted.
A reception will be held 12-1 p.m.; the pro-
5
GLSEN.
But individual school districts in other states
may have similar policies, as does the AnokaHennepin School District in Minnesota, part of
which is in the congressional district of presidential candidate Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn.
The National Center for Lesbian Rights and the
Southern Poverty Law Center recently filed a lawsuit against the district, claiming the policies
“exacerbated” anti-gay harassment. This caused
some students “serious emotional harm, including
anxiety, anger, and depression, which led some of
them to consider or attempt suicide.” In the nine
months between November 2009 and July 2010,
at least four LGBT students within the District
died by suicide.
Federal anti-bullying legislation “would make
an enormous difference,” said Byard.
Three pairs of bills in the U.S. House and Senate
would address anti-LGBT bullying and harassment
in schools and universities but seem unlikely to
pass the current Republican-controlled House, despite having a handful of Republican co-sponsors.
Still, Byard and McFarland feel the efforts over
the past year have had some positive effect.
“After last year, more doors are open,” Byard
said. “People know this needs to be done.”
McFarland added, “For the first time, the challenges of LGBT youth are no longer invisible on a
local, state, or national level.”
©2011 by Keen News Service. All rights reserved.
gram will be 1-2 p.m.; and a closing reception
will take place 2-3:30 p.m.
Inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian
Hall of Fame in 1997, Chaffin was involved in
a wide range of causes and helped raise thousands of dollars for many AIDS and gay groups.
He was a well-known business activist with
the Northalsted Area Merchants Association (
NAMA ) , as owner of the now-closed RJ’s Video
and Rajin’ Rae Jean’s. He was NAMA president
from 1998-2004.
Chaffin, a native of Ohio, is most associated
with International Mr. Leather and its Leather
Marketplace, an event he directed for 18 years,
including this past Memorial Weekend in Chicago. He is interviewed in the new book Leatherman: The Legend of Chuck Renslow, about his
IML and gay community work.
Chaffin also served on the boards of Strike
Against AIDS, the Chicago AIDS Benefit Committee and NAMA.
RJ
Chaffin.
Judge: What’s the
difference between
Prop 8 transcript
and videotape?
By Lisa Keen
Keen News Service
A federal district court judge in San Francisco
Aug. 29 heard vigorous arguments over a request
to release for public viewing a videotape of last
year’s historic trial on Proposition 8.
Public release of the videotapes has been considered barred since January 2010, when the
U.S. Supreme Court ruled at the start of the trial
that there could be no broadcast of the court
proceedings. One question U.S. District Court
Chief Judge James Ware posed during Monday’s
hearing, according to Twitter reports, was: “Now
that the trial is over,” can the prohibition on
broadcasting be set aside?”
The legal team challenging the ban on marriage for same-sex couples requested the hearing to convince Ware to allow for public release
of the videotapes. Ware said, at the end of the
proceeding Monday morning, that he would issue a ruling on that request soon.
Live reports from the morning’s proceedings
in San Francisco were transmitted via Twitter by
the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which
has sponsored the litigation challenging Proposition 8, and the Courage Campaign, an online
organizing group that supports marriage equality.
According to those reports, Ware indicated at
the top of the hour-long hearing that neither
side in the litigation had sought to strike the
videotapes from the litigation’s official record.
But Yes on 8 did object to the broadcast of today’s hearings and last week, Ware granted that
request and barred broadcast of today’s hearing.
Ted Boutrous, one of the top attorneys for the
team challenging Proposition 8, told Ware that
releasing the videotapes will enable the public
to “see and hear” why Ware’s predecessor ruled
Proposition 8 unconstitutional. A lengthy, written transcript of the full proceeding has been
available to the public for some time.
“It is difficult for people to accept what they
are prohibited from observing,” Boutrous told
Ware, according to the AFER Twitter report. Boutrous said the release of the videotapes would
also be helpful in addressing concerns raised by
Yes on 8 that the trial was somehow unfair to
Yes on 8.
Boutrous noted that Yes on 8 has also claimed
that release of the videotape would leave Yes
on 8 witnesses at the trial vulnerable to harassment. But, Boutrous noted, the dual argument—
that the trial was unfair but don’t release the
videotapes— is trying to “have it both ways.”
“The public’s interest would have been best
served by the broadcast of the trial,” said Boutrous.
According to the Courage Campaign Twitter
feed, Ware pressed Boutrous on his motives for
seeking release of the videotapes, and noted
that federal trials and hearings are not usually
broadcast.
At the time of the Proposition 8 trial, the 9th
Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals was just beginning
to roll out a new program to consider allowing for broadcast of trials and hearings. Judge
Vaughn Walker, who presided over the Proposition 8 trial, asked to allow broadcast of that trial
as part of the new program. Ultimately, the U.S.
Supreme Court weighed in and said no.
Both AFER and Courage Campaign Twitter reports noted that Ware said he was “bothered”
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
6
Judge Vaughn Walker.
by the fact that the videotape was in existence
because of Judge Walker, and not because of one
of the parties to the litigation.
“I am bothered by the question of what to do
with something that is recorded by the judge’s
action,” said Ware, according to the Courage
Campaign.
However, Boutrous said Ware should look at
the videotape as it looks at the written transcript. The videotape, said Boutrous, is just the
“transcript-plus …plus audio, plus video.”
Boutrous showed Ware a video clip from a reenactment of the trial, a clip starring Academy
Award-winning actor Marisa Tomei as plaintiff
Kristen Perry. And then the same clip from the
actual video recording of the trial. Boutrous also
replayed a clip from the actual video recording
of the trial in which Yes on 8 expert witness
David Blankenhorn agreed with plaintiffs that
allowing for marriage equality would make our
society “more American.” He followed that with
a clip from the re-enactment. Both AFER and
Courage Campaign indicate the re-enactment
comes across as very different from the actual
recording.
AFER and Courage Campaign say Ware commented to Boutrous that he does not believe the
court has a role in educating the public and asks
Boutrous to identify a legal authority to justify
release of the videotapes. They did not indicate
whether Boutrous was able to identify such an
authority but quoted Boutrous as arguing that
release of the videotapes is necessary to defend
the “integrity of the court.”
Christine Van Aken, from the San Francisco
City Attorney’s Office, which has also opposed
Proposition 8, was also given time before Ware.
She said Yes on 8 claims about potential for
harassment are unfounded, that there’s been
no indication of intimidation, according to the
AFER Twitter report. And, says Van Aken, certain actions—such as boycotts—are types of
expressions protected by the First Amendment.
Van Aken said it should require more than just
“hypothesis and conjecture” about harassment
to justify keeping the videotapes under seal. Attorney Thomas Burke, representing the “Media
Coalition,” a group of mainstream news organization seeking to broadcast the videotapes,
agreed.
“If you can have the [written] transcripts
publicly available,” said Burke, according to the
AFER Twitter report, “surely the public cannot be
hurt by seeing the actual testimony.”
Yes on 8 supporters argued against videotaping the trial and don’t want the tapes in public
circulation, claiming it will enable opponents
of Proposition 8 to harass Yes on 8 witnesses.
In documents filed with the court, they said release of the videotapes will lead to broadcast
of the trial proceeding, in violation of a longstanding policy of not broadcasting trials. They
also claimed it violated the “spirit” of the U.S.
Supreme Court order that the trial not be broadcast live outside the federal courthouse in San
Francisco where the trial took place.
In court Aug. 29, Yes on 8 attorney David
Thompson said his legal team did not object to
Judge Walker’s videotaping of the trial because
of Walker’s assurances that the video would be
used only by him, in chambers, in preparation of
his final decision in the case. According to Twitter reports from AFER and Courage Campaign,
Thompson said one of Yes on 8’s two witnesses
relied on that assurance in deciding to testify.
Thompson, in response to a question from
Ware, said it would be in violation of the court’s
seal for even the 9th Circuit—which has an appeal of Walker’s decision before it—to play the
videotapes. To abide by the seal, said Thompson,
the 9th Circuit judges would need to view the
recording from the San Francisco federal courthouse “in this courtroom.” There can be no electronic transmission of the videotape outside the
courtroom, said Thompson.
“Our concern is not with the 9th Circuit view
it,” said Thompson, according to the AFER Twitter report, “our concern is with it being made
public.”
Ware, according to the AFER and Courage Campaign reports, expressed some discomfort with
Thompson’s argument, saying he was concerned
it might “interfere” with the 9th Circuit’s ability
to review the record in the case. He reiterated
his initial notation that no one had requested
‘We Are Halsted’
Aug. 31
“We Are Halsted”—a special event created
to bring the community together; to raise
awareness about the challenges LGBTQ homeless youth face; and to help support organizations—will take place Wed., Aug. 31, 7-9 p.m.,
at Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted.
Adam Guerino (Laugh Track at Sidetrack,
Nightcaps Cabaret) is hosting the event with
the support of the Center and the Lakeview
Safety and Inclusion Coalition. Various entertainers will sing, dance and perform comedy.
There will also be a raffle and drinks.
Tickets start at $5; see “We Are Halsted” on
Facebook.
Adam
Guerino.
Photo
courtesy of
Guerino
GLN looks at 9/11,
Afghanistan war
Sept. 10
The Gay Liberation Network (GLN) will host
a re-examination of the war in Afghanistan
and the 9/11 tragedy that preceded it Sat-
to strike the videotape from the official record
of Perry v. Brown. But Thompson said the videotapes are not part of the official record; only the
written transcript is.
Ware pressed Thompson to explain the difference in harm between public availability of the
transcript and availability of the videotapes.
“You know what [the witnesses] look like. You
know what they sound like,” said Thompson, according to AFER’s Twitter report.
However, on rebuttal, AFER attorney Ted Boutrous dismissed Thompson’s concern as “flimsy.”
“It would take literally two seconds for someone to see Mr. Blankenhorn talk for hours about
[same-sex] marriage,” said Boutrous, an apparent reference to AFER’s claim that Blankenhorn
that Yes on 8’s other witness make frequent public appearances to talk about their opposition
to marriage equality. Boutrous also said AFER
considers the videotape to be part of the official
judicial record.
In a brief to Ware July 15, Charles Cooper, the
lead attorney for Yes on 8 concerns in the litigation, said his client also objects to the court’s
returning to Walker a copy of the videotapes for
retention as a part of his judicial papers.
In June, Ware rejected a request from Proposition 8 supporters to take possession of and
sequester the videotapes permanently. He also
rejected their request to vacate the August 2010
ruling—that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional—
by then U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn
Walker. Yes on 8 proponents had argued that,
because Walker confirmed in April 2011, two
months after he retired from the bench, that he
has been in a relationship with a man for the
past 10 years, he should have recused himself
from presiding over and deciding the Perry v.
Brown (formerly Perry v. Schwarzenegger) lawsuit.
On Sept. 6, the California Supreme Court will
hear oral arguments on whether there is any authority in state law to justify allowing Yes on
8 attorneys appeal Walker’s decision in Perry v.
Brown given that state officials have decided
against appeal and have asked to abide by Walker’s decision.
©2011 by Keen News Service. All rights reserved.
urday, Sept. 10, at the Merlo Public Library,
644 W. Belmont Ave., 2:30-4:30 p.m., with the
event “9-11 and the Afghanistan War: Who Was
Right?”
The event will feature GLN member/anti-war
organizer Andy Thayer and Voices for Creative
Non-Violence’s Mary Dean, who recently returned from a month-long visit to Afghanistan. GLN’s Bob Schwartz will moderate.
For more information, email [email protected] or visit http://www.GayLiberation.net.
Chicago NOW’s
‘Women Who Dare’
Sept. 21
The Chicago chapter of the National Organization for Women will hold its 14th annual
“Women Who Dared” cocktail reception and
fundraiser Wed., Sept. 21, at Flourish Studios,
3020 N. Lincoln Ave.
The chapter will honor Dawn Clark Netsch,
professor of law emerita at Northwestern University and a pioneer for women’s rights in Illinois, and Gail T. Smith, executive director of
the Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated
Mothers (CLAIM).
General admission tickets are $35; see
http://womenwhodared2011.eventbrite.com
for more options and ticket purchases.
Windy City Media Group is one of the event’s
sponsors.
For more information, contact Melissa Satterlee at [email protected] or
630-254-9809.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
Victory Fund’s
Robin Brand on
LGBT politics
BY KATE SOSIN
As 2012 presidential candidates take to the
road, The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund will be
rolling into Chicago Thursday, Sept. 8, to discuss
LGBT politics and strategy. Windy City Times
caught up with Deputy Executive Director Robin
Brand to talk about what issues are at stake in
upcoming elections, the changing face of LGBT
politics and the Republican role in recent wins
for gay rights.
Windy City Times: So tell us about your Chicago reception.
Robin Brand: It’s really an opportunity to talk
about LGBT politics … what are some of the exciting elections coming down the pipe, the internals of how we work as an organization and
preparing people to run for office.
WCT: I imagine that is going to be a pretty
interesting conversation right now with presidential campaigns kicking off.
RB: Well, we still have some exciting elections
this year. Our only openly gay delegate in the
house of delegates in Virginia won his primary
for a state Senate seat so he’ll be on the ballot in November, but he could become the first
openly gay senator in Virginia’s history.
We have Bevan Dufty running for mayor of San
Francisco. Most people don’t realize San Francisco has never had an openly gay mayor, even
though its known as such a gay-friendly town.
We have a gentleman running for an Indianapolis city council race.
WCT: Given the number of successes that
we’ve enjoyed over the past few years, has
the focus of LGBT politics shifted in your
view? Are we looking at different issues today than we were even recently?
RB: Over the last, say, 10 years, there’s been a
shift towards really trying to gain more legislative victories at the national and state levels.
From our perspective at the Victory Fund, where
we are now is, after recruiting and electing
candidates over the last 20 years, we have this
incredible bench of leaders around the country
who are now poised to move to the next level,
Tammy Baldwin being a great example of that—
in the House and now positioned to run for U.S.
Senate. That’s what I think we’re going to start
seeing happening more and more in the next few
cycles.
WCT: What issues do you think are most at
stake politically right now?
RB: I think part of the goal is to keep some
momentum going at the federal level, the efforts to start challenging DOMA [Defense of Marriage Act] and hopefully start peeling that away,
whether it’s through the judicial process or the
legislative process. There’s a lot of eagerness to
still get ENDA [Employment Non-Discrimination
Act] passed. I think those are the burning issues
at the federal level.
And then we’ve got some states trying to solidify same-sex marriage where they can. Then,
you’ve got states like Oregon looking at trying
to repeal their constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
WCT: What do you think we need to be doing right now as individuals locally to make
some of these things happen?
RB: I think there are a lot of things. Most
states have very active state LGBT organizations. I think supporting your state LGBT groups
[is] really important. They’re often on the front
lines of identifying people who are running for
office. And getting engaged with what’s happening in your state, whether that’s helping with
these legislative efforts or supporting openly
gay candidates.
WCT: Funding for LGBT organizations is
down in this economy. What is our funding
situation, politically?
RB: I can’t speak for other organizations but
we’re feeling good about our financial situation.
But I think that generally, we’ve seen some
pretty well-funded efforts that have had success. The effort to win marriage in New York was
not an effort that did not have a lot of money
behind it. Unfortunately, politics and political
activity tends to cost a lot of money, but I also
feel like our community is still pretty energized,
and when there is a fight, folks stand up.
WCT: Will same-sex marriage be the defining LGBT issue in these upcoming elections?
RB: I think it depends on where you live. I
Robin Brand. Photo courtesy of the Victory
Fund
think that people in North Carolina and Alabama,
when safe schools bills were passed, those were
huge victories. I think that the marriage issue
probably gets the most national attention but,
state by state, I think there are a lot of states
that have goals that are much closer to home in
terms of what they’re striving to accomplish.
WCT: It seems like we have more prominent
Republicans coming out for LGBT rights and,
7
at the same time, more moving further away
from LGBT rights. What role are Republicans
going to play in these legislative battles
down the road?
RB: That’s a great question. I personally think
that bringing more Republicans into the fold
around gay and lesbian issues is sort of our
greatest area for growth. I think that many of us
forget that, and New York really helped highlight
it, that many on the state level, and frankly with
the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” We would
not have won these battles without Republicans
supporting them as well.
WCT: Can you envision a time when it will
be no longer acceptable to run as an anti-gay
candidate?
RB: Well, let’s hope so. I think in many places
in the country that is the case. There are also
places in the country where anti-gay rhetoric
still does work and can motivate the types of
voters that that person is trying to win over. But
yeah, hopefully it’s not too long before DOMA is
repealed and we have federal recognition. Then,
it’s kind of a done deal and, sadly, our opposition will have to find new wedge issues to cling
onto.
For more information on the Victory Fund
reception Thursday, Sept. 8, check out http://
www.victoryfund.org/get_involved/events.
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8
Elmhurst College
first to poll
LGBT applicants
BY KATE SOSIN
It may come as a surprise to many that not even
the most progressive colleges ask applicants
about their sexual orientation. But all of that
could change thanks to a decision by Elmhurst
College admissions to become the first.
The Illinois liberal arts school is directly asking applicants if they are LGBT, making them the
first college the country to do so.
“Would you consider yourself a member of the
LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community?” the question asks.
“It’s part of our diversity goals,” said Gary
Rold, dean of admissions at Elmhurst. “It very
much sits with the philosophy of the college.”
The new LGBT questions, lumped into an
“optional” section that includes other identitybased questions on the application, could also
make many queer students eligible for new
scholarships.
According to Rold, the college has a strong
scholarship program already, but LGBT students
will now be eligible for the school’s Enrichment
Scholarship. That scholarship, offered to minority students, slashes the tuition price tag by a
third.
Rold said the decision was made early in the
year when counselors decided that LGBT applicants should be offered LGBT resources in the
same way that other minority applicants are.
“We said, ‘we don’t know who those students
are,’” said Rold. “It seemed like the logical thing
to do.”
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
Rold said the school looked at other LGBTfriendly schools for guidance but found that
none offered such a question on the application.
Elmhurst students have the equivalent of a
gay straight alliance on campus called S.A.G.E.
(Straights and Gays for Equality), which meets
weekly and organizes regular campus programs.
In addition, the school staff, administrators and
faculty offer “SAFE Zone” trainings on LGBT issues to campus community members.
LGBT applicants to Elmhurst will now have access to those resources early on.
So far, Rold said, his office has only received
positive feedback on the move. The administration has also been in support, he said.
“Elmhurst admissions is not operating in a
vacuum here,” he said.
Reactions in the wider LGBT community to
the new application question have been hesitant but mostly positive. Some have remarked
that the new questions might single out LGBT
students for discrimination, while others worried aloud that students who were out as LGBT
to family would have an edge over students who
didn’t feel as comfortable.
Still, many have hailed the move as landmark,
and it has attracted national attention in the
mainstream and gay media.
“We applaud the steps Elmhurst College has
taken at the university level to signal their acceptance and support of LGBT people and the
inclusion of LGBT people within their social justice mission,” the Illinois Safe Schools Alliance
said in a statement. “We further hope that the
Elmhurst College. Photo courtesy of Sara Ramseth
addition of this optional demographic question
is symbolic of more deeply transformative work
at the college such as including LGBT topics in
curricula.”
The college, affiliated with the United Church
of Christ, boasts of a progressive history on its
website. In October, Elmhurst will host a panel
discussion about LGBT people and Christian life
as part of an ongoing program to bring LGBT
leaders to campus.
“Of course, we recognize that this question
may signal to applicants that Elmhurst is ‘walking the walk’ of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons,” said Elmhurst
President S. Alan Ray in a statement. “This is a
source of pride for us. It is entirely consistent
with our mission and vision to prepare students
to “understand and respect the diversity of the
world’s cultures and peoples.”
More information on LGBT-friendly colleges
and universities is currently available through
the Center on Halsted. The Center will be hosting a college fair this year for the first time Sept.
24. More information is available at http://
www.centeronhalsted.org/coh/calendar/newevents-details.cfm?ID=1802.
Gay Softball World Series opens
Images from the Gay Softball World Series opening ceremonies at Navy Pier, August 29. Photos
by Anthony Meade. See more online at www.windycitymediagroup.com/series. Turn to page 34
to read Ross Forman’s story on the event.
Garden of Eve in 2010. Photo by Kat Fitzgerald
‘Garden of Eve’ Sept. 16 StreetWise’s
“Garden of Eve”—an annual gala benefiting
‘A Hand Up’
the Lesbian Community Care Project at Howard
Brown Health Center—will take place Friday, gala Sept. 15
Sept. 16, 8-11 p.m., at Carnivale, 702 W. Fulton St.
The Jeannie Tanner Quartet, Katie Todd, Diva
Kai, Christina Kent, Daniela Sloan and Eileen
Censotti will entertain, with DJ Gloria Alers
and DJ Teri Bristol spinning dance music. The
event also features a raffle, a silent auction,
light hors d’oeuvres and drinks.
Tickets purchased before Aug. 31 start
at $100; see http://www.lccp.org/events.
php?ID=228.
StreetWise—which aims to assist Chicago
area men and women,who are facing homelessness to achieve personal stability—will
hold its “A Hand Up” fundraising gala Thursday, Sept. 15, 5:30-10:30 p.m., at the Union
League Club, 65 W. Jackson.
Guests will be served dinner and singer Charlene Brooks will provide the evening’s entertainment. Entrepreneur, technology venture
capitalist and philanthropist J.B. Pritzker will
be the keynote speaker; and the honorees are
Bruce Crane, Jerry Roper and James W. Mabie.
Individuals tickets are $150, and a table of
10 is $1,500.
See
http://www.streetwise.org/events/
streetwise-gala-2011.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Lakeview fire destroys
home of Grab publisher
Aug. 31, 2011
9
Congratulations
on your
CIVIL
UNION
The Aug. 27 Lakeview fire. Photo courtesy of Bob Zuley
An Aug. 27 fire in Lakeview reportedly destroyed the office of Grab magazine.
The blaze took place in the afternoon at an
apartment building in the 800 block of West
Cornelia Avenue, according to the Chicago SunTimes. The fire reportedly spread to an adjacent
building.
More than 100 firefighters were at the scene,
the Chicago Tribune reported. No residents were
injured but one firefighter was reportedly taken
to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center after suffering a minor injury.
Windy City Times has learned that the home
of Stacy Bridges, a publisher of the local LGBT
publication Grab magazine, was reportedly destroyed. Bridges operated Grab out of his home.
However, ChicagoPride.com reported that Bridges was able to save his computer from the 3-11
fire, and that the publication was expected to be
out on time.
Legacy Project event to reveal ‘12 honorees
In recognition of GLBT History Month, the
board of The Legacy Project has announced plans
for a celebratory kick-off gala luncheon to initiate the one-year campaign to bring THE LEGACY
WALK to Halsted Street.
“LEGACY WALK: Bringing GLBT History Home”
will take place in the Empire Room of the Palmer
House Hilton, 17 E. Monroe, Tuesday, Oct. 25, 121:30 p.m. A VIP reception that previews the organization’s 42-piece display/tribute to the 2012
THE LEGACY WALK honorees will precede the luncheon. Nominees include social justice pioneer
Jane Addams; Bayard Rustin, Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr.’s speechwriter; Mexican artist Frida Kahlo; and British mathematician Alan Turing.
A special video presentation and an address
by keynote speaker Cleve Jones, creator of the
NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, will be the
main features of the luncheon.
“It is extremely humbling to have Cleve come
to Chicago to talk about The Legacy Walk,” said
Victor Salvo, The Legacy Project’s creator and executive director. “As the man behind the NAMES
Project Quilt, Cleve will share his unique perspectives on the power of a personal vision, the
challenges of bringing to life something destined
to change the way GLBT people are perceived
and the unique role Chicago will be playing in
advancing the national debate about GLBT contributions to history. He has been a remarkable
source of inspiration for me.”
THE LEGACY WALK will be dedicated Oct. 11,
2012—“National Coming-Out Day.” Located in
Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood, it will feature
36 bronze memorial plaques affixed to the “Rainbow Pylons” that designate Chicago’s Boystown
as the nexus of the local GLBT community.
Tickets for the luncheon can be purchased for
a tax-deductible contribution of $125. VIP tick-
ets for $250 will also include a private reception
with Jones and a preview of the exhibit. Tickets are available on-line at http://www.legacyprojectchicago.org/Luncheon_Tickets.html. For
more information, contact Victor Salvo at 312608-1198 or victorsalvo@legacyprojectchicago.
org.
Rendering of how a rainbow pylon on Halsted Street will look. Image provided by Victor
Salvo
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Exercise your new rights by protecting
your property. Update your deed and title
insurance policy to ensure you are receiving
the full benefits of your property ownership.
847-384-2600
[email protected]
10
Quigley provides
ENDA briefing
BY ERICA DEMAREST
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) partnered
with OfficeMax and Chicago law firm Jenner &
Block to present an Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) briefing Aug. 25.
First introduced in 1974, ENDA would make
it illegal to discriminate on the basis of sexual
orientation or gender identity. Despite decades
of activist efforts, the bill has never been signed
into law, and there are no federal employment
protections for the LGBT community. While Illinois does protect its LGBT citizens, it is currently legal to discriminate against sexual orientation in 29 states and gender identity in 35,
according to the HRC website.
Aug. 31, 2011
man Rights Act, which has provided LGBT discrimination protection since 2005. He cited activist support and a Democratic-led legislature
as major boons, and he suggested that having
legislators vote on earlier failed iterations of the
bill actually helped it succeed later.
“It was good for people to vote on it because
then there were legislators who saw that God
didn’t come down and kill their children, and it
wasn’t a situation where their constituents were
out to get them,” Claps said. “And it made them
more comfortable with the idea of just voting on
it.” Similar failed ENDA trials in Congress could
pave the way for success.
Some Illinois residents might think ENDA
wouldn’t affect them since the Illinois Human
He continued, “With a national law comes national awareness, national enforcement and national acceptance. The pattern that we’ve seen
with discrimination laws in general is that once
it goes national, it’s not something that people
can ignore quite as easily anymore.”
Weeks said that 75 percent of Fortune 500
companies already offer LGBT discrimination
protections, and he suggested that Congress use
the business world as a model.
“It really cuts those who argue against [ENDA
and other progressive] measures that so many
people in the Fortune 500 world do this,” Quigley said. “It’s just a matter of, ‘Okay, government
is behind the times, right?’ Especially for folks
who are so pro-business. They say, ‘Wow, how do
major universities and major law firms do this?’
It really helps.”
Brooks, who was instrumental in developing
OfficeMax’s domestic partner benefits policy,
said LGBT protections are smart financially. She
stressed that progressive companies attract and
maintain talented employees.
“In the corporate world,” she said, “we’ve got
to do business. We’ve got to make money. To
be able to sit there and say that you’re going
to discriminate in any way and prevent an individual from coming to work and being who they
are—it just doesn’t make good business sense.”
Promoting LGBT rights as a smart economic
choice could help fast-track progressive policies.
“I wish we were a country where we didn’t have
to have acts passed for people to be treated
equally,” Brooks said. “But I do think Congress
doesn’t get it. Corporations get it.”
House counsel at
Lambda luncheon
BY ERICA DEMAREST
A group of attendees at the ENDA briefing. Congressman Quigley is at the far left. Photo by Erica
Demarest
“You can’t consider yourself the greatest democracy in the world when discrimination is
okay,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D) of Illinois’s 5th District. “I don’t want to live in a
country where it’s okay to discriminate in the
majority of states.”
Quigley opened the evening’s panel before
leaving to make a prior engagement. Other panelists included Bill Weeks, HRC political chair
for Illinois; Rocco Claps, director of the Dept. of
Human Relations in Illinois; Jay Schleppenbach,
litigation associate at Jenner & Block; and Carolynn Brooks, chief diversity officer at OfficeMax.
Claps detailed the history of the Illinois Hu-
Rights Act already protects the state’s queer
community, Schleppenbach said. But the Illinois
law doesn’t cover in-state federal employees,
out-of-state travel or lawsuit rights.
Schleppenbach said the current Illinois statues rarely allow for cases to be presented in
court (they are instead brought to the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission) and caps
damages at $50,000. That would change with
ENDA.
“Just as people today are able to sue for race
discrimination or gender discrimination or sexual harassment, the doors to the federal court
house would be open to them,” Schleppenbach
said.
Heather Sawyer, Democratic counsel for the
House Judiciary Committee, spoke Aug. 26 at
a luncheon that the Lambda Legal Defense and
Education Fund and the law firm Mayer Brown
hosted. The former Lambda Legal senior attorney shared stories from her time on the Hill
and talked about the future of LGBT-related
legislation.
Despite nursing a painful injury, Sawyer was
all smiles at the event. She eagerly greeted
former colleagues and Lambda Legal donors,
while a group of about 25 guests enjoyed a
complimentary lunch at Mayer Brown’s highrise Loop office building at 71 S. Wacker Drive.
Lambda Legal Midwest Regional Director
Jim Bennett introduced Sawyer, jokingly calling her “the most popular lesbian that has
ever come out of Chicago.” He then presented
Sawyer with a year’s worth of Lambda Legal
T-shirts—one for each event the nonprofit
hosted.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Whoopi Goldberg
at Chicago House
event Nov. 4
On Friday, Nov. 4, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.,
HIV/AIDS agency Chicago House will host
its 3rd Annual Speaker Series Luncheon
at the Palmer House Hotel, 17 E. Monroe.
Award-winning actress and The View moderator Whoopi Goldberg will serve as keynote speaker alongside Chicago House CEO
Stan Sloan.
The afternoon, which is slated to have
more than 900 attendees, will kick off with
a VIP reception, followed by the presentation and Q&A with Goldberg.
Past speakers have included President
Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State
Madeleine Albright.
Tickets are $150, $300 and $500. For
more information, contact Sharla Nolte at
773-248-5200, ext. 303, or visit http://
www.chicagohouse.org.
Whoopi
Goldberg
(right).
Photo by
Jerry Nunn
In her capacity as House counsel, Sawyer
oversees the Judiciary Committee’s efforts
to challenge the Defense of Marriage Act’s
(DOMA’s) constitutionality. She also acts as
lead counsel for U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler’s Respect for Marriage Act, the bill to repeal DOMA.
While Sawyer doesn’t think DOMA will be
overturned under the current Congress, she
remains optimistic. “The way that people talk
about gay families has so changed over the
years that it has made the conversation one
that it is clearly a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if,’”
she said. “I think for a long time there was a
question of: Will this ever happen? Now it’s a
question of: When?”
Sawyer also works to garner congressional
support for ENDA (the Employment Non-Discrimination Act) legislation. Citing a poll that
says 89 percent of U.S. residents support the
bill, Sawyer said it would undoubtedly pass
under a different Congress.
Since joining the House Judiciary Committee
in 2007, Sawyer acted as lead counsel on significant civil-rights legislation, including the
2008 ADA Amendments Act and the 2009 Lilly
Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
&
are proud to partner with
Chicago 2011,
the Gay Softball
World Series in Chicago.
See updated daily coverage at:
http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/series
During the World Series
Aug. 29-Sept. 4
From left: Gail Morse, Heather Sawyer and Brandon Neese talk at the Lambda Legal event.
Photo by Erica Demarest
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
11
‘Lovefest’ at
Jackson Park
The Chicago Gay Black Men’s Caucus (CBGMC)
hosted its 7th Annual Lovefest Celebration at
Jackson Park Aug. 28.
The free event featured food, live performances from local talent, vendors and a mini-ball.
One of the main highlights of the event was the
health village, which was a sectioned off area
where fest patrons could get tested for HIV/
AIDS, other STIs and meet with health professionals.
CBGMC member and Lovefest event planner
David Dodd believes that the fest was a great
way to entertain, bring the community together
while keeping them informed and updated about
their health.
“The purpose behind Lovefest was to bring together African American gay and bisexual men
together for an event that draws awareness and
accountability for one’s health. We really wanted to get people tested, connect them with the
professionals and treatment they need,” said
Dodd.
For more on CBGMC, email [email protected] or visit http://www.chiblackgaucaucus.org. Photos and text by Terrence Chappell
ALMA’s picnic
The Association of Latino Men for Action
(ALMA) gathered once again Aug. 28 for a picnic
at Hollywood Beach under the trees.
This annual event sponsored by Circuit Nightclub supplied the buffet—including hot dogs
and beef sandwiches—before they played volleyball and tug-of-war under the sun. The local edition of the Centers for Disease Control
dropped in, offering rapid testing and health
surveys.
ALMA welcomes everyone regardless of age,
ethnicity or demographic and provides a support
system to worthy recipients with a scholarship
every year. The social group has been empowering Latin men in the LGBT community for years
with leadership opportunities cultural programming. Before the end of the year, the organization plans to hire a fulltime representative for
the organization, form a summit about immigration and collect for a Christmas toy drive. For
information, visit http://www.almachicago.org.
Text and photos by Jerry Nunn; see more photos
at http://www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com
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Partial proceeds benefit the Grant Park Conservancy
12
Hall of Fame’s future
hangs in the balance
Aug. 31, 2011
BY KATE SOSIN
The question is as old as the Chicago Gay and
Lesbian Hall of Fame (GLHF) itself, but never has
it been asked with such gravity: Should the City
of Chicago keep its ties to the Hall of Fame it
started, or is it time for two to split?
Long celebrated as the nation’s only government-run LGBT hall of fame, GLHF has honored
local LGBT heroes annually, establishing itself as
a symbol for many of the city’s commitment to
its gay residents.
However, city budget cuts stripped the organization of financial support in July, leading some
to question if the GLHF should terminate its
connection to the Chicago Commission on Human Relations’ Advisory Council on LGBT Issues.
The council, which could dissolve its GLHF
committee by majority vote, debated the issue
at its meeting Aug. 17. Failing to come to an
immediate decision, members tabled the conversation until their next meeting on Sept. 21.
“I don’t know what the sense of urgency is,”
said Israel Wright, an organizer of GLHF. “I want
to get through this year. … To make a liberation
right at this moment, I don’t know what we’re
ready to do that.”
Wright and others were sent scrambling to
raise thousands for the GLHF induction ceremony on Nov. 9 in the wake of news that funds and
staff support had been pulled.
Since, many have wondered aloud if the city
is reaping undue credit while LGBT community
members do all the heavy lifting.
“The city benefits from it, but they don’t put a
dime into it,” Rick Garcia, a veteran activist and
GLHF inductee, told Windy City Times in July.
Garcia said that even before the July announcement, he felt that the city got more out of its
association with the GLHF than it put into the
relationship.
However, William Kelley, who sits on the Advisory Council, said GLHF’s connection with the
city is important.
“It’s prestigious to say we are a municipally
sponsored Hall of Fame,” he said. “The city, in
the end, was contributing substantial amounts.”
Kelley hopes that if the GLHF keeps its municipal connection, money might be available for
the organization once the economy improves.
The GLHF has historically funded much of its
work through private donations and two annual
fundraisers. Anticipating hard economic times
and possible cuts, GLHF established a 501(c)(3),
Friends of the Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame for
fundraising purposes in 2009.
If the GLHF splits with the council, the new
organization will likely take on all of that fundraising.
Carol Ronen tribute
Sept. 25
State Sen. Heather Steans and Chicago Ald.
Harry Osterman are co-hosting “Wine, Woman
and Song”—a tribute to Democratic Committeewoman Carol Ronen—Sunday, Sept. 25, at
Broadway Cellars, 5900 N. Broadway, 5-7:30
p.m.
The folk-rock group “Wells-next-the-Sea”
will entertain.
Tickets are $100 each; see https://events.
r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?ll
r=nyxpabcab&oeidk=a07e4mvw1kw577a395f&
oseq=a0239hf2we87jm.
‘Dining Out for
Equality’ Sept. 27
The third annual Dining Out for Equality will
take place on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
Kit Duffy. Photo by Helen Adamopoulos
However, the split could also free up GLHF to
raise more money.
“There are limitations on what it can do because of its association with the city,” said Bill
Greaves, director of the LGBT Advisory Council.
Greaves said that all possibilities must be discussed and that his main concern will be what
allows the GLHF “to flourish.”
The GLHF funding was pulled along with other
city heritage events, which include the city’s
salute to LGBT veterans and its annual Pride Reception. The cuts have resulted in grumblings
from some that Mayor Emanuel is less supportive
of the LGBT community than Richard M. Daley
was.
Still, the issue may boil down to a shift in
priorities, and not necessarily a pull of support.
While social and cultural events have been cut,
Greaves confirmed he is being encouraged to
focus more on policy issues as of late. Those include anti-discrimination language in leases and
contracts and the implementation of a police
policy on treatment of transgender people.
Kit Duffy, who was Chicago’s first liaison to
the LGBT community, said that shift could be a
good thing.
“I would see the liaison position as a policy
position,” she said. “The perfect person for that
position is Bill Greaves.”
In the meantime, the city seal sits atop the
the GLHF website. Whether or not that seal will
appear on induction ceremony programs in November remains to be seen.
More departures
at Howard Brown
By Yasmin Nair
A key member of the senior leadership team
at Howard Brown Health Center (HBHC), David
Grazman, has left the organization. The departure was confirmed to Windy City Times via an
email from HBHC CEO Jamal Edwards.
Grazman’s tenure at HBHC appears to have
been brief and subject to changes in responsibilities; his change in position had not been
updated on the organization’s website even as
of last week. (His profile has been removed.)
Grazman was first hired as senior vice president and chief operating officer at HBHC. A
press release dated April 15 lauded him for his
“leadership expertise in healthcare management and clinical operations.” He had previously been the executive director of Heartland
Health Outreach, of the Heartland Alliance for
Human Needs and Human Rights.
According to his LinkedIn profile, last accessed by WCT Aug. 29, he had been the senior
director, Hworks Consulting at The Advisory
Board Company and, prior to that, vice president of strategy and consulting at CBIZ The
Leifer Group. Grazman has a Ph.D. in business
administration from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.
A few weeks after his appointment as vice
president and COO, Grazman was made senior
director of research. There appears to be some
question about his exact title and responsibilities. In his email, Edwards referred to Grazman
as the “interim” director of research; WCT has
been told by sources that he was in fact appointed to be director. Edwards, in his email to
WCT, said, “As David shared with our staff on
Friday, we mutually agreed to conclude his employment based on certain personal and professional reasons, which will remain confidential and private as a personnel matter should.
We wish David well in his future endeavors and
he has also expressed his well wishes for HBHC
and its promising future.
In an email dated Aug. 26, Grazman sent
Cocktail sold in
wake of lawsuit
BY KATE SOSIN
After months of tumult between bar owners and
its landlord, popular Halsted Strip gay bar Cocktail is changing hands.
John “Geno” Zaharakis, who has owned Cocktail since it opened 16 years ago, handed over
most of the company to an undisclosed longtime
friend this week, he confirmed. The new management will take over the bar Sept. 1.
Patrons dine out at a participating restaurant
on that date and a significant portion of the
food and drink bill will be donated to Equality
Illinois, according to an organizational press
release.
Among the places participating are D.S.
Tequila, 3352 N. Halsted; Big Jones, 5347 N.
Clark; HB Home Bistro, 3404 N. Halsted; Wilde,
3130 N. Broadway; and Monastero’s, 3935 W.
Devon. For more information, see http://www.
diningoutforequality.com.
OPALGA gala Nov. 19
The Oak Park Area Lesbian and Gay Association (OPALGA) will hold its OPAL Awards Gala
Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Nineteenth Century
Club, 178 Forest Ave.
Those interested in helping with the committee, donating silent auction items or sponsoring the event should email info@opalga.
org.
Cocktail. Photo by Tracy Baim
WINDY CITY TIMES
David
Grazman.
Facebook
photo
Karen York, interim director of employee services, an announcement to be forwarded to
HBHC employees. The text is as follows: “As we
just discussed, you have my permission to pass
this along to Jamal to distribute. To my former colleagues: I made the decision to depart
Howard Brown this past Tuesday, for a number
of personal and professional reasons. I enjoyed
getting to know all of you and thank you for
your graciousness to me over the past several
months. I wish only the very best for Howard
Brown and, especially for all of you, Howard
Brown’s amazing employees. Sincerely, David.”
WCT attempted to contact Grazman, but received no response by the time of publication.
In his email, Edwards also stated that HBHC
will be conducting “a national search for a new
leader of our research department. Our goal is
to fill this position this fall.”
Kert Hubin, senior director, human resources, has also resigned, as per an email sent to
staff on Aug. 9. Contacted for comment, Hubin
responded that “[t]he particulars of my separation from HBHC preclude me granting you an
interview.”
WCT also received news that Jessie Mott, director of grants, is no longer with HBHC. WCT
contacted Mott on Aug. 29. Mott had been
with Test Positive Action Network (TPAN) for
two years prior to joining HBHC a month ago.
When asked about the reason she left HBHC,
Mott would only say she left because she
“wanted to get back to TPAN.” She also said
that, “Howard Brown does wonderful work, and
I believe in their mission.”
Zaharakis will remain part-owner while he looks
for spaces for a new bar and builds the Cocktail
franchise, he said.
The sale comes less than a month after Cocktail
slapped its landlord, management company and
two former employees with a lawsuit over an alleged conspiracy to destroy Cocktail’s good name
and oust the bar.
“I’m stepping back to focus on the lawsuit and
take some time,” Zaharakis said. “They’ve made
me feel really unwelcome and that’s not fair.”
The suit alleges that Robert Brumbaugh conspired with David Sikora, a the bar’s former
manager and Alexander Stoykov, another former
Cocktail employee and current employee of Key
Management and Realty Inc. to put Cocktail out
of business. Brumbaugh purchased the building
that houses Cocktail at Halsted and Roscoe in
June.
Since, Zaharakis has said that three went to
extreme measures to ruin Cocktail. According to
the complaint, Sikora allegedly vandalized the
property by urinating and spitting on Cocktail
while Brumbaugh and Stoykov allegedly threatened Zaharakis and tried to destroy his business
relationships.
Brumbaugh declined to comment on the allegations or the pending sale.
On Aug. 26, Zaharakis sat his staff down and
broke the news.
The new owner, who Zaharakis said he has
worked with closely for years, will retain all current employees.
Zaharakis is expected to announce the new
management next week. However, before a new
owner can take over the property, Zaharakis has
to work out the details with his landlord. That,
he said, might pose a challenge.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
a
GAYin the
LIFE
Text and PHOTOS
BY Ross Forman
the stats
Name
Liz Pazik
Age
“Close to 50, [on] one of those
sides.”
Neighborhood
Portage Park
Relationship status
Partners with Diana Guzzo
Favorite Chicago restaurant
Mon Ami Gabi
Hobbies
Gardening, history, geography
and traveling
Favorite sport
Baseball. “One of my special
skills is being a Cubs fan.”
It’s a fact
Was part of the entertainment
segment for the Gay Games in
1994, held in New York City
and commemorating the 25th
anniversary of Stonewall. She
got to walk through the field
of Yankee Stadium and step
on home plate, a personal
highlight.
13
Actress/Business owner
Liz Pazik
Liz Pazik vividly recalls the sturdy dog doorstop that her grandparents had.
She named the dog and remembers taking it, as a 4-year-old, for countless imaginary walks—
complete with a belt around its neck as the leash.
“So today, to work with dogs, well, it’s
not a surprise to me,” said Pazik who, for
the past 15 years, has owned Lizzie’s Dog
Walkers on the city’s Northwest Side. She
has about 60 clients and about 75 dogs on
her roster, and her company specializes in
play groups.
“With dogs, it’s a great balance and unconditional love,” she said.
Pazik also is a local actress and is proud
to say she’s been able to “make a living in
this city as an actress” since 1977. Pazik
spent July and August performing in The
Adventures of Pinocchio at Chicago Shakespeare’s Courtyard Theater. Before that she
was in Milwaukee, performing Mrs. Zero in
Skylight Opera’s critically acclaimed production of The Adding Machine, one of her
favorite and most challenging roles to date.
Her acting resume also includes The Wizard of Oz, Miss Tweed in Something’s Afoot!
(Jeff Award nominee), Mother Superior in
Nunsensations, Mazeppa in Gypsy, Crazy
Aunt Harriet in The Man Who Came to Dinner (Drury Lane Oakbrook); and Mahiette in
Hunchback, The Musical (Bailiwick Repertory Theatre).
In addition, Pazik has performed as Miss Shields in A Christmas Story, Nettie in Carousel, Katisha
in The Mikado, Mrs. Zero in The Adding Machine and Mrs. Fezziwig in the national tour of Scrooge.
Pazik will be guest-hosting a part of the Pride Films & Plays event on Sept. 8 at the Center on
Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted. She will appear
in The Sound of Music at Drury Lane in Oakbrook Terrace starting Oct. 20 and running
through Jan. 8, 2012.
“Of course [acting] is fun, but it’s still a
business,” Pazik said. “In fact, both of my
jobs are vocations as opposed to occupations. They both fill my soul.”
Lizzie’s Dog Walkers features two full-time
and three part-time walkers. “We develop
relationships—not just with the dogs, but
with our clients,” Pazik said. “Working with
the dogs is spiritually fulfilling. You cannot be self-centered; you have to be totally
grounded and present [around the dogs.]
“I definitely have come full circle.”
Naturally, Pazik has a sturdy dog doorstop
at her home, courtesy of one of her clients. Photo by Michael Brosilow
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2472 N. Clark
773.281.0890
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14
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
A special series in partnership with the
AIDS Foundation of Chicago
AIDS in America: By the numbers
By John J. Accrocco
It began as a rare flu for five Americans, but by
the end of 1981 more than 100 cases of what
would become known as AIDS had been reported
in the U.S.
The AIDS crisis in America is as critical now
as it was 30 years ago. An estimated 400,000
Americans are living with AIDS (more than
34,000 diagnosed in 2009 alone) and over the
last three decades more than one million Americans have been diagnosed with the disease.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has been
studying AIDS for more than 30 years and part of
their research includes tracking individual cases
reported in all 50 states to provide accurate statistics for funding. Since the early 1980s, the
CDC had been able to monitor the patterns of
HIV infection by analyzing the number of reported cases of AIDS, since HIV reporting is still
not a federal requirement.
AIDS statistics hit a high point in 1993 when
the CDC refined guidelines for AIDS diagnoses
to include any individual with fewer than 200
T-cells. Scientists began better understanding
and correctly diagnosing AIDS through the early
to mid-1990s, which accounts for the spike in
statistics during the 1990s. The numbers began
to decline in the U.S. around 1996 when the
(HAART) anti-retroviral therapy regiment became more widely available. Due to better HIV
medications fewer patients have progressed into
AIDS, so those specific statistics no longer accurately reflected HIV trends in the U.S. These
days, AIDS-specific statistics are used to pin-
point where private and national funding is lacking and also where drug therapy has failed.
When broken down regionally, the U.S. AIDS
statistics paint a picture of where the epidemic is most severe. From 2007 CDC reports,
the Northeast AIDS rate shows a rising trend. A
quarter of all new AIDS diagnosis came from the
Northeastern region. New York State is the highest AIDS populated state in the country. New
York City also has the highest number of people
living with AIDS. Though this region’s numbers
are on a rise, neither Boston nor Philadelphia
were among the top five highest AIDS cities. Almost half of the new AIDS cases were reported
in the Black community, while the rest were split
evenly between the white and Latino communities.
“HIV/AIDS remains mostly an urban disease,”
says the CDC, as a majority of diagnoses occurred in cities with populations higher than
500,000. The Midwest remains on the decline,
reporting the least amount of AIDS cases in the
U.S. Only 11% of new cases came from the Midwest, however Chicago is still a very big hub for
the epidemic.
AIDS mortality rates in the Midwest are also
very low. This could be because of the relatively
low incidence rate of AIDS outside urban centers. Most AIDS cases are among urban populations but rural case rates are going up, too.
In rural areas AIDS is seen heavily in the Black
and gay men’s communities and more prevalent
in men than women. Midwestern AIDS rates are
split almost down the middle between Black and
white where only 11% of AIDS cases are within
the Latino population.
Regional diversity shows how AIDS flourishes
in rural, low-income areas like the South. AIDS
rates in the South are rising steadily, consequently the South has some of the highest
AIDS-related mortality rates in the U.S. AIDS in
the South has hit the Black community especially hard. In 2003, the six states considered
the “deep South” (Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana,
Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina)
reported a 35.6% rise in the number of AIDS
cases, contributing to the overall four percent
increase for the entirety of the South.
According to the CDC by 2007 the South accounted for 40% of all citizens living with AIDS,
On the CDC’s list of highest AIDS populations by
state, Florida and Texas ranked within the top
five. CDC also ranks major U.S. cities’ AIDS populations and Miami and Washington, D.C. are also
among the top five. In Washington, D.C. AIDS
has hit a crisis-level: it is estimated that three
percent of residents are living with HIV/AIDS.
The high incidence reports in the South are the
result of poor awareness and limited access to
low-cost healthcare.
As for the West, 17% of new AIDS cases were
reported there. Only a fifth of people living with
AIDS are from Western states. Los Angeles is still
the second most AIDS populated city with San
Francisco just behind it at third, making California the second most AIDS populated state.
Whites and Latinos vastly outweigh the Black
population in the West in AIDS diagnosis. The
West also includes many low AIDS reporting
states like Wyoming, which reported 114 cases
A CDC map about AIDS in America 1985-2008. See http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/topics/surveillance/resources/slides/trends/slides/trends2.pdf
in 2009.
Men who have sex with men still make up
the largest group of people with AIDS. In 2007
alone 47% of all new AIDS cases were the result
of male-to-male sexual contact (MSM). Over 30
years, more than half of all reported cases of
AIDS have been in men who have sex with men
(MSM).
In 2008, 17,940 MSM were diagnosed with
AIDS, a six percent increase from 2005. CDC officials attribute the high rates among MSM to a
number of social issues, including internalized
to overt homophobia which contributes to low
self-image issues. Low confidence and support
surrounding sexual orientation are found to
have profound impacts on sexual health decisions and safe sex practices.
Other reasons such as racism, poverty and
homelessness can also interfere with access to
healthcare. Complacency towards AIDS from the
current generation and common misconceptions
are also contributing factors to the rise in MSM
AIDS statistics, officials said. The young MSM
community is one the CDC targets annually and
nationwide with awareness campaigns to promote HIV testing and access to resources.
An even more specific U.S. group seeing a
large increase in AIDS cases are young Black
MSM. Between 2004 and 2007 young Black MSM
showed the largest increase in HIV/AIDS cases
in America, accounting for 62% of all HIV/AIDS
cases in the U.S.
Research shows that in communities where
the gay stigmas are very strong, the rates of
HIV/AIDS increase. On Aug. 15, 2011 at the
WINDY CITY TIMES
CDC National AIDS Prevention conference it was
noted that the young Black MSM HIV/AIDS numbers increased by 48%, the largest increase of all
ethnic groups.
In September, Black gay activists along with
the CDC are rolling out a new awareness campaign in five major American cities where young
Black MSM HIV/AIDS are particularly high. The
“Testing Makes Us Stronger” campaign will focus
on positive images of Black gay men. Despite
the high numbers, Dr. John Su of the CDC said,
“Young Black men are doing more to prevent
HIV/AIDS than any other group.”
Though 75% of Americans living with AIDS
are men, Black and Latino women living with
AIDS are also on the rise in the U.S. There are
more than three times as many Black women living with AIDS in the U.S. than white or Latino
women. For women of color, AIDS diagnoses are
on an increase and the primary source of transmission is unprotected heterosexual contact and
needle-based drug use.
Over the past few years, more Americans between 30 and 50 have developed AIDS, showing
a significant increase for the age group in both
males and females. In 2009 studies showed that
the highest rate of new HIV infection was among
the age group between 40-44.
The rises in AIDS in older people is also very
strong in the Black and Latino communities.
Twenty-nine percent of all people living with
AIDS are over the age of 50. Many things can
account for AIDS in the older population, one
is that many of the signs and symptoms of AIDS
mimic natural aging and can be overlooked. The
older generation is also not as informed as the
younger ones and does not consider themselves
to be at as great of a risk. Unprotected sex and
drug use are still the two leading transmission
routes.
Though the rate of increase of reported AIDS
cases is declining, this does not accurately reflect HIV trends overall, since HIV itself is not
reported and tracked. In fact, more people are
living with HIV in the U.S. than ever before.
With better medications and more accessible
healthcare, it is easier to maintain HIV, but
without crucial HIV/AIDS funding and awareness
the rates of infection will continue to rise. In a
statement from the AIDS prevention conference
in Atlanta in August, the CDC’s Dr. Jonathan
Mermin said, “We cannot allow the health of a
generation to be lost to a preventable disease.”
See maps about HIV/AIDS in America at:
http://aidsvu.org/map.
in Windy City Times
runs through December,
and past articles are
available on www.
windycitymediagroup.
com under the
AIDS button.
Aug. 31, 2011
See AIDS Vu maps like these two, about HIV/AIDS in America at: http://aidsvu.org/map.
15
Aug. 31, 2011
16
WINDY CITY TIMES
A day in the life of HIV in America
By Ross Forman
Rick Guasco came across a website last year
called, A Day in the Life of Africa, an AIDSawareness campaign sponsored by the camera
manufacturer Olympus.
He immediately thought, What about AIDS in
America?
“HIV is considered ‘manageable’ these days,
but it’s still a serious problem,” said Guasco,
47, who lives in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood. “I wanted to do something that would
raise awareness without scaring people. HIV has
become an everyday fact of life. How you choose
to live with that fact is up to you. A photo project seemed like the perfect way to convey that
message and give people the opportunity to
express themselves. The more I thought about
it, I realized this project would also help destigmatize HIV.”
And so was born A Day with HIV in America,
which made its debut in 2010, and is set for
round two on Sept. 21.
“Having people take pictures on the same day
is a way of creating a sense of solidarity among
everyone who takes part, whether they are
positive or negative,” said Guasco, who works
for Test Positive Aware Network (TPAN) and is
spearheading the project. “I chose Sept. 21 because it’s near the autumnal equinox and the
start of fall. It signals a time of change.
“I came up with this idea less than two months
before it was to occur last year, so TPAN had
no budget for it. Promoting A Day with HIV in
America was done using social media—namely,
Facebook and Twitter—and word of mouth. A
friend who is a film editor in Los Angeles also
put together a promotional video that was posted to YouTube. As [last] Sept. 21 approached,
we started getting the attention of a few gay
bloggers and ultimately more than 100 people
sent in pictures.
“It was amazing, the diversity of people who
took part,” he said. Gay photographer Tom Bianchi submitted a photo, as did Chuck Panozzo,
co-founder of the band Styx, who is positive.
Many other people from all over the country and
from all walks of life also participated, Guasco
said.
Many of the 2010 photos were featured in the
November/December issue of Positively Aware—
and the plan is the same for this year. Photos
also will be posted online, at http://www.adaywithhivinamerica.com
A selection of 2011 photos also will be on display at the Positively Aware booth at the U.S.
Conference on AIDS, set for Nov. 10-13 in Chicago.
Guasco said everyone who e-mails a picture
to TPAN, taken by either a digital camera or a
smartphone, and includes a caption and a consent form, will have their picture posted on the
A Day with HIV in America website.
“It’s important to include everyone [negative
and positive people alike] in A Day with HIV in
America because tearing down the barriers that
divide us—straight, gay, white, minority, positive, negative—is essential to ending the stigma
of HIV,” Guasco said. “Most of the people who
submitted photos for A Day with HIV in America
last year disclosed their status. However, there
was one guy who took a picture of himself riding a bus in midtown Manhattan who refrained
from revealing his own. He wanted to make the
point that you can’t tell someone’s HIV status
just by looking at them. And if you think about
it, whether you’re positive or negative, we all
Darryl Takushi in 2010. Courtesy TPAN
Jennifer Jako and daughter Bianca in 2010. Courtesy TPAN
Aaron DeWinter Williams. Photo by John Gress
Richard Cordova. Photo by John Gress
live [with] HIV.”
Including Guasco, who is a journalism graduate from Columbia College. Guasco, who is openly
gay, has been HIV-positive since at least 1992,
when he was diagnosed with Kaposi’s sarcoma,
a rare form of skin cancer which at the time was
listed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an, ‘end-stage AIDS-defining illness.’
“When I got my HIV test result, the extent of
my counseling was that I was given three publications, all of which were produced by TPAN—
Positively Aware, the HIV Services Directory, and
a TPAN membership newsletter,” Guasco said. “I
learned where to get the treatment that saved
my life and how to take care of myself. It was
then that I realized that information was the
key to survival with HIV.”
Guasco is the art director of Positively Aware,
the HIV treatment magazine published by TPAN.
Although he has been at the magazine since
February 2010, Guasco first worked at the publication from 1995-’97 before leaving to briefly
serve as art director of The Advocate in Los Angeles. In the intervening years, while working
for other gay publications, he maintained ties
to TPAN, designing the agency’s annual HIV Services Directory until 2010.
“Having worked as a writer and a designer, I
understood the importance of presenting information in a way that readers would find useful.
That’s what led me to become art director of
Positively Aware. I wanted to present this useful, potentially life-saving information in an approachable manner. That’s why I re-designed the
magazine each time I became art director.”
For this year’s project, Chicago photographer
John Gress shot a promotional video, featuring a
mix of people—gay, straight, positive and negative—each talking about what it means to live
with HIV.
Richard Cordova, who also works at TPAN and
is HIV-positive, participated in the promotional
video shoot, “and talks candidly about his life
and the issues that led him to become HIV-positive,” Guasco said. “[Cordova] has turned his
life around in the face of HIV. You can’t help but
be impressed by his honesty and enthusiasm for
life.”
Chicagoan Aaron DeWinter, who also is HIVpositive, is featured in the video as well. “Aaron’s
always been a vibrant, determined personality,”
Guasco said. “You can sense that he doesn’t step
down from a challenge, and his inner strength
comes across in the video.”
Also in the video is Evany Turk, an AfricanAmerican woman from the South Side who is
HIV-positive. “She took part in last year’s A Day
with HIV in America along with her two sons, so
I’m thrilled she offered to appear in the video,”
Guasco said. “Evany recounts how her children
have been a constant source of love and assurance since she disclosed her status to them.”
Photos from the 2010 project can still be
viewed at http://www.adaywithhivinamerica.
com
“Looking at last year’s photos, one thing you
might not realize right away is the number of
pictures of serodiscordant couples, in which one
person is HIV-positive and the other is negative,” Guasco said. “There are pictures of gay
couples as well as heterosexual couples. You
can’t tell which is the positive or negative person. When you look at their pictures, all you can
see is the love between two people.
“In the early days of the AIDS epidemic, the
face of AIDS was arguably that of a gaunt, gay
man. Today, there is no one, single ‘face of
WINDY CITY TIMES
AIDS.’ If you go to the website and look at last
year’s photos, you’ll see that this project has cut
across every line—gay, straight; white, Black,
Hispanic; young, old; individuals, couples, families; positive and negative. HIV has affected the
lives of so many people. And they have should
inspire all of us in how to live—regardless of our
status.”
Guasco proudly says the project has seemingly
taken on a life of its own.
“I’m encouraged that TPAN and Positively
Aware have decided to make it an annual event,”
he said. “Beyond the website, I’d love to stage
a public exhibition of the photos. Eventually, it
would be nice to publish a book of some of the
most compelling and inspiring images. Whatever
form it takes, I want A Day with HIV in America
to de-stigmatize HIV.
“The biggest surprise [with this project] has
been the story behind each photo. These images
capture a moment in time, but they say so much
about the lives of these people. There’s a picture
of a mother who is HIV-positive, playing with
her daughter who is negative. You can sense the
joy captured in that image. Another picture is
of a young guy in bed as he is about to start
the day; his caption simply reads, ‘I still wake
up with a smile.’ You can’t help but smile back
at his picture. These snapshots convey a sense
of hope, determination, dignity, openness, and
optimism that, candidly, go beyond what I had
expected.”
About 20 Chicagoans participated in the project last year, from the Far South Side to Boystown, to an HIV-positive man who posed with
his daughter while they were grocery shopping.
“Everyone is invited to take a photo on Sept. 21
and e-mail it, but we’ll need your permission to
use your picture,” Guasco said. “To take part in
A Day with HIV in America, go to http://www.
ADaywithHIVinAmerica.com and then click on
the ‘Submitting your photo’ link to download a
PDF of the consent form.
“We need the permission of everyone who appears in a photo.”
The signed consent form can be faxed, emailed or returned via U.S. Postal Service. Photos should be emailed to: artdirector@tpan.
com.
Photos should be taken on Sept. 21; the deadline for submission is Sept. 26.
Include your name and a caption, giving the
time of day you took the picture, Guasco said.
“Although you don’t have to disclose your status, mention why you decided to take part in A
Day with HIV in America,” he said.
BTAN
reception
Sept. 1
The Black Treatment Advocates Network (BTAN)-Chicago will hold a
reception regarding the local fight
against HIV Thursday, Sept. 1, 6-8
p.m., at the Inner Circle Services
Center, 2150 S. Canalport Ave.
Attendees will interact, exchange
ideas and network with people who
are “on the front line of the HIV fight
in Chicago,” according to a press release.
There is free parking, along with
hors d’oeuvres and wine. Email [email protected] or call 877757-AIDS.
Aug. 31, 2011
17
Preparing for PrEP
By Bob Roehr Community HIV prevention leaders are trying to
figure out what role, if any, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) might play in helping to rein in
the number of new HIV infections that occur
each year. Those questions and passions were
on display at a lively and free-flowing forum at
the 2011 National HIV Prevention Conference in
Atlanta.
PrEP uses antiretroviral drugs to protect from
initial HIV infection. IPrEx, the first study proving the concept, was published last November.
It showed that high risk gay and bisexual men
who took the combination therapy Truvada as
directed were 91 percent less likely to become
infected with HIV compared with those who received a placebo. A subsequent study in heterosexuals also showed protection.
Further studies are needed to move beyond
this proof of concept and figure out how PrEP
might work in the real world—what at-risk
groups might benefit the most from this expensive form of prevention and how programs might
be structured to achieve the best results.
Grant Colfax said the situation requires a paradigm shift in thinking similar to that took place
a decade ago prior to the large-scale rollout of
treatment in sub-Saharan Africa.
“Building new systems of delivery in isolation
just to provide PrEP is not a sustainable option.
Moving forward the question is, where are the
sites where this is most likely to be delivered? Is
it STD clinics, HMOs, primary care settings? How
do we integrate it into a medical structure that
is sustainable over time,” asked the head of HIV
prevention at the San Francisco Department of
Public Health.
“One of the fears I have is that PrEP will be
looked as this thing that is being put upon
given populations rather than something that
the populations themselves are asking for,” said
David Evans with Project Inform. “That is particularly sensitive in some communities,” he said
alluding to the legacy of suspicion that remains
within the African American community from
the Tuskegee syphilis study.
“We know what [PrEP] looked like in the IPrEx
study but we don’t know what it is going to look
like in the real world.” Evans encouraged people
to start having these discussions with the community and not “squander opportunities” to help
shape the definition of what PrEP is.
Barriers
The NIH’s Carl Dieffenbach fears “that PrEP,
even in San Francisco, will not reach the people
who will truly benefit from it” because people
at highest risk for infection often do not get
tested.
Testing is key to the use of PrEP because the
drugs used probably are not sufficiently potent
to completely suppress the viral load of someone
already infected, and resistance will develop.
Thus, testing negative is a prerequisite for using
PrEP; those who test positive will be directed
into care. But testing also is a barrier to using PrEP.
Dieffenbach asked, “Is it going to be so medicalized that it will end up being like a prescription
where people just can’t or won’t fill it? We need
to find a way of normalizing this, as radical as
that sounds.”
A participant from Washington, D.C., said physicians’ views might be another barrier. “My doctor has told patients that he would not consider
Carl Dieffenbach.
Photo by Bob Roehr
prescribing PrEP to anyone other than a person
who was in a serodiscordant relationship. I
guess because of fears of not using it properly.”
“My big fear is that we are going to see rates
of HIV go up because people are going to think
this is the magic pill,” said a man from New
York’s GMHC. That could be the result of poor
adherence to the drug and/or an increase in
risky behavior.
Perhaps the most commonly expressed theme
was that inequitable access to PrEP might further worsen existing health disparities. Blacks
are 13 percent of the U.S. population but about
half of those infected with HIV. Others supported the concern of a women from
Miami who argued, how can one justify spending
money on PrEP when more than 9,000 people
are on ADAP waiting lists for drugs to treat their
existing infection.
Groundswell
“My greatest hope is that [PrEP] ignites the
HIV community on fire. It is one of the most
radical, new HIV prevention technologies and
approaches that has come along in 30 years,”
said Carey Johnson with the Fenway Institute in
Boston. “My fear is that this is not happening,
and I really wish I knew why.”
“We’ve had a handful of people ask about PrEP;
those who did were likely to have a seropositive
partner or were in the IPrEx study,” said Steve
Gibson with Magnet, the San Francisco prevention effort aimed at gay men. “People are waiting to see what’s next. How it can be integrated
into their lives.”
“I think it is odd we are lamenting that no
one comes to our clinics asking for PrEP. Well,
we haven’t told them about it, so why are we
surprised?” said New York City physician Wafaa
El-Sadr. “It is incumbent upon us to generate
the interest. We do it for other interventions.” “I know of five to 10 people on PrEP locally,
all of whom are discordant couples, all of them
have insurance,” said Joanne Stekler with the
University of Washington. She sees cost as the
major inhibitor on interest. “If you took away
the costs issue, and maybe the adherence issue
to a little degree, everyone would want to be on
PrEP.”
Call to Action
Leading HIV prevention organizations have issued a “call to action” for the Department of
Health and Human Services to develop a comprehensive plan of PrEP demonstration projects
that identify how and where the intervention
might best be used.
Initial groups behind the effort are the AIDS
Foundation of Chicago, AIDS United, amfAR:
the Foundation for AIDS Research, AVAC: Global
Advocacy for HIV Prevention, the Black AIDS
Institute, the International Rectal Microbicide
Advocates, National Alliance of State & Territorial AIDS Directors, the National Minority AIDS
Council, Project Inform, and the San Francisco
AIDS Foundation.
The recommendations focused on public
health administration of PrEP programs and
largely avoided the role that health insurance
and private purchase of PrEP might play.
Their statement and links to the full recommendations is available at
http://www.projectinform.org/news/leaderspress-feds-for-promising-hiv-prevention-tool/
18
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WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
INDICATION: REYATAZ ® (atazanavir sulfate) is a
prescription medicine used in combination with other
medicines to treat people 6 years of age and older who
are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
REYATAZ has been studied in a 48-week trial in patients
who have taken anti-HIV medicines and a 96-week trial
in patients who have never taken anti-HIV medicines.
REYATAZ does not cure HIV or lower your chance
of passing HIV to others. People taking REYATAZ may
still get opportunistic infections or other conditions that
happen with HIV infection.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION:
Do not take REYATAZ if you are allergic to
REYATAZ or to any of its ingredients.
Do not take REYATAZ if you are taking the
following medicines due to potential for serious,
life-threatening side effects or death: Versed®
(midazolam) when taken by mouth, Halcion® (triazolam),
ergot medicines (dihydroergotamine, ergonovine,
ergotamine, and methylergonovine such as Cafergot®,
Migranal®, D.H.E. 45®, ergotrate maleate, Methergine®,
and others), Propulsid® (cisapride), or Orap® (pimozide).
Do not take REYATAZ with the following medicines
due to potential for serious side effects:
Camptosar® (irinotecan), Crixivan® (indinavir), Mevacor®
(lovastatin), Zocor® (simvastatin), Uroxatral® (alfuzosin),
or Revatio® (sildenafil).
Do not take REYATAZ with the following medicines
as they may lower the amount of REYATAZ in your
blood, which may lead to increased HIV viral load and
resistance to REYATAZ or other anti-HIV medicines:
rifampin (also known as Rimactane ® , Rifadin ® , Rifater ® ,
or Rifamate®), St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum)containing products, or Viramune® (nevirapine).
Serevent Diskus ® (salmeterol) and Advair ® (salmeterol
with fluticasone) are not recommended with REYATAZ.
Do not take Vfend ® (voriconazole) if you are taking
REYATAZ and Norvir® (ritonavir).
The above lists of medicines are not complete. Taking
REYATAZ with some other medicines may require
your therapy to be monitored more closely or may
require a change in dose or dose schedule of
REYATAZ or the other medicine. Discuss with your
healthcare provider all prescription and non-prescription
medicines, vitamin and herbal supplements, or other
health preparations you are taking or plan to take.
Tell your healthcare provider if you are pregnant
or plan to become pregnant. REYATAZ use during
pregnancy has not been associated with an increase in
birth defects. Pregnant women have experienced serious
side effects when taking REYATAZ with other HIV
medicines called nucleoside analogues. After your
baby is born, tell your healthcare provider if your
baby’s skin or the white part of his/her eyes turns yellow.
You should not breast-feed if you are HIV-positive.
Also tell your healthcare provider if you have
end-stage kidney disease managed with hemodialysis
or severe liver dysfunction.
Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have any side
effects, symptoms, or conditions, including the following:
• Mild rash (redness and itching) without other symptoms
sometimes occurs in patients taking REYATAZ, most
often in the first few weeks after the medicine is
started, and usually goes away within 2 weeks with
no change in treatment.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION (cont’d):
• Severe rash may develop with other symptoms that could
be serious and potentially cause death. If you develop a
rash with any of the following symptoms, stop using
REYATAZ and call your healthcare provider right away:
— Shortness of breath
– General ill-feeling or “flu-like” symptoms
– Fever
– Muscle or joint aches
– Conjunctivitis (red or inflamed eyes, like “pink eye”)
– Blisters
– Mouth sores
– Swelling of your face
• Yellowing of the skin and/or eyes may occur due to
increases in bilirubin levels in the blood (bilirubin is made
by the liver).
• A change in the way your heart beats may occur.
You may feel dizzy or lightheaded. These could be symptoms
of a heart problem.
• Diabetes and high blood sugar may occur in patients
taking protease inhibitor medicines like REYATAZ. Some
patients may need changes in their diabetes medicine.
• If you have liver disease, including hepatitis B or C,
it may get worse when you take anti-HIV medicines like
REYATAZ.
• Kidney stones have been reported in patients taking
REYATAZ. Signs or symptoms of kidney stones include pain
in your side, blood in your urine, and pain when you urinate.
• Some patients with hemophilia have increased
bleeding problems with protease inhibitor medicines like
REYATAZ.
• Changes in body fat have been seen in some patients
taking anti-HIV medicines. The cause and long-term effects
are not known at this time.
• Immune reconstitution syndrome has been seen in
some patients with advanced HIV infection (AIDS) and
a history of opportunistic infection. Signs and symptoms
of inflammation from previous infections may occur soon
after starting anti-HIV treatment, including REYATAZ.
• Gallbladder disorders (including gallstones and
gallbladder inflammation) have been reported in patients
taking REYATAZ.
Other common side effects of REYATAZ taken with other
anti-HIV medicines include: nausea; headache; stomach
pain; vomiting; diarrhea; depression; fever; dizziness;
trouble sleeping; numbness, tingling, or burning of
hands or feet; and muscle pain.
You should take REYATAZ once daily with food
(a meal or snack). Swallow the capsules whole;
do not open the capsules. You should
take REYATAZ and your other anti-HIV
medicines exactly as instructed by your
healthcare provider.
You are encouraged to report negative
side effects of prescription drugs to the
FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or
call 1-800-FDA-1088.
REYATAZ is one of several treatment
options your doctor may consider.
Please see Important Patient
Information about REYATAZ
on the adjacent pages.
REYATAZ is a registered trademark of
Bristol-Myers Squibb. All other trademarks
are the property of their respective owners
and not of Bristol-Myers Squibb.
© 2011 Bristol-Myers Squibb, Princeton, NJ 08543 U.S.A. 687US11AB05809 07/11
687US11AB05809
10.25 X 13.5
687US11AB05809_Cnsmr2011_NewAfrAmFemaleAd_10.25x13.5_- 8/5/11 3:48 PM Page 2
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
19
DETERMINED + UNDETECTABLE
REYATAZ CAN HELP GET YOU TO UNDETECTABLE,
SO YOU CAN FIGHT HIV YOUR WAY.
ONCE-DAILY REYATAZ IN HIV COMBINATION THERAPY:
• Can help lower your viral load to undetectable* and
help raise your T-cell (CD4+ cell) count
• Has been prescribed by physicians for more than
200,000 HIV patients since 2003 †
• Can be taken by adults who are starting HIV treatment
for the first time and adults who have already been on
HIV treatment
Do not take REYATAZ if you are allergic to REYATAZ
or to any of its ingredients.
REYATAZ does not cure HIV and has not been shown
to reduce the risk of passing HIV to others.
Individual results may vary.
Ask your healthcare team how REYATAZ
in combination therapy can help get you
to undetectable.
Fight HIV your way.
www.REYATAZ.com
* Undetectable was defined as a viral load
of less than 400 copies/mL.
† Wolters Kluwer. SDI Product Brand Report.
Total Patient Tracker; November 2010.
P
Publication:
687US11AB05809_Cnsmr2011_NewAfrAmFemaleAd_10.25x13.5_- 8/5/11 3:48 PM Page 3
Aug. 31, 2011
20
FDA-Approved Patient Labeling
Patient Information
REYATAZ® (atazanavir sulfate)
About all the medicines you take including prescription and nonprescription
medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Keep a list of your medicines
with you to show your healthcare provider. For more information, see “What
important information should I know about taking REYATAZ with other
medicines?” and “Who should not take REYATAZ?” Some medicines can
cause serious side effects if taken with REYATAZ.
How should I take REYATAZ?
• Take REYATAZ once every day exactly as instructed by your healthcare
provider. Your healthcare provider will prescribe the amount of REYATAZ that
is right for you.
• Always take REYATAZ with food (a meal or snack) to help it work better.
Swallow the capsules whole. Do not open the capsules. Take REYATAZ at
the same time each day.
• If you are taking antacids or didanosine (VIDEX® or VIDEX® EC), take
REYATAZ 2 hours before or 1 hour after these medicines.
•
If you are taking medicines for indigestion, heartburn, or ulcers
such as AXID® (nizatidine), PEPCID AC® (famotidine), TAGAMET®
(cimetidine), ZANTAC® (ranitidine), AcipHex® (rabeprazole), NEXIUM®
(esomeprazole), PREVACID® (lansoprazole), PRILOSEC® (omeprazole),
or PROTONIX® (pantoprazole), talk to your healthcare provider.
• Do not change your dose or stop taking REYATAZ without first talking
with your healthcare provider. It is important to stay under a healthcare
provider’s care while taking REYATAZ.
•
When your supply of REYATAZ starts to run low, get more from your healthcare
provider or pharmacy. It is important not to run out of REYATAZ. The amount of
HIV in your blood may increase if the medicine is stopped for even a short time.
• If you miss a dose of REYATAZ, take it as soon as possible and then take
your next scheduled dose at its regular time. If, however, it is within 6 hours
of your next dose, do not take the missed dose. Wait and take the next dose
at the regular time. Do not double the next dose. It is important that you do
not miss any doses of REYATAZ or your other anti-HIV medicines.
• If you take more than the prescribed dose of REYATAZ, call your
healthcare provider or poison control center right away.
What are the possible side effects of REYATAZ?
The following list of side effects is not complete. Report any new or continuing
symptoms to your healthcare provider. If you have questions about side effects,
ask your healthcare provider. Your healthcare provider may be able to help you
manage these side effects.
The following side effects have been reported with REYATAZ:
• mild rash (redness and itching) without other symptoms sometimes occurs
in patients taking REYATAZ, most often in the first few weeks after the
medicine is started. Rashes usually go away within 2 weeks with no change
in treatment. Tell your healthcare provider if rash occurs.
• severe rash: Rash may develop in association with other symptoms which
could be serious and potentially cause death.
If you develop a rash with any of the following symptoms stop using
REYATAZ and call your healthcare provider right away:
• shortness of breath
• general ill feeling or “flu-like” symptoms
• fever
• muscle or joint aches
• conjunctivitis (red or inflamed eyes, like “pink eye”)
• blisters
• mouth sores
• swelling of your face
• yellowing of the skin or eyes. These effects may be due to increases in
bilirubin levels in the blood (bilirubin is made by the liver). Although these
effects may not be damaging to your liver, skin, or eyes, call your healthcare
provider promptly if your skin or the white part of your eyes turn yellow.
• a change in the way your heart beats (heart rhythm change). Call your
healthcare provider right away if you get dizzy or lightheaded. These could
be symptoms of a heart problem.
• diabetes and high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) sometimes happen in
patients taking protease inhibitor medicines like REYATAZ. Some patients had
diabetes before taking protease inhibitors while others did not. Some patients
may need changes in their diabetes medicine.
• if you have liver disease including hepatitis B or C, your liver disease may
get worse when you take anti-HIV medicines like REYATAZ.
• kidney stones have been reported in patients taking REYATAZ. If you develop
signs or symptoms of kidney stones (pain in your side, blood in your urine,
pain when you urinate) tell your healthcare provider promptly.
•
REYATAZ® (RAY-ah-taz)
(generic name = atazanavir sulfate)
Capsules
ALERT: Find out about medicines that should NOT be taken with
REYATAZ (atazanavir sulfate). Read the section “What important information
should I know about taking REYATAZ with other medicines?”
Read the Patient Information that comes with REYATAZ before you start using it
and each time you get a refill. There may be new information. This leaflet provides
a summary about REYATAZ and does not include everything there is to know
about your medicine. This information does not take the place of talking with your
healthcare provider about your medical condition or treatment.
What is REYATAZ?
REYATAZ is a prescription medicine used with other anti-HIV medicines to treat
people 6 years of age and older who are infected with the human immunodeficiency
virus (HIV). HIV is the virus that causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome
(AIDS). REYATAZ is a type of anti-HIV medicine called a protease inhibitor. HIV
infection destroys CD4+ (T) cells, which are important to the immune system.
The immune system helps fight infection. After a large number of (T) cells are
destroyed, AIDS develops. REYATAZ helps to block HIV protease, an enzyme that
is needed for the HIV virus to multiply. REYATAZ may lower the amount of HIV in
your blood, help your body keep its supply of CD4+ (T) cells, and reduce the risk
of death and illness associated with HIV.
Does REYATAZ cure HIV or AIDS?
REYATAZ does not cure HIV infection or AIDS. At present there is no cure for
HIV infection. People taking REYATAZ may still get opportunistic infections or other
conditions that happen with HIV infection. Opportunistic infections are infections
that develop because the immune system is weak. Some of these conditions are
pneumonia, herpes virus infections, and Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC)
infections. It is very important that you see your healthcare provider regularly
while taking REYATAZ.
REYATAZ does not lower your chance of passing HIV to other people through
sexual contact, sharing needles, or being exposed to your blood. For your
health and the health of others, it is important to always practice safer sex by
using a latex or polyurethane condom or other barrier to lower the chance of sexual
contact with semen, vaginal secretions, or blood. Never use or share dirty needles.
Who should not take REYATAZ?
Do not take REYATAZ if you:
•
are taking certain medicines. (See “What important information should I
know about taking REYATAZ with other medicines?”) Serious life-threatening
side effects or death may happen. Before you take REYATAZ, tell your
healthcare provider about all medicines you are taking or planning to take.
These include other prescription and nonprescription medicines, vitamins,
and herbal supplements.
•
are allergic to REYATAZ or to any of its ingredients. The active ingredient
is atazanavir sulfate. See the end of this leaflet for a complete list of
ingredients in REYATAZ. Tell your healthcare provider if you think you have
had an allergic reaction to any of these ingredients.
What should I tell my healthcare provider before I take REYATAZ?
Tell your healthcare provider:
•
If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. REYATAZ use during
pregnancy has not been associated with an increase in birth defects.
Pregnant women have experienced serious side effects when taking
REYATAZ with other HIV medicines called nucleoside analogues. You and
your healthcare provider will need to decide if REYATAZ is right for you. If you
use REYATAZ while you are pregnant, talk to your healthcare provider about
the Antiretroviral Pregnancy Registry.
• After your baby is born, tell your healthcare provider if your baby’s skin
or the white part of his/her eyes turns yellow.
•
If you are breast-feeding. You should not breast-feed if you are HIV-positive
because of the chance of passing HIV to your baby. Also, it is not known if
REYATAZ can pass into your breast milk and if it can harm your baby. If you
are a woman who has or will have a baby, talk with your healthcare provider
about the best way to feed your baby.
•
If you have liver problems or are infected with the hepatitis B or C virus.
See “What are the possible side effects of REYATAZ?”
•
If you have end stage kidney disease managed with hemodialysis.
•
If you have diabetes. See “What are the possible side effects of REYATAZ?”
•
If you have hemophilia. See “What are the possible side effects of
REYATAZ?”
687US11AB05809
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WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
21
REYATAZ® (atazanavir sulfate)
some patients with hemophilia have increased bleeding problems with
protease inhibitors like REYATAZ.
•
changes in body fat. These changes may include an increased amount of fat
in the upper back and neck (“buffalo hump”), breast, and around the trunk.
Loss of fat from the legs, arms, and face may also happen. The cause and
long-term health effects of these conditions are not known at this time.
•
immune reconstitution syndrome. In some patients with advanced HIV
infection (AIDS) and a history of opportunistic infection, signs and symptoms
of inflammation from previous infections may occur soon after anti-HIV
treatment, including REYATAZ, is started.
Other common side effects of REYATAZ taken with other anti-HIV medicines
include nausea; headache; stomach pain; vomiting; diarrhea; depression; fever;
dizziness; trouble sleeping; numbness, tingling, or burning of hands or feet; and
muscle pain.
Gallbladder disorders (which may include gallstones and gallbladder
inflammation) have been reported in patients taking REYATAZ.
What important information should I know about taking REYATAZ with other
medicines?
•
Do not take REYATAZ if you take the following medicines (not all brands may
be listed; tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take).
REYATAZ may cause serious, life-threatening side effects or death when
used with these medicines.
•
Ergot medicines: dihydroergotamine, ergonovine, ergotamine, and
methylergonovine such as CAFERGOT®, MIGRANAL®, D.H.E. 45®, ergotrate
maleate, METHERGINE®, and others (used for migraine headaches).
•
ORAP® (pimozide, used for Tourette’s disorder).
•
PROPULSID® (cisapride, used for certain stomach problems).
•
Triazolam, also known as HALCION® (used for insomnia).
•
Midazolam, also known as VERSED® (used for sedation), when taken by mouth.
Do not take the following medicines with REYATAZ because of possible
serious side effects:
•
CAMPTOSAR® (irinotecan, used for cancer).
•
CRIXIVAN® (indinavir, used for HIV infection). Both REYATAZ and CRIXIVAN
sometimes cause increased levels of bilirubin in the blood.
• Cholesterol-lowering medicines MEVACOR® (lovastatin) or ZOCOR®
(simvastatin).
•
UROXATRAL® (alfuzosin, used to treat benign enlargement of the prostate).
•
REVATIO® (sildenafil, used to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension).
Do not take the following medicines with REYATAZ because they may lower
the amount of REYATAZ in your blood. This may lead to an increased HIV viral
load. Resistance to REYATAZ or cross-resistance to other HIV medicines may
develop:
•
Rifampin (also known as RIMACTANE®, RIFADIN®, RIFATER®, or RIFAMATE®,
used for tuberculosis).
•
St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum), an herbal product sold as a dietary
supplement, or products containing St. John’s wort.
•
VIRAMUNE® (nevirapine, used for HIV infection).
The following medicines are not recommended with REYATAZ:
•
SEREVENT DISKUS® (salmeterol) and ADVAIR® (salmeterol with fluticasone),
used to treat asthma, emphysema/chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
also known as COPD.
Do not take the following medicine if you are taking REYATAZ and NORVIR®
together:
•
VFEND® (voriconazole).
The following medicines may require your healthcare provider to monitor
your therapy more closely (for some medicines a change in the dose or dose
schedule may be needed):
•
CIALIS® (tadalafil), LEVITRA® (vardenafil), or VIAGRA® (sildenafil), used to
treat erectile dysfunction. REYATAZ may increase the chances of serious side
effects that can happen with CIALIS, LEVITRA, or VIAGRA. Do not use CIALIS,
LEVITRA, or VIAGRA while you are taking REYATAZ unless your healthcare
provider tells you it is okay.
•
ADCIRCA® (tadalafil) or TRACLEER® (bosentan), used to treat pulmonary
arterial hypertension.
•
LIPITOR® (atorvastatin) or CRESTOR® (rosuvastatin). There is an increased
chance of serious side effects if you take REYATAZ with this cholesterollowering medicine.
•
Medicines for abnormal heart rhythm: CORDARONE® (amiodarone), lidocaine,
quinidine (also known as CARDIOQUIN®, QUINIDEX®, and others).
•
MYCOBUTIN® (rifabutin, an antibiotic used to treat tuberculosis).
Publication:
REYATAZ® (atazanavir sulfate)
•
BUPRENEX®, SUBUTEX®, SUBOXONE®, (buprenorphine or buprenorphine/
naloxone, used to treat pain and addiction to narcotic painkillers).
• VASCOR® (bepridil, used for chest pain).
• COUMADIN® (warfarin).
• Tricyclic antidepressants such as ELAVIL® (amitriptyline), NORPRAMIN®
(desipramine), SINEQUAN® (doxepin), SURMONTIL® (trimipramine),
TOFRANIL® (imipramine), or VIVACTIL® (protriptyline).
• Medicines to prevent organ transplant rejection: SANDIMMUNE® or NEORAL®
(cyclosporin), RAPAMUNE® (sirolimus), or PROGRAF® (tacrolimus).
• The antidepressant trazodone (DESYREL® and others).
• Fluticasone propionate (FLONASE®, FLOVENT®), given by nose or inhaled to
treat allergic symptoms or asthma. Your doctor may choose not to keep you
on fluticasone, especially if you are also taking NORVIR®.
• Colchicine (COLCRYS®), used to prevent or treat gout or treat familial
Mediterranean fever.
The following medicines may require a change in the dose or dose schedule
of either REYATAZ or the other medicine:
• INVIRASE® (saquinavir).
• NORVIR® (ritonavir).
• SUSTIVA® (efavirenz).
• Antacids or buffered medicines.
• VIDEX® (didanosine).
• VIREAD® (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate).
• MYCOBUTIN® (rifabutin).
• Calcium channel blockers such as CARDIZEM® or TIAZAC® (diltiazem),
COVERA-HS® or ISOPTIN SR® (verapamil) and others.
• BIAXIN® (clarithromycin).
• Medicines for indigestion, heartburn, or ulcers such as AXID® (nizatidine),
PEPCID AC® (famotidine), TAGAMET® (cimetidine), or ZANTAC® (ranitidine).
Talk to your healthcare provider about choosing an effective method of
contraception. REYATAZ may affect the safety and effectiveness of hormonal
contraceptives such as birth control pills or the contraceptive patch. Hormonal
contraceptives do not prevent the spread of HIV to others.
Remember:
1. Know all the medicines you take.
2. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take.
3. Do not start a new medicine without talking to your healthcare provider.
How should I store REYATAZ?
• Store REYATAZ Capsules at room temperature, 59° to 86° F (15° to 30° C).
Do not store this medicine in a damp place such as a bathroom medicine
cabinet or near the kitchen sink.
• Keep your medicine in a tightly closed container.
• Keep all medicines out of the reach of children and pets at all times. Do not
keep medicine that is out of date or that you no longer need. Dispose of
unused medicines through community take-back disposal programs when
available or place REYATAZ in an unrecognizable, closed container in the
household trash.
General information about REYATAZ
This medicine was prescribed for your particular condition. Do not use REYATAZ
for another condition. Do not give REYATAZ to other people, even if they have the
same symptoms you have. It may harm them. Keep REYATAZ and all medicines
out of the reach of children and pets.
This summary does not include everything there is to know about REYATAZ.
Medicines are sometimes prescribed for conditions that are not mentioned in
patient information leaflets. Remember no written summary can replace careful
discussion with your healthcare provider. If you would like more information, talk
with your healthcare provider or you can call 1-800-321-1335.
What are the ingredients in REYATAZ?
Active Ingredient: atazanavir sulfate
Inactive Ingredients: Crospovidone, lactose monohydrate (milk sugar),
magnesium stearate, gelatin, FD&C Blue #2, and titanium dioxide.
VIDEX® and REYATAZ® are registered trademarks of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.
COUMADIN® and SUSTIVA® are registered trademarks of Bristol-Myers Squibb
Pharma Company. DESYREL® is a registered trademark of Mead Johnson and
Company. Other brands listed are the trademarks of their respective owners and
are not trademarks of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company.
Princeton, NJ 08543 USA
1246226A9
F1-B0001B-02-11
Rev February 2011
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
22
CITY
VIEWPOINTs WINDY
TIMES
REV. IRENE
MONROE
Why can’t
puppets
Bert and
Ernie marry?
Sesame Street’s most famous duo, Bert and Ernie, first appeared in 1969, the same year as the
Stonewall Riots, which to the nation’s surprise
catapulted the LGBTQ Liberation Movement. At
that time, the idea of partnering these two lovable striped-sweater-wearing puppets as gay
was as inconceivable as the idea of legalized
same-sex marriage.
However, four-plus decades later—with Bert
and Ernie’s relationship outliving many heterosexual living arrangements (roommates or married) and mirroring the subtle ways in which
LGBTQ couples discreetly went about their lives
back in the day—the question of whether the
guys are gay is not only apropos, but so, too, is
the question of their nuptials.
“They are not gay, they are not straight, they
are puppets,” Sesame Workshop President/CEO
Gary Knell said. “They don’t exist below the
waist.”
The funny thing about the dominance of heteronormativity in society, I’ve learned as a lesbian, is that it is always assumed—whether it’s
above or below the waists of people or puppets.
Also, oddly, heteronormativity is also assumed
without questions, expected without exception
and explained even in its silence.
However, Knell is not totally truthful in his
rejoinder that the puppets are neither gay nor
straight.
My favorite Jim Henson Muppet is the heterosexual over-the-top prima-Donna, femme fatale
and sex siren Miss Piggy. The love of her life,
Kermit the Frog, unwittingly marries her in The
Muppets Take Manhattan.
Sesame Street has always moved and grooved
with the times, and its concept of “Muppet
diplomacy,” a term coined to depict Sesame
Street’s efforts to educate children around the
world, has tackled tough social issues like HIV/
AIDS, child obesity, 9/11 and military deployment, to name a few, and has featured megastars like Bono, Beyonce and Justin Bieber.
Is it possible that my “gaydar” is off about
Sesame Street? Perhaps. But hasn’t Sesame
Street over the years, in a tongue-in-cheek
fashion, winked and nodded to the LGBTQ community?
For example, was it mere coincidence that in
2010, during National Coming Out Month, African-American lesbian comedian Wanda Sykes appeared on show? However, Sykes is not the only
openly LGBTQ person to appear on the show.
Openly gay guest-stars like Neil Patrick Harris played a “shoe fairy.” The Black Eyed Peas’
will.i.am (who is straight) sang “What I Am?,” a
song about self-acceptance, creating an online
kerfuffle about its underlying message.
Is it now time for Sesame Street’s under-theradar winks and nods to the LGBTQ community
be replaced with a full-throated statement of
support?
Sesame Street has a long history of teaching
children about diversity and acceptance; so,
why should the issues impacting our LGBTQ children be excluded? Moreover, many of the children watching the show are not only LGBTQ, but
so, too, are their parents and households.
In other words, could it be that Sesame Street
needs to come out of the closet?
In many ways, their famous duo has. Bert and
Ernie have not only been roommates, but they
have also been bedmates, sleeping next to each
other like any long-term committed couple.
I realize, however, in a culture that constantly
sexualizes the coupling of same-gender relationships as gay, we ignore our own friendships with
our “best friends forever” (BFF), which is what
producers of Sesame Street are stating about
Bert and Ernie.
For example, for more than two decades Oprah
and her gal pal, Gayle King—editor-at-large for
O, The Oprah Magazine—have denied rumors
they are lesbians, but rather have publicly stated they are each other’s BFF, just two sistahgirls being sister-friends.
After 30 years of four-times-a-day phone calls,
and frequent sightings of where you see Oprah
you also see Gayle, the public continues to question Oprah and Gayle about their relationship.
“No, I’m not a lesbian, I’m not even kind of
a lesbian,” Oprah recently stated on A Barbara
Walters Special: Oprah, The Next Chapter.
“The reason why it irritates me is because
it means that somebody must think I’m lying.
That’s number one,” Winfrey told Walters. “Number two...why would you want to hide it? That is
not the way I run my life.”
I also realize that in constantly labeling samegender relationships as gay, it diminishes and
distorts the romantic relationships we LGBTQ
people have with our significant others. As a
matter of fact, constantly labeling same-gender
relationships as gay not only wrongly assumes
that the only reason for two people of the same
gender getting together is for sex, but it also
keeps in place the myth of the hypersexual and
predatory homosexual.
However, Sesame Street is an open classroom
for our kids, reflecting the times. Same-sex marriage is one of the social issues of the day.
How will Sesame Street explain to children in
same-gender families and households why Miss
Piggy and Kermit the frog can marry, but Bert
and Ernie can’t?
LETTERS
Taking action
Dear Editor:
In light of ongoing safety concerns in Boystown,
I’d like to offer my observations and advice to
Ald. Tom Tunney and the community:
1. Most of the groups that residents blame for
loitering and noise are gay teens. Halsted has
nothing to offer them on a weekend (or summer weekday) evening. There are no non-social
service queer youth spaces in Boystown as there
once were. This is something the Northalsted
Business Alliance, Lakeview Chamber of Commerce, and the alderman’s office could take up.
There are no business establishments in the
area geared towards gay youth, and they are
a viable customer segment. If no gym existed
in Boystown, the business alliance, chamber of
commerce and alderman’s office would surely
make it their focus to court health club operators for the area. The solution to noise/loitering
is not to try and keep gay youth out of the area.
The solution is to bring queer youth spaces into
the area so that queer youth have an alternative
to loitering on the streets once Center on Halsted programs end for the day. Instead of focusing on a budget for security to keep queer youth
away from their establishments, the business
alliance and chamber of commerce (in coordination with the alderman’s office) should be working to bring in businesses which cater to queer
youth.
2. There is a large population of homeless
gay teens in the area. Lakeview social-service
providers need to be able to connect with and
get resources to them. Otherwise, this popula-
tion can become vulnerable to sexual predators,
drug dealers and other criminals and they may
be forced to commit survival crimes (prostitution, muggings, etc.). There has to be a strong
proactive effort to reach this population before
they become victims and/or are forced to turn
to survival crimes that result in area residents
and visitors becoming victims. The answer is not
to wait for homeless gay teens to reach a stage
of despair and then send the police in to arrest
them.
3. There are bona fide criminals who come to
the neighborhood to prey upon its residents
and visitors. Many Lakeview residents are incorrectly and unfairly categorizing those in the two
groups I’ve described above with this last group.
Also, they are blaming those in the former two
groups for the behavior of those in this latter
group. Violent crime needs to be addressed with
a community policing strategy that does not unfairly target those in the first group, that helps
connect those in the second group with proper
services, and that deters or apprehends those in
this third group.
What I am seeing take place instead of what
I have described above is strategies aimed at
lumping all three groups into one, with the goal
of pushing this incorrectly defined monolithic
group out of the neighborhood. That is not the
answer.
Jay Gotlier
Lakeview
A new coalition
Dear editor,
The Lakeview Safety and Inclusion Coalition
(LSIC) is a new community group of service providers, residents, business leaders, youth, public
servants and individuals invested in bettering
Lakeview.
A response to recent acts of violence, LSIC’s
goals are simple. First, uphold Lakeview’s longstanding tradition of serving as an open and
welcoming community for individuals from all
backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, gender identities
and orientations. Above all, make Lakeview safer
for everyone by bringing the entire community
together and taking a holistic, results-driven approach to solutions.
With the broad coalition that LSIC has built,
and continues to build, I am confident that together we can strengthen our community and
preserve Lakeview’s integrity for all of those
who live, work and visit Lakeview. LSIC recognizes the need to steer away from the exclusion and divisiveness that hinders our progress
and instead focus on our shared goals of feeling
safe and welcomed in our community. When we
uphold our values of respect, inclusion and commitment, we can productively work to ensure
that our streets remain safe for all.
As a proud member of this community and
as state representative, I support LSIC and am
looking forward to working with the coalition to
make our neighborhood safer for everyone.
Sara Feigenholtz
State representative,
12th District
VOL. 26 No. 47, Aug. 31, 2011
The combined forces of Windy City Times,
founded Sept. 1985, and Outlines newspaper,
founded May 1987.
PUBLISHER & EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Tracy Baim
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Matheny, Kirk Williamson, Dave Ouano, Kirk Smid
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Wockner, Marie J. Kuda, David Byrne, Tony Peregrin, Lisa Keen, Yasmin Nair, Erica Demarest
THEATER EDITOR Scott C. Morgan
CINEMA WRITER Richard Knight, Jr.
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT WRITERS
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Ferber, Mel Ferrand, Jerry Nunn, Alicia Wilson,
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WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
GOINGS-ON
23
WINDY CITY TIMES’ ENTERTAINMENT SECTION
Photo
by Johnny
Knight
YOU REALLY GOT A HOLD ON ME
Things get very physical in the theatrical production The Double. See more on page 24.
MUSIC
DISH
SPORTS
Have a Taste.
Page 28.
Top man.
Page 31.
Base stop.
Page 34.
Photo from Taste of the Gold Coast
by Andrew Davis
Photo of ZZ Top by Vern Hester
Photo of Mark Febonio
courtesy of Febonio
SCOTTISH PLAY SCOTT
Mapping out the Fringes
BY SCOTT C. MORGAN
Fifty performance groups from 14 states (plus
Canada and the United Kingdom) are set to perform in five venues in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood Sept. 1-11 as part of the 2nd annual
Chicago Fringe Festival.
“The scope of this year’s festival stems from
your success in 2010,” said associate producer
Vinnie Lacey in a statement. “This year we’ve
got more performers and show times slated. Our
growth demonstrates how electrifying Fringe is
for audiences and performers alike, and we’re
thrilled to turn Pilsen into the city’s prime location for freewheeling and diverse theatrical
revelry again.”
The Chicago Fringe Festival aims to move
around to different neighborhoods each year,
but the festival returns to its first stomping
grounds in part to build upon its previous success in the Pilsen neighborhood.
Unlike some other festivals that are juried by a
panel or artistic director, the Chicago Fringe Festival touts its democratic selection process via
a lottery system. Hence professionals are mixed
in with amateur artists, while a whole range of
performance styles are featured ranging from
kid-friendly puppetry to adults-only burlesque.
There are also plenty of shows touching upon
LGBT issues with both serious and comical approaches. Two shows with trans-identified performers include Chicago’s own Rebecca Kling’s
No Gender Left Behind (exploring the state of
transgender discrimination in the United States
today) and New Yorker Roman Rimer’s Evolution,
which details his travels in the South to work
with LGBTQ youth in Christian communities.
As with most fringe festivals, there are some
very oddly named shows. Take, for instance,
Robin Gelfenbien’s My Salvation Has a First
Name: A Wienermobile Journey, which details
her time as a driver of the touring Oscar Mayer
Wienermobile as a way of overcoming bullying.
There’s also Jesus, Shakespeare and Lincoln Walk
into a Bar, a show from the Indianapolis-based
Giants of Theatre troupe that imagines what
kind of karaoke songs these three might sing.
The Chicago Fringe Festival’s five venues are:
The Doppler Stage, 1915 S. Halsted St.; Dream
Theatre, 556 W. 18th St.; Human Thread, 645 W.
18th St.; Meridian Stage, 1932 S. Halsted St.;
and Temple Gallery, 1749 S. Halsted. Tickets
are available at Fringe Central, 2003 S. Halsted,
which also hosts the festival’s opening and closing ceremonies plus networking events. Performance times vary, but most shows are performed
three to five times during the festival. Tickets
to most shows are $10 (ticket sales go directly
to the artists), on top of a reusable $5 festival
button. Other ticket/button packages are also
available. For more information, visit http://
www.fringechicago.org.
CCPA becomes a church?
Itinerant Windy City theater companies will
probably have to scratch the Chicago Center for
the Performing Arts (CCPA) off of their lists of
rentable venues, since the arts complex at 777
N. Green is likely to become a church full time.
David Odd of The Edge Comedy Club alerted
fans and members of the media about the arts
complex’s change to a house of worship via an
email sent Aug. 23. Odd warned that The Edge
Comedy Club’s final shows might be on Aug. 25
and 27, and that its home at CCPA since 2007
“is no more” (though Odd hinted that The Edge
Comedy Club’s shows at the Skokie Theatre on
the first Friday of the month may continue).
A call to CCPA seeking more information was
not returned. Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune
later reported that City Church Chicago (which
rents out space at CCPA on Sundays and Mon-
Rebecca Kling in a photo illustration for her show, No Gender Left Behind. Illustration courtesy
of Kling
days) is the likely institution that will take over
the complex in the fall. Jones then reported
that Bailiwick Chicago, which had planned on
staging its forthcoming production of Jeanine
Tesori’s award-winning 1997 musical Violet at
CCPA, was now moving the show to the Mercury
Theatre. (For more information on Violet, visit
http://www.bailiwickchicago.com.)
It will be too bad if the switch from arts complex to church goes through for CCPA. Congo
Square Theatre Company and Bailiwick Chicago
both did great work recently at the CCPA (I thoroughly enjoyed their respective productions of
The Colored Museum and Passing Strange). But
despite CCPA’s cozy theaters spaces and lovely
lobby, its location of west of Halsted Street just
off of Chicago Ave. wasn’t exactly the easiest to
get to and to attract audiences. At press time,
CCPA’s website at http://www.theaterland.com
was not updated about any potential changes.
Moving Home
The Equity theater company known as The
Artistic Home is on the move again. When it
starts its 2011-12 season with Eugene O’Neill’s
A Touch of the Poet Sept. 30, The Artistic Home
will be housed in an 80-seat space at Stage 773
(which is in the midst of a major remodeling
along Belmont Avenue).
“We could not be more excited to open our
13th season in this fabulous new space amongst
such good company,” said The Artistic Home’s
artistic director Kathy Scambiatterra in a statement. “Being part of the Stage 773 theater family opens our work to a much wider audience,
namely more theatergoers and less Cubs fans,
and makes us much more accessible than we
were before.”
The Artistic Home was previously housed at
the former 49-seat Live Bait Theater at 3419 N.
Clark St., and before that in a storefront space
along Irving Park Road that is now Chemically
Imbalanced Comedy. The Artistic Home’s shift
means that the former Live Bait Theater is now
a new tenant. Let’s hope that it continues to exist as a theater in the future. For more information on The Artistic Home and Stage 773, visit
http://www.theartistichome.org and http://
www.stage773.org.
Aug. 31, 2011
24
THEATER REVIEW
The Double
Playwright: Barbara Lhota
At: Babes With Blades at Lincoln
Square in the Berry
Methodist Church, 4754 N. Leavitt St.
Phone: 773-904-0391; $20
Runs through: Sept. 24
BY MARY SHEN BARNIDGE
Listen up, kids—here’s your premise: It’s 1940
and, in support of women’s contribution to the
war effort (Rosie the Riveter, don’t ya know?),
Broadway producer Saul Bloomfield is financing
a modern-day production of Cyrano de Bergerac—with Roxane fighting alongside her beloved
men at the front—that he hopes Warner Brothers will consider for a possible movie. To that
end, he has assembled a bevy of Hollywood personalities, among them a female fencing master
whose younger sister has, coincidentally, been
hired to stunt-double for the leading lady.
Welcome to the world of screwball comedy!
Barbara Lhota’s homage to the film classics of
this romantic genre adheres to formula with a
plot encompassing elements of the backstageintrigue scenario (lecherous leading men, temperamental divas, etc.), the class-differences
scenario (stage vs. cinematic acting styles)
and no less than three pairs of lovers unsure of
their affections—especially two young women,
initially enamored of the same man, who find
themselves increasingly drawn to one another.
Lhota’s cupid being an equal-opportunity facilitator, everyone eventually gets what they want.
Oh, but not until an escalating series of complications have threatened to scuttle the bestlaid plans of sweethearts and show biz. Will exspouses Charles Fontaine and Rosalind Rollins
(the latter played by Lisa Herceg in full Rosalind-you-know-who drag) reunite? Will onscreen
villain George Hall overcome his shyness and
profess his passion for his feisty swordmistress?
Will childhood companions Minnie Sparks and
Olivia Wood acknowledge their mutual attraction and come up with a scheme for preserving
their careers guaranteeing their likewise lavender swain safety as well? Will the West Coast moguls applaud the experimental Cyrano and make
Joffrey names chief
marketing officer
The Joffrey Ballet and Executive Director
Christopher Clinton Conway have announced
that Brian Smith has joined the Joffrey’s executive leadership team as its new chief marketing officer, effective immediately.
everybody rich?
Lhota’s dialogue for this Babes With Blades
production crackles with rat-a-tat authenticity
(despite being sometimes blurred by its churchbasement acoustics), while Leigh Barrett’s direction keeps the pace crisp and high-stepping. The
athletic cast combines precision comic timing
and unflagging agility—Did I mention Alison
Dornheggen’s swing-dance numbers?—to fulfill
the demands of this period romcom. Theatergoers dismissing the Babes With Blades as a stunt
troupe instead of a bona fide theater company
are advised to re-assess their assumptions, even
as they thrill to Libby Beyreis’ dazzling—and
hilarious—climactic swordplay scene featuring
BWB founding member Kathrynne Wolf swinging
steel in the role of the entire attacking Spanish
army! How can you pass up spectacle like that?
THEATER REVIEW
A Walk in
the Woods
Playwright: Lee Blessing
At: TimeLine at Theater Wit,
1229 W. Belmont
Tickets: 773-975-8150;
http://www.timelinetheatre.com; $34-$44
Runs through: Nov. 20
BY JONATHAN ABARBANEL
We expect first-rate shows from TimeLine
Theatre, and the troupe delivers again with
this engaging, even sprightly production of A
Walk in the Woods, Lee Blessing’s intelligent
rumination on the wary friendship between
American and Soviet arms-reduction negotiators. As a two-character play, it’s a smaller
scale production than usual for TimeLine,
which doesn’t stop sure-handed director Nick
Bowling from taking a fresh approach: with
Blessing’s OK, the Soviet negotiator has undergone a sex change and now is a woman.
Perhaps the switch wouldn’t be as effective
without Janet Ulrich Brooks as Anya Botvinnik, the weary and sometimes cynical yet
charming Soviet negotiator who has engaged
for years in fruitless talks between the superpowers. Brooks and Bowling take full advantage of the change in tone the sex switch allows, introducing the dynamics of occasional
girlishness, flirtation, motherliness and even
the feminine mystique to lines which, in previous productions with a male negotiator as
written, are those of a Russian bear playing
cute or coy. To say Brooks is convincing and
appealing is an understatement.
As John Honeyman, the American negotia-
WINDY CITY TIMES
tor new to the arms talks, TimeLine veteran
David Parkes is no slouch. Trimly elegant in
his stylishly conservative suits and ties, he’s
every inch the wary and solemn newcomer
determined to prove his mettle, and still idealistic enough to believe something might be
achieved. Initially reluctant to engage in offthe-books talks with his Soviet counterpart,
Parkes delivers precisely the necessary degree
of starchiness and yet convey Honeyman’s decency and sincerity.
Set in a forest near Geneva, Switzerland
(conveyed by Brian Sidney Bembridge with
simple economy using plywood trees and
leafy video projections), A Walk in the Woods
was written in 1986 and was inspired by real
negotiations that came thisclose to a meaningful arms reduction treaty. The play ends
with bittersweet failure for Botvinnik and
Honeyman, although their real-life counterparts were rewarded by arms treaties in 1987
and 1991 (the START treaty that was renegotiated successfully last year).
In 1985, there were over 70,000 missilebased nuclear warheads in the world. Thanks
to START, there now are fewer than 20,000.
But since two or three dozen missiles could
destroy the world—fewer than that using socalled dirty bombs—what difference does it
make? Blessing and his characters fully embrace the cynicism inherent in nuclear weapons strategies, yet also state that anything is
possible once—and if—opponents can trust
each other.
Today, nuclear war is far more likely to come
about through the actions of a rogue nation
or terrorists than because of disagreements
between the United States and Russia. That
sad truth makes A Walk in the Woods far more
poignant than purposeful in a world which
has grown infinitely less rational in 25 years.
A Walk
in the Woods.
Photo by
Lara Goetsch
The Double. Photo by Johnny Knight
Smith, 44, most recently served for five
years as the director of marketing and development for the Chicago Loop Alliance. Prior to
that role, Smith was the development officer
for the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and
the director of communications and special
events for Lookingglass Theatre Company.
CULTURE CLUB
SPOTLIGHT
Before it became a midnight movie mainstay, Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show
was titillating London and Broadway theater audiences in the flesh as The Rocky Horror Show.
Ludicrous Theatre allows audiences to get up close and personal with this quirky 1970s musical
that blends 1950s-style rock and roll numbers with a sexually expansive plot twist on monster
movies. Ludicrous Theatre’s The Rocky Horror Show continues through Saturday, Sept. 17, at
BoHo Theatre at The Heartland Studio, 7016 N. Glenwood. Show times are at 8 p.m. Thursdays
through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, plus a midnight show on Sept. 9. Tickets
are $20-$25. Call 773-455-6001 or visit http://www.ludicroustheatre.com for more information.
Photo of J. Keegan Sibken as Rocky and David Goodman as Frank ‘N’ Furter in The Rocky Horror
Show courtesy of the company.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
THEATER REVIEW
THEATER REVIEW
Colin Quinn:
Long Story Short
Blue Man Group
Playwright: text by the ensemble
At: Briar Street Theatre, 3133 N. Halsted St.
Phone: 773-348-4000;$49-$69
Runs through: open
Playwright: Colin Quinn
At: Broadway Playhouse at
Water Tower Place, 175 E. Chestnut St.
Phone: 800-775-2000; $40-$65
Runs through: Sept. 10
BY SCOTT C. MORGAN
Don’t let comedian Colin Quinn’s tough-guy
Brooklyn accent fool you. He may sound like a
stereotypical New York cop, but it’s clear that
this former Saturday Night Live funnyman could
have been a much-loved history teacher after
seeing Colin Quinn: Long Story Short.
Quinn’s 2010 one-man Broadway show is a
speedy examination of the rise and fall of great
world civilizations, but scrambled up with hilarious pop culture references of today. Now playing through Sept. 10 at the Broadway Playhouse
at Water Tower Place, Long Story Short achieves
a happy blend of history lesson and sarcastic
stand-up comedy routine.
Some of Quinn’s hypotheses and conclusions
may sound way out there, but you end up laughing so much that you do have to often agree
with his pointed and often politically-incorrect
observations. Also, like many comedians, Quinn
is an equal opportunity offender.
Take, for instance, how Quinn likes to tidily
divide certain civilizations as being run by Smart
Guys (like the Greeks) and Tough Guys (like the
Romans). He also discusses how drugs ultimately played a part in the downfall of great Latin
American civilizations before and after the arrival of Spanish conquistadors.
The United States certainly doesn’t escape
Quinn’s comic barbs, as he points out how its
recent involvement in invading Iraq was not unlike an after-hours barroom brawl that got out of
hand.
Now as a performer, Quinn exuded a lot of nervous energy on opening night, perhaps delivering his material a tick or two faster than it
needed to be. The effect might have sounded
been a bit garbled for audiences unaccustomed
to hearing Brooklynese dialogue at such a quick
clip.
Also, for those who might bristle at paying up
CRITICS’ PICKS
Black and Blue, Factory Theater at Prop
Thtr, though Sept. 3. Baseball may be only
a game, but families have gone to war over
differences less frivolous than loyalties to
Cubs or Sox. Will that also be the sorry fate
of the two brothers in this down-home Chicago-style fable? MSB
Family Devotions, Halcyon Theatre at the
Greenhouse, through Sept. 4. “What do you
know about America? You were born here!”
sneers an immigrant Chinese greed-head
in a very young David Henry Hwang’s wry
Shepard-esque comment on the intergenerational conflicts that drive a boy to flee
his family. MSB
Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of
Fleet Street, Drury Lane Theatre Oakbrook,
through Oct. 9. It’s simple: this is the best
Sweeney Todd you ever are likely to see.
Don’t miss it. Greg Edelman and Liz McCartney are Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett. The ensemble, band and designs are astonishing.
JA
They’re Playing Our Song, Fox Valley Repertory at Pheasant Run Resort, St. Charles,
through Oct. 9. The real-life and talented
husband-and-wife team of Michael Mahler
and Dara Cameron both help to make this
disco-era romantic musical comedy into a
fun and great date-night show. SCM
—By Abarbanel, Barnidge
and Morgan
25
Colin Quinn. Photo by Carol Rosegg
to $65 for what is essentially a brainy standup routine, Long Story Short does feature plenty of stage extras like a tiered set suggesting
an amphitheatre, some cleverly chosen photo
projections and a series of computer animated
graphics to help place all of Quinn’s comic commentary into context. Plus, Long Story Short
boasts superstar comedian Jerry Seinfeld as the
show’s director, so you do get what you pay for
in terms of brand-name comedy.
There are some topics in Long Story Short
that you wish Quinn could have comically riffed
further and longer on than what he currently
serves. However, it’s far better to leave audiences waiting for more, which is exactly what Quinn
does so well at mirthfully mashing up world history for quick consumption.
Repeatedly, Quinn finds ways to poke and prod
audiences to consider mankind’s failure to learn
from its past mistakes. However, he does it in
such a way that you’ll likely contemplate it all
with a wicked smile on your face.
Open call for
‘Nutcracker’
student dancers
The Moscow Ballet will host auditions in
Rosemont Wed., Aug. 31, at 3:30 p.m., at
SPACE Peterson, 3433 W. Peterson, for student dancers to perform in the Dec. 11 performance of the Great Russian Nutcracker
at Rosemont Theater alongside the Russian, classically trained professionals.
To register and for more audition information, contact Altin Naska 773-463-1220
or [email protected].
‘Spunk’ at Court
Theatre Sept. 8
Court Theatre Artistic Director Charles
Newell and Executive Director Stephen J.
Albert open the Company’s 57th Season
with Spunk, adapted from the short stories
of Zora Neale Hurston by George C. Wolfe
with music by Chic Street Man and directed
by Seret Scott.
Spunk features Alexis J. Rogers (Porgy
and Bess) as Blues Speak Woman, Chris
Boykin, Kenn E. Head, Patrese D. McClain,
Kelvyn Bell, and Michael Pogue.
Spunk, which Kirkland & Ellis LLP is
sponsoring, will run Sept. 8-Oct. 9, 2011 at
Court Theatre, 5535 S. Ellis Ave.
Ticket prices are $30 to $40 for preview
performances, and $40 to $60 for regularrun performances. Tickets are available by
visiting the box office, calling 773-7534472 or going to http://www.CourtTheatre.
org.
BY MARY SHEN BARNIDGE
When this quirky performance art/stunt show
made its Chicago premiere in 1997, it was little
more than a high-tech vaudeville designed to
test the post-psychedelic generation’s tolerance
for multi-sensory overload. An unbroken 15-year
run has evidenced the unflagging popularity of
extasis-in-groups, but after more than decade
of revels recalling the amorally-exuberant exploratory play we enjoyed as children, a certain
maturity was inevitable, making for changes in
the program’s structure.
This doesn’t mean that the noisy and messy
fun that continues to draw repeat customers of
all ages has been discarded as too juvenile for
sophisticated post-millennium audiences. The
spurting twinkie-vests and inquisitive videoprobes guarantee a modicum of yuck-factor,
as do the exhibitions of creative chewing and
spitting, not to mention the human-paintbrush
art. We also get periodic audial stimulation
via percussion symphonies played on spraying
drum-heads and PVC-pipe marimbas, with extra
ear-muscle supplied by a band dressed for a Brazilian carnival.
What’s been added, however, is a manifesto—
a statement of intent to lend a shape to the
mischief—projected onstage as we enter the
auditorium. “When meeting people from a foreign culture, offer gifts that reflect your interests as a gesture of friendship,” it exhorts us,
ultimately concluding “The best way to forge
a lasting friendship is to create something together.” This sentiment is reiterated later in the
show, when a trio of iPhones debate the world of
“2-D” vs. that of “3-D,” at which time the Blue
Man ethos becomes clear: Fourth-wall separation of performer and audience, exemplified by
the culture of faceless text-communication, is
two-dimensional—and that’s bad.
The silent Blue warriors fight valiantly against
isolation, however: climbing over chair-backs
with spectators seated in them, coaxing audience members to the stage to assist them in
their tricks, scatter-shooting (soft) projectiles
into the house and conducting the crowd in orchestrated chant-alongs. Even the much-publicized “splash” rows in front, where customers
are issued waterproof ponchos, represent an effort to share the experience. By the time the
animated—or so we think—stick figures step
forward off their screens to encompass the entire theater in their communal embrace, even
the most reticent playgoer will be caught up in
the gleeful kinetic anarchy.
Blue Man Group. Photo by Paul Natkin
★★★★this infectious new musical could get
belly laughs from a corpse”
“delivers fun to die for…
”
“
—Time Out Chicago
two actor-singers and ace musicians
“not to be missed
—Chicago Sun-Times
these two pros
never miss a beat”
—Northwest Indiana Times
“exuberant”
—Chicagocritic.com
“ would no doubt
maKe mel brooKs
giggle
giddily ”
—New City
“a campy new
whodunit”
—Chicago Tribune
extended by
popular demand!
312.595.5600
www.chicagoshakes.com
ticKet
$
25–30 s
Aug. 31, 2011
26
KNIGHT
AT
THE
MOVIES
By
Richard
Knight, Jr.
The Debt; Don’t
Be Afraid...;
film notes
For 30 years Israel has glorified former Mossad
agents Rachel, Stefan and David as the trio that
brought to justice a sadistic Nazi war criminal
who they found posing as a gynecologist in Berlin in 1965 and who they captured and killed (as
he tried to escape). However, now, in 1997, just
as Rachel’s daughter has released a biographical
account of their actions, the trio find themselves
unwittingly drawn back into these decades-old
events. That’s the nifty set-up for director John
Madden’s taut political thriller The Debt, a
remake of a fictional 2007 Israeli film that is
helped enormously by its cast.
These include both older versions of the characters (Helen Mirren, sporting a Yiddish accent and an “L” shaped scar on her cheek, Tom
Wilkinson and Ciaran Hinds) and their comely,
younger selves (this year’s “It” girl Jessica Chastain, Martin Csokas and Sam Worthington). The
bulk of the picture follows Rachel, Stefan and
Sam Worthington in The Debt.
David—strangers when they meet—who are
bound by their united mission of bringing the
Nazi to justice and who, during the course of
that mission, find themselves caught up in an
emotionally potent love triangle (not surprising
as they make for the three most gorgeous secret
agents of all time, I think).
The plot to entrap the Nazi, going by the name
Dieter Vogel, involves Rachel becoming one of
his gynecological patients—an unbelievably
discomforting situation for her (and the audience)—and leads to the attempted kidnap of
Vogel, who the trio is supposed to ferret out of
Berlin and back to Israel for trial. All does not go
as planned, however, and the group is forced to
THIS WEEK’S DEALS
improv an alternate scenario. Here’s where “the
debt” part comes into the story, commingling
with the increasing romantic tension between
the three and their prisoner (the appropriately
smarmy Jesper Christiansen).
The movie recalls a myriad of other psychological thrillers—from Death and the Maiden
on back to Hitchcock’s Lifeboat—and works, as
noted because of that good but oh so pretty
trio and their acting elders. Mirren, as usual, is
sensational and Wilkinson matches her intensity
as her morally suspect ex-husband while Hans
plays the conscience-stricken David with suitable complexity.
Although there are lots of credibility gaps as
the picture enters its concluding sequence in
which Mirren must finally make good on “the
debt” owed by the trio, as these political thrillers go, The Debt pays off in both departments.
Speaking of credibility gaps ... well, that would
be producer Guillermo del Toro’s remake of Don’t
Be Afraid of the Dark (directed by Troy Nixey).
The film—a remake of the creepy 1973 TV classic starring Kim Darby and Jim Hutton that del
Toro and Matthew Robbins have adapted—now
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linked to the LGBT community
www.QponChicago.com
Proud QponChicago Partners:
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www.pridefilmsandplays.com
773-472-6643
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5 locations thruout Chicago
(Navy Pier, Lincoln Park, Loop, O’Hare)
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www.chicagoarcherycenter.com
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As featured in
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For more information or to list your business, please contact us at
[email protected]
773-562-3311 or 773-387-2394
Bailee Madison in Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark.
Photo by Carolyn Johns
WINDY CITY TIMES
focuses on Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce as a
couple who have invested everything in their
restoration of a once-celebrated mansion (he’s
the restorer, she’s the interior designer) that,
unbeknownst to them, includes some terrifying
inhabitants.
Once Pearce’s sour-faced daughter, Sallie
(Bailee Madison), arrives, the secret of these
tiny creatures (who live in an underworld far
beneath the house) is slowly uncovered. First,
Sallie finds a hidden room (complete with an
arched skylight) that the original owner, a
painter of renown, used as his studio. The room
also hides (via a heating grate) the entrance to
the lower world inhabited by the nasty, goblintype monsters who have an affinity for sticking
sharp objects into their unsuspecting victims
like so many pincushions, speaking in raspy, repetitive whispers reminiscent of Gollum in the
Lord of the Rings pictures, and who can’t abide
even a smidgen of light.
In their script, del Toro and Robbins have included a backstory for the murderous wee folk
that riffs on the legend of the tooth fairy (yes,
really) that is laughable but which also allows
for a stomach-turning prologue in which an
unsuspecting servant girl’s teeth are brutally
dispatched. This is the movie’s lone superior
sequence and embodies del Toro’s unsung ability to combine gore with the gorgeous. (He did
this superbly in Pan’s Labyrinth.) The rest of the
movie is run-of-the-mill creature-feature stuff
that finds as many gaping holes in the script as
in the woodwork of the house. With the exception of that opening segment, this remake can’t
hold a candle to its chintzy but decidedly more
satisfying forebear. (The TV version also has the
benefit of Billy Goldenberg’s truly chilling score,
which haunts long after that movie’s 74-minute
running time.) Warner Archives has just released
a special-edition DVD, which contains the film
and a bonus commentary track by a trio of the
movie’s rabid enthusiasts.
Film notes:
—The Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State
St., has a lot of screening options this week that
will be of interest to LGBT film enthusiasts. First
up is a weeklong engagement, beginning Sept.
2, of writer-director Mike Mills’ autobiographical bittersweet dramedy, Beginners, in which a
father (played by Christopher Plummer), comes
out at 75 to his son (Ewan McGregor) after being
widowed. It’s one of the best films of the year
and both Plummer and McGregor give Oscar-worthy performances.
—Next up, on Sept. 3 and 8, the Siskel presents three short films from the Outfest Legacy
Project Program: Mona’s Candlelight (circa
1950), Queen At Hearts (1967) and Choosing
Children (1984). The films, totaling 95 minutes,
each offer rare, historical glimpses into gay culture that have been restored and are being presented as part of the Siskel’s 2011 UCLA Festival
of Preservation.
—Lastly, the Siskel is presenting Cher’s breakthrough movie role in Robert Altman’s 1982
gender-bending classic Come Back to the Five
& Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. The film,
which isn’t on DVD, also stars Karen Black,
Sandy Dennis and Sudie Bond. It, too, has been
preserved and will be presented, on Sept. 3 and
7, as part of the UCLA Festival. Complete information on all these screenings at http://www.
siskelfilmcenter.org
—More Cher to share: On Wed., Sept. 7. at 7
p.m. (CST), Cher is the guest programmer for the
evening on Turner Classic Movies. The gay icon
sits down with TCM host Robert Osborne (in a
pre-taped segment) and introduces four of her
favorite classics which include Follow the Fleet
(1936), Hobson’s Choice (1954), The Big Street
(1942) and Lady of Burlesque (1943). http://
www.tcm.com
Check out my archived reviews at http://
www.windycitymediagroup.com or http://
www.knightatthemovies.com. Readers can
leave feedback at the latter website.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
27
Kelly McGillis on ‘Top Gun,’
coming out and big hair
By Richard Knight, Jr.
Kelly McGillis broke through to film audiences
with her sensational performance in 1985’s Witness and quickly solidified her position as a box
office draw with the testosterone-heavy Top Gun
in 1986.
Director Tony Scott’s follow-up to his bisexual
vampire chic thriller The Hunger, Top Gun focused on a group of ace pilots training for dangerous combat missions who compete, in the
interim, for a coveted prize and bragging rights
during their training. As nearly the lone female
amongst the bevy of the ‘80s “top guns” (Tom
Cruise, Val Kilmer, Dean Stockwell and others)
who played the charged-up wingmen, McGillis
held her own. The movie was a blockbuster and
is now coming to Blu-ray in a 25th-anniversary
edition.
McGillis went on to co-star with Jodie Foster
in the compelling rape drama The Accused and
made a few other films into the 1990s, after
which she did some stage work, raised a family
and took a break from film acting.
She made news in 2009 when she came out
as a lesbian. McGillis, a breast-cancer survivor,
has slowly returned to acting in films, taking on
roles in between full time work as a rehab counselor near the home she shares with her partner
in New Jersey.
Windy City Times: It’s hard to believe that
Top Gun was 25 years ago but the minute that
Berlin’s “Take My Breath Away” started, I was
transported back in time. [Laughs] You seem
almost like Snow White with all those hunky
Seven Dwarfs. What was it like being almost
the lone female?
Kelly McGillis: Dwarfs! [Laughs]
WCT: Very beautifully coiffed dwarves, I
might add...
KM: Yes, they were! I used to love to rub
their heads—all that shaved hair felt so good.
[Laughs] Boy, I had a great time. Gosh, I was
Darla with Spanky & Our Gang.
WCT: Can you talk a little bit about the
shoot itself?
KM: The shoot was really fun. I always thought
about it like being at camp—it was literally like
that [laughs] because all the boys and I all lived
in the same hotel complex. We called it “Wally
World” and it was literally like camp. During the
day we would go act and at night we just had a
wild, crazy time.
WCT: So they didn’t give you a hard time?
KM: No, they were all really, really nice. We
had a great time. You know—you’re young,
you’re partying, you have no responsibilities—
life can’t get any better when you’re in your 20s.
WCT: Can you talk about shooting some specific scenes with Tom?
KM: I loved working with Tom. I think he’s the
most kind, generous, giving, loving, supportive
soul and I really had a great time with him. We
had to do a lot of stuff over because Tony Scott
was really big on that sunset light—that golden
hour. I just remember going to that friggin’ tarmac every day [laughs] at sunset to get this one
friggin’ shot which seemed like it took forever. I
really enjoyed the whole experience.
WCT: There’s a love scene between you and
Tom Cruise that’s very similar, photographically, to the love scene between Catherine
Deneuve and Susan Sarandon in The Hunger,
Tony Scott’s previous movie with the perfect
back lighting. Had you seen The Hunger before shooting the movie?
KM: Oh, yes.
WCT: How do you feel about [Top Gun] now,
25 years later? It has a bit of a homoerotic
reputation among the gay community.
KM: I don’t know. I’ve never watched it.
WCT: What?!
KM: Well, no; I watched it when it came out
because I had to talk about it but I don’t sit
around and look back. I have caught glimpses
of it when it’s on TV and my kids have been
watching it or something [laughs] and I’m in
the other room doing laundry and I go, “Oh my
God. I used to be so young, what happened?!”
But that’s about it. I don’t really go back but
I just think it’s really amazing that people are
still interested in it 25 years later. That blows
my mind. And I think it’s a tribute to Tony, really, because he’s such a visualist and it’s a fun
story, cowboys-and-Indians story—what could
be sexier?
WCT: Especially that shower-room scene
says the gay film critic. [Laughs] And you had
really good hair in that film—that big ‘80s
hair.
KM: [Laughs] I did! I hate when people look
at pictures from that decade and say, “This was
a really bad hair day” and I’m like, “In the ‘80s
that was a fantastic hair day!” I really don’t love
how people dump on the ‘80s—the ‘80s were my
genre. I just think it’s funny how when we look
back people have such judgments on their lives
and I think, “Oh my gosh, it was so cool and hip
and wonderful. Why judge that?”
WCT: I agree 100 percent So, this film led
to one of your best, The Accused, with Jodie
Foster. What was it like to go from such a
fun, blockbuster-type movie to something a
lot grittier from an acting standpoint?
KM: Well, that’s what acting is, isn’t it? You
get to do a whole bunch of different stuff and
that’s what I do and that’s what I did. I wouldn’t
want to do all the same kind of characters nor
the same kind of genres and I also felt that it
was a huge gift to be able to talk about a sub-
DaveOuanoPhotography.com
Events • Fashion • Fitness
Kelly McGillis. PR photo
ject matter that people weren’t willing to talk
about at the time. And that was something that
was really important to me in my life and my
experience at that time in life and what a huge
gift that fell into my lap.
WCT: So now, here we are in the new millennium and you’re back and you’ve come out
and I’m curious, like the Dan Savage campaign proclaims, “It gets better.” Has it got-
ten better for you now personally?
KM: I don’t know if it’s gotten better or worse.
I try not to have a value judgment on it. It just
kind of is. It’s better in the sense that I don’t
have to skirt around the questions; I don’t have
to live a lie. What could be better than that?
Because I think that, for me, not being able to
be who I am creates so much self-loathing and
self-hatred and that just got to a point to be
a huge, incredible burden that I didn’t want to
carry anymore.
WCT: Well, kudos to you for that. I also want
to say kudos for One A Minute, this breastcancer film that you narrated. I know that’s a
subject that’s very near and dear to you. Are
there other projects like that coming up for
you, Kelly?
KM: No, I haven’t done any other documentaries. Right now I’ve just been busy working
at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility and
that’s a full time, 40-hour-a-week commitment
so I haven’t had a heck of a lot of time to be
doing any other kind of service stuff.
WCT: Well, doing that kind of work now,
does the acting seem not as important or is it
something that you want to stay with? I know
you recently did a film in the horror genre
called The Innkeepers.
KM: For me I would love to have a life of balance—of loving service and creativity—and I
think that’s the process in my life where I am.
I’m trying to find a balance where I can do both
because both are my passion and both I love
with all my heart and soul and both feed me in
incredible ways. I’m in the middle of trying to
find the balance to be able to do both.
WCT: That’s lovely. It’s not always easy to
find that is it?
KM: It isn’t for me sweetheart. [Laughs] I’m an
all-or-nothing kind of girl!
WCT: Well, thanks for being a hero for our
community and welcome back—we’ve missed
you.
KM: Thank you so much—it’s good to be back.
O
Benefitting the Lesbian Community Care Project at Howard Brown Health Center
Friday, September 16, 2011, 8 - 11 p.m.
Carnivale, 702 W. Fulton Market
Buy tickets now!
Visit howardbrown.org/eve
The Sponsors!
ModelMayhem.com/DaveOuano
Facebook: Dave Ouano Photography
[email protected]
Benefitting
HOWARD BROWN
HEALTH CENTER
HOWARD BROWN
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
28
DISH
the
SAVOR
Oak Tree;
Taste of the
Gold Coast
BY ANDREW DAVIS
If you’re like me and can eat breakfast any time
of the day, then check out Oak Tree, located on
the sixth level of the Bloomingdale’s building at
900 N. Michigan.
However, patrons should not be deceived by
the tony address; despite the ambience, some of
the patrons (“ladies who lunch”) and spectacular window views, the attire is casual (although
I’d leave the cutoff shorts at home).
The service will also have people thinking that
they’re in a very upscale restaurant. Our server,
John, was the utmost professional while the
hostess, Gigi, was very courteous and informative.
Owner Hale DeMar—who pitched in and served
diners as well—told Savor that the menu changes about every six months or so, as less popular
items are removed.
Breakfast items cover a wide range of items,
including tasty Eggs Florentine (with spinach
and hollandaise sauce); chicken livers and eggs;
Belgian waffles; and a wide array of pancakes
and omelets. Lox and the fruit medley are popular dishes.
WEEKLY DINING GUIDE IN
However, Oak Tree offers so much more. I know
this from experience, having had the sandwiches. One of my favorites is ham with Roquefort,
fig preserves, fontina and spinach—it’s a gustatory delight. Also try the one with bacon,
smoked gouda, cheddar, Granny Smith apple,
arugula and fig preserves.
In addition, there is a bakery that offers artisan breads (e.g., honey wheat, jalapeno cheddar,
French flute, raisin pumpernickel and caraway
rye), cakes, muffins, rolls and other delectables.
All of the items are very reasonably priced;
pancakes, for example, run about $9 and the
aforementioned breads are $3.75-$6.50.
The restaurant is open 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
seven days a week, while the bakery is open
7:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
The Third Annual Taste of the Gold Coast took
place Aug. 23 at the Sutton Place Hotel.
There were 13 participating restaurants—including Il Mulino, Cape Cod, RA Sushi, Chicago
Q, Go Roma, Whiskey Bar, Carmine’s, Pane Caldo,
Gaylord, The Drawing Room, Saloon Steakhouse,
Devon Seafood Grill and Hendrickx Belgian
Bread—in addition to Goose Island Belgium
Style Ales. There was also live entertainment
featuring Nan Mason & Terry Higgins and Lynne
Jordan and the Shivers. In addition, a silent
auction (including items donated by Windy City
Times photographer/columnist Steve Starr) benefited the North Dearborn Association.
Cece & Melinda with Raymi Productions hosted
the event. Photos by Andrew Davis
Oak Tree’s turkey hash and eggs. Photo by Andrew Davis
Dining news
—Chicago q chef Lee Ann Whippen did the Windy City proud at the 10th Annual Maryland State
BBQ Bash recently. Competing against 63 teams from around the country, Whippen finished second in the Ribs category and sixth overall in the four categories of Pork Ribs, Pork Shoulder, Beef
Brisket and Chicken. Chicago q is at 1160 N. Dearborn; see http://www.chicagoqrestaurant.com.
—Restaurant reservation website OpenTable is teaming with Savored, which offers restaurant
reservations and deals, to launch a partnership that gives Chicagoans access to Savored
discounts through OpenTable.com, according to the Chicago Tribune. Savored members pay $10
per reservation and get 30 percent off their bill. The partnership allows OpenTable members to
access Savored deals and book qualifying reservations through the website.
—The Common Threads Associate Board will host its first-ever Common Threads Cook-Off
Thursday, Sept. 15, at Fulton’s on the River, 315 N. LaSalle Dr., 6:30-9:30 p.m. Chefs will create
and serve their favorite cookout-themed dish either in a glass, on a bun, in a shell or on a stick.
Among the participating chefs/mixologists are Nicole Pederson (C-House), Chris Cavarra (Sable)
and Stephanie Izard (Girl & the Goat). Tickets start at $75 each; see https://secure.tecture.com/
commonthreads/eventtickets.aspx?eventId=77.
Send items to [email protected].
DISH
the
American
Beef ‘n Brandy
127 S. State St., Chicago
312-372-3451
beefbrandy.net
A Chicago tradition since 1967.
Serving pizza, burgers, meat loaf,
homemade Foccacia bread and
more.
Roscoe’s Sidewalk Cafe
3356 N. Halsted St., Chicago
773-281-3355
roscoes.com
Visit our popular outdoor cafe.
Salads, burgers, wraps, sandwiches, drink specials, and Sunday
Brunch.
Images from the Taste of the Gold Coast. Photo
by Andrew Davis. See more online www.windycitymediagroup.com
DINING LISTINGS
Hamburger Mary’s
5400 N. Clark St., Chicago
773-784-6969
hamburgermarys.com/chicago
Burgers, salads and sass served up
in a kitschy atmosphere with an
on-site brew pub.
Bakery
Swedish Bakery
5348 N. Clark St., Chicago
773-561-8919
swedishbakery.com
European-style cookies, pastries,
breads, and tortes. We’ll create a
cake for any celebration.
Fondue
Geja’s Cafe
340 W. Armitage Ave., Chicago
773-281-9101
gejascafe.com
Romantic fondue dining. Live
classical and flamenco guitar.
Extensive, moderately priced wine
list.
ITALIAN
Taverna 750
750 W. Cornelia Ave., Chicago
773-348-5172
Bright and fresh Italian small
plates with an exciting cocktail
menu. Surprisingly affordable.
Mediterranean
Socca
3301 N. Clark St., Chicago
773-248-1155
soccachicago.com
Featured on Food Network. Italian/French cuisine. Dinner daily
and weekend brunch. Outdoor
patio.
Mexican
Mundial Cocina Mestiza
1640 W. 18th St., Chicago
312-491-9908
mundialcocinamestiza.com
Creative Mexican cuisine in the
Pilsen neighborhood. Handshaken
margaritas and affordable wines.
To get your business listed in The Dish, contact [email protected]
Middle Eastern
Habibi Restaurant
1227 W. Devon Ave., Chicago
773-465-9318
habibirestaurantandhookah.com
Authentic Middle Eastern dishes.
Lunch and dinner until 4 a.m.
Hookah bar. Delivery and catering
available.
SEAFOOD
Kingfisher
5721 N. Clark St., Chicago
773-506-7014
www.kingfisheronclark.com
Fresh seafood in the heart of
Andersonville. Award-winning
Chef Peter McCarthy. Reservations
recommended.
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
29
Women & Children First
thriving in economy
By Ross Forman
Although many major chain bookstores in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs have closed,
including the Borders at Clark, Broadway and
Diversey Streets in Lakeview, Women & Children
First in Andersonville is doing fine—if not getting better from financial and business standpoints.
Since the start of the year, for instance, the
long-time independent bookstore run by Linda
Bubon and Ann Christophersen has been selling Google eBooks through their website. “The
Google eBooks have a great advantage over the
Kindle books because they can be read on a
myriad of devices,” Bubon said. “This is finally a
way to compete with Amazon because you can
read your Google eBooks on anything, [including] your computer, iPhone, iPad, Nook, etc.”
Women & Children First continues to offer a
full program schedule of author events, Bubon
noted. Especially of late. “People still seem to
want to read their books here and celebrate the
publications of their books here. That’s been a
good, solid part of the business.” Including celebrity authors, such as Jane Lynch of Glee fame,
who will be at the store on Oct. 9.
Sales of children’s books also have been
steady, strong. In fact, it has increased some
over the past few years, Bubon said. “This market is a little less affected by the digital revolution.”
Women & Children First has been most impacted in recent years by Amazon, which uses books
as a loss leader, she said. “Their biggest source
of sales comes from [the sales of] electronics
and appliances; they just don’t have to make
money on [the sale] of books, so they more and
more under-cut publishers, book stores and even
price clubs.”
The slow, steady growth in sales at Women &
Children First also has been seen in its staffing.
Christophersen, for instance, was in recent years
only working at the store one day a week. But
as of about a year ago, she’s now there four days
per week. “We’re back to having both of us here
most of the time and being able to afford that,”
Bubon said.
Although Women & Children First has not been
able to expand its staff, it also has not had to
lay anyone off.
There are nine employees at the feminist
bookstore, including three full-timers: Bubon,
Christophersen and Kate Wilson.
“The good news is, during the last three years,
about 300 new independent bookstores have
opened nationally and it seems that there is a
trend that people are starting to take a chance
again [to open independent bookstores],” Bubon said. “I think the pendulum is swinging the
other way. Whether or not new feminist bookstores will be opened, I don’t know.”
Bubon said the closing of many chain bookstores locally does not mean the book business
is in trouble.
“Barnes & Noble is re-organizing, sensibly. I
think they’re doing fine,” Bubon said. “Borders
made so many bad business decisions. The fact
that they are bankrupt is largely due to very bad
business decisions over years. I don’t think Borders closing is some type of death-blow to the
book industry. In fact, it’s an opportunity for
a lot of us independents that have been struggling with Borders stores surrounding us.
“I’m more concerned for communities such as
Omaha, where there are no independent bookstores left because of the chain stores, and now
with the [chain stores] leaving [those cities],
will there be people come back into that market
to open [independent] bookstores where there
now are no bookstores?”
Women & Children First is one of only nine
feminist bookstores open in North America, a
number that hit about 110 in the early 1990s.
Many closed in the 1990s and early 2000s, Bubon said, as did other niche bookstores.
Women & Children First will hold its inaugural women writers weekend festival Oct. 15-16.
The event, open to the public, will be called
The Women’s Voices Weekend and showcase the
works of four very different authors: Achy Obejas, StaceyAnn Chin, Nami Mun and Amy Krouse
Rosenthal.
There will be workshops on Oct. 15 at the
Swedish Museum and a reception on that Saturday night (location not announced yet). On Oct.
16, at 4 p.m., there will be a ticketed reading of
all four also at the Swedish Museum.
The event is funded by the Women’s Voices
Fund.
“We hope [the event] is something that will
be something that helps increase the Fund [in
the future],” Bubon said. “I’m very excited
about this event; I think it’s going to be a really
fun weekend.
From left:
Ann
Christophersen,
Allison Bechdel,
Nicole
Hollander and
Linda Bubon
in 2009.
Photo by
Kat
Fitzgerald
“There are so many writers in Chicago, including students in the great writing programs at
most of the area colleges. We think Chicago has
a rich and special environment, so we really
want the community of women writers to know
each other, help each other, and work together
including a mentor-like [program] where older
writers can help younger writers. It just seems
like Women & Children First should be the locus
for that.”
What’s hot?
Here’s a look at some popular books, according to Linda Bubon of Women & Children First:
—Bossypants by Tina Fey
—The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
—A Visit From The Goon Squad by Jennifer
Egan
—Leatherman: The Legend of Chuck Renslow
by Tracy Baim and Owen Keehnen
WINDY CITY
TIMES
PRIDE
DAY
AT WRIGLEY
Sunday, Sept. 4, 2011
$50
MEDIA SPONSORS:
WINDY CITY nightspots
TIMES
Bleacher
tickets
Join us for a charitable event at the
Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates game
1:20 p.m., Sept. 4.
Then, join us at the after-party at
800 W. Belmont Ave.
4 p.m.
2011 Windy City Gay Idol
TJ CHERNICK
performs at the game and at Spin
(with other Windy City Gay Idol contestants at Spin)
After-party
sponsored by
www.windycitymediagroup.com/WrigleyPride
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the following charities:
In partnership with
&
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
30
REAL ESTATE
CLASSIFIEDS
ADVERTISE HERE
ADVERTISE HERE: Want to advertise your product,
service, etc. to thousands of readers? Place an ad in the
Windy City Times! We offer affordable rates, convenient
service, and as a bonus, your ad runs in our online
section for free. To place an ad, contact Terri at 773871-7610 ex 101, [email protected],
or go to our website www.WindyCityMediaGroup.
com.
ASTROLOGY
UNDERSTAND YOURSELF, YOUR MOTIVATIONS, YOUR
FEELINGS. Recognize your talents, strengths, successes. Overcome difficulties and confusion. Astrology can
help pull it all together. Relationships. Career. Plan the
future. Serious astrology for serious seekers. Private,
personal consultations. www.astrologicaldetails.com
Lin Ewing 847.609.0034 (1/7/12-52)
CLEANING SERVICES
CHESTNUT CLEANING SERVICES: We’re a house cleaning
service for homes, small businesses and small buildings.
We also have fabulous organizational skills (a separate
function at a separate cost that utilizes your assistance)
for what hasn’t been cleaned in many months or years
due to long-term illness, depression, physical/mental
challenges, for the elderly, if you have downsized and
more. Depressed about going home to chaos? We can
organize your chaos, straighten out your chaos, help
you make sense of your chaos and finally clean what
is no longer chaos. Can we help you? Bonded and
insured. Chestnut Cleaning Service: 312-332-5575.
www.ChestnutCleaning.com (4/27/11-52)
COUNSELING
Counseling and Clinical Hypnotherapy: Providing help
to individuals and couples in our community since 1987.
I specialize in relationship issues, spiritual issues,
childhood trauma, and recurrent patterns that inhibit
potential. Starla R. Sholl, LCSW, PC, 773.878.5809,
www.starlasholl.com (9/1/11-26)
FACELIFT MASSAGE
BELLANINA FACELIFT MASSAGE. Creating Beauty with
Healing Hands. Marilyn Fumagalli, CMT, Bellanina Specialist. Located in Andersonville’s historic Calo Theater
Building. Mention this listing for $5 off your first
appointment. (773) 965-0972 (9/21/11-26-KS)
HELP WANTED
EXPERIENCED KITCHEN & BATH DESIGNER WANTED.
Join our easy-going, professional team. Nothing
comparable in Chicago. We offer full luxury design
services at outlet prices in our beautiful showroom.
Seeking an outgoing, friendly, intelligent, eye-on-theprize cabinet & tile closer. We treat all of our employees
like family. If you’re not happy in your current
position, email your cover letter & resumé to alan@
designerstoneoutlet.com
LUXE HOME MERCHANDISE MART SHOWROOM: High
End stone and wood sales. Mart/Design experience
preferred. Use your winning smile and imagination to
close the deal! Immediate opening with great earnings
potential and benefits in the future. Email cover letter
and resumé to [email protected]
VOSGES HAUT-CHOCOLAT What better way to learn
about a culture, person or object than through eating
luxury chocolat - all day, every day! Vosges HautChocolat is offering exciting career opportunites in
the following areas: Senior Graphic Designer, HTML
Web Designer and Director of Sales. For position
details, visit our website at www.vosgeschocolate.
com (under Careers) and submit your credentials for
consideration. (8/24/11-2)
CUSTOM FRAMER WANTED for busy northside store. Call
Jay at 773-784-3962.
FOR SALE - HOMES
WWW.GAYREALESTATE.COM Free Instant Access to
Chicago’s Top Gay REALTORS® on-line at www.GayRealEstate.com or Toll Free 1.888.420.MOVE (6683)
(4/25/12–52)
Own a piece of
Chicago history!
Residential Real estate
HOME IMPROVEMENT
BATHROOM REMODELING, HOME REPAIRS, PAINTING
& MORE. Licensed-Bonded-Insured. One year warranty.
Price by the job - not the hour. FREE estimates! Check
us out on Angie’s List. Andy OnCall, 773-244-9961.
www.getandy.com (8/1/12-52)
FLOOR & WINDOW COVERINGS FOR ALL BUDGETS.
Carpet, Tile, Hardwood, Bamboo, Laminate, Vinyl, and
Window Coverings.Specializing in Helping with Material
Selections for your Budget. Professionally Installed. Nationwide Floor & Window Coverings, We Bring the Showroom to You! Call or email for a free consultation and
estimate. 773-935-8700, email cjones@nfwchicago.
com www.nfwchicago.com (11/2/11–13)
DRAPERY CONNECTION: Your exceptional source for
Blinds, Solar Screen Shades, Shutters and Custom
Draperies. We offer Hunter Douglas and all major
brands at sale pricing since 1939. For a FREE inhome estimate call Greg at 800-245-7790 Ext.10.
DraperyConnection.com. (10/5/11-13)
LEGAL SERVICES
NEED LEGAL HELP? Pride Law, Andersonville’s legal aid
clinic for the LGBT community can help. Clinic hours
every Wednesday, 5-8:00 p.m. by appointment only. Call
1-866-703-5509 or send us an email at pridelsaw@
tsamislaw.com.
MOVERS
WE ARE AN EXPERT, FULL-SERVICE MOVING COMPANY
with over a decade of excellence serving our community. We pride ourselves in offering top-quality,
efficient, low-cost, damage-free moves. Small to large
trucks, fully equipped with modern tools, supplies of the
trade. Rates for guaranteed professional staff: 2-man
crew $65/hr.; 3-man crew $85/hr.; 4-man crew $105/hr.
(plus low, one-time travel charge.) Call 773-777-1110
or www.chicagocrescentmovers.com. (9/21/11-26)
RESEARCH STUDY
773.398.4097
[email protected]
An independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc.
CONDO TO SHARE
Fully restored Victorian
greystone with open floor plan,
updated kitchen, 3+ bdrms,
intricate architectural details, &
lots of natural light. Large
English garden on oversized
lot w/ garage. 2 rental units on
the first floor & coach house.
Conveniently located near the
Medical district & Blue Line.
1532 West Jackson
Laura Calvache, Broker Assoc.
Coldwell Banker / 312.339.0021
[email protected]
1532JacksonBlvd.info
Offered at $1,000,000
FOR SALE - MULTI-UNIT BUILDING
ANDERSONVILLE BRICK 2FLAT 1658 W.Hollywood. Rehabbed -1st floor duplex with 2/3 bdrm 2 bth. 2nd
flr, 3bdrm 1 bth, sep hvac-hardwood floors, 2car garage, granite kitchens w/ss appliances, beautiful baths.
Walk to restaurant and shops. Reduced and motivated
$535,000. J. Frank Hunter Properties. 773-7713547 (9/14/11–4)
FOR SALE - CONDOS
HIV+? Age 16-29?
Interested in receiving text
messages to remind you to protect
and promote your health?
Contact us at 773.880.3919 or
[email protected]
You will be compensated for
your time and travel.
Celebrations
Share your special moments with
the community in Windy City
Times’ new announcement section!
Bache-Holt Wedding
Longtime partners and well-known local athletes Linda Bache
(left) and Yvette Holt were married recently in a private ceremony at their home. Bache is majority owner and general manager of the Chicago Force women’s pro football team.
Chad
Duda
RAINTREE GARDEN CONDOMINIUM IN WELCOMING
GLEN ELLYN. Beautiful area minutes from Chicago
Metra. Large one bedroom huge walk-in closet, eatin kitchen, dining room, 23X13 living room, walk-out
patio overlooking golf course. Includes new carpeting,
new Carrier furnace-C/A, space #46 in heated garage,
pool, tennis courts, clubhouse. Call: Judie Newman,
Remax Synergy (708) 288-7871 (8/17/11–4)
LUXURY CONDO TO SHARE Andersonville/Lincoln Square
area. Newer large 2br, 2 bath unit in boutique building.
All amenities including elevator and heated attached
garage. Fabulous kitchen, w/d in unit, large covered
balcony. 5 Min walk to brown line and metra. Me: middle
aged male non smoking professional. Rarely drink, keep
immaculate residence, good guy. You: male, mature,
employed, stable, non smoking, very clean, respectful
of privacy. $900/Mo, utilities, garage included.
[email protected] (9/7/11–4)
FOR RENT - TWO BEDROOM
PALOS PARK - 2 BRM, 2 FULL BATHS. So nice to come
home to! Convenient area. 2nd floor unit with dining
room, den, laundry room, new carpet & 2 car garage.
Available immediately. $1600 per month. Call Sharon:
708.269.0490 (8/24/11-2)
FOR RENT - THREE BEDROOM
ROGERS PARK: 3BR 2 BATH. Easy commute Own laundry
& indv. lg bsmt. Fenced yard. Hardwood floors. Non
smoker preferred. Pets? Avail 9/1. $1,100+ HEAT &
UTIL. FREE parking. JACK: 312-305-5473 or 773338-5473. (9/7/11-8)
ON THE LAKE 3BR 2BA; Large, gorgeous, vintage
apartment in quiet, clean intimate building steps to
the beach. Hdwd, stained glass, FP, built-in bookcases,
arched doorways, 2000 SF. If you are looking for
a special place to call home and love beautiful
architecture and design this could be your answer. Nonsmokers, cats ok, may consider a small dog. $1850/
Mo including heat. For more info and pictures email:
[email protected] (8/31/11-2)
ANDERSONVILLE LARGE 3 BEDROOM. 3rd Floor Foster
& Ashland. Decorated. Separate Dining Room. Wood
finished floors. $1200.00 per month. Heat included.
Available October 1. 773-561-6568. (10/12/11-8)
GEORGEOUS LARGE APT - ROGERS PARK renovated 3
bedroom 2 bath apt. new kitchen with appliances. new
carpeting, ceiling fans. hardwood floors. sunny. many
closets. 1st floor with security buzzer. storage room &
FREE LAUNDRY. FREE HEAT, FREE 1 CAR GARAGE. close to
parks, shopping, public transportation. $2000/month,
Email [email protected] or call 773-9607064 (8/24/11-2)
WINDY CITY TIMES
NUNN ON ONE: TV
Aug. 31, 2011
Emma. Both of them are such great people. I get
so excited when we get to work together.
WCT: What would you like to tell people
who are picked on for being different?
DJ: The people that are picking on them are
just insecure about something of themselves. All
of the people that I went to school with we grew
up together. People talked crap about me when
I was growing up. “Is that a man or a woman?”
I was big. I went from 5’6” to 6’1” in eighth
grade. Where the hell could I hide that? People
always ask me if I would have been smaller or
to win 15 world titles then I would see about
shorter.
retiring.
I wouldn’t have accomplished anything and
WCT: Jane Lynch has a book coming out.
be where I am at if it wasn’t for how big I am.
Would you ever want to write one?
I went to the Olympic trails twice in the shot
DJ: Absolutely.
WCT: I watched you as a mentor on Oxygen’s
The Glee Project. What do you think of that
show?
BENT NIGHTS
DJ: It is fantastic. I love to see Robert Ulrich
on there, too, because he was one of the casting
directors that cast me on to Nip/Tuck. It was
great to work with him outside of the office. The
kids are so talented.
by Vern Hester
WCT: They are so good.
DJ: I am just glad that I don’t have to be the
Blues and more blues...
one to pick the one that goes home.
The last time that I saw Vanessa Davis and
WCT: I am talking to the winner soon but
her band was in 1982 and my impression then
they won’t tell me who it is yet.
was that one would not want to trifle with
DJ: You will be happy.
this woman. So it’s hardly a shock that after
WCT: You know and can’t tell me! You get
29 years the Vanessa Davis Band is just as
to be on the finale. I just recently saw you
hard-rocking, if not harder, than before. As the
appear on Logo’s Drag U as a judge.
only out blues singer in Illinois (and maybe in
DJ: I love me some RuPaul!
the country) Davis has managed to go beyond
WCT: How did that happen? RuPaul just
mere art while her shows border on a religious
called you up?
fever.
DJ: He called my agent and asked if I would
Hitting Fitzgerald’s tiny stage with a flirty,
interested. I said, “Hell yeah!” I love that show.
sassy “Rock My Blues Away,” Davis and her
I would have liked to have been one of the conband started the evening running. To say that
testants that they made over because I grew up
this group proffers the most joyful blues in
out in the country and I am so casual. Dressing
the Midwest may sound like a contradiction,
up for me is a nice pretty shirt and new jeans.
but it’s the truth. Davis—jamming on air guiSo that would be a blast to have them make me
tar with her short dreads flying—was clearly
over although I couldn’t walk in heels.
wrapped in her joy while the band kept push WCT: I heard you might wear pants to the
ing her further. Even a standard blues lament
Emmys.
like “Walking Man Blues” had such a rollicking
DJ: I am planning on it. I have to find somebounce that it was impossible not to dance.
body that can make something incredible for
(They should have advertised this show as a
me. I get offers where they want to fit me for
dance party since the tiny space in front of the
stage stayed packed with grooving bodies.)
However, where so many blues artists rely
on standards to the point of cliche (no, they
did not do “Sweet Home Chicago”) or embrace
the blues as an end-all and be-all, Davis and
Co. forged into pop and soul classics while
reinventing and coloring them. Aretha Franklin’s “See Saw” and “Dr. Feelgood” were transformed into blunt blues, taking “Lady Soul”
where she would likely fear to tread. Sam
and Dave’s “Wrap It Up” was lacerating, unforgiving and, believe it or not, far more joyful then the original. A slow burning take on
the Supremes’ “Does Your Mama Know About
Me?” gave Davis the chance to open up vocally
while setting Doug Cannon loose on a searing
sax solo. When Diana Ross first sang the song
in 1969, her vocals and the sweetness of the
production only hinted at its message of racial inclusion. Davis’ take not only seemed to
challenge the color line but also that of sexual
Dot Jones. PR photo
identity without being overt or capsizing the
song. (After all, it is a love song.) Was Davis
making a statement? I can’t say, but it still hit
like a brick fist.
the Emmys then I tell them my size. They usually
say, “We only have sizes zero to six.” I wasn’t
To be honest I had no intention of actually likborn a six!
ing ZZ Top’s recent show at The Venue. As that
WCT: They have to make you something spe“Lil’ Ol’ Band from Texas,” I had pretty much
cial, then.
decided from the slightly misogynistic vid DJ: I know. I have a few phone calls I have to
eos, deadpan low-key humor and monotonous
return and I think we are going to come up with
sound that there just wasn’t much there. That
something great.
they hadn’t released an album since 2003’s
WCT: Can you tell me anything about the
Mescalero (RCA Records) didn’t help, either.
new season of Glee?
However, I was wrong on all counts and was
DJ: It is going to be incredible. That is all
even made to feel dumb for it. Yes, ZZ Top is a
I know. I just shot my first episode the other
party band with blues, drugs, wild women and
day. I was in one scene with Matt Morrison and
Jayma Mays. I love her; she is the one that plays
Glee’s Dot Jones
on Emmys, RuPaul
and arm wrestling
31
put, won 15 arm-wrestling titles and I am on the
number-one show in the country. As my friend
Kathy Griffin would say, “Suck it!”
WCT: Sounds like her. When are you coming
to Chicago?
DJ: One of my best girlfriends lives in Skokie.
I haven’t been there since 1999. I did a movie
there in Stockton, Ill. It was called Stray Dogs
with Genevieve Turner. I love Chicago—not to
mention the best pie in the nation!
WCT: How do people keep up with you?
DJ: I do Twitter. It is dotmariejones.
Look for the annual Emmy Awards on Sept.
10 by checking http://www.emmys.tv for listings. The new season of Glee starts in early
2012 on Fox.
The Vanessa
Davis Band;
ZZ Top
BY JERRY NUNN
Dot Jones was breaking records even before her
starring role as Coach Shannon Beiste on the hit
Fox show Glee. Jones is a 15-time arm-wrestling
world champion, has completed 20 years in
showbiz and is ready to wrestle the Emmy out of
her competitor’s grip next month.
Windy City Times: Hello, Dot. How are you
today?
Dot Jones: Hi, Jerry. I’m sorry I am late calling
you. I was at an audition and these crutches are
slowing me down.
WCT: You had to hobble to an audition?
DJ: Yeah; it’s for a movie in October. I am only
on crutches for a few more weeks. How are you,
sweetie?
WCT: I’m great. How exactly did the whole
Glee experience happen for you?
DJ: I ran into Brad Falchuk at the supermarket and I hadn’t see him since I had done Ryan
Murphy’s pilot, Pretty Handsome. That was the
show he had done right before the Glee pilot. It
didn’t get picked up but Glee did. They were just
finishing their first season.
I loved the show and asked if they could write
me something, please! Brad and I were laughing and he asked if I could sing. I said, “I’m
no Mariah Carey but I can carry a little tune.” I
missed Ryan because I had done three Nip/Tucks
also for Ryan. Two months later my agent calls
me and Ryan Murphy’s office wanted to know my
schedule for last July. I was open because I had
just finished a recurring role on HawthoRNe and
the season had just ended. Cut to it and here we
are. Now I have an Emmy nomination, which still
blows my mind.
WCT: That is crazy! Good for you.
DJ: Thank you. This is my 20th year in show
business.
WCT: You started off in sports though, correct?
DJ: Yes. I majored in criminology in college.
I had no idea I would be doing this today. I
worked four and a half years juvenile probation
before a friend of mine told me about auditions
back in ’91. It was for a new show kind of like
American Gladiators but it was called Knights
and Warriors. I played Lady Battle Axe. I got one
of four women spots out of the 300 that auditioned. It was mostly athletic but we did little
acting vignettes. It was fun.
WCT: Do you still work out?
DJ: I try to but I have been so crazy busy that
I haven’t been to the gym in four months.
WCT: Well, now you can’t with your foot.
DJ: Yeah, I just did that Friday night. It’s all
right I still have my foot so I am lucky.
WCT: Do you have a sports award that you
are most proud of?
DJ: I think that when I won my 15th world title in arm wrestling. That was my goal. I wanted
Vanessa Davis. Pic by Vern Hester
fun times on the brain but the punchline is
so subtle it’s actually designed to be missed.
The truth is that ZZ Top is having a good long
laugh by twisting the cliches of Texas (the land
of oversized, overdone and over-the-top) into
salt-water taffy. The band’s sound is big, sloppy and deliberately gnarly but live it’s downright crunchy and irresistible.
As a band that prides itself on being from
Texas there’s not much twang in the sound but
there is a certain laid-back, spacey, subtle humor masquerading as a bouncy harmless “coolness” that’s reminiscent of, say, Dean Martin.
The real joke is that all that sonic fury envelopes a simple aesthetic of goofy, harmless
fun, fun and more fun. This actually neuters
the misogyny; if you supplanted the genders
of your choosing on “Legs,” “Gimme All Your
Loving” or “Tush,” they would easily work as
same-sex anthems. The hidden punchline of all
the jokes is that, from their 3-foot-long beards
to the hokey choreography to the matching
outfits, ZZ Top warned us not to take them seriously.
All that mental processing went out the window as soon as Billy Gibbons (guitar), Dusty
Hill (bass) and Frank Beard (drums) got onstage. “Got Me Under Pressure” had the clumsy
lurch of a 10-ton truck with stripped brakes
while “Jesus Just Left Chicago” blasted The
Venue with the evening’s first bong-induced
joyride. The silly “Cheap Sunglasses” was followed by a furious take on Jimi Hendrix’s “Hey
Joe.” Even that got topped by “Party On The
Patio,” itself a revved-up surf-rock rip that was
as anachronistic as ZZ Top could possibly get.
Apart from the pile-up of hits at the end
(“LaGrange,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Gimme All
Your Loving”) the biggest pleasure of the night
was the inclusion of video clips of the band
from 40 years ago when they were all clean
shaven. I finally got the joke when I realized
that they’ve had those beards for so long that
I thought they were born in them and that I
wouldn’t know them if they walked up to me
on the street and smacked me with a rubber
chicken. Yuck-Yuck...
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
32
way out of it, but everyone is; 9 p.m.9:45 p.m., 312-337-3992, De Maat Studio Theatre, http://www.funnystub.com/
buyticket.cfm?showtimingid=96611&buy
These Boots Are Made For Walkin’ Boot fetish benefit for TPAN. Boot raffles and Hot
Boots Contest. 10 p.m., Touche, 6412 N
Clark St, http://www.touchechicago.com
All-Star Shower Party Next Door Studios
presents this outrageous party featuring
Adult film Stars and GoGo Boys! Next Door
will provide tons of swag for the event
also! 11 p.m., Spin Nightclub, 800 W.
Belmont Ave., http://www.spin-nightclub.
com
Brought to you by the combined efforts of
WINDY CITY
TIMES
Wed., Aug. 31
The Civil Rights Agenda: A “Civilized”
Celebration The Civil Rights Agenda invites you to celebrate a year of making
history. Join TCRA for their first in a series of “Civilized Celebrations” honoring
friends who were joined in Civil Union
on June 3 and celebrating the historical changes in acceptance and “getting
civilized” in Illinois. 5:30 p.m.-9 p.m.,
The Joynt 650 N. Dearborn, http://www.
jointcra.com
Mayor Emanuel leads public town hall
on 2012 City budget Emanuel will take
questions about the budget from the assembled audience and address some ideas
proposed by Chicagoans. Residents can
contribute ideas on how to address the
City’s fiscal challenges by phone, 9am-5
p.m. Monday through Friday, or can log on
to the City’s interactive budget website.
6 p.m.-8 p.m., 312-744-6670, Malcolm X
College, 1900 W. Van Buren St., http://
www.chicagobudget.org
We Are Halsted A fabulous and affordable
variety show with comedy, music, dance,
prizes, inexpensive donated cocktails and
beers, benefiting youth homeless shelters
including The Crib, $5 tickets; 7 p.m.,
Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St.,
http://www.centeronhalsted.org
Gay Softball World Series Talent Show
Teammates with a talent email Jack
Neilsen at [email protected] to
confirm a spot in the show. Emcee: Tajma
Hall. Admission: $10.00; 7 p.m., Hyatt Regency O’Hare, 9300 Bryn Mawr Ave., Rosemont, http://www.chicagoseries2011.com
Northern Lights Chicago’s northernmost
queer dance party with this month’s guest
PLAY BALL
The Gay Softball World Series
will take place in Chicagoland,
with special events in the city.
Photo from 2010
courtesy of Danny Tag
host/ess D’Juana Cyber. Featured performer Crystal Wunderkind, DJ Erik Roldan,
photos by A/S/L and, as always your beloved Go-Go Gothic Dancers! 9 p.m., Parlour on Clark, 6341 N. Clark St., http://
www.parlouronclark.com
Thursday, Sept. 1
35th annual Gay Softball World Series
Tournament Expected to draw 175 teams
from 43 cities in North America in five divisions: A, B, C, D and Master’s; championships played in the Schaumburg Complex
on Saturday, Sept. 3. 12 p.m., Complexes
in Schaumburg, Elmhurst and St. Charles,
Ill.
Steve Becker “Landscapes” Photography,
24 x 60 framed, of Alaska’s natural beauty,
show will run thru September, call for
studio hours; 12 p.m., 773-728-8910, Las
Manos Gallery, 5220 N. Clark St., Chicago,
http://www.lasmanosgallery.com
Pop-Up Art Loop Gallery Walk The Chicago
Loop Alliance (CLA) presents its popular
First Thursdays Pop-Up Gallery Walks be-
CAMPING IT UP
Sept. 2-5
The “Pitch a Tent to Save a Pooch” women’s camping
trip will take place at an undisclosed site. Email sam.
[email protected] for more info.
Photo courtesy of Sam Hamilton
Saturday, Sept. 3
Through Sept. 3
ginning Thursday evening, May 5. Pop-Up
Gallery Walks are free, self-guided tours
of the many new exhibits throughout the
Loop that include complimentary wine,
live art-making, music and more. 5 p.m.8 p.m., 205 S. State Street, http://www.
popupartloop.com
NAGAAA Hall of Fame Dinner NAGAAA will
honor those that came before us and induct new members into the Hall of Fame.
6:30 p.m., Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., http://www.chicagoseries2011.
com/2011/index.php/upcomingevents/
halloffamedinner
TheLStop.org Launch Party Fundraiser
Join TheLStop.org for a fun night full of
Chicago’s finest talent; featuring musical
performances from 9-11 and Teri Bristol
spinning from 11-2! 8:30 p.m., Parlour
on Clark, 6341 N. Clark St., http://www.
thelstop.org
Friday, Sept. 2
Lesbian Camping Trip Labor Day Weekend,
125 conjoined campsites, camp has showers, flushable toilets, electricity, running
water, free wi-fi and a band on Saturday
(Heebie Jeebies), allows alcohol and is
dog and kid friendly, bring your own tent,
supplies, beverages and food but party
and band free; benefits Windy City Animal
Foundation. $15 per adult per night, $5
per child; sam.hamilton.photography@
gmail.com; 12 p.m., 708-436-0031, Yorkville next to the Fox River
Equality Illinois First Friday Networking
Social Join Equality Illinois every first Friday of the month as they feature a different community partner organization. $10
gets you 2 cocktails and a ticket for the
prize drawing. 6 p.m.-9 p.m., Sidetrack,
3349 N Halsted St, http://www.equalityillinois.org
“Labor of Love” A Folk and Rock Labor
Day Concert Event The Flesh Hungry Dog
Show shows its softer side with a (mostly)
acoustic show headlined by Ezra Furman
(of Ezra Furman and the Harpoons) performing a rare solo set; Congress of Starlings; and Tom Goss. Andrea Sottovoce
has his “Bag of Fun” prize giveaways,
DJ Sky with alternative tracks before and
between the sets and Gary Airdale hosts;
21+ venue, tickets $10 at the door or $8
online. 9 p.m., 773-743-5772, Jackhammer, 6406 N Clark St., http://www.fleshhungrydog.com
There Goes the Gaybarhood There Goes the
Gaybarhood is a musical revue about the
gay bar, the gaybarhood and everywhere in
between. It follows characters in and out
of the bar and the relationships that fill
their lives. Some people find themselves
in the bar and others want to find their
Get
online
Gay Softball World Series Closing Awards
Ceremony & Street Fair The 35th annual
Gay Softball World Series (GSWS), which
will take place in Chicago beginning August 29, will wrap-up a week of softball
and social events with a closing awards
ceremony and street fair in Boystown
featuring local cover band Final Say and
world-renowned DJ Bill Bennett. $5 suggested donation at the gate, which will
benefit the Ben Cohen “Stand Up” foundation. 4 p.m.-10 p.m., Waveland Avenue
between Halsted and Broadway, http://
www.chicagoseries2011.com
Mr. Continental 2011 Finals The final
round of the men’s counterpart to the nation’s premier drag pageant. For tickets
and information, call 312-527-9338. 8
p.m., Park West Chicago, 322 W. Armitage
Mr. Club Krave Benefit Show Join Myke Kagan as he presents a show to help raise
money for next year’s Mr. Club Krave competition. Shots, 50/50 split the pot raffles, plus one hell of a show with Lindsey
Devereaux, Serina DeVine, Myke Kagan,
Genae, Bella LaMore, plus a lot more. $4
Long Island or Blue Island Iced Teas, $12
oversized mixed drink pitchers. DJ Kyle R.
8 p.m., Club Krave, 13126 S. Western Ave,
http://www.clubkrave.com
Sunday, Sept. 4
Rainbow Brunch North Shore Rainbow
Brunch is a way for GLBT men and women
in the suburbs to meet new friends and
socialize in a low-key, friendly environment. 10am-12 p.m., Old Country Buffet,
8780 W. Dempster, Niles
Urban Village Church LGBT-welcoming worship services at Urban Village Church are
eclectic and experiential, practical and intelligent, relevant and, hopefully, inspiring. 10:15 a.m.-11:30 a.m., Urban Village
Church, Spertus Institute, 610 S. Michigan, http://www.newchicagochurch.com
Windy City Times Pride Day at Wrigley
Field A charitable event at the Chicago
Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates game $50
bleacher tickets will benefit six local
LGBT and AIDS charities. Pride Day is presented in partnership with the national
gay softball world series taking place
through Sept. 3. The organizations which
will receive a portion of the proceeds are:
AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Center on
Halsted, Equality Illinois, Howard Brown
Health Center/Lesbian Community Care
Project, GLAAD Chicago Leadership Council and Lambda Legal. The winner of the
Windy City Gay Idol contest will be given
the chance to sing at Pride Day, and the
NAGAAA world series Chicago host committee will select a person to throw out
the ceremonial pitch for the Sept. 4 game.
The media partners for Pride Day at Wrigley are Windy City Times, Nightspots, GoPride.com and Grab Magazine. After party
at Spin, 800 W. Belmont Ave. at 4 p.m.
1:15 p.m., Wrigley Field, 1060 W. Addison
St.,
http://www.windycitymediagroup.
com/wrigleypride
Urban Village Church Wicker Park Worship
Services LGBT-welcoming worship services at Urban Village Church are eclectic
and experiential, practical and intelligent,
relevant and, hopefully, inspiring. 5:30
p.m.-7 p.m., 1502 N. Hoyne (at LeMoyne),
KISS ON MY ‘LIST’
Monday, Sept. 5
Watch Reichen (above)
and the rest of the cast
of The A-List at a viewing
party at Spin, 800 W.
Belmont Ave.
PR photo
http://www.newchicagochurch.com
Monday, Sept. 5
Miss Continental 2011 Finals The final
round of the nation’s premier drag pageant. For tickets and information, call
312-527-9338. Vic Theater, 3145 N. Sheffield Ave. 7 p.m., Vic Theater, 3145 N.
Sheffield Ave.
United House: A Night of Unity in House
Music Join Hydrate Nightclub, ChicagoPride.com, and host Cyon Flare for United
House: A Night of Unity in House Music,
featuring Resident House DJ Semaj; 9
p.m., Hydrate, 3458 N. Halsted, http://
www.hydratechicago.com
A-List Viewing Party and Karaoke Mondays Karaoke from 10 p.m.-2 a.m. with
your host, John Florida. Enjoy $4.50 Absolut Cocktails and $4 Miller Lite & Coors
Light Drafts; 9 p.m., Spin Nightclub, 800
W. Belmont Ave., http://www.spin-nightclub.com
Labor Day ... Sidetrack style Open at 1
p.m. with Sidetrack showtunes 8 p.m.-2
a.m.; http://www.sidetrackchicago.com
Tuesday, Sept. 6
Spaghetti & Meatballs Night Join Philip
and all the pretty gang at Angelina Ristorante every Tuesday for Spaghetti &
Meatballs Night. 6 p.m.-10 p.m., Angelina
Ristorante, 3561 N Broadway, http://www.
angelinaristorante.com/
Wed., Sept. 7
Gay Liberation Network Organizing Meeting Organizing meeting for Chicago’s LGBTI direct action group—new participants
welcome. Located just at the corner of
Granville Street & Sheridan Road, a few
blocks east of the; 7 p.m.-9 p.m., 773209-1187, Berger Park Fieldhouse, 6205
N. Sheridan Rd., http://www.gayliberation.net
North America Now Bailiwick Chicago and
Teatro Luna present “North America Now,”
a cultural event focusing on the state of
North America on the 10th anniversary of
the 9/11 attacks. Tickets start at $30 and
are available through www.bailiwickchicago.com or at www.brownpapertickets.
com. 7 p.m.-10 p.m., Instituto Cervantes,
31 W. Ohio St.
Queer Social Club A no-attitude, casual
evening for the Humboldt/Ukie Area LGBTQ and their friends to come in, have
drinks, meet new friends, mingle, etc.
Just a fun night beyond the traditional
outlets in Boystown and dance parties in
Wicker Park - Doing our own thing across
the Western Ave divide! 8 p.m., Archie’s
Tavern. 2600 W. Iowa, 60622. See “Queer
Social Club” on Facebook
: WindyCityMediaGroup.com
ChicagoPride.com
WINDY CITY TIMES
Aug. 31, 2011
BILLY MASTERS
“Can I say one thing that was really sad? The
protesting outside of these weddings ... I thought
was really uncalled for and tasteless. If you think
anything is killing heterosexual marriage ... the
only thinking killing it is heterosexual marriage.
So to protest someone’s gay [marriage] I find to
be without taste.”—Elisabeth Hasselbeck gives
her opinion regarding the protests to gay marriage in New York. You may disagree with her
politics, but Lizzie’s OK by me.
Just when you think you’ve heard it all comes
the story of Roberto Arango from Puerto Rico.
The Republican senator (who has voted to ban
same-sex marriage) apparently had nude photos on the gay cruising app Grindr. When asked
about the pics, the good senator said, “You know
I’ve been losing weight. As I shed that weight,
I’ve been taking pictures. I don’t remember taking this particular picture but I’m not gonna say
I didn’t take it. I’d tell you if I remembered taking the picture but I don’t.” Shades of Anthony
Weiner, right? Except one of the photos finds
Ryan plays a gay-marriage activist who gets involved with Donovan. I’ll run pics of the two
studs on BillyMasters.com.
South Florida is home to oodles of drag and
strip shows. In fact, this is where Channing Tatum got his start as a male stripper. (The video
of him stripping is on BillyMasters.com.) As you
all know, Chan is turning his past into his next
film project—Magic Mike will recount his days
as a teenage stripper. The flick is being helmed
by Steven Soderbergh and begins filming next
month in Tampa. We already knew that the adorable Alex Pettyfer will play the role based on
Channing; Riley Keough (daughter of Lisa Marie
Presley) will play his girlfriend; and Demi Moore
will play a customer who gets a little too close.
In addition to writing the script, Tatum will
play the leader of the troupe (who has perhaps
seen better days). Other hunks who have signed
onto the project include Matthew McConaughey
(who plays the club owner and veteran stripper himself), Matt Bomer (a fellow stripper) and
Joe Manganiello (yet another stripper, known as
“Big Dick Richie”—which I suspect is self-ex-
planatory). There’s been much speculation that
Soderbergh will include some full-frontal male
nudity, but that’s unlikely since male strip shows
in Florida only go down to a G-string (says your
humble scribe who has more than a passing acquaintance with the male strip-show circuit).
But, fear not—we’ve got some skin just for
you ... and from one of the Magic Mike co-stars.
Joe Manganiello recently did his first nude scene
on True Blood and, of course, we have the video
and stills on BillyMasters.com.
Our “Ask Billy” question actually comes from
a good friend. Larry in Hollywood writes, “I’m
sending you a screener of our film, ‘Hollywood
to Dollywood’. Sorry you missed it at Outfest, but
I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. Again, we’re still bummed
you were out of town when we were filming—we
would have loved you to be in it!”
Larry and Gary Lane, known as the Lane Twins,
have carved out a little niche for themselves.
They’ve been in movies, TV shows and commercials, and even won two reality programs—Winter WipeOut and Fear Factor. They’re also the
official Filth2Go Twins (which tells you how far
back we go). Their documentary Hollywood to
Dollywood chronicles their cross-country journey in an RV named Jolene to personally hand
their idol, Dolly Parton, a film script they wrote
for her. However, it’s much more than that. It’s
33
about these nice, wholesome, hot twins who
grew up in a very repressed Southern environment and had to basically move as far away as
they could to pursue their dreams and be themselves. This documentary is as much to do with
them trying to reconcile with their past as it is
about trying to fulfill a dream. And if it doesn’t
have the cliché Hollywood ending, it still straddles the line between touching and hopeful. Obviously, I know these boys very well, but even I
learned so much about them and was moved by
this work—and I think all of my readers will be,
too. The flick is booked into dozens of film festivals, so check out their full schedule on Hollywood2Dollywood.com.
When we’re posting pics of Dolly and the twins
and we’re not talking about her boobs, it’s definitely time to end yet another column. By the
way, the Lane Twins did manage to include me
in the film after all. At the end, I got a special thank you—admittedly referring to our old
website and not listing www.BillyMasters.com,
but it’s the thought that counts! If you’ve got
a thought you want to share with me, drop a
note to [email protected] and I promise to
get back to you before Senator Arango asks “Do
these chaps make my ass look fat?” Until next
time, remember, one man’s filth is another man’s
bible.
It’s all about the twins with Dolly Parton.
him on all fours holding up his phone to take
the photo of his behind in a strategically placed
mirror. You’d kinda think he’d remember that!
When you see the pics on BillyMasters.com, you
won’t be able to forget ‘em.
Prior to this, the big news of the week was
confirmation of something I reported months
ago—that George Michael is a single man. Yes,
after 15 years, his relationship with Kenny Goss
has come to an end. In fact, GM admits that
it’s been over for even longer than I knew. “In
truth, Kenny and I haven’t been together for two
and a half years,” Michael told the audience at
the State Opera House in Prague where he kicked
off his Symphonica tour. “I love him very much.
This man has brought me a lot of joy and pain.
My love life has been a lot more turbulent than
I’ve ever let on, and I’m so sad about my relationship with Kenny. I’m sorry for the pain.” He
also revealed that Goss has battled alcoholism
for several years. An alcoholic and a pothead—
I’m shocked it didn’t work out!
In domestic gay splits, Sara Gilbert and partner Allison Adler have split up after 10 years and
two children. Their reps say it was “amicable.”
Of course, they also say that Leah Remini and
Holly Robinson Peete are leaving The Talk of
their own accord and are welcome back anytime.
Gay love will remain on prime time for a bit
longer. You know that sexy Trevor Donovan will
be departing 90210 midway through the upcoming season. However, that ain’t stopping him
from having an active sex life. Enter Ryan Rottman from the TeenNick show Gigantic (which I
also know nothing about, but it sounds hot).
Our game plan: have fun every day!
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34
Softball World Series profiles
Mark Febonio
By Ross Forman
Mark Febonio has played in 15 of the last 16
Gay Softball World Series, only missing the 1998
edition—and almost always with his regularseason team.
“I have [played in] a lot of great games and
have a lot of highlights from each of the 16 that
I’ve played in. But nothing tops winning the
championship in 2009,” he said.
Febonio, 52, who lives in Chicago’s Rogers
Park neighborhood, works as a project manager
at a small family-owned engineering company.
“You’ve earned the right to represent your
league on the big stage,” which is the annual
Gay Softball World Series, Febonio said. “You’ve
succeeded in getting to the only week of softball
that matters. But it’s not only about the competition and it’s not only about what happens on
the field. I’ve established friendships with teammates and opponents that will last a lifetime.
The time you spend with your teammates away
Brian Sommer. Photo courtesy of Sommer
Brian Sommer
By Ross Forman
Brian Sommer is making his debut in the Gay
Softball World Series next month, in his hometown.
Sommer, 37, a Rogers Park resident, graduated
from Fenwick High School in Oak Park in 1991,
and then North Central College in Naperville. He
did not play sports in high school, but, while
in grade school, he played baseball, soccer and
swam with the Elmhurst Park District, where he
grew up.
The 2011 Gay Softball World Series, a sixday event, starts Aug. 29, with games played
at multi-field complexes in Schaumburg, St.
Charles … and Elmhurst.
“I quit sports by middle school and got involved in theater,” said Sommer. “Throughout
high school, I was part of the drama club at
Fenwick called the Blackfriars. I did not get involved in sports again until I started bowling. In
2004, I started playing softball, [initially] playing third base and then pitching.”
Sommer is a middle school teacher. He started
teaching in 1997 in Naperville, then worked in
Lombard from 2001–2004. He now teaches in
the northern suburbs.
He played for the Chicago Crush this season,
and he also umpires in the Chicago Metropolitan
Sports Association (CMSA) league.
“I think it’s awesome that Chicago is hosting
the World Series,” Sommer said. “Chicago has
been very good to gay organizations, whether it
is the Chicago Gay Men’s Chorus, the Gay Games
a few years ago, or gay softball. It also will be
a lot of fun to see Leslie Jordan at the opening
ceremony,” held at Navy Pier.
“I can’t wait [to play in the series]. The team
I am playing with has played in several World
Series [in the past,] but I have yet to join them.
I am very excited to make my World Series debut
in my hometown. I am sure my parents will come
and watch, just as they did when I participated
in the Gay Games.”
Sommer, a Chicago Cubs fan, added: “The Series is special because it involves the best of
the best from all around the U.S. Teams can’t
just sign up for the series like other tournaments; teams need to qualify [to participate.]
The series shows that gay people are diverse.
Yes, many gay men do fit the stereotype of being theater lovers, but this event shows that
many gay people are just like everyone—they
like sports and have varied interests.”
Mark Febonio. Photo courtesy of Febonio
World Series’
opening ceremony
at Navy Pier
By Ross Forman
Hours before the first pitch was thrown in the
35th annual Gay Softball World Series, Roy Melani of the North American Gay Amateur Athletic
Alliance (NAGAAA), host of the event, predicted
this year’s six-day tournament will go down as
the best ever, without question.
“It’s raised the bar over all previous World Series, and that’s what we ask each [local organizing committee] to do—and Chicago had a big
bar to hurdle because Columbus, Ohio, in 2010
was a phenomenal World Series,” Melani said.
Melani, of Portland, Ore., is in his fifth year
as NAGAAA commissioner. He has played in the
event annually since the mid-1990s, but just
will be coaching the Portland Brewers in the BDivision this year.
Melani confirmed that 150 teams will participate in five divisions, based on skill and age.
There will be about 3,000 players, ranging in
age from 18 to 70, though the majority are 20
to 40. This year, NAGAAA also introduced the
Master’s Division for players age 50 and older,
the only division based on age.
Melani said the Chicago organizing committee—featuring Ted Cappas and an eightmember executive committee—raised the bar
in sponsorship and notoriety within the local
community. Plus, he praised Series 2011, the
local organizing committee, for its communication, logistics, celebrity involvement and more.
“They definitely have the recipe for this event
to be the best ever,” Melani said. “The Chicago
committee has done a great job, absolutely fantastic. It is going to be a phenomenal week. The
from the field becomes almost as important as
the time on the field. The bonding that develops
while you’re spending time together helps build
the team character and chemistry and supports
the effort on the field. This happens to a lesser
extent at other weekend tournaments, but is
pronounced at the World Series.”
The 2011 Series is scheduled for Aug. 29-Sept.
3, at multifield complexes in suburban Schaumburg, St. Charles and Elmhurst.
“My first World Series—held in Nashville in
1994—was an eye-opener,” Febonio said. “My
second, in Seattle, was memorable for being
competitive on the field and for one special and
lasting friendship with someone I met off the
field.
“The 1996 Series [held] in Minneapolis was
the only Series that I played in where they used
snow fences in the outfield. And in 1997 in San
Diego, I dropped a routine pop up because of
the sun, and that ended up costing us a game.”
Febonio’s memories continue as if he just
played the game.
“In Kansas City in 1999, I played with a wild
bunch from Chicago and that was the only time
I’ve played as a pick up player—not on my regular-season team,” he said. “At the Toronto Series
in 2000, we were kicking butt and scoring a ton
of runs and embarrassing teams until we suffered a few injuries, me included. I also got to
visit with a former boyfriend and his family who
lived in Toronto.
“San Francisco [in 2001] was special because
it’s where the first GSWS was held. In Portland
[in 2002], that’s where I met a guy off the field
who I’ve remained friends with. Washington D.C.
the following year featured some great ball and
we came within a whisker of the championship.”
Febonio said his lasting memory of the 2004
event in Dallas was that it rained—a lot.
“In 2005, in San Diego, I made more errors
in one game, played at night, than in whole
seasons,” Febonio said, laughing. “Fort Lauder-
Ben Cohen
and Leslie
Jordan
at the
opening
ceremonies.
Photo by
Anthony
Meade
fields are great. The weather is supposed to be
great. Plus, you can’t forget Boystown—that’s
another huge draw.”
The Series kicked off Monday night as about
2,000 attended the opening ceremony, held at
Navy Pier.
“The Opening was a huge success,” Cappas
said.
International rugby sensation Ben Cohen
spoke to the crowd, while Leslie Jordan entertained with his wacky sense of humor.
“Ben Cohen is fantastic to be part of the
World Series,” Melani said. “I think his [Stand
Up] foundation, [to help eliminate bullying] is
part of what NAGAAA stands for.”
Cohen spoke Monday afternoon at Center on
Halsted. He also will practice this week with the
predominantly gay Chicago Dragons rugby team.
Plus, Cohen visited the Hancock Observatory,
trained daily downtown and enjoyed walks and
runs along the lakefront.
“I really like Chicago,” Cohen said Aug. 29; it
was his first time in Chicago since 1997. “Being
here is about the foundation and spreading the
word about what it does.
It’s good to be invited, it’s an honor to be in-
WINDY CITY TIMES
dale the following year, we weren’t going until a
month before. Our team stepped in to replace a
team that qualified, but backed out. We threw a
team together and then played great and killed
a bunch of good teams en route to a secondplace finish.
“Phoenix in 2007 was hot. And [in] Seattle in
2008, I met up with a friend who I had met the
first time the Series was there—back in 1995.
We played well [in Seattle] and took thirdplace.”
In 2009, playing for the Spin Cougars, his BDivision team captured the title.
The 2010 event was held in Columbus, Ohio.
“For Columbus, we took a bunch of novices
and players new to the B-Division, and taught
them how to win. We went on a nice, unexpected run,” Febonio said.
Febonio was the coach, pitcher and an infielder for his 2010 Spin RockStar team, which won
the local regular-season title and playoff championship, and then finished 9th at the World Series.
“In 2009, I was a player on the World Series BDivision championship team, Spin Cougars. Most
of that team moved up to the A-Division for
2010,” Febonio said. “The remaining five players
from our 2009 team, myself included, recruited
11 new players, all having been C-Division players the previous year and formed our team for
the 2010 season.
“With a new team, and an inexperienced
coach, we were hoping to be a good enough
team to be competitive in our league. We played
in three tournaments prior to the GSWS. We really thought that being champs of the B-Division
in the CMSA league was overachieving, but then
we got on a roll at the World Series in Columbus
and played some of our best softball of the year
and were one game away from playing on Saturday, [in the championship round]. It was an incredible year and the team has stayed together
for the 2011 season. I’m very proud of the team
and the players who were my teammates last
year for all the success we experienced.”
—Favorite baseball team: Boston Red Sox
—Favorite baseball player: Ichiro Suzuki
vited. We want to eradicate bullying across the
board, particularly the LGBT community.”
When asked to appear in conjunction with the
World Series, Cohen said his first reaction was,
“where and when.”
“Many within the gay community are bullied
because they are perceived to be different from
other people, which is very wrong,” Cohen said.
Cohen said the drive to help end bullying
started back in 2000, when his father was murdered while attempting to protect someone, he
said. “About six years after that, I found out
that I had a large following on Facebook, more
than 37,000 people, and many were men. So my
role as a sportsman comes with a responsibility—not just on the pitch as a part of the team,
but also off the pitch. Doing some good and
building some awareness is very important.”
Cohen, who is heterosexual and married, said
it is “so sad” to hear about LGBT-related suicides, especially among teens.
“Those are a tragic shame,” he said. “Who the
foundation looks to affect is, the next generation, those who are now getting bullied. That
person could be the person who finds a cure for
AIDS [or] cancer, could be the next Prime Minister or President, or could be the next worldfamous sportsman.”
Cohen admitted Aug. 29 that, well, he doesn’t
know too much about softball, “but sports is
sports, and it’s a fantastic way to bring people
together.”
He added, “People come together from all
around America for the Gay Softball World Series. They get to re-live their childhood a little
bit, especially some who may have gotten bullied a little at school and felt they couldn’t
participate. That’s where we want to make an
impact.”
See more photos online at http://www.
WindyCityMediaGroup.com.
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