tick, tick...BOOM!
Transcription
tick, tick...BOOM!
www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q1 CYMK Q_COVERstory From Iceland to Florida World-Renowned DJ Nick Warren Brings His Sounds to Miami By Andy Zeffer Features Editor Nick Warren is no stranger to travel. When it comes to recording his cutting-edge world beats, he leans toward the exotic. Unusual locales where he has spent studio time in the past have included Sao Paolo, Budapest and Amsterdam. His most recent project took him to Reykjavik, Iceland, hence, the name, Global Underground Reykjavik #024. Famous for his Global Underground mixes, Warren continues to delight techno and trance music aficionados with his exhilarating sounds. He is no stranger to touring either. He has toured in the past as Massive Attack’s DJ, and now as one of the biggest names on the International DJ circuit, he has a heavy touring schedule of his own. Just looking at the dates of his gigs is enough to make one tired: Thursday in New York, Friday in Miami, Saturday in Chicago, etc. The Express caught up with Warren, and he took time out to answer a few questions despite his grueling schedule. Nick Warren brings his “down tempo dub style and string laden monsters” to Crobar in South Beach on Friday, Jan. 31. Andy Zeffer: What can fans expect from your gig at Crobar? Nick Warren: After taking three months off in 2002 and not even listening to any dance records, I feel I have come back a refreshed and improved DJ. I really dig the stuff I am playing now, very musical prog/ breaks/tech stuff, with plenty of energy. You have recorded in such exotic locales as Sao Paolo, Budapest and now Reykjavik. How does working in these diverse environments affect your music? It doesn’t really affect what I play as a DJ, but I think that going into different cultures is inspiring. Would you recommend people check out Iceland on their next vacation? Iceland was amazing, incredible landscapes and a thriving scene where people party all week. Who are some of your favorite artists and DJs right now? Sasha has always been my favorite DJ, and a new guy Jan Carbon is really good. I How invaluable was getting your start in am into too many producers to list, but some the music scene of Bristol in the late ’80s and new guys from Budapest called The Monks early ’90s, when so much innovation was will be a name to watch. Ulrich Schnauss taking place? from Norway is my favorite producer. I have been very lucky. Working with Massive Attack and hanging out with all the What is your take on the whole “Star Bristol heads has kept my feet on the ground DJ” trend, where DJs are reaching and given me the range of influences I have. celebrity that in the past has been At the moment, some of the best music being traditionally reserved for more visible made is from the drum and bass scene. performing artists? Some people like being seen as What does “Balearic” mean to those who superstars and some like being faceless. I don’t know? don’t care about being on the cover of Balearic is a state of mind. It is being open magazines, but the lifestyle is wicked. minded to different styles and ideas. You describe Reykjavik #024 as your best album to date. What makes this album stand out from past efforts? Reykjavik sums up everything I am into, from down tempo dub style to string-laden club monsters and everything in between. You have a very heavy touring schedule, a different city from one day to the next. Do you enjoy touring? I love my job. Okay the flights are a pain in the arse but I ain’t complaining. I have the best job in the world. You stress the importance of melody on this CD. Elaborate on that. To much dance music last year was made by people who can use a computer but have no musical knowledge, so we’ve got loads of dull, boring tribal progressive house. Melody and fun are what nights should include. Any desire to record in South Florida? So many places and not enough days in the week. I would love to spend some time in Florida, but you have a lot of great talent there already. Nick Warren brings his “down tempo dub style and string laden monsters” to Crobar in South Beach on Friday, Jan. 31. Q2 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK Exodus Magazine Debuts With Joe Phillips Cover By Andy Zeffer Features Editor Exodus Magazine recently published its first issue and can be found on newsstands. The eye-catching cover features artwork by successful illustrator Joe Phillips, who also serves as the magazine’s artistic director. In fact, much of Phillips’ familiar illustrations are displayed throughout the publication, including an especially amusing comic strip. Published by Nicholas Reedy with Ross von Metzke serving as editor-inchief, the magazine aims to “connect gay generations and information,” Reedy says. Topics covered range from gym alternatives, cruising the Internet, and health and relationship advice. Illustrating the generational theme, an article written by Charles Ham describes his first time in a gay bar during the ’70s. More than anything, the magazine serves to showcase young and rising talent. The writers, photographers and illustrators provide a fresh and earnest alternative that sets it aside from other gay magazines. Pages are filled with images of attractive young men, and not all with the cookie-cutter buff images the gay public is so familiar with by now. Exodus displays an array of healthy images, losing that old school strictly body-builder veneer and bringing the gay readership into a new era. Based in San Diego, Exodus will be distributed quarterly this year and intends on becoming monthly next year. Readers can look forward to the next issue March 10. In the meantime, check out its website at xodusmag.com, and check out Joe Phillips images at joephillips.com. Q_THEATERprofile Christian Campbell as Jonathan in ‘tick, tick...BOOM’ The Countdowns of Christian Campbell’s Life Actor Finds Truth in ‘tick, tick...BOOM!’ By Mary Damiano Arts & Entertainment Editor Christian Campbell says he’s heard his own tick tick booms. Although the young actor has experienced success in his career, he admits to having the same anxieties as his character in tick, tick...BOOM!, which is currently enjoying a run at Parker Playhouse before moving to West Palm Beach. In the autobiographical Jonathan Larson musical, Campbell plays Jonathan, an aspiring Broadway composer who is about to turn 30 and finds himself at a crossroads in his life. The tick tick booms Jonathan hears in his head represent a sense of time running out. “I just turned 30 this year,” Campbell says. “As an artist, I’ve gone through that same sort of anxiety about my life and what I’m doing. I’ve thought, ‘I’m a bright enough guy— shouldn’t I just get a job and settle down?’ I’ve been through that even in my 20s.” It might be surprising to hear doubts coming from Campbell. This is a guy who grew up in the business, who’s been successful on stage, screen and television, and who began his own theater company so he’d have a creative outlet. But Campbell is grounded enough to know better than to take anything for granted. Campbell is from a show biz family. While he was growing up, his father taught drama and directed community theater. His mother ran a dinner theater. His sister is Neve Campbell, the actress who rose to prominence in TV’s Party of Five. While Neve started out as a dancer, Christian Campbell started acting as a child. He acted in the series DeGrassi Junior High in his native Canada and also took singing lessons. Music has figured into Campbell’s roles. In addition to his stage work in tick, tick...BOOM!, he played a rock singer in the movie Thank You Good Night and an aspiring Broadway composer in Trick. “As you get older and the more roles you get, you start to see patterns in how you’re cast, and that tells you how people perceive you,” Campbell says. “I guess I’m perceived as a musical person, which is ironic because I’m really not.” Campbell may not think he’s musical, but audiences who have seen tick, tick...BOOM! and have heard him sing would surely disagree. Campbell nails the theatrical rock and roll songs, and he says his favorite moment in the show is when he sings “Louder Than Words.” Trick is the film that launched Campbell into the spotlight, especially in the gay community. He and co-star J. P. Pitoc were featured on the cover of Out magazine in July of 1999 under the header “Gay for Pay.” Campbell believes that the hype about straight actors playing gay roles is finally dying down. “With Will & Grace coming out and a lot of out actors, it’s going to take the fear away from actors who are gay and don’t want to play gay because they’re afraid of being stigmatized,” he says. “Hollywood is your own worst enemy if you’re a gay actor. It’s the gay producers who don’t want to hire gay actors. The gay Mafia of Hollywood is your own worst enemy if you’re a gay actor.” Trick was a huge breakthrough, a little movie that went over big. “The film did better than anyone thought it would,” Campbell says. “We made the film on a shoestring budget and thought it would just do the gay film festival circuit. It’s now on Blockbuster shelves. It’s a gay film on Blockbuster’s shelves. That’s a good thing. I’ve had straight couples come up to me and say they loved it.” Although Campbell has had success in film, his first love remains the stage. When he first moved to Hollywood, Campbell found himself bored and frustrated with the lack of originality of his television work, and needed a way to feed his creative soul. He acquired a theater and formed Blue Sphere Alliance, a profitable theater company that presents original work. “Many theaters are created by frustrated actors with the idea of opening a theater and creating work for themselves,” Campbell says. “We did that, and we realized that we started making work for other people, and work that people really did want to see.” Campbell believes that despite his success, there will be more tick tick booms in his future. “I’ll probably go through it again,” he says. “It’s a continual process of always facing those fears and wondering if I’m taking the right path and just kind of sticking with it because you know that the only thing that feels right is following your bliss.” tick, tick...BOOM! runs through Feb. 2 at Parker Playhouse in Fort Lauderdale, then moves to the Royal Poinciana Playhouse in West Palm Beach and runs from Feb. 4 to Feb. 16. Showtimes are Tuesday through Sunday, 8pm, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday, 2pm. Tickets are $52 and $54 and are available at the theater box office or through Ticketmaster. www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q3 CYMK Q_MOVIEpreview Currying Favor Hollywood Meets Bollywood in The Guru By Lawrence Ferber Entertainment Writer The fish out of water story is nothing new to Hollywood. But rarely—if ever—has one included Bollywood musical numbers, porn actresses, new age sexuality, closet cases, trannies, and, ahem, Puerto Rican leather queens. This is what moviegoers will find in The Guru, a cross-cultural comedy directed by Party Girl’s Daisy Von Scherler Mayer. British actor Jimi Mistry plays Ramu Gupta, a young Indian dance teacher infatuated with American movies. Determined to become a big Hollywood film star, he leaves his home country—and its rousing Bollywood musical culture—for New York City. But instead of landing film roles, circumstances lead Ramu to impersonating a spiritual guru for Manhattan socialites. The trouble is, most of the new agey, sex-positive advice Ramu spreads around is culled from a porn actress, played by Heather Graham, who is misled to believe she’s coaching him on becoming a better porn star. Mistry is best known to U.S. audiences for his performance in the popular comedy, East is East. The Guru began its life with Shekhar Kapur, Indian-born director of 1998’s Elizabeth. His youth bore parallels to Ramu’s—his visions of Western life were wholly inspired and misled by Hollywood Bmovies, and once a student in the U.K., he found people looking to him for that exotic, erotic Eastern spirituality. He took advantage of this perception and assumed the mantle of “guru” until his sister showed up, appalled by what she heard him spout. After developing a script around these experiences, screenwriter Tracey Jackson was brought in to add an American comic sensibility. Director Mayer entered the picture after Kapur bowed out of the directing slot due to availability conflicts, though he remains executive producer. “They started interviewing other directors, and I was incredibly excited to get this,” Mayer says. “For me, it was like a big budget Party Girl. It had some of the same feelings and offbeat sensibility, and that was really something I had been looking for since writing and directing that film. The musical numbers, the camp humor, the ironies and, at the same time, it’s sincere.” Grand spectacles combining MGM musical-inspired production numbers, as well as more contemporary films such as Grease, with traditional Indian singing and dance, Bollywood films influence and are revered in The Guru. There are four major production numbers, including a mock Bollywood filmwithin-the-film. However, Mayer admits she was wholly unfamiliar with the genre before The Guru came along, so she brushed up, especially studying the work of Indian superstar Hritrick Roshan. “He’s gorgeous, and he is the hunk of Bollywood,” Mayer notes. “But what’s funny is they’re all really buff, the Bollywood guys—almost like Sylvester Stallone a bit. And in India they call the star of the movie the ‘hero.’ When [Indian audiences] saw Jimi, who was so thin and British, they were like, ‘He’s the hero?’ It’s a very particular look. We actually auditioned some Bollywood actors, nobody as big as Hritrick, though.” Mayer also crammed when it came to porno films, another genre she wasn’t well versed in. “I made my serious brainiac assistant rent some,” she recalls with amusement. “Partially because we wanted to study the sets and partially to embarrass her. She came back with films that all looked like they were from mid-’80s. Joan Jett-looking women and men with mustaches, which I guess is a requirement. I don’t think any of the films were gay, though, so I don’t know why that bondage scene [in The Guru] ended up being so gay.” Some of those situations revolve around Ramu’s experiences in porn, with titles like Glad-he-ate-her. These scenes saw the actor baring almost all for the camera—while costar Heather Graham, who plays a porn star, remained clothed. “Heather and I had a pact that the point of the film was to get the men naked,” Mayer says. “She has constantly had to be naked, so this was his turn.” Mayer credits Mistry, although hetero, as being an all-opportunity flirt, much to the pleasure of his costars and gay costumer Michael Clancy. “Yes, he’s gay friendly,” Mayer says. “Most actors who are good, I find, devote a lot of time to flirting with all the men and women around them. He also likes people liking him. Michael said that costuming him was the first costume session he’s had that matched [the fun of] Parker Posey’s. He’d put on the clothes and go right into character. Like, he loved putting on the tight cheesy polyester pants, which, to me, is the sign of a great British actor. An American would say, ‘They make me look queer,’ and be very vain about it.” Mistry’s trousers aren’t the only queer thing in The Guru. As with Party Girl, Mayer incorporated the homo-milieu. She changed a supporting character written as female, Peaches, into a transsexual played by Dwight Ewell, who also appeared in Party Girl. And a supporting character, near film’s end, comes out as gay—smooching his hot and hunky lover. Mayer says that the coming-out twist has a warm heart to it. “The moment they get together, they work on a romantic level that’s genuine,” she says. “On the page, it can be funny that they’re kissing, but that kiss is romantic in a sweet way. It’s a real sexual kiss, not something you see on a sitcom or something. And that was important, making them genuine love interests for each other.” After the success of Party Girl, Mayer had her run-ins with closeted gays who were far more satirical in manner. “I was going to these meetings with these big Hollywood execs, and they would be like, ‘I love Parker, she’s so hot, I want to go out with her,’” she remembers. “And I’d think, ‘No, you want to go shopping with her.’” Based in New York with her husband, Mayer has no plans to spend much time in Hollywood anytime soon, though she would like to do another film in the same vein as The Guru. “I don’t want a sequel—I want a musical like Hairspray. Then we could do more singing and dancing.” Naked at the Movies MGLFF Debuts Image for Spring Film Fest By Mary Damiano Arts & Entertainment Editor The image of a happy, dancing, naked man and woman, clothed only in strategically placed typeface, will be the image that greets people for the Fifth Annual Miami Gay & Lesbian, which will take place April 25 to May 4. The image was unveiled at a fundraising event Wednesday, Jan. 22, at the Regal Lincoln Road Cinema in South Beach. It was a big night for the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, as they presented a new film, treated fans to a wonderful party and showcased the new image for its spring festival. The photograph, which will emblazon the posters, program, ads and T-shirts for the film festival, was chosen out of more than a dozen entries to a competition the festival held to find its official image for this year’s event. The image was designed by Paul Jacober, of the advertising agency Jacober & Associates. Laplante acknowledged that the image may push the envelope in some people’s eyes, but says the festival wanted something bold and edgy to mark their fifth year. “They’re not actually nude,” he said. “You don’t see anything—the words function as a bathing suit. It’s a little bit of a tease. We wanted to be bold and strong in our imaging, and we thought that this was definitely something that would make people look at and make them turn their heads.” Laplante also believes the image conveys the themes of Miami’s Latin and tropical location. “It’s in keeping with the Q4 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK Heather Graham and Jimi Mistry spirit Miami has of being a fun, sexy place, and that gays and lesbians from around the world come here to partake,” he said. The poster was presented before a screening of The Business of Fancy Dancing, a new film by Sherman Alexie, the writer of Smoke Signals. The film centers on a gay Native American poet torn between his Indian roots and his desire to leave the reservation behind. Michelle St. Cloud, who appears in the film, introduced the film and fielded audience questions afterward. St. Cloud was accompanied by some of her family, who live in Pompano, Delray Beach and Plantation. After the screening, a reception was held in the newly restored Jackie Gleason House on Alton Road. The house has been completely renovated and restored by owner Craig Eberhardt, who hosted the party. Guests wandered the spectacular expanse of the house, an art deco style beauty that boasts eight bedrooms, seven bathrooms, an indoor fountain, two full kitchens, gym with Jacuzzi and a grand living area shaped like a Maltese cross, complete with a sunken oval dining room. For those envious of such a house, it is on the market, with a 2.4 million price tag. Laplante said that feedback about the event was good, with even longtime members telling him that it was one of the nicest events the MGLFF had ever presented. “They were very impressed with the house, and we were grateful for the opportunity to have an event there,” he said. “We’ve had events in private homes, but this is a private home like no other.” Laplante announced the next MGLFF fundraiser, a screening of the HBO film Normal, starring Jessica Lange and Tom Wilkinson, about a married man who decides to undergo sex reassignment surgery. The film will be presented March 4 at a location to be announced. For more information about the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, call 305.534.9924 or visit MiamiGayLesbianFilm.com. Q_THEATERreview Gayopoly Debuts at Twist Farcical Food Chain Feeds Board Game Celebrates Gay Entrepreneurial Spirit off the Things We Do for Love New Front Porch and Pop. By Mary Damiano Play Boasts Terrific Performances By Mary Damiano Arts & Entertainment Editor As Amanda, Amanda Rockwell has some long, tough monologues, and she pulls them off with aplomb. Her performance is animated and energetic, sexy and funny. As Serge, Brandon Morris nails his pretty boy character, who’s just looking for love. How high up on the food chain are you? In the Mosaic Theatre’s production of Nicky Silver’s play The Food Chain, a mélange of straight, gay, bisexual and ambiguous characters come together to figure out where they figure into each other’s lives and the scheme of things. This is a marvelous production of a very funny and insightful play, where people’s lives depend on the way society treats them. It’s about transformation and the need to be accepted and loved. And it’s about the things we do to get that much-needed acceptance. The play begins with Amanda, a new wife who’s calling a crisis hotline because she hasn’t seen her husband, Ford, in two Anthony Sacco and Brandon Morris weeks, and they’ve only been married for three weeks. The funniest and most honest moments The action then cuts to the apartment of The Food Chain belong to Anthony Sacco, of Serge, a runway model getting ready for a who plays Otto. As a self-loathing gay man late-night visitor. When the knock on the door trying desperately to get back with his comes, however, it’s not the guest he’s boyfriend, Sacco’s role is both emotionally and expecting, but rather Otto, Serge’s ex-boyfriend physically challenging, and he turns in a who is still in love with him. bravura performance. All of these characters come together in Andres Alexis’s facial expressions make Amanda’s apartment in the second act, and the enigmatic Ford an interesting and then the play kicks into gear as a farce. How complicated character. Elayne Wilks plays Bea, these five characters end up together, all related the crisis hotline lady, as a lonely woman who in some way, is the crux of the story. needs the hotline callers as much as they need But within this wacky plot, there are a lot her. The colorful, exaggerated set adds to the of interesting themes at work. Otto, for example, farcical nature of the play. is so desperate to be popular and loved, and The Food Chain is a very funny play that so powerless to do anything about it, that he’s will help you escape from reality, while giving supplicated his needs with another vice, you some good insight into it. something that will always be there for him The Food Chain runs through Feb. 2 at and won’t reject him. The Mosaic Theatre, located inside the AlthoughAmanda has experienced the same American Heritage School, 12200 W. Broward lack of love and popularity as Otto, she dealt with Blvd., Bldg. 3000, in Plantation. Showtimes her pain in a completely different way, completely are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8pm, transforming herself into society’s ideal. with matinees Saturday and Sunday at 3pm. Only Ford seems untouched by societal Tickets are $23. general admission, $17 for conventions, choosing to do what he wants when seniors and $13 for students. To purchase he wants, unconcerned with how his actions affect tickets or for more information, call others. 954.577.8243 or visit mosaictheatre.com. Arts & Entertainment Editor In Gayopoly, the new game celebrating the joys of being gay, you don’t pass Go, you pass “You Go Girl.” You don’t go to jail, you go back in the closet. And in order to get out, you must sing a classic diva song—anything by Cher, Barbra or Madonna will do. Gayopoly, billed as the versatile board game, debuted this month in San Francisco, the first city on an eight-city whirlwind tour. Gayopoly co-creator Lamont Dixon was at Twist last Tuesday night, Jan. 21, to officially launch the game in South Beach, one of the cities featured in Gayopoly. Dixon created Gayopoly with his business partner, Bo James. James was in San Francisco when he got the idea to expand on the standard board game and create something fresh. They formed Slypuss Productions and spent two years turning Gayopoly into a reality. Despite the name and some obvious parodies, Dixon says that Gayopoly is very different from Monopoly. Whereas Monopoly is a game about real estate, Gayopoly is more of a role-playing game about the entrepreneurial spirit. Six different characters are available—Ivana Munch, Jim Freak, Ian D. Middel, Freeda Knight, Amanda Bee and Lou Cinda Booty. Players have the opportunities to start businesses and hire employees. While Monopoly used real streets, Gayopoly uses real hotels, clubs and stores in each of the cities included. For example, the South Beach side of the board features Twist, Balan’s, the Abbey Hotel, the Albion Hotel, The Gayopoly is also the first two-sided board game, giving it that extra gay twist. You can be the top or the bottom, making it a versatile board game. It was also a way for the creators to include twice as many cities as they could have with a one-sided game. New York City, South Beach, Houston and Hollywood grace one side, while San Francisco, Atlanta, Chicago and Key West are featured on the other side. Dixon and James have worked hard to make Gayopoly eye-catching, appealing and different. The board folds into a triangle, necessitating a box that makes the game stand out. The game pieces are six cell phones, one for each color in the Gay Pride flag. The board is pink and blue. The rainbow dots on the dice were a big hit with the crowd at Twist, eliciting cries of “They’re so cute,” and “How adorable” from the patrons. The result is a whimsical amusement— part game, part travelogue—playfully saluting gayness at its gayest. “We call it the Will & Grace version because it’s very friendly,” Dixon says. “Children can play it because there’s no sex or drugs or alcohol in it. We took the positive gay stereotypes—just the fun stuff.” Dixon says his satisfaction comes not only from bringing the game to fruition but also in people’s reactions to Gayopoly. “It’s so great to see people loving the game, and see them jumping up and down saying, ‘Finally— something for us.’” Gayopoly is available online at Gayopoly.com as well as the businesses featured in the game and at other stores that carry gay-related merchandise. Christopher Reeve and Nathan Lane Featured at HRC Gala Tammy Baldwin Will Be Keynote Speaker Actors Christopher Reeve and Nathan Lane will be special participants in the Human Rights Campaign’s 2003 Gala, which will be held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City on Feb. 6. The event will honor the work done on behalf of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. Reeve will discuss the important role that each individual can play in helping government focus its attention on the needs of the citizens, especially regarding the needed public and private dollars to fund medical research, not only for those living with paralysis, but also the illnesses that impact the gay community like HIV, AIDS and breast cancer. Tony Award winner Lane will present an award to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, a theatre-based organization that has raised millions of dollars for various AIDS organizations. The keynote speaker for the event will be Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin. The Human Rights Campaign is the largest national lesbian and gay political organization, with members throughout the country. It effectively lobbies Congress, provides campaign support and educates the public to ensure that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans can be open, honest and safe at home, at work and in the community. www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q5 CYMK Heard It Through the Gayvine Queers, Quotes and Quips of Interest ‘Will & Grace’ Nabs Madonna and Moore In television, you can tell what month it is not by the change in seasons but by the parade of megastars suddenly guest starring all over the small screen. February, May and November are sweeps months, the period that ratings are measured and advertising fees are readjusted. Case in point: Next month, Will & Grace will feature Demi Moore, and in May, Madonna will appear on the show. Moore will play Jack’s former babysitter, but no word on whether Madonna will play herself, as Sandra Bernhard or Elton John on their guest spots, or if they’ll play real characters, as Michael Douglas and Glenn Close did last season. Playing Gay at the Golden Globes Actors playing gay last year fared better in Golden Globe nominations than actual awards, but in at least one case, they were going head to head. Nicole Kidman took the Best Actress in a Drama award for playing bisexual writer Virginia Woolf in The Hours, edging out Salma Hayek, who played bisexual artist Frida Kahlo in Frida and Meryl Streep, who played a lesbian editor in The Hours. Streep did win Best Supporting Actress for playing writer Susan Orlean in Adaptation. The Hours’ Ed Harris and Far From Heaven’s newly uncloseted husband Dennis Quaid lost out to Adaptation’s Chris Cooper, who did a great job of playing a closeted husband in American Beauty a few years ago. The Hours won Best Drama and Pedro Almodovar’s Talk to Her won Best Foreign Film, but HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm beat out Will & Grace for Best Comedy TV Show. Will & Grace’s Eric McCormack, Megan Mullally and Sean Hayes all went home empty-handed in their respective categories. F-ing Bono and a Deranged Ballerina All the censors in television must be working overtime on MTV’s The Osbournes, because they weren’t on the ball at NBC during the Golden Globe Awards. During the red preshow on the red carpet, Irish actor Colin Farrell said “shit,” but even better, Bono uttered the big F word while accepting U2’s award for the theme song to Gangs of New York. And speaking of censors, who let Lara Flynn Boyle out of the house in her get-up? The actress wore a dress right out of Swan Lake, but tackier, complete with baby pink tank bodice, pink tutu skirt that stuck straight out, and—if you can believe it—high-heeled pink shoes with wide pink ribbons laced up her legs. Is this the kind of glamour we have to look forward to in March at the Oscars? Porn or Plum Part? Wanted: actors to have sex onscreen for new film—that’s the order John Cameron Mitchell is having a hard time filling. The Hedwig and The Angry Inch creator is working on a new film, whose working title is The Sex Film Project, and wants the actors to have sex for real for the camera. He’s not getting much help from casting directors, so Mitchell has put out an open call. Any experienced actors who don’t mind getting down and dirty for their art can contact Mitchell at Safeword Productions, PMB# 339, 70A Greenwich Ave., New York, NY, 10011. Deadline is Feb. 15. Q6 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q7 CYMK Q_THEATERreview Phantom Haunts Hollywood Playhouse Musical Melodrama an Uneven Hit By Mary Damiano Arts & Entertainment Editor The story of The Phantom of the Opera has been told many times, on film, TV and on Broadway. Phantom, the version currently playing at the Hollywood Playhouse, has some fine moments, and will satisfy most audiences, so long as they’re not set on comparing it to the splashier Andrew Lloyd Webber rendition. The story is familiar—a disfigured man who haunts a Paris opera house becomes obsessed with a beautiful young woman and her beautiful voice. Tally Sessions plays the Phantom, and he certainly has the vocal chops to do the role justice. His Phantom is not a sophisticated gentleman type, but rather a displeased schoolboy. As the Phantom’s object of devotion, Christine, Jennifer Zimmerman possesses a soaring voice that could inspire such obsessive love. The two leads work well together, and their duets, such as “You Are Music,” provide some of the finer moments of the show. Lourelene Snedeker steals every scene she’s in as the scheming, over-the-hill wannabe diva, Carlotta. She’s bitchy, comical and appropriately haughty, especially during her showstopper, “This Place is Mine.” Later in the show, Carlotta shows what an awful singer she is. It takes special talent for a wonderful singer to sing badly, and Snedeker nails it. Even though Phantom is an enjoyable show, there are some problems. Zimmerman’s Christine has such a regal bearing that it’s Q_DININGguide Q8 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK Cast of ‘Phantom’, running through Feb. 16 at the Hollywood Playhouse hard to imagine her as a simple farm girl. And on a stage full of outlandish costumes, Christine looks too modern. The second act falters with a long and awkward flashback scene that explains how the Phantom came to be. The scene is much too long and drips with maudlin sentimentality, slowing down the otherwise well-paced show. The set is inventive, with some of the action taking place on a metal catwalk directly above the audience. Phantom is a small-scale crowd pleaser, a nice bit of fluff that will temporarily satisfy a theater appetite. Phantom runs through Feb. 16 at the Hollywood Playhouse, 2640 Washington St. in Hollywood. Showtimes are Wednesday through Saturday at 8pm; Matinees Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 2pm. Tickets are $22$32.50. To purchase tickets, call 954.922.0404 or visit hollywoodplayhouse.com. Advertise_954-568-1880 Q_CULTURALevents Monday, Jan. 27: Acting Studio Open House—Learn about the Acting Studio’s workshops, instructors and facilities. 7-9pm at 2450 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood. Please RSVP at 954.929.4553. Monday, Jan. 27: Book Discussion—Art Historian Irma Jaffee discusses her book Shining Eyes, Cruel Fortune: The Lives and Loves of Italian Renaissance Women Poets at 10am at the Museum of Art, 1 East Las Olas Blvd. Admission is $5. 954.525.5500. Tuesday, Jan. 28: Gay Male Empowerment Project—This is the first of 12 programs designed to help gay men improve their quality of life and to avoid common pitfalls. 7-9pm at ArtServe, 1300 E. Sunrise Blvd. For more information please call Richard Del Prete at 954.768.0434 ext. 1100. Tuesday - Sunday, Jan. 28 - Feb. 2: Miami Improv Festival—MIF features all forms of improv and sketch groups from around the world. There will be performances, workshops, seminars and organized events and parties for festival participants. 10am 1pm at Dreamers Theatre, 65 Almeria Ave., Miami. m i a m i i m p r o v f e s t i v a l . c o m , [email protected], 305.668.4821. Tuesdays, Jan. 28 – Feb. 25: Children’s Book Writing Workshop—Gloria Rothstein’s instructional workshop focuses on having fun while writing and also learning about the children’s book market. 6:45 – 8:45pm at the Main Library in Fort Lauderdale. $70 in advance, $75 at the door. 954.357.7401. Friday – Sunday, Jan. 31 – Feb. 2: Shell Show—At the Pompano Beach Civic Center, 1801 NE 6th St., Pompano Beach. For show hours, call 954.786.4111. Saturday, Feb. 1: Tim Dorsey—Annual book and author luncheon will be held at 10am at the Riverside Hotel, 620 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. Author Tim Dorsey will review his fifth and latest book, The Stingray Shuffle. $30/person. For reservations, call 954.764.6366 or 954.525.5107 by Jan. 28. Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 1 & 2: South Florida Depression Glass Show & Sale—A gathering of select dealers from across the country with quality items of collectible American glassware from the 1920s to ’70s. Saturday 10am - 5pm and Sunday 10am - 4pm at the War Memorial Auditorium, 800 NE 8th St., Fort Lauderdale. For information call the South Florida Depression Era Glass Club, 954.985.1120. Saturday – Sunday, Feb. 1 – April 6: Florida Renaissance Festival—10am - 6pm at Quiet Waters Park, 401 S. Powerline Rd. Adults/ $15, Kids/$5, Season Pass/$75, Kings Feast/$59. ren-fest.com, [email protected], 954.776.1642 or 800.373.633. Sunday, Feb. 2: Mother Daughter Book Discussion Group—Stargirl will be discussed at 11am at the Two St. Coffee Garage, 209 SW 2 Ave, Fort Lauderdale. Complimentary refreshments will be served. This is the group’s first meeting. 954.357.7504. Sunday, Feb. 2: Sun Celebration Circle and Ritual—The ancient Druid and Celt MidWinter tradition includes drumming, dancing, chanting and feasting. Bring percussion instruments and food and drink to share for the feast. 7pm at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Fort Lauderdale, 3970 NW 21st Ave between Commercial and Oakland Park. Free. All are invited. For information: uucfl.org/cuups/, [email protected], 954.484.6734. Saturday & Sunday, Feb. 22 & 23: 3 rd Annual Miami Subs Sea Side Soccer Six Tournament—More than 25 amateur teams are expected to participate in the tournament at Mills Pond Park in Fort Lauderdale. Adult players or teams interested in competing should contact Bare Foot Sports at 843.379.3440 or adultsoccer.com. Live Theatre and Dance Through Sunday, Feb. 2: Romeo and Bernadette—In this musical by Mark Saltzman, Shakespeare’s Romeo is reborn from an Elizabethan stupor and stumbles upon his true love, Juliet. Her real name, however, is Bernadette and she’s the beloved daughter of a Brooklyn mob boss. Coconut Grove Playhouse Main Stage, 3500 Main Hwy., Coconut Grove. 305.442.2662. Through Sunday, Feb. 9: Addicted: A Comedy of Substance—This one-man-show is at the Coconut Grove Playhouse, 3500 Main Hwy, Miami. For information and tickets call 305.442.4000 or 305.358.5885. Through Sunday, Feb. 9: Park Your Car in Harvard Yard—Caldwell Theatre Company, 7873 N. Federal Hwy., Boca Raton. For information on this comedy call 561.930.6400; for tickets call 561.241.7432. Through Thursday, Feb. 13: Mamaleh!— Mamaleh! follows the mishegoss and memories of Jewish-American women in a tuneful and toe-tapping style. Hollywood Playhouse, 2640 Washington St., Hollywood. 954.922.0404. mamaleh.com Through Sunday, Feb. 16: Phantom—The classic story of the mysterious figure who haunts the Paris Opera has been transformed into a mesmerizing musical by Tony Award winners Maury Yeston and Arthur Kopit. Hollywood Plalyhouse, 2640 Washington St., Hollywood. For information and tickets, call the Box Office, 954.922.0404. Tuesday – Thursday, Jan. 28 - 30: Lord of the Dance—A celebration of Celtic heritage through dance and song. 8pm at Coral Springs Center for the Arts, 2855 Coral Springs Drive in Coral Springs. For tickets and information call 954.344.5990. Friday and Saturday, Jan. 31 and Feb. 1: Miami City Ballet—Swan Lake Act II, Theme and Variations and Black Swan Pas de Deux. 8pm at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 Southwest 5th Ave. For information, call 305.929.7010. Wednesday - Sunday, Feb. 5 - 23: Elton John and Tim Rice’s AIDA—A captured Nubian princess who becomes the handmaiden to the daughter of the Pharaoh, Princess Amneris. Aida, whose noble rank is unknown to the Egyptians, falls in love with her captor, Radames, who is also Amneris’s betrothed. Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 Southwest 5th Ave. 954.462.0222. Fridays: Separate Checks—Spice up your night with South Florida’s favorite Comedy Improv Troupe, where you the audience create the show! (Bring odd objects to be used in the show.) Every Friday night at 9:30pm at the Blue Box, upstairs at the Hollywood Playhouse, 2640 Washington St. Admission is $7/adults, $5/ students. For more information call 954.327.9159. Fridays and Saturdays: Just the Funny— Whose Line is it Anyway? meets Saturday Night Live. Performances are Friday and Saturday nights at 11pm at Dreamers Theatre, 65 Almeria Ave in Coral Gables. Tickets are $10. For information call 305.69.FUNNY or visit justthefunny.com. Music Tuesday, Jan. 28: Barbara McNair—Singer, nightclub entertainer, and star of motion pictures and television, Barbara McNair performs at 7:30pm at Pompano Beach Civic Center, 1801 NE 6th St, Pompano Beach. For information call 954.786.4111. Wednesday, Jan. 29: Bobby Stringer— Rhythm & Blues from 7-9pm at the Hollywood Beach Theater, located at Johnson St. and the Broadwalk. Weather permitting. 954.921.3404. Wednesday, Jan. 29: Itzhak Perlman— Violin virtuoso Itzhak Perlman performs with pianist Rohan de Silva. 8pm at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 Southwest 5th Ave. 954.462.0222. Thursday, Jan. 30: Music of the World— Singer Ken Stuart performs 7-9pm at the Dania Beach Branch Library, 255 E. Dania Beach Blvd. in Dania Beach. For information call 954.926.2420. Thursday, Feb. 13: Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band—Far Side of the World tour, 8pm at American Airlines Arena. aaarena.com Thursday, Feb. 20: Liza in Concert—Liza takes the stage for a night of music, memories and non-stop energy at the Waterfront Theatre at American Airlines Arena, 7:30pm. aaarena.com or Ticketmaster. Friday, Feb. 21: Santana—Carlos Santana brings his 2003 Shaman Tour to American Airlines Arena at 7:30pm. aaarena.com. Radio The Norm Kent Show—Interviews and commentary with Norm Kent, weekday mornings at 8-9am on WFTL 1400 AM. The Call-In Line is 877.644.1400. Issues Over the Rainbow—MarkyG hosts this gay and lesbian early morning talk show. Sunday mornings at 7:25am on PARTY 93.1 FM. Party931.com Television SoFla Q TV—Television for the alternative lifestyle. For information call 305.534.3975 or visit soflaqtv.com. www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q9 CYMK Naked_Curiosity Singing A Country Song By Dennis Scott-Bush You can take the boy out of the country,” Rick joked. “But you can’t take the country out of this boy. My cliché-quoting friend was referring to his recent trip from rustic, rural America to the mean streets of Manhattan. Rick and a buddy of his had planned to make the sojourn together but his friend could never commit to specific dates. After about six months of unsuccessfully trying to solidify an itinerary, Rick opted to just go on his own. “On the cab ride from the airport, I was actually afraid,” Rick confessed. “Not of the ride itself but because of all the scary things you read about and see on TV.” After checking into his hotel, he headed south to Chelsea and the Village. Rick had practically memorized the listings in the Damron’s Guide. He knew which bars were likely to attract a clientele to which he would be attracted. He was ready for an adventure and he got one sooner than he expected. Rick is an amiable guy. He greets strangers as warmly as friends. While waiting in line to use the urinal, he struck up a conversation with Brad and, before the guy ahead of them had finished his business, Rick had picked up his first big-city trick. “You’d have thought I was in Vegas,” Rick teased. “Because I hit the jackpot with Brad.” Trick became tour guide and, then, bedmate, again, with more sightseeing and sex every day and night for Rick’s entire week in New York. Brad was a city boy, born and bred, and he loved to show off all the fabulous things New York had to offer. At the airport, Brad promised Rick that he would come visit him, as soon as he could. Daily phone calls, e-mails and instant messages kept the instant boyfriends feeling connected. Brad had plenty to talk about, during they conversations. He was always doing exciting things with interesting people. Rick began to feel like he couldn’t compete with that kind of fast-paced urban lifestyle. The only movies Rick saw were ones he got on DVD. The nearest museum was a few hours away. With each successive exchange, Rick grew more sure that if Brad ever came to visit him, he would be bored and disgusted. “I had visions of Green Acres,” Rick admitted. “Only instead of the lawyer-turnedfarmer, Brad would think I was closer to Arnold the pig.” A few days later, Rick prepared himself for the worst, when Brad started their chat with, “I have something serious to talk to you about.” But, instead of giving Rick the brush off, Brad told him that he’d bought an airline ticket and would be coming for a visit in less than two weeks. “You were the country mouse who came to the city and, now, I’ll be the city mouse coming to the country,” Brad explained with a giggle. Rick worked himself into more of a dither with each passing day. He convinced himself that Brad would take one look at his modest house, turn around, and head right back to New York. He believed that Brad would complain about the lack of restaurants and entertainment. He was certain that, other than sex, he had nothing to offer his sophisticated, jaded beau. To mark Brad’s arrival, Rick invited a few friends over. With the nearest gay bar two hours away, most of the gay folks in the area preferred to socialize in each other’s homes, rather than make the long drive for a beer and the possibility of a lust connection. Brad brought only a small carry-on bag which surprised Rick. He expected several large pieces of luggage with some posh selections from Brad’s massive collection of stylish clothes. “Just an extra pair of jeans and a few shirts. I saved space by not packing any underwear,” Brad noted. That was the first of many surprises. Contrary to Rick’s assumptions, Brad loved his house, found his friends delightful and was perfectly content with Rick’s laid-back life. And where’s the twist that brings home the column’s message and reflects back to the opening? Brad moved in with Rick. He telecommutes to his office in New York and goes back for a few days each month for meetings and other business. That was nine months ago. Last week, Rick e-mailed to say, “Even when you have trouble believing that it’s possible, there are happy endings.” The country boy is singing a love song. D. Scott-Bush’s work appears in publications throughout the country. E-mail my be directed to [email protected]. By Charlene Lichtenstein For the week of 1/27/03 Prepare for a planetary pile-up this week as the Sun “conjuncts” explosive Uranus. Our long term dreams can be thwarted by what we spontaneously say, think or do. Ready for fireworks in February? Keep on poking those embers, bubbele. ARIES (MARCH 21 - APRIL 20) Gay Rams prefer to go it alone when Sun conjuncts Uranus. Pals become more trouble than they are worth. Take a breather until next week when everybody’s nose sniffs up new business and moves out of yours. But for now, keep your knees together. TAURUS (APRIL 21 - MAY 21) Sun conjunct Uranus creates potholes in your superhighway of success. While the temptation is to act or react, clever queer Bulls will trot along and graze. This corporate situation will soon downsize and you’ll be in a good position to capitalize on it. GEMINI (MAY 22 - JUNE 21) Pink Twins find that their tasty plans don’t seem quite so delicious when Sun jabs crusty Uranus. Stop and take a serious look at the blueprints to see if a few of the finer points are missing. Review and replan; next week you will act up with authority. CANCER (JUNE 22 - JULY 23) All dressed up with no place to go; Pink Crabs yearn to scratch a low down dirty itch. But where is a suitable scratcher? Wiggle around until next week when your urges can be unleashed in all their hot and heavy fury. Temperatures rising....waters boiling.... LEO (JULY 24 - AUGUST 23) Partnerships may hit a snag when the Sun shunts Uranus . Keep your sunny side up, proud Lion, as your commitment is tested. Rome wasn’t built in a day so don’t expect quick fixes. Of course a few quickies here and there may not be a bad idea.... VIRGO (AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23) If you’re headed down a primrose path at work the Sun conjunct Uranus has you stepping on a few thorns. Gay Virgins fall into the sub-basement quicker that you can say “Pass the paperclips”. However, if you’re angling for a new job, this could clear the way. LIBRA (SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 23) Fun has a way of getting out of hand this week so perhaps it’s best to stow the stash and settle into a easy chair while this transit howls overhead. Gay Libras play dropsie. You break, you buy cousin. Pack your credit card and your knee pads..... SCORPIO (OCTOBER 24 - NOVEMBER 22) Don’t rush into anything while the Sun hamstrings Uranus now. Queer Scorps are awash in great decorating ideas but often the best ideas on Monday are no nos by Friday. Crushed velveteen bucket loveseats make a statement, but do you want to be quoted? SAGITTARIUS (NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22) Proud Archers may become a little too expressive when the Sun conjuncts Uranus this week, saying things they would normally chew on for a while and swallow. The secret is not to bite off more than you can handle. (Ain’t it the truth, kids!) CAPRICORN (DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20) A bear has trampled on your carefully constructed financial portfolio. Before you sell short, chalk it up to market fluctuations and bide your time. Pink Goats will be the master of both the bulls and bears by next week. Pack your whips. AQUARIUS (JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19) There is considerable commotion occurring in your own sign this week as the Sun and Uranus collide in Aqueerius. Venture Out and create a social stir. You’ll have ‘em talking for weeks, so give ‘em something to talk about. Hold the front page!! PISCES (FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20) If you get your wires crossed, blame it on Sun conjunct Uranus. Prophetic Guppies are apt to stash their crystal balls and let others do the divining. Use this transit to explore relaxation techniques like meditation, yoga or even hypnosis? Clear your mind. Huh? © 2003 MADAM LICHTENSTEIN, LLC., All Rights Reserved.For Entertainment Purposes Only. Check out her site www.AccessNewAge.com/Stargayzer for egreetings, horoscopes and Pride jewelry. Her book “HerScopes; A Guide To Astrology For Lesbians” from Simon & Schuster is available at bookstores and major booksites. Q10 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK Maximum_Volume Pumping It Up with New Album Releases Nick Warren: ‘Reykjavik #024’ (Studio Distribution) World-renowned DJ Nick Warren brings music lovers another Global Underground compilation, this one titled Reykjavik #024. Warren recorded the CD in Iceland, and its sound will hit the floors of Crobar in Miami on Jan. 31 when the artist makes a live appearance here in South Florida. Fans of global trance and techno are advised not to miss the show. Reykjavik #024 is actually two fantastic discs. One disc is more elegant down-tempo (think sipping Martini’s at The W hotel among a cutting-edge crowd) and the other a collection of up-front club vibes (think dancing your cares away until drenched and it’s the break of dawn). The sounds are rich and sumptuous, with one beat that hooks the listener in leading to another. Warren has also emphasized the use of melodies in his latest work, so it’s not just thumps and bumps one is listening to. You can close your eyes and actually feel yourself being carried away on a journey of elation. The first disc is relaxing enough to pull out a yoga mat and do some stretching to it, or just to meditate in the living room while sipping tea or coffee. Regardless, the effect is calming on the nerves. The second disc is one to put in the car on a Saturday night and crank up while driving to your favorite destination with friends. Warren creates Global grooves that will appeal to anyone with a taste for the exotic. Reykjavik #024 is a worthy addition to the collection of any dance music fan. —Andy Zeffer Vivian Green: ‘A Love Story’ (Sony) Vivian Green has one of the best sounds and styles to come on the R&B scene in ages, and she makes a stunning debut with her CD, A Love Story. Green got her start as a backup singer for Jill Scott, and the training and experience shows now that she is in the spotlight. Green’s voice and her choice of material is sultry, soulful and sophisticated. Her songs are tinged with jazz, especially in the piano that opens many songs, but she stays true to the groove. Green is an old-fashioned chanteuse with a fresh edge. Listening to A Love Story conjures up images of Green in a classy gown, center stage, charming and wowing her audience. A Love Story opens with the sunny, optimistic “Wishful Thinking,” the perfect song to introduce Green to listeners. “No Sittin’ By the Phone” will transport you to a smoky jazz club, as Green’s voice channels the spirits of divas who came before. “Emotional Rollercoaster” is the CD’s heart-wrenching centerpiece, a smooth song about loss and betrayal. “Final Hour is another winner on this outstanding set, a slow number that really showcases Green’s sensuous voice. A Love Story is an elegant set of songs that captures classic R&B vibes with a modern twist and ensures Vivian Green a place of honor for a long time to come. —Mary Damiano 1. Lose Yourself_Eminem 2. ’03 Bonnie &Clyde_Jay Z Feat. Beyonce Knowles 3. Work It_Missy”Misdemeanor”Elliott 4. Beautiful_Christina Aguilera 5. Bump, Bump, Bump_B2K & P.Diddy 6. Game Of Love_Santana Feat. Michelle Branch 7. Die Another Day_Madonna 8. Miss You_Aaliyah 9. Jenny From The Block_Jennifer Lopez 10. Cry Me A River_Justin Timberlake Nikki Nite Y100 • Miami 100.7 Midday’s 10am-2pm • Monday Thru Friday www.Y100.Miami.Com [email protected] Readonline www.OURweeklynews.com www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 Q11 CYMK Expressions On The Right High Noon in Europe Dissenting Europeans Were Put Off by President Bush The United States faces a military challenge abroad without the backing of France, Germany, and Clinton. Mr. Clinton's speech on Jan. 23 was devoted mostly to disparaging the Bush taxreform proposal. In doing so he used a quaint device: Tax reform would amount, he said with mock-serious facial concern, "to sending more money to me." That was his way of saying that he is now rich, which indeed he is, having been paid in the past year $9 million in speaking fees. In one of those speeches, in Raleigh, N.C., on Dec. 11, 2002, he said, "I hope the Democrats will support the position the administration now has in Iraq, which I think is the correct one." The administration's position hasn't changed in the last six weeks. What has happened is the effective disengagement of France and Germany from the foreign policy of the senior partner of the NATO alliance. European opposition to the Bush policy on Iraq has energized an opposition and given Mr. Clinton a vision of a golden harvest for the Democratic Party in which his wife looms as a central figure. There are those who wonder that someone who served so recently as commander in chief would choose a moment on the probable eve of a military engagement in which American lives are exposed to disparage the entire operation in which they are engaged. The dispatch in The New York Times by correspondent David E. Sanger is worth study. It is titled, "To Some in Europe, the Major Problem Is Bush the Cowboy." An unnamed U.S. diplomat reports that he hears complaints "all the time." "Much of it is the way he talks, the rhetoric, the religiosity," the diplomat reports. "It reminds them of what drove them crazy about Reagan. It Q12 • www.ExpressGayNews.com • January 27, 2003 CYMK reminds them of what they miss about Clinton. All the stereotypes we thought we had banished for good after Sept. 11 -- the cowboy imagery, in particular -it's all back." What is it -- one gives intensive thought to the question -- that the estranged French and Germans found so offensive in Reagan? One thinks back ... Reagan said early on in his administration that communism was headed for the ash heap of history, where it belonged. This astonished a professional diplomatic community that lives and breathes off ambiguity. Not much later, President Reagan said that we were dealing with an "evil empire." This caused true commotion: Chiefs of state were not expected to use language that issued from moral formulations, what some people no doubt thought of as "religiosity." And then Reagan, speaking in Berlin, pointed up to the stone masonry with its turrets and machine-guns and man-hunting dogs that for 25 years had kept immured Germans who longed for freedom. Reagan addressed the leader of the Soviet Union by saying: "Tear down that wall." The dissenting Europeans were early on put off by President Bush, we learn from the dispatch in the Times, because he had said shortly after taking office that the Kyoto treaty was "dead." The language was By William F. Buckley, Jr. probably unwise, but Bush's decisiveness was in wholesome contrast to Mr. Clinton's evasions. He signed the Kyoto treaty but never submitted it to the Senate, knowing that there -- excuse the language -- it would be "dead." Bush went on to reject U.S. submission to an International Criminal Court. His doing so projected a developing awareness of the underside of the cooperative, internationalist mystique. Such involvements contend with developments like a U.N. Human Rights Commission that will be headed up by Libya. A confrontation on the point of collective action is now directly ahead, and some have warned of it for years. The senior Bush insisted in 1990 that the United Nations had to endorse the Gulf War, which was done. But now the junior Bush is up against a de facto mutiny from the creeping superordination of the United Nations over U.S. policy. President Bush will either ignore the call to go to the U.N. to authorize military action, or he will go to the U.N. and live with a French veto. Outlive a French veto? If Mr. Bush has correctly analyzed the best interests of the United States, he will proceed to take action to remove Saddam Hussein. That is how such cowboys as Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan would have acted, unafraid, in doing so, to invoke the blessing Abraham Lincoln invoked in his mission, about which there was a very great division.