The Shoe Fairy

This totally cracks me up. tencrush on LiveJournal posted this along with her discussion of the stuff in Straight Actors and Gay Kissing, below, as an antidote to all of the rampant homophobia in American media. If you didn't know, this is Neil Patrick Harris, who's openly gay, and he's playing The Shoe Fairy on Sesame Street! (God, I hate that phrase, but unfortunately, we have to distinguish openly gay people from closeted ones. Sigh. I can't wait until it's an anachronism.)

New Hampshire Suspends Civil Jury Trials

This is kind of amazing. Civil jury trials will be suspended for a month in New Hampshire to save $73,000. Surely there's another way of saving this money. On the one hand, does one month make that much difference to the parties? On the other hand, "it could have a harsh impact on plaintiffs, many of whom have already waited years for a judgment in their case," says Ellen Shemitz, executive director of the New Hampshire Association for Justice, apparently the state's trial attorney organization. I imagine it will have an impact on cases that don't yet have trials scheduled also, simply slowing down the pace of litigation. Maybe it's time for New Hampshire to institute an income tax, if it can't even provide a reliable judicial system.

Straight Male Actors and Gay Kissing

Amusing article about male actors who've had to kiss other men in movies, focusing on James Franco, who plays Harvey Milk's boyfriend in the new biopic, "Milk". Why Can't a Kiss Be Just a Kiss? This article by Hank Stuever, who's always funny, talks about how such male actors are always grilled incessantly about "what it's like" to kiss another man (shock! horror!). And that they invariably must hate it, and that "a gay kissing scene must be the worst Hollywood job hazard that a male actor could face". The assumption is that everyone, including the audience, is totally grossed out. Yet, it's not that funny to gay people. The article quotes Corey Scholibo, entertainment editor for The Advocate, a gay magazine: "At a certain point, the joking about it...just isn't funny anymore...And it's disappointing for gay people. [especially since Prop 8 - paraphrasing]."

The article points out that no one ever asks gay actors what it's like to have to kiss women when they're playing a role. And I have the perfect clip of a gay actor making this very point. This is John Barrowman talking about Torchwood, which features a few male/male kisses, about which the straight actors are quizzed repeatedly (he's the only gay actor on the show). Barrowman makes the point that no one ever asks him what it's like for him to kiss a woman.



And here's an interview with Gareth David-Lloyd, a straight actor who plays Ianto Jones, the love interest of Barrowman's character on Torchwood. He has a refreshingly non-homophobic attitude.

Part of what sets 'Torchwood' apart from 'Doctor Who' is the fluid sexuality of each of the characters, and the matter-of-fact same-sex relationship that Gareth's character, Ianto, enjoys with John Barrowman's Captain Jack Harkness.

The relationship has translated into a large gay fanbase for Gareth, including a spot on AfterElton.com's annual Hot 100 List. When I bring up the list, Gareth's eyes light up mischievously. "I did beat Brad Pitt and David Beckham. Just for the fucking record."

Not too shabby for a man who wasn't even on last year's list.

He's also very proud to be known as a gay icon, even though he's straight. "As a straight man, I'm just as flattered being a gay icon as I would be being a straight icon or whatever," he shrugs. "I'm of a mindset and philosophy that same sex relationships just aren't a fucking issue for me."

To his credit, he doesn't shy away from the subject; in fact, he's pretty passionate about making his opinion known. "It's not as much of an issue [in the U.K.] at all. I don't get it, I don't understand why it's controversial, I don't understand why it's anyone's business or why it becomes anyone's problem where you stick your dick," he states, with bracing candor. "Because it's not an issue for me, I don't really see us as pioneers. If we are viewed as pioneers, I just feel sorry for the people that are just coming 'round, because the wankers should have grown up much longer ago.

"There's nothing wrong with [two men kissing] and the fact that people are interested in [Jack and Ianto's] relationship – I'd like that to be because of the chemistry. That's the reason I want it to be popular, not because, oh my God, it's a SciFi show with a gay relationship. I know people are going to be like that, but because it's not an issue for me, I sort of haven't got time for people it is an issue for."

Trailer for "Milk", which has gotten fantastic reviews:



Here's Franco on the David Letterman Show, in which he now famously kisses Dave on the cheek and talks about kissing Sean Penn. Funny quotes: "I never dreamed that I'd be kissing Spicoli." (Sean Penn played the stoner Spicoli in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"); Dave says, "We're registered at Target."

Review of "24 Redemption"

I mentioned "24 Redemption" as something I was looking forward to watching in November. I finally got around to watching it last night. Wow. It was fantastic. Riveting from the first shot. Completely absorbing. At first, I was a bit taken aback by the scenes of children being brutally forced to become soldiers in a fictional African country. But this is the reality in some places, and it made for some gripping scenes. You soon find out that Jack Bauer, the hero of "24", is hiding out at a boy's school being run by an old spy friend of his. I won't give away the plot, but you come to empathize with the boys and Jack's need to protect them. The U.S. Congress has issued a subpoena for Jack to testify about mistreatment of prisoners and Jack is trying to avoid the subpoena. (Jack? mistreat prisoners? no way. LOL) I was quickly reminded of what I love about "24," which is watching Jack get out of one ridiculous situation after another. It's nothing for Jack to single-handedly get rid of 10-15 heavily armed men. At one point, some bad guys are torturing Jack to get information. Clearly, they don't know Jack, because that is impossible.

The story shifts between Africa, where Jack, his friend, and the boys struggle for safety, and the U.S., where a new president is about to be sworn in. The American scenes are wonderfully intriguing, with lots of mysterious shenanigans by behind-the-scenes schemers. There's a great scene between the president-elect (played by Cherry Jones) and the current president (played by Powers Booth), in which Booth sort of awkwardly hands over the reins of power to Jones. Booth has a great voice (he was great in this role, which he played in last season) and Jones is perfect as the new president. She conveys wisdom, power and naivete all at the same time. Great stuff.

There are interesting contrasts between the inauguration scene and Africans trying to get into the American embassy to escape a civil war. The Americans are definitely not always the good guys in this prequel.

This 2 hour prequel did the job for me. I absolutely can't wait for the new season to begin in January.

Watch "24 Redemption" here. It looks way better on the website than it did on my crappy old TV.

Here's the trailer for Season 7:

Truth is Stranger than Fiction: random odd news

* Fran Dreschler considering Clinton's New York Senate seat Remember "The Nanny"? If she becomes a senator, that spells that end of televised Senate sessions. (her voice is the opposite of dulcet and soothing.)

* Proposed Bailout of U.S. Auto Industry involves a "car czar" - giggle. How ironic that the administration that was so obsessed with privatizing government functions is now forced to practically nationalize entire segments of the economy.

* D.C. Council Passes "emergency" legislation to allow bars to stay open until 5 a.m. during Inauguration Week I guess alcohol keeps the economy going, or nothing says "important historical moment" like staying up all night getting completely pissed.

Scene at Blagojevich arrest this morning

Blagojevich
Originally uploaded by gingerbydesign

This is shocking: IL Gov. arrested on corruption charges

FBI: Blago wanted payoff to give Obama advisor Senate seat; Press Conference details here

If you recall, the U.S. Attorney in Chicago, Patrick Fitzgerald, was the special prosecutor in the Valerie Plame investigation, who successfully prosecuted Scooter Libby for perjury. Wikipedia entry on Patrick Fitzgerald

Update: Blagojevich is saying he's not going to resign. Jeez, what an idiot. But he does have impressive hair. (photo by taekwonweirdo on flickr

Video of Fitzgerald's press conference:

Barney Frank Doesn't Do Chick Magnets

I heard this on the radio and thought it was funny.

Elvis Costello has a talk show!

I'm completely fascinated with the fact that Elvis Costello now has a talk show on the Sundance Channel. Spectacle: Elvis Costello on Sundance Unfortunately, I currently don't get the Sundance Channel, but I'm switching cable providers soon and I'm hoping I'll have Sundance with the new provider. You can watch clips of his interviews at the previous link, and a sample is below. It seems that he's interviewing musicians (Elton John, Lou Reed, The Police), and Bill Clinton (!), of all people.

I've loved Elvis Costello since he made it big in the late 70's as part of the New Wave scene, sporting a kind of geeky Buddy Holly look. He writes wonderful, tuneful songs with clever, articulate lyrics. Listen to Elvis Costello at lastfm.com I've only seen him perform live once. I'll always regret not seeing him when he came to perform at my college in 1978, right about the time he made it big. My favorite albums are his first, My Aim is True, Imperial Bedroom, Trust, and Almost Blue. Gossip Note: He's married to Diana Krall, a fantastic jazz musician.

Follow-up on Melamine in Formula: Trace Amounts Found in U.S. Formula

Awhile back I posted an entry about melamine in Chinese dairy products, including infant formula and how a decrease of breastfeeding in China had exacerbated the problem. Decrease of breastfeeding in China Recently the Food and Drug Administration announced it had found trace amounts of melamine in infant formula produced in the United States. Melamine Traces Found in U.S. Infant Formula While alarming, experts do not believe melamine is harmful to infants in the small amounts found in formula. The melamine in U.S. formula came from contact with melamine-containing products. It wasn't deliberately put in the formula to up its protein content, as it was in China. This is an excellent article from WebMD on the issue. FAQ: Melamine in U.S. Baby Formula However, no one really knows for sure if these amounts of melamine are harmful. Experts are making their best guess. Furthermore, the same amounts were found in all U.S. formula brands, so switching brands won't make any difference in the amount of melamine in the formula. Finally, melamine can be harmful even in trace amounts if combined with certain other chemicals. This is yet another argument for women to breastfeed if at all possible.

Media Consumption Fail

Why haven't the entries in "Media I'm Consuming Now" in the sidebar changed since I put that section up over a month ago? argh. No, I haven't seen anything new movies or finished any books since then. Cripes. Unless you count "Affinity" below. I'm still reading "The Indian Clerk", which turns out to be about real-life Cambridge mathematicians. When did David Leavitt become fascinated with math? (which I hate, by the way) But it's a very well-written book. The Indian clerk of the title is a math genius who writes to a Cambridge math don and is recruited to come to Cambridge to further his genius ways. Takes place in the very early 1900's. I'd enjoyed David Leavitt's earlest books, which were primarily about young gay guys in the US as I dimly recall. And, yes, the Cambridge don is gay. The "clerk" has just arrived in England and is adjusting. We'll see what happens.

(Julie knows what I've been reading instead, LOL.)

Affinity

This needs some serious updating. I blew the Nat'l Blog Posting Month due to some weird black hole of demotivation that sucked me in plus another project I was trying to finish. Ah well. I've got a bunch of ideas for posts and will start putting things up tomorrow. Right now I'm watching Affinity, a 2008 adaptation of a Sarah Waters novel. Affinity




In 19th century England, an upper class woman begins visiting a woman's prison to uplift its residents and escape the restrictions of her life. She becomes obsessed with an inmate who claims to be a medium. Sarah Waters is one of my favorite novelists. She writes lesbian historical fiction. Even if you don't care about the lesbian content, her books are excellent historical novels, from the picaresque to the suspenseful. Her other novels include Tipping the Velvet, Fingersmith, and The Night Watch.
All but "The Night Watch" take place in 19th century England. "The Night Watch" takes place in London during World War II. I've been hoping for another novel from her for ages. "Tipping the Velvet" and "Fingersmith" have also been adapted for television. In the US, they were both shown on LOGO, which is also airing "Affinity".


Wow, you can get "Fingersmith" from Amazon for only .64!

Review of Affinity on afterellen.com

Interview with Sarah Waters about the film here