Adam Lambert is Now a Platinum Blonde: PHOTO

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Adam Lambert debuted a new look via Twitter Tuesday night.

Said the singer: "New 'Do...You ask Why? Why not? ;) change is good....Even more excited to play dress up in Japan now!"

U.S. Embassies in Moscow and St. Petersburg Warn Citizens of Possible Violence at Madonna Concert

The U.S. Embassies in Moscow and St. Petersburg sent out a security message today for U.S. citizens regarding concerts tonight and Thursday by Madonna in those cities.

Says the warning:

This is to alert U.S. citizens in Russia who are planning to attend the Madonna concerts in Moscow on Tuesday, August 7, or in St. Petersburg on Thursday, August 9, that the U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg has received information regarding a threat of physical violence against spectators and performers at the St. Petersburg concert on August 9.  The U.S. Embassy in Moscow and the U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg have shared the information with appropriate Russian law enforcement authorities.  Russian authorities have indicated to the Embassy that they are taking appropriate measures in light of this information.  While we expect that enhanced security measures will be put in place at both concerts, U.S. citizens are reminded to remain vigilant regarding their personal security, and to be aware of their surroundings at all times, especially in crowded areas.

Specific details of the threat have not been made public.

Madonna said in March she would speak out against the oppressive ban on "gay propaganda" passed by St. Petersburg, an announcement that has her under surveillance by Russian authorities.

Madonna spoke out about feminist punk band Pussy Riot at Tuesday's concert, the Guardian reports:

Prosecutors on Tuesday called for the three women – Maria Alyokhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich – to be jailed for three years after arguing they had insulted all of Russian Orthodoxy and posed a danger to society. They have been charged with hooliganism motivated by religious hatred after performing a "punk prayer" against President Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral.

Performing in Moscow's Olimpisky Stadium on Tuesday night, Madonna donned a balaclava and stripped off her clothes to reveal the words "Pussy Riot" scrawled across her back during a performance of her 1984 hit Like a Virgin.

Said Madonna: "I know there are many sides to every story, and I mean no disrespect to the church or the government, but I think these girls … have done something courageous and they have paid the price for this act and I pray for their freedom. They deserve the right to be free."

Howard Stern Won't Patronize Anti-Gay Chick-fil-A: VIDEO

Missed this in the flood of news last week, but thought I'd post it for the record.

Said Stern, in part:

"I don't really care what the political beliefs are of a corporation...When you’re in business, you don’t want to turn off anybody. It’s the smart way to do business, because while I’m not gay, I do support gay marriage... Because really what the guy is saying is 'oh sure anyone can eat here but our money and our beliefs are that anyone who wants to be married who is gay is wrong'. Now that's a pompous statement for a guy who makes chicken for a living....Don’t come out as a corporation against anybody. OK, if you want to come out against Hitler, I’ll back you on that. But, just keep your mouths shut."

Listen, AFTER THE JUMP...

(via ontd)

Missoula, Montana Anti-Gay Hate Crime Was Fabricated: Police - VIDEO

An update on the anti-gay assault that was reported to have happened over the weekend in Missoula, Montana.

Joseph Baken, of Billings, had reported to police that he was beaten by three men after spending the evening at the Missoula Club and asking for the location of a gay bar. Now police say they have new information they are following up on and believe that the incident was fabricated.

The Missoula Independent reports:

...the Missoula Independent and MPD obtained video footage that shows Baken doing a backflip on Higgins Avenue and sustaining the injuries, lacerations to his face, that have been depicted on social media sites, during the landing.

Baken will likely be charged for making a false report, according to police. Baken's alleged story spread quickly on the web yesterday after the Wipeout Homophobia Facebook page posted his photo.

Watch the video footage, AFTER THE JUMP...

UPDATED. "Joseph Baken pleaded guilty this afternoon in Missoula Municipal Court to charges of filing a false police report. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail and a $300 fine. The jail time was suspended."

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #1182

WWF: Confessions of a Tiger Poacher.

MRS. SMITH: Her thoughts on Chick-fil-A (aka WTF?).

THE XX: Chained.

SB1172: California bill protecting youth from being forced into 'ex-gay' therapy.

For recent Guides to the Tube, click HERE.

News: Morrissey, OMG, Levi Johnston, Vatican, Dragonette

The first known instance of 'OMG' in letter to Winston Churchill?

Man charged in anti-gay assault in Portland will spend NO time behind bars: "He was sentenced to 18 months probation and ordered to have no contact with the victims. He must also pay them $4,200 in restitution."

The Olympics ignite Morrissey's anti-British rage: "I am unable to watch the Olympics due to the blustering jingoism that drenches the event. Has England ever been quite so foul with patriotism? The "dazzling royals" have, quite naturally, hi-jacked the Olympics for their own empirical needs, and no oppositional voice is allowed in the free press. It is lethal to witness."

Levi Johnston doesn't approve of Bristol allowing his son to use anti-gay slurs, etc on national television. He wants full custody.

VIDEO: Kelly Clarkson slays No Doubt's "Dont' Speak".

Lesbian lawmaker eyeing governor's office in Maryland: "Del. Heather Mizeur, a second-term lawmaker, said yesterday that she is taking a hard look at a potential run for statewide office. She didn't exactly spell out which office she has her eye on, but she wouldn't rule out a try for the top spot. 'I'm keeping my options open relative to the 2014 race. I'm not ruling anything out,' she said."

The Smoking Gun ferrets out the anti-gay activist who set General Mills' lawn on fire. "On Michael Leisner’s YouTube page (Live4Chr1st) he can be seen attacking Representative Barney Frank and Bill Maher, while noting that President Barack Obama has 'bent forward to accommodate the sodomites of New York.' He also makes reference to 'gay perverts,' 'fierce faggots,' and the 'depraved, debasing debauchery of gay activists.'"

Irish radio host Derek Mooney: Yes, I’m gay...but it’s no big deal.

A new single from Dragonette: Live in This City.

Gay married couple allowed to file joint bankruptcy in Kentucky: "Kentucky voters amended the state constitution in 2004 to say that 'only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage.' But Joles and Lester were allowed to file a joint Chapter 13 bankruptcy in federal court because the Obama administration has decided it will no longer contest such filings by married same-sex couples. Joles and Lester, who lost more than $200,000 they invested in a downtown market — The Bodega at Felice — say the administration’s change was a blessing."

Ryan Lochte, hammered Olympian.

Madonna opens fitness center in Moscow.

Obama's head carved from a pencil point.

Vatican rejects Bulgarian ambassador candidate because a book he wrote had a gay sex scene in it: "The book deals with migration from eastern Europe to Italy and includes a scene dealing with a male character paying another man for sex. It topped the best-selling lists in his home country, the daily said." 

Marriage equality advocate ends cross-country bike trip in Portland: "Richard Carey of New York City began his 3,700-mile, 54-day trek in June in Vancouver, Wash., to raise money and support for the legalization of gay marriage. The 53-year-old Carey ends his trip Tuesday in Portland, where he'll join gay-marriage supporters for a press conference at the headquarters of the Mainers United for Marriage organization."

German minister supports tax benefits for gay couples: "On Monday, a group of 13 CDU lawmakers released a statement demanding that the German parliament take the initiative in granting gay couples in a civil union the same joint-filing tax benefits enjoyed by married couples. And Monday evening, the group received powerful support. German Family Minister Kristina Schröder told the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung that the push comes 'at the right time, because in lesbian and gay life partnerships, people take lasting responsibility for one another and thus they live according to conservative values.'"