Melissa Etheridge Marries Partner Linda Wallem

Melissa Etheridge wed her partner Linda Wallem at the San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito, California on Saturday, People reports.

Tweeted Etheridge on Sunday morning:

True love...so blessed. "By the power invested in me by the state of California..." Thanks

Etheridge's four children participated in the wedding, which was attended by Jane Lynch, Chelsea Handler, Rosie O’Donnell, Whitney Cummings, Peter Facinelli and recording artist Sia, according to the magazine.

Etheridge and Wallem began dating in 2010.

Congrats!

(image via twitter)

Rose McGowan Defies Boycott, Hosts Party to Support Staff at Beverly Hills Hotel

Actress Rose McGowan hosted a party in support of the staff of the Beverly Hills Hotel, as well as to send a message of defiant love to the hotel's owner the sultan of Brunei. 

The Dorchester Collection, to which the Beverly Hills Hotel belongs, has become the center of an international boycott sparked by the recent passage of sharia law in the southeast Asian nation of Brunei. The DC is owned by the Brunei Investment Agency, which is a part of the ministry of finance in Brunei. Stars such as Ellen DeGeneres, Jay Leno, Richard Branson, and Stephen Fry are leading calls for celebrities and those with influence to stop supporting the hotels.

"I want to assemble a group of men and women (and hopefully some adulteresses,) that would be stoned in Brunei but that will be welcome at the BH," said McGowan, reported The Huffington Post.

The party was attended by friends of McGowan who weren't convinced that a boycott would affect the sultan, but would rather have a detrimental effect on the hotel's staff. 

Reports The Huffington Post:

"Rose and I came up with the idea for this whole thing together," [McGowan's friend Amanda] Goodwin said. "We were talking on Facebook about what was going on here, and we just thought, 'Wouldn't it be great if we got together some fabulous people, gay and straight, and responded to this hate with love instead of ignoring it?'"

"Listen," Goodwin continued, "I'm gay. I'm married to a woman. I hate what the sultan is doing to people in Brunei. But I don't think that responding to what he's doing with more hate is the answer. I really feel that way. I think it's great that we're here, being gay, sitting on his sofa. I really want to gay this place up.

"A lot of people have asked me whether I'd go if it were Hitler," she said.

Well, would she?

"Probably. I think I would. I'd go, and I'd say, 'I'm a Jew.'"

McGowan isn't the first celebrity to balk at the boycott. Russell Crowe took to Twitter last week to defend the hotel's staff, whom he sees as "collateral damage" in the campaign. 

Brady Bunch's 'Alice', Actress Ann B. Davis, Dies at 88

Ann B. Davis, who played Alice on The Brady Bunch died on Sunday after a fall, CNN reports:

According to [close friend Bishop William] Frey, Davis fell and hit her head Saturday morning in her bathroom. She suffered a subdural hematoma and never regained consciousness.

According to Frey, Davis fell and hit her head Saturday morning in her bathroom. She suffered a subdural hematoma and never regained consciousness.

RIP Alice!

Davis talks about her time at The Brady Bunch (starts at about 20:00), AFTER THE JUMP...

Drag Diva Lady Bunny Weighs In On 'Tranny'

In an interview with Paper Magazine, drag personality Lady Bunny spoke on her new show Clown Syndrome and during the interview offered her opinions on the use of the word "tranny". She pulled no punches, saying:

Tranny is an abbreviation for transvestite and transsexual, so I'm free to use it since I fall with that category. Much as blacks can use the N-word. I know tranny from London, where they abbreviate everything -- breakfast is brekkie, biscuit is biccie. Tranny is used affectionately on the club scene. Even transsexual advocates like Jayne County and Kate Bornstein have come out and said that these words aren't necessarily slurs.

[...]

And I'm sick of people thinking they can ban words because they make them feel bad. Boo hoo for you! Any time we choose a different path in life, we're going to get shit for it -- whether you choose to be openly gay, trans or even a straight guy with tattoos all over his face. If you don't have the balls to take s--t, then choose an easy path. And for huge gay organizations like GLAAD to join in to censor Ru or anyone else confuses me. "Gender bender" is on GLAAD's list of banned words. That's what Frank-n-Furter, David Bowie and Sylvester were--that's not a slur except to the most precious, uptight goody two-shoes.

Conchita Wurst, Bill Clinton, Ricky Martin Take the Stage at Vienna's 'Life Ball' AIDS Benefit: VIDEO

Europe's largest HIV/AIDS benefit, the star-studded Life Ball took place Saturday night in Vienna, and there were lots of stars on hand including Carmen Carrera, Ke$ha, Jinkx Monsoon, Milk, Courtney Act, Amanda Lepore, Leona Lewis, Marcia Cross, Christina Perri. Check out some fashion coverage HERE.

Former President Bill Clinton took the stage (“I feel so poorly dressed") as did Ricky Martin, to sing his new track "Vida", written for the World Cup, but the entertainer who seemed to steal the spotly was newly-crowned Eurovision winner and bearded lightning rod Conchita Wurst, who performed "Rise Like a Phoenix".

Watch a segment from the show featuring Clinton, Martin, and Conchita Wurst as well as some news coverage, AFTER THE JUMP...

A Euronews report:

Australian Rugby League Brothers Sam and Thomas Burgess Fight Homophobia: VIDEO

Sam and Thomas Burgess, who play for the South Sydney Rabbitohs, released a video in conjunction with the Bingham Cup's 'Out in the Field' study of anti-discrimination in sports.

Says Sam in the clip: "I don’t see why there should be any discrimination about colour, sexuality, your heritage or where you’re from. Sport is a great thing, and it brings people from all different aspects of life together, so why should your sexuality be a problem? The only way we are going to understand the issue is if people get out there and tell their story so we can help fix it.”

Adds Thomas: "I think discrimination in sport is old fashioned. We're very passionate about the game. We have lots of gay friends."

Watch the clip, AFTER THE JUMP...