Crowd Riots Over Gay Kiss at Suspected Baron-Cohen 'Bruno' Prank

Yesterday, I posted that Sacha Baron-Cohen had duped former Mossad intelligence agency Yossi Alpher into a fake interview as his gay Austrian TV reporter persona Bruno for the upcoming film. Today come reports of a "cage fight" last month in Fort Smith, Arkansas where a near riot erupted after a staged "scene" in which two fighters ripped off each other's clothing and kissed:

"The two men would then wrestle, rip away some of their clothes and share a brief kiss reminiscent of one between Baron Cohen and Will Ferrell in the film 'Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.' Producers said 'there would be a romantic embrace,' Holland said. 'They said it was kind of to essentially make fun, poke fun at wrestling _ two guys rolling around on the floor, all sweaty.' An elaborate array of mounted and handheld video cameras caught the crowd of 1,600's reaction as the two men 'went right up to the line' of the city's morality laws, Holland said. The two men stripped down to their underwear, kissed and rubbed on each other, the sergeant said. The audience, as well as local fighters drawn to take part in the show, became enraged. 'It set the crowd off lobbing beers,' Holland said. 'They had beers in plastic cups. Those things can get some distance on them actually.' Holland said it took officers about 45 minutes to clear the convention center, as the two actors sprinted away through a specially set-aside tunnel. Those in attendance were told by several signs on display that they'd be filmed, Holland said, and signed waivers before the event. Convention center sales director Karin Hobbs declined to name the event's sponsor Monday."

Seems reminiscent of the rodeo scene in Borat, and sounds pretty frightening, actually. Baron-Cohen's publicist is refusing to comment on the event or its suspected association with the Bruno film.

A cage fight (not the one in question) at Fort Smith, AFTER THE JUMP...

(via joe.my.god)

Sphere: Related Content

News: Johnny Depp, Eureka Springs, Clark Gable, Bounty Killer

BOOK: Clark Gable was gay for pay. "David Bret’s angle on Clark Gable is this: Gable was 'gay for pay' and 'rough trade,' and he enjoyed having sex 'for bucks.' In addition, he 'would sometimes scrub his penis until it bled' and used a device to prolong erections. If these tidbits from the book’s first few pages aren’t too much information for you, you’re in luck. This breathtakingly trashy biography does not skimp on sordid anecdotes."

Johnny Depp the new, uh, face of Trojan condoms?

Gawker goes to the NYC Black Party.

T.R. Knight steps out with boyfriend Mark Cornelsen: We all have AIDS.

Survey shows increased support for gay marriage in Ireland: "Eighty-four per cent of respondents to an opinion poll conducted this month by Lansdowne Market Research said they supported civil marriage or civil partnerships for gay and lesbian couples. This is the same figure as a similar survey carried out in November 2006. However, 58% said gay and lesbian couples should be allowed to marry in registry offices, compared to 51% in the previous survey."

Did Heath Ledger father a love child?

Could Al Gore be brought in for clean-up duty at the convention? "Let’s say the elders of the Democratic Party decide, when the primaries end, that neither Obama nor Clinton is viable. Let’s also assume — and this may be a real stretch — that such elders are strong and smart enough to act. All they’d have to do would be to convince a significant fraction of their superdelegate friends, maybe fewer than 100, to announce that they were taking a pass on the first ballot at the Denver convention, which would deny the 2,025 votes necessary to Obama or Clinton. What if they then approached Gore and asked him to be the nominee, for the good of the party — and suggested that he take Obama as his running mate? Of course, Obama would have to be a party to the deal and bring his 1,900 or so delegates along."

Madonna on the paparazzi: "The paparazzi are out of control. I haven't been to Los Angeles in quite a while, and I don’t watch television here or in England, and I was told there's now a television show where the paparazzi are the stars of the show—is that true? That they film each other doing paparazzi jobs? Which gives them more fuel. I usually found that type kept their distance—they definitely do in England, because it's illegal to photograph children. But that's not how it is here. They get this close, and don't care how much they scare your children. Being famous has changed a lot, because now there's so many outlets, between magazines, TV shows, and the Internet, for people to stalk and follow you. We created the monster."

Gay couple faces harsh realities in move from New Jersey to Idaho.

Is Regent Entertainment circling gay publications Out and The Advocate?

HIV-positive Canadian Martin Rooney takes on U.S. travel ban: "I said I was on disability. He said what's my disability. I said I have HIV. He hauled me into a backroom. ... He put on a set of rubber gloves to hold each of my fingers. Nobody else wore rubber gloves. Then he fingerprinted me, photographed me, ran me through the FBI's most-wanted list and told me to go back to Canada and not return until I came back with a waiver. I felt like I was being treated like a terrorist."

Arkansas gays converge on Eureka Springs for 'Diversity Weekend': "Homosexual and transsexual residents say that living in Northwest Arkansas has its benefits, such as the small-town atmosphere, natural beauty, and amenities such as shopping and restaurants. But many lament the limited social venues and a lack of connectivity within their own community. 'There is a fairly large population of people that are gay, lesbian or bisexual, but there is no community,' said Fayetteville resident J. Judd Harbin."

Ricky Martin battles human trafficking in Cambodia

Human rights groups halt concerts by 'murder music' singer Bounty Killer: "In Germany, Bounty Killer's performance in Essen was cancelled and other German concert dates are now in doubt as gay human rights groups are coordinating a Europe-wide campaign to halt his 'Deadly Alliance' tour of the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Italy and Switzerland."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Kelly Rowland, Sundance, Vermont, Johnny Weir, Florent

L.A. Times columnist asks why The Kite Runner, and its controversial boy-rape scene wasn't included in the GLAAD awards. Maybe because sexual orientation had nothing to do with it.

Channing Tatum recruited for GI Joe film: "The 27-year-old modern-turned-actor will play Duke, a field commander and second-in-command of the G.I. Joe Team after Hawk. Other actors signed on: Sienna Miller as The Baroness, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaj (Lost) as Heavy Duty, Rachel Nichols (Alias) as Shana ‘Scarlett’ O’Hara and Marlon Wayans as Ripcord. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock From the Sun) is also in negotiations to join the project."

Randy Lovely promoted to editor of The Arizona Republic, making him the nation's only openly gay editor of a major U.S. newspaper: "Lovely says he has never hidden his sexual preference, but is not among the most outspoken gay rights activists. 'There are many others who are much more involved. I support them, but I am not on the leadership,' he says of his NLGJA membership. 'I have not had to be anything other than what I am. I can't be the one to tell anyone they have to be out. But it is not something I am afraid of.'"

New York meatpacking staple Florent, which I did a long photo piece on two years ago, may be closing...

Johnny Weir ties with Evan Lysacek at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships but Lysacek wins for skating better in the free skate: "First place, second place, last place, I'm just happy with the way I skated. I was so nervous, and it's fantastic vindication to know I came back and didn't completely fall apart. I feel like a winner."

Keith Olbermann would trade personal success for a decent president: "I think this has been a disastrous presidential administration. I would have given what I have, in terms of broadcasting success in the nature of this newscast, I would have easily said…if I were given the choice of this or some responsible presidency in the last four years or eight years? I would have taken a responsible presidency."

Gay ordained Presbyterian minister Brian Webb-Mitchell shares tips for gay parents in new book: "I wrote the book because there was nothing out there that was pro-gay, pro-child, pro-family and pro-Christian. The books that dealt with gay parenting and Christianity were not very pro-Christian. If anything, they steered people toward the United Church of Christ and away from Catholic and Evangelical churches."

Adrian Grenier brings along his own little entourage.

New board game created by son of Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Magistrate Judge Gary Sebelius set inside a prison is called "Don't Drop the Soap": "Fight your way through 6 different exciting locations in hopes of being granted parole. Escape prison riots in The Yard, slip glass into a mob boss' lasagna in the Cafeteria, steal painkillers from the nurse's desk in the Infirmary." And whatever you do, avoid those gays in the shower room!

"Pro-family" conservatives in Arkansas launch drive to stop unmarried couples from adopting or becoming foster parents. Jerry Cox, president of the Arkansas Family Council Action Committee: "Anyone who tells you that this initiated act is only about gay adoption is not telling you the whole story. Anyone who will tell you, though, that gay adoption has nothing to do with this act wouldn’t be telling you the whole story, either."

Sundance Film Festival winners announced...

Work: Kelly Rowland is proud as a peacock at G-A-Y.

Gay Miller Brewing executive Vic Milford shot and killed in Milwaukee robbery: "'At this time, this is a company grieving the tragic loss of one of its dearest employees,' [a Miller spokesman] said, in a statement. 'The immediate impact of this loss is being felt most by the family and friends of Vic Milford. And out of respect for the Milford family, we believe our attention is best served by caring for those most affected by this horrible tragedy.' Milford, a citizen of South Africa, had lived in Milwaukee since taking the Miller Brewing job in February 2005, Green said, and previously worked for SABMiller since 2002. Milford is survived his parents, who are residents of Zimbabwe, a sister in Australia and a man described as Milford's life partner, who lives in South Africa, according to a Miller statement."

Carol Channing is a robber magnet!

Gay Vermont legislator Jason Lorber moonlights as a stand-up comic: "When I first came here, people said 'You're the first comedian to come to the Statehouse.' I say 'I'm the first PROFESSIONAL comedian to come to the Statehouse'...Politics is about changing society and trying to make the world a better place. And performing makes me feel so alive. I love the creative aspect of it...Growing up, I never pictured myself being with a gay guy. Now, I've come to realize that I could never be happy being with a straight guy."

L.A. Times columnist: FOX News host John Gibson should lose his platform over Heath Ledger remarks.

Sphere: Related Content

Flashback: Huckabee Congratulates Canadians on Their Igloo

Openly gay Canadian Broadcasting personality Rick Mercer made a trip to Arkansas back in 2001 to interview Arkansans in a segment called "Talking to Americans" and finished off by talking to the state's then governor Mike Huckabee.

I last featured Mercer on the blog in November 2006, in a segment with diver Alexandre Despatie.

(via dailykos)

Sphere: Related Content

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #219

DIRECTING JETS: This RAF Marshal has become a YouTube celebrity for his ways on the runway.

AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL: A leftover from Iowa. Romney struggles with those amber waves of grain.

EUREKA SPRINGS: The American Family Association has produced a video warning of the gays that are "coming to your town" to destroy it. Sorry folks, we're already here.

CHRISTMAS EVE MURDER: More on the Southington, Connecticut "internet date" murder I posted about earlier in the week.

Check out our previous guides to the Tube here

Sphere: Related Content

Anderson Cooper Takes Us "Noodlin" in the Deep South

This is my favorite Anderson Cooper report in recent memory. Last night on AC360 on "The Shot" he featured Noodlin, the practice of catching catfish by hand in Arkansas.

Says Anderson: "As you can see, they grow them real big in the waters...they literally, like, find the fish and shove their arm down the fishes throat through the gills...That's noodlin...I wanna go noodlin."

And I bet the new biceps could catch Anderson a big one.

You may have missed...
Anderson Cooper's First Gig for the Grouch News Network [tr]
Anderson Cooper is Trash [tr]
Anderson Cooper and Jeff Corwin on Double Date with Nature [tr]
Anderson Cooper: Love Notes from the West Village [tr]

Sphere: Related Content

News: Marc Jacobs, Sweden, Lance Bass, Astroglide

Same-sex marriage in Sweden closer to reality? "Sweden’s three opposition parties, the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Left Party have put forward a motion in the Swedish Parliament to allow gay marriages. There is wide support in the parliament for the move, with the only party against the plans the Christian Democrats. They are also in a minority in the government, with three out of four of the ruling parties also in favour, but the Christian Democrat’s opposition means the government is unable to put forward a motion itself."

Marc Jacobs strips again for the cover of Arena Homme +

Astroglide: Barbara Walters reportedly gave sexual lubricant recommendations to Rosie O'Donnell.

Lance Bass in shouting match with companion outside NYC's Barracuda bar: "He was creating a commotion, and then he and Lance took it outside. They fought outside, screaming at the top of their lungs."

Memorial held in NYC for gay club icon Dean Johnson. Friend: "I never felt as comfortable as a straight guy in a world where I wasn’t supposed to be than with Dean. When I met Dean, I realized what being free is all about. He never judged anybody, and he never cared about being judged."

It's Britney's video, bitch!

Condoleezza Rice's female friend Randy Bean, with whom she owns a house in Palo Alto, California, responds to rumors that the two women are a couple: "Condi and I have been friends for 25 years. We co-own an investment property in Palo Alto. We do not share a home."

On the planning of an LGBT Wedding magazine.

Responding to GLAAD, the New York Post apologizes for calling a transgender person a She-Male.

SLOG's Dan Savage talks to Stephen Colbert on The Colbert Report.

The Provincetown hate crimes have caught the attention of Boston's newsweekly The Phoenix.

Here's the Nan Goldin photograph, "Klara and Edda Belly Dancing", that was seized by police from a show of Elton John's collection. Elton shuttered the gallery exhibition due to the investigation, which alleges the photograph breaches child pornography laws.

Gay foster parent ban may hit the 2008 ballot in Arkansas: "Attorney General Dustin McDaniel approved an initiative Thursday, which will allow supporters of the ban to collect signatures in support of placing the issue on a ballot. Now that their initiative has been approved, the Family Council Action Committee must collect at least 78-thousand votes in order to get their proposal on the 2008 ballot. It was struck down by the state Supreme Court in 2006 and failed in the state legislature during the 2007 session, so proponents of a ban on gay and unmarried foster parents decided to take the issue to the voters. After one failed attempt in September, the Family Council Action Committee got their initiative approved on Thursday."

Recent paparazzi photos of Jennifer Aniston and Orlando Bloom in Mexico which sparked relationship rumors have a backstory: they were at the 'gay power wedding' of friends Luc Brinker and Todd Diener in Mexico.

Sphere: Related Content

Eureka Springs, Arkansas to Issue Same-Sex Union Certificates

Arkansas' most gay-friendly resort destination, Eureka Springs, will next week begin recording same-sex unions and issuing certificates in recognition. The certificates offer few new rights beyond recognition but could assist domestic partners seeking health insurance benefits. Of course, the religious right folk are up in arms:

"The Reverend Philip Wilson, pastor of the First Christian Church, says he thinks the new service by the city is at odds with the town's image as a Victorian village. He has taken out newspaper ads expressing his concerns that recording same-sex unions will make Eureka Springs, as he put it, 'a homosexual Mecca.' The city council voted unanimously last month to set up the registry of unorthodox unions. The certificates will be issued to any pair over 18 years of age who pay a $35 fee. Mayor Dani Wilson -- no relation to the preacher of the same last name -- said she's gotten tons of e-mails wondering when the registry would be open for business."

The town is apparently a popular wedding destination, kind of like the Bible Belt's own Niagara Falls. Folks come to get married under the Christs of the Ozarks statue.

Sphere: Related Content

Arkansas Bill Banning Gay Adoption Dies in Committee

A bill that would have banned gay people and unmarried couples from adopting children or becoming foster parents that had passed a Senate vote by 20-7, failed in a voice vote in the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.

"The bill is a response to a June 2006 state Supreme Court decision upholding a lower court ruling that struck down a state regulation banning gays from becoming foster parents. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Timothy Fox ruled in December 2004 that in imposing the ban the state Child Welfare Review Board overstepped the authority granted by the Legislature. After the ruling, the state stopped asking prospective foster parents about their sexual orientation. [The bill's sponsor Sen. Shawn Womack, R-Mountain Home] testified Tuesday his bill would not be unconstitutional."

An "expert" licensed counselor who argued that gays cannot provide a stable environment was brought in and challenged by Rep. Kathy Webb, D-Little Rock, who asked if he had read research from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychiatric Association that argues just the opposite.

In response, the counselor said that it was hard to get an opinion from either side that wasn't biased.

Said Womack, in response to the bill's failure: "I suspect a lot of (lawmakers) will get phone calls over the next few days, and a lot of House members will be upset that they didn't get a chance to vote on this."

The Williams Institute at the UCLA Law School released the results of a study yesterday that said banning adoptions by gay and lesbian couples would cost the U.S. foster care system $130,000,000. (PDF)

$130 million per year.

Why will it cost so much? Dan Savage explains: "Because there are already half a million children in foster care right now, and 100,000 children waiting to be adopted. Gays and lesbians are often willing to adopt children that same-sex couples are not: older children, infants with HIV, children with drug and alcohol exposure. Remove same-sex couples from the pool of potential adoptive parents and more children will remain in foster care longer. Some will remain in foster care forever."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Gay Babies, Arkansas, Thomas Roberts, Rosie

Los Angeles fertility clinic opens, catering specifically to gay males who want to become parents. Director: "There are a lot of centers that dibble and dabble in this. But we are the only program for gay men that has psychological, legal, medical, surrogates, donors and patients all taken care of in one place. The demand is incredible. The United States has always been busy but we are seeing more and more demand from abroad."

Radar asks: Is your baby gay?

Anderson Cooper's report on Thomas Roberts' sexual abuse at the hands of a gay priest had one glaring omission: "While it was unquestionably courageous for the man to speak so candidly about his sexual abuse at the hand of the family priest as a teenager, there seemed to be a glaring absence in the discussion: namely, about how Roberts, as an out gay man, has been affected by the abuse as a grown, sexualized adult...the fact that Roberts is an openly gay man and was the victim of an ongoing sexual assault by another man (and the fact that the other victim, Goles, is also gay) can very easily lead to a cause-effect conclusion in the minds of viewers (i.e., if you are molested by a priest, you will be gay; if you are a gay adult, it is likely because your sexual development was interrupted by same-sex abuse). This interview would have been a fantastic opportunity to address these misconceptions (which are already rampant) and put them to rest."

Equality Florida leader Nadine Smith talks about her brutal arrest at the hearings for Largo city manager Steve Stanton: "The hatred expressed by the mob, the fury that surrounded his dismissal that night by those who justified themselves by invoking God is a frightening and public example of what happens to LGBT people all the time but rarely with such visibility. Largo is a wake up call to those who believe quietly in equality. In your silence, the mob speaks for you and takes your absence as license to systemically ignore the civil and human rights of LGBT people."

Gay children's books under fire in Great Britain: "It is being argued that the books, one of which is a fairytale featuring a prince who turns down three princesses before falling in love and marrying a man, are necessary to make homosexuality seem normal to children. Fourteen schools and one local authority, backed by teaching unions and a government-funded organisation, are running the controversial scheme, which has been attacked by Christian groups."

Rosie and Reichen bowl for gay families.

Clinton, Obama, Edwards vie for gay votes: "Mrs. Clinton has stiff competition in her pursuit of influential gay Democrats. Unlike the election of 2004, when Howard Dean had the distinction of having fought for a civil-unions bill when he was governor of Vermont, the three leading Democratic candidates have virtually identical stances on the most visible gay issues. (Barack Obama, John Edwards and Mrs. Clinton are uniformly in favor of lifting a ban on gays openly serving in the military, but are all opposed to gay marriage.)"

Arkansas Senate says "no" to gay foster parents. Senator Jim Argue, (D-Little Rock): "It really bothers me when I feel like we've made choices that are based on prejudice and fear. There is absolutely no evidence that this bill is in the best interest of children."

France's high court rejects first gay marriage: "Stephane Charpin and Bertrand Charpentier were married in a civil ceremony on June 5, 2004, in Begles, a town in the southwest Bordeaux region. The government immediately said the union was outside the law, and a series of court decisions unfavorable to the couple followed."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Chris Richardson, Michael Stipe, Wyoming, Episcopalians

Lesbian couple denied communion in Wyoming because they publicly opposed a bill that would have barred the state from recognizing out-of-state same-sex marriages: "Leah Vader and Lynne Huskinson have attended Saint Matthew's Catholic Church since 1998, and were married two years ago in Canada. Earlier this year, when the Legislature considered a bill that would have barred Wyoming from recognizing such marriages, the two said the bill amounted to discrimination. Last week, they got a letter from the Reverend Cliff Jacobson of Saint Matthew's, telling them they can no longer receive communion, in part because of their public position."

Michael Stipe was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last night. EW celebrates Stipe's many looks over the years.

Andrew Sullivan demands answers from Human Rights Campaign over budget, membership numbers, and political affiliations of its board members.

Episcopal minister in gay marriage protest. Rev. Robert Hirschfeld, rector of Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst, Massachusetts, says he'll stop performing all marriage ceremonies to protest the denomination's stance against same-sex unions. Said Nina Scott, a congregant: "I'm so proud to be a part of this. It's a step that needs to be taken."

Leonardo DiCaprio's arrival in Israel inspires near riots.

Whitney Houston begins work on comeback album.

Amid criticism from "pro-family" and religious groups, the largest school district in Indiana is ready to adopt broad rights and protections for its gay and lesbian employees. Superintendent Eu gene White: "They're not living in reality. If we do know people are gay, we want to make sure we extend to them the same freedoms and liberties we give to everyone else. We wanted to be more inclusive."

Would you like fries with that Idol? QueerClick fawns over Chris Richardson and Blake Lewis. (Caution Site NSFW)

Ricky Schroder joins cast of 24.

Bill to ban gay adoption and foster parenting advances in Arkansas: "Testifying before the committee Monday, former foster child Barbara Miles of Little Rock said the bill puts political considerations ahead of the needs of children and further reduces the chances for a home, paternal love and stability for those children. 'I had 10 different foster parents (none of whom were gay) in three different states before I was adopted at age 10,' Miles said in an interview after the meeting. 'What got me through that was that I was able to find and establish relationships with a few people who showed me unconditional love and care. To deny a child a family because politics eliminates an entire category of people is inappropriate.'"

Sphere: Related Content

News: Johnny Weir Threats, Chicago Bathhouses, Jerusalem

Jerusalem WorldPride, which faced threats of violence and killing, is called off, for obvious reasons.

For the first time in its 19-year-history, the police force joins the Halifax, Nova Scotia gay pride parade: "Deputy Police Chief Chris McNeil, one of the gay pride marchers, said his department wants to reflect the community it serves. He said the police force 'is a microcosm of society' and joining the parade was the right thing to do. 'This is a celebration of people's rights.'"

Eureka!: Epicopal Bishop in Arkansas okays gay blessings: "It is my belief that seeking ways of recognizing and blessing faithful, monogamous same-sex relationships falls within the parameters of providing pastoral concern and care for our gay and lesbian members."

The Washington Post takes a closer look at the "Manny" phenomenon, pushed into the spotlight by Britney's manny Perry Poppins: "It's weird to think that not hanging out with kids is considered manly. What does that say about our roles?"

Olympic skater Johnny Weir says he received death threats in Turin and still receives hate mail: "I was second place. I was going to win a medal for my country . . . Then when I lost it, everyone turned...It wasn't something I was prepared for, but now I'm very strong about it and I don't really care so much. But when I was thrown in to that situation at the Olympics, it was ugly. Just not winning America's medal and not bringing home a medal for my country and my federation, and looking like I was a flake...I'm not scared. If it's my time to die, it's my time to die. But I'm really not expecting that to happen from a rogue, freaky figure skating fan."

Shiny happy people: David Beckham steps out with stick figure on Roberto Cavalli yacht in Italy.

Hundreds of thousands attend Christopher Street festival in Berlin. More photos...

Illinois Family Institute holds vigil with "ex-gays" outside Chicago bathhouse. Executive Director Peter LaBarbera: "We care about gay men enough to tell them to stop practicing degrading and potentially lethal behavior. Steamworks is a perversion center where men go to have anonymous sex with other men. Many of these men are publicly 'gay' but others are not. Some are married or also have sex with women, thus putting their female partners at great risk."

Robbie Willliams new single "Rudebox" panned: "Try to imagine you and your mates messing around in your bedroom with a drum machine while comedy 'rapping' over the top...The only difference is Robbie is actually allowed to release this rubbish because he has a record deal. It shouldn’t be allowed on grounds of taste."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Seann William Scott, Gay Panic, Eureka Springs

Crying foul on 'gay panic': "Lawmakers in California and New York are considering bills to deter the common courtroom strategy of making a victim's sexual orientation central to a criminal defense. Both measures would require judges to remind jurors that bias toward the victim cannot influence their deliberations."

Eureka Springs, Arkansas: The Bible Belt's gay tourist mecca watched over by Christ.

18-year-old Jesse Newton gets 30-year prison sentence for killing 48-year-old Harold Bridges after meeting him online in a gay chatroom. Newton: "I'd like to apologize to the Bridges family. I'm sorry. I did not ever mean to kill nobody in my life."

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation called in to investigate cross-burning in front of gay man's home: "A cross six to eight feet tall was burned in the front yard of the home Brandon Waters shares with his mother in the Ten Mile community."

Death by espresso: Don't drink more than 112 cups in one sitting.

Stiff for Stiffler?: "Seann William Scott turned heads when he showed up at Los Angeles gay bar Heat on the arm of David Geffen."

Stephen Dorff's "big swingin' dick" confirmed by NYT critic Stephen Holden. Of course, we've already seen everything but...

Rapper Bow Wow may play gay in new film: "There has been some buzz about a film in pre-production that stars Bow Wow as a big-time New York drug dealer is bisexual. Supposedly it's a John Singleton project and the movie is tentatively entitled Boys. Reportedly, the script is (somewhat) homoerotic and involves a gay love scene." (via queerty)

Athletic dilution: As Gay Games in Chicago wind down, Out Games in Montreal wind up...

Remember that bouncing ball commercial for the Sony Bravia TV? Well, there's another one in the works and it looks like this time they're going to cover an apartment building in colored paint...

Sphere: Related Content

Lowballing it? Brandon Routh offered half a million to pose in Playgirl.

LIFEbeat cancels concert after objections to performances of homophobic artists Beenie Man and TOK. Keith Boykin: "LIFEbeat also blamed 'a select group of activists' for its decision. Actually, it was a worldwide coalition of bloggers, activists, people with AIDS and concerned citizens who wrote, emailed and called LIFEbeat to get them to reconsider their decision. The sad part is that LIFEbeat still doesn't get it. Their statement fails to address the issue of homophobia and its connection to the spread of HIV/AIDS."

Born to Run: Listen to the full clip of the new Killers song "When You Were Young".

The new Running with Scissors theatrical one-sheet.

Arjan hits up the Swedish duo Lo-Fi-Fnk for an interview, but the two remain coy about their sexuality: "I think we are too gay to be straight and too straight to be gay. If you are beautiful you'll definitely get our love."

Arkansas lightning/rainbow storm better than fireworks...

Sphere: Related Content

PFLAG set to ring closing bell today on Wall Street.

Spotted this ad for the first time on the subway today. It's part of a series of ads from the Ali Forney Center in New York which provides housing for homeless LGBT youth. The ads will appear on the subway and on pay-phone kiosks around the city. Executive Director: "This ad campaign speaks to a universal human experience, the love between a parent and a child. Our goal is to address the rising rate of LGBT youth homelessness, particularly in communities of color."

Man arrested in NYC for killing of gay man five years ago. Has been under surveillance in Britain following his disappearance after the murder of Edgar Garzon in 2001: "Police said he was beaten with a hammer, his face was slammed into a hard surface, possibly the pavement, and then robbed of $10. Garzon died two weeks later, never having regained consciousness." Prosecutors may add hate crime to the charges against John McGhee, which are second-degree murder, manslaughter and attempted robbery.

Gays visible at World Cup activities in Berlin: "And at the International movie theatre here, gays and lesbians gather to watch live broadcasts of World Cup matches. 'Gaywatch' is what they call it. A bartender there noted: 'They don't shout as aggressively as heterosexual fans do.'...Gays follow the action on the pitch a bit differently than straight men do, Helge noted. Among gays' favourite players, he said, are Germany's Lukas Podolski and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal."

Gay rugby icon Ian Roberts is moving to West Hollywood so he can spend more time on his acting career. Roberts plays one of Lex Luthor's henchmen in Superman Returns: "Some very high calibre agents asked about me over there and that's a real buzz. That's why I am moving. What's the worst thing that can happen? At least I can come out saying `What a ride'.''

Despite gay slur fracas, Ozzie Guillen says he'll still attend the Gay Games in Chicago. Gay Games spokesman: "We're glad to hear he'll be attending because it demonstrates how the gay games brings people together -- whether straight or gay -- through competition. There's no hurt feelings. He's apologized . . . he won't do it again. It's cool that Ozzie will be at the center of two events that unite the city. The Gay Games on one hand and the World Series on the other."

Arkansas' high court says the state cannot ban gays from becoming foster parents, agreeing that the state's child welfare board "had improperly tried to regulate public morality." Court: "There is no correlation between the health, welfare and safety of foster children and the blanket exclusion of any individual who is a homosexual or who resides in a household with a homosexual."

LeAnn Rimes likes hitting the gay bars: "My mom asks me, 'Do you have any straight friends?' I tell her 'No, the gay guys are just more fun.' I love going to gay clubs. It’s all about dancing and having fun."

Sphere: Related Content