News: Mitt Romney, Tivo, Judy Garland, Clay Aiken, Pete Doherty

As California gears up for a gay wedding boom, nine gay rights groups issue statement urging those who get married in California not to rush back to their states and sue: "In an unusual six-page memorandum, written for same-sex couples, groups ranging from the American Civil Liberties Union to Lambda Legal warned that lawsuits would invite 'bad' court rulings that could take years to overturn." Two California countries have announced they'll halt all weddings, saying they lack resources.

Crucified by the media: rocker Pete Doherty undergoes plaster cast for marble statue of himself as Jesus Christ.

Obama meets with Christian leaders...

Jonathan Capehart warns of an Obama-Nunn ticket: "When Bill Clinton sought to keep his 1992 campaign promise to end the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military, he met strong resistance in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill. Nunn, one of the most adamant opponents, led a series of hearings that were stacked against ending the prohibition. Critics noted that Nunn held more hearings about and spent more time on gays in the military than he had on the defense budget or even the Navy's Tailhook sexual harassment scandal ... an Obama-Nunn ticket does not sit well with some prominent gay Democratic fundraisers."

Clay Aiken is not just having a son, but he has another baby in the freezer.

John Aravosis at AmericaBlog got some intense shots of the storm that passed through the east coast yesterday.

Judy Garland to sing on stage again: "Cutting-edge technology unavailable just a few years ago has enabled NY-based production company Running Subway to present Judy's larger-than-life passion and personal story to 21st century audiences in what can only be described as the greatest Judy Garland concert ever."

Fishnets: Experts conclude that the Oscar de la Hoya drag photos were indeed doctored.

Dolores Neuman, photographer whose camerawork was central to Rob Epstein's 1984 documentary The Times of Harvey Milk, dies in Washington D.C. of kidney cancer.

Justin Timberlake on Love Guru wardrobe: "This may be TMI but I was constantly digging out those wedgies!"

Canadian gay couple Theo Wouters and Roger Thibault settles $400,000 defamation lawsuit brought by neighbors out of court.

Chace Crawford reads a few juicy scripts in London.

Mitt Romney purchases $12 million home in La Jolla, California.

Democrats don't touch 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell': "Since taking control of Congress in January 2007, Democrats have not convened hearings on the matter or taken up legislation that would let gays serve openly, although most party members favor repealing the prohibition. Instead, Democrats have focused their efforts on bringing troops home from Iraq and other issues that have broad appeal among voters, such as lowering gas prices."

Tivo pulls web page which acknowledged their relationship with Focus on the Family.

Sphere: Related Content

News: Universal Fire, Clay Aiken, Uganda, Avenue Q, Greece

Gays disposable: Uganda says it will ignore gays in its HIV/AIDS prevention efforts because homosexuality is illegal. Instead, they'll focus on "other high risk groups such as sex workers, truck drivers, remote fishing communities and members of the armed forces."

A mother always knows...

Libertarian candidate Bob Barr's flip-flop on DOMA.

Utah parents seek criminal penalties against teacher who they say went too far in sex ed class: "The Jordan School District is investigating allegations that a seventh- and eighth-grade health teacher violated the sex education statute by responding to questions from students about topics beyond the core curriculum, including homosexual sex, oral sex and masturbation."

Colorado enacts non-discrimination law: "Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter signed legislation today prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in housing, public accommodations, credit transactions, juror service, and other areas. The legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Jennifer Veiga and state Rep. Joel Judd, expands existing laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, sex, religion, disability, and other characteristics."

Anna Quindlen on same-sex marriage: love won.

Sex and the City rocks the box office with $55 million haul, sequel in the works. Writer Michael Patrick King signs first look deal wtih DreamWorks.

AfterElton announces its Hot 100.

Fire burns Universal Studios taking King Kong, Back to the Future, 40,000 film reels with it...

The L.A. Times takes a close look at the failed Harvey Milk film: "It will be a bittersweet time for Zadan and Meron. 'We recognize that, at the end of the day, it's business -- people make movies for a living,' says Zadan. "And when you work on a passion project, there's always the chance that you'll get your heart broken. I told Michael London, 'The only way I'll hate you is if you [mess] the movie up. It's Harvey's story and all we want is for someone to tell it well.'"

MTV Movie Awards: one feature-length movie trailer.

Tom Cruise has a housewarming party.

California clerk hopes to be first same-sex marriage: "For 18 years, Stephen Weir has been in charge of the office that hands out marriage licenses in California's ninth-largest county. And for just as long, Weir has been unable to get a license himself because the love of his life is a man...He and his partner, John Hemm, want to be first at the counter that day. They want to be the first to exchange vows and kisses in the conference room Weir converted into a wedding chapel that hosts 1,200 couples a year, but that he could never use."

Avenue Q to have 2000th performance on Broadway.

NYT publishes letters regarding Governor David Paterson's same-sex marriage decision: "When our oldest son, Benjamin, got married, he asked Jacob to be his best man. Then our son Joshua got married and again Jacob was his best man. When our daughter, Britta, married her dear Matthew, she didn’t have a maid of honor. She had a man of honor, and it was her brother Jacob. At each wedding, as Jacob stood by his siblings and signed the papers to make it legal, he did it knowing he did not have the right to marriage himself. As a mom, I find that hard to understand and heartbreaking to know it is true. How can this country treat people in such a way that something as basic as finding love and being married can be denied to a whole segment of society?"

Gays in Greece vow to wed despite threats of prosecution: Said Greece's supreme court attorney George Sanidas: "Neither civil law nor the country's constitution refer to gay marriages. If the Tilos mayor proceeds, he will have committed the criminal act of breach of duty."

Peter LaBarbera of "pro-family" group Americans for Truth made his annual visit to the International Mr. Leather weekend in Chicago. He just can't stay away!

Sphere: Related Content

News: Harvey Korman, Madison, Clay Aiken, ExxonMobil

University of Wisconsin-Madison to become largest university with a gay leader: "Cornell University Provost Biddy Martin was recommended Wednesday to be the next chancellor at UW-Madison, a top national research university with 40,000 students. Martin, the No. 2 official at Cornell since 2000, is a professor of women's studies and German studies who wrote the 1995 book: 'Femininity Played Straight: The Significance of Being Lesbian.' About eight to 10 openly gay people have become college presidents and chancellors but mostly at small colleges, said Candace Gingrich of the Human Rights Campaign."

R.I.P. Harvey Korman.

DADDY: Clay Aiken impregnates woman through artificial insemination.

Gay activist from Madison, Wisconsin stabbed to death in Mexico: "[Felicia] Melton-Smyth was known for an annual holiday fundraiser that raised money for gifts for people with AIDS. 'She respected and loved all the people within the gay community of Madison,' Finhert said. Finhert said a celebration of her life is being planned and a foundation is being set up for donations to organizations in her honor."

Netflix nabs exclusive rights to LOGO shows. What, no iTunes? Certainly a disappointment for those of us with Apple TV.

Kiss nearly gets lesbian couple tossed out of Safeco Field in Seattle: "Sirbrina Guerrero says she only gave her date a peck, but a mother sitting with her son complained to security and, as a result, they were told to stop or leave. 'And he (the security guard) goes ‘there’s a lady whose son says he saw you guys making out, and I did, too. And you have to stop.’ And I said ‘well, we weren’t making out, but we were kissing and I’m not going to stop,’' said Guerrero…. '(The security guard said) the mom doesn’t want to explain to the kids why two girls are kissing. So I said ‘well, I’m not going to stop, so you’ll have to kick me out. So he said ‘so I suggest you leave then,'’ she said."

A slew of Gossip Girl guy candids.

David Beckham gets a cap in a box.

Rudd government in Australia introduces bill removing discrimination from superannuation laws: "Legislation introduced to Parliament today will extend to same-sex couples and their children the same rights under superannuation enjoyed by married or de-facto couples. 'This bill will take equality for same-sex couples and their children to the next level by introducing long overdue Commonwealth reforms, removing discrimination from superannuation laws as the first step,' Attorney-General Robert McClelland said. 'It will allow reversionary death benefit to be paid to de-facto same-sex partners and their children where they currently have no entitlement.'"

Hot, tranny, or just mess?

L.A. Times editorial: Gay marriage gaining ground. "And why not? Surely the trailing edges of society will soon reflect on the resistance to this phenomenon with chagrin and more than a little embarrassment. It is bracing, after all, to realize how recently much of this nation blanched at interracial marriage, and thrilling to recognize how quickly most of us buried that prejudice, first in law, then in custom."

U.S. News and World Report explores anti-gay hostility in Russia.

Holocaust academic pans gay memorial to Nazi victims: "For many years after the war I had the impression that the Germans understood the immense scope of the crime of the Holocaust which they had committed ... But this time, they made an error. The location was particularly poorly chosen for this monument. If visitors have the impression that there was not a great difference between the suffering of Jews and those of homosexuals, it's a scandal. "A sense of proportion must be maintained."

ExxonMobil shareholders reject resolution to add 'sexual orientation' and 'gender identity' to Exxon’s non-discrimination statement: "Approximately 40% of Exxon’s outstanding shares voted in favor of the clause, but it was not enough to send the issue to the oil company’s board of directors. The shareholder resolution has come up every year since 2000, when it got 8.2% approval among shareholders. The percentage that voted in favor of the resolution has grown every year since then."

Sphere: Related Content

Music News: Coldplay Continue To Give Away Their Music, Plus Madonna, Donna Summer, Clay Aiken

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own site called Chart Rigger.

Last week Coldplay offered up "Violet Hill," their first single off forthcoming album Viva La Vida, Or Death And All His Friends, as a free download for seven days on their official site. It was reportedly downloaded by two million people, where "It would have outsold the whole of last week's [UK] top 40 (singles) four times over." The band continue to give the track away this week -- at least in their home country -- as a 7" vinyl single packaged in with British rock journal New Musical Express.

NME usually washes up on these shores in bookstores and newsstands with an inflated import price. The Coldplay issue offers new photos of the band and a brand new look for the mag: "Not only have we launched a brand spanking new-look magazine this week that’s seen us strip everything back to let the words and photography shine through, we’ve also added a whole load of new features to give you even more news, bands and gigs than ever before. Plus, to top it all off, the pièce de résistance is a FREE, 7-inch vinyl copy of Coldplay’s new single, 'Violet Hill.'"

Back here in the States, "Violet Hill" and a "single edit" of new track, "Viva La Vida", were added to iTunes. The latter is being offered for free with pre-orders of the album.

Yee-owch! Here's an interview MTV's John Norris did with Madonna and Justin Timberlake. Madge doesn't seem too jazzed to be talking to Norris, as she gets a tad frosty with him toward the end. (Of course, that might expain why the awful, out-of-key singing moment was then used in the montage.)

Meanwhile, with first-week sales of 280,000, Billboard reports today that Madonna's Hard Candy has topped the album chart, giving her a seventh #1 on that tally. As far as female artists, only Barbra Streisand has had more chart-topping albums, with eight total.

Amongst others, Donna Summer worked with producer Greg Kurstin on Crayons, her first album of original material in 17 years (due out May 20). Kurstin recently produced tracks on Kylie Minogue's X. "Stamp Your Feet," the current single off Crayons, pretty much makes you wanna do just that, though they could have done without the video.

New Stephen King/John Mellencamp musical originally set for a 2009 debut has been delayed.

Last show ever by The Police to benefit New York arts, while the band also donates to Bloomberg's MillionTreesNYC.

In a one-star (out of five) review, the New York Daily News assesses Clay Aiken's new CD, On My Way Here: "From the new songs' lyrics, we discover that Aiken has 'seen the best and the worst' of life. He has walked 'through fire,' 'risen from the ashes' and felt 'the weight of the world' on his shoulders. Along the way, he also discovered that 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger,' which finally led him to realize, 'by the grace of God go I.'
If the universe holds any more survivor cliches, I've never heard them."

What are your iPod habits and desires?

THE WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

"Take A Bow", a new single from Rihanna off the upcoming re-release of Good Girl Gone Bad. (Not a Madonna cover.)

Gavin DeGraw's self-titled third album.

Home Before Dark, Neil Diamond's latest set of original material, produced by Rick Rubin.

Sony's 20th anniversary enhanced CD/DVD version of Midnight Oil's Diesel And Dust.

The always-charming Toby Keith's 35 Biggest Hits.

Sphere: Related Content

Clay Aiken Cries from the Closet on QVC?

Clay Aiken debuted his new CD on QVC Monday night and folks are buzzing that the song he performed, entitled 'The Real Me', was pretty much a cry for help from the closet.

The lyrics:

Foolish heart looks like we’re here again
Same old game of plastic smile
Don’t let anybody in
Hiding my heartache, will this glass house break
How much will they take before I’m empty
Do I let it show, does anybody know?

[Chorus:]
But you see the real me
Hiding in my skin, broken from within
Unveil me completely
I’m loosening my grasp
There’s no need to mask my frailty
Cause you see the real me

Painted on, life is behind a mask
Self-inflicted circus clown
I’m tired of the song and dance
Living a charade, always on parade…

The truth shall set you free! Watch the performance, AFTER THE JUMP...

Sphere: Related Content

Clay Aiken: People Don't Care About My Sexuality

Clay Aiken appeared recently on The Billy Bush Show and told Bush that the only people that care about the love lives of celebrities are the press.

Said Aiken: "People don't want to have that type of stuff pushed, people who are living in Omaha or in Charlotte or wherever. They don't want stuff like that pushed in their face. I don't think that's necessary and that's also not what I'm here for. I mean, I went on Idol to be a singer, I went on Idol to be an entertainer and that's what my priority is...I think when you get into anything and you're not used to people scrutinizing this, that or the other... it bothers you. After awhile you kind of just say, 'Forget this ... This is not who I am, this is not about me, what I want to do is be a singer, want to be an entertainer, and forget all that stuff.'"

Clay Aiken Talks Keeping Sexuality Private [access hollywood]

Sphere: Related Content

News: David Blaine, Spiders, NFL Draft, Methodists, George Bush

Bush disapproval rating breaks Gallup poll record: "President Bush has set a record he'd presumably prefer to avoid: the highest disapproval rating of any president in the 70-year history of the Gallup Poll. In a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll taken Friday through Sunday, 28% of Americans approve of the job Bush is doing; 69% disapprove. The approval rating matches the low point of his presidency, and the disapproval sets a new high for any president since Franklin Roosevelt."

Breathe: David Blaine to attempt record-breaking inhale on Oprah.

Queer Month at Rhode Island College plagued by vandals.

"Possesses a V-shaped torso with a well-defined upper body, good bubble, developed calves and good chest thickness." Craigslist ad or NFL Draft profile?

Gay joke ban rejected by British House of Lords: "The television stars Rowan Atkinson and Christopher Higgins, who is himself homosexual, are among the prominent figures to have spoken out against the proposal to create a new offence of incitement to 'homophobic hatred'. ...Peter Tatchell, the prominent homosexual rights campaigner, also spoke out against the measure, arguing that freedom of speech should be sacrosanct."

Brad Pitt is a ruff rider.

Gay-straight alliance challenged in Janesville, Wisconsin.

David Beckham to strip for Ellen Degeneres?

Market: Clay Aiken will premiere his new album to audience of housewives on QVC.

Plague of venomous spiders shuts hospital in Australia: "The black spiders with a red stripe, close relatives of the black widow, are about 2-4 centimetres (0.8-1.6 inches) long and common across Australia. Their bites can cause severe pain, muscle spasms and death, although no fatalities have been recorded since an anti-venom was introduced in the 1950s."

Methodists hold convention in Fort Worth, brace for debate on homosexuality: "...there will almost certainly be another round of heated debate and contentious votes over whether the UMC should change its official position that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching and withdraw its ban on noncelibate gay pastors. Recent General Conferences have seen protests by gay-rights supporters. Eight years ago in Cleveland, some 200 demonstrators, including two bishops, were arrested for disrupting proceedings. Still, most experts believe the big tent of the UMC will hold, however the winds blow in Fort Worth. Some even say the denomination has turned a corner toward unity."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Neil Patrick Harris, Hip-Hop, Kevin Rudd, PETA, Zac Efron

Australian PM Kevin Rudd presented with first major gay rights challenge of his administration as ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope asks him to allow same-sex civil unions.

Tiny Wookie takes leak on the ruler of the Naboo people.

Anti-gay South American Anglican Archbishop defies requests to stay away from Canada: "Archbishop Gregory Venables, who claims to represent 15 breakaway Anglican congregations in Canada, will speak Friday at a gathering in Delta of the conservative Anglican Network in Canada. Venables, who has been criticized as a rogue archbishop by Anglican colleagues in South America and elsewhere, is recruiting Anglican congregations in Canada and the U.S. that have opposed the ordination of homosexuals and the church blessing of their relationships. The primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, Fred Hilz, wrote a public letter to Venables on Monday urging him to stay home and saying that entering his North American jurisdiction 'will further harm the strained relations' between Canadian Anglicans."

Ewan McGregor makes light of skin cancer scare: “It was great fun having skin cancer, it was great, I really enjoyed it.”

Richard's Quest: The CNN reporter's Central Park thought process flowchart.

Zac Efron gives big to cancer patient in the UK.

A night out with Neil Patrick Harris at The Magic Castle: “I’m not the guy who goes to Skybar,” Mr. Harris said. "I’m not good with that random small talk with people I’ll never meet again. I prefer to take a friend somewhere eventful." He also says he's looking forward to welcoming Britney back to his show.

PETA offers $1 million prize for test tube meat: "The organization said it would announce plans today for a $1 million prize to the 'first person to come up with a method to produce commercially viable quantities of in-vitro meat at competitive prices by 2012.' The idea of getting the next Chicken McNugget out of a test tube is not new. For several years, scientists have worked to develop technologies to grow tissue cultures that could be consumed like meat without the expense of land or feed and the disease potential of real meat. An international symposium on the topic was held this month in Norway. The tissue, once grown, could be shaped and given texture with the kinds of additives and structural agents that are now used to give products such as soy burgers a more meaty texture."

Former MTV executive Terrance Dean promises to out DL players in the hip-hop industry in new book.

Investigators suspect gay angle in New Delhi murder.

Janet Jackson, who is set to receive a GLAAD award in L.A. this weekend, talks to E!'s Marc Malkin about AIDS, drag queens, Ellen Degeneres, and Lawrence King: "He was finally coming into his own and being himself and being OK with who he was. He was feeling good about that and not living in this shell and pretending to be someone else. He was letting all of that go and saying, 'This is me.' But being murdered for being who you are, for being real—we were crushed by that."

Neil Haskell, from So You Think You Can Dance, has joined the New York cast of Altar Boyz.

Clay Aiken is Tyra Banks' reward for 500 episodes.

ACLU asks Florida judge to reopen case on Okeechobee gay-straight alliance: " The lawsuit was recently dismissed by U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore after its lead plaintiff Yasmin Gonzalez graduated and the club itself dwindled down to zero members, leading the judge to drop a requirement that the group be allowed to meet while the lawsuit was pending. The lawsuit was initially filed in November 2006 under the federal Equal Access Act after the student group claimed the school district would not allow it to meet at Okeechobee High School. The school district claimed it was banning the club in part because it was a 'sex-based' club and could conflict with abstinence-only education."

Sphere: Related Content

News: Bats, Clay Aiken, Figure Skating, John Bolton, Dr. Laura

Dan Savage lost his mother on Monday, and today penned a beautiful column about her. We offer our sincerest condolences. May she rest in peace.

David Beckham in trouble with the law.

Open wide: Clay Aiken demonstrates amazing oral technique.

John Caldera, an aide to San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, will carry the Olympic torch in San Francisco today: "As someone who is openly Gay, Latino and a U.S. Navy Veteran, I have learned to respect the many subsets of our society. At times, I agree to disagree with those who have conflicing ideas ordeals than mine and at times, through respect and discourse, mutual understanding is possible but in the end I always remember the immortal words of the great humanitarian, John Lennon: 'All we are saving is give peace a chance…'" (via outsports)

Elsewhere in SF, gays protest the torch's arrival.

Keanu Reeves wants to sing show tunes.

Charleston's City Paper asks, is Lindsey Graham gay?

Gabriel Rotello at World of Wonder posts a comical reminiscence about an interview he once did with the late Charlton Heston: "Finally, someone sent word that the cameraman was ready and I rose to escort the tottering titan down to the basement. It was then that I discovered what a careless PA had missed. At the top of the stairs hung a huge, poster-sized photo of the queerest of all the queers, Miss RuPaul, in full drag, giving major attitude and practically screaming "I AM GAY, GAY, GAAAAAAY."

Dr. Laura gets weekly segment on FOX News.

Mysterious illness decimating bat populations in Northeast: "This summer, it could affect everything from outdoor barbecuing to farming. In one of nature's most efficient if little-known feats, bats consume as many as 1,200 insects an hour after emerging from their sheltering places every night. This prodigious airborne feeding substantially controls mosquito populations and helps prevent plant-eating insects from damaging crops. The long-term effect of what appears to be a major die-off of bats is not yet known, but the possibilities clearly worry scientists."

Regarding Brandon Davis' "faggot" outburst we posted about earlier. Davis told TMZ: "I would like to apologize for the poor word choice when provoked by the paparazzi on Thursday, April 3rd. They by no means reflect my views and upbringing. I was taunted by the photographers and when they used vulgar sexual remarks against my mother I reacted as any son would."

Query to the National Post: Can figure skating make you gay?

John Bolton, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations to speak at Log Cabin Republican convention in San Diego this weekend.

Diane Sawyer takes on Rosie O'Donnell.

Jeff Klausner, San Francisco's director of STD prevention and control, targeting gay cruising sites in effort to promote safe sex: "Over the past few weeks, Klausner has been working with the city attorney, the National Institutes of Health, the California Department of Public Health, and the Department of Public Health in New York, whose large gay community also uses social networking sites for sex, in an effort to track down Adam4Adam's thus-far-anonymous and secretive owners. His aim: To get the site to slap the equivalent of a surgeon general's warning on its hookup forums and at least make users aware of the dangers of the anonymous, multiple-partner unsafe sex that is its stock-in-trade."

Pushing Daisies has a gay character.

Sphere: Related Content

News: Heath Ledger Hoax, Italy, Matt Damon, Mexico, Diana Ross,

Time magazine looks at the 15th anniversary of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": "The issue exploded during Clinton's first week as President, triggered by those in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill opposed to his campaign pledge to reverse an executive order barring gays and lesbians from serving. 'The issue is whether men and women who can and have served with real distinction should be excluded from military service solely on the basis of their status,' Clinton said at the time. 'And I believe they should not.' While the phrase 'don't ask, don't tell' wasn't used at that January 29, 1993, press conference, that's what everyone soon began calling the policy."

Not that Oz: Matt Damon in the Emerald City.

Diana Ross BOOED in Jamaica: Not ready for her close-up.

200 Mexican youths and parents march to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS: "Participants marched through the city's main streets chanting slogans, such as 'Not One More Infected Person' and 'Equal Rights for Young Homosexuals.' Some of the participants also dressed in costumes and distributed condoms. Josue Quino, head of the CAIPAJ gay adolescent and youth center, said the march was necessary to warn youth that a 'single unprotected [sexual] encounter is enough to' contract HIV. Members from the Group of Mothers and Fathers for Diversity also marched in the demonstration, carrying signs that said 'We're Proud of Our Children' and 'Our Children Have United Our Families.'"

Manchester UK police investigate rape at gay sauna.

Clay Aiken: no love.

Which one's Twiggy, which one's Keira Knightley?

Barbara Walters bans Kathy Griffin from The View...again. Griffin: "I was supposed to be on 'The View' [today]. But then I get a call from [producer] Bill Geddie and he says, 'You were too mean to Barbara [Walters] on your last special, so you can't come on.' Can you believe it? I've been banned before, but never re-banned!"

Scammer, posing as Heath Ledger's father, takes advantage of doctor, funeral home, Tom Cruise, and John Travolta: " Cops want to arrest the con man on fraud and larceny charges, and sent detectives to Ledger's wake at the funeral home Friday in hopes of catching him, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said. But police do not know the identity of the impostor - who also tried to finagle from one unidentified Hollywood star the numbers of actors Mel Gibson and Christian Bale, who have co-starred in movies with Ledger."

Michael Jackson to get additional reconstructive surgery — this time to his album Thriller.

Method Acting: Sean Penn and James Franco, playing Harvey Milk and his lover Scott Smith, respectively, in the Gus van Sant biopic Milk, reportedly wanted to shack up together for a while before filming started to get to know one another, but due to scheduling difficulties, those plans fell through.

Study finds middle age is truly depressing: "For men and women the probability of depression slowly builds and then peaks when people are in their forties -- a similar pattern found in 72 countries ranging from Albania to Zimbabwe, the researchers said. About eight nations -- mostly in the developing world -- did not follow the U-shaped pattern for happiness levels, Oswald and his colleague David Blanchflower of Dartmouth College in the United States wrote. 'It happens to men and women, to single and married people, to rich and poor, and to those with and without children,' Oswald said. 'Nobody knows why we see this consistency.' One possibility may be that people realize they won't achieve many of their aspirations at middle age, the researchers said. Another reason could be that after seeing their fellow middle-aged peers begin to die, people begin to value their own remaining years and embrace life once more. But the good news is that if people make it to aged 70 and are still physically fit, they are on average as happy and mentally healthy as a 20-year old."

German airline to offer nudist flight.

Italian MP called 'faggot, fairy' and 'traitor' for voting against party lines in order to defend Italian Premier Romano Prodi: "The name-calling erupted on the floor of the Italian Senate on Jan. 24 as Sen. Stefano 'Nuccio' Cusumano shocked fellow members of the tiny Udeur Party by declaring his support for Prodi. The party decided a week earlier to withdraw from Prodi’s fragile ruling coalition, forcing a 'confidence' vote under Italy’s parliamentary system. The Senate voted 161 to 156 to defeat a resolution of confidence for Prodi, forcing him to resign immediately. Although the Udeur Party had helped Prodi form his center-left government in 2006, the party strongly opposed legislation backed by Prodi to provide legal rights and benefits for same-sex couples."

Gay Fort Worth city councilman Joel Burns talks to the Victory Fund, calls anti-gay attack a galvanizing moment: “That morning was an awful, terrible, not good morning. I thought of my mother and father, the little rural town that they live in, and waking up and reading the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and seeing my name on the front page. No parent ever wants to see their child attacked, even if they’re an adult.”

Sphere: Related Content

Claymania is Alive and Well and Living Outside the Shubert Theater

If you had any doubts that the devotion of the Claymates had ebbed since American Idol days, witness the Clayhem outside the Shubert Theater on Friday night, where the police had to install barricades to hold back the crush. Aiken took over the role of "Sir Robin".

Previously
Clay Aiken Snaps at Another Reporter Over the "Gay" Question [tr]
Clay Aiken to Take Stage as "Sir Robin" in Spamalot [tr]
(images Walter McBride/Broadway World)

Sphere: Related Content

Clay Aiken Snaps at Another Reporter Over the "Gay" Question

Here's another shot of Clay Aiken in his Monty Python garb.

And though he'll choke the chicken, he apparently can't handle some types of nuts.

Is it true you’re allergic to nuts?
I’m allergic to a number of things: tree nuts, coffee, mints, chocolate. Some fans tried to introduce me to carob a few years ago. But it gave me the runs, so… [Laughs]

Speaking of which, is it safe to say Rosie O’Donnell had diarrhea of the mouth when she called Kelly Ripa “homophobic”?
Oh, God. I think people on TV say certain things just so they can get attention. I didn’t agree with Rosie. But I appreciated her trying to come to my defense, in one way or another!

What do you make of people nagging you about the “gay” thing?
I think the majority of the American public cares less about it than reporters like you do.

Has anyone ever confronted you about it in public?
I can’t come up with any specific incidents. But I’ve been called everything in the book at some point or another—gay, ugly, nerdy, fat.

Clay Aiken [time out]

Aiken will make his Broadway debut on Friday as "Sir Robin" in Spamalot, a role which was originated by David Hyde Pierce, who last May was gently nudged out of the closet.

Previously
Clay Aiken to Take Stage as "Sir Robin" in Spamalot [tr]

Sphere: Related Content

Clay Aiken to Take Stage as "Sir Robin" in Spamalot

Clay Aiken joins the cast on Friday.

Said director Mike Nichols: "Clay is amazing, beyond that glorious voice. Turns out he is an excellent comic actor and a master of character. People are going to be surprised by his wide-ranging talent, since the first impression is of great country charm and a singer to remember. This guy is not only a star; he is a lot more. We're lucky to get him for 'Spamalot'!"

You may have missed...
Kansas Church: If Clay Aiken's Gay, He Can't Sing Here [tr]
Trouble in Claynation: Battle Over Aiken's Sexuality [tr]
Clay Aiken on Mission to Afghanistan [tr]
(image source)

Sphere: Related Content

News: Jamie Oliver, PETA, Mr. Gay, DNC, Swordfish, Clay Aiken

Pam Spaulding covers the unsavory details and unpleasant memories emerging from the DNC anti-gay discrimination trial filed by former LGBT outreach director Donald Hitchcock: "We all know the party has had to figure out how to placate the LGBT constituency and keep the gay press at bay while trying to tap the religious vote; you'd think they'd want to put more effort into getting non-voters to show up at the polls. Way too much energy is being spent on the wrong things -- revisionist history, posterior-covering maneuvers, bickering -- there's so much to be done in 2008 and folks need to keep their eyes on the ball."

UK 'naked chef' Jamie Oliver to slice up obese human corpse on TV in order to prove point about overeating? Oliver: "This all stems from shoving s*** in your mouth. This man ate himself to death."

Too good for Newsweek: Clay Aiken's above-it-all interview reveals nothing about his fight on a plane, Kelly Ripa and homophobia, Ford commercials, or high school football.

2007 Darwin Awards announced: "the Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it."

Spanish national election set for March 9 seen as showdown over values: "Antonio Poveda, president of the State Federation of Lesbians, Gays and Transsexuals (FELGT), a group essential in organizing massive gay pride demonstrations in favor of same-sex marriage, said his group wasn't planning any street protests. But they would be engaging in public information campaigns ahead of the election, he said. Poveda said Spain has become one of Europe's most progressive countries in same-sex issues, with same-sex marriage continuing to have 60 percent approval. He thinks the recent attacks on gay marriage by conservative Catholics will backfire because 'people are sick of having that type of doctrine imposed on them.'"

Florida man catches swordfish with bare hands: "It has not been determined if the fish was sick, or had been recently caught. After a few photos, and some cuts and bruises on the man who caught the fish, the fish was released."

Madonna denies that 'Raising Malawi' charity is actually a front to funnel money into Kabbalah. REP: "The reality is - and it's never been a secret - that the Raising Malawi organization was co-founded by Madonna and Michael Berg, who is one of the spearheading executives of the Kabbalah organization. The Raising Malawi organization is completely separate from the Kabbalah, and they are run as two separate organizations. Accountability will be very clear and very specific, and all funds will be accounted for."

Who's the gayest of them all: waxed muscledudes battle for the gay sash in L.A.!

Maryland Insurance Administration's definition of "domestic partnership" inspires outrage from "pro-family" groups: "To qualify for coverage under the new regulation, domestic partners must be at least 18, can be straight or gay, and must have lived together for at least six consecutive months. The definition incensed Republican lawmakers, the Maryland Catholic Conference and a group promoting traditional values, which said it sanctifies cohabitation by straight couples. 'Now you can just say, 'I break with thee,' and you're gone, you can enter into a new relationship,' said Del. Michael D. Smigiel Sr. (R-Cecil), noting that Maryland law requires married couples to separate for a year before seeking a divorce. Added Doug Stiegler of the Maryland Family Protection Lobby: 'This legalizes cohabitation. It's a huge cultural change.' Although they did not attack same-sex couples directly, opponents said the state insurance agency should not be in the business of telling insurance companies who qualifies for medical coverage."

Critically-acclaimed queer hip-hop opera Bash'd headed back to Toronto and then to off-Broadway in June.

PETA killed 97% of the dogs, cats, and other pets it took in for adoption in 2006: "During that year, the well-known animal rights group managed to find adoptive homes for just 12 pets. The nonprofit Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) is calling on PETA to either end its hypocritical angel-of-death program, or stop its senseless condemnation of Americans who believe it's perfectly ethical to use animals for food, clothing, and critical medical research. Not counting animals PETA held only temporarily in its spay-neuter program, the organization took in 3,061 'companion animals' in 2006, of which it killed 2,981. According to Virginia's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS), the average euthanasia rate for humane societies in the state was just 34.7 percent in 2006. PETA killed 97.4 percent of the animals it took in. The organization filed its 2006 report this month, nine months after the VDACS deadline of March 31, 2007. 'Pet lovers should be outraged,' said CCF Director of Research David Martosko. 'There are thousands of worthwhile animal shelters that deserve Americans' support. PETA is not one of them.' In courtroom testimony last year, a PETA manager acknowledged that her organization maintains a large walk-in freezer for storing dead animals, and that PETA contracts with a Virginia cremation service to dispose of the bodies. In that trial, two PETA employees were convicted of dumping dead animals in a rural North Carolina trash dumpster."

UGLY: Dad sodomizes 18-year-old stepson with metal object and beats him with a baseball bat to avenge rape of 8-year-old daughter.

Sphere: Related Content

News: Dinosaur, Mann Coulter, Art Sex, Clay Aiken, Uganda

Canadian soldiers sentenced to jail for anti-gay attack in Amsterdam: "Eric Wright was sentenced to five months in jail and ordered to pay 6,000 euros (8,300 Canadian dollars/8,500 US dollars) in damages and Ryan Dowie was given 45 days in jail, a court spokesman told AFP."

Since she'd like to perfect the Jews, Maxim's editors went ahead and tried to figure out how they would perfect Mann Coulter.

DNA: Genetic study of gay brothers gains steam...

Gay activist group to go door-to-door in South Carolina.

The Guardian reports on the sex exhibit that recently opened in Britain: "...we live in a world that fears erotically charged images. Pornography is loathed even as it is consumed. In Britain, there has been a recent moral panic about one of the artists in this show, Nan Goldin, whose photograph of a naked young girl was removed from an exhibition at Gateshead's Baltic Centre. That is the modern version of anxieties that for centuries drove artists to veil passion in fine ideas. This show includes a copy of Michelangelo's drawing of The Rape of Ganymede, which he gave as a present to a young nobleman he adored, and which portrays Jupiter taking the form of an eagle to carry away a boy he lusted after."

REPORT: Air America talk show host Randi Rhodes assaulted in NYC.

Massive new dinosaur unearthed in Patagonia.

Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation apologizes to gay group after party raid: "The written communication came after Ebony Pyramid Entertainment demanded a public, published apology from the Royal Bahamas Police Force and assurances from the Ministry of Tourism that their annual event will not be targeted again to 'intimidate' homosexuals. The group received one of their two demands. The Executive Director said he is still awaiting an apology from the RBPF. The police 'raid' on their October 6 party which was attended by over 200 lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender (LGBT) tourists was nothing more than a poorly disguised attempt to harass, intimidate, and frighten the homosexual community, Xavier said in a release addressed to the MOT."

UC Berkeley student asks, why not marriage for all?

Is Britney Spears dreaming of escape with her new reading material? Or has she just completely wigged out?

Clay Aiken to join Broadway production of Spamalot as Sir Robin. Role was originated by David Hyde Pierce.

Skeptical global warming meteorologist hailed by traditional media once compared Gore to Hitler: "MSNBC called Gray a 'top meteorologist.' McClatchy referred to him as a 'pioneer in the science of seasonal hurricane forecasts.' The Washington Times coined him one of the 'world’s foremost meteorologists.' But all failed to note that Gray has a long history of climate skepticism and attacks on Gore. In May 2006, a Washington Post magazine article quoted Gray directly comparing Gore to Hitler: 'Gore believed in global warming almost as much as Hitler believed there was something wrong with the Jews.'"

Muslim leader in Uganda wants gays sent to an island until they die.

93-year-old pens gay romance novel: " Mr Soper only decided to write the novel after 'coming out' at the age of 91 - and only told his fellow residents at the The Old Vicarage nursing home, in Moulsford, where he lives, after they asked to read his novel. He said: 'When all the old ladies heard about the book, they asked if they could read it. So I had to tell them I was gay and that it was a gay-themed novel.' Mr Soper, a former academic at Christ Church, Oxford, until 1981, said it had been nice to be honest about his sexuality after so many years."

Sphere: Related Content

Kansas Church: If Clay Aiken's Gay, He Can't Sing Here

Parishioners at the Central Christian Church in Wichita, Kansas where Clay Aiken is reportedly scheduled to give a Christmas concert in late November are apparently worried they might have a gay enter their holy sanctuary and want to make sure that's not the case before Aiken is allowed to sing there:

"The Central Christian Church controversy reached a fever pitch shortly after the performance was announced, and the executive pastor Mark Posson felt compelled to send a letter to concerned elders. A source tells the National Enquirer, 'Pastor Posson thought it was in the church's best interest to circulate a letter.' In the note, the pastor avoided the gay issue, declaring Aiken was a Christian who didn't 'drink, smoke, swear or womanise'. The clergyman also recalled interviews Aiken gave to Rolling Stone magazine and an internet site, in which he stated he was not gay."

Well, that doesn't sound like he "avoided the gay issue" to me, but take it for what you will.

Sphere: Related Content

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #162

RUDY GIULIANI LOVES DRAG: This time he's in lion drag making some, uh, interesting comments about the work ethics of people on welfare. From the documentary Giuliani Time. (source: slog)

IRAQ ON VACATION: Sweating it out alone till September. (source: americablog)

CLAY AIKEN: Is trying to bring sexy back but not doing a very convincing job of it.

ALEXYSS TYLOR: She's back with a warning to gay boys (audio NSFW). (source: dlisted)

Check out our previous guides to the Tube here!

Sphere: Related Content