Gus van Sant's Milk Premieres in San Francisco

Sean Penn arrives to the Milk premiere at the Castro Theatre before a backdrop of "No on Prop 8" protestors. While Harvey Milk's story is political to its core, the film (trailer) could not have arrived at a more politically-charged moment in California's gay history, with marriage rights that have national implications hanging in the balance.

If anyone was there, feel free to give us a report in the comments section.

The SF Chronicle reports: "State Assemblyman Mark Leno, sporting a 'Harvey Milk for Assembly' button on his lapel, connected 'the exciting and tumultuous time' of Milk's gay rights activism to the 'ill-conceived measure facing voters on the ballot next week.' Mayor Gavin Newsom said he felt 'a tremendous amount of pride' to be attending the movie's premiere in San Francisco. Citing the changes seen from the 'anti-sodomy laws that were still on the books' in the 1970s to San Francisco today, he said, 'This story couldn't have happened anywhere else.' Supervisor Tom Ammiano (pictured/Brant Ward-SF Chronicle) was a friend of Milk's. 'This is about getting in touch with the grief process,' he said, then flashed an affectionately wistful smile. 'Harvey was a mensch. He could also be a diva. He would have loved knowing that Sean Penn would be playing him.'"

Donate to the "No on Prop 8" campaign HERE.

A larger selection of Milk premiere pics featuring Josh Brolin, James Franco, Diego Luna, Emile Hirsch, Dustin Lance Black, the producers, SF Mayor Gavin Newsom, and others,
AFTER THE JUMP...

James Franco who plays Milk's lover Scott Smith.

Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Gavin Newsom, and Focus Features CEO James Schamus, whose letter to the Hollywood Reporter I posted last night.

Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black

Actors Diego Luna and Emile Hirsch, who play Jack Lira and Cleve Jones, respectively.

Executive producer Michael London with producers Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen.

Josh Brolin and Diane Lane. A Sister of Perpetual Indulgence.

Robin Wright Penn and Sean Penn.

Gus van Sant.

Earlier in the day, I mentioned yesterday, a streetcar was dedicated to Harvey Milk on 17th street between Castro and Market. Here is an excellent report on that ceremony.

For all of Towleroad's coverage on Harvey Milk the gay rights hero, as well as the film, click HERE.

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Emile Hirsch Wants Things to Change

Here's a day in the life of Emile Hirsch when he's not playing a gay rights activist or a Vietnam vet, and I think what he's suggesting is that there's certainly time to get out and make your vote for Obama.

Watch it, AFTER THE JUMP...

Previously
Emile Hirsch on His Piggy Woodstock Experience [tr]
First Look: Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock [tr]
Emile Hirsch Explains 'Gay' Moment with Fellow Actor [tr]
Emile Hirsch Gets Wetter for David LaChapelle [tr]
Emile Hirsch Strips Down for David LaChapelle in Hawaii [tr]

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Emile Hirsch on His Piggy Woodstock Experience

In the recent "photo issue" of Entertainment Weekly there are a few photos of Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock, which is shooting in upstate New York and is based on the memoirs of Elliot Tiber, the gay figure who helped facilitate the famous music festival.

In the film, Emile Hirsch plays a Vietnam vet ("Woodstock becomes a way for him to find the joy he has left in his life.").

Hirsch tells the magazine: "The mud's pretty cold. It's later in the year than it was during Woodstock. We were all shivering, and we had these silver-foil space blankets that miraculously keep you really warm...I did a Superman slide down a hill, and started turning on my back. I was covered in mud. I think there was pig crap mixed in, because we all smelled like crap."

A shirtless Hirsch before he dirtied himself up, AFTER THE JUMP...

Previously
First Look: Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock [tr]
Emile Hirsch Explains 'Gay' Moment with Fellow Actor [tr]
Emile Hirsch Gets Wetter for David LaChapelle [tr]
Emile Hirsch Strips Down for David LaChapelle in Hawaii [tr]

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First Look: New Milk Stills

A bunch of new stills from Gus van Sant's Harvey Milk biopic Milk have been released. Here's Sean Penn as Milk in San Francisco City Hall. Below, James Franco as Milk's lover Scott Smith.

Check out the trailer for Milk here. For all of our coverage on Milk and Harvey Milk, click here. Milk is released to limited theaters on November 26.

Penn and Josh Brolin as Dan White, Milk's fellow assemblyman and assassin.

More, AFTER THE JUMP...

Franco and Penn, above. Below, Diego Luna as Milk supporter and boyfriend Jack Lira, and Franco.

Above and below - Emile Hirsch as activist Cleve Jones. Alison Pill as Milk's campaign manager and confidante Anne Kronenberg.

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News: Whales, Frank Kameny, Emile Hirsch, True Blood, David Dreier

San Diego firefighters testify in suit against San Diego over being forced to take part in Gay Pride parade: "I felt like I was close to being in an X-rated event. I was ashamed to wear my uniform that day."

Emile Hirsch talks to Nylon about Milk: "I just had such a wonderful time. it’s such a great ensemble. Speed Racer was such a highly controlled performance environment that I found, honestly, a little frustrating at times just because it’s so hard when you’re on the green screen and it’s all about, ‘Bat this eyelash a little bit here.’ On Milk, it was just a free-for-all and we were all going nuts."

The odd lies of Sarah Palin.

New York Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith sidesteps question about how he'll approach same-sex marriage if he becomes Majority Leader: "It's a good question. But I'd rather wait to see what seats I have, you know, who are my members, and at that time, then we can talk."

True Blood: HBO picks up Alan Ball vampire drama for another year.

Closeted California Rep. David Dreier runs from Michelangelo Signorile at the Republican Convention - VIDEO.

Field Poll: Same-sex marriage ban trailing in California. "The Field Poll of 830 likely voters found that the share of the electorate backing Proposition 8 fell during the last two months, with 38 percent of those surveyed saying they intend to vote for the measure compared to 42 percent in early July. Opposition to Proposition 8 increased during the same period, the poll found. A solid majority of the likely voters—55 percent—said they would vote against the same-sex marriage ban, compared to the 51 percent who opposed the initiative in the July poll."

Frank Kameny Papers archive opens at Library of Congress: "Kameny is credited with playing a lead role in launching the modern U.S. gay civil rights movement in the early 1960s after government officials discovered he was gay and fired him from his job as an astronomer with the Army Map Service. According to a Library of Congress index of the Kameny archives, highlights include papers related to the American Psychiatric Association’s 1973 removal of homosexuality from its list of mental disorders and the landmark 1974 federal decision to grant an openly gay man a Pentagon security clearance. Also among the archives are materials Kameny used in marches and protests from 1965–1969."

Tyson Beckford unzips for charity.

Brazil in the Hamptons...

Simon Cowell recruits Ms. Spears for X-Factor.

NYC: Will Chelsea's Food Bar live again?

Like father, like son: Ryan and Redmond O'Neil arrested on meth charge.

Song: Whales heard in great numbers in New York Harbor and off Fire Island. "Not just a few, either. Right whales were migrating past the microphones during all three months. Not just right whales, either. Humpbacks were also passing by, and fin whales appear to be residing in the area. 'We basically have fin whale singers basically 24/7 off New York Harbor,' Dr. Clark said. 'That was a surprise.'"

Researchers say poor mental and sexual health of gays a result of internalized "homonegativity".

Fresno State Hate: Foes of marriage equality are taking their battle to college football games, apparently.

Kentucky appeals court issues shameful ruling barring lesbians from adopting as stepparents: "In a 62-page ruling issued Friday about the case, the court said that with a 'wink-wink' and a 'nod-nod,' Family Court Judge Eleanore Garber and lawyers for a lesbian couple ignored those laws. And as many as three or four family court judges in Jefferson County may have allowed such adoptions, the opinion said."

Broadway's Xanadu to close.

Albany-area school principal resigns under mysterious circumstances: "The school board accepted Michael Paolino's resignation at a meeting Tuesday night. The resignation goes into effect on December 31st. Paolino has been on paid administrative leave since July but the district has never given the official reason. The Times Union has reported that teachers accused Paolino of making racist and homophobic comments about staff members and even some students."

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First Look: Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock

Entertainment Weekly published the first photo of director and cast on the set of Taking Woodstock, the film based on a memoir by Elliot Tiber, the gay Greenwich Village interior decorator who facilitated the legendary music festival.

Ang Lee starts his productions off with a "Big Luck ceremony" which is what's happening here, EW writes: "Also pictured are screenwriter/producer James Schamus (in white hat), and actors Demetri Martin (in striped shirt), Emile Hirsch (V-neck T-shirt), and Jonathan Groff (with bag slung over his shoulder and across his chest). The movie also stars Imelda Staunton, Henry Goodman, Liev Schreiber, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Mamie Gummer, Dan Fogler, Richard Thomas, Skylar Astin, Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, and Eugene Levy."

You may have missed...
Stellar Cast Lined Up for Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock [tr]
Ang Lee to Make Film About Gay Woodstock Figure Elliot Tiber [tr]

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More Stills from Milk

A couple more lush stills from this fall's Harvey Milk biopic Milk have surfaced, featuring Josh Brolin as SF supervisor and Milk-Moscone assassin Dan White and Emile Hirsch as activist Cleve Jones.

See the Hirsch pic, AFTER THE JUMP...

When we were in Denver for the DNC, we asked San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom his thoughts on the Milk film. Click HERE to hear what he had to say.

For all our Harvey Milk coverage, click here...

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Stellar Cast Lined Up for Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock

Since I posted in May about the casting of Demetri Martin as Elliot Tiber, the gay interior decorator, hotel manager, and Bethel, NY Chamber of Commerce head who played a central role in facilitating the legendary rock festival in upstate New York, the cast has evolved quite a bit.

Variety reported this week on these developments: [Imelda] Staunton and Henry Goodman will play Tiber's parents, and Jonathan Groff (currently starring in the Shakespeare in the Park production of 'Hair' in Gotham) will play Woodstock organizer Michael Lang; [Emile] Hirsch will play a recently returned Vietnam vet, Eugene Levy will play Yasgur, and [Liev] Schreiber is in talks to play a transvestite named Vilma. Jeffrey Dean Morgan is set as a closeted married man having an affair with Tiber, while Paul Dano and Zoe Kazan play a hippie couple attending the concert. Dan Fogler will play a local theater troupe head, and Mamie Gummer will play Lang's assistant."

It's a New York theater junkie's acid trip!

Previously
Ang Lee to Make Film About Gay Woodstock Figure Elliot Tiber [tr]

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Emile Hirsch Explains 'Gay' Moment with Fellow Actor

Emile Hirsch says he was just engaging in some non-gay work-out action when he was caught in a strange-looking situation with his Speed Racer co-star Kick Gurry, and now he's been prompted to explain it:

"Me and Kick were in the trailer hanging out. Kick was sitting back with his hands behind his head and I was doing push ups. It was hot so I peeled my driver's suit down a bit, and then Eric, the wonderfully gay production assistant, walked in. I jumped up really quick, but I was out of breath. Eric slammed the door shut. We went to Eric later and tried to explain. He was like, 'Shhhhh. I will never tell.'"

Hirsch is set to star this fall as gay activist Cleve Jones in Gus van Sant's biopic Milk.

Previously
Emile Hirsch Gets Wetter for David LaChapelle [tr]
Emile Hirsch Strips Down for David LaChapelle in Hawaii [tr]
Milk in Action on Castro Street [tr]
Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, James Franco Sign on to Milk Film [tr]

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Emile Hirsch Gets Wetter for David LaChapelle

A few more Emile Hirsch shots by photographer David LaChapelle from this month's Flaunt magazine (via Just Jared, where you can find some more)

And a few behind the scenes shots, here.

One more shot, AFTER THE JUMP...

Emile Hirsch - “Flaunt Magazine” Issue #93 [just jared]

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Emile Hirsch Strips Down for David LaChapelle in Hawaii

Emile Hirsch, who is starring in the upcoming Speed Racer as well as Gus van Sant's Milk later this year, got natural for David LaChapelle in Hawaii in this month's Flaunt magazine.

Hirsch also recently spoke out about Milk for the first time. Said the actor, who plays gay activist (and eventual NAMES Quilt creator) Cleve Jones in the film: "I just did this film called ‘Milk’ with Sean Penn and Gus Van Sant about Harvey Milk. I think it’s going to be a really good film. I don’t want to give anything away by telling you a timeline, but it’s not really giving anything away, because it’s historical fact. Milk represented change for a lot of people, and was a catalyst to that. And his eventual assassination similarly mirrored Martin Luther King."

Check out a little behind-the-scenes shirtless waterfall action on LaChapelle's shoot,
AFTER THE JUMP...

>

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Milk in Action on Castro Street

From our friend Jeremy at Good As You comes this video of Castro Street, which captures a portion of the filming of Gus van Sant's Milk. Jeremy notes: "...you can hear for the first time just how much Penn has nailed the slain leader's unique voice."

You can also see activist Cleve Jones briefly alongside Emile Hirsch, the actor who plays him in the film.

Video: Eavesdropping on Milk [good as you]

Previously
Sean Penn and James Franco as Lovers in Milk [tr]
Milk: The Transformation of Castro Street [tr]
Extras Needed for Milk March in San Francisco [tr]
First Look at Josh Brolin as SF Supervisor Dan White in Milk [tr]
Grabeel, Luna, Smith Join Milk Cast as Production Begins [tr]

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Castro Street to Undergo "Time Warp" for Milk Biopic

Filming begins later this month on Gus van Sant's Milk film about slain SF supervisor and gay rights activist Harvey Milk (starring Sean Penn as Milk, with Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, and James Franco in co-starring roles), and preparations are fully underway to begin shooting on location in San Francisco's Castro district:

"Longtime denizens are likely to find some old haunts return to Castro Street, like the fabled Toad Hall bar – now part of Walgreens – and Milk's old camera shop – now the home of gift store Given – as the filmmakers recreate the streetscape from the days when Milk reigned over the area as the 'mayor' of Castro Street. 'We want to dress this neighborhood the best we can like the 1970s,' said Jonathan Shedd, the film's location manager. 'We hope to create a feel that works.' Cars from the era will be parked on the streets. Awnings and street signs of businesses postdating that time will be changed. Even the Castro Theatre will be swept up by the time warp. The movie-house's marquee, damaged by a Muni bus that ran into it while PG&E crews were doing work out front this fall, will be repaired next month and repainted to match the color palette it sported four decades ago."

The filmmakers have been meeting with local business owners to alert them of the "circus" that may prevail when shooting begins there on January 22, although the consensus appears to be that exposure from the film is likely to revitalize the area's businesses and make it a tourist destination.

The images you see here are from Uncle Donald's Castro Street, the most complete historical archive of the neighborhood online. If you haven't been there, it's a fascinating visit.

Top image by Jerry Pritikin, who has his own gallery at Uncle Donald's site. Pritikin writes: "A view of the 1977 Castro Street Fair, looking South from Market Street. This was the old style Castro Fair, nothing but two blocks of wall to wall men!"

***NOTE: We'd love to receive photos from anyone in San Francisco regarding the filming of the Milk film or the transformation of Castro Street!

Castro set for movie makeover [bay area reporter]

You may have missed...
Exclusive: Inside Harvey Milk's Castro Street Camera Shop Today [tr]
Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, James Franco Sign on to Milk Film [tr]
Gus van Sant and Sean Penn are First to Spill Milk [tr]
Singer and Van Sant Vie to be First with Harvey Milk Film [tr]

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Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, James Franco Sign on to Milk Film

Final negotiations are underway for three actors to join the cast of Gus van Sant's Milk, Gus van Sant's biopic of the slain San Francisco Supervisor and gay rights icon, opposite Sean Penn in the title role.

Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild), Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men), and James Franco (Spider-Man 3) are signing on.

Via the Hollywood Reporter: "Brolin will play Dan White, the rival politician and supervisor who shot Milk and San Francisco Mayor George Moscone to death at City Hall. Hirsch has been cast as gay rights activist Cleve Jones, an intern and close ally of Milk's, who went on to found the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. Franco will play Scott Smith, Milk's lover and campaign manager."

Variety reports: "Pic will shoot entirely in San Francisco, where Milk became the first openly gay man elected to office in 1977. 'Milk' is the first feature about the activist to go before the lens. Craig Zadan and Neil Meron have been developing an adaptation of 'The Mayor of Castro Street' for 15 years, but their project is in strike limbo. Bryan Singer is attached to direct it for Warner Independent, but Chris McQuarrie didn't turn his script in before the WGA strike deadline (Daily Variety, Nov. 19)."

The filmmakers are also holding open casting calls in the city. A Towleroad reader sent us this shot of one of the posters hanging in San Francisco. They're looking for 18-30-year-old men, and they'll be casting at 325 Sanchez Street between 16th and 17th in the Castro between 10am and 4pm this Saturday!

Look for a special bonus Harvey Milk post coming up in just a bit!

You may have missed...
Gus van Sant and Sean Penn are First to Spill Milk [tr]
Singer and Van Sant Vie to be First with Harvey Milk Film [tr]
Harvey Milk to get Bust at San Francisco City Hall [tr]
Vintage Gay Castro Images and Harvey Milk [tr]
Thank God for Harvey Milk [tr]

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