Towleroad in Brief: 5 Questions for Frank Rich

On Friday afternoon, Towleroad's Corey Johnson and I paid a visit to the office of New York Times columnist Frank Rich (you may remember his recent column on the National Organization for Marriage and the waning of the anti-gay movement). Rich answered a few of our questions about the LGBT community and Democrats, the state of the Republican Party, traditional media vs. new media, the Miss California blow-up, and the ethics of outing closeted elected officials.

Watch it, AFTER THE JUMP...

Exclusive: A Conversation on 33 Variations Kevin Sessums Talks to Jane Fonda and Moises Kaufman

 

KEVIN SESSUMS

I recently had a conversation with Moises Kaufman and Jane Fonda. Kaufman’s play, 33 Variations, opens on March 9th at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway with Fonda as its leading lady. She plays a musicologist who is trying to solve the mystery of Beethoven spending so much time writing 33 variations based on a short waltz by Anton Diabelli. She, like the composer, is battling against time. He was going deaf. She has a life-threatening disease. Among her costars are Samantha Mathis, who plays the daughter with whom she’s had difficulties and Colin Hanks — yes, Tom’s son — who plays her nurse.

Kaufman is the writer and director of Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde and The Laramie Project. He directed, among other plays, I Am My Own Wife and Liev Schreiber’s Macbeth at the Public Theatre. He is the artistic director of the Tectonic Theater Project.

We all know Fonda’s credits — or many of them. She’s been at this for fifty years. I ask after a mutual friend, Pat Newcomb, who was the publicist for everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Barbra Streisand to Warren Beatty. “You know I took Pat to the Czech Republic right after the Velvet Revolution and we met Vaclav Havel,” she says, smiling at the memory and petting her small Coton de Tulear dog named Tulea who is curled in her lap.

I recall the first time I ever met her. “It was years ago,” I tell her and mention one of my best friends from college who became one of her closest Hollywood pals for a while. We all had dinner at Joe Allen.

“It couldn’t have been that many years ago,” she said.

“Yeah. It was,” I tell her. “Maybe the early ‘80s. We each had vestiges of a shag and you showed up with your stepmother.”

She laughs.. “I’ve had several. Which one?” she asks.

“I think her name was Susan.”

“Oh, yes, yes. Susan! Yes. Now I remember.”

“I walked you back to your hotel and you told a rather risque joke about arriving at The Pearly Gates and the conversation that ensued with Saint Peter. I remember thinking to myself — shit — Jane Fonda is funny. Who knew she was funny?

JANE FONDA: I’ve gotten funnier. I had to keep up with Ted Turner. He’s hysterical. You’ve got to have a sense of humor to be married to Ted Turner.

KEVIN SESSUMS: That could be a compliment or an insult. He allowed you to get more in touch with your own sense of humor?

JF: Well, he allowed me to ... ah ... well... yeah. That’s all. Yeah.

KS: After your divorce from him, you kept living in Atlanta. Do you consider yourself a Southerner now?

JF: Yes, I do. I’ve lived there for over 18 years.

KS: Moises, we met at the “Mormon March” after Prop 8 passed in California and we New Yorkers took to the streets in solidarity. We were both rendezvousing with some guys at the Barnes and Noble next to the Mormon Visitors Center. I was with my old boyfriend Peter Staley.

MOISES KAUFMAN: Yes, of course. We were meeting Tony Kushner and his husband, Mark Harris. Doug Wright and his husband, David Clement. To be demonstrating with Tony in front of the Mormon Visitors Center — because that’s where half of Angels in America takes place — was very moving.

KS: It had the dramatic contours of a Moises Kaufman play.

MK: Yes, I guess it did, didn’t it. I was very moved that night.

JF: Someone emailed Moises a picture of me with Harvey Milk during a “No on Prop 6” march.

KS: Well, honey, you do have a history of marches. I’d expect you to have a picture with Harvey Milk.

JF: It’s why I loved Sean’s performance so much. I knew Harvey and he totally got him.

Continued, AFTER THE JUMP...

Barney Frank Talks: The Inauguration, the Economy, and LGBT Issues

On the day before Obama's inauguration, we were able to visit Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) in his Capitol Hill apartment. Because I was having some problems with the video, I wasn't able to upload it until now.

The video is in three parts. Watch it, AFTER THE JUMP...

In the first clip, Corey Johnson talks to Frank about the present and past inaugurations. Says Frank of Obama and the Democrats: "I think people are very discouraged by the Bush administration and the cavalry has arrived to rescue us."

In the second, they discuss the economy. Says Frank: "There's never in my experience been a sharper divide between the political and economic opinions of the average citizen in this country and those of the small number of people at the top of the pyramid. And the people at the top of the pyramid better understand that the great bulk of Americans are no longer licensing them to go and do what they think is necessary to provide assistance to these top institutions."

In the third clip, Frank discusses LGBT issues and the bills related to them: Says Frank: "I believe by the end of this Congress, two years from now, we will have repealed 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell', we will have passed a fully-inclusive hate crimes bill, and we will very probably have passed a fully-inclusive ENDA, and we will also begin...starting the process of getting recognition of ... partner benefits for federal employees. That's probably as far as we're going to be able to go politically right now in the marriage area." He also talks about media exposure and his public persona.

Watch the clips, AFTER THE JUMP...

Equality Summit Interview: NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell

BRAD WILLIS

Towleroad correspondent Brad Willis, who filed a report earlier today from Saturday's 'Equality Summit' in Los Angeles, sat down with Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, to discuss Proposition 8, Obama's civil rights agenda, and moving forward in the campaign for marriage equality.

What your position was with the No On 8 campaign?

I was a member of the (No On 8 Campaignʼs) Executive Committee [since] 2004.

There are a lot of people within the LGBT community who don’t understand why marriage is important. Why is it important?

What marriage provides is not only the practical security of a legally recognized relationship, but it makes it virtually impossible to continue to think of LGBT people as less equal and less valuable members of society.

If we do win the right to marry in states, it still won’t solve problems like immigration and taxation which are federal issues. Is that something we should be thinking about now?

There is no doubt that a lack of federal recognition of our relationships [inflicts] a tremendous hardship on LGBT people. There are many heartbreaking things about losing Prop 8 and seeing it pass. One of the most significant for me is that for a moment in time it has arrested the momentum for Congress and the Obama administration to move quickly to repeal DOMA. It is very gratifying to see that, notwithstanding Prop 8’s
passage, Obama lists (on his website) repealing DOMA as one of the significant priorities of his civil rights agenda. If DOMA is repealed, issues like social security and survivor’s benefits, or immigration and the rights of bi-national couples will be ameliorated and we will be on our way to fairness and equality.

If DOMA were repealed would our marriages be portable to other states?

Having a repeal of DOMA occur in this first Obama term, which I very much hope happens, would be a [huge] event in civil rights protection for LGBT people. But, until there is national recognition for our relationships, it will depend on where one lives, whether they enjoy both state benefits and federal benefits.

What would you say to people who say, Well, I think gay people should have all the legal rights, but I don’t agree with calling it marriage?

Continued, AFTER THE JUMP...

Carrier: An Interview with Quartermaster Brian Downey

On Friday, I posted an interview with Jeff Dupre, a producer on the PBS special documentary mini-series Carrier. Carrier is a character-driven total immersion in the high-stakes world of a nuclear air craft carrier. A team of 17 filmmakers spent 6 months on the USS Nimitz on a full deployment to the Persian Gulf. The 10-hour documentary began airing last night and continues on through Thursday on PBS from 9-11pm ET (check local listings).

One of the hours tonight is called "Super Secrets" and details some of the more hush-hush goings-on aboard the Nimitz, including several interviews with gay and lesbian servicemembers. While those who are currently serving are pixellated in their interviews, one soldier you'll be able to see quite clearly is Brian Downey, who served as a quartermaster third class petty officer in the navigation department of the Nimitz.

Downey served four years in the Navy and is currently living in San Diego, working at a bar, and enrolling in school to be a medical assistant. Downey grew up on a Navajo reservation in the four corners area where Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado come together.

I had the opportunity to ask Downey a few questions about his service and life aboard the Nimitz.

Did you anticipate any particular challenges coming aboard the Nimitz as a gay man?

I never saw anything as a real challenge. We all have our little jokes about our backgrounds just like anybody does. Nothing was ever really an issue. It was never really a struggle or anything. You kind of have to get along. You're gonna work with each other, you're gonna see each other.

Why did you decide to enlist in the Navy?

I wanted to enlist for one, to serve my country. I knew I would have to put a lot of things aside. I understood that I had to make a sacrifice and I feel like more of an enriched person because of it. I wanted to get out there, I wanted to learn what people were like. Everybody wants to see the world, you know, but I feel like being in this country and to have the freedoms that we have...I wanted to feel like I worked at least for what I have, or at least understood the reasons why I have it. Why do we do what we do? What's the price for freedom? It wasnt anything else. In all honesty I think it would be a great thing for a lot of people to do. I'm not an advocate of [telling people] 'hey you should be in the military,' or for the draft, or anything like that. [But the military] helps you understand more who we are as a people. That's the reason I did it.

What were your duties aboard the ship and did you know what you wanted to do before you enlisted?

The first day when I sat down and took a test, all these jobs came up. One thing that really caught my attention was 'aviation anti-submarine warfare systems operator (AW)'.'What they do are search and rescue missions. There's also an acoustic version of the job using radar. I just knew I wanted to get into search and rescue. It was very dynamic job. I ended up being part of one of the smallest departments on the ship but we had the huge responsibility of [ensuring the] overall safe navigation of the ship, making sure it goes where it needs to go and gets there safely. We're the primary assistants in the pilot house. That was my overall responsibility. I was also the logistics supplier for my department. For a brief time I was involved with charts but that's a huge responsibility that takes up all of your time.

Would you do it again?

I was in all four years. Did my duty. In all honesty it wouldn't bother me to go back if I ever got called back to serve as part of a war. But right now I'm enjoying my civilian life.

One of your other jobs, as we see in Carrier, was the raising and lowering of the flag?

Every day it comes down at sunset and goes up at sunrise. While we're in ports you put it up and there's a ceremony for it. And you treat it with respect while you're doing it. In ports, you're seen more often. It doesn't matter where you are, you treat it with respect. It was one part of my duties.

How was it serving under 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'?

Interview continued, AFTER THE JUMP...

Christopher Rice on Death Threats and His New Thriller Blind Fall

I'm proud to bring you our very first edition of Towleroad TV! This is a special feature we'll be presenting from time to time featuring various personalities and topics.

In the first edition, put together by our correspondents Josh Koll and Josh Helmin, Christopher Rice talks about his new thriller Blind Fall, as well as how he researched the novel and early reactions to it, some of which came in the form of death threats.

Says Rice: "Blind Fall is a thriller. It addresses the issue of gays in the military. It does kind of show you the sacrifices that gay Marines have to make to be Marines. And so that's the political component of the book...I did a YouTube video where I basically talked about...my disdain for the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy which is currently in effect in our nation's military. And so the video went up and maybe within a day there was a storm of comments calling basically for my death — that I disgraced the Marine Corps, that I should be shot between the eyes, everyone like me should be shot between the eyes — and I thought maybe I was overreacting, so I emailed a very good friend of mine who's sort of a gay activist with a long history of working in the community, and I said 'Are these death threats?' And he said 'mmm-hmmm. Yeah. They are.'"

Blind Fall [amazon]

Josh Koll and Josh Helmin write their own blog, Josh & Josh are Rich and Famous.

And the YouTube video to which Rice refers in our segment, AFTER THE JUMP...