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."

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News: Johnny Depp, Mars, American Airlines, Will Smith, Alzheimer's

Last month I posted about an asteroid that scientists said had a 1 in 75 chance of striking Mars with an impact close to a 15 megaton bomb. Well, based on new observations, scientists say the chances have dropped to 1 in 10,000. Boo!

American Airlines launches first gay-themed print ads: "Recalling when travel was considered glamorous, new print ads in The Advocate and online look like vintage, 50s-era illustrated posters, but with the twist of two carefree men stepping off the plane together. The tagline is "Fly forward" and was created by American's longtime ad agency, TM Advertising, of Dallas, and Washington, D.C.-based gay marketing firm Witeck-Combs Communications."

Brian Austin Green taking make-up tips from Pete Wentz?

CNN's Glenn Beck discusses his butt surgery: "I had surgery on my ass."

London plans massive Pride event for June/July. Mayor Ken Livingstone: “The capital is home to the largest, most diverse lesbian and gay population in Europe and this event, attended by people of all sexualities, sends out a clear signal that London welcomes and is a safe place for lesbians and gay men to live in and visit."

New Yorker holding Eustace Tilley cover contest.

Jake Gyllenhaal and Reese Witherspoon to marry?

UK court told of sexual harassment construction worker inflicted on 17-year-old: "Douglas Inskip, 42, would wolf-whistle at the 17-year-old, blow him kisses, subject him to limp wrist gestures and told him to 'shake that ass'. Inskip put a doll in the window of his home of Daffyd, the comic character styled as the 'only gay in the village' in the BBC TV series Little Britain. He would point at it when the victim was outside, Flintshire magistrates were told."

Madonna drops a cool 10K on Kabbalah water every month!

Will Smith joins Church of Scientology: "At the wrap party of Will's new flick 'Hancock' he gave out cards to cast and crew that qualified them for a free "personality test" at a local Scientology center."

Johnny Depp shows a bit of skin for Rolling Stone.

Michael Kors: just in case you're not sure who I am.

New study documents marked reversal of Alzheimer's symptoms within minutes of injection of therapeutic molecule: "It is unprecedented that we can see cognitive and behavioral improvement in a patient with established dementia within minutes of therapeutic intervention. It is imperative that the medical and scientific communities immediately undertake to further investigate and characterize the physiologic mechanisms involved. This gives all of us in Alzheimer’s research a tremendous new clue about new avenues of research, which is so exciting and so needed in the field of Alzheimer’s. Even though this report predominantly discusses a single patient, it is of significant scientific interest because of the potential insight it may give into the processes involved in the brain dysfunction of Alzheimer’s."

Depositions begin in anti-gay discrimination case against DNC. Communications detailed.

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The Streak

Ever have one of those visual cues you just can't seem to shake? Everytime I look at the promo shots for the upcoming Sweeney Todd film starring Johnny Depp, all I see is the late intellectual Susan Sontag.

Depp talks about the look in the most recent issue of Entertainment Weekly: "The idea was that he'd had this hideous trauma, from being sent away, locked away. That streak of white hair became the shock of that rage. It represented his rage over what had happened. It's certainly not the first time anyone's used it. But it's effective. It tells a story all by itself. My brother had a white spot growing up, and his son has this kind of shock of white in his hair. In those early meetings, what started to go into the look, before the white streak and any of that, was the eyes. As with any character, the history is there. It sounds really stupid, but I thought they needed to be far away and very close at the same time. They needed to have experienced too much, you know. That's where the darkness came around them. These heavy rings around his eyes of purple and brown, this kind of awful fatigue and rage. It's like he's never slept."

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Johnny Depp May Play Freddie Mercury in New Biopic

Johnny Depp is reportedly being considered for the starring role in a new biopic about the life of Freddie Mercury in development by Robert De Niro's Tribeca Productions according to Queen guitarist Brian May.

Responding to an inquiry from a fan on his website about the rumored casting, May responded: "Discussions are at an early stage .... I don't know where this story came from, but I think someone in the media, as usual, has taken a punt ... of course these opportunists have little to lose ... who cares about truth these days? Certainly not the tabloid press. But you're right about one thing ... Johnny Depp is fantastic. He would be a worthy counterpart for Freddie on screen. I don't think I can say any more right now."

Seems like an excellent choice to me. However, he will need to grow some hair on his chest.

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Zanzibar Muslims Shun Freddie Mercury [tr]

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News: Anderson Cooper, Marijuana Gumballs, Einstein...

More chatter regarding the ABA Report that says Bush is violating the constitution. Lou Dobbs: Why is the President ignoring our laws? "A bipartisan, 11-member panel of the ABA found that President Bush is not only disregarding laws but using such signing statements far more than any president in history. In fact, Bush has used signing statements to raise constitutional objections to more than 800 provisions in more than 100 laws. All of the presidents combined before 2001 had issued only 600."

Simon Doonan: "After watching Anderson Cooper’s intrepid reports last week, I am totally convinced that there is room for style on the battlefield. Somehow or other, Gloria’s handsome lad, while dodging bombs in Lebanon, became a style icon. Damn him! He looks so wickedly handsome and au courant! His preferred garments—a cobalt-blue sports shirt under a matte-black top-stitched bulletproof vest—have a definite whiff of the Belgian fashion designer Raf Simons or vintage Helmut Lang about them. As a result, Mr. Cooper gets my fashion-in-the-face-of-adversity award." (capture via ata)

First UK gay man to be prosecuted for infecting his partner with HIV is on the lam: A warrant was issued for the arrest of Mark James, 47, of Park Road, Burgess Hill, and Judge Jonathan Lowen promised to sentence him in his absence if he is not apprehended within a short time."

Jared Leto channels...Madonna?

Using Einstein's theory of relativity to speed the airline boarding process: "According to New Scientist, which reports the research today, it is the first practical application of Einstein's work outside physics. And the researchers are in talks with a major airline which wants to use their ideas."

Anatomy of an outing: the Sydney Star Observer dissects the coming out of singer Darren Hayes. “When was the last time you saw me on the red carpet with a fake girlfriend? Some people do that, and I have always chosen to take a higher road than that as I want to be an artist and an expressive person.”

For those not as threatened by the 'man purse' as Andy Roddick, Cool Hunting takes a look at bags for guys.

Penny for a gumball, Red-eye!

Readers of Jane magazine want Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom to go gay in the next Pirates of the Caribbean.

Nikke Finke: Is Jake Gyllenhaal's urge to play Lance Armstrong a ride to nowhere?

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News: T-Mobile, Johnny Depp, Superman, Cyndi Lauper...

Following pressure from the anti-gay American Family Association, T-Mobile has pulled ads from two FX channel shows: "The move appears to be another victory for Wildmon's group, which has made a habit of going after advertisers in shows that offend its sensibilities. In the case of the two FX shows, the AFA has complained to advertisers supporting the programs that that the shows are 'over the edge in sex, violence and profanity.'"

He came from the mist...

Too gay? Filmmaker Kevin Smith says Bryan Singer's Superman not gay enough: "You look at the X-Men movies and it's an allegory for what it's like to be gay, like, if you take the word 'mutant' out of that movie and stick 'gay' in, the movie still works. I was really looking forward to him doing the third one because it would be an out-and-out gay fantasia - I was hoping that the dude would go for a kind of Brokeback Mutant kind of movie, but he opted to do Superman. I thought he'd make a really gay Superman but he didn't; it was more JESUS' Superman... - a lot of Messianic poses and what not and I was hoping for a little more gay action."

Cyndi Lauper, Mayor Daley wrap up Chicago's Gay Games for crowd of 20,000+. Sun-Times: "The event belonged to one singer, however. The entire crowd was silent as a violinist, dressed as Abe Lincoln, began to play the opening notes of Cyndi Lauper's 'True Colors.' Proving she is still so unusual, Lauper entered barefoot from the dugout, dressed as the Statue of Liberty wrapped in the rainbow flag and carrying a torch. She ended the set by telling the crowd to 'stand tall and together pass the flame on.' It was the kind of high note you wish the games had begun with."

Orlando Bloom on his Pirates co-star Johnny Depp: "He is always trying to kiss me. I'm like, 'No tongue!'"

Gay soldiers live life of secrecy and isolation within the Canadian Forces. Soldier: "I am part of a same-sex common-law couple within the Canadian Forces, and after declaring common-law status, I found that my situation is very common across the Canadian Forces, although many couples prefer to remain in silence about their relationship and lifestyle. From personal experience, I know there are young soldiers who feel they don't belong, and there are no resources within the military community or the Family Resource Centre to reach out to them."

Richard Hatch has been sent to a federal prison in Oklahoma while serving his 51-month sentence for failing to pay taxes on his $1 million Survivor winnings. Hatch Lawyer: "He should be in a camp. The camps are the most comfortable of the uncomfortable. They are still jails, but they get to see the sky and be outside. It's bad for Richard, who is an outdoor person."

Father and son taking Jack Twist's Brokeback truck, the one sold at auction, on tour of Alberta, Canada where the movie was shot.

Chicago radio DJ told Jody Watley she was not to speak about the Gay Games during a radio interview, despite the fact she was in the city to perform at them.

AfterElton profiles Rex Lee, who plays Jeremy Piven's assistant on Entourage: "Even now, I'm on this show, I play a gay character, I talk about being gay in real life. But I'm shocked at how many people don't get it. They're like ‘Hey! Bet you're really reeling in the women now that you're on this show!' And I'm like, ‘Do you live under a rock?'"

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Eric Boehlert: "A show of hands please--Who else thinks it's funny that the National Review now wants New York Times reporters expelled from the White House briefing room, their credentials seized. Yet last year the National Review stood firmly behind Jeff Gannon, a former male escort with no journalism background who was working for an amateur right-wing propaganda site, and defended his special right to be waved into White House briefings--under an alias--without having to sit for a formal FBI background check so he could toss softball questions at administration officials."

Damien Hirst's shark pickled in formaldehyde is rotting. Larry Gagosian: "The shark is a conceptual piece and to substitute a shark of equal size and appearance, in my opinion, does not alter the piece. Steve Cohen is very happy with the piece and is not troubled at all with having to substitute it."

London Mayor praised for his accomplishments on LGBT rights.

Johnny Depp's gay pirate attitude in Pirates of the Caribbean was something he tackled with enthusiasm: "Depp says he was intrigued by a scholarly work titled 'Sodomy and the Pirate Tradition.' 'I liked the idea of [Jack] being ambiguous. Because women were thought to be bad luck on ships. And these pirates would go out for years at a time. So, you know, there is a possibility that one thing might lead to another. You're lonely. You have an extra ration of rum. 'Cabin boy!''"

Openly gay former defensive tackle Esera Tuaolo talks to NFL rookies at their diversity training program about homophobia in football. NFL Vice President of Player and Employee Development Mike Haynes: "When I took the job four years ago, one of the things I wanted to really stress was tolerance. And that takes on a lot of forms, from tolerating the kind of music that's maybe being played in the locker room, to the way a guy dresses, or even what part of the country he is from. And so this was just a natural step in the evolution."

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Johnny Depp's Gay Pirate Attitude

In Newsweek's splashy article this week on Johnny Depp, producer Jerry bruckheimer notes that Depp's "fey" portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow in the first Pirates of the Caribbean film had studio execs on edge.

Bruckheimer: "The studio was, like, 'Is he gay? Is he drunk? We don't know what he's doing!' It took a little while to calm everybody down."

Depp's take on Sparrow seemed to please director Gore Verbinski however: "You know, there's a lot of conspiring that goes on between actors and directors that I think is very healthy. You should be a little concerned as a director if you're not making the studio nervous."

John Waters, who directed Depp in Cry-baby (1990), says it's all natural: "First of all, Johnny is a pirate in real life. It's the closest part he's ever played to his real self, but the fact that he played it kind of nelly was a big risk. If only real gay pirates were that much fun."

A Pirate's Life [newsweek]

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