4 Minutes to Save Judy Garland

A video that will be sure to tickle those of you with the Judy Garland gene. Performer and impersonator Amy Walker channels Garland's journey from cherubic child star to drug-addled adult in a single performance of "Over the Rainbow", AFTER THE JUMP...

Homeland Security Meets Judy Garland in Santa's Ghetto

Items have slowly been coming up for sale in the Santa's Ghetto West Bank boutique. More on that here, in case you missed it. Interested buyers need to have pretty damn good timing though. The limited-edition "street art" items are snatched up almost as quickly as they appear.

Here's the Banksy print that recently went up for sale, entitled "Stop and Search".

The shop writes: "Banksy would doubtless have you believe this print is an ironic comment on the paranoid nature of our security-minded times. But seriously, how much is this guy courting the pink pound? It's got a man in uniform, latex & Dorothy herself all in one spanky package."

You may have missed...
Santa's Ghetto and Banksy Arrive in West Bank Town of Bethlehem [tr]

News: Ian Somerhalder, Frog, Marcel Marceau, Todd Oldham

Deaths: Legendary mime Marcel Marceau dies at 84. Stage actress and Bewitched star Alice Ghostley dies at 81.

Scientists develop see-through frog.

Fort Lauderdale debate over gay rights and Mayor Jim Naugle dividing South Florida's black community: "Despite the support that many black ministers showed for Naugle, the local NAACP took a public stand against the mayor, calling his crusade a 'hate campaign.'...'I'm not here to condone or condemn gay sex,' Marsha Ellison, head of the Broward NAACP, told The Miami Herald. 'This is a hate campaign against gays launched by the mayor.' She said the branch's position -- adopted after a unanimous vote of its 22-member executive committee as well as branch members -- echoes the national NAACP's position. 'Anytime any group is discriminated against it becomes a civil rights issue,' she said."

First conclusive evidence presented that velociraptors had feathers: "It's sort of as if you scaled up a chicken and then gave it really nasty teeth and big claws on its feet."

Your chance to have dinner and drinks with Michael Biserta, the New York firefighter renowned for his big hose.

Suburban Chicago teenage girl sentenced to one year of probation and ordered to write letters of apology for distributing anti-gay fliers with a friend outside Crystal Lake South High School: "Police arrested the two girls May 11 after they had distributed about 40 fliers in a student parking lot at the high school, 1200 S. McHenry Ave. The fliers had a photograph of two male students kissing and included inflammatory words."

Todd Oldham named creative director at Old Navy.

Israeli man detained in Lebanon on suspicions of murder and espionage tells authorities he is gay: "The events leading to Sharon's arrest last Thursday began when authorities in Beirut questioned a Lebanese security agent in connection with the shooting death of the man's roommate, according to a report in the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar. The agent claimed to have been with a German friend at a Beirut hotel at the time of the killing. When authorities questioned the German friend, they discovered he was an Israeli who spoke Arabic and who had repeatedly visited Lebanon, the report said. Sharon denied allegations he was spying for Israel, the reports said. He told police he visited Lebanon for tourism and that he was a homosexual who had relationships with Lebanese men, according to the reports."

Former model Ian Somerhalder returns to the runway.

PlanetOut seeks entries for short film awards: "Winners will be announced in January 2008 at PlanetOut's annual event during the Sundance Film Festival, and the Grand Prize Winner and four runners-up will be screened at a special ceremony and program in Miami as part of the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival on Sunday, April 27, 2008. The Grand Prize winner will receive a $10,000 cash prize and will be exhibited on PlanetOut.com and Gay.com, along with the runners up, who will each receive cash prizes ranging from $1,500 to $500...Judges will consist of film and TV executives from companies such as Bravo, Logo, and Sony Pictures Classics, and representatives from PlanetOut Inc. and MGLFF."

Rufus Wainwright wraps up his Judy tour with performance at the Hollywood Bowl: "The most striking costume change of all came during the encore's first song, 'Get Happy,' when Rufus pranced out in full Judy drag: fedora, diamond earrings, red lipstick, double-breasted tuxedo jacket, seamed black stockings, and high heels. The audience subsequently went crazy."

News: Australian Bums, Gabrielle, Gordon Ramsey, Arctic Melt

   Activist Australians going for world-record moon attempt — at President Bush: "Bush is coming to Sydney. Thousands of police, total CBD lockdown, draconian new laws to stifle all protest. Just so nothing disturbs Howard’s moment of glory. APEC’s agenda is more free-market madness, more nuclear power, more warmongers deciding how best to fuck the world over. Is this the future we want? Let’s tell Bush what we really think about his visit. Only 4000 cheeks are needed to make the biggest moon in history – a world record Australia can really be proud of. There will also be an official ‘21 bum salute’ for the 21 countries in APEC."

   Michael Woulfe, costume designer in Hollywood's "golden age" including Judy Garland's gown for A Star is Born, has died at 89.

   Tropical storm swirls off east coast, could become Gabrielle in coming days and threaten seaboard cities including New York. Models.

   MELT: Ice-free arctic could be here in 23 years. "The Arctic ice cap has collapsed at an unprecedented rate this summer and levels of sea ice in the region now stand at a record low, scientists said last night. Experts said they were "stunned" by the loss of ice, with an area almost twice as big as Britain disappearing in the last week alone. So much ice has melted this summer that the north-west passage across the top of Canada is fully navigable, and observers say the north-east passage along Russia's Arctic coast could open later this month. If the increased rate of melting continues, the summertime Arctic could be totally free of ice by 2030."

   Chef Gordon Ramsay demonstrates how to grill his own testicles: "The other day I was standing too close to the hob when I was cooking. I was wearing cotton trousers and underneath I was going commando. Then suddenly I felt this searing heat - my b***s were burning. I burnt my right b*****k and I'm in absolute agony. You wouldn't believe how much this hurts."

   Puncture: Vampires in SoHo?

   Art on the playa: Burning Man's twisted trucks.

   Britney Spears and Criss Angel pull it together for the VMAs.

   Restrictive 2257 regulations set to go into effect against adult entertainment sites that could kill social networking sites like Manhunt, etc. You have until September 10 to object.

   Ohio GOP congressman Paul Gillmor found dead in his apartment, of natural causes.

   ** The source of this item, Digital Media Wire, has issued a correction.  (below) PlanetOut planning 1 for 10 reverse stock split: "Companies typically carry out such transactions to reduce the number of overall shares, and in turn increase the share price. San Francisco-based PlanetOut has seen its share price drop from around $4.50 a year ago to hover closer to $1.50 in recent months. The troubled company was rescued from bankruptcy in July by an investor group ledthat included by Bill Gates, and is undergoing a restructuring that has recently seen the departure of CEO Karen Magee and CFO Daniel Miller, as well as Bob Allen Bob Cohen, chief of its top magazine titles. PlanetOut expects to enact the reverse split on or near Oct. 1." 

CORRECTION: *PlanetOut CEO Karen Magee has not stepped down, CFO Daniel Miller leaves at the end of the month, and Bob Cohen is the magazine chief who left as his magazine contract was not renewed.  Further, Bill Gates' Cascade Investments was one of six investors in the company's funding, but did not lead it. We apologize for the errors and will continue to hone the sources we tap for your news.

   One more word on Larry Craig from the Huff Post's Edward Ugel, though Cindy Adams may have said it more concisely.

The Post-Rufus Party

Timmy Ray takes us into the VIP event following the second night of Rufus Wainwright's redo of Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall and finds John Waters, Lorna Luft, Carson Kressley, hunky bartenders, and the singer himself, in sensible shoes.

Roger Bourland continues his review of the concert with more commentary and notes on each of the songs. Page Six also reports on the post-concert festivities.

And thanks to Towleroad reader Vinney for the shot below!

Rufus Wainwright as Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall

Rufus Wainwright performed his recreation of Judy Garland's 1961 preformance at Carnegie Hall last night. The reviews are coming in, and they are, for the most part, glowing.

Roger Bourland at Red Black Window posts part one of a two part review (photo by Daniel Shiplacoff), and notes that both the Wainwright and Garland groupies were spoonfed exactly what they wanted:

"The median age of the audience was probably 45. Was this because of the material? or is Rufus’s audience primarilly baby boomers? or were these the people who could afford it? I personally missed the edge of a younger audience. (But if I stop and think about it, Rufus seems to always enchant his listeners, they all look as thought they are in a daze when they listen. There is never a kind of headbangers ball scene at a Rufus Wainwright concert.) I saw Laurie Anderson, Jon Waters [sic], David Bowie, Antony, Joel Gray, and many other familiar faces. Lots of 45 to 60 well-off gay men. Many clusters of women, and surprising number of straight couples (that is for a concert by such a queer as RW). The audience offered up 4 or 5 standing ovations in the course of the evening. I’m certain that if overtime didn’t kick in for the orchestra and stage personnel, there would have been many more encores: the audience roar said as much."

The New York Times seems to agree:

"What unfolded onstage was a tour de force of politically empowering performance art in which a proudly gay male performer paid homage to the original and longest-running gay icon in the crowded pantheon of pop divas...For those who came to worship, Mr. Wainwright could do no wrong. His courage to stand as a surrogate for every audience member who ever gazed into the mirror and fantasized slipping into Dorothy's ruby slippers spoke for itself."

Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Conjuring Judy Garland [nyt]
Wainwright does Garland in Carnegie Hall (part 1) [red black window]
Historic Judy Garland concert restaged in New York [reuters]