News: Larry Craig, Big Bird, Al Sharpton, Gun Ruling, Vogue

No joke: Larry Craig and David Vitter key sponsors of Marriage Protection Amendment.

Never-before-seen photos of David Bowie revealed.

Guy "Richie" stands to gain $100 million:
No pre-nup in Madonna marriage.

Al Sharpton told Gay City News that his statement about sin to Anderson Cooper earlier this week was not aimed at Anderson but was hypothetical: "I have no idea of his sexuality. I was not talking about him as an individual anyway. It could have been anybody...I support same-sex marriage and have been lambasted by the right for it."

HIV cases "skyrocket" among young gay men: "A new report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that between 2001 and 2006 gay male sex was the largest HIV transmission category in the U.S. and also the only one which recorded an increasing number of HIV/AIDS diagnoses. The most affected are gay boys and men between the ages of 13 and 24 years, with minorities even more. The findings were released in this week's issue of the CDC journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Other factors such as genital herpes could actually double a person’s risk for contracting HIV."

Beckham blogs about bulge.

NewNowNext covers New York's HX Awards.

Prince Harry discovers source of global warming at County Fair.

Miami lesbian suing South Florida hospital because she wasn't allowed to see her partner who had suffered a stroke. Her partner later died: "Janice Langbehn, Lisa Marie Pond and three of their four children planned a cruise in February 2007 to celebrate the couple's 18 years together. But Pond suffered a massive stroke before the ship left port and was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Hospital workers refused to let Langbehn into Pond's hospital room - even after a power of attorney was faxed to the hospital -- because they were not legally related. Langbehn filed a federal lawsuit in Miami on Wednesday charging hospital employees with negligence and "intentional infliction of emotional distress." The suit seeks damages in excess of $75,000. Pond was pronounced dead of a brain aneurysm about 18 hours after being admitted to the trauma center. Langbehn said she was only allowed in to see her partner for a few minutes when a priest gave Pond the last rites."

Bishop Gene Robinson and Sir Ian McKellen to make joint appearance at screening of For the Bible Tells Me So in London...

Gay creator of Big Bird costume, Kermit Love, dies at 91.

More from the set of Gossip Girl...

Log Cabin Republicans applaud Supreme Court gun ruling.

Juice: The background on bigot Bolthouse and Bolthouse farms.

London police hunt "thug" after homophobic attack: "Sahin Rahman is one of four thugs sentenced this week following the attack at Hackney-road, Bethnal Green, in London's East End, two years ago. Police say Rahman (pictured), who had been living in Mckenzie-road in Holloway, north London, is currently at large after failing to appear at Snaresbrook crown court on June 16 and remains wanted. His accomplices, all from Holloway, have appeared in court."

Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi will reportedly be married at Palm Springs' Riviera Resort and Spa in October.

Real Vogue interns tell New York magazine that their internships were nothing like New York Ranger Sean Avery's: "Sean Avery eats enormous lunches in the cafeteria and gets away with spilling them on people. Elizabeth: 'I never got lunch. I didn't get lunch breaks. We had to eat in the closet.' Ashley: 'I was able to get lunch. It was like, very quick, go down get your lunch, eat it, and come back up. There was a sense of having to get permission for a lot of things. I don't remember if we had to tell them we were going to the bathroom, but that could've been possible.'"

Self-described YouTube superstar Tricia Walsh-Smith and estranged husband Phillip Smith meet in court: "I will cut your balls off and have them for breakfast."

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News: David Beckham, Estrogen, Gambia, Rupert Everett, Alzheimer's

Is estrogen the secret to containing the spread of HIV?

Seconds, please: Is David Beckham the hottest waiter of all time?

The two Spanish nationals detained late last week in the west African country of Gambia have been released: "Two Spanish men detained in Gambia for allegedly making homosexual proposals to taxi drivers have been released after five days in jail, a Spanish official said Wednesday. The men were released late Tuesday and left the West African country, said Nicola El Busto, an official with Spain's embassy in Gambia. El Busto declined to give further details, and Gambian authorities could not immediately be reached for comment."

Gossip Girl couple shops, scowls.

Redwood City, CA man who hurled gay slurs, patio table at neighbors, pleads not guilty in court: "Herbert Santos-Coy is facing multiple felony hate crime charges after he allegedly physically attacked his two neighbors on March 30. If convicted he faces up to eight years in state prison, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office. Santos-Coy was arrested by Redwood City police after he allegedly came into the carport where the couple was working on their car and began yelling homophobic slurs at them, according to the district attorney's office. He then repeatedly struck one of the victims in the face and swung a wrought iron table at the couple, which missed, according to prosecutors. When police arrived, Santos-Coy resisted arrest, according to police. He was allegedly drinking at the time of the altercation."

In California, assemblyman Mark Leno is expected to become the first openly gay state Senator in California history.

Does Brad Pitt have good taste in tables?

Wisconsin Supreme Court calls suit brought against gay group by Christian activist Reverend Grant Storms frivolous: "Anti-gay activist Rev. Grant Storms of New Orleans sued gay rights group Action Wisconsin after it took excerpts from a 2003 speech Storms made in Milwaukee and claimed he was advocating the murder of gays. Storms' lawsuit was dismissed in 2005, and he was ordered to pay court costs and attorneys' fees. The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld that decision, which had been reversed by an appeals court. The high court's 4-3 decision means Storms' attorney James Donohoo will have to pay more than $87,000 in court costs and fees because the court said he should have known the lawsuit was frivolous."

There must be something about the name Kern.

An interview with Banksy?

Alzheimer's patients are kept from wandering off from a German nursing home by a fake bus stop outside the center: "It sounds funny but it helps. Our members are 84 years old on average. Their short-term memory hardly works, but the long-term memory is still active. They know the green and yellow bus sign and remember that waiting there means they will go home. We will approach them and say that the bus is coming later and invite them in for a coffee. Five minutes later they have completely forgotten they wanted to leave."

That lesbian kiss at Safeco field in Seattle I posted about last month is getting a lot more attention. Sirbrina Guerrero, who was almost kicked out for it, is now speaking out.

Rosie O'Donnell and Howard Stern had a little chat yesterday.

Six in ten Americans say same-sex marriage a private choice that should not be regulated by the government: "As same-sex couples line up to get marriage licenses in California on June 17, the USA TODAY/Gallup Poll found that 63% of adults say same-sex marriage is 'strictly a private decision' between two people. That the government has the right 'to prohibit or allow' such marriages was stated by 33%, and 4% had no opinion."

Religious Knesset members initiate amendment to ban gay pride in Jerusalem.

Rupert Everett's anti-American rant: "I'm totally off the States now. The reaction to 9/11 and then George Bush - really, they've got very blobby as a nation. Now they (the Americans) are whiny victims whose language is entirely taken from two TV shows - Friends and Sex And The City - and there's nothing sexy about them any more. And that kind of semi-blindness about the rest of the world, which was attractive when America was exciting, is really unattractive now."

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Penn Badgley Tells You Everything He Knows About Sexy

Perhaps Tom Cruise's recent fawn over 'breakout star' Chace Crawford is causing Gossip Girl's Penn Badgley to sex up his image.

Badgley did one of those things glossy mags and publicists force celebrities to do, and talked to InStyle about what he thinks is sexy. According to Badgley, sexy is an attitude, being different from what's aesthetically good-looking, playing sultry music, playing sports, being active, being around cheerleaders, Paris, New York, or actually anyplace, and yeah, chocolate-covered strawberries.

For some reason a hot dude in a white tank top soaked with water wasn't on his list, although in the print issue, he passes along this sage bit of poetry: "When you're wet and your clothes cling to you, you feel more exposed, almost more naked than naked. Everything is more romantic by water. Everyone remembers his or her first kiss in the pool, in the rain."

Watch the clip, AFTER THE JUMP...

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Tom Cruise Coming Between Chace Crawford and Penn Badgley?

Jealousy between the male Gossip Girl stars apparently flared at the Met's Costume Institute Ball when Tom Cruise showered all his attention on Crawford, the Daily News reports:

"The problem? Audiences have gone gaga for Chace. The girls and the gays alike have brought the buzz his way, thanks to smoldering good looks and boyish charm. 'Penn was supposed to be the show's break-out star and now it is obviously Chace, and Penn doesn't like it,' said one insider. In last week's episode, Chace got no screen time at all while Penn was featured prominently. But jealousy still reared its head Monday night at the Met's Costume Institute ball. Both Penn and Chace walked the red carpet, but it was Chace who was mobbed - and (OMG) invited to George Clooney's after-party at Bungalow 8. To make matters worse, the king and queen of Hollywood, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, gushed all over him. 'Tom and Katie went up to Chace to say how much they love him and the show. They didn't talk to any of the other cast members,' our spy snitched. 'Penn didn't get any love.'"

Previously
Gossip Girl Guy: I'm Gay [tr]

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Gossip Girl Guy: I'm Gay

So last night's Gossip Girl episode featured the big coming out for one of the boys, who was caught making out with newbie Asher Hornsby (above). As a courtesy to those of you who haven't engaged your DVRs yet, the key reveals are AFTER THE JUMP...

Eric's coming out, and his mother's acceptance.

Flashback
Penn Badgley and His Great Gay Hope for Gossip Girl [tr]
Gossip Girl About to Get a Gay? [tr]
Gossip Girl Guys Engage in Well-Dressed Three-way for Out [tr]

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Gossip Girl About to Get a Gay?

Last October, I posted an interview in which Gossip Girl's Penn Badgley expressed hope that there might be a gay Gossip Girl character in seasons to come.

Said Badgley of his character Dan's sexuality in the novels Gossip Girl is based on: "Yeah, I think [Dan's] straight-up gay in the books. But I don’t think network TV really has the balls to make one of their [teenage] series regulars gay. Let's say the show builds up to become a big hit, then I think they'd maybe explore it in year three or four. It would be an interesting thing to do. It could bring in a whole different demographic."

Well, according to TV Guide's Michael Ausiello, that may be happening much sooner:

"I'm hearing from an extremely reliable source that a male character on Gossip Girl will be revealed to be of the gay persuasion when the show returns on April 21. Who? Can't say. Won't say. It's too good a surprise. I will, however, offer five tantalizing clues.

• This person may or may not be pictured [here].
• The revelation significantly impacts the lives of at least three people.
• The aftershocks will be felt on both sides of the East River.
• Some viewers will be surprised by the twist, others not so much.
• In the Gossip Girl novels, Dan was known to be a bit of a switch hitter — which isn't so much a clue as it is a fact. A misleading fact? Perhaps. Perhaps not."

While it's tempting to wish that Nate or Dan will come out, the smart money's on the young, troubled Eric van der Woodsen, played by Connor Paolo.

You may have missed...
Gossip Girl Guys Engage in Well-Dressed Three-way for Out [tr]
Penn Badgley and His Great Gay Hope for Gossip Girl [tr]
Nine Out of Ten Men Prefer the Taste of Chace Crawford [tr]
The Many Pre-Gossip Girl Faces of Chace Crawford [tr]

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Gossip Girl Guys Engage in Well-Dressed Three-way for Out

Gossip Girl's Chace Crawford, Penn Badgley and Ed Westwick bat doe eyes from the cover of Out magazine's March fashion issue.

Says Badgley to Out: "I don’t think network TV really has the balls to make one of their [teenage] series’ regulars gay. Let’s say the show builds up to become a big hit, then I think they’d maybe explore it in year three or four. It would be an interesting thing to do. It could bring in a whole different demographic."

More AFTER THE JUMP...

The well-coiffed threesome seems a bit unsure whether or not to put on their best Zoolander, or initiate a Skull & Bones prep-school style hazing, but they manage to do a good job of keeping the pretty on through it all.

You may have missed...
Nine Out of Ten Men Prefer the Taste of Chace Crawford [tr]
Caucus Break: Chace Crawford Swimsuit Issue [tr]
The Many Pre-Gossip Girl Faces of Chace Crawford [tr]
Penn Badgley and His Great Gay Hope for Gossip Girl [tr]
(source)

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News: Sean Penn Badgley, Scottsdale, Hello Kitty, Giorgio Armani

Sean Penn: The future Harvey Milk ends his 11 year marriage.

Penn Badgley: hot and bothered.

Censorship debate continues surrounding the BBC's dubbing, and then undubbing of the word "faggot" from The Pogues' Christmas tune "Fairytale of New York". Times Online: "The present consensus is with MacGowan – that there is nothing wrong with using the word 'faggot' in this context. Lighten up, you Milly Tants. My unfashionable counterview is that there is something very wrong in using it, that Radio 1 was right in its original decision and should have shown more balls and stuck by it. 'Faggot' is a term of anti-gay abuse; in this song it is most definitely an insult...To say that you’re offended these days is to risk being accused of being humourless; of not getting the joke. It’s the same risk you run as a woman who is offended by the endless parade of breasts in magazines such as Nuts. The new casual homophobia is couched as a perfectly acceptable, knowing joke, and coincides with a general feeling that gays have had quite enough equality: equal age of consent; civil partnership ceremonies (but not marriage). That we are getting a little too big for our boots."

First shots of Edward Norton as Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk.

Fashion designer and Project Runway contestant Jack Mackenroth talks to NYC's HX magazine about his reaction to Sarah Jessica Parker on the show and his cameo in the upcoming Sex and the City movie, among other things: "When I watched [the reaction] back I was like, 'I am so gay.' Which is fine. I embrace the gayness. I’m super-gay. I’m a big ol’ queen...[The Sex and the City cameo] was completely unrelated. A friend of mine knew the person that was casting the extras, so he called me up and said they needed a gay guy with a good body, and I was like, 'Alright!' But she’s super-nice and totally genuine. It was very painful for her to do the critiques because she doesn’t like being mean."

Fans swarm Giorgio Armani as he visits his NYC Soho Armani Exchange store: "Everyone rushed him and started asking for autographs. It was mayhem."

Hello Kitty for Men, coming soon.

Scottsdale, Arizona bar owner converts to a gay nightclub after year-long dispute over the banning of a transgender patron: "Owner Tom Anderson (pictured on right, with co-owner brother Ted) said he made the transition in an effort to 'change Scottsdale.' The city saw a number of high-profile anti-gay and hate crimes this year, said Sam Holdren of Equality Arizona. Anderson made headlines last year when he banned a transgender woman from Anderson's Fifth Estate after female customers complained about transgender patrons using the women's restroom. The woman, Michele DeLaFreniere, filed a discrimination complaint with the Arizona Attorney General's Office."

A theory on Rednecks vs. Gay Marriage: "...if we are trying to explain (but not excuse) why the churchgoing divorcees oppose it, the answer is that they see homosexuality, married or not, as non-traditional. The churchgoing divorcees are not asserting their family virtue, logically conceived, but their family virtue as traditionally defined. It is the traditional definition of family virtue that prevails in the communities where the churchgoing divorcees are trying to ingratiate themselves, as a way to compensate for and cover their fractured family lives."

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News: John Mayer, Gossip Girl, Banksy, Global Orgasm, Barack Obama

Tonight is the Global Orgasm for Peace: Join it.

Eating at The Waverly Inn in NYC is so much fun it has John Mayer dancing a jig.

Scottsdale police seek leads in gay bashings that occurred in December 2006 and July 2007: "Detectives have investigated all leads to date but have not been able to establish probable cause for any arrests. We are encouraging help from the community to advance the cases."

Mitt Romney's claim that his father marched with Martin Luther King is apparently a complete sham. What a surprise: "He has repeated the claim several times recently, most prominently to Tim Russert on Meet the Press . But, while the late George W. Romney, a four-term governor of Michigan, can lay claim to a strong record on civil rights, the Phoenix can find no evidence that the senior Romney actually marched with King, nor anything in the public record suggesting that he ever claimed to do so. Nor did Mitt Romney ever previously claim that this took place, until long after his father passed away in 1995 -- not even when defending accusations of the Mormon church's discriminatory past during his 1994 Senate campaign." Romney says he meant it in a 'figurative' sense. Right.

Gay Iranian teen waits on Dutch court decision to deport him back to his home country, where we know what he may face.

Hillary Clinton launches two websites intended to expose Barack Obama's "present" votes: "Clinton has attacked Obama for having occasionally voted 'present' (rather than yes or no) as an Illinois state legislator when it came to contentious legislation. It was a legislative maneuver that was sometimes part of a plan by Democrats to give cover to vulnerable colleagues, though in some instances it appears that Obama voted present to avoid taking a position with some political risk -- such as with a bill that would have allowed children as young as 15 who committed crimes with firearms on or near school property to be prosecuted as adults." More on Obama's "present" votes here.

Bethlehem residents paint over Banksy graffiti on West Bank wall: "...the irony behind the depiction of an Israeli soldier checking a donkey's identity papers was lost on some residents, who found it offensive. 'We're humans here, not donkeys,' said Nasri Canavati, a restaurateur. 'This is insulting. I'm glad it was painted over.' To be called a donkey in Palestinian society is similar to being called an idiot."

Former adult film star-turned fashion designer Raymond Dragon returns to the swimwear fold with new line.

An update on the most publicly trashy famous family in America. And a special figurine just in time for Christmas.

Court hears confession of man who dealt fatal blow to researcher of homophobic crime for Metropolitan Police in Britain: "The blow to his face on the evening of September 11 tore an artery at the base of Mr Hoare's brain which caused a fatal swelling. Today (Dec 20) Kingshott, of Maskells Court, Victoria Road, Charlton, admitted manslaughter during a brief hearing at the Old Bailey. On the night of the fatal attack Mr Hoare, a market researcher, had been drinking in the White Swan pub in Charlton village where he had suffered homophobic abuse. He was later found unconscious in the park and died shortly after being taken to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich."

Wardrobe malfunction as Gossip Guys make TRL appearance.

Female British teen punished for brutal 'chair leg' attacks on two lesbians: "The catalogue of abuse took place last year, starting with a vicious attack in July when a 20-year-old man and two teenage girls armed themselves with wooden chair legs and rained blows on the two women until they were barely conscious. Lake, of John Street, Southampton, has already been given a community punishment order for her role in that attack. She has now been sentenced to a six-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, for further harassment and abuse against the couple. Lake, along with a 15-year-old girl who cannot be identified for legal reasons, denied charges of harassment relating to eight incidents but magistrates found them guilty following a trial."

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Penn Badgley and His Great Gay Hope for Gossip Girl

E! Online interviews Penn Badgley about his role on Gossip Girl, the CW's new drama about privileged high school students in New York City, and offers some thoughts on the potential for his character. Gossip Girl is loosely based on a series of teen novels by Cecily von Ziegesar.

E!: In the books, Dan has a bi-curious element, no? He has questioned his sexuality.

Badgley: "Yeah, I think he’s straight-up gay in the books. But I don’t think network TV really has the balls to make one of their [teenage] series regulars gay. Let's say the show builds up to become a big hit, then I think they'd maybe explore it in year three or four. It would be an interesting thing to do. It could bring in a whole different demographic."

Actually, I think the demographic is ready, given drooling on gay message boards over the handsome male lead. And if Badgley isn't eye candy enough for you, there's a slew of other prettyboys, including...

...the Ian Somerhalder-esque Chace Crawford, who in real life has lately taken to "canoodling" with American Idol winner Carrie Underwood.

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