News: Gay Exorcism, Father Cutie, Rosie O'Donnell, Neda, Nixon

Karger: Is the Mormon Church hiding its funding for the National Organization for Marriage?

Exorcism in Connecticut: Getting the gay demon out.

Senate Judiciary Committee holds hearings on hate crimes bill.

Body of pilot Marc Dubois and flight attendant among those recovered from Air France crash site. Black boxes not found. Will ping for only a few more days.

Transgender in a virtual world.

Rosie O'Donnell to host Sirius XM radio show.

Iran: Neda's family forced from home. "The Iranian authorities have ordered the family of Neda Agha Soltan out of their Tehran home after shocking images of her death were circulated around the world. Neighbours said that her family no longer lives in the four-floor apartment building on Meshkini Street, in eastern Tehran, having been forced to move since she was killed. The police did not hand the body back to her family, her funeral was cancelled, she was buried without letting her family know and the government banned mourning ceremonies at mosques, the neighbours said."

Is Father Cutie gay?

Amsterdam Deputy Mayor Carolien Gehrels flies to New York City in support of marriage equality: "Mrs. Gehrels brings a personal perspective to the issue: she is married to a woman. She said that while the approval of gay marriage in the Netherlands that took effect in 2001 was 'a milestone in equal rights,' even eight years later 'equality and freedom are never self-evident.' Same-sex partnerships were legalized in 1998."

Douchebag warns that straight men will give up women once they try the gay.

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford was pushed into confessing affair: "As the newspaper disclosed on CNN tonight, it has since December had emails between Sanford and his Argentine mistress, it's just been trying to authenticate them. Then this morning the paper busted Sanford returning on an airplane from South America when he was supposed to be on the Appalachian Trial. The paper then informed Sanford it would finally be publishing the emails, exposing his adultery, according to The State writer John O'Connor."

Whitney Houston announces title of new album.

Seattle's The Stranger publishes Queer Issue 2009. NY's Village Voice goes Queer too.

Delaware General Assembly passes bill protecting gays and lesbians from discrimination after ten-year battle.

City investigation of Canterbury UK finds that, yes, the city is gay enough.

Adam Lambert collaborating with Sam Sparro on new album.

Violence not expected at this year's Jerusalam Gay Pride: "Amit Lev, a spokesman for the gay rights group behind the parade, said organisers had been negotiating with ultra-Orthodox leaders in Jerusalem after "long years of silence" between the two communities. 'We've agreed that violence doesn't serve any of us or any of our goals,' he said."

And even more skin from men's fashion week in Milan.

New batch of Nixon tapes reveal more homophobia: "Discussing Nixon's political opposition, Colson says it included 'the blacks and the poor.' Nixon adds: 'And the intellectuals.' Colson goes on to say that it also included 'the lavender shirt mob . . . the homos and the queers.'" Previously: Nixon understood homosexuality but didn't want it on TV.

Towleroad Guide to the Tube #496

BILL MAHER: Takes on Obama. Stay off TV, get some work done.

ROSIE O'DONNELL: Life after The View, a CBS profile.

PROJECKT P.I.W.O.: Polish students create stunning light show in 11-storey building.

THE POLITE UMBRELLA: Excuse me, can I get by?

For recent Guides to the Tube, click HERE.

News: Connecticut, Milky Way, Cheeto, Edmund White, The Killers

Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell signs marriage equality bill: "Rell this afternoon signed Senate Bill 899, which incorporates the findings of the Kerrigan case into Connecticut statutes. That ruling, handed down by the state Supreme Court in October, paved the way for same-sex marriage. Both the House and the Senate spent hours yesterday debating Senate Bill 899, which passed only after an amendment was added that provides an exemption to groups who object to same-sex marriage on religious grounds.

The giant dust cloud at the heart of the Milky Way tastes vaguely like raspberries, smells like rum, scientists think.

Gizmodo blogger eats world's largest Cheeto - WATCH.

Alabama House passes resolution in support of Miss California: "The House approved the resolution Thursday by Republican Rep. Jay Love of Montgomery on a voice vote...Love said Prejean stuck to her convictions even if it meant losing the pageant."

Gays vs gays on Jamaica boycott: "J-FLAG Programs Manager Jason McFarlane took particular exception to the boycott of Red Stripe beer, saying the brewer has 'unequivocally distanced itself from the hostility and violence typical of Jamaican music towards members of the LGBT community.'"

Momentum in Utah for same-sex marriage, or just optimism?

Jesus Luz and Madonna back together.

The new video from Green Day.

Activists gather strength in Mumbai to pressure politicians to decriminalize homosexuality: "At a 'People's Panchayat' in the capital on resisting stigma and homophobia, the activists said political parties, which have mindset dating back to years, need to wake up to the existence of sexual minorities or face electoral boycott from the estimated four crore population."

Modeling: Waifs out, muscles in.

Lesbian assaulted at Nairobi bar. Kenyan gays demand protection.

Anti-gay forces storm parliament in Uganda.

How Lorenzo Martone proposed to Marc Jacobs.

Stonewall Library and Archive celebrates grand opening in Fort Lauderdale: "In decades past, when gay residents wanted to find books about their community they had to borrow from friends or from a closet where some were stored at a gay-friendly church. The new location is a sign of how mainstream the gay community has become in Broward: the gay library shares a building with a county library and ArtServe and is situated on the edge of a city park where children play ball and seniors gather for tennis lessons. Jack Rutland, library executive director, lauded the city and county for entering a partnership to make the library possible. 'Imagine me saying that 20 years ago,' Rutland said."

Justin Timberlake and Jimmy Kimmel have a golf cuddle.

The Killers planning release of live DVD and cover album?

Julia Allison blabs about a "screaming match" between Rosie O'Donnell and Kelli.

Edmund White on Amazon: "I don't think it was a glitch. It's shocking that someone in that organization has the power to [get rid of] gay books. All my own books were [also] affected. I wrote in my name [on Amazon] last week and A Boy's Own Story wasn't there! Only four of my 22 books were there. It was astonishing. Frankly, if one of the custodians of Western culture is a corporation like Amazon, perhaps they should be regulated like the financial world. We need regulation in the cultural world too so that they don't restrict anything, like Amazon did."

Can D.C. clergy stop same-sex marriage vote?

U R GAY: Hamline Univeristy in St. Paul, Minnesota sees anti-gay graffiti.

Pedro Almodovar developing Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown into a TV series: "Fox TV Studios is developing the English-language hourlong project and has tapped Mimi Schmir to pen the pilot script. Almodovar and Schmir are exec producing...Almodovar will be very involved in "Women," which will be developed with an eye for the international market."

Photographer David LaChapelle lists Hollywood Hills home for $1.65 million.

News: Susan Boyle, Iraq, Michael Phelps, Carrie Prejean, Sun

Sun dimmest it's been for 100 years...

Confirmed: Miss California Carrie Prejean dating Michael Phelps.

Boyle banishes bushy brows.

More on the executions of gay Iraqis: "According to [Congressman Jared] Polis, the 'egregious human rights violations' are 'being carried out by Iraqi government officials from the Ministry of the Interior.' ...'While I do not know if these executions are being sanctioned at the highest levels of the Iraqi government, it is nonetheless disturbing that government officials and state-funded security forces are involved in the torturing and execution of LGBT Iraqis,' Polis wrote to Patricia Butenis, the chargé d'affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq."

Just Jared interviews Rosie O'Donnell. On her 2004 marriage to Kelli: "I wanted to be included in the list of people that raised their hands. I didn’t want it to be something that I had an opportunity to participate in but was afraid to, so we went and did that. We don’t actually celebrate that as our anniversary, and that marriage was annulled, because the first few were, but people did write us to say 'Happy Anniversary!' which is how we remember, but our anniversary is in December…for sort of when we knew that we would be together…forever."

Project Runway date announced...

Male rocker Marilyn opens up about relationship with Gavin Rossdale.

Dallas company pulls homophobic prom ad.

Victory Fund announces 12 new endorsements, largely in municipal races across the country.

Former Miss Delaware sides with Carrie Prejean.

Arizona student can wear rainbow wristband, after demands from ACLU: "Eighth grader Chris Quintanilla wore a rainbow wristband with the words "Rainbows are gay" to Parkridge Elementary School in March. Natali Quintanilla, the boy's mother, said the principal called her and told her he would not allow Chris to wear the wristband.Quintanilla contacted the ACLU following the incident; the union wrote a letter to the district demanding it rescind its ban on the wristband, saying the ban was a First Amendment violation."

Alabama lawmaker Jay Love drafts resolution in support of Miss California: "Love said there are those 'tell­ing people what they can believe and what they can say,' which he said is wrong. He said she is being punished for saying marriage is between a man and a woman. 'I don't believe that's right,' Love said."

Delhi teach fired for being gay, teaching students about homophobia.

ABC News: Silence deafening in culture wars. "While social conservatives remain a major part of the GOP, they are losing influence inside and outside the party, said Rich Galen, a Republican strategist."

Worst Catholic logo ever?

Jesus Luz: new post-Madonna photos.

Gay couple attacked by curry vendor at Sydney Royal Easter Show: "Richard said that when the couple went to try one of the sauces offered for public taste testing, they were told by a female worker at the stall: 'No, it’s only for mums and dads. It’s only for people who have families.' When the couple asked why they were being discriminated against, the worker replied: 'I can discriminate against who I want – it’s my product. Now get lost.' The couple were subsequently offered the product by another employee at the stall, but after trying it, the employee who had ordered them to leave threw a pot of curry at them, narrowly missing Richard. She then went to throw a glass jar at the couple before they retreated."

News: Sears Tower, Gill Foundation, Wolverine, Jenny Shimizu, Poland

Blade: Gill Foundation dictating direction of Log Cabin Republicans?

Sears Tower in Chicago to be painted silver? "Sources said the owners are considering an expensive paint job, recladding the tower in silver. Since its opening in 1973, Chicago's iconic tower and the nation's tallest building has been adorned in classic black. A brighter look could draw fresh attention to the tower, which has struggled to hold tenants against newer generations of office buildings. Silver could figure into a broader effort to 'rebrand' the building and highlight its advances in energy efficiency.

Model-turned-mechanic Jenny Shimizu returning to spotlight.

Rosie O'Donnell goes dry: "I stopped drinking on Dec. 1. On Nov. 29, I was with my son, who is now 13, and I said to him, 'Park, can you get me a beer?' And he said, 'No I don't want to,' " she says. "And I said, 'Really why not?' And he says, 'Because you know what, I think you drink too much beer ... Lately I think it's too much.'... He says, 'There's a drunk club, I forget what it's called, but you have to like be really drunk to get in, I don't know if they'd let you in, but you could ask them for tips.'"

No! Warner Bros. to destroy childhood classic.

Colorado state senator Renfroe defends gays = murderers remarks: "I don't mean to be hateful. I don't think I'm hateful. People have accused me of that. I'm just voicing my opinions on what I believe and trying to speak what I think is the truth. I wasn't probably eloquent enough in saying that all people sin and there are many different sins and they are all the same in the eyes of God. But to make laws to make sins legal is where I think it crosses the line and we shouldn't go there. That's the destruction of society in my opinion."

LOGO's Big Gay Sketch Show casting online.

Polish gay media hold historic summit.

Students target homophobic bullying in Canada with pink shirts.

Kate Moss Banksy prints find no buyers: "The works, inspired by Andy Warhol's iconic image of Marilyn Monroe, were among 78 lots being offered in London. The screen prints were produced in a limited run of 20 sets, but because most were sold individually, complete sets are scarce. They feature alongside other Banksy works as part of Bonhams auction house's Urban Art Sale"

Mayor of Los Alamitos, California Dean Gross to constituents: White House Easter Egg roll to be replaced by Watermelon hunt this year.

UK woman knocked unconscious in homophobic assault in fish and chip shop: "The 23-year-old victim was with her partner in Supreme Fish Bar on the High Street when a man shouted homophobic abuse at the couple before assaulting her, knocking her unconscious. She suffered severe bruising and swelling to her head and face, which required hospital treatment."

Jackman wields his nails in Paris.

WingNutDaily: Oklahoma House passes sovereignty bill. "That the State of Oklahoma hereby claims sovereignty under the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States over all powers not otherwise enumerated and granted to the federal government by the Constitution of the United States."

Following uproar, Rent is on again at SoCal high school.

Somehow I missed this over the weekend: William McInerney, father of Lawrence King's killer, was arraigned for two felonies - criminal threats and dissuading a witness from reporting a crime. "McInerney had his first court appearance Friday since being arrested Wednesday. He pleaded not guilty, court records show. Judge Colleen Toy White set bail at $40,000 and set the next hearing for March 2, according to court documents. Judge White ordered William McInerney to stay away from a house in the 3700 block of Tiller Avenue in Oxnard where McInerney’s relatives live. Also, he is prohibited from owning or possessing firearms. Court records show that William McInerney was found guilty on Oct. 5, 2000 of disturbing the peace, and was found guilty on May 1, 2002 of corporal injury to a spouse."

The Gayest Painting of Our Time?

In my online travels I ran across this kitschy take on Noah's Ark yesterday on Flickr and was momentarily stunned by the gayness of it all. 'Noah's Gay Wedding Cruise', which artist Paul Richmond created for a gallery show called “Sweet & Low: Optimism in a Pessimistic Age” at Gallery Arcane in San Francisco, features an iconic cast of characters — Ellen & Portia, Rosie and Kelli, Jack Twist and Ennis del Mar, Bert and Ernie, Elton John and David Furnish as well as penguins and assorted other homo fauna.

However, I was much more amused by the range of drowning sinners bobbing about in the flood: a sopped Ann Coulter, Larry Craig clinging to a toilet, Sally Kern, Fred Phelps, and Kenneth Starr. That's Pat Boone's guitar. A 'Yes on 8' supporter.

As art it's not really up my alley, but I could certainly appreciate the message.