Jerry Curl

As the lyrics to a song from the Broadway musical “Avenue Q” point out, nothing lasts, and life, work, happiness and discomfort are only for now. So it goes for the musical itself: the show, an adult themed upgrade of educational children’s programs like “Sesame Street,” will play its last performance on Sept. 13, its publicists said Monday in a news release. The show, which features music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx and book by Jeff Whitty, taught Broadway a lesson or two when it opened at the Golden Theater in 2003: in a season that also saw the openings of attention-grabbing productions like “Wicked” and “The Boy from Oz,” the scrappy puppet show was the unexpected winner of the Tony Award for best musical. At its closing, “Avenue Q” will have played 2,534 performances and 22 previews. (Via ArtsBeat )

Lucas Velasquez as featured on Socialite Life .

Iraq declared a public holiday today to celebrate the official withdrawal of American troops from Iraqi cities and towns, emptying the streets as many people stayed home because they feared violence. As official Iraq celebrated, the American military announced the death of four soldiers on Monday from combat operations in Baghdad, a reminder of the continuing hazards for American troops here and the vulnerability of soldiers as they wrap up operations in the field. In the past few weeks, with the approach of the official date for withdrawal, nationalist sentiments have spread within the Iraqi government and military, with officials all but boasting publicly that Iraq is ready to handle the security situation on its own. The date of June 30 was set in an Iraqi-American security agreement that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2009. Speaking as a military parade marking the event was held deep inside the heavily-fortified Green Zone, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki said: “The national unit...

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Countering criticism that he has done little to advance gay rights, President Obama commemorated the 40th anniversary yesterday of the birth of the modern movement by welcoming its leaders to the White House and reaffirming his commitment to their top priorities. “I will not only be your friend; I will continue to be an ally and a champion and a president who fights with you and for you," Obama told members of the core Democratic constituency as he and his wife Michelle hosted a cocktail-and-appetizer reception in the East Room marking the four decades since the police raid on New York City’s Stonewall Inn that spurred gay rights activism across the country. Since Obama took office in January, some activists have complained that he has not followed through quickly enough on his campaign promises, including one to rescind the 1993 “don’t ask, don’t tell’’ policy that prevents homosexuals from serving openly in the military and to overturn the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act that defin...

(Via Queerty )

Nick Luhrs as featured on DNA .

(Via Towleroad )

The New York Times reports : For 15 minutes in the Oval Office the other day, one of President Obama’s top campaign lieutenants, Steve Hildebrand, told the president about the “hurt, anxiety and anger” that he and other gay supporters felt over the slow pace of the White House’s engagement with gay issues. But today, 250 gay leaders are to join Mr. Obama in the East Room to commemorate publicly the 40th anniversary of the birth of the modern gay rights movement: a police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York. By contrast, the first time gay leaders were invited to the White House, in March 1977, they met a midlevel aide on a Saturday when the press and President Jimmy Carter were nowhere in sight. The conflicting signals from the White House about its commitment to gay issues reflect a broader paradox: even as cultural acceptance of homosexuality increases across the country, the politics of gay rights remains full of crosscurrents. It is reflected in the surge of gay men an...

MSNBC offers a great slide show commemorating our past and our present.

A partial recount of Iran's disputed election won by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad began today, but one defeated reformist candidate said an annulment of the poll was "the only way to regain the people's trust." In a sign that the process would not put into question Ahmadinejad's victory, IRNA news agency said recounting so far in one Tehran district gave him more votes than in the June 12 poll that unleashed the worst unrest since the 1979 revolution. Witnesses reported an increased police presence in some Tehran squares ahead of the expected announcement of the recount outcome later today. One witness said dozens of riot police vehicles were driving toward southern Tehran. Pro-reform cleric Mehdi Karoubi, fourth in the official count, reiterated his call for the vote to be annulled in a letter to Iran's top legislative body, the Guardian Council, which is recounting a random 10 percent of the votes. (Via Reuters )

Weekend Top Five: #1 Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ($112M) #2 The Proposal ($18.5M) #3 The Hangover ($17.2M) #4 Up ($13M) #5 My Sister's Keeper ($12M)

Here's an interesting excerpt from CNN : The modern gay rights movement began 40 years ago this weekend during the Stonewall Riots in New York City. While much of the controversy surrounding gay rights today has centered on same-sex marriage, a battle is brewing over another amily issue: Is it bad for children to be raised by gay or lesbian parents. It damages the children, says Dale O'Leary, author of "One Man, One Woman: A Catholics Guide to Defending Marriage." She says that all children have a natural desire for a parent of each gender. But children of same-sex couples are forced to repress that desire because their parents won't accept it, she says. Their parents won't acknowledge their children's needs because they don't want to admit that they have caused their children to suffer. O'Leary says she doesn't personally know any same-sex parents or their children. That's the problem, some children of same-sex children say. So many people...

MSNBC reports : Michael Jackson, the sensationally gifted child star who rose to become the “King of Pop” and the biggest celebrity in the world only to fall from his throne in a freakish series of scandals, died today. He was 50.

A sad update on an earlier story. CNN reports : Farrah Fawcett, the blonde-maned actress whose best-selling poster and "Charlie's Angels" stardom made her one of the most famous faces in the world, has died. She was 62.

More than 200 dancers performed their version of "Do Re Mi", in the Central Station of Antwerp. With just 2 rehearsals they created this amazing stunt! (Via TeaBlogging ) Thanks Mikey!

Jason Morgan as featured on DNA .

More at BUST .

(Via Homotography )

If you haven't guessed it by now, we at Jerry Curl are BIG fans of the JoBros. What's not to like? They're cute, talented, ...pure. Ahem, anyway, Art Beat reports : The Jonas Brothers have scored their second No. 1 on the Billboard album chart with “Lines, Vines and Trying Times”, which had first-week sales of 247,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It bumped last week’s chart-topper, the Black Eyed Peas’ “The E.N.D.”, to No. 2, with 148,000 sales, a 51 percent drop. The Dave Matthews Band’s “Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King” is No. 3 with 88,000, Eminem’s “Relapse” is in fourth place with 72,000, and Incubus’s new greatest hits collection, “Monuments and Melodies” (Epic) is fifth with 70,000. Also this week, Lady Gaga continues her remarkable four-month run on the Top 10 with “The Fame”. It holds at No. 6 with 47,000 sales, bringing the album’s 34-week sales total to just less than 1.1 million.

A bipartisan group of U.S. representatives have introduced legislation that would make it illegal for employers to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. "It's about time that working men and women are judged solely on their job performance and not their sexual orientation," said Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami, co-sponsor of the 2009 Employment Non-Discrimination Act, or ENDA. Federal law provides legal protection against employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, age and disability, according to Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay-rights group. In 2007, the House passed a version of ENDA that protected on the basis of sexual orientation, but not gender identity, on a vote of 235 to 184. "Passage of this critical legislation would help ensure that people are allowed to participate on a level-playing field in the workplace. ENDA reflects our country's core values of fairness and e...

The Academy Awards will have 10 best-picture nominees instead of the usual five starting next year, improving the odds for films such as “The Dark Knight,” a fan and critic favorite that was snubbed last time. Doubling the field for Hollywood’s top prize will make room for more worthy films and potentially give a jolt to the Oscar TV ratings, Sid Ganis, president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, said Wednesday. “It’s going to give the public the possibility of being more interested in the show this year, just because it might very well include more populist movies,” Ganis said. “And because it’s 10, not five, there will be a larger group of people who will be interested.” The change takes effect with the 82nd Oscar show March 7. (Via MSNBC )

As Iran’s embattled opposition leader renewed a call for protests against the disputed presidential elections, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad assailed President Obama today, telling him to stop interfering in Iran’s affairs and accusing him of striking the same hostile tone as his predecessor, George W. Bush. The sharp words from the Iranian leader offered no prospect of eased tensions between Washington and Tehran at a time of continued confrontation over issues — apart from the elections — such as Iran’s nuclear program and its support for Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza which the United States call terrorist organizations. Mr. Ahmadinejad’s remarks, quoted on the semi-official Fars news agency, came as news reports suggested that more than a third of Iran’s 290 Parliament members had snubbed a victory party for him Wednesday night and as opposition figures said 70 academics had been arrested after meeting with the main opposition leader, Mir Hussein Moussavi. On his Web site t...

In her continued battle with cancer, Farrah Fawcett, 62, has again returned to a Los Angeles hospital a source tells PEOPLE. The actress has been hospitalized for at least two weeks. The source indicates that the actress, who was first diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006 and whose illness was chronicled in the recently aired NBC documentary Farrah's Story, is not doing well. "There was a moment last week when she was supposed to be released and was going home but things changed," says the source. Fawcett's publicist Arnold Robinson says, "She is still being treated for her condition." (Via People )

Industry watcher iSuppli says that the new iPhone 3GS costs Apple just $178.96 to build. The 16GB iPhone 3GS only costs the company three percent more to make than last year's model, with a bill of materials totalling $172.46 plus $6.50 in manufacturing costs, says the company. Apple's US carrier, AT&T, sells the 16GB iPhone 3GS at a subsidized $199, but industry watchers reckon that AT&T and other carriers cough up around $600 per phone. In the UK, Apple's carrier of choice, O2, sells a pay as you go 16GB iPhone 3GS for a whopping $719.85. "The actual price of the phone paid by the service provider is considerably higher," says iSuppli's Andrew Rassweiler. "Reflecting the common wireless industry practise of subsidizing the upfront cost of a mobile phone and then making a profit on subscriptions. Apple claims it sold a million iPhone 3GS phones in the three days following its launch, which would equate to a cool $420 million profit if iSuppli...

New York Magazine on the Gay Generation Gap: Public infighting is a big minority-group taboo—it’s called taking your business out in the street. And it may seem strange to note this phenomenon at a juncture that, largely because of the fight for gay marriage, has been marked by impressive solidarity. But let’s have a look. Here’s the awful stuff, the deeply unfair (but maybe a little true) things that many middle-aged gay men say about their younger counterparts: They’re shallow. They’re silly. They reek of entitlement. They haven’t had to work for anything and therefore aren’t interested in anything that takes work. They’re profoundly ungrateful for the political and social gains we spent our own youth striving to obtain for them. They’re so sexually careless that you’d think a deadly worldwide epidemic was just an abstraction. They think old-fashioned What do we want! When do we want it! activism is icky and noisy. They toss around terms like “post-gay” without caring how hard we fo...

The numbers are in: Broadway Bares 19.0: "Click It!", which was held June 21 at the Roseland Ballroom, raised a whopping $808,819 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Both the 9:30 PM and midnight shows were sold out: In fact, all 5,902 available tickets were sold by June 19. This year $172,284 was raised via the 261 people who participated in "Strip-A-Thon," an online competition that allowed fans to make contributions via BroadwayCares.org. Frankie James Grande raised the most of any single performer, $14,161. Others who brought in high figures include Steven Bratton ($9,685), Jennifer Cody ($7,210) and Holly Ann Butler ($4,560). Peter Gregus, who created the role of Bob Crewe in the Tony-winning Jersey Boys, directed this year's fundraiser, which was produced by BC/EFA and executive-produced by Tony winner Jerry Mitchell. The evening featured the work of 18 choreographers and 243 of the "sexiest male and female dancers from Broadway's biggest shows...

Frankie Vallica as featured on DNA .

By Steve Kelley

The Iraqi government declared a public holiday to mark next week's withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Baghdad and other cities. American forces already have begun pulling back from outposts inside the cities ahead of a June 30 deadline, the first phase of a full withdrawal by the end of 2011. Government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said Tuesday that ceremonies will be held on Monday and the deadline itself will be a public holiday, although students will still have to take their final exams as scheduled. The announcement comes days after Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki called the U.S. withdrawal from the cities a "great victory," despite fears that violence will increase after the Americans become less visible. The stakes are high for al-Maliki's Shiite-led government to prove it is capable of taking care of its people ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled for Jan. 30. (Via MSNBC )

Putting to rest the speculation surrounding Apple Inc.'s Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs' health, Dr. James D. Eason, chief of transplantation at the Methodist University Hospital Transplant Institute Memphis, confirmed yesterday that the CEO had received a liver transplant there and that he was "recovering well and has an excellent prognosis". The disclosure was apparently made with the permission of Steve Jobs. Eason refrained from giving details as to when the operation was performed, citing patient privacy. However, according to other reports, he had the transplant two months ago. There had been a lot of conjectures regarding the executive’s health, when he appeared gaunt and thin at the Worldwide Developers Conference last June. Apple insisted that Jobs' health was a private matter, but in early January, Jobs announced that he was taking medical leave to deal with health issues. In August 2004, Jobs underwent successful surgery to treat a rare form of panc...

Under pressure to speak out more forcefully, President Obama condemned the Iranian government's violent suppression of dissent yesterday and declared the world "appalled and outraged" by its crackdown on protesters. Despite employing his toughest language yet to criticize Iranian authorities, Obama refused to threaten any consequences and stopped short of freezing a major foreign policy goal: wooing Iran into diplomatic contacts over its nuclear program, its support of Islamic militant organizations and other contentious issues. Obama's comments drew a clear distinction between the actions of police and militiamen on the streets of Tehran and other cities and the conduct of Iran's June 12 election -- even though protesters argue that the same hard-line faction is responsible for stealing the election and launching the crackdown. U.S. officials are well aware that because of decades of animosity between the two nations, coming out strongly in favor of one side coul...

Seventy-seven House members are urging President Obama to suspend the investigation and discharge of military personnel because of their sexual orientation. “We urge you to exercise the maximum discretion legally possible in administering don't ask, don't tell until Congress repeals the law,” the lawmakers wrote to Obama yesterday. The House lawmakers are asking Obama to direct the military leadership not to initiate any investigation of personnel to determine their sexual orientation and to instruct military officials to disregard any accusations made by third parties with the regard to sexual orientation of personnel. “We request that you impose that no one is asked and that you ignore, as the law requires, third parties who tell,” the lawmakers, led by Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) wrote. “Under your leadership, Congress must then repeal and replace don't ask, don't tell with a policy of inclusion and non-discrimination.” President Obama has pledged to repeal the don’...

The NYT Arts Beat reports : The fruits of chorus boys and girls’ workouts were on display at the Roseland Ballroom during last night’s Broadway Bares 19, the annual dance-and-strip benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Hosted by Daniel Reichard (“Jersey Boys”) and Heidi Blickenstaff (“[title of show]”), the event, with performances at 9:30 p.m. and midnight, was a risque variety show of bawdy skits (written by Hunter Bell, the co-creator of “[title of show]”), Beyoncé-style dance routines, aerial whirligigging and neo-burlesque. A few Broadway names made cameo appearances. Allison Janney (“9 to 5”) danced with a rainbow umbrella and left the stage with a muscle boy. Sutton Foster (“Shrek the Musical”), who usually plays the good girl, wore a tight dress, big hair and swore like a sailor. Jerry Mitchell, one of the co-founders of the event and usually a fixture on stage at the curtain call, sent congratulations from Seattle, where he is working on the stage adaptation of the f...

Josh Heim as featured on Queerty .

RCA Records and 19 Recordings announced yesterday that they have teamed up exclusively with Wal-Mart to release American Idol Season 8 , a compilation CD. Set to drop June 30, the album will only be available at Wal-Mart and Walmart.com at a retail price of $10, the announcement said. The compilation album marks the first time the favorites sung by this season's Top 10 finalists have been made available on CD, the record labels said. The album includes two tracks from American Idol champion Kris Allen -- his hit single "No Boundaries" and his cover of Donna Summer's "She Works Hard for the Money." There are two tracks from runner-up Adam Lambert -- his version of "No Boundaries" and his acoustic take on "Mad World" by Tears for Fears. The CD features one track each from all of the season's other Top 10 contestants. (Via UPI )

Miami entertainment figures Gloria and Emilio Estefan will be announced as Miami Dolphins minority owners Thursday by Dolphins majority owner Stephen Ross, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. The source said yesterday night that the National Football League and the Dolphins are looking to expand their reach to South Florida's growing Hispanic community and are turning to the Estefans as their ambassadors. A Dolphins news release yesterday said there would be a Thursday morning "major announcement on behalf of the Dolphins" hosted by the Estefans and Ross at LandShark Stadium. This is similar to the way the Dolphins announced their association with singer Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville business, which includes Land Shark Lager. Buffett is expected to become a minority owner eventually. Emilio Estefan didn't want to comment Monday night, and Dolphins spokesman Harvey Greene said the Dolphins "won't have a comment on anything until the anno...

A new Internet data map offers a first-of-its-kind, county-level look at HIV cases in the U.S. and finds the infection rates tend to be highest in the South. The highest numbers of HIV cases are in population centers like New York and California. However, many of the areas with the highest rates of HIV — that is, the highest proportion of people with the AIDS-causing virus — are in the South, according to the data map, which has information for more than 90 percent of the nation's counties and Washington, D.C. HIV infection rates are higher in African-American communities, and high minority populations in the South help explain the finding. While that's not surprising, the high rates seen throughout states like Georgia and South Carolina were, said Gary Puckrein, president of the National Minority Quality Forum, the nonprofit research organization that put the map together. Of 48 counties with the highest prevalence rates for HIV that had not yet progressed to AIDS, 25 were in...

Chris Brown pleaded guilty yesterday to assaulting Rihanna and the two were ordered to stay away from each other, in a deal that keeps the singer out of prison but requires him to clean up graffiti or roadside trash. Brown's plea to a felony charge will subject him to substantial scrutiny by probation officials, and the judge's order puts the kibosh on any short-term prospects for reconciliation with his pop diva girlfriend as well. The guilty plea came before a preliminary hearing was scheduled to start. The hearing had been billed for weeks as a public face-off between the pair, with Rihanna set to testify against her one-time boyfriend. Instead, Brown averted the potentially damaging meeting by entering a plea that will subject him to probation for the next five years as well as force him to perform six months of community service. Mark Geragos, Brown's lawyer, said the plea represented the singer taking responsibility for his actions — which included beating, choking an...

President Obama signed landmark legislation yesterday giving the Food and Drug Administration new power to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco. The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act gives the FDA power to ban candy-flavored and fruit-flavored cigarettes, widely considered appealing to first-time smokers, including youths. It also prohibits tobacco companies from using terms such as "low tar," "light" or "mild," requires larger warning labels on packages, and restricts advertising of tobacco products. It also requires tobacco companies to reduce levels of nicotine in cigarettes. The new law "represents change that's been decades in the making," Obama said during a bill-signing ceremony in the White House Rose Garden. "The decades-long effort to protect our children [has] emerged victorious. ... Today, change has come." (Via CNN )

UPI reports : Iran's Guardian Council ruled out nullifying results of the disputed election, saying irregularities were reported before the balloting, not during or after. A spokesman for the council -- which oversees Iran's elections -- said any irregularities reported before balloting were beyond the scope of the panel, CNN reported. "If a major breach occurs in an election, the Guardian Council may annul the votes that come out of a particular affected ballot box, polling station, district or city," council spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei was quoted as saying Monday by Iran's government-funded Press TV. "Fortunately, in the recent presidential election we found no witness of major fraud or breach in the election. Therefore, there is no possibility of an annulment taking place." President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the landslide winner over his nearest challenger, Mir Hossein Mousavi. The results and claims of other irregularities during the votin...

Thanks Abby

Via Kenneth in the (212)

Walt Disney Co. is introducing $350 netbooks for children ahead of the holidays, even as other toy companies shy away from expensive items to appease recession-hit shoppers. The 'Disney Netpal' -- a laptop computer typically used for Internet browsing and e-mailing -- will start selling at Toys "R" Us stores in the United States and Canada and Amazon.com in late July. The company's move comes as toymakers such as Mattel Inc (MAT.N) and Hasbro Inc (HAS.N), and retailers like Toys "R" Us, have pointed to demand for cheaper toys, as job losses, the weak housing market and tight access to credit have erased parents' ability to spend freely for their children. Many analysts have said that selling affordable toys will be a better bet to attract shoppers this year. This is Disney's first attempt at selling a laptop in North America and comes about five years after the No. 1 U.S. entertainment conglomerate tried to enter the personal computer space with ...

USA Today reports : You might have gone down the rabbit hole before. But never with a guide quite as attuned to the fantastic as Tim Burton. Those who have grown curiouser and curiouser about what the offbeat reinventor of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory might conjure up in his version of Alice in Wonderland can feast their eyes on this array of concept art and publicity images, due to hang in movie theaters this week to promote the March 5, 2010, release. "It has been Burton-ized" is how producer Richard Zanuck describes the director's vision of the Lewis Carroll classic. Many elements are familiar, from the enigmatic Caterpillar (Alan Rickman) to the fierce Jabberwock (Christopher Lee). But none has been presented in this sort of visually surreal fashion. "We finished shooting in December after only 40 days," Zanuck says. Now the live action is being merged with CG animation and motion-capture creatures, and then transferred into 3-D. The traditional tale ha...