Jerry Curl

Gregory Verdoes as featured on We Love Guys .

Has one of music's biggest mysteries finally been solved? The identity of the man who walked into the party like he was walking on to a yacht in Carly Simon's 1972 hit You're So Vain has long been speculated to be Warren Beatty, Mick Jagger, Kris Kristofferson or Cat Stevens. But we've never known for sure. Now, after guarding the secret for 38 years, the singer is whispering the first name of the man - "David" - about two and a half minutes into a new version of the song, if you listen to it backwards. Simon, 64, confirmed in an interview with Uncut magazine that the whisper alluded to her former lover. "I'm just going to tell you this," she said. "The answer is on the new version of You're So Vain. There's a little whisper — and it's the answer to the puzzle." The New York Post notes that David Cassidy and David Bowie have already been guessed - and dismissed. Britain's The Sun today says it's David Geffen, who was...

Via Queerty .

An iceberg the size of Luxembourg has broken off from a glacier in Antarctica after being rammed by another giant iceberg, scientists said today, in an event that could affect ocean circulation patterns. The 965 sq mile iceberg broke off earlier this month from the Mertz Glacier's 100-mile floating tongue of ice that sticks out into the Southern Ocean. The collision has since halved the size of the tongue that drains ice from the vast East Antarctic ice sheet. "The calving itself hasn't been directly linked to climate change, but it is related to the natural processes occurring on the ice sheet," said Rob Massom, a senior scientist at the Australian Antarctic Division and the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystems Cooperative Research Center in Hobart, Tasmania. Both organizations, along with French scientists, have been studying existing giant cracks in the ice tongue and monitored the bumper-car-like collision by the second iceberg, B-9B. This 60-mile long slab of ice is ...

ArtsBeat reports : For a character who makes only a passing appearance in the original “Star Wars” trilogy, things are going swimmingly for Admiral Ackbar, a bit player from Return of the Jedi . Ackbar, the squidlike leader of the Rebel Alliance’s assault on the Death Star who vocally declares that his forces have stumbled into a trap, has lately been ensnared by the popular culture: he’s received shout-outs on television programs from “Robot Chicken” to “The Daily Show” to “The Colbert Report.” And if things go his way, he could even end up the new mascot of the University of Mississippi. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the students of Ole Miss voted on Tuesday to seek a new mascot to replace the school’s Colonel Reb, who was deemed too evocative of the Old South and potentially offensive. Among the leading candidates to replace the Colonel? The Admiral, who’s been getting a boost from student Web sites like notatrap.org, which declares: “He led the Galactic Rebellion...

The Atlantic reports : After a nearly two-week-long search, actor Andrew Koenig, who played Boner on the popular 1980s sitcom Growing Pains , was found dead in a Vancouver park yesterday morning. Koenig, 41, had been missing since Feb. 14 and had allegedly killed himself. During a "dramatic press conference," his father—actor Walter Koenig, who starred as Pavel Chekov in the original Star Trek TV series—said Andrew "was obviously in a lot of pain." Andrew had rid himself of many possessions and moved out of his Venice, California apartment, which his parents were unaware of at the time, according to CNN. Last week Andrew's family received a letter written in a "despondent tone." Koenig has also appeared on the TV shows 21 Jump Street and My Two Dads , acted in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , and played the Joker in the virally popular fan film Batman: Dead End earlier this decade. He also stars in DaZe: Vol. Too (sic) - NonSeNse , a forth...

Via Made in Brazil .

As the keeper of a small-- ahem, MooMoo -- I found this study of special interest: Small dogs the world over can all trace their ancestry back to the Middle East, where the first diminutive canines emerged more than 12,000 years ago. A new study, which appears in BMC Biology, focused on a single gene responsible for size in dogs. Researchers found that the version of the gene IGF1 that is a major determinant of small size in dogs probably originated as a result of domestication of the Middle Eastern gray wolf, which also happens to be smaller than many other wolves. In terms of which came first, big dogs or small dogs, the answer is now the former. "Archaeological studies suggest that ancient (dog) remains found in Belgium, Germany and Western Russia, which date to 13,000-31,000 years ago, were most similar in body size to the Great Dane, while those from the Middle East dating to about 12,000 years ago were most similar to a small terrier," lead author Melissa Gray told Disc...

The AP reports: After turmoil that included public squabbling, threats of a lineup change and a rehab stint, Aerosmith is back and ready to rock. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famers have announced a European summer tour — with Steven Tyler. The announcement was made via a video post on the band's Web site yesterday. Tyler was sitting with the rest of the band and joked: "I just auditioned and I got the gig."

By R.J. Matson

Niklas Lindemann as featured on Homotography .

A week into the main part of competition and already I can tell it's gonna be a dull season. No standouts, no personalities, no Glamerts or J.Huds. Not even an Archuleta. It's basically a group of lukewarm singers singing for seemingly uninterested judges. Which brings me to this season's innovation: Ellen Degeneres. Contrary to the popular consensus , I miss Paula Abdual. I think Ellen is great at her stand up and tolerable on her talk show, but completely wrong for Idol . I don't want to hear the thoughts of the average music fan (as she was tauted to be). I wanna hear the professional comments of professionals. More to the point, she just comes off as annoying. Even the supposed hostility between her and Simon is boring. However, I am looking forward to the return of Idol Gives Back this season. And to seeing MUCH more of Casey James:

Towleroad reports : Barring any last minute successes by the bigots who are doing everything they can to stop equality from being recognized in the nation's capital, gay couples will be soon be able to apply for licenses and marry there . D.C. Wire reports : "Council member David Catania, the bill's sponsor, has a countdown clock on his website to March 3, the anticipated first day when gay couples will be allowed to apply for licenses in the District. While couples will be able to apply next Wednesday, the three-day waiting period in the District means that couples will not be able to formally marry until the following Tuesday, March 9.

Apple's popular iTunes software hit a milestone couple of hours ago: the sale of its 10 billionth song. At a special song download countdown page, Apple flaunts iTunes 10 billionth song download sale with a list of most downloaded songs. Co-incidentally, it also happens to be Apple CEO Steve Jobs' 55 birthday. One lucky person who downloaded the 10 billion song got $10,000 worth iTunes gift card. Apple launched iTunes nine years ago and changed the way people listen to music with iPod product family. Out of the thousands of songs offered till date, the most downloaded track was from band Black Eyed Peas track "I Got Feeling". Then followed recent sensation Lady Gaga song "Poker face". Last year, Apple had reduced the pricing for iTunes with the launch of the third generation iPod Touch. The Apple App Store celebrated its 1 billionth app download in April 2009. (Via TechTree )

File this under: Hialeah pride! President Barack Obama nominated Miami-Dade native Wifredo Ferrer today as the new U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida. The position, which requires Senate confirmation, is among the most powerful of the 93 U.S. attorney's offices nationwide. The Miami post is also among the most demanding and sprawling -- with 290 prosecutors handling white-collar fraud, public corruption, drug-trafficking and human-smuggling cases from Key West to Fort Pierce. His résumé was an easy sell: He is a one-time federal prosecutor in Miami and is currently chief of Miami-Dade County's federal litigation section. He's also the former deputy chief of staff to U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno. The son of Cuban immigrants also was valedictorian at Hialeah-Miami Lakes Senior High, first in his class at the University of Miami, and president of his class at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. "First of all, he understood better than anybody I...

President Barack Obama launches a last-ditch bid to salvage his stalled healthcare overhaul today at a televised summit that could offer more potential for political theater than problem solving. After months of heated battle over healthcare reform in the Congress, leaders in both parties held out little hope for compromise at a bipartisan meeting that will provide a national stage for the arguments fueling the long-running debate. "I think it's nearly impossible to imagine a scenario under which we could reach an agreement" unless Democrats scrap the reform bills passed last year, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said. Obama and his fellow Democrats have no intention of doing that, but Obama hopes to influence wavering Democratic lawmakers and voters who have lost enthusiasm for the effort to reshape the $2.5 trillion U.S. healthcare industry. The bills passed by the Democratic-controlled House and Senate late last year were designed to rein in costs, regulate in...

We're both excited and jealous as all Hell to hear that The Boys in the Band is in theatre's again! It's one of our favorite films and judging from the New York Times review , it's quite the theatrical experience, too: This proximity to the actors means that you smell the cologne that Michael sprays on himself as he prepares for the party, singing along with Judy Garland (of course). And you can practically taste the lasagna prepared by two of the play’s neatly archetypal characters: Emory (John Wellmann), the effeminate one, and Bernard (Kevyn Morrow), the black one, the seemingly complicit victims of the most demeaning jokes here. You can also practically taste the bile and bitterness that emanate from Michael, embodied with undiluted viciousness by Mr. Hammond in the evening’s cornerstone performance. Once Michael sets up the nasty climactic party game (convenient for stripping people to their naked and trembling souls), things get truly uncomfortable. In addition ...

Vincenzo as featured on DNA .

A year after backing Barack Obama by an overwhelming 2-to-1 ratio, young adults are quickly cooling toward Democrats amid dissatisfaction over the lack of change in Washington and an escalating war in Afghanistan. A study by the Pew Research Center, being released today, highlights the eroding support from 18-to-29 year olds whose strong turnout in November 2008 was touted by some demographers as the start of a new Democratic movement. The findings are significant because they offer further proof that the diverse coalition of voters Obama cobbled together in 2008 — including high numbers of first-timers, minorities and youths — are not Democratic Party voters who can necessarily be counted on. While young adults remain decidedly more liberal, the survey found the Democratic advantage among 18-to-29 year olds has substantially narrowed — from a record 62 percent identifying as Democrat vs. 30 percent for the GOP in 2008, down to 54 percent vs. 40 percent last December. It was the larges...

Adam Lambert will indeed be appearing on The Tonight Show on Tuesday — along with the former governor of Alaska, conservative Sarah Palin. NBC confirmed the appearance Tuesday after Lambert Tweeted last week that he’d be on Leno’s new stage. There was speculation that there might be tension over whether the conservative politician and the very liberal Lambert were able to be in the same studio. According to sources directly involved with the booking, this was overblown. “It had nothing to do with that — Adam had some scheduling issues that needed to be worked out,” said the source. “Until those conflicts on his end were worked out, it just couldn’t be announced. There’s really no drama involved.” (Via MSNBC )

Towleroad reports : Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij apparently came out of the closet when he talked to OUT magazine about introducting a "homosexual perspective" into some of the band's songs, and told the magazine that the band's track "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" from their 2009 debut is a gay pop anthem. Says Batmamglij: “With that song I was having fun, but at the same time it was honest -- those lyrics are meaningful to me, they come from my heart. I was disappointed when it didn’t become a gay anthem, but, you know, it’s not too late.” --> For the record, we have no idea who Vampire Weekend is or what they play. But Mr. Batmanglij is cute and that's enough to cover his coming out.

ArtsBeat reports : When you have been accused for decades of being a cheap caricature and resorting to ethnic humor for easy laughs, does an endorsement from George Lopez help or hurt your cause? Speedy Gonzales, the hyperactive Warner Brothers rodent who calls himself “the fastest mouse in all Mexico,” is on the fast track for his own feature film. And not only will Mr. Lopez, the comedian and TBS talk-show host, provide the character’s voice, he also gives Speedy his “Latino seal of approval,” according to his wife and producer, Anne Lopez. In an interview with the Heat Vision blog of The Hollywood Reporter, Ms. Lopez said that this “Speedy Gonzales” film, which will be made by New Line Cinema, will avoid outdated depictions of the cartoon character, who made his debut in the 1953 short “Cat-Tails for Two.” “We wanted to make sure that it was not the Speedy of the 1950s, the racist Speedy,” Ms Lopez told The Hollywood Reporter. In the new movie, she said, Speedy “comes from a family ...

By Joe Heller

ArtsBeat reports : Up, up and away! The comics blogosphere has been buzzing over the auction of a copy of Action Comics No. 1, the first appearance of Superman. The price: $1 million. Interest in the sale generated enough traffic to bring down the Web site of the auction house, Comic Connect, which posted a note explaining, “Due to the exceedingly high volume of traffic, the site has been temporarily replaced with this news article about the record selling comic.” Stephen Fishler, the founder of Comic Connect, said this copy of Action No. 1 was in very fine condition. Only 100 copies of this issue of Action No. 1 are believed to still exist. Of that batch, only two are in very fine condition or better. The sale breaks the previous record of $317,200 from last March when Comic Connect sold another copy of Action No. 1, but in a lower-grade condition. “Comic books are now in the same realm as fine art, one-of-a-kind jewels and antiques,” said Vincent Zurzolo, chief operating office and c...

Ryan as featured on Queerty .

Michael Ausiello reports: Being the president’s wife apparently has its perks. Sources confirm to me exclusively that First Lady Michelle Obama has invited the cast of Glee to perform at the annual White House Easter Egg Roll on Monday, April 5 — and, barring any last-minute glitches, they’re gonna do it! Rumor has it Mrs. O and her daughters are big fans of the show. And since a White House gig is an offer that’s pretty darn hard to refuse, Glee’s producers did some lickety-split schedule rejiggering in order to honor the request. All in all, not a bad stretch for the Glee club: Glee The Music Volume 1 just moved up to No. 1 on the UK album charts, ahead of the ubiquitous Lady Gaga! (Via Ausiello Files )

Weekend Top Five: #1 Shutter Island ($41.1M) #2 Valentine's Day ($16.7M) #3 Avatar ($16.2M) #4 Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief ($15.3M) #5 The Wolfman ($9.9M)

[ Editor's note ] Midterms ended on Saturday so I decided to make an impromptu trip to Denver. Thanks to a gracious invitation from my pal Joey, I had the privilege of spending a few days in the Mile High City basking in snow flurries and teen-degree weather. I can't begin to describe how naturally beautiful Denver is. While I pride myself on being the cliche touristy-type photographer, I have to admit that I stopped taking pictures because I realized that they weren't doing the city any justice. Its layers and dimensions and height and colors were just too much for a camera to absorb. They were almost too much for me to absorb! Denver is impressive for a number of reasons. One: Joey lives there and that's plenty awesome. It's also quite expansive and spacious. Being used to the cramped spaces of Miami, it was refreshing to see parks and other open spaces about town. Denver also has some of the nicest people I've ever met. From the helpful airport people, to the...

President Barack Obama personally welcomed the Dalai Lama to the White House yesterday and lauded his goals for the Tibetan people, but he kept their get-together off-camera and low-key in an attempt to avoid inflaming tensions with China. At the risk of angering Beijing, Obama did tell the exiled spiritual leader he backs the preservation of Tibet's culture and supports human rights for its people. He also gave encouragement to the Dalai Lama's request for talks with the Chinese government. There was no welcome fanfare yesterday, nor a public appearance with the president. The White House released only a single official picture, rather than allow independent photographers and reporters to see the two men together. This from a president who promised — and in some other ways has delivered — unprecedented transparency in his White House. Revered in much of the world, the Dalai Lama is seen by Beijing as a separatist who seeks to overthrow Chinese rule of Tibet. Though he says tha...

Via Towleroad

American Idol contestant Chris Golightly (lefT) is upset after being deemed “ineligible” to compete as one of the Top 24 semifinalists on the Fox reality competition. Golightly, a 25-year-old shoe salesman from Los Angeles, initially made it through as one of the 24 semifinalists but was conspicuously missing from the end of Wednesday’s episode. Fox released a statement to Access, saying, “It has been determined that Chris Golightly is ineligible to continue in the competition. ‘American Idol’ contestant Tim Urban has replaced Golightly as part of the Top 24.” The change was apparent to viewers, since Golightly was seen among the 24 semifinalists on stage toward the end of Wednesday's episode but was not in a shot of the 12 male singers who are advancing. But why was Golightly booted from the competition? “This is not fair; I don’t know what to do,” Golightly told USA Today yesterday morning. “Everything was fine when I made the Top 24.” Golightly claims that a former manager name...

The Top 12 Boys and Girls were picked in last night's episode. Some surprise picks and rejections made the night as interesting as only AI can be. No stand out Adam Lambert's this year, but we've already got a keen eye on his Casey James-- albeit for all the wrong reasons... You can see the rest of the Top 24 here .

ArtsBeat reports : In a segment for her daily online feature “The Conversation” on Wednesday, Diane Sawyer spoke with Betty White, the Mary Tyler Moore and Golden Girls star who is now the subject of a Facebook campaign seeking to have her host Saturday Night Live . Ms. White, 88, told Ms. Sawyer the online campaign caught her by surprise. “What — where did that come from?” Ms. White said. “That came out of left field. I have no idea. I’m such a technological spaz, I can’t — I don’t understand any of that stuff. And all of a sudden, all this stuff has come in, and I’m just watching it in awe.” Ms. White said she had been invited to host “SNL” three times in the past, but couldn’t fit it into her schedule and was “scared of it.” Speaking of her numerous Internet supporters, she said, “They just dig old ladies.” The Facebook page that started the campaign, called “Betty White to Host SNL (please?)!,” has attracted more than 389,000 fans, which we’re guessing vastly exceeds the population...

By Mike Keefe

Photographer Gene Kiegel gives us a glimpse into the lives flithy right party people in "Jets, Cribs, & Rides". (Via Homotography )

King Tutankhamen, the boy pharaoh, was frail and lame and suffered “multiple disorders” when he died at age 19 about 1324 B.C., but scientists have now determined the most likely agents of death: a severe bout of malaria combined with a degenerative bone condition. The researchers said that to their knowledge “this is the oldest genetic proof of malaria in precisely dated mummies.” Several other mummies in the study also showed DNA evidence of the presence of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, perhaps not surprising in a place like the Nile Valley. The application of advanced radiological and genetic techniques to royal Egyptian mummies is a new step in the ever deepening reach of historical inquiry through science. The study, reported yesterday, turned up no evidence of foul play, as had been suspected by some historians and popular writers familiar with palace intrigues in ancient Egypt. Previous examinations of the Tut mummy had revealed a leg fracture that happened sometim...

Glee is slated to return in seven weeks.

Lady GaGa performing a new acoustic rendition of "Telephone" and "Dance in the Dark" live on the 2010 BRIT Awards in tribute to the late Alexander McQueen. Gaga went on to win all her categories — Best International Album, Best International Female Solo Artist and International Breakthrough Act Supported by MTV Viewers.

From Gawker : The gay world is often represented as some sort of monolithic whole that has the same culture. That is a lie. It is actually broken down into a handful of substrata to which each gay belongs. Here they are. Just like the world at large may stereotype gays as mincing wrist flippers with great taste bent on giving everyone they meet a make over. A queer will tell you that we are all individuals and that those stereotypes are false and horrible. That said, when the gays see a fellow homosexual in the public sphere, we try to plug them into the convenient taxonomy the community has made for itself. That's right, we have our own stereotypes for each other, and they're much more specific than you can ever imagine. They may not be very familiar to the world at large, but they are certainly familiar to the brothers in butt fucking. To say that each gay person belongs to one of these types is a bit deceptive. It's like saying that every woman is either a Carrie, Charlo...

Here's an excerpt from a New York Times article on Tallulah Bankhead and a new play based on her irreverent persona: Tallulah Bankhead, the sandpaper-voiced actress who pronounced darling “dahling” and threw in a few extra syllables to boot, made only about a dozen movies, a number of them silent. Though she triumphed onstage, at least two generations have been born since her name last graced a marquee. And her appearances on television, mostly as herself, can be found on YouTube but have never inspired so much as a DVD package. Yet Bankhead has been the subject of no fewer than six stage shows, the latest of which, “Looped,” begins previews on Broadway at the Lyceum Theater on Friday. What is it about the star that makes her such an enduring object of fascination, despite the skimpy electronic record? Certainly traces of her celebrity remain. Bruce Willis and Demi Moore named a daughter Tallulah. Bankhead was partly the inspiration for Cruella De Vil in 101 Dalmatians . And fans ...

Via Kenneth in the (212)

A few stills from Lady Gaga's forthcoming "Telephone" video have surfaced.