Jerry Curl

Today, in the unlikeliest place imaginable, a musician restored my faith in music. His name is Steve Grand and believe me when I say that he lives up to his name. I first heard about Steve a year ago when his video for “All-American Boy” spread across the Internet like a wildfire. Being an ardent supporter of talented people (because there are so few of them left!) I downloaded the song, donated a little money to his Kickstarter campaign for an album, and followed him on the Twitter. Then last week I found out that he’d be at Market Days this weekend and quickly made arrangements to be there, too. Given the venue and nature of the audience, I was not expecting much. Steve is handsome and built like a truck, so I thought he’d come out shirtless, the audience of boys would fawn over him for the duration of three songs, and that would be that. How wonderfully wrong I was. Steve came out fully clothed-- wearing a plain white V-neck tee shirt, skinny black Levis, and...

The AP reports : A federal appeals court today declared that the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutionally denies federal benefits to married gay couples, a groundbreaking ruling all but certain to wind up before the U.S. Supreme Court. In its unanimous decision, the three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston said the 1996 law that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman deprives gay couples of the rights and privileges granted to heterosexual couples. The court didn't rule on the law's more politically combustible provision, which said states without same-sex marriage cannot be forced to recognize gay unions performed in states where it's legal. It also wasn't asked to address whether gay couples have a constitutional right to marry. The law was passed at a time when it appeared Hawaii would legalize gay marriage. Since then, many states have instituted their own bans on gay marriage, while eight states have approved ...

The Big Bang Theory actor Jim Parsons has revealed he's gay and in a committed relationship in a new interview. Patrick Healy of  the New York Times  the star's sexuality as part of a profile of the 39-year-old actor , who is currently starring on Broadway in a revival of Harvey . The revelation comes late in the article, when Healy describes Parsons' role in the 2011 revival of Larry Kramer's HIV/AIDS crisis drama, The Normal Heart . Writes Healy: '"The Normal Heart” resonated with him on a few levels: Mr. Parsons is gay and in a 10-year relationship, and working with an ensemble again onstage was like nourishment, he said." Parsons' sexuality has been the source of media speculation for several years. Though the Times doesn't identify Parsons' partner, the actor thanked Todd Spiewak during a 2010 Emmy Award acceptance speech. He has shown up to awards shows and made public theater contributions together with Spiewak, reportedly ...

Adam Lambert has become the first openly gay artist to have a #1 album on the Billboard 200 chart! Other gay performers such as Elton John and George Michael have hit #1, but only before they came out, and they haven't managed that honor since. Lambert's second studio album, Trespassing , debuted at the top with 77,000 albums sold according to Nielsen SoundScan. However, Trespassing  is also the smallest sum at No. 1 on the chart since the tally dated Aug. 20, 2011, when Adele's 21 sold 76,000 in its 12th nonconsecutive week atop the list. Trespassing has the smallest sales week for a No. 1 debut since Amos Lee's Mission Bell started in the penthouse with 40,000 on the Feb. 12, 2011 chart. This also marks the first time that one American Idol replaces another at No. 1. Lambert's arrival bumps last week's leader, Carrie Underwood's Blown Away , down to No. 3 (54,000; down 55%). (Via After Elton & Billboard )

The AP reports : A former Rutgers University student who attracted the scorn of gay-rights advocates and was convicted of hate crimes for using a webcam to view seconds of his roommate and another man kissing days before the roommate killed himself will go to jail for 30 days. A judge gave 20-year-old Dharun Ravi a 30-day jail term and then probation today, resolving the first part of the legal odyssey in an unusual, emotional and tragic case dealing with the consequences of bad decisions by young people in the Internet age - but certainly not ending the debate surrounding New Jersey's tough hate-crimes laws. Judge Glenn Berman said he would not recommend Ravi be deported to India, where he was born and remains a citizen. The case began in September 2010 when Ravi's randomly assigned freshman-year roommate asked Ravi to stay away so he and a guest could have privacy.

Towleroad reports : Maybe to coincide with his endorsement of the Student Non-Discrimination Act and the White House's screening of Bully on the National Day of Silence, or maybe to divert attention from his unwillingness to sign an executive order banning workplace discrimination against LGBT folk, President Obama and co. have taken to Twitter to explain what the Obama White House has done for the cause of LGBT equality. It's quite a lot. Full document after the jump:

Cher made a surprise appearance at the GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles to honor Chaz with the Stephen F. Kolzak Award.

[ Editor’s note ] I met Cher’s son last night and I’m alive to tell the tale. The sheer impossibility of everything in that sentence is baffling but true. Anyone who’s ever met me knows of my love for Cher. It’s a love that runs deep and has been well-documented throughout the years. In recent years, that love and admiration has extended to her son Chaz Bono. Few people can imagine my utter shock and awe when told that he was coming to my university for a speaking engagement. To say that I was floored is to put it mildly. As part of its Gay Pride Week, FIU invited Chaz to its Biscayne Bay campus to speak about his transition. Superbly moderated by Elise Withers, a political science major at FIU, Chaz opened up about his childhood, his parents, his struggles with drugs and sexuality, and his new role as a Trans advocate. It was a candid and thought-provoking conversation with a man who has been through more than most. Perhaps the best and most revealing part of the evening was the aud...

[ Editor's note ] I can’t pretend to know much about today’s gays. In truth, talk of the Kardashian’s, Nicki Minaj, or the “Real” Housewives of Where Ever usually befuddles me. For better or worse, my interests are of a decidedly older generation. I don’t know if that’s an indictment of today’s culture or not, but I often feel that the gays of today are being short-changed on every front of entertainment. In any event, I think that Gay Pride Parades are the great equalizers of the community. It doesn’t matter if you know Judy Garland or not (:: bites fist ::), or if you’re young, old, big, small, classy or trashy-- these events celebrate diversity in all its wondrous fabulousity. Well on Sunday, Miami Beach held their Pride Parade and I can report that it was great fun. Although I missed most of the parade (including Chaz Bono as Grand Marshal), I enjoyed walking around in a sea of friendly faces and pretty colors. It was a celebratory atmosphere on an iconic stretch of beach that ...

Towleroad reports : The folks over at Epic Level Entertainment and director Josh Staman teamed up to create this video, "It Gets Bigger," a PSA telling young men around the world that, well, it will get bigger. "It Gets Bigger" is obviously a loving a take on Dan Savage's "It Gets Better" campaign. And Savage must have liked it, because he posted the video over at Slog .

Andreas Derleth, a stationery store manager from New Zealand, won the Mr. Gay World 2012 competition in Johannesburg this past weekend. Deets on Derleth over at Towleroad . StuffNZ reports that The Mr. Gay competition took place over four days and included various challenges, including a photo, sports, fashion, swim suit, public speaking, and local outreach challenges. On the contest's website, it said the winner would not only have the inner beauty of confidence, self-assurance, charisma and natural leadership abilities, but would also take care of his physical beauty. Prizes included $25,000 in travel vouchers to enable the winner to spread his message around the world. --> This is neither here nor there for me. The only reason for this post in that picture. Looks to me like we're all winners here. You're welcome babes.

(Via Queerty )

Paul Iacono, the 23-year-old star of MTV's The Hard Times of RJ Berger , has come out of the closet in an interview with the Village Voice's Michael Musto . Iacono, who's starring in a new play at NYC's Ars Nova called Justin Sayre Is Alive And Well...Writing and a new MTV show called Kenzie's Scale , tells Musto, "I think it's the right time to say something." Iacono says he grew up in a traditional Italian family and pretended he was straight after his dad found an email he had written to a male date, but came out to them a few years later. His character in Kenzie's Scale realizes he's gay after moving to NYC to attend college. He tells Musto: The whole reason we came up with Kenzie's Scale is to give young gays characters to look up to. It's great that we have Chris Colfer, but we need more characters. I was so moved by your comment on Facebook that 'If I'd grown up with gay TV icons that were out, I'd have been so much...

The alleged slaying of as many as 58 "emo" Iraqi citizens who are either gay or believed to be gay has sparked concerns from international human rights organizations, with many fearing Iraq may be returning to the rampant level of hate crimes against homosexuals as seen in 2009. The Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)recently released a video which aims to bring the issues facing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Iraqis into focus. IRAP works directly with those most at risk in Iraq to help them relocate and secure their safety, and are requesting this video be shared again to raise awareness about the plight of gays in Iraq and the middle east. In the video, 'Ahmed', a young doctor, describes how a young man he was in love with and financially supporting for four years betrayed him by sending intimate photographs to his family after Ahmed refused to continue supporting him for fear his parents would find out. Soon after, six of Ahmed's uncles re...

The HuffPo Gay Voices reports : In a move that will no doubt rankle the efforts of anti-gay institutions, the psychiatrist who published a controversial 2001 study proclaiming that "highly motivated" gay and lesbian people could change their sexual orientation is now retracting his initial claims. Psychiatrist Bob Spitzer, who had ironically led the effort to declassify homosexuality as a mental illness in 1973, told American Prospect that he now wants to retract his study , while addressing several of the ample criticisms against its findings. "In retrospect, I have to admit I think the critiques are largely correct," said the 80-year-old Spitzer, who is now retired and suffering from Parkinson's disease. “The findings can be considered evidence for what those who have undergone ex-gay therapy say about it, but nothing more.” After noting that failed attempts to rid oneself of homosexual attractions "can be quite harmful," he then requested writer Ga...

Matt Zarley, who has more chest hair and mustache than Magnum PI, takes the plunge into politics with this lighthearted 70's inspired meditation on a closeted presidential contender and his unraveling. (Via Towleroad )

Photo caption: Judy Garland during her legendary concert at Carnegie Hall in 1961. In more Judy-related news: Robert Leleux of the NYT writes about something I'm all-too familiar with. That's to say, the pain and suffering Judy fans go through at the hands young kids who don't know a lick about her: Last Saturday I invited my friend Brodie, a 30ish gay man like myself, to a preview performance of End of the Rainbow , Peter Quilter’s play about the final days of Judy Garland. In the course of that invitation, I asked him if he was a Judy fan, and he said, “No, but she was good in ‘The Wizard of Oz.’ ” That’s the kind of answer I might expect from Tim Tebow, but being a good sport, Brodie accompanied me anyway. I weep for my people. I’m only half-kidding. I have this theory that because of the holocaust that was the AIDS epidemic and its annihilation of the previous generation of gay men, the faith of our fathers risks extinction. Today, Judyism, like Yiddish, is little more...

Photo caption: Tracie Bennett as Judy Garland at the Belasco Theater. More pictures here . Ben Brantley of the NYT reviews : As befits a play about Judy Garland, a woman known for liberally mixing her pills, Peter Quilter’s End of the Rainbow is a jolting upper and downer at the same time. After watching Tracie Bennett’s electrifying interpretation of Garland in the intense production that opened at the Belasco Theater, you feel exhilarated and exhausted, equally ready to dance down the street and crawl under a rock. In other words, you feel utterly alive, with all the contradictions that implies. That’s what comes from witnessing acting that is this unconditionally committed, not to mention this sensational — in every sense of the word. Set in 1968 in a London hotel suite and a nightclub, where a shaky Garland has arrived for yet another of her fabled comebacks, Mr. Quilter’s play is in some ways your standard-issue showbiz pathography, a lurid account of the twilight of an all-too-m...

The HuffPo Gay Voices reports : A new study has confirmed what many in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community have suspected for some time: that homophobic attitudes are likely to be more pronounced among those who've experienced unacknowledged attraction towards members of the same sex. Set to be published this month in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , the study reportedly comprised four separate experiments, each involving an average of 160 college students, conducted in the U.S. and Germany. The findings provide new evidence to support the psychoanalytic theory that fear, anxiety, and aversion that toward gays and lesbians can grow out of a seemingly heterosexual individual's own repressed same-sex desires, co-author Richard Ryan, professor of psychology at the University of Rochester who helped direct the research, told Science Daily . "In many cases these are people who are at war with themselves and they are turning this intern...

Watch In Uganda, Gays Face Growing Social, Legal Hostility on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour. Towleroad reports : PBS NewsHour did an excellent 8-minute piece the other night on the re-emergence of the "kill the gays" bill in Uganda, slain activist David Kato , anti-gay evangelizing by American 'Christianists' like Scott Lively, Hillary Clinton's statement to the UN urging rights for LGBTs in Africa and abroad, and the dangerous political atmosphere for gays now.