The Wendy Williams Show & Crazy Aunt Mildred!

Wendy Williams just read my letter on her show this morning!

Last week I was home and a get a phone call from someone at THE WENDY WILLIAMS SHOW telling me that they are going to read my letter and show a photo that I sent them. The photo I took one day a few months back while walking down 14th Street. Once I saw I this image, I knew I just had to take a photo of this.

Now if you aren't a regular view of Wendy (and I don't know why you wouldn't be), here is a little backstory: Its no secret that Wendy Williams wears wigs on her show. She even has a wig-stand that she calls "Shakeetha". Shakeetha even has a backstory: she's 25yo, she only dates ballers, likes the clubs, etc. She even has been going on a city-by-city tour to visit viewers. Ok, back to my photo: I'm walking down 14th Street in NYC and in the window of a wig shop I spot "Shakeetha's Crazy Aunt Mildred" and I know I just have to share this image with Wendy Williams viewers! So here it is if you missed it!

Also tonight on Dancing With The Stars one couple will be eliminated. Last night Wendy and her dance partner Tony Dovolani did a "Quick Step" and it was a great comeback from last weeks low scores! They did an AMAZING job! I hope you had the chance to vote for them? I had never been into DWTS before. I started watching it last season when Margaret Cho was on it, but after she got eliminated. I stopped watching. This season it's really exciting! Just like Celebrity Apprentice this year is really good too! I'm rooting for Wendy to bring home the Mirrored Ball! GO WENDY!! Thanks again for introducing "Crazy Aunt Mildred" to America! Now could someone get back to me about getting tickets for a taping?

Don't Wanna be an AMERICAN IDIOT! Vote TEAM WENDY on DWTS 1-800-868-3402

I went to the theater on Friday to see another show on Broadway: AMERICAN IDIOT. If it sounds familiar its because it's also a Grammy winning album by the alternative rock band Green Day. If you haven't seen the show - then RUN down the "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" to the St. James Theatre to see it before it closes. Rumor has it that its closing at the end of April!

Don't expect to see a show like Phantom of the Opera or Wicked here. It's the closet thing to a musical without being all "musically". If you know what a mean. It's gritty, it's honest, and it totally rocks!

I wasn't a big fan of Green Day prior to seeing the show, but I am now. Some of the music I'd heard before but didn't know it was Green Day! I honestly have to say I liked this musical better than I thought I was going to like it! Granted, its not a musical for everyone. But teenagers will love it! The MTV generation and maybe the VH-1 generation will love it. However there were some seniors there who didn't seem to be enjoying it. They had that "turn-that-nois

e-down-I'm-trying-to-iron-in-here" look on their faces. So if you want to take the grandparents to a show, don't take them to this one (unless they went to Woodstock).

I hate to make comparisons to other shows but this show reminded me of "Rent" and "Hair" and "Tommy". And I LOVED all those shows! I think if you liked any of those shows, than you will love American Idiot! With the exception of the FABULOUS Rebecca Naomi Jones, all of the original cast has moved on. However the show is still as fresh as ever! Most of the ensemble cast has moved into lead roles. They are PHENOMENAL singers!!!! Ironically, in a show that pokes fun at American consumerism, the show now stars former American Idol runner-up, Justin Guarini. Justin, who was in the recently closed Broadway show Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (a show that had all the makings of a great show like Spider-Man but failed miserable) , plays Will. He sounds better than ever too!

Other news is that tonight I will be watching DANCING WITH THE STARS! As many of you know, I am a big fan of talk-show hostess, Wendy Williams. (I'm still waiting to get confirmation on tickets to see a taping next week) Wendy is one of the contestants on DWTS this evening. We wish her well! To vote for her call 1-800-868-3402! Support Wendy!

Also if you are a fan of Philip K. Dick's stories than you will love the new film THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU. I saw it last weekend and really was blown away with it. If you aren't familiar with PKD, then you should check out his work. It's sci-fi bordering on metaphysical. His stories have been turned in to films before: Blade Runner, Minority Report, Total Recall, A Scanner Darkly, etc. The Adjustment Bureau is based on Dick's short story The Adjustment Team. It's directed by George Nofli and stars Matt Damon, Anthony Mackey, Emily Blunt, John Slattery and the legendary Terence Stamp.

Shrooming and Films that Don't Mix Well!

I've been watching a lot of films lately in my free time. Films that I'm either rediscovering or discovering for the first time. I especially like foreign films that are as far away from the American "Hollywood" film mold as possible. But there is something that I discovered that I wanted to share. There are certain films that have been released in the past that should NEVER, and I repeat NEVER be viewed while taking any "mind altering drugs" shall we say? So I've compiled this list that I like to called:

FILMS THAT SHOULD NEVER BE VIEWED WHILE DOING MUSHROOMS!
(These films are in no particular order as to strangeness)

1. Barbet Schroeder's "Maitresse" (1976) Okay I admit I thought Gérard Depardieu was in his bubble-butt goodness in this one, however the horse visceration scene ALONE, is enough to send ANYBODY over the edge. PETA should have been consulted!
2. Russ Meyer's "Beyond the Valley of The Dolls" (1970) Yes, this was the one that was co-written by critic Roger Ebert. What were they smoking (or dropping) when they made this?
3. Michelangelo Antonioni's "Blow Up" (1966) I will never look at a mime the same way again!
4. Pier Paolo Pasolini's "Teorema" (1968) Strange, indeed!
5. Donald Cammel & Nicolas Roeg's "Performance"(1970) Has to be seen to be believed. Mick Jagger first film!
6. Dario Argento's "Suspiria" (1977) As a matter of fact, although I enjoy his films, I would avoid ALL of his films while high!
7. Jean-Luc Godard's "Week End" (1967) I love French New Wave, but this one was truly a head trip!
8. Walt Disney's "Fantasia" (1940) A definite head trip if ever there was one!
9. Michael Heneke's "Funny Games" (1997) All I can say after viewing this one, was: WTF? The director made an American remake recently that I'm scared to see after watching the original
10. John Waters' "Pink Flamingos" (1972) See note for #5. Same holds true here. However don't get me wrong I LOVE his films (must say a lot about me, huh?)and I've seen this one over 30 times already!
11. Tim Burton's "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" (2005) See note for #9.
12. Hideo Nakata's "Ringu" (1998) This one kept me up for DAYS (and I wasn't on anything. I swear!)

Honorable Mention:

The Omega Man (1971) & the remake "I Am Legend" (2007). I was scared as a child watching this sober, you can imagine what the remake did to me with all the advances in computer effects!

Although it's not technically a theatrical release, but a episode from a popular guilty pleasure television series: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Season 4, Episode 10) "Hush"-- I had nightmares after watching this particular episode and couldn't sleep for days after watching it. What were the creators on when they wrote this? This episode was NO JOKE! It worked me better than a laxative. In other words, it STSOOM ;-)

Now although I wouldn't advocate taking any hallucinate drugs (As Mr. Mackey from "South Park says,"um, because drugs are bad, m'kay?") while doing ANYTHING, sometimes prescription medication can mess with your brain just like any illegal or control substance. That being said, if you like films then these films SHOULD be viewed (sober or otherwise). So hope you enjoy these films but maybe put down the blunt before you put them in you DVD player.

Dark Knight & Wendy Williams (Pt. 3)

Of course, I was one of the million's who saw Heath Ledger's final film performance this weekend in the hit film in the Batman franchise, "The Dark Knight". Heath was BRILLIANT as the very dark and very scary "Joker." This isn't Caesar Romero's "Joker" either. Heath's portrayal of the Joker really gave me the heebee geebees. It was a truly moving and terrifying performance which only seems sadden by the fact that never more will we see what many other roles this young actor could have taken. Truly a lost to the film industry. As a filmmaker myself, I will never have the opportunity to work with Heath Ledger. But the film industry was bless with this great actor's performances that will live forever on film.

As for the story itself, it was the darkest Batman, EVER!!!!! I will say much accolades to Christopher Nolan for fine direction and a marvelously written screenplay, as well as to Wally Pfister for his breathtaking lighting. I also have to say that even though Katie Holmes didn't reprise the role of Rachel Dawes for this film, no one could do it better than Maggie Gyllenhaal. Where was she the first time around? Anyway, I think this is THE film to see this summer (Although I'm a big "X-Files" fan, and I can't wait to see Mulder and Skully back on the big screen together later this week.)

Moving on... I have never really gotten on the "celebrity" bandwagon when it came to doing this blog, but I have to put my 2¢ in about a "celebrity" (although anyone who can call themselves a "celebrity" from just being on a reality show- with the exception of American Idol- is beyond me). Okay, so this morning I was watching the first show of the second week of the "Wendy Williams Show" and I was really upset to see how her guest, who I won't even name because it only gives her more power, was such a royal witch to Wendy.

Now for those of you who aren't familiar with Wendy William's radio talk show, The Wendy Williams Experience, she has had some fiery but very real interviews with many REAL celebrities (I'm talking about people with actual TALENT besides being on a reality show, showing the world how much of witch one can be for ratings) that always get to the bottom of things. Besides being the "Queen of the Hot Topics", she has been beacon on the WBLS for many years dispensing advice and information in her own special way. If you don't like, her, then you have the choice of turning to another station. However today's guest on her television talk show, who for someone with such a pretty name, showed a VERY UGLY side of herself today when she started to "diss" Wendy on "The Wendy Williams Show". This evil witch, who I will only say, was the thorn in Donald Trump's side on the premiere season of "The Apprentice", was totally disrespectful to her hostess as she was trying to hock her upcoming book.

My Carrie Bradshaw question is, why do people have to be so "ugly" when someone is trying to help them?

I have to say that through it all, Wendy was the lady that she always is who only continued to treat "the guest" graciously and didn't get back into the woman's face. It really saddens me when I see women, especially black professional women try to live up to the stereotypes that society has labeled them with for so many years. That's why I was so happy to see that Wendy wasn't going to stoop to that witch's level when she insulted Wendy on live television this morning. It was an awkward situation, but Wendy maintained her cool and moved on like any professional journalist would do in her position. It was obvious that this woman came on the show with a big chip on her shoulder looking for a fight. She may have thought about checking out a mirror prior to walking out on that stage, because next to Wendy, she was looking pretty haggard with weave that looked like it was put in by a blind crack head!

Now some men may like to see two women claw at each other with no dignity whatsoever. I, for one, do not subscribe to this. Had this conversation happened out on the street, I'm sure it would have been a different show. However on live television, the hostess was charming and gracious, while the guest was the personification of the word "bitch." Next time that particular guest goes onto a talk show looking for a fight, might I suggest something like "Jerry Springer?" Since she preferred to act like ghetto trash, maybe she would feel more at home on that type of show!!

And yes, there is nothing wrong with your eyes: I did GO there!!!!

Wendy Williams: Part Deux

Okay everybody, today I watched the second day of the Wendy Williams show and it was equally as fabulous as it was yesterday if not better. Wendy looked exquisite in her little black outfit. Today she had on Al Roker from the "Today Show" and he is really a character. I really wish I could get tickets to see a taping of her show? I have a feeling that a taping must be a lot of fun for the audience as well as the guests. Much like the time I went to a taping of "Dave Chapelle Show". It was hilarious, but I digress....

Anyway, before I came here to the library to write (long story short: I was piggy-backing my wireless from somebody in my apartment building and they moved out so now I used the free wi-fi at the Brooklyn Public Library-the big one at Grand Army Plaza next to Prospect Park- I'm not cheap, just broke) I listened a little to the Wendy Williams Experience on WBLS. Her guest today was one of my very favorite authors: E. Lynn Harris. He was there to promote his new book that drops in stores today, Just Too Good To Be True. He also mentioned that he has another book coming out in January called Basketball Jones that deals with a guy living in the closet while playing in the NBA. Now anyone who knows me, knows that this is a subject that really interest me after reading the John Amaechi memoir Man In the Middle. I really can't wait to read that book.

I guess the reason why I brought up sports today is because, as I'm sure you know today is MLB All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. Of course I'm all about anything that has to do with any Yankees. Derek Jeter (will be playing for the ninth time), ARod, and Mariano Rivera will be playing for the American League. I really wish I could be there to watch this package. I mean the teams, not the player's packages. Duh... Okay I wouldn't mind watching the player's packages (I'm a freak like that). Anyway. I wish them well.

How did I get from Wendy Williams to talking about baseball? Oh yeah right, now I remember: I was wishing that I had a ticket (and a date) to go with to the game tonight since it will be the very last All-Star Game to ever be played in the current Yankee Stadium.

Anyway, oh, I wanted to talk a little about the mini film festivals I had all by myself in my apartment this weekend. Since I've been coming over to the public library, I've discovered the "World Cinema" section of DVDs. Over the past few months I've rediscovered and discovered some works by filmmakers who I greatly admire. This past weekend I watched the Three Colors trilogy by Krzysztof Kieslowski. I've seen it before but not on DVD and not with the commentary. As a filmmaker it's an added bonus to be able to hear what the thought process was for legendary filmmakers such as Kieslowski. It also gave me insight into why European films vastly differ from American-made "Hollywood" films. If you haven't the trilogy yet, it's a must for any serious film maker or lover of films. Three Colors: Blue (Trois colours: Bleu) (1993), Three Colors: White (Trois colours: Blanc) (1994), Three Colors: Red (Trois colours: Rouge) (1994) where the crowning achievement to a brilliant career that sadly ended way too soon in 1996 when he died from heart failure.

My other favorite filmmaker that I had the opportunity to study his films is Michelangelo Antonioni. Antonioni passed away last year but was quite a prolific filmmaker leaving behind what is now considered masterpieces of cinema. I watched Il Grido (The Cry) (1957), L'Avventura (The Adventure) (1960), La Notte (The Night) (1961), L'Eclisse (The Eclipse) (1962) and Blow Up (1966) and you know what I learned from watching these film classics? How to speak Italian! Just kidding, I think that the central thing that I discovered was that much like a novel that has plenty of exposition, so is an Italian film. I understand now why such directors as Ang Lee may have been inspired by the shear genius and artistry of his cinematography as every frame of an Antonioni film tends too look like a rare piece of artwork that should hang in a museum. Like Antonioni, I find that Ang Lee's films are slow moving yet visually a feast for the eyes.

Of course, don't get me started on all the Hitchcock films that I've had the chance to study lately, most notably his earlier works (prior to moving to the US from the UK) such as The 39 Steps (1935) and The Lady Vanishes (1938); and some of his early American films like Shadow of a Doubt (1943); and some of his later work like Torn Curtain (1966) - in this particular film Paul Newman was soooooooo hot!!!!

I could go on and on about films as many of you all know but it's getting cold here in the library and I'm wearing shorts and a light cotton shirt. I think they turn the AC up to keep the people from sitting in here all day.

As always, I welcome your comments. Until next time!

Wendy Williams: How You Doin'?

I know that I've been away from blogging for a little bit, but I had to write today because I wanted to talk about my new favorite talk show that premiered today in limited markets (NY, LA, Dallas, & Detroit) called the Wendy Williams Show! Wendy is a FABULOUS radio talk show hostess on WBLS weekdays. She is also a New York Times best selling author (as I will be one day once I get my books published) But before I go into that I have to put in my two cents before the library closes and I have to dismantle my laptop.

BTW, there are two PHYNE brothas sitting at a table next to me (facing my table) who I'm kinda distracted by as they are studying. I guess they don't think anybody can see them playing footsies with each other under the table! OH-KAAAAAY??!!! Playing "slap and tickle" with their legs all pressed up against each other. And I am sure they are on the DL. I can smell them out ANYWHERE!!! AWRIIIIIIGHT!!!??? (As Ms. Williams would say, "How you doin'?")

Okay, but before I write about Wendy Williams, I wanted to put my two cents in about something I saw today. I was out an appointment today in Downtown Brooklyn and I noticed something that was kinda astonishing and gross at the same time. With the exception of young pre-pubescent girls (who down know any better) and pregnant women: when did mid-riff/baby t's become fashionable wear for older women with beer guts hanging out? Okay, let me say that I know that I may not be the most buffed guy walking around these days, but I do know how to dress to hide my flaws. Okay???!!!! I know it is hot today, but I saw at least half a dozen women (all ranging from age 30 to you-should-know-better) walking around with all that gut hanging out of what looks like their teenager's clothing! Honey, I thought I was going to loose my lunch! Girls, if you are out there and reading this, know this: that is NOT a FLATTERING LOOK!!!! Unless one is forced at gunpoint by one's pimp to wear that in a public setting: RETHINK THE LOOK before venturing out before the public.

Now I know ya'll must be thinking "Well he's a gay guy, what does he care about how a woman looks?" Well I still have eyes, and these woman who are rocking this fashion trend with this particular body flaw, makes me think this is a cry for help! And they OBVIOUSLY don't have any gay male friends, (unless he was mad at her) because if they did, he would have told them about the walking fashion atrocity they would be making by choosing to wear what they thought looked "cute."

Okay, I got distracted again by the aforementioned boys across from me. Okay, scratch what I said before about the "PHYNESS" of the two of them. I just put my glasses on and I really need to get my new prescription because they look more like "Hot Mess 1" and "Hot Mess 2". Nice bodies though, but faces.... But I digress....

So today I watched the new Wendy Williams talk show on FOX-5 here in NY. First let me say, I learned something about Wendy, who I've been listening to on the radio for many years, and that is we are the same exact age! Well she will be this week anyway. And, like me, she looks damn good for her age. She is my "friend in my head." (Look it up - I'm not crazy) I also learned that her first guest, James Denton, (you know "Mike Delfino", the plumber who is married to that clumsy-behind "Susan" - played by the lovely Teri Hatcher - on my favorite guilty pleasure DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES) is also my age as well. Lets just say, it must be the sun because I would have given him older than me! But all in all, I really liked the show, she looked FABULOUS as always!!! And I hope that the show gets picked up after it's limited 6-week run, because it is way more interesting than some of the other talk shows on television now. Oprah better watch out now that she is reruns this summer!

I have to wrap this up so tomorrow I will have to go into detail about my Michelangelo Antonioni and Krzysztof Kieslowski film festivals I had over the weekend. The library is closing in a few minutes and I need to pick up a book before it's too late.

Ciao

Sex And The City (Across the Bridge)

It's taken me the entire month of May to recuperate from my surgery but slow-but-surely, I'm getting back up on my feet again. I'm just bored to death. I'm still trying to get my thesis film shot, but I haven't been doing too much since the pain from surgery still gets me now and then. The one thing that I can say is that I've been watching a lot of Netflix stuff. Mostly the continuing stories of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" (the hunky vampire with a soul). The few times that I've gotten out of bed, I've found myself at the Brooklyn Pubic Library located right near Grand Army Plaza in my beautiful Brooklyn neighborhood of Prospect Heights. I think I'm really lucky to live within walking distance to this great institution that is located beside the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, The Brooklyn Museum and Prospect Park. I feel surrounded in culture whenever I walk out of my apartment and venture near these great landmarks of Brooklyn. The best thing that I've discovered about the library, besides biggest branch in the borough, is that it also loan out DVDs. For a film student as myself (and you never stop being a student even though I've since gotten my A.A.S. in Filmmaking -that's me getting my degree from the President of Gibbs School NY on May 2nd [3 days before my surgery]) having access to a free film library is somewhat of a coup to me.

Besides all the literature that I've been reading lately, I've been watching a lot of films also. Recently I saw the 1967 classic film "Truman Capote's In Cold Blood" starring Robert Blake and Scott Wilson. It was directed by Richard Brooks. I guess you could say I was fascinated by the extraordinary performance of Toby Jones as Truman Capote in the Douglas McGrath indie feature "Infamous." Yes I know that Philip Seymour Hoffman won the Oscar playing the same character in another film of the about the very same subject, and I think Mr. Hoffman is a FANTASTIC actor, but Toby Jones' portrayal is the one that will stick with you long after your return the video to Netflix or your local library. Daniel Craig as the killer Perry Smith was also a phenomenal performance. Although I'm somewhat of a Daniel Craig fan now since having seen him in "The Golden Compass", "Road to Perdition", "Casino Royal", "Layer Cake" and of course "Infamous".

While I'm on the subject of films, I have to give a shout out to to the ladies and gents of the new film "Sex and The City." Of course, I was on line on opening night to watch the film in an East Village theater. First of all I have to say that it really is somewhat of a phenomenon because about 85% of the audience in this NYC crowd that I went to see it with were mostly very fashionable women in the latest designer fashion and accessories. Hermes and Prada bags, the "infamous" Carrie Bradshaw silk flower on the lapel, and Manolo Blahnik's EVERYWHERE!!! Paul and I may have been two of the few men in the audience besides the various guys who were clearly dragged there by their female companions (Steve's, Mr. Big's, Harry's and Smith's). But there were gay men there as well (what would Sex and the City be without any of us?) It seems that the show is somewhat like the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" in that the audience seemed to replicate the characters on from the film (I guess Paul and I were "Stanford" and "Anthony" that night).

While we waited for the film to come on everyone was talking about their favorite episode. (My favorite of all time is "The Real Me" episode where Stanford declares Carrie to be "Fashion roadkill" when she falls on the runway at a fashion show and Heidi Klum walks over her.) Had alcohol been allowed to been served, I'm sure someone would have ordered a round of "Cosmos" for all.

As far as the film goes, whether you are a fan of the show or not, it definitely has it's moments that people will be talking about all summer long. Michael Patrick King has outdone himself bringing this fairytale to the big screen. It really is a homage to everything that is New York City. I was especially surprised to see the scene that I watch being filmed in front of my school on 40th St, Katharine Gibbs School. Not to give away too much of a plot, it involved 2 limos, the girls, Mr. Big, and a whole mess of discarded white roses! If you look close in the back ground, you can see the Gibbs awning next to the Bryant Park Hotel. I only wish I didn't have to sell my complete series of the show (money was tight) because I always like laughing at the things that makes living in this city so great. Oh, I also like the "Easy Come, Easy Go" episode where Bobby Cannavale played Samantha's sex partner, Adam Ball with the "funky spunk." Gee, I miss Sex and the City!

And I mean that both figuratively and LITERALLY!!

Help Send Film Students from NY to Hollywood!

A couple of students in my film program at school have submitted a film spoof to win a student film MTV Movie Award. Calvin and Miguel are really very talented filmmakers and I hope that everyone can go to this link and view the clip and rate it. The more votes they get, the better. The filmmakers of the winning clip will get a trip to Los Angeles to win a Golden Popcorn award [like the one that the lovely Jessica Alba is holding to your left]. If they win, it will also be a big boost for my film school program at Katharine Gibbs School. The school really does produce a lot of talented filmmakers, but because it's not USC or NYU, I don't think we get taken as seriously. We even have an Academy Award winning faculty member, Cady Abarca-Benavides. He won for is film short "El Viaje" . And Every student has studied with Professor Abarca at one time or another at the school. Lets help these guys to win so that Gibbs Digital Film Program can become a leading school (or at least show the digital film industry that that Gibbs Students can ROCK!) in the digital film industry.

After you vote, make sure you send the link to as many friends a possible and you remind them to send to as many friends as possible, and so on and so on. It's a short clip (4min 23sec) based on the film "Saw 3". Although I'm not a big fan of that genre of film, I am a fan of comedy spoofs as many of you know already. I think that clip that Calvin and Miguel have created for this contest is VERY FUNNY.

The clip is called "Saw 3: The Wrath of Jiggy". When you finishing rating the clip, why don't you leave a comment on the site for the guys and let them know what you think about it. After all, who doesn't like a little praise or CONSTRUCTIVE criticism? Right?

Also if you have any problem connecting with any of the 3 cleverly placed links to the clip that I place in my post today, COPY and PASTE the FOLLOWING link into your web browser and I'm sure you will be connected right away to the funny clip:

http://mtvmovieawards.yahoo.com/spoofs/Saw3TheWrathOfJiggy/111550

Thanks!

The Sibling Story - I Heart Huckabys

Today is National Sibling Day! Actually only in 27 states this happens, considering that I didn't even know that the holiday even existed until I saw it on Oprah today. On her show today her entire audience was filled with siblings. Her guests on the show today included stories of twins, triplets, sextuplets, formerly conjoined twins, and then she had the Huckaby siblings. Although no multiple births in this family, they are unique in that of the eight siblings, four of them are gay. They all grew up in a very conservative Catholic family and no one knew who was gay growing up because it was never spoken about. It wasn't until the first son came out in 1985 did the doors open for the rest to follow. Oprah spoke with 3 of the four gay brothers and 2 of the straight siblings. One of the gay brothers, Jody, is now the Executive Director of PFLAG.

This story hit home for me because of my relationship with my only sibling. I have a sister who is a year and half younger than me and we have always had a rocky relationship. Over the years our relationship gets better as we get older but in the beginning it was horrible. We fought constantly and it was the often the cause of much stress for my parents. Although my coming out has always been a sore subject in my relationship with my sister. Even though we were raised in a very tolerant household, I think somewhere along the line my sister harbors some resentment that I turned out the way I am. I try to ignore it, but she is my family and I do truly love her. And as much as I hate to admit it, I care about what she thinks about me.

From as far back as I can remember my sister has never taken any interest in any of my artistic pursuits. I can count on one hand how many plays she has actually come to see me in (without having to be dragged by another family member). When asked why it was always “because I don’t care about what you do!” When I lost my job last year and decided to go to film school, she never once said “good for you” or “good luck”. It was more like “what are you going to do for money?” or “why are you going to do that?” I think most of the time she simply ignores the fact that I’m gay. She never acknowledges any of my relationships with men (even if they are just friends). Or if I want to tell her about someone I met, she finds a reason to change the subject. I used to think that she doesn’t want me to be happy, but I think now it’s just she wants me to be happy in her way (i.e. straight, married to a woman, with children). So for the time being my being gay is usually the “pink elephant” in the room that she refuses to talk about.

That’s why this story about the Huckaby family hit home for me because it reminded me of the relationship I wish I could have with my one sibling. The straight sister who appeared with her straight brother and 3 gay brothers said that she at first had a hard time accepting her gay brothers, but realized that it wasn’t a choice and that it was just the way they were born. Even though deeply religious, she prayed to find love instead of judgment in her heart for her brothers. Eventually she let love take over unconditionally.

Surprisingly it’s my sister’s daughter, aged 16, who is totally accepting of my being gay more than her mother has ever been. My niece will often ask me if I met any nice guys lately. She congratulated me when I got an “A” for my documentary and told me how proud she was of me. When I broke up with my partner of four years, it was my niece, then age 11, who offered a kind word of hope and encouragement. She is very wise beyond her young years and I am blessed to have her in my life. That’s not to say that I’m not blessed to have my sister, but I wish she could love me unconditionally like my niece.

I know that she will never read this posting. She's going through a lot at the moment. She hasn’t even seen my documentary yet, even though my mother and niece have watched it. I love and support my dear sister, warts and all. I hope that one day it can be reciprocal. Who knows maybe one day she will see the light and join a PFLAG chapter in her state of residence? I love her, but I'm not going to hold my breath for that to happen.

In any case, Happy Sibling Day Monica. I Love you for better or for worse!

Latin Fever!

Yesterday was opening day for my favorite baseball team in the world. They have some of the most cutest players in the entire league. The Yankees are GOLDEN! They beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays 9-5. Washington Heights favorite son, ARod proved his worth yesterday with a two-run home run in the eighth inning! I didn't have a opportunity to attended, but I was there in spirit supporting my boys! I heard they started the day with a moment to remember Cory Lidel who was killed tragically last year in a horrendous plane accident on the Upper East Side. That was I day I will never forget. It was very scary hearing about how his plane had crashed into a high rise building in Manhattan. Initially, hearing about planes crashing into buildings have made me very skittish since 9/11. I don't think I'll ever recover from that. But I digress... Bobby Murcer also resurfaced after his recent battle with brain cancer. He looked great too! God bless him! Yankees kicked ass yesterday! I just hope this will be the trend for the rest of the season. John Damon's haircut looks good on him today.

Also last night the season finale of "Prison Break" was on. I have always been attracted to "Men Behind Bars" stories, but once I saw " Prison Break" I've been hooked. It's sort of like the "24" of prison stories. Wentworth Miller (as inmate Michael Scofield) is not normally my "type" but he is one VERY HOT Guy! Rockmond Dunbar (as inmate Franklin) AND my favorite "papi chulo", Amaury Nolasco (as inmate Sucre) make the show all the more worth watching for the "eye candy" aspect. The cliffhanger was a quite startling one as Scofield was put into a Panamanian prison with the man (Mahone) who had been trying to catch him while he was on the run with his brother Lincoln. I am happy that Lincoln Burrows and Sara Tancredi were both exonerated. I hope Kellerman wasn't killed either, but it looks like he was. He did a very brave thing by speaking up for Sara and exposing the truth behind the conspiracy and the President's involvement (that evil witch). I was most upset that Sucre was left for dead in the middle of the hot street as he passed out chasing after Bellick who was being taken away by the police. I felt so sorry for Sucre. I hope he finds his love, Maricruz. I hope he's not dead. I just hope Amaury Nolasco comes back next season. I read that he was about to go to medical school before the acting bug bit him. Medical science lost is televisions gain! He is one VERY STEAMING HOT Puerto Rican man (see photo)! Ay Papi!

Daytime Baby-Mama Drama

I grew up watching soap operas (a/k/a daytime dramas). I was a weird kid. In kindergarten I would come home from school and watch "Dark Shadows" with my mommy while hiding under the table whenever "Barnabas Collins" [pictured] came on. When other kids were running home to watch "Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck" in 3rd grade, I was running home to catch what was going on in Port Charles on “General Hospital”. When I got to college I would schedule my classes around “All My Children”. Just because Jenny and Greg were in college too. Needless to say, I had a very adult view of the world at young age.

When I finally got my very first professional acting job, as fate would have it, it was as an extra on the soap opera, “Search for Tomorrow”. I would go on and play a variety of roles in various capacities (extra a/k/a “background performer” or “U/5” a/k/a Under Five lines) on all of the New York based soap opera. Some of them are no longer on the air like “Search for Tomorrow”, “Loving”, “Ryan’s Hope” and my last semi-regular soap gig, “Another World”. I had never watched any of the shows I worked on except for “All My Children” and “One Life to Live”. Some of the story lines that I was involved in were considered “racy”. But that was over 10 years ago.

Now I’m home on from school because of the President’s Day holiday and I just happen to be channel surfing and now I realize that all those daytime dramas that I used to work on, were tame compared to the new daytime dramas: The Talk /Judge Reality Shows!. "Erica Kane" [pictured] never had to worry about discovering her man of three months was sleeping not only with her niece but "he" was biologically a woman. This is what I just saw on “The Jerry Spring Show” today. On the next channel a woman is suing her husband on “Judge Hatchett” for taking away her pick-up truck. Simple enough. Until you find out that the husband purchased the truck for her as a gift for Valentine’s Day even after she had cheated on him with his fishing buddy in the truck. [By "fishing buddy", I'm not talking about the "Brokeback Mountain" kind either.] By the way, this was the second time he had caught her. Needless to say, Judge Hatchett was not happy with the woman for wasting her time and dismissed the case.
My question is: Where do they find these people?

I have to admit, I have been a fan of Oprah Winfrey for many years. Just because I think she avoids going the exploitative route with the issues she discusses on her show. Her guess will always handle themselves with dignity and class no matter what horrible things they have been through. No chairs will go flying on her stage! Granted, I may not be interested in her shows about purchasing the “perfect bra” or what to do if you get a tampon stuck in your "hoo-hoo?" That is when I turn the channel or read a book. I have that choice. But you have to wonder why shows like “Jerry Springer” and “Maury” (or what should be called “Who Be Sholanda’s Baby Daddy Show?”). Perhaps as long as there will always be people looking for their 15 minutes of fame at the expense of sacrificing what little dignity they may have and people willing to watch these public humiliations, these shows will always have an audience.

However, it is a sad statement on American society when these shows are shown overseas and this is the “America” that foreign countries will view as what it means to live in America. It’s bad enough that foreigners think some of us are dumb asses’ for putting George W. Bush in the White House for a second term. All they have to do is watch an import of any of these shows and then they could understand how this happened. Every day Canada is starting to look better to me. At least there, gays are allowed to marry and receive the same benefits allowed married people nationally. Go Canada!!!