Thursday, April 30, 2015

He's Got Legs


And knows how to use 'em. More HERE.

Remembering the Woman Who Had Her Cake and Ate It, Too


Do yourself a favor and read Weight Watchers founder Jean Nidetch's New York Times obit. With bits like this, you'll be smiling all day long!
She ate compulsively. She tried pills, hypnosis and fad diets, but cycles of weight loss and gain went on. In 1961, after encountering the woman who thought she was pregnant, she went to a city obesity clinic. For 10 weeks, she pretended to follow its diet. But she was obsessed with Mallomars, chocolate-coated marshmallow cookies. She hid them in the hamper and at night gorged on them in the bathroom.  
Trapped in a gluttonous secret life, she decided she had to confide in someone. She invited six friends, all overweight women, to her home for what turned into a group confessional, an exorcism of caloric demons that was the informal beginning of Weight Watchers. They all went on a diet, pledging mutual help through the abysses of anxiety, doubt and gnawing hunger. It worked. They soon brought more overweight friends to the meetings. Within two months, 40 women were attending.
In 1973, 16,000 Weight Watchers jammed Madison Square Garden for the group’s 10th anniversary. It was like a revival. Bob Hope, Pearl Bailey and Roberta Peters were there, but the star, in a drift of white chiffon, was Mrs. Nidetch, a combination Cinderella and Aimee Semple McPherson with her own evangelical message: Overeating is an emotional problem with an emotional solution. Crowds surged for her autograph, to touch her or even to make eye contact. She looked as if she had never had a cookie in her life. 
“I just shake my head when I see someone eating cake and saying, ‘Oh, I wish I wasn’t heavy.’ But they keep eating the cake!”
Read HERE.


'Why I Killed Jeffrey Dahmer'


The man who murdered Jeffrey Dahmer in prison tells his story, but it's every bit as not interesting as you'd expect it to be. (He's just a psycho killer too, pun intended.) Read HERE.

To Cut a Long Story Short


I'm so bummed I missed the premiere of this Spandau Ballet documentary at IFC last night, but my friend Mark saw it on DVD and said it's brilliant! I'm probably going to go this weekend, though. (And who's going to the Beacon gig?)


SYNOPSIS Relive the music, fashion, and spirit of the 1980s via the incredible saga of the rise, fall, and comeback of New Wave legends Spandau Ballet. From the streets of working class London to the top of the pop charts, Spandau Ballet conquered the airwaves in the '80s with international hits like “True” and “Gold.” But the behind-the-scenes story was just as compelling, as the band overcame ego clashes and a bitter breakup to reunite triumphantly for their current tour. Featuring never-before-seen home movies, archival footage, and interviews with the band, "Soul Boys of the Western World" is a captivating chronicle of the roller-coaster ride of fame and an awesomely retro time capsule of the sounds and styles of an unforgettable decade.


Release Dates:
April 29 - Nationwide on VOD 
April 29 - New York, NY - IFC Center
May 8 - Los Angeles, CA - Arena Cinema
May 8 - Columbus, OH - Gateway Film Center 
May 13 - Minneapolis, MN - Trylon Microcinema 
May 15 - Chicago, IL - Gene Siskel Film Center


Come Again?


Finally, a dildo that can be filled with the ashes of your loved one.


Time Out

Das Boot


Song of the Day: 'Up We Go' by Lights


For my sister, who as an Arizonan has had to carry the heaviest part of the parental load.

Morning Wood


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Read Weight Watchers founder Jean Nidetch's obit HERE.








On the Rag, Vol. 352

A weekly look at what's making news in the free gay mags:


Grab (Chicago): I love you, Victor / Online edition HERE.


Next: This week's #SummerStyle issue showcases the perfect accessories for showing some skin / Read HERE.


Metro Weekly (D.C.): Alex Newell on coming out, life after "Glee" and supporting the Trevor Project / Read HERE.


Metro Weekly also ranked Duran Duran's albums from worst to best HERE. They even included Arcadia! 


EDITOR'S NOTE: I was away for a family emergency, but it looks like I didn't miss much last week. Get Out! seems to have skipped publication -- or I'd prematurely posted the new one two weeks ago -- and Echo (in Phoenix) appears to have shifted from biweekly to monthly. New roundup tomorrow will have lots, though.

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Media Two-Point-Oh



I didn't cast a vote, but I'd have agreed. Only took us 20 years to figure out the news-gathering landscape is changing!

Rosie's Ex Makes the Rounds



Looks like someone's got a type.

Don Juan


  Well done, NYDN. (How'd I get behind two episodes again!?!!!)


Cox Blocked


Beautiful to see President Obama and first lady Michelle with Laverne Cox. I said it in my memoir and I'll say it again -- trickle-down economics don't work, but trickle-down social views do. It's subtle, but moments like this have a cumulative effect and slowly change things. This photo-op makes me proud to be an American.

Zac Efron Makes a Brief(s) Appearance


Zac Efron shows off his best asset on the set of "Dirty Grandpa," which is ironically how I'm feeling right about now.



Tucson Update: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back -- UPDATED


Many thanks to friends, family and readers who have reached out for updates on my family situation. The good news is my stepfather, Gary, had a successful triple bypass on Monday, and it slated to leave the ICU for a regular room this afternoon. The bad news is he will be out of commission for many weeks to come, and my mom -- who had been moved to the rehab facility to recover from her 10-hour spinal surgery two weeks ago -- had a major setback over the weekend and was readmitted to the hospital, after (possibility) attempting to "escape" in the middle of the night and being found on the floor of her room. They were afraid she'd fallen out of bed, but they keep it low to the ground with little cushions on the floor (just in case), and the fact that she hadn't injured her spine or head (according to tests we did in the ER) and actually was sleeping WITH her pillow makes me think it was somewhat of an intentional act, however executed. My brother Bill came to relieve me, and now Mom remains in the hospital, with ongoing signs of either ICU psychosis, side effects of a UTI or perhaps just the cumulative effects of anesthesia (which she is extremely sensitive to), morphine (which she is extremely sensitive to) and not eating or moving for two weeks. (You may recall she made phone calls to dozens of people the other night saying she'd been kidnapped.) From what we're hearing, she could "snap out" of this at any given moment -- her neurologist says there's nothing permanent going on -- so we are just waiting for the old Molly to reappear. When she does, I'm sure she'll find this item in the Tucson Medical Center history case as delightful and non-creepy as I do!


UPDATE:

No sooner did I post this my brother wrote:
All indications are that she suddenly snapped out of the "dementia" and the old Molly is back. After a very scary morning. Attempt to get out of bed failed, but hospital PT is going to try. She's thrilled with the baby step. 
When I asked if he was sure it was "for real" this time -- because there was a strong glimmer of hope Sunday before she then completely lost it -- and he replied:
She has ordered me to get her a Smashburger shake. Complete with driving directions.
Here's hoping this is the "turn" was have been waiting for.

Hale and Hardy


Details asks if Tom Hardy is the most dangerous movie star alive. Read HERE.



Senior Thesis

Song of the Day: 'Once Bitten, Twice Shy' by Great White


Drove this weekend for the first time in decades and what's on the radio? A Casey Kasem rebroadcast from 1984. The Tracey Ullman, Thompson Twins and Culture Club hits were right up my alley, but I'm not gonna lie that my sister and I rocked out hardest to this '89 remake! #Tucson #94.9

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Morning Wood