This week's rag 'n' mag roundup features Alessio Pozzi, Jacob Rott, Scott Doolan, Kathy Griffin, the boys of "Stranger Things" and more BELOW.
Thursday, November 13, 2025
Wednesday, November 12, 2025
Spring(!) Awakening
Further proof that even everyday people need social media interns to stay on top of things nowadays: Last night I posted our vacation photos from March(!) to the French Riviera, Milan and Switzerland. Like many people, I've gotten into the habit of posting stories as I go along, since they're easier and take less time. But at the end of the day, with no photo albums to flip through anymore, I do like to document memorable events "on the grid," so I finally buckled down figuring if I waited any longer it wouldn't even be the same year! I blogged about the trip at the time. But if you've any interest -- it truly was spectacular -- you can find them HERE.
Remains of the Day (11/12)
Queerty: Gio Benitez gets baptized at LGBTQ-inclusive Catholic church with hubby Tommy DiDario at his side
Wrestle Wednesday: "So ... what do you think of my singlet?"
Gr8er Days: A toast to Melba!
Attitude: Tom Daley says coming out "shouldn’t come with a big expectation to politicize everything you do" [eyeroll emoji]
Hot Cat of the Day: When your kitty skips leg day but never forgets to do arms
Drew Cards: "It's up to you."
Tuesday, November 11, 2025
Tennis Tuesday
I give Simone Bolelli credit for keeping his hand from moving any higher on Andrea Vavassori's thigh because god knows I wouldn't have been able to control myself. I collected more than a dozen photos of the Italian stallion this past week, so decided to leave them out of my tennis roundup and post them all for your pleasure BELOW.
Monday, November 10, 2025
Remains of the Day (11/10)
Death Became Him: Arizona dad dies by suicide after leaving 2-year-old daughter to die in hot car while he watched porn
Washington Blade: Supreme Court rejects woman who refuses to do her job's effort to overturn landmark same-sex marriage precedent -- but just wait'll a better test case comes along
CBS News: 4 dead, 13 injured after Florida police chase ends with suspect crashing into popular LGBTQ bar
Greg in Hollywood: Jonathan Bailey talks “Wicked” and his Sexiest Man Alive title on “Good Morning Britain”
Hot Cat of the Day: Larry the Downing Street cat finds place in TV spotlight
Sunday, November 09, 2025
Friday, November 07, 2025
Remains of the Day (11/07)
Attitude: Before Instagram and Grindr there were physique magazines (ICYMI)
WGN: Suburban chiropractor accused of secretly recording more than 100 patients; wears sleeveless shirt in mug shot ... and this teacher's perp pose is even more fetching!
PinkNews: Study shows majority of Americans support same-sex marriage, as Supreme Court decision looms
Speedo Sunday: He's a cool rider
Hot Cat(s) of the Day: New cabinet members, I hope!
Homo-eats: I told you the Q made no sense!
Thursday, November 06, 2025
On the Rag, Vol. 882
Jonathan Bailey, Peter Daut, Matt Bomer, Romeo Beckham and more in this week's rag 'n' mag roundup BELOW.
Wednesday, November 05, 2025
Sophie Ellis-Bextor Kills at Webster Hall
We had a hoot seeing Sophie Ellis-Bextor last night at Webster Hall, a venue I used to frequent but don't think I'd seen a show since Adam Ant in 2017. I didn't know an awful lot about her. But Damian is a big fan, so I was pleasantly surprised by how many songs I recognized from his having blasted her music in the shower over the years -- I have my husband to thank for not one, but three Sophia Songs of the Day -- and possibly dancing to "Groovejet (If This Ain't Love)" at the Roxy back in the day.
First off, I have to say that Sophie is such an adorable goofball -- her kick dancing! -- so it was a joy to see her basking in the newfound popularity she gained by the use of "Murder on the Dancefloor" in the closing scene of "Saltburn." (She joked that it was her biggest hit, "twice"!) Her gratitude was expressed throughout the show, which features her little brother on drums and hubby and father of her five sons on bass.
Although it seems she's been recording since the mid-90s, first with the indie band theaudience and as a solo artist since 2000, it was only last year that she was "big" enough to tour the U.S., with Tuesday's show being her second time in NYC in the past 18 months. She's just released a great new album, "Perimenopop," which is a bit of a love letter to disco from a woman of a certain age. (She's gorgeous at 46 now, which sounds young to me, but is definitely old in pop star years!)
Because I'm not that up on her, I was shocked when she launched into a cover of Cher's "Take Me Home" as her second song, only later learning that it was a huge hit for her off her debut, the one that also included "Murder on the Dancefloor." Further confusing me, she also did "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! A Man After Midnight" and a bit of "I Feel Love" -- and Dennis Parker's "Like an Eagle" played before her set (if you know, you know) -- so the entire set list complemented the campy, disco-party feel of it all, making for an incredibly fun and carefree outing.
She ended things by surprising the crowd after the encore by re-appearing on the balcony -- Evita style -- to do the night's only ballad: "Don't Know What You've Got 'Til It's Gone," which is also the new album's closer. She may not have, say, Pat Benatar's range. But Sophie's voice is certainly unique. And to hear her sing as the final song of the concert, on the final night of the tour, a cappella with no microphone really spoke to just how special she is. Verdict: Sophie didn’t just murder the dancefloor -- she resurrected it. Upgrade me from casual to actual fan.
Before
During
After, getting a late dinner at Veselka
Read up on this sexpot HERE.
Remains of the Day (11/05)
Greg in Hollywood: Cher says her career is like a "bumper car": "If I hit a wall, I would just back up and go in a different direction."
Wrestle Wednesday: Garrett's singlet is "half off," although I'm not sure about its cost
The Advocate: Jim Obergefell warns that people should be "concerned" about Supreme Court considering marriage equality case
Out: Chelsea's g Lounge returns with frozen cosmos, drag and a mission to make everyone feel at home
Hot Cat of the Day: And I didn't think it was possible to love Wendi McLendon-Covey more
Tuesday, November 04, 2025
First Tuesday in November
I must say I haven’t seen this much hope and excitement from my party since Bill de Blasio ran for New York City mayor in 2013!
Decrescendo: A Gay Ear’s Lament
I always say that I stopped paying attention to new music after the Bangles’ "Everything" came out in 1988. But the truth is a little more … melodramatic.
After five long years of dating a Colombian control freak -- the kind of guy who thought Carlos Vives, Luis Miguel and the Gipsy Kings should provide the score to every waking moment -- I emerged from that relationship musically shell-shocked. Picture me, trapped in a BMW 352i with “Bamboleo” blaring for the thousandth time, praying for death -- or at least for Blondie.
Once I regained custody of the stereo, I discovered that the ’90s actually had some incredible music -- and, unsurprisingly, it was mostly the women doing the heavy lifting. Saint Etienne, Ivy, Garbage, Shakespears Sister, Belly, the Breeders -- they were the cool younger cousins of the divas we grew up worshipping. And of course, some of my childhood faves -- Everything But the Girl, Paul Weller, Divinyls, Aimee Mann, Sade, Chris Isaak -- were still carrying the melodic torch into adulthood, making it safe for me to sing along without irony.
Then I stumbled upon this list of the best-selling albums from each year of the ’90s. Out of the 10, eight were by women. Artists like Madonna, Whitney, Mariah and Cher strutted through the decade like the legends they were and still are -- with Alanis doing her best angry-diary thing in the corner.
But by the end of the decade, things started … well, hitting a sour note. The music got worse (Celine), then worse (Shania) and somehow even worse (Britney). By the 2000s, I wasn’t sure whether to turn on the radio or flee the country. (At least Argentina never stopped believing in rock.)
Maybe I’m just nostalgic, but sometimes I miss when music had a pulse -- when choruses soared, bridges mattered and the girls sang like they meant it. Today’s playlists sound like background music for a skincare commercial, or worse.
So yes, I still joke that I stopped paying attention after the Bangles' eternal flame figured out a way to extinguish at the end of the '80s. But if I’m being honest, I think music just hit its own decrescendo -- and I never quite recovered.
In fairness, maybe it isn't reasonable to think you wouldn't be let down when you grew up in an era when the average Top 20 includes the likes of Stevie Wonder, Prince, Diana Ross, Madonna, David Bowie, Tina Turner, Chaka Khan, Elton John, Rod Stewart, Hall and Oates and Cyndi Lauper.
Monday, November 03, 2025
A Case of Us
It’s a special day, as Damian and I met (in person) 11 years ago this evening, on a rare night I had off from work. Although we both generally shied away from anything beyond “coffee” or “a drink” for first-time internet dates, we’d actually been chatting online long enough -- including a later-discovered spate dating back to 2002 via Gaydar(!) -- that I made the executive decision to invite him for dinner in Chelsea, to which he agreed. The meal (and pitcher of sangria) at Coppelia, followed by drinks at the lounge at Le Zie, flew by -- and we’ve been lovers and best friends ever since.
Since we’re going to see Sophie Ellis-Bextor tomorrow night at Webster Hall -- and he caught IAMX last night at Le Poisson Rouge -- we decided to celebrate our special day on Saturday by going to see "Joni Mitchell: Take Me as I Am" at the SoHo Playhouse.
The one-woman show -- which was the toast of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival -- stars Rainee Blake as the titular singer-songwriter, who’s just gotten back to Los Angeles in 1976 from a solo road trip across America. In what feels like a laid-back night at the Troubadour, Rainee -- perfect Canadian accent in check -- embodies Joni, who is feeling vulnerable and ready to bare her soul after spending so much time away from home.
“Blake is technically flawless -- the phrasing, the tunings, the sly, sidelong humor -- but it is her emotional intelligence that astonishes. Understated, brilliant and quietly transcendent."
Because we were at the penultimate NYC performance, my strong recommendation will need to go unheeded for now. But this sounds like something Blake dusts off from time to time, so I encourage you to follow her on social media to keep track of her next outing.
From there, we returned to Lupe’s Mexican Kitchen, where we once had an incredible Valentine’s Day dinner right before Covid hit. We hadn’t been back since and half-feared that, like many places, it might not be around anymore. But Lupe is alive and well, and the meal -- and the company -- were as delicious as ever. xo
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