Caitlyn Jenner to Reteam With Diane Sawyer for One-Year Follow-Up Interview

  Please tell me she'll announce she's transitioning to a liberal. Read HERE.

Catty About Cait

Larry likes watching "I Am Cait" in bed, but I'm more excited about a possible sequel -- one in which the Olympic great transitions from being a Republican. From HERE.

Caitlyn 'Call Me Republican' Jenner

My brother Bill reminded me of this timely joke from 40 years ago: 

"The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution equating Zionism with racism. Black entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., a convert to Judaism, was quoted as saying: 'What a breakthrough! Now, finally, I can hate myself!'"  

 -- Chevy Chase, Weekend Update, "Saturday Night Live" Season 1, Episode 5, Nov. 15, 1975

'Cait' Watching

Wow. It only took two episodes and I'm already hate watching "I Am Cait," the former Bruce Jenner's "reality" show for the E! Network. Last night it was hard to decide who was more unlikable: Cait, with her "people get dependent and have no incentive to work" if the government's social safety net remains intact (STFU, you Republican moron), or her (fake and hired) friends, who want to rip her a new asshole for merely offering empathy to someone who talked about her days as a sex worker:

"Just because you read a few words about the subject in a book by Janet Mock does NOT make you an authority on the topic, Caitlyn." 

Huh? Now we don't want white people of privilege to educate themselves? Does she have to turn a trick on Santa Monica Boulevard to say anything about what some trans people are doing?

Again, the show is doing far more good than bad. But while episode one seemed to fly by, episode two -- with its manufactured bathing-suit drama (the first time we ever saw Caitlyn she was wearing a tiny corset on the cover of a famous magazine, so I have a really hard time believing going in a hot tub is an issue for her!), fake crush on Candis Cayne and bullshit road trip -- felt like a 10-part miniseries. The only moment that rang true at all was when Caitlyn talked about concerns about the pitch of her voice. The producers seem to have their hearts in the right place, but it sure would be nice if they could document more moments like the voice one and stop forcing so many fake ones. There are so many real issues to be dealt with here that it seems like such a waste and disservice to treat this as casually any other reality show, even within the limitations of the genre.

The Reality of 'I Am Cait'

Wishing to keep my "I've never seen a single episode of 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians'" title in place, I reluctantly watched the premiere of "I Am Cait," figuring it was a touchstone moment I'd regret missing. My friend Greg kinda took the words out of my mouth (above) -- we're both mom fetishists -- but I did want to add a couple additional thoughts:

--Loved that Caitlyn stole Cybill Shepherd's Vaseline lens for the confessional close-ups.

--Loved Cait's sister who was on it a lot (Pam)

--Loved that Kim Kardashian showed up and immediately said the most shallow thing possible, commenting on her former stepfather's weight.

--Think it's cruelly ironic that 85 percent of gay men already have voices Cait would KILL for!

And finally:

--Like Greg, thought the mom stuff was the best part of the show, but did not believe her for a minute when she said she was even more proud of Bruce for his bravery coming out as transgender than she was when he won the gold. (I'm sorry, but her eyes did not match the words coming out of her mouth, which sounded every bit as crafted as 75 percent of what Cailyn said about the plight of transgender people everywhere.) That's perfectly understandable, but it was a stark reminder that no matter how "real" you want to think reality shows are -- many think this might be the first "real" one ever -- they're not. I have firsthand knowledge about the making of this program and it's just as staged and fabricated as all the rest of them -- it is, remember, on the E! Entertainment network, which means it needs to entertain you. That said, the impact it will have on the lives of transgender people cannot be underestimated, and for that reason alone I'm a fan.

UPDATE:

This just in.

Caitlyn Jenner Gives Moving Acceptance Speech at ESPY Awards

Beautifully done, lady.

Caitlyn Jenner Courts Renee Richards

Renee Richards can deny having been in touch with Caitlyn Jenner all she wants, but the comparisons are inevitable. 

  The jocks turned wearers of frocks met back in 1987.

Straight Guys Weigh In on Bruce Jenner's Transition and Why It's Really a Woman's World

Meaningful insights from Clyde McFly -- aka my friend Matt Noonan and Matt Trehy ...

Diss Me, Cait

The New York Post is evil, but when they're right they're right!

On Tuesday, Jenner went shopping at Patricia Field’s Bowery store, where she continued her style showcase as she stepped into the “Sex and the City” stylist’s shop wearing a saucy leopard wrap dress from DVF. Unfortunately, she emerged looking like a deranged Carrie Bradshaw after a bad acid trip in the JCPenney juniors department.

Page 1 Consider (06/02)

Oh, New York Post. You just had to be awful.

Meet Caitlyn Jenner

  Wow. Talk about making a splash. Bruce Jenner's rebirth as Caitlyn got the full Annie Leibovitz treatment for her Vanity Fair debut. Looking very Old Hollywood, Ms. Jenner!

UPDATE: Jenner to receive Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the 2015 ESPYs!

When Bruce Jenner Met Dr. Renee Richards

Matt at Boy Culture caught this revealing shot of Bruce Jenner from a promo for his E! reality show, saying:

I was struck by the saw-a-ghost pallor of Bruce Jenner in this shot from the following preview for "Keeping Up With the Kardashians: About Bruce." His struggle is real, and it's not just for attention ... 

Indeed. I was in Tucson for my family's medical emergency when the Diane Sawyer interview aired, but I've been meaning to blog a thought or two about it. Although Renee Richards laughs off reports that she has been in contact with Jenner about his journey, I did come to find they had met at least once before, at a WTA dinner in 1987. There are soooo many similarities between their stories -- from the hyper-successful sports careers and love of women, to the transitioning almost to the point of no return before "chickening out" and getting married (again) and having children -- and I couldn't help but wonder what was going on in Bruce's mind that night. The last 35 years of Jenner's life finally made sense when I learned he wasn't just a vain jock gone Hollywood getting crazy plastic surgery right and left, but in fact a transitioning woman. I joked about how disgusted I was when he came out as a Republican -- and I do hope he will realize his party is the principal reason why there are no laws protecting his fellow trans citizens in most U.S. states, and that he will come around eventually and conclude money isn't everything. But more important, here's hoping future transgender people will be able to live as they really are sooner in life than Richards and Jenner were able to as a result of stories like theirs.

Bruce Jenner and Dr. Renee Richards at the 10th Annual Women's Tennis Association dinner at the Plaza Hotel, in August 1987

If I could ask Jenner one question, it would be: How were you feeling that night and what were you dying to ask Renee?

Renee with son Nicky, who was born after Renee had transitioned back to male

Canadian doubles match of the year

Chris was always a hunk magnet!

Watch the Bruce Jenner E! promo HERE.

Chris Evert Expresses Support for Bruce Jenner

I think General Mills meant well, but I think Chris Evert went about it better.

Bruce Jenner Sued for Wrongful Death in Highway Crash

Sad situation all way around, but f the police haven't cited him, not sure how a lawsuit works.

Via AP:

The stepchildren of a woman killed in an automobile crash involving Bruce Jenner have sued the Olympic gold medalist. The wrongful death case was filed Friday in Los Angeles by the stepchildren of Kim Howe, whose car was pushed into oncoming traffic after Jenner's sport utility vehicle collided with it on Pacific Coast Highway in February. The lawsuit by Dana Redmond and William Howe does not specify how much they are seeking, but states they have sustained enormous damages. Jenner's publicist Alan Nierob declined comment. Jenner has not been charged in the case. An investigation is ongoing. Jenner said in a TV interview that he identifies as a woman and has felt gender confusion since he was a boy.

Is Bruce Jenner Mad About Belinda Carlisle?

A friend noted the likeness -- and the gold medalist is rumored to have selected Belinda as new name.

Sobering Experience

Wow. THIS is really happening. I wonder if Diane will be drunk.

Has the National Center for Lesbian Rights Ever Heard of Renee Richards?

The Wall Street Journal weighs in on the Bruce Jenner story, looking at the transition from a sports angle HERE -- but what an idiotic quote from Helen J. Carroll, the sports director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights:

“We’re all waiting for Bruce Jenner to say something. Sports hasn’t come to the forefront of [transgender] issues yet."

Huh????

Sports is the way the MAJORITY OF PEOPLE IN THE 20TH CENTURY first found out what being trans was about -- in a case that went all the way to the New York Supreme Court, which ruled in 1977 that Renee Richards had the right to compete in the women's draw at the U.S. Open -- and is the MOST HIGH-PROFILE transgender thing to ever happen ... and it was SPORTS-related!

What are you talking about, Helen?

For a time, everything about Renee was headline news -- even when it wasn't about her

The Second Coming of an Olympic Superstar

Now we know what Jenner was running from ...

The forgotten history of Bruce Jenner: How the 1970s all-American hero ended up here

It's hard to explain how emotional seeing this Bruce Jenner story on the Washington Post home page was for me today. Having grown up adoring this man -- I had just turned 9 when the hunky American brought home the gold from Montreal and followed his every move after -- it makes realizing he was going through such a painful internal struggle hit really close to home. I've tried to come up with a Millennial equivalent so people could understand how monumental this is. Michael Phelps might be the closest we've got, but even Phelps didn't become the "It" guy Jenner was back in the high-flying '70s and '80s -- and he certainly didn't have Jenner's sex appeal. One look at this commercial and you will see exactly what I mean. Good luck, gorgeous.

UPDATE: A commenter just suggested Tom Brady as a better comparison and I think that is spot on.

PHOTO: Bruce Jenner's Sexy 1979 GQ Cover

If it's true that he is transitioning, it would go a long way to explain why a man so incredibly handsome never seemed comfortable in his own skin, which he opted to alter for as long as we can remember. Good luck, gorgeous! More pics HERE.

All About the Bruce

If these photos of Bruce Jenner in 1972, 1980 and 1983 are any indication, he's going to make a very pretty woman.