The BEST of Lifelube - "Who's that Queer?" From Thursday, December 11, 2008

Who's that Queer?

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Gore Vidal is an American novelist, screen writer, playwright, and politician. Early in his career he wrote the ground-breaking The City and the Pillar (1948) that outraged mainstream critics as one of the first major American novels to feature unambiguous homosexuality.


In 1956, Vidal was hired as a contract screenwriter for MGM, and collaborated with Christopher Fry, reworking the screenplay. Vidal later claimed that in order to explain the animosity between Ben-Hur and Messala, he had inserted a gay subtext suggesting that the two had had a prior relationship, but that actor Charlton Heston was oblivious.

As a political activist, in 1960, Gore Vidal was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress (running as Eugene Gore), losing an election in New York's 29th congressional district, a traditionally Republican district, by a margin of 57% to 43%. He received the most votes any Democrat in 50 years in that particular district.

It's about the "Weekend"

via ThinkProgress, by Zack Ford

The Sundance Selects film Weekend has to be one of the most honest portrayals of gay dating I’ve ever seen, and it deserves the positive reviews it has been getting.

Though people of all sexual orientations will relate to the themes of romance and courtship, Weekend shines in the way it offers a Queer Theory lens on the most primal aspect of gay life: hooking up and dating.

The premise is simple enough: Russell and Glen hook up on Friday night, but end up spending the weekend together, realizing that there’s something more than sexual chemistry between them.

Glen, of course, is leaving the country Sunday afternoon, so the magic has to happen fast.

It was disappointing that the film reinforced the stereotype that gay men use a lot of drugs, but with the short timeline, the alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine take the characters to a very vulnerable and honest place with each other, allowing for the film’s most compelling dialogue about gay relationships.

Weekend thrives on its simplicity, using conversations between the two archetypal characters to dissect the script gay courtships are supposed to follow as the two learn and grow from each other’s influence.

Russell is the classic closet-case, who’s out as gay, but not really to anyone. He pursues sexual liaisons, but is afraid of commitment because it means being out and having to own his identity.

 Instead, he interviews his partners about their own coming out experiences and tries to live vicariously through them in his journal. Glen, on the other hand, is out and proud, but has sworn off of relationships after being hurt by a cheating boyfriend.

 He also interviews his partners, forcing a tape recorder in their face in hopes of exposing queer sexuality through some sort of eventual art project.

Both are searching to understand the other’s archetype: Why is Russell so afraid and ashamed of his sexuality that he feels he has to hide it at all times? How can Glen be so comfortable with himself when he lets his sexuality define him?

The exploration of these questions reflects the internal homophobia that impacts all members of the LGBT community, complicating our relationships as we attempt to pretend they are no different than those of our heterosexual friends and neighbors.

Towards the end of Glen and Russell’s hurried courtship, the topic of marriage equality comes up. Tapping into his queer radicalism, Glen condemns the gay community for trying to embrace the heterosexual norm, suggesting “no one gets married for the benefits.”

 Russell’s yearning for true love betrays his inhibitions as he implores that maybe two people just want to declare their love in front of their friends because it’s meaningful to them. Ultimately, though, the movie makes a point greater than either side of the debate.

 Given how the variable of being gay in a homophobic society complicates same-sex relationships, marriage equality would create a venue in which gay men and lesbians could be celebrated both for their unique identities and for the normal lives they can nonetheless live.

Neither Glen nor Russell are ready to marry, but marriage would honor how both of them feel about their identities.

Weekend asks more questions than it answers, but it does so in a refreshingly unvarnished way. As public sentiment about the LGBT community changes, so too does the culture of the community itself, and this film creates a foundation for discussing the impact of those changes.

And despite the archetypal nature of their identities, Glen and Russell are unsensationally realized such that audience members will relate to them both. The film itself is about relationships, but its biggest offering might be an opportunity to better understand ourselves.

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Gay in 2011: How Homophobia Lost Its Cool

via PAJIBA, By Michael Murray

A well-written standpoint on this age-long issue.

The other night my wife and I watched X-Men: First Class.

I hadn’t mentioned anything, but I wanted to see Jennifer Lawrence’s portrayal of Mystique, which is another way of saying I wanted to see Jennifer Lawrence naked. We all know how Rebecca Romijn had perfected the role with her body in earlier versions of the franchise, but I wanted to see how the plain-spoken determination that Lawrence displayed in Winter’s Bone would translate into nudity.

I was optimistic.

However, very, very quickly I found myself utterly mesmerized by Michael Fassbender.

He was sexy. Jesus, he was dead sexy. And then there was James McAvoy. He was sexy, too. Sexy in a different way, but still sexy. Together, the chemistry they shared burned through the screen and I simply couldn’t take my eyes off of them. I mean, I wanted them to do stuff. Pulling myself together, I asked Rachelle, “Where’s Jennifer McLarwebender?”

Rachelle pointed her out.

“So she’s the blue one? Man alive, I just wish she’d get out of the way, sometimes she makes it hard to see Fassbender and McAvoy!”

Rachelle pursed her lips, “So, you want to have a better view of the guys, do you?”

I felt a little defensive at first and said nothing, but I couldn’t contain myself, “Yes! Look at them! They’re hot as hell! Way better than anything on “True Blood”! And don’t you judge me, you’d be in there like a dirty shirt in a second!”

And after just a moment of looking at one another we both nodded and returned to the movie.

Some 20 years ago when I was in high school, to say that you found another man sexy, let alone two of them, spelled certain doom. And it’s not that I grew up in an unusually parochial environment. As far as these things went, the school I attended in Ottawa — one of the larger Canadian cities — was relatively liberal minded. No matter, if you were gay or suspected of being gay, your life was to be misery.

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Who's That Queer? [Pedro Almodóvar}

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Pedro Almodóvar is an openly gay Spanish film director, screenwriter and producer. He is the most successful and internationally known Spanish film maker of his generation, having won numerous Academy Awards, BAFTAS, Golden Globes and many more both as writer and director.


Almodóvar’s films enjoy a worldwide following and he has become a major figure on the stage of world cinema. The success of his movies has brought awareness to the cause of equal rights. He can also be credited with bringing two Spanish stars to an international audience - Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz.

Read more at Gay for Today.

Who's That Queer [Lee Daniels]

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Lee Louis Daniels (born December 24, 1959) is an American actor, film producer and director best known for producing Monster's Ball and directing Precious, the film adaptation of the novel Push, by Sapphire.

Daniels was born on Christmas Eve, 1959, in Philadelphia and attended Lindenwood College in St. Charles, Missouri. He began his career in entertainment as a casting director and manager after a chance meeting with a Hollywood producer, working on such projects as Under the Cherry Moon and Purple Rain. He continued managing talent, including several Academy Award nominees and winners.

When he arrived in Hollywood, Daniels first worked for a nursing agency, then created his own agency at age 21. He sold his agency for approx $2 million and went to work as a production assistant. Later, he realized he had not paid taxes on his income but paid them off in time.

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Who's that Queer?

Brought to you by Pistol Pete

Gore Vidal is an American novelist, screen writer, playwright, and politician. Early in his career he wrote the ground-breaking The City and the Pillar (1948) that outraged mainstream critics as one of the first major American novels to feature unambiguous homosexuality.


In 1956, Vidal was hired as a contract screenwriter for MGM, and collaborated with Christopher Fry, reworking the screenplay. Vidal later claimed that in order to explain the animosity between Ben-Hur and Messala, he had inserted a gay subtext suggesting that the two had had a prior relationship, but that actor Charlton Heston was oblivious.

As a political activist, in 1960, Gore Vidal was an unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress (running as Eugene Gore), losing an election in New York's 29th congressional district, a traditionally Republican district, by a margin of 57% to 43%. He received the most votes any Democrat in 50 years in that particular district.