Monthly Archives: September 2006

2nd to none

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By Gilbert Garcia – Pop Music Critic

Follow-up avoids sophomore slump, proves Scissor Sisters’ debut was no fluke



SHARPENED UP: Singer Jake Shears, front center, leads Scissor Sisters to an evolved, more innovative sound on new disc.

Scissor Sisters
“Ta-Dah”
Universal/Motown

From the moment their 2004 debut record lit up dance floors and concert stages, expectations suddenly got very high for queer New York super-group Scissor Sisters. Where a first-time release requires only a decent set of songs and a go-for-broke exuberance, sophomore albums are different beasts altogether. For a follow-up to be successful, a band must prove they’re both innovative and that they’ve evolved.

On their second release, “Ta-Dah,” unabashedly gay singer Jake Shears and crew perform admirably on both counts not only producing a solid and fun album, but sounding quite slicker in 2006.

“Ta-Dah” wastes no time getting to the good stuff, starting off with the group’s first single, “I Don’t Feel Like Dancing.” Like the group’s previous hits, the track borrows liberally from ’70s-era pop of artists like Elton John, to whom the group owes a lot of credit. Indeed, it should be no surprise that Sir Elton himself provided backing keys for two tracks on the album, and he takes a co-writing credit as well.

Whereas the first album was divided equally between bouncy pop and trashy disco, “Ta-Dah” tends to be more heavily weighted toward the former, which is a good direction. From the pseudo-glam stylings of “She’s My Man,” to the slick Chic-inspired grooves on “Ooh,” the better tracks on “Ta-Dah” sound like they were lifted from late-’70s pop radio.

Other standouts include the funky Casio-fueled tribute “Paul McCartney” and the Blondie-styled anthem “Kiss You Off.”

Like its predecessor, “Ta-Dah” isn’t flawless. Despite its high points, it occasionally stumbles on longwinded tracks that are neither here nor there and ushers in a distracting lull to the fun flamboyance. In spite of these weak points, “Ta-Dah” that tells us just what we needed to know about Scissor Sisters: They’re not just a one-hit wonder, and there’s little chance they’ll be disappearing any time soon.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Clay confesses to Paxil

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By Gilbert Garcia – Pop Music Critic


When does an inspiring celebrity interview become a rude inquisition? If you’re Clay Aiken, it’s just about the time you’re asked about your sexual orientation.

Last week, during a “Good Morning America” interview with Diane Sawyer, Aiken bristled at Sawyer’s questions about his sexuality, saying the issue was “a waste of my time.”

He also added that the pesky and ubiquitous question was “really rude.”

Aiken previously denied being gay in a 2003 Rolling Stone interview. But this time around, he sidestepped a full denial insisting that his personal life was out of bounds and wondering aloud why anyone would be interested in the sex life of a popular singer.

When it came to other personal issues, however, the suave North Carolinian wasn’t nearly as circumspect. Discussing his recent struggle with panic attacks, Aiken confessed to taking the antidepressant Paxil, and added that he was not currently in therapy. Presumably, a discussion of his sexuality would have been less inspirational than knowing what medication he’s on.

Last week also marked the release of Aiken’s third album, “A Thousand Different Ways.” The record largely consists of covers of some of the singer’s favorite love songs, including the Harry Nilsson hit “Without You,” the Hall and Oates favorite “Every Time You Go Away” and Foreigner’s “I Want to Know What Love Is.” Earlier this year, Aiken’s clean-cut rep was rocked when a former Army Ranger named John Paulus recounted a sordid hotel hookup with Aiken. Paulus sold his story to the National Enquirer. Though the GMA interview didn’t specifically mention the incident, Aiken did describe recent tabloid stories about him as “lies.”

Gilbert Garcia



PLAYMATES

With a sly, folksy groove that sometimes slides into full-on rock, local lesbian duo Bandmates charm with toe-tapping goodies. Fronted by singer and songwriter Kimberly Cody, and bassist and backup singer Susan Carson, the busy Bandmates are giving North Texans two chances to catch them on stage this weekend.

On Saturday, Cody and Carson join crafters, designers and other local acts for an acoustic show at the Urban Street Bazaar in Uptown, near the intersection of Thomas Avenue and Boll Street. On Sunday, they’ll make the short drive to Hubbard, Texas (South of Dallas, north of Waco) to take part in the Earful of Texas Music festival, playing a plugged-in set with their full band. The gorgeous North Texas fall is all too short, so make a point of getting out this weekend and enjoying some local flavor with these underground faves.

G. G.

Urban Street Bazaar, Thomas Avenue at Boll Street. Sep. 30 at 7 p.m. Free.
Earful of Texas Music Festival, City Lakes Park, Hubbard. Oct. 1 at 11 a.m. $19.95. EarFullofTexas.com.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Still going strong

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By Greg Shapiro – Contributing Writer

Tenacious multi-talent Cyndi Lauper keeps improving with age



She could have coasted on the signature Betty Boop-style delivery of “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” But Cyndi Lauper’s independent streak proves she’s a big girl with a big voice. And a bigger career than people give her credit for.

This year, Lauper made some interesting additions to her resume: a Broadway debut in “Threepenny Opera,” directing a TV commercial and stealing
the show at the Closing Ceremonies of Gay Games VII in Chicago. But she’s just getting started, and the 53-year-old diva isn’t slowing down anytime soon.

Last year, Lauper released “The Body Acoustic,” which flexed her skills at cover songs. And because she’s been so busy on the Great White Way and sticking her toes into new cultural waters, the “Body Acoustic” tour went on sabbatical. Leg 2 swings into the Lakewood Theater on Friday. She recently gave us the lowdown on her seemingly tireless career.

You’re finally a Broadway baby. How does that feel?

I got one down. It was a different kind of experience. Most of the production was non-traditional. Scott Elliott, the director of “Threepenny,” didn’t choose typical Broadway people. It was Alan Cumming in the lead; Nellie McKay was Polly; and I was Jenny. He had a lot of people famous for other things. But Alan is famous for Broadway and the movies.

The opportunity to do Kurt Weill only comes along once in a great while. And now I don’t want to leave Broadway.

You’re also a director, who recently made a TV commercial for Hasbro’s “Trivial Pursuit: Totally ’80s Edition.” Is your next challenge tackling independent film?

Of course. I love film: When you hear the camera rolling, it’s almost like a very peaceful experience.

As an actor, when you step into a frame, it’s kind of extraordinary because you are putting a whole world on a piece of film. When you’re directing, you get to watch it happen. For me, the commercial was supposed to be a comedy. I like funny commercials. I thought it would incredible to have Charlotte Rae breakdance. Lou Ferrigno was working on the Rubik’s Cube with his mental prowess. All of the actors, like Philip Michael Thomas and Charlene Tilton, are definitely an untapped reservoir. The camera just eats them up. Everybody had a little something.

Is it true that you next album will be in a dance-music vein?

Some of it will. But mostly, I think, songs are important. But I don’t think I can have a complete dance album. That would drive me a little crazy. I’m not a great dancer, anyway. I love the clubs, and I go there all the time. I love rhythm. But I would always be mixing rock in it. That’s what I do.

Since you’re a mom, have you ever considered doing an album for children?

I don’t know. We had to listen to Raffi over and over again. But then other people started doing stuff for children, and I thought that was really great. No, I don’t really want to do a lot of stuff for children. My son is more into rockers. He looks like a little rocker.

You’re not even finished with your current tour, but you’re already kicking up another one called “True Colors” where you’ll pair up with Erasure frontman Andy Bell.

We’re going to do that next summer. I wanted to do something with all of the Gay Prides. We could go all over the country and have a blast. I just did P-town Carnival in Provincetown. That was a riot. It’s good to do these things in the right order, so you can actually celebrate with people.

SHE-BOPPING IN BIG D
Cyndi Lauper visits Dallas for an intimate gig at the Lakewood Theater, 1825 Abrams Parkway. Sept. 29. Doors at 7:30 p.m. $55-$75. 214-373-8000.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Crystal clarity

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By J.S. Hall – Contributing Writer

With dry wit and caustic flair, a writer confronts his many addictions



“Tweaked: A Crystal Meth Memoir,” by Patrick Moore. (Kensington Books, 2006), 224 pp., $15. Paper.

Since crystal meth abuse began running rampant in the gay community, it stands to reason that memoirs written by ex-crystal addicts would mushroom as well. Books like Ron Nyswaner’s “Blue Days, Black Nights” have graphically illustrated the drug’s seductive pull and destructive grip. In the case of writer Patrick Moore (“Beyond Shame”), however, “crystal completed, with amazing efficiency, a trajectory that had begun with alcohol, moved through psychedelics and escalated into a whirlwind of pills and cocaine.”

However, calling “Tweaked” “a crystal meth memoir” is something of a misnomer, partly because of the sheer variety of pharmaceuticals involved.
And partly because Moore spends most of the memoir sober, albeit constantly struggling with “The Voice that speaks to me incessantly, whining and needling.”

And to make matters worse, he’s decided to serve as a counselor-facilitator at the House, a clinic of sorts for meth addicts.

“There are moments when I suddenly realize that I’m a nice boy from Iowa who is entirely comfortable sitting in a room of freaks,” Moore writes.

The House is presided over by Judy, an astonishingly blunt lesbian who stoically endures her charges’ outbursts, then responds blisteringly in kind.

The majority of “Tweaked” chronicles the two decades of substance abuse that ultimately led to Moore’s addiction. A sensitive boy, he spent most of his time with his grandmother Zelma, a character in her own right. Growing up gay in rural Iowa, he quickly turned to drugs and alcohol to smother his inner turmoil and “to add some kind of sparkle to the dullness of those gray cornfields.”

Much like Bruce Benderson’s “The Romanian” (a similarly drug-fueled enterprise), “Tweaked” transports the reader to a milieu most would never consider visiting, but vividly conveys why so many get drawn in and can never leave. And like Benderson, Moore spent a good deal of time in New York City’s seedier and more notorious locales.

In the 1980s, he could be found in any number of disreputable discos, bars, bathhouses and clubs. Frequently he did so in the company of Lee, the Patsy to Moore’s Edina, “that one friend who delights in the behaviors that horrify everyone else in our lives.”

Moore also had an older boyfriend named Dino, who ultimately died of AIDS in 1993 at age 32. Moore somehow remained free of the virus, despite their mutual non-monogamous escapades.

“I would slide into bed beside him, with the filth of other men still on me, and hold him, knowing full well that I had betrayed him but unable or unwilling to ask him for help,” Moore writes.

A near-perfect example of passive-aggressive dysfunction, their relationship and its gradual disintegration is a three-car pile-up on the highway of life terrible to experience, yet morbidly compelling to watch from a safe distance.

Not surprisingly, Moore sees ghosts of the past everywhere. And occasionally, he regrets the consequences of his actions, such as going on a shopping spree with his late lover’s credit cards the day after Dino died. Through the text of “Tweaked,” the chic squalor of locales like The Saint briefly shimmers back to fetid life.

Moore’s writing style is stark yet wry, like an Augusten Burroughs from the Midwest. Although he pulls no punches with his tawdry tales, neither does he scrounge for the reader’s sympathy or try to sermonize about the obvious evils of crystal meth, which should be apparent enough to anyone with half a brain cell.

Moore’s commitment to the truth no matter how bleak is the book’s saving grace.

“Gay men, like little boys, know how to reach forbidden places and squeeze through the tight openings that block the passage of all but the most determined.” Patrick Moore has peered into his own personal abyss, and emerged stronger as a result. His may be a journey that few can take, but his success should serve as inspiration for those seeking to escape crystal’s insidious grip.



TOURIST ATTRACTION: BERENDT DOES DALLAS

He vividly captured the dark mystique of Savannah, Ga., and he transformed The Lady Chablis into a transgender superstar.

On Wednesday, journalist-author John Berendt (“Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil”) visits Dallas for “Authors at The Adolphus” luncheon series. And when Berendt visits a locale, you might wonder how things look through his eyes.

“Midnight,” a story built around the murder of a prominent citizen, was published 12 years ago. Berendt’s most recent book, “The City of Falling Angels,” chronicles interwoven lives in Venice in the aftermath of a fire that destroyed an opera house. Like “Midnight,” “Falling Angels” captures remarkable characters and, more importantly, a sense of place a vibe that has readers checking Web fares to experience Venice’s exotic charms.

Maybe during his lunch, Berendt can offer us a quickie about what he sees in Dallas.

The French Room at The Adolphus, 1321 Commerce St. Oct. 4. 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Complimentary valet parking. $45 per person, plus applicable service charge and tax. Reservations required: sleonard@adolphus.com. 214-651-3520.



THE WORLD ACCORDING TO AL

This speech could save the world.

Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth” is a multimedia lecture aimed to both admonish and inspire. The former vice president confronts environmental issues especially global warming and their impact on our civilization.
Gore’s forecast is dire. And his argument is very troubling.

Recently made into a compelling documentary with an excellent track by Melissa Etheridge, the film reminded us that Gore is an amazingly eloquent political figure. We were also reminded about the disgraceful results of the 2000 election. Gore spreads his global gospel to North Texas on Saturday.

Nokia Theatre, 1001 Performance Place. Grand Prairie. Sept. 30 at 8 p.m. $37.50-$69.50 972-854-5081.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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A letter to Tyron

Posted on
By Leslie Robinson – General Gayety

A final farewell to a reluctant activist, reclusive gay hero who never got the recognition he deserved

Dear Tyron,

I know you’re dead and won’t read this. But it’s because you just died that I need to write this letter. It’s the cheapest form of therapy I know.

Not that I need grief therapy, as I didn’t know you personally. To me you were a figure in newspaper photos, standing next to you will excuse the expression your partner in crime, John Geddes Lawrence. I remember you as smiling, ordinary and uncomfortable in the spotlight.

I remember you as a hero.

Fate is stranger than a Dali painting, and you couldn’t have had an inkling that September evening in Houston when the cops burst in on you and John in John’s apartment that you were on your way to the U.S. Supreme Court. I assume at that moment you were simply grappling with fear, followed by anger. Your thoughts that night in 1998 are probably still unprintable in 2006.

And how about that twist to your arrest, the fact that the police showed up because they were responding to a false report of a man with a gun! I’ve read that the false report came from a neighbor of John’s, and that he was a jealous lover of yours. Either way, this was one of those times, Tyron, where a petty emotion led to a turning point in the tide of history.

You and John could’ve pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor of sodomy and vamoosed. But you listened to the lawyers who wanted to test that Texas law even though they said your chance of victory was about the same as those who defended the Alamo. You knew your rights had been violated. You became an accidental activist.

I’m sure it was no treat to be known as the man who got caught with his britches down. Hard to bring some dignity to that, but you managed.

Traveling through Texas courts, your case wound up in the biggest court in the land. On June 26, 2003, the Supreme Court struck down laws in 13 states that outlawed gay sex. The court overruled its own lousy decision in Bowers v. Hardwick less than 20 years before.

Thanks to Lawrence v. Texas, we weren’t criminals anymore, but human beings entitled to privacy and dignity in our personal lives. As you Texans say, that made us happy as a clam at high tide.

How fitting that you weren’t some gleaming celebrity gay, but a southern African-American who sold barbecue from a street stand. You showed America a section of the LGBT community too rarely seen.

I have a confession to make. When I heard you had died at age 39, my reaction after shock was apprehension that those in the religious right who are apt to tell whoppers will claim this as proof that gays die younger. Have pity on me, Tyron, as a touch of paranoia is part of my job description.

I noticed too that you died on Sept. 11. I shouldn’t be surprised to hear someone insist that your passing on that day was a message from The Big Guy, that God is angry at an America that lifts sodomy bans, so He snatched a symbol of that event on the five-year-anniversary of a painful day in American history.

Or something like that apparently I don’t have the Falwell-esque or Phelps-ian knack for contriving an interpretation.

We in the community probably assumed we had plenty of time to honor you appropriately. We were ninnies. I apologize.

Tyron, because of you, our lives are better, and I can’t think of a happier legacy. You said you didn’t really want to be a hero. Well, you were. Thank you.

Love, Leslie

Leslie Robinson’s columns are available online at www.GeneralGayety.com
E-mail LesRobinsn@aol.com

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Letters

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Thanks, Flip Benham

I would like to thank Flip Benham for attending the 2006 Alan Ross Texas Freedom Parade on Sept. 17.

I would like to thank him for yelling things like, “Your parents are going to hell,” and “Your parents’ church is an abomination” to the children who were marching with the Cathedral of Hope.

I appreciated the most when one of his followers stepped out into the parade route in front of my daughter and shoved an anti-gay pamphlet in her face, yelled at her and scared her into taking the pamphlet.

Several of our youth were visibly upset with the taunting from Mr. Benham and his followers, who were screaming and shaking their Bibles at them.

Again, I say thank you.

Like it or not, we in the gay community have families with children. Many times our own children hear us talking about the discrimination and bigotry that gays and lesbians have to endure. And when we try to explain this to our children, they say they understand. But deep down, I don’t think they really get it.

Well, thanks to Mr. Benham, they get it now.

What a great learning experience he gave the youth of our church.
Discrimination and bigotry is so much easier to understand when you see it first hand.

Thanks again Mr. Benham. Our children learned a very important lesson on Sunday and we probably could not have done it without you.

Johnny Bennett
Mesquite

Dallas vs. San Francisco Dallas wins

When I finally made the decision to come out to my family (who already knew by the way), I thought I would find a different type of freedom in the fact that what I felt was a deep and terrible secret would no longer have to hide in the recesses of my mind, actions and soul.

After coming out, I decided that if I was going to be gay, I’d have to live in a city that had an over-abundance of gay culture and would afford me the opportunity to indulge, explore, accept and reject the type of gay man that I wanted to become. I had decided this while vacationing at the Ritz Carlton in Half Moon Bay, Calif. about 40 minutes south of San Francisco in June, 2005.

In a matter of two weeks after I came back from vacation, I dropped another bomb on my family, telling them that I was moving from fashionable Scottsdale, Az., to San Francisco. My parents were and are very supportive of my quest to find peace within myself and gave me the freedom to do it.

I quit my job, found a fantastic loft in Union Square, shipped my belongings and rented new furniture, so by the time I got to there, everything was in its place and I was ready to start my new life as a gay man in San Francisco.

For the first couple of months, I felt like San Francisco offered everything that I thought it would. I joined a now- defunct organization that, for $500, sponsored dinners at great restaurants for like-minded gay men. (The $500 was the fee to join; you still had to pay for your own dinner.) At least that’s what the brochure said.

That’s when I started to notice that being gay didn’t automatically put me into the “club.” where men fawned all over me and everyone always had an awesome time drinking fine wines and running over to great restaurants to meet their gay friends.

Although that might be the reality for some gay men, those weren’t the ones that I was meeting. The people I seemed to be meeting through this service ranged from flakes to hair-obsessed queens that talked about everyone else behind their backs and complimented each other on a whim. Even though I had answered a million questions when I signed up, it seemed as if they just took the first eight names on the list and put us all together.

I went to my required dinners, but found the same situation at every scheduled dinner. By the way, there were no refunds.

When it was all said I done, I decided it was dumb of me to do that, since I’ve never had problems meeting people. I decided I would take myself out to the Castro district, order a martini, grab a seat at the bar and hang out.

The only problem was what seems to be a “Discovery Channel hyena hunting vibe” happening in the bars that I was visiting.

The mere presence of someone sitting by himself or herself at the bar seemed to invite the most “unique” people in the establishment to sit down next to you and strike up a conversation. After a few minutes I knew that this was their routine to pick up strange men in a bar and see where it would go.

The bartenders were very helpful in letting me know who the regular hyenas were. They even had a signal to give me a heads up: They would pretend to close out my tab and ask me if I needed anything else. It worked wonderfully.
I can’t help but think how much time that little gesture saved me.

That’s when I decided that I wasn’t going to be the type of gay man who was always hanging out in bars, getting trashed, sleeping with random men, doing drugs and wearing sleeveless t-shirts so tight they looked like they were made for a 10-year old. Although it’s a lifestyle that many gay men live, it wasn’t what I wanted.

What I hadn’t counted on was that the person that I was before I came out was still inside. I had never liked that stereotype, so what made me think that by moving to San Francisco, I would suddenly want to live it.

As a result, San Francisco became nothing more to me than the place where I lived so my friends from out of town could come visit me there. I felt and still feel no attraction to the city.

So when I was offered a transfer to Plano in June 2006, I didn’t have to think for more than two minutes before making the decision to move. When I moved to San Francisco, I didn’t know anyone there. But my best friend from boarding school already lived in Texas, so at least I knew wouldn’t be a lonely as I had been in San Francisco.

Turns out that moving here was one of the best decisions I’ve made in quite a while. My friend and her husband opened their home to me and really made me feel welcome in a state where I thought was going to be harder to fit in than in San Francisco.

Life couldn’t get much better for the moment. I consider it a gift to have been able to move here. As it turns out, many of my friend’s other friends are also gay or gay-friendly and it was a welcome relief to find such a welcoming group of people in the middle of Texas. Even though Dallas does have its share of the very same kind of people that I left behind in San Francisco, it offers so much more in terms of culture, friendship and, most importantly, the peace of mind that I’ve been looking for.

J.E. Pizarro
Plano

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Knowledgeable Sources

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“We are cautiously optimistic that reason will win out in the battle for domestic partner benefits.”

Pete Webb, president of the Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance, about plans to continue pressing Dallas Area Rapid Transit to add domestic partner benefits to the employee benefit package

“I will regret it for the rest of my life. It could have beenhandled much differently.”

Mark Dacus talking about how he failed his son when he told him he didn’t want to hear about something horrible that had happened to him

“He became sick and twisted in love with me. I had an addiction, and he exploited it.”

Cody Troy Dacus talking about the seven-year relationship he had with a Mesquite man whose body parts were found strewn in Hill County

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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Anglicans plan to snub Episcopal Church leader

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KIGALI, Rwanda The first woman leader of the U.S. Episcopal Church will be snubbed by conservatives at the next global Anglican Communion gathering to protest her support for gay clergy, a bloc of tradition-minded clergymen said Sept. 22.

The statement deepens the ideological rifts threatening to break apart the 77-million-member communion and seeks to further pressure its American wing, which in June elected Nevada Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori as its national leader.

The liberal direction of the church and Jefferts Schori’s support of gay ordination has angered many conservatives, including the African-led Global South alliance. Global South leaders wrapped up a four-day meeting in Kigali on Sept. 22 by saying some of its membership would not accept Jefferts Schori’s authority at a meeting of the world’s Anglican leaders in February in Tanzania.

Jefferts Schori is scheduled to take over leadership of the church on Nov. 4.
“Some of us will not be able to recognize Katharine Jefferts Schori as a primate at the table with us,” said a statement representing Anglican leaders from Africa, Asia, Latin American and supporters elsewhere.

The declaration said others would be in “impaired communion with her” meaning they could meet with her but would remain opposed to views considered in violation of Scripture such as acceptance of gay relationships.

Some Anglican leaders also reject the ordination of women.

The Global South group suggested the Episcopal Church send a separate representative chosen by U.S. parishes “who are abiding by the teaching of the communion.”

It was another step by conservatives, led by Nigerian Archbishop Peter Akinola, to encourage a breakaway Episcopal group that would be outside Jefferts Schori’s oversight. A meeting in New York earlier this month between feuding Episcopal factions ended without any sign the internal disputes could be easily settled.

Splits between Anglican liberals and conservatives have been growing for years.

The situation reached a crisis in 2003 when the Episcopal Church consecrated its first openly gay bishop, V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire.

Dissension worsened with the election of Jefferts Schori earlier this year,
The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the spiritual leader of the communion, has struggled to hold off one of the biggest meltdowns in Christianity in centuries, but he lacks any direct authority to force a compromise.

A spokesman for the U.S. Episcopal Church did not comment.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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National Briefs

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Los Angeles nightclub cancels concert after complaints over anti-gay lyrics

LOS ANGELES A nightclub has canceled a performance by Buju Banton, a reggae star whose violent lyrics about gays and lesbians have made him a controversial figure. E-mail messages and phone calls from concerned customers prompted the cancellation of the Oct. 2 show, said Adam Manacker, general manager of the Highland nightclub and restaurant.

“We felt it was the right thing to do after doing some research on the matter,” Manacker said.

In July, concerts featuring Banton and Beenie Man were canceled in Britain after activists said both artists refused to stop using anti-gay lyrics. Two of Banton’s songs released early in his career, “Batty Rider” and “Boom Bye Bye,” glorify the shooting of gay men. Banton’s most recent album, “Too Bad,” released earlier this month, omits homophobic lyrics.

Banton has been a major star in his native Jamaica since the early 1990s with brash dancehall music and, more recently, a traditional reggae sound. His career has been stunted in the United States because of his attitude toward gays.

Banton was tried and acquitted on charges that he participated in the beating of six gay men by a Jamaica gang in 2004.

Lesbian former Playmate sues taxi driver, police after incident in New York

NEW YORK A woman who bills herself as the first openly lesbian Playboy Playmate sued a taxi driver, police and the city on Sept. 22, claiming that officers needlessly roughed her up based on the cabbie’s false accusation that she was armed and dangerous.

“It was a nightmare,” Stephanie Adams, 35, said at a news conference announcing the suit, which seeks unspecified damages.

The city had no immediate response. The cab driver, 40-year-old Eric Darko, denied any wrongdoing.

“She thinks she’s got a case, but I didn’t do nothing,” Darko said when reached by telephone.

The suit stems from a May 25 incident that began when Adams Miss November 1992 caught Darko’s cab on the Upper East Side of Manhattan to take her to her Chelsea apartment. After the pair argued over where to drop her off, she alleges he cursed her out, called 911 and made the false report that she had a gun.

Adams said she made her own 911 call after Darko pushed a rear car door into her as she tried to get out.

A few moments later, plainclothes police officers surrounded Adams on the street with guns drawn, grabbed her purse and pushed her to the ground, she said. When they searched her bag and realized she was unarmed, they let her go without an apology.

“It was not necessary for them to throw her down to the ground,” said Rubenstein.

The complaint filed in state Supreme Court in Manhattan accuses the police officer of assault, and claims Adams “suffered great pain, distress, mental shock, mental anguish and psychological trauma.”

Adams also complained to the city Taxi & Limousine Commission, which has suspended Darko’s taxi license. A TLC investigator reported that the driver told him he called 911 after she flashed her “vampire teeth” and threatened to shoot him. Darko denied making the vampire remark.

He accused Adams of causing the ruckus by refusing to pay him a $9 fare, then warning him she had a gun.

“I didn’t start anything with her,” he said.

Assistant principal sues students, parents over MySpace allegations she is a lesbian

SAN ANTONIO A high school assistant principal is suing two students and their parents, alleging the teens set up a Web page on MySpace.com in her name and posted obscene comments and pictures.

Anna Draker, an assistant principal at Clark High School, is claiming defamation, libel, negligence and negligent supervision over the page on the popular free-access Web site.

Draker claims two 16-year-olds, a junior and a sophomore, created the page using her name and picture and wrote it as through she herself had posted the information, according to Draker’s attorney, Murphy Klasing.

The site falsely identified Draker as a lesbian. Klasing said Draker, who is married and has small children, was “devastated.”

MySpace.com removed the page when Draker told them it wasn’t hers.

Bexar County Assistant District Attorney Jill Mata would not release information about the case, but confirmed that juvenile charges are pending against a high school student involving retaliation and fraudulent use of identifying information. Both are third-degree felonies.

Draker is suing for an unspecified amount for damages for emotional distress, mental anguish, lost wages and court costs.

Possible gay-on-gay attack investigated as hate crime

PALM SPRINGS A Cathedral City man says that an attacker bit off part of his ear outside a Palm Springs restaurant Wednesday night. Police are investigating the attack as a hate crime.

Michael Hillyard, who also goes by the name Christopher Michaels, was riding his motorcycle around 8 p.m. when he was cut off by a Jeep Liberty. When they were both stopped, the driver of the Jeep got out of his vehicle and attacked Michaels.

Michaels who is openly gay, said the suspect, who was obviously drunk, referred to him as a “straight boy” during the altercation, making him think his attacker was also gay.

Palm Springs police Sgt. Phil Parker said they are investigating the case as a hate crime because of those comments.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 29, 2006.

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LGBT-beloved governor laid to rest

Posted on
By Kelley Shannon – Associated Press

Thousands gather to say good-bye to Richards at celebrity-packed service



Lily Adams speaks about her grandmother, former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, during a ceremony Monday in Austin. Richards, a Democrat who led the state from 1991-1995, was praised by LGBT leaders after her death last week from esophageal cancer.

AUSTIN Prominent politicians, celebrities and regular Texans gathered Monday for a final farewell to former Gov. Ann Richards.

Thousands of Richards admirers, including many members of the LGBT community, streamed into the Frank Erwin Events Center at the University of Texas, a cavernous building usually used for college basketball games and rock concerts. Two huge photographs of Richards in her political prime hung on each side of the stage.

The star-studded memorial service featured U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk, former San Antonio mayor and U.S. housing secretary Henry Cisneros and syndicated columnist Liz Smith as speakers.

“Going out with Ann in public was like being with a rock star,” Smith said, as she cracked up the audience with a series of funny stories about Richards. “Ann Richards was the most alive person I have ever known in my life. Let’s keep her that way.”

Richards was “the smartest, funniest and strongest woman that many of us ever knew,” Kirk said as he opened the music-filled service. Many in the crowd applauded before a gospel choir broke into song.

Before the service, as the tunes of Texans Willie Nelson and Lyle Lovett played on loudspeakers, Republicans Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and other statewide office holders mingled. Former U.S. Commerce Secretary Don Evans attended on behalf of President Bush.

Richards’ electoral defeat to Bush in 1994 signaled the Republican takeover of Texas statewide politics.

Richards was buried earlier Monday at the Texas State Cemetery in a private service before family and friends. Singer Nanci Griffith performed and actress Lily Tomlin attended, family spokesman Bill Crier said.

All weekend, Richards’ fans who paid their respects at her casket at the Texas Capitol spoke of her as a role model for young women and told of her famous sense of humor.

“She was a grand dame,” said Creighton Bailey, 39, who moved to Austin shortly before Richards was elected governor in 1990.

“She was one of the most cordial women you’d ever hope to meet. She also was very funny,” Bailey said.

Former President Bill Clinton greeted her casket Sept. 16 and paid tribute to Richards as a woman who had “a big heart, big dreams, did big deeds.”

Richards, a Democrat who was governor from 1991-95, died Sept. 13 at her home in Austin of esophageal cancer. She was 73.

“I really like her,” said Mary Mendoza, 57, a federal government employee from Austin. “She gave us a lot of rights, especially for Hispanic people, a lot of opportunities.”

In the Capitol on Sunday, a black sash was draped atop Richards’ official portrait. Beneath the painting, some admirers placed yellow roses and sunflowers and a copy of the serenity prayer used in Alcoholics Anonymous.

Richards was candid about her 1980 treatment for alcoholism.

Siri Hutcheson, 51, a psychotherapist who lived in the same downtown apartment building as Richards, visited the Capitol on Sunday and recalled her encounters with Richards. She said she would ask Richards her opinions on subjects like gay rights, and Richards spoke frankly.

“We loved Ann Richards, and she has meant so much to me. I just wept when I heard she had died,” she said.

“She was a woman governor that Texas, people like me in Texas, can be really proud of. … She gave us women a real strong role model,” Hutcheson said.

Richards is survived by her grown children, Cecile Richards, Daniel Richards, Clark Richards and Ellen Richards; their spouses; and eight grandchildren.

The family has requested that memorial gifts be made to the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders at www.austincommunityfoundation.org.

This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, September 22, 2006.

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