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Trans bodybuilding film out Nov. 7
The award-winning, trans-bodybuilding documentary Man Made releases worldwide on VOD platforms on Thursday, Nov. 7, via Journeyman Pictures. The movie follows the lives of four transgender men as they prepare to compete at TransFitCon—the only all ...
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Gay skier/actor at Roscoe's Oct. 24
Openly gay Olympic freestyle skier and actor ( American Horror Story ) Gus Kenworthy is teaming with Coors Light to throw an '80s rock-themed Halloween party in Chicago. "Halloween Rocks" is happening Thursday, Oct. 24, at ...
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Chicago International Film Festival features LGBT-related titles
The Chicago International Film Festival kicks off the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 16 with a screening of Motherless Brooklyn as well as Zombieland: Double Tap later that evening. The festival lasts through Sunday, Oct. 27, and ...
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SHOWBIZ 'Transparent,' Tyler Perry, 'Drag Race,' singer Halsey
The soundtrack to Amazon Prime Video's The Transparent Musicale Finale—the movie musical fantasia of Jill Soloway's series Transparent—is available for streaming and digital purchase in conjunction with the finale premiere on Amazon Prime Video, a press ...
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Reeling Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival announces award winners
( CHICAGO, IL - October 10, 2019 ) Reeling: the Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival announces the highly anticipated juried, audience, and AARP Silver Image award winners for films screened at the 37th annual festival, September ...
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SHOWBIZ Queer comic, 'Star Wars,' Nick Jonas, Rachel Maddow
Ian Aber—the queer award-winning, Atlanta based comedian known as a national finalist on the hit reality competition series StandUp NBC—released his first-ever studio album, Night Sugar, through RadLand Records, a press release noted. In the album ...
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WORLD Kenyan magazine, Russian anti-LGBT ruling, Brazilian films
Pride Umbrella Kenya, a member organization of The Refugee Coalition of East Africa ( RefCEA ), announced the launch of QR Magazine, a press release noted. The first issue of this quarterly publication, The Transgender Issue, ...
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LGBT HISTORY MONTH For celebrities, an off-screen journey to on-screen equality
By Steve Rothaus
ABC News correspondent Gio Benitez said that as a young reporter in Miami, he was inspired by the greats of television journalism: Peter Jennings, Tom Brokaw, Barbara Walters and Katie Couric. He didn't seek out gay ...
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SHOWBIZ Trans actor, 'Judy,' 'Concert for America,' Dolly Parton
Trans actor Brian Michael Smith was one of three casting announcements made ahead of Fox's 9-1-1 spinoff, Lone Star, which debuts in January, Out.com noted. This next installment in Ryan Murphy's burgeoning franchise will take place ...
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SHOWBIZ Ricky Martin, Tina Fey, Lee Daniels, Megan Fox
The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) will honor singer and actor Ricky Martin with the HRC National Visibility Award at HRC's 23rd Annual National Dinner in Washington, D.C. on Sept. 28, a press release noted. ...
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Porter among those striking a pose at 2019 Emmys
Pose's Billy Porter made history the evening of Sept. 22 when he became the first openly gay Black actor to win the Emmy for the best lead actor in a dramatic series. Porter has rarely failed ...
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Sisters in Cinema launches fellowship for Black women filmmakers, LBTQ stories
Sisters in a SIC ) with support from Chicago Women's Foundation LBTQ Giving Council has awarded three first-time feature filmmakers with a $2,500 grant for the production of a documentary film. This program is an initiative ...
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Black Alphabet film fest to honor Trans Awareness Week
Black Alphabet Film Festival returns for its seventh year, showcasing films that highlight and explore the LGBTQ and same-gender-loving ( SGL ) experience—and it will take place at the same time as Transgender Awareness Week. This ...
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REELING FILM FESTIVAL
Lesbian director highlights queer history in 'The Archivettes'
Megan Rossman is an out and proud lesbian filmmaker. But while making The Archivettes, whose Chicago premiere is part of the Reeling Film Festival, she had a lot to learn. "I had never thought of my ...
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REELING FILM FESTIVAL Wendy Jo Carlton explores life, love in 'Good Kisser'
Wendy Jo Carlton is an out director, producer and teacher known for indie films like Hannah Free, starring Sharon Gless, and the lesbian romance musical Jamie and Jessie Are Not Together. She's also the creator of ...
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MOVIES A look at what's hitting the big screens this fall
Fall back into the movie theater after a summer that certainly had some lackluster moments, cinematically. We head into awards season and it shows with films begging for accolades, such as Judy and A Beautiful Day ...
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REELING 2019 The reviews are in
Reeling 2019: The 37th Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival will take place Sept. 19-29 at Landmark's Century Centre Cinema and Music Box Theatre. Without further ado, here are reviews of some of the movies slated to ...
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South Asian Film Festival Sept. 19-22
The 10th Annual Chicago South Asian Film Festival ( CSAFF ) will take place Sept. 19-22. The Red Carpet and opening night film, The Last Color, will be shown at Venue SIX10, 610 S. Michigan Ave., ...
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WEBSERIES 'Kissing Walls' creators on Chicago, sex scenes, independent TV
Local webseries Kissing Walls has continued to challenge television's traditional boundaries in its second season with its upfront depiction of the lives of twentysomething gay men living on the North Side. Windy City Times sat down ...
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NUNN ON ONE Lance Bass, Baptists, Broadway and 'The Boy Band Con'
Popular performer Lance Bass wears many hats these days. After rising to fame in the boy band NSYNC, he moved into working in movies and television. Along the way, the Mississippi native even became certified to ...
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REELING FILM FESTIVAL Gay filmmaker takes the crown in 'Pageant'
In Pageant Material, a teen dreams of becoming a queen—a drag queen, that is. Rodney ( Hart Morse ) is seventeen, out of the closet and mourning the death of his beloved mother. While enduring bullying ...
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REELING FILM FESTIVAL Unexpected legend takes stage in 'Broadway'
He calls women "darling" and drops f-bombs in the same sentence. He's both Jewish and gay, and has never hidden either. He keeps photos of his ex-boyfriends in silver frames and can recount detailed anecdotes about ...
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Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas returns to the Auditorium Theatre
( CHICAGO, IL ) The live concert experience of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas returns to the Auditorium Theatre for the second year for two special Halloween screenings on October 31 and November 1. The ...
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Jason Stuart makes it into the middle of the Midwest
Actor Jason Stuart has over 35 years of steady work on film and television as a character actor. He came out of the closet as gay early on in his career and the parts only improved. ...
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Filmmaker Martell discusses web series Damaged Goods
A Chicago-based filmmaker and production house head is preparing for a second season of his web series about the lives of young Chicagoans of color—and discussing possibilities for transforming the program into a television series. Director ...
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SHOWBIZ Designer dies, Kristen Stewart, Oprah, Freddie Mercury
Chris March—a costume designer who rose to fame after appearing on season four of Bravo's reality show Project Runway—died of a heart attack on at age 56, Deadline reported. A New York City resident, March was ...
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ACE Comic Con Midwest Oct. 11-13
ACE Comic Con Midwest will be at the Donald E. Stephen Convention Center in Rosemont on Oct. 11-13. Guests for this year's show include Oscar winner Brie Larson ( Captain Marvel ), Chris Hemsworth ( Thor ...
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MOVIES Reeling festival rolls out new LGBT films
Reeling 2019, the 37th annual edition of Chicago's LGBT film festival, kicks off Sept. 19, and lasts through Sept. 29 in various venues throughout the city. Founded in 1982, Reeling is the second oldest LGBT film ...
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NUNN ON ONE MOVIES Sam Harris: Out performer serves it up in 'Ham'
Sam Harris initially grabbed people's attention as the grand-champion singer of Star Search, winning with his version of the classic song "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." This brought him a contract with Motown Records and his debut ...
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Comic Con dazzles with stars, cosplay
Thousands of pop-culture aficionados ( many donning the costumes of their favorite characters ) visited Rosemont's Donald E. Stephens Convention Convention Center on Aug. 22-25 for Wizard World Comic Con. There were many celebrities present—with one ...
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SHOWBIZ 'Judy,' Jill Soloway, John Cameron Mitchell, Octavia Spencer
Decca and Republic Records announced the release of two star-studded duet, to appear on the brand-new album Judy ( the soundtrack to the film of the same name ), a press release noted. The original soundtrack ...
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NUNN ON ONE COMEDY Rachel Dratch talks Biance del Rio, gay friends
Rachel Dratch is originally from Massachusetts; she moved to Chicago to further her comedy career by working with The Second City and ImprovOlympic. When asked what one thing she learned from her days in the Windy ...
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Derek Jarman films out Aug. 27
Kino Lorber and Zeitgeist Films will release two movies by the late filmmaker Derek Jarman ( 1942-94 )—Blue and The Garden—on Tuesday, Aug. 27. In a new 4K master of Blue ( $24.95 for the Blu-ray ...
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SHOWBIZ Tituss Burgess, IMDb, Halsey, Stephen Colbert, 'Queer As Folk'
Quibi has greenlit Dishmantled—described as "a high-octane cooking competition that will literally blow your socks off," with Tituss Burgess ( Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt; 30 Rock ) set to host, Deadline reported. Hosted by Burgess, each episode ...
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Reports: Wachowski back in the Matrix
Transgender filmmaker and Chicago native Lana Wachowski announced Aug. 20 that she would be directing a fourth Matrix film, according to Variety. Wachowski directed the three previous films in the series—The Matrix ( 1999 ), The ...
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10 Questions with Vic Featuring Xabiani Ponce de Leon
It's hard to stand out as an actor during a film festival such as Outfest where over 150 films are screened within nine days. But Xabiani Ponce de LeÃ"n did just that with director Hari Sama's ...
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SHOWBIZ 'Elm Street,' 'Crime Story,' Tab Hunter, Lady Gaga
Gay actor Marc Patton is returning to the big screen, as himself, with the documentary Scream, Queen: My Nightmare On Elm Street, The Washington Blade noted. The film tells the story of how his "big break" ...
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UPDATE: Travolta to attend Wizard World Comic Con
This year's Wizard World Comic Con Chicago will take place Thursday-Sunday, Aug. 22-25, at Rosemont's Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, 5555 N. River Rd.—and it has just gotten some serious star power. It was announced Aug. ...
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Reeling LGBTQ film festival announces film line up
( August 12, 2019 - Chicago, IL ) Reeling, the second-oldest LGBTQ film festival in the world and a beloved Chicago cultural institution for more than 35 years, kicks off fall with an exciting slate of ...
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Gene Siskel Film Center to present Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am Aug. 23-29
As a venue that celebrates all art forms and a public program of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Gene Siskel Film Center mourns the loss of the celebrated Black author and Nobel ...
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SHOWBIZ Comic-book heroes, Cara and Ashley, Chris Pine, Pride Summit
The animated character Aquaman was confirmed to be LGBT+ on the latest episode of Young Justice: Outsiders—the DC Universe's animated show about teenage superheroes, PinkNews reported. The latest episode, "Quiet Conversations," saw the iconic DC superhero ...
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FILM Fawzia Mirza, Kathy Griffin and much
more at Outfest
Founded by UCLA students in 1982, the Los Angeles-based nonprofit film festival Outfest celebrated 37 years of bringing LGBTQ stories to the screen. Presented by HBO, the festival ran July 18-28. This year, films were from ...
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SHOWBIZ Lil Nas X, classic TV shows, Janelle Monae, NFL player
The country-trap smash "Old Town Road" ( by out rapper/singer Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus ) has broken the record for the longest-running number-one song on Billboard's singles chart. And faced with the task ...
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Sinfonietta concert screening of 'Get Out' Sept. 21
Chicago Sinfonietta will perform a live concert screening of Jordan Peele's 2018 smash film film Get Out, conducted by score composer Michael Abels, at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 East Ida B. Wells Dr., on Saturday, Sept. ...
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NATIONAL Torres' run, tribe OKs marriage, Bernie Sanders, Netflix
New York City Councilman Ritchie Torres made history when he announced his bid for a seat in New York's House of Representatives, Queerty noted. The 31-year-old Democrat from the Bronx is the first openly gay man ...
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SHOWBIZ Jennifer Lopez, 'Toy Story 4,' Rosie, Darren Criss, John Waters
Jennifer Lopez had a surprise for a gay teen who was barred from giving the valedictorian speech, PinkNews noted. The superstar surprised Nat Werth backstage at her show in Milwaukee on July 3. The teen was ...
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'Hedwig' remaster at Music Box starting July 19
Director/co-writer/star John Cameron Mitchell's 2001 musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch will open in a new 4K DCP remaster at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave., on Friday, July 19. With this trailblazing musical, ...
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Billy Masters
"Do you know what? I've been giving that some thought recently because a couple of other parents said that to me as well. I think, you really don't start thinking about that until you are a ...
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'Paris Is Burning' at Music Box in July
A new 2K restoration of the 1990 landmark documentary Paris Is Burning will run July 12-18 at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave. Preceding the FX show Pose by decades, this film looks at ...
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10 Questions with Felix Maritaud
Audiences were still talking about Felix Maritaud's performance in the 2017 hit French film, '120 Beats Per Minute', about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in 1990s France, when another critically acclaimed film, 'Sauvage' premiered at the Cannes Film ...
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SHOWBIZ 'Orange Is the New Black,' Jake Shears, Bob the Drag Queen, Mika
The seventh and final season of Orange Is the New Black will debut on Netflix on July 26—and it's being celebrated in a unique way, a press release noted. This season, the cast and creators are ...
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'Lavender Scare' director on very real tragedy
In 1953, in the midst of the Cold War, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed an executive order that banned gays and lesbians from federal employment, under the pretense that they not only were immoral, but they ...
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Scholar/producer to receive new honor, speaks on life goals
Aymar Jean Christian, Ph.D., has dedicated his life to communicating with meaning. Now the scholar, producer, founder and writer/director is being recognized for his work with the first Leaders for a New Chicago award, courtesy of ...
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Blood-ties are binding in new LGBT drama
Early in director Anthony L. William's drama Thicker Than Blood, which makes its Chicago premiere on the closing night of the 17th Annual African Diaspora FIlm Festival-Chicago, the lead character Jordan's mother Marilyn ( Christina Smith ...
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'Before Stonewall' at Siskel on July 5-10
The 1984 film Before Stonewall will run at the Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State St., on July 5-10. Given a new digital restoration on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, this ...
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SHOWBIZ Ryan Murphy, Billy Porter, Boy George, 'Queer Eye'
Ryan Murphy will direct and produce the feature adaptation of the Tony-nominated stage musical The Prom and has secured a cast that puts Netflix in new star-power territory, Deadline noted. Meryl Streep will star alongside James ...
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MOVIES
Jon Favreau honored as Robert Downey Jr. attends event
The Gene Siskel Film Center of the Art Institute of Chicago held a gala at the Four Seasons Chicago on June 15 called "Marvel, Movies, and More: Honoring Jon Favreau in Conversation with Robert Downey Jr." ...
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MOVIES '5B' revisits first AIDS ward in Calif. hospital
The powerful new documentary 5B is about a group of caregivers opening the first AIDS ward at San Francisco General Hospital in the '80s. Through first-person testimony, stories are told to depict how caregivers handled the ...
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Janet Mock signs historic Netflix deal
Author/director/producer Janet Mock has signed a historic deal with Netflix—making her the first out transgender woman who can call the creative shots at a major content company, Variety reported. The multimillion-dollar deal, which spans three years, ...
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FILM ANALYSIS Rewatching Stonewall at the movies
Early in gay director Nigel Finch's 1995 sort-of docudrama Stonewall, the drag queen La Miranda ( Guillermo Diaz ), who's one of the central characters, looks at the audience and says: "There's as many Stonewall stories ...
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Gay Holocaust film being shown June 20
The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, 9603 Woods Dr., Skokie, will show the documentary Dear Fredy on Thursday, June 20, 6:30-8 p.m. The movie shares the true story of Fredy Hirsch—an openly gay Jewish athlete ...
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WTTW hosts screening of 'The Lavender Scare'
During the Cold War era, fear and hatred of communism was extended to those who might be seen as susceptible to blackmail, including gays who worked for the federal government. The belief that "sex perverts" were ...
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'Lavender Scare' screening, panel June 15
On Saturday, June 15, at 2 p.m., in honor of Pride month, WTTW and The Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events ( DCASE ) will host a screening of the new documentary The Lavender Scare, ...
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SHOWBIZ Celine Dion, GLAAD concert, Marlon Wayans, telenovela plot
On June 8, international superstar Celine Dion took the final bow of her 16-year Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, a press release noted. In March 2003, Celine Dion forever premiered her first ...
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Matt Bomer meets Papi Chulo
There's a little indie movie hitting theaters on June 7 by the name of Papi Chulo that tells a unique story with an openly gay main character. Matt Bomer stars as Sean, a weatherman who is ...
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MOVIES Siskel showing LGBTQ+ movies
The Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State St., is showing several LGBTQA+ features throughout Pride Month. Films include: —Sauvage Wild ( June 7-13 ): A 22-year-old gay hustler cycles through a series of mostly sexual ...
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Laquan McDonald doc '16 Shots' out June 14
Showtime Documentary Films announced it will premiere the new documentary 16 Shots, from Oscar-nominated director Richard Rowley ( Dirty Wars ), on Friday, June 14, at 8 p.m. CT. According to a press release, the feature ...
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Final Dyke Delicious screening, Stonewall Uprising, June 8
Trailer below
The final screening of the Dyke Delicious film series, Stonewall Uprising, will take place June 8 at Chicago Filmmakers, 5720 N. Ridge Ave. "It was the Rosa Parks moment," says one man. June 28, 1969: NYC ...
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SHOWBIZ Jane Fonda, Lee Daniels, Lady Gaga, 'The Babadook'
Jane Fonda said she suffered a nervous breakdown during the first season of Grace and Frankie because she felt "triggered" by her character's plotline of being abandoned by her husband for another man, Page Six noted, ...
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Halston film opens at Music Box on June 7
Director Frederic Tcheng's Halston will open Friday, June 7, at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave. The film focuses on the life and times of legendary designer Roy Halston Frowick, the man who aimed ...
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SHOWBIZ Cirque du Soleil, 'Downton Abbey' film, Mathew V, Whitney Houston
The producer of Cirque du Soleil and Dan Lin's Rideback have made a deal to develop feature films based on the stories and characters from the catalog of the iconic global live-entertainment franchise, Deadline noted. The ...
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Studio Responsibility Index (SRI) maps quantity, quality, diversity of LGBTQs in films
Los Angeles, CA, May 23, 2019 — GLAAD, the world's largest LGBTQ media advocacy organization, today released its seventh annual Studio Responsibility Index ( SRI ), a report that maps the quantity, quality, and diversity of ...
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Shout! releasing films for Pride Month
In honor of LGBTQ Pride Month, Shout! Factory is presenting an eclectic slate of movies arriving for the first time on Blu-ray. The films include the drag-queen classic To Wong Foo Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar ...
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Queer actor plays gay character in teen comedy 'Booksmart'
Most students take their finals in classrooms. Austin Crute took his in a life-size clamshell. The queer actor was preparing to graduate from NYU while filming his first movie Booksmart, which follows two best friends ( ...
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SHOWBIZ Matt Bomer, Megan Rapinoe, Tom Ford, MTV Awards, EBTG
Out actor Matt Bomer stars in the movie Papi Chulo, out June 7, a press release noted. The plot focuses on a newly single, gay TV weatherman ( Bomer ) who is put on leave following ...
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