Exclusive radio documentary features celebrity actors, writers and producers; commemorates significant events
in the evolution of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender characters on television
NEW YORK March 11, 2010 SIRIUS XM Radio ( NASDAQ: SIRI ) today announced that it will broadcast I Want My Gay TV: The LGBT History of Television, a groundbreaking audio documentary that chronicles the evolution of gay characters on television, from the cross-dressing Milton Berle to Ellen "coming out" to Queer Eye and everything in between. The documentary debuts as part of a four-hour broadcast event Friday, March 12 at 6:00 pm ET on OutQ, SIRIUS XM's channel for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community ( SIRIUS channel 109 and XM channel 98 ) .
I Want My Gay TV spans 60 years of television in a two-hour documentary and features candid interviews and contributions from trailblazing actors, writers, and producers including Rosie O'Donnell, Wilson Cruz, and Marc Cherry.
Highlights include:
- Jai Rodriguez expressing regret over Queer Eye because at the time, he was not the "culture expert" he was billed to be
- Bruce Vilanch on Rock Hudson's final request to him
- RuPaul's emotional story of coming out in the early 90s
- Hal Sparks on how Billy Crystal's role on SOAP inspired him on Queer as Folk
- Lucy Lawless explains the impact of lesbian fans on the characters from her show Xena: Warrior Princess
- Sean Sasser on losing partner Pedro Zamora on the day after the final episode ofThe Real World: San Francisco
After the documentary, SIRIUS XM host and documentary producer Derek Hartley will moderate a panel discussion including special guests Rashad Robinson of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation ( GLAAD ) , Barry Monoush from the Paley Center for Media, and Jane Velez-Mitchell from HLN. The four-hour special will conclude with Hartley and co-host Romaine Patterson talking calls from SIRIUS XM listeners across the country.
"Television is a place for the LGBT community to learn their own history, and these personal stories reveal how important television programming has been to the community," said Derek Hartley. "With more than twenty interviews, I Want My Gay TVreveals for the first time ever how the shows we watched changed our lives."
Derek Hartley and co-host Romaine Patterson received a 2009 GLAAD Award for their documentary special The Laramie Project Ten Years Later: The Lasting Legacy of Matthew Shepard.
For more information visit www.sirius.com/outq and www.xmradio.com .