The Melissa Etheridge-Tammy Lynn Michaels split is becoming increasingly bitter. According to US Magazine, Etheridge, 49, has now accused Michaels, 35, of using their twins as "pawns." Etheridge is claiming that Michaels tricked her, having the singer think that she was meeting her own kids when she was actually served with court papers. Michaels has said that she does not understand why Etheridge cannot provide spousal support, considering the singer allegedly makes at least $600,000 per month.
It's now Lady Gaga vs. Rev. Fred Phelps and his anti-gay Westboro ( Kan. ) Baptist Church. According to Advocate.com, church members picketed her July 17 concert in St. Louis, Mo., carrying signs reading, "God hates Lady Gaga." The singer Tweeted, "Love and hate met in St. Louis. And love outnumbered the hate, in poetic thousands. Hate left. But love stayed. + Together, we sang." On her website, she called the churchgoers "violent and dangerous."
We already know about Lady Gaga's 10 million Facebook fans—but apparently she has 5 million followers on Twitter as well, according to MTV.com . She does not have the most Twitter fans ( with Ashton Kutcher being at that number for some time ) , but she has 1.1 million more followers than the very popular singer Justin Bieber. To compare, the article points out that the city of Atlanta has 5 million people and that a total of 5 million Hyundai Sonatas have been sold—ever.
Colorful Oscar-nominated actor Mickey Rourke may star in a movie about openly gay British rugby player Gareth Thomas, according to The Sun. Rourke, 57, and Thomas, 35, recently met for dinner, and their managers are trying to work out a deal.
In Australia, the censor has banned the movie L.A. Zombie, a Bruce LaBruce-directed movie that features graphic gay sex between the undead, according to Advocate.com . Donald McDonald, director of Australia's Film Classification Board, stated in a letter to Melbourne International Film Festival Director Richard Moore that the movie could not be screened because it would probably not receive a rating. L.A. Zombie—a follow-up to LaBruce's 2008 film Otto; Or, Up With Dead People—features an alien zombie who can bring the dead back to life with sex.
Blonde bombshell/gay fave Pamela Anderson is featured in a new PETA ad that urges people to become vegetarians. In the ad, Anderson is clad in only a bikini and looks as if she has been tagged by a butcher—conveying that humans and other animals are made up of identical parts. According to PETA.org, "Just like humans, animals are made of flesh, blood, and bone and have organs and senses. Animals also have emotions and unique personalities, feel pain, and create families and relationships with other animals, if given the chance."
CBS has greenlighted a TV talk show that lesbian actress Sara Gilbert, The Early Show's Julie Chen, actress Holly Robinson Peete, Sharon Osbourne, Hairspray's Marissa Jaret Winokur and actress Leah Remini will co-host, according to Advocate.com . Gilbert—best known as Darlene on the TV show Roseanne—will also be an executive producer. The show will take on pop-culture and news events from a mother's point of view.
Openly gay Broadway hunk Nick Adams, 27, has snagged the lead in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert: The Musical, playing the Adam/Felicia, who is fixated on ABBA, according to Advocate.com . The stage-musical adaptation of the 1994 movie—which featured Guy Pearce in Adams' role—will make its North America premiere in Toronto this fall, followed by a Broadway debut in spring 2011.
Before dating new boyfriend Ryan Seacrest, dancer/country singer Julianne Hough, 22, thought he was gay, according to a New York Daily News item. Citing TMZ.com, the article said that Hough told a friend that Seacrest, 35, had been chasing after her for four years but added, "He totally wasn't my type. I thought he was gay." Despite dating such actresses as Teri Hatcher, Seacrest's sexuality has been the source of speculation for some time.
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation ( GLAAD ) has released its fourth annual Network Responsibility Index ( NRI ) —a report that examines images of ( LGBT ) people on television—and MTV has become the first network ever to receive an "excellent" rating, according to a GLAAD press release. After three years in second place, The CW is the top broadcast network, with 35 percent of its prime-time programming being LGBT-inclusive; CBS once again received a "failing" rating, with only 7 percent of its hours being LGBT-inclusive—with the vast majority of those coming from its reality series.
Entertainer Kathy Griffin went to the gay New York bar Boxers NYC July 20 to watch her show, My Life on the D-List, with the patrons, according to GaySocialites.com . ( This particular episode showed Griffin undergoing a pap smear by the side of a pool in an effort to draw attention to cancer. ) She later tweeted, "Ok, so I go 2 a gay bar in NYC 'Boxers' 2 see D List & a guy says 'My Mom died of cervical cancer. She would've laughed & cheered @ u 2nite.'"
Dustin Lance Black, the openly gay screenwriter who won an Academy Award for his work on Milk, will pen the adaptation of the life of Colton Harris-Moore, the 19-year-old so-called "the Barefoot Bandit," according to the Dallas Voice. Harris-Moore—a six-foot-five former fugitive from Washington state—is suspected in stealing at least five small aircraft and in committing burglary in at least 100 private residences throughout the United States and Canada. Black is currently in pre-production on Clint Eastwood's next film, Hoover, about the closeted FBI director J. Edgar Hoover ( to be portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio ) .
Starring Academy Award winner Helen Mirren, Prime Suspect: The Complete Collection debuts on DVD from Acorn Media Sept. 7. Mirren ( The Queen ) stars as Detective Jane Tennison in this police drama broadcast on PBS to universal acclaim and more than 20 major international awards, including seven Emmys, eight BAFTAs, and a Peabody. The nine-disc set includes nine feature-length mysteries as well as a 50-minute behind-the-scenes special. The set retails for $124.99; see www.AcornOnline.com .
Earloomz, LLC, has announced new licensed Bluetooth headsets that feature superstar Lady Gaga. To celebrate the launch, Earloomz is sending two people to meet Gaga at her sold-out concert in Las Vegas Aug. 13. ( The prize includes airfare, transportation and hotel accommodations. ) Contestants will receive one entry for each Bluetooth purchased before midnight on Aug. 10; visit www.Earloomz.com for more info.
Fashion designer Marc Jacobs and fiancé Lorenzo Martone have called off their engagement, according to Digital Spy. Martone actually tweeted that they split some time ago: "Thanks for t notes. yes, I saw t press today. We are not together, haven't been in 2 months. And we will not comment on it. Sorry. We r fine ( sic ) " Jacobs and Martone became engaged March 2009.
Real World: New Orleans cast member Ryan Leslie has apologized for an anti-gay item he recently tweeted, according to Advocate.com . Responding to someone who called him homophobic, Leslie posted, "I would love to see you in person, and smash your gay f*cking face in." After a deluge of follow-up messages and a demand from GLAAD, Leslie tweeted, "Want to apologize to the gay community—tweet not meant to offend. I take responsibility for what I said on Friday and I am sorry."
Superstar Madonna is planning an all-star concert in September for her Raising Malawi charity, according to an Advocate.com item. Madonna plans to give away 60,000 free tickets to fans for the stadium concert in Malawi, and wants the event televised worldwide, much like Live-Aid. Madonna has adopted two children from the African country: David and Mercy.
Openly gay actor/Broadway figure Cheyenne Jackson will be a part of the TV show Glee next season, according to E! Online. Jackson will portray the new coach of Vocal Adrenaline, which competes against the cast members' New Directions group. His role will be a recurring one.
