Pictured Singer k.d. lang and Singer Rufus Wainwright.
'I was never closeted. All those years, it just never came up—like how they never wrote about Kennedy having women in the White House.' — Comedian/actress Lily Tomlin to the Dallas Voice, Jan. 7.
'No! God help me. I don't want to get married. It's fine if everybody else wants to, but even if I was straight I wouldn't get married.' — Lily Tomlin.
'Look at the backlash to same-sex marriage. It polarized a whole contingency of voters that might not have voted, but they're absolutely going to vote because of that one issue.' — Tomlin.
'When I started my career the first thing I said to my record company before I'd even sat down at the table was, 'I am not pretending to be straight; I'm going to be totally honest about my own sexuality.' I was afraid that contractually they'd try and bind me into something—whereas I'd rather be bound in leather—just kidding! I have always been excited by the history of gay culture and the real tradition of high art and high standards which has existed for hundreds of years. I've drawn on that, and felt I was at tremendous advantage because I could draw on that and carry on that tradition. That fuelled me and helped me. Some people think 'he's too gay' or 'maybe he's too much of an opera queen', but I found it tremendously useful.' — Singer Rufus Wainwright to Australia's 4ZZZ Queer Radio and Queensland Pride newspaper, Jan. 12.
'97% ( 100 of 103 ) of state legislators who voted against anti-gay constitutional amendments and ran for re-election won their races, compared to 91% of state legislators who voted for them ( 196 of 215 ) .' — The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force summarizing its new report 'Impact of Voting against Anti-gay Marriage Amendments on 2004 Re-election Campaigns in Five Midwestern States,' Jan. 12.
'Gay Men May Be Misusing Viagra' — Dept. of Duh headline of the month, from Reuters, Jan. 13.
'I feel most comfortable with the way it is right now [ in California with comprehensive domestic partnerships for same-sex couples but no access to full marriage ] . Eventually in a few years from now, you can readdress it again and see what the people of California think. You cannot force-feed those kind of things.' — California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the San Francisco Chronicle, Jan. 15.
'The Secretary's first act in office denies children an education about the diversity of American families. Teaching children about respect for differences promotes tolerance of their fellow human beings. Those are the values our children should be learning. Instead, Secretary Spellings is sending the message that differences should concealed. This creates a dangerous environment for children's growth. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth are disproportionately at risk for suicide. Creating a climate in which children are taught that differences should be feared does nothing to promote understanding for peers.' — HRC Political Director Winnie Stachelberg. PBS has decided to pull the episode of Postcards from Buster from distribution because the show, titled Sugartime!, features the bunny on a trip in Vermont and focuses on farm living and maple sugaring. One scene depicts two lesbian couples. The program receives funding through federal Ready-to-Learn programs.
'Congress' and the Department's purpose in funding this programming certainly was not to introduce this kind of subject matter to children, particularly through the powerful and intimate medium of television.' — Secretary Margaret Spellings, asking for a refund 'in the interest of avoiding embroiling the Ready-to-Learn program in a controversy that will only hurt' it. A Department spokesperson said that PBS has been awarded almost $100 million over the past five years in a contract that expires in September.
'The 'subject matter' is innocuous, but the Secretary's implication that teaching children about the reality of American life is cause for fear is harmful. Same-sex couples are raising children in almost every county in the nation. These families deserve just as much dignity and respect as their neighbors, and the children of America shouldn't be denied the reality of our lives.' — Stachelberg.
'In a country like Brazil, there's a rich tradition of continuing the classics: all the songs by Tom Jobim are still played by contemporary bands. I find that very dignified and essential to the proper evolution of music. But because of publishing companies and the business end of music, there is a lot of emphasis put on song writing, with the result that there are a lot of crap songs out there. So while songwriting is important, interpretation is just as important. It just happens to be unfashionable at the moment, mainly because we've been inundated by tacky versions of the American songbook—me included.' — k.d. lang to The Guardian.
'The newer political echelon of Nashville rejected me and all the older pioneers, who I loved, loved me. I'd say, therefore, it worked out perfect. I did a song with Loretta Lynn and she came into the studio with a full log of baloney—that's the kind of meat where you have no idea what part of the animal it came from—and we had to saw through it right there on the mixing desk. She's quite eccentric.' — k.d. lang on her start in country music.
Q Television Network was the focus of CBS-TV's 'Late Show with David Letterman's Top Ten List' Jan. 10. Top Ten Shows on the new gay cable network, according to Dave:
10. 'Everybody loves Raymond ... especially Steve.'
9. 'CSI: San Francisco'
8. 'Inside the actor's studio apartment in the West Village'
7. 'Law and Order: Special Antiquing Unit'
6. 'King of Queens'
5. 'Desperate Houseboys'
4. 'Stone Phillips-Unleashed'
3. 'Malcolm in the Middle'
2. 'My wife and kids....have no idea'
1. 'Press the meat'
