Thursday, January 20, 2011

THE LIFE: Terms of endearment or entrapment

I've always understood as a journalist that you can ask anyone about anything -- without causing a "Real Housewives" table-flipping, neck-rolling, wig-tugging scene. It's all about how you ask the question.

The key is to get across to the person you're interviewing your intention behind the deeply personal, potentially embarrassing probe -- through your tone of voice, facial expression, body language and lead-in questions.

* Senator Craig, when did you first realize you had a talent for tap-dancing in small spaces?

All of the best interviewers have a pose or mannerism they use to ask tough questions, but above all, having a genuine interest in the answer is paramount to getting at the truth.

It's a theory I often apply in my non-work life. I like asking questions but not in a way that makes the person I'm asking uncomfortable to answer honestly.

It's something gay men have done throughout our history.

Monday, January 17, 2011

HISTORY: The ball goes on for unlikely activists


A participant in a Gay Mardi Gras ball takes the stage in an elaborate
costume. The men often make their own showstopping ensembles,
using a backpack as the foundation to balance and carry their large
Vegas-style headpieces.



Before Stonewall erupted in 1969, bringing national attention to anti-gay discrimination and police harassment in New York, there were groups of young men in New Orleans primping, parading and performing their way into history as civil rights activists.


These men used the art of drag and Mardi Gras to form clubs – also known as krewes – which allowed them and other gay men to be themselves and bond as a community. In 1962 Petronius was the first gay krewe to apply for and be granted a charter, like other clubs in the city.

Each year the krewes hosted Gay Mardi Gras balls, elaborate send-ups of high society’s Carnival celebration. The balls became a popular tradition in the city’s French Quarter, despite the law against cross-dressing.

The only time drag was legally allowed in New Orleans in the 1950s and '60s was during Mardi Gras. Even then, a costume had to have at least one item of men’s clothing and it couldn’t be worn after dark. It was not uncommon for balls to be the target of police raids, but the men were persistent.

In his first feature-length documentary, “The Sons of Tennessee Williams” (www.exposureroom.com/sonsofTWtrailer), filmmaker Tim Wolff reveals how the balls evolved from being “criminal activity” to being a cultural phenomenon that attracts gay and straight people. The film, which had two sold-out screenings this month at the Palm Springs International Film Festival (http://www.psfilmfest.org/), also takes viewers on an inspiring, humorous journey through New Orleans' gay history.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

RELATIONSHIPS: Oh brother, you're gay too?



The Cohan brothers from about 1970 (left to right): David, Dan and Gary


When David Cohan came out to his family a year after college, he already had an ally within the fold who could identify with his struggle and offer guidance -- only David didn't realize it at the time.

He was the youngest of three sons in a middle-class Jewish American family in Philadelphia. After coming out he learned from friends that his brother Gary, the middle son, also was gay. Though they were not particularly close, having a gay sibling freed David from the sense of "aloneness" many gay men feel when they come out to their families. It helps that there's someone else who understands the experience and the family dynamic.

For those of us who don't have a close gay relative, there's a curiosity about what it would be like to have a gay brother to give advice and support, and show us the ropes.

David shares his experience with THE WILL DEAN SHOW, emphasizing that each family's situation is different and every sibling's perspective is unique. For example, after David came out to himself he realized his brother might be gay, but Gary hadn't said it.