JOHN BARROWMAN SPEAKS ABOUT TORCHWOOD, MARRIAGE AND HIS LIFE! (PART TWO)

Continuing our interview with John Barrowman, star of Torchwood and the musical theatre stage.... John was quite forthcoming in this interview....spoke from the heart and honestly about EVERYTHING. A true class act!

So getting back to the show: This is your fourth go-round, and every time you got bumped up the BBC chain [the first series aired on BBC Three, the second on BBC Two, the third on BBC One], and now you’re a US-UK co-production. Did you have any idea that it would be this kind of ride when you started?

JB: No, I had no idea. I wanted it to be this kind of ride when we started, and my wish came true. We started off on the smallest digital channel from the BBC, we got the biggest ratings on that and moved to BBC Two, we had stellar ratings on that. Moved to BBC One, stellar ratings also. I knew they were working to push this further, but wasn’t allowed to talk about it, so when I was saying publicly my opinion that I wished there were more episodes than five, that it would be silly if we didn’t do it again, that was John Barrowman speaking, because I love Captain Jack, I love the show, I know how much the show is loved.


So I got in a little bit of shtick from people saying I was too outspoken and speaking out against the BBC – I wasn’t. I was actually just saying what my opinion was: If you have a good job, you want more of it. And fortunately, Russell and Julie, who runs the BBC, and Starz were all banding together to make it happen, and they have. So I did get my wish! I got more episodes, I got more Torchwood, I got more Captain Jack.


Work on world peace next time.
JB: [laughs] Stick me in a room with all these leaders, I tell ya – I’ll show them a thing or two. That’s what I always think they should do: Strip ’em all down and sit ’em in a room naked, see what happens. I wouldn’t want to be there, I wouldn’t want to be watching that, but it might calm things down a little.


Is the show divorced from Doctor Who now?
JB: No, we mention the Doctor in this series. Because we’re part of that world, we came from that world. You can’t deny your history. But we are a stand-alone show now. What I always say is that we separated from the mothership, but we still make references and hopefully, one day, Jack will go back to Who. That’s my opinion, not anybody else’s, but I would love to cross over with the new Doctor and just see what would happen with him and Jack.

I would have loved to have done that with [Elisabeth] Sladen – Lis always wanted to work more with me – but unfortunately that won’t happen now. Our matriarch is gone. [Sladen, beloved Doctor Who co-star and the star of the Davies-scripted Who spin-off The Sarah Jane Adventures, died April 19 after battling cancer. Barrowman and Sladen appeared together briefly during the 2008 Doctor Who series finale.]


For U.S. television, Captain Jack is something of an anomaly – we have a handful of queer characters, but not many action heroes. Does he stand out less among the characters on UK TV?
JB: It’s just part of the landscape, I think. We don’t really make an issue out of it. I’m not the first person on American television who’s a bisexual character, but there are a lot of characters represented. I’m quoting what Russell has said, I’m sure there’s others out there, but it’s the first time that a bisexual hero has been played by an openly gay man. There’s no heroes out there where the men [who play them] are openly gay. And that’s just what it is, really, but it’s not an issue in the UK, even when it started.

I remember the episode of Doctor Who where I kiss the Doctor, it just kind of came and went, and no one made an issue out of it. No one said anything; the newspapers actually kind of missed it, and we didn’t make it a big sensational thing out of it. I don’t think it will be an issue over here, and if it is – well, excuse me, but change the fucking channel. [laughs] Do you know what I mean?


It’s just that queer characters are all over the American TV landscape, but they tend to be lawyers, or they’re in comedies. We don’t get a lot of derring-do.
JB: No, you don’t, but it’s time we do. What people have to remember is that I’m a gay man at home and in the outside world, and at work I’m a hero. I don’t bring my personal life into the – well, actually, this sounds stupid, but I have sex with men, Captain Jack has sex with men, so maybe I do bring my personal life into it. [laughs] But I’ve played heterosexual characters, I’ve played ingénues, I’ve played the lead characters in most of the shows I’ve been in, and most of them have been straight. So this is actually something different for me, in a way. Listen, it will be interesting to see how it takes, and I’m sure I’ll get some kind of … people will always complain about something.



Gareth (Ianto) and John at a Comic Con where they are always asked to kiss!!!



And actually, if anyone has sailed these waters in American TV, it’s Starz with Spartacus.
JB: Correct, and thank god for Starz. We’re so glad to be with such a good network, because they’re the ones who break the boundaries a little bit more than the others. A lot of people were worried that we were going to be watered-down when we went to American, but we’re actually not – we’re even edgier than before. There’s some really great sex scenes with Jack and some men, and it’s really portrayed truthfully and honestly, it’s fantastic. People who complain, generally, are the people who don’t even watch the damn show.


And I’ve had first-hand experience with that in the UK, where they’ve complained about something I’ve done, and you go and read what they said, and you know they’ve not read the article, they didn’t listen to the radio show, and they’ve not seen the TV show. They don’t know what the hell they’re talking about.

That’s the nature of the internet commenter. It’s great that Russell has maintained so much control over the show, because Showtime recently aired Episodes over here. I don’t know if you saw it, but it’s about two creators of a British hit show having everything changed in the U.S. version. And that’s happened to a lot of UK talent when their shows have crossed the pond.
JB: Well one thing you have to remember is that we’re a collaboration between the BBC Worldwide, and also BBC One with Starz. We still have the heart and essence of what’s made Torchwood so special, and we still have that. And we have everything that’s even edgier on top of that. So the soul of the show has not changed. I can guarantee to the audience who’s going to watch it because they’re staunch fans, they’re gonna know what they’re looking at.


Had you been much of a sci-fi fan before this gig?
JB: Oh god, yeah! I grew up on Star Wars, I still have all my Star Wars toys – actually, I gave them to my nephew Turner, he looks after them now. The original Battlestar Galactica, Space: 1999, Star Trek, um, Thunderbirds, even coming up into the new era of V, I remember the original miniseries. And Doctor Who! I was a Doctor Who baby; I grew up watching Sarah Jane as one of the assistants, Tom Baker, John Pertwee, all the Doctors of that time. I used to stay up and watch PBS, because that’s where you got Doctor Who. I’m a fan-geek, and I’m proud, and I love it. To this day, I still download shows I can’t watch when they’re airing. I still have Battlestar Galactica to get through, the new series. But it’s great, one of the directors from that, we’ve worked with her here.


Do you see an end to Torchwood?
JB: Well obviously, there will be an end to it at some point, but you know, I’m not ready for it to end. Touch wood, what I’d love to have happen is we do four or five more series, keep going strong, and then finish, and then maybe a year after, do a movie. I don’t know what I’ll look like, you know…


Playing an immortal can be a drag.
JB: Exactly! I am gonna get older, so we have to figure something out. But I would be happy – although I do other entertainment stuff, I do other TV shows, I do books with my sister for young teenagers, I’ve got my music – if someone were to say to me, you’re only going to play Captain Jack for the rest of your career, I would be completely content. I love him, I love the show, I love what we stand for, I love what he stands for, and I love coming to work every day. It’s a thrill.


Will you ever do a musical episode?
JB: I’d love to. I don’t know if Russell’s game for it, but I’d love to do one. We’d have to be on a planet where music controls everything, or is the only mode of communication. I would have no problem. But I think we’d have to dub Eve [Myles’] voice, she’s not a singer. [laughs]

She could always talk her way through like Rex Harrison.
JB: Kai [Owen] would be great. Alexa [Havins]? Not so sure. Mekhi [Phifer]? He’s a great rapper. So we’ve got every demographic covered.


Any final thoughts?
JB: Thank you to everyone for all the support you’ve given me over the years, and to all the people who hit the website and put me in the top five every year in the best gay men out there poll, I really appreciate it and I’m proud to represent the gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender community, and I will always do that, no matter what. Anyone who doesn’t have a voice will always have a voice through me.

JOHN BARROWMAN SPEAKS ABOUT TORCHWOOD, MARRIAGE AND HIS LIFE! (PART ONE)

A blessing.
That is what John Barrowman is.
He is a blessing. A gorgeous, talented, down-to-earth, considerate blessing.
And here's Part One of the interview with him!

PART ONE:

When I walk onto the Los Angeles set of Torchwood: Miracle Day, John Barrowman is in full performance mode, but the cameras aren’t rolling. Everyone’s waiting for the next scene to be ready, so in the meantime, Barrowman is entertaining the crew and his fellow cast members with an elaborate anecdote that involved two perfectly-executed pratfalls and a dead-on impersonation of Carol Channing.



With that kind of showman’s instinct, it’s no surprise that Barrowman, 44, has become an international sensation for his starring role as Torchwood’s Captain Jack Harkness, a bisexual, immortal con man who spends his days chasing down aliens and other bizarre phenomena. But even when he’s not topping the bill on the hit BBC series, which has traveled Stateside for its new season, co-produced by the Starz network, the Scottish-born, Illinois-raised Barrowman keeps his fanbase busy with multiple projects in his adopted United Kingdom – he’s a TV presenter, musical theater star, and even the co-author of a series of young adult sci-fi novels.

When we spoke on set (in a conversation that was interrupted two or three times so he could shoot scenes for Miracle Day, which premiered July 8 on Starz), he shared his thoughts about the show, his career, his longtime relationship with Scott Gill, and even his mock rivalry with Neil Patrick Harris, with whom he battled over a Gay/Bisexual Man of the Decade poll.
(Note: British TV uses the word “series” in the way that Americans use “season.”)


Bringing Torchwood to the U.S., does it feel like you’re starting over again?
John Barrowman: Ironically enough, it doesn’t, because it’s what I’ve known, it’s what we’ve known as a team for the past four series. What was interesting was that when we came here, a lot of people working on the crew thought we were a new show, and someone said, “Oh yeah, working on this show is tough because of blahblahblah,” and I said, “Dude, I’ve been working on this show – this is my fourth series.” And he went, “Really?”

But Torchwood is continually evolving; every series, we’ve done something different, so why not bring it to this side of the Atlantic, which I’m chuffed about and raring to go.


You mention people thinking it’s a new show – with the move to Starz and the expansion to, presumably, a larger audience Stateside, is this series designed to accommodate first-time viewers?
JB: I’ll tell you the standard answer: This series, if you’ve been a loyal follower – which we appreciate you being – you’ll be able to pick up and know where we’ve left off, because there are some references to the back stuff in it and other things that have happened; we’ve got references to Ianto [Captain Jack’s gorgeous lover, who died horribly at the end of the third series, Torchwood: Children of Earth], we’ve got references to Doctor Who, we’ve got references to The Hub.

But if you’re a new audience member who wants to see what Torchwood is all about and you want to come and join the Torchwood family, you will be able to pick up and things will be explained to you as we go along. It’s one of those series where you will not have to know what has come before. But what will be interesting is that once you’ve seen this one, you’re going to want to go back and watch [series] one, two, and three to see where it all evolved from. This is a stand-alone series, but also a continuation, and that’s what’s so brilliant about the writing, with [creator] Russell [T. Davies] and our team of writers this series, they’re able to capture that in both ways. It’s the best of both worlds, really.


You guys are coming off of a really dark story…
JB: And we’re going into another really dark story. In Miracle Day, a massive event happens – everybody wakes up one morning and everyone’s immortal. And immediately you think that’s a fantastic thing, nobody can die, but actually it could also be a terrible thing: Think about the population problems, or if you’re ill – because if you’re decapitated in a car accident, you’re still alive, right? You’ll still feel pain. There’s medical issues, there’s drug issues, and what’s really interesting about this series and that event that happens is that it’s kind of mimicking what’s going on in the world today, but at a heightened scale.


The questions that are asked in Episode One will be answered in Episode Ten, so you’re not gonna be four series down the line and still not having an answer. But within that storyline, there’s all these other issues and questions that are raised that get answered also, and lead you in a different direction throughout the series. So yeah, it’s dark. One thing that I love about Torchwood, and that I love about Jack and Gwen and what we do with this – we go to the areas that other shows won’t go to, and we raise those issues and questions, and it shocks people a little bit. And that’s what we’re gonna do again.


So speaking of Comic-Con, how would you differentiate your musical theater fanbase from your sci-fi fanbase?
JB: I don’t differentiate them – I think they’re one and the same because musical theater to me is a heightened reality, where we take subject matter and deal with it in a different way, which would be through song – when you no longer can speak, you have to burst into song and express yourself that way, or through dance. Sci-fi is very much the same; you deal with subject matter with aliens and things that are unreal and situations that are slightly unreal and heightened. So I think the crossover – a lot of my sci-fi fans have gone to see some musicals because they like some of the shows and they like that aspect of it, and vice versa, the musical fans who I’ve introduced to sci-fi. A lot of people may disagree with me, but I don’t see them as very different, because I think the heightened reality of it all makes them the same.

Do they both have the same level of fervor?
JB: Passion, are you talking? Yes. And I absolutely love that. It’s very interesting when I talk to people about the passion of sci-fi fans and the passion of musical theater fans; some can use the word “obsessive,” but I have no problem with that, because I myself am a sci-fi fan and I myself am a musical theater fan, so when I go to Comic-Con, I give myself my time beforehand to walk around and buy all my T-shirts. Last time, I had them build me an Iron Man statue and all that kind of stuff. So I understand it, and I appreciate it, and I don’t want anyone to change.


Changing gears for a second here….You wore a kilt to your civil union ceremony, right?
JB: I did, yes.


That’s one of those indelibly-burned images.
JB: Is it, really? I was a true Scotsman, there was nothing underneath. Or rather, there is something underneath, but…well, you remember!

No article of clothing, gotcha. How’s married life going?
JB: It’s going really well! Scott and I have been together now for 17 years. The difference is, and I say this because I know everyone out there is an advocate for civil partnerships or marriage or whatever you want to call it in this country, all of a sudden Scott comes over here and we don’t have the same legal rights as we do in the UK. And while I’m fortunate enough to have an American passport and my dual nationality, he’s not recognized as my partner, and so he doesn’t have the same benefits that I do over here, which I think is absolutely ridiculous.
When we go through customs, purposely we go though together, I take him with me in my line. They say he should be in the other line, and I say, “No, he’s my partner.” And when they say, “What do you mean, partner?” I never call him this, but I say, “He’s my husband,” just to stir them up a little bit, because I just like to see their reaction. And they actually say to us, “We don’t recognize that in this country.” And it angers me.

The whole bi-national couple issue is getting a lot more attention lately.
JB: Sure! Loads of my friends who are Americans have partners who are from Europe somewhere. Not even just that – it’s a problem for people here, two Americans who are wanting to settle down and to have a marriage and to solidify what they have. We should be able to, so I hope it changes quite soon. The really nice thing is that there’s a whole generation out there that’s coming up, and it’s my nephew and niece’s age, and they really don’t give a shit. And they’re the ones – we’re pushing for the change, and I don’t want to sound like an old fogey, but they’re the ones who are probably gonna make that change. I think there was a poll the other day that said 57% of people don’t mind if two men or two women have a marriage or have that status, so things are changing. I say we take the marriage word out of it.


Really?
JB: That’s my opinion. Because that’s what upsets the religious people the most. Plus, I know there’s a lot of faith-based gay men and women out there, and that’s a great thing, but I just feel if that word “marriage” means so much to the fundamentalists and all those radicals out there that they don’t want to lose it, let them have it. Let’s create another name for it.
I think if the government got out of the marriage business and made “marriage” an exclusively religious thing, then yeah, everybody would get their partnership, their union, whatever, and the issue of “marriage” be decided from religion to religion. But as long as government sanctions marriage, not getting that under that same name puts us in the separate-but-equal zone.
But also, I’ll just remind all those groups that claim ownership of that word, that word was not a religious word when it began. It was because marriage was happening that the church grabbed onto it, to have something to do with it. So it wasn’t yours to begin with.So give it back!


Are you guys thinking about parenting?
JB: Ah! [inhales sharply] You know, I would love to. I don’t think Scott is as gung-ho with it at the moment as I am, because I think…well, I’d have to let him say for himself. But [if] I really wanted to, I think he would. I think we would have one and I would adopt one. But with what I’m doing, traveling back and forth, it would be quite difficult and it would be unfair to put a child into different schools all the time, although Eve is doing it with her baby. But I think they’re gonna stay here a lot longer – Scott and I have to go back and forth, because I’ve got shows in the UK that I gotta do, plus I produce one over there.
So it would be a little more difficult, and I think that if we adopted, we wouldn’t be adopting a baby. We’d be adopting a child that was a little older, not just because we don’t want to deal with diapers but because there are a lot of children out there who are of an older age who don’t get adopted. And also teenagers. Scott and I have talked about this, and we could offer a great deal, and give a lot of love; we have a great home, a great solid grounding for them, and also great opportunities. So that’s how we look at it.


Because you know, *giggle* your arch-nemesis Neil Patrick Harris has kids now.
JB: Well, you know, that’s … they’ve got the babies, and they’re a bit younger than Scott and I are, and that’s great. My nieces and nephews, I changed their diapers and stuff, but I think I wouldn’t mind having one of my own. But upfront, I’d have to have a nanny. Or a manny. A manny who doubles as a pool-boy. [laughs] You gotta have one, and I’m sure Neil Patrick Harris has one, let me tell you. [laughs]


I remember the Advocate - when you did your coming-out interview in the magazine, around the time that De-Lovely was released. Did that change things?
JB: The funny thing is, that no one really took notice of it. And when I did it, it was almost by accident, and it just happened. I was asked about it, and I mentioned my partner Scott, and actually the interviewer said to me, “Do you realize that you just came out?” And I went, “I didn’t ever really think I was in.” You know, everybody knew I was gay.
I don’t think it’s changed anything. Again, all the guys who are my age or older, we can start sounding bit old-fashioned if we keep harping about how things haven’t changed or we’re still struggling. Yes, there’s a good deal of things out there that need to change, but the generation that’s coming up – and in the gay world, five years is a generation, you know what I mean? – men who are five years, ten years younger than us, they’re making changes themselves, and actually they’re doing things by not doing things, if that makes sense. Because it’s not that big an issue to them. And I’m not denying what we’ve gone though, what we’ve done…


No, but I think the goal for people our age was to make being gay less of a big deal.
JB: And it’s worked! That’s what happened. And it’s worked for this other generation, but we still have a whole lot of people out there who are not openly gay because they think it’s going to affect their jobs and stuff. Now I’m not out there to out people, and if that’s what you choose to do, that’s your choice, and I don’t see anything wrong with that. But I must say, if you’re doing it because you think it’s detrimental to your career, the more of us who come out and do things openly – I guarantee you, there’s a lot of us in Hollywood.
And if we all just come out and don’t worry about it – in fact, not even come out, just live. If we could just be ourselves and live and not pretend and not lie and not have beards, things would be a lot different. And the public, in a way, has to accept that stuff. If a big Hollywood A-lister came out, do you really think it’s going to affect the films?


They obviously do. But no, I’m with you on that one.
JB: People are not that stupid. And I think we need to give the people more power in that sense. There might be an area of society that will never believe it, will never want to believe it, but that’s their choice. I don’t have a choice, they do. You know what I mean?

MORE TO FOLLOW!!! PART TWO TOMORROW!!

A G4TC UPDATE!!

Well hi guys!
Just wanted to update you with upcoming bits!
Firstly, I have an interview with none other than JOHN BARROWMAN from TORCHWOOD fame!
And then there's a little spread coming up on a return to super gay porn stardom by PIERRE FITCH!
Of course, I will always post my favourite snaps and vids for you all to....enjoy!

As some of you know, I had a traumatic family event take place.
We are all still trying to begin again.
Thank you all for the emails and posts of support and prayers. They have meant a lot.
And now...I am back full time, both here on the blog and in print in numerous gay mags 'round the world.
It's so good to be back!

And dont forget G4TC is now on Tumblr!
www.guysforthecamera.tumblr.com
Cum by and visit!!

CHEERS!
"The Camera"

INTERVIEW WITH MAX ADLER, GLEE'S CLOSET CASE BULLY!!

Will it get better for Dave Karofsky, or could Glee's closeted bully still kill himself?
Max Adler reveals what might be in store for his conflicted character next season - including the possibility of a love connection with Kurt Hummel.


In the heated moment when he kissed Kurt Hummel in the McKinley High locker room, Glee's most hated slushie-tossing tormentor, became one of the most tragic and sympathetic figures on television. As his self-loathing character kept harassing Kurt throughout the second season, forcing the openly gay glee clubber to temporarily transfer to another school, Max Adler earned more admirers by wholeheartedly embracing the responsibility of representing struggling gay youth.
Now smiling for a change on his summer hiatus, the 25-year-old actor looks back at Karofsky's slow road toward self-acceptance and predicts a somewhat brighter future for the football jock when the Fox juggernaut returns for a third season this fall.

Now that we're between seasons, are you suffering from Glee withdrawal like I am?
I'm totally going through Glee withdrawal. The hectic schedule was full-speed, and then it all stopped at once. But I'm not the kind of person who enjoys downtime, so I'm always looking for what I can do next. Two days after we wrapped season 2, I went off to shoot a movie, and there have already been other auditions and meetings, so I'm keeping busy.


The Glee audience first discovered that Karofsky was gay in "Never Been Kissed", the November episode in which he unexpectedly kisses Kurt. Similarly, you learned Karofsky's secret when you read the script for that episode. How did that new insight change the way you played the character?
Well, before the "Never Been Kissed" episode, I still looked for things within him that would make him more interesting for me to play - why does he bully, why does he torment so many people? Him being gay was actually something I tossed around as an idea, but it obviously wasn't confirmed until "Never Been Kissed", which just reiterated how I played him. I knew there was something going on underneath, but once I knew for sure what that thing was, it made it a lot more exciting for me. It's almost like playing two people at once: Karofsky has one way he speaks and shows himself to his peers at school, and then there's this whole other life beneath the surface, so with everything he says there's something else that he's thinking. To get to act that is such a joy.


Santana figured out Karofsky secret when she caught him checking out Sam in the hallway.
Yeah, Sam's a good-looking guy. That was great, because in the script it just said, "Santana spots Karofsky" - and then in all caps - "AS HE TOTALLY CHECKS SAM'S ASS OUT!" I though, oh, my God, that's going to be so much fun. I had already thought about that kind of thing. When I'm doing those locker room scenes, I think, Karofsky's probably feeling pretty uncomfortable with all these other guys, because it would be like me in a locker room with a bunch of girls changing. That was something I had been playing, but it was never shown until he checked out Sam. If your questioning your sexuality at school with a bunch of good-looking teenage guys, yeah, your eyes are going to be roaming for sure.


Because we see Karofsky sporadically, have you come up with your own details to fill his backstory?
Yes, I think about it all the time. At this point, all he's doing is trying to blend in and fly under the radar. He wants to watch everything he does - the way he walks, the way he talks, what he looks at - so I feel like when you don't see him, he's not causing trouble or getting into fights; he has school, football practise, and then goes home, so he's living his life like a drone, a robot, just trying to get through another day without anyone seeing him for who he really is. Whether he's surfing the Wed, playing video games, eating, whatever, he's in hiding. He's almost like a wanted criminal, trying to lie low.
Has Dave ever hooked up with a guy on the sly?
I don't think so. I think his kiss with Kurt was his very first encounter with a guy, which is what scared him. He's been shell-shocked since then, so I don't think he's ready to get out there and start hooking up with anybody just yet.


The poor guy must be ready to explode - figuratively and literally.
Exactly. I was curious about what was going to happen at the prom, because it would've been one heck of a time for him to come out. But I love how the writers have let it play out a little longer, because it would've been a little soon and abrupt for him to come out like that, especially in front of the whole student body. He's totally ready to explode. I imagine him as this big inflated balloon before "Never Being Kissed", but there was a small pinprick once that kiss happened, and now all the hot air is slowly escaping as he tries to close it up.


A lot of Glee fans out there would enjoy seeing Kurt and Karofsky hook up. Are you aware of the slash fan fiction category called "Kurtofsky"?
I'm aware. Chris [Colfer] and I have discussed this, and we've decided that Kurtofsky sounds like a mean, famous male Russian ballerina. In all honesty, I haven't read any of it. I know it exists, but I don't want to read it, because I don't want it to influence anything I'm doing on the show. But I am very aware, and find it amusing. It people are still thinking about the show once it ends, that's a good thing.
You teamed up with the Trevor Project to make an "It Gets Better" video, and you co-hosted the Anti-Defamation League's Concert Against Hate. At what point did you decide to get involved with the GLBT community and anti-bullying initiatives beyond your portrayal of Karofsky?
After "Never Being Kissed" aired. When I read that script, I though it could have this major impact, but I didn't know whether it would be positive or negative. I thought it was important, but it's a very risky thing to have play out on prime-time TV, so I didn't know if people would lash out against me, the character, the writers, whatever. Once it aired, the response I got was 100% positive. I had a smile on the face the whole day. That's when people started coming up to me, asking for autographs, pictures, shaking my hand, telling me, "Thank you for doing this", "You're representing me", "You're representing someone I know". I knew from that point that there are eyeballs on this story line, and it's my job to be honest with what's on the page and to represent the feelings and struggles that people are really going through. As entertaining as the show is, and as fun as the job is, there's a heavy, serious element for me in representing the gay community. It's been incredible.


There was a persistent rumour near the end of last season that Karofsky might kill himself. What were your thoughts on that possibility?
Yeah, I may've even started that rumour in interviews. But that's kind of how I was playing him - I always thought that he was least contemplating the idea, getting close to suicide, which would be very real. The obvious choice would be for him to come out and live happily ever after, but I thought the more interesting choice was having him struggle, because that really hasn't been represented for so long on television, and that's what a lot of people need to see. But because of the message of positivity that Glee puts out there, a suicide could be difficult to have on the show. Once that rumour stared going around, Ryan [Murphy] and Brad [Falchuk] said that it was discussed in the writers' room, but they didn't think that's where they were going to end up taking Karofsky. So I think fans can rest easy.
When we last saw Karofsky in the "Prom Queen" episode, he breaks down and apologises to Kurt for bullying him. Later, after being crowned prom king and having the opportunity to come out to the school by slow-dancing with Kurt, he runs out of the prom near tears. Where does that leave the character for next year?
It was a huge step for him to get to that point. That was the first time that he was himself, whether he wanted to be or not. Everything he'd done up to that point was this big shield of bravado, and he was faking who he was to everybody, but at the moment he couldn't take it anymore, so he let his guard down. So there's still a lot of progress that can be made. At the prom he saw how the student body dealt in a positive way with Kurt being named prom queen - they ended up backing him and cheering him - so that might ease some of his fears a bit. The most important part of all was that you see Karofsky making steps, digging into his inner feeling for the first time.


I hope you get to smile more next season.
Thank you. It's been fun playing the bad guy, but it's fun to smile too.

Even with your snarl, you've become something of a sex symbol this year. You recently ranked 64 on AfterElton's Hot 100, which isn't too shabby. How do you feel about that kind of attention from the gay audience?
It's all in good fun, and I appreciate it. It's also scary, because I feel like when you're put in that position you can only get beat up and go down from there. But for the time being, it's very cool.
Finally. You just wrapped filming the movie Detention of the Dead. What can you tell us about it?
It's a lot of fun. It's got a very John Hughes, 80's feel to it, which is refreshing, and then you get zombies. So if you like Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland, and The Breakfast Club, you're going to like it. It was a blast to shoot.

THE JAMES JAMESSON INTERVIEW UPDATE

Hello everyone!

I finished my interview with James Jamesson today....

and I'm very excited about it.

He was very forthcoming and blatantly honest in his conversation with me.

I look forward to posting the interview soon!

Its even going to be a cover story both in South Africa and in London....and that's great news.



More with James soon! Get ready to learn quite a bit about this new star....the new Prince of Porn!



Cheers!

"The Camera"

FEATURE DONE ON "THE CAMERA"

Ive been profiled before on other blogs and sites, but this is really flattering.
Fresh Gay did a post on G4TC and did a great job.
Thanks so much!

(They made me sound so important! Hehehehe...)
So check them out (the link is in my Blogroll) and check out the story they did about the site HERE.

CHEERS!
"The Camera"

UPDATE!! AND A GREAT ONE!!

You know, I really like interviewing those in the adult industry.
I learn so very much when they reveal the little things that we all would love to know.

I am THRILLED to let you all know that none other than JAMES JAMESSON has agreed to be interviewed by yours truly!

We are so lucky that he agreed to this interview.
In light of what is happening in the biz, with that Porn Wiki Leaks idiot ruining peoples lives, the hacking of AIM's database of client info....the time is right to hear from Mr. Jamesson.

I am excited because I think he is an incredibly smart man. I think Mr. Jamesson will surprise quite a few people in this interview. I am grateful that he will take some time out of his schedule for us all and for my readers in South Africa, too!

Keep watching! This interview will be posted soon!

CHEERS!!
 "The Camera"

TIFFANY OUTS NEW KID KNIGHT!!!

Late-’80s pop icon Tiffany was appearing on Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live Thursday night when she let slip that New Kids on the Block’s Jonathan Knight is gay.

The transcript is below.


Andy Cohen: Tiffany, New Kids on The Block opened for you. Did you have anything with any of the NKOTB ...

Tiffany: I did, with Jonathan Knight.


Andy: Oh, Jordan Knight.


Tiffany: No, the quiet one. The shy one. He's fabulous. But he became gay later.


Andy: Did you turn him?


Tiffany: No [laughs]. I had issues with that, I was thinking maybe I did. But no, now looking back when we were dating, he was so much fun — we used to do facials together, he was so easy to talk to.

In 2009 the National Enquirer ran an interview with a man claiming to be Knight's former partner. He told the tabloid Knight discovered he liked men shortly after dating Tiffany.
The New Kids on the Block are currently scheduled to hit the road this summer on a concert tour with the Backstreet Boys.
Tiffany was appearing on the show with fellow pop star Debbie Gibson, who followed it up by saying she has plenty of gay ex-boyfriends too.

INTERVIEW WITH BRYAN OCKERT -- PART TWO

BUT WHAT ABOUT THE GUYS?
I wanted to get back to the models again. How does he find them, how does he get them to evolve past a solo video and how does he feel about the “straight guy” label?
“Many of my models come from scouts who place guys with the right site. But mostly my guys come from other models.

Most start off with the solo as you said, move on to getting head, find it was easy, then try fucking a dude. Then when they realize the guy they are fucking is also straight – and actually nutting from it – they are less afraid to try bottoming. Funny enough, once they bottom, most actually prefer it. Mainly because the pressure on them to stay hard is not there.”

I asked him a pressing question. I wanted to know if his models were actually straight or if that’s just a website label.

“Most of the guys are actually straight. Viewers either love or hate that label but I have to say it on the site or I will get a thousand emails asking me what they are. Some are experimenting and confused. Some are truly bisexual. But most would never ever even fantasize about having sex with a dude during a jerk off session, nor seek out sex with another guy.

My pairings are very thought out. I have all kinds of things to consider. One model can only work weekends because he has a 9 to 5 job so he can’t work with a guy who bartends on weekends. Some will top, some cant top because they can’t stay hard long enough. I try to make them look good together, while other times it has been like, ‘Well, you both want a gig, so you guys need t make this work because no one else is available.’ Ironically those often turn out to be the hottest videos. I’ve only had two or three models that couldn’t become versatile players.”

Bryan tries to pair guys together whose limits are in line with the other. One model may be at the “I will only top and most definitely will NOT suck a dick” stage while the other is “Whatever it takes, I’m down for it.” These guys push each other to do more. And when a model really is in tune with the whole scene, they try to do more on their own.
Models like Nash, Silas and Ransom have stepped up to become not only staples on the site but huge fan favourites!
“Ransom, I think he deserves the cock sucking award,” Bryan stated matter of factly.
“He has taken over a lot of the videos that I used to do, and he is always bound and determined to make a guy nut and not just have them jerk themselves off into his mouth. He is a major performer with dedication. I think it’s funny that your readers picked him as one of the best Tops, because, despite having a girlfriend and rascally 4-year-old son, the dude REALLY enjoys being fucked! Half the time he is yelling, “Cut!” because he is about to nut just from being fucked! He is good Top, but I tend to think of him as a better Bottom.
“But I gotta give props to Nash. For a straight guy, he has never said no to a cock for me, and he cums from being fucked.”

Any other models that stick in his mind? Well, Bryan spoke of two more. When he spoke of Eli, Bryan feels that he is completely versatile. He excels at everything he does. Bryan told me, and I wholeheartedly agreed, that he truly enjoys sex with anyone. Eli can create chemistry with another guy on a set where there might not be any. Which is probably why he won some categories in the DINK poll.
And then Bryan spoke of Gerin. My readers in DINK voted him Best Bottom. Bryan agrees. He thinks that Gerin rocks as a bottom. And who couldn’t see that. Gerin takes to sex on film like a fish to water – he writhes, moans, sweats and creates a truly explosive atmosphere on a set and the viewer can see that sexuality oozing from Gerin’s every pore…..and his scene partners really enjoy his energy.

“Keep your eyes out for Isaiah and Kristopher!” Bryan punctuated the conversation with that little phrase. Isaiah is a new find, and Kristopher, who was just introduced on the site, is looking to become another favourite.

I wanted to make sure that the models know how their fans feel about them. So I decided to show you all the results of the DINK poll.

I asked which is the hottest site and who is the hottest site owner. Once we knew that the winner was ChaosMen, I asked some more questions about the site, the models and the videos……..

THE DINK POLL

HOTTEST SITE OWNER: Bryan Ockert= 61%, Sean Cody= 28%, Mike Hancock= 9%,
                                           Jake Cruise= 2%
HOTTEST GUYS ON CM: Nash, Hagan, Taylor and Teo
BEST TOP: Ransom and Eli
BEST BOTTOM: Gerin
BEST RAW SCENE: “Eli, Gerin and Taylor “AND “Eli and Heath”
BEST SERVICED SCENES: Adam, Drale, Jayce, Degan, Lansing – The Director’s Cut, Parker
BEST SOLO SCENES: Chase, Cain, Dane, Davis, Slade, Topher, Will
BEST EDGE SCENES: Mattox, Rocco, Silas
GUY WE WISH WOULD ACTUALLY SPEAK: Hagan
GUY WE WISH WOULD ACTUALLY BOTTOM: Parker
GUY WE WANT BACK ON THE SITE: Adam and Degan
ULTIMATE CHAOSMEN MODELS: Ransom, Taylor and Nash
ULTIMATE PAIRING ON CHAOSMEN: Adam, Parker, Nash and Ransom all fuck Gerin!!



THE ANTI-CLIMACTIC NON-SCANDAL
I wanted to broach another subject. I wasn’t sure how Bryan would react to talking about the topic. I wanted to know how he felt about all the talk about bareback sex scenes, filmmakers’ responsibilities and the popularity of his RAW videos. He actually got no flack about the RAW videos from fans and reviewers.
“If you look at a site like AEBN, their highest viewed videos are the bareback videos. Well, without a doubt, the RAW videos are what people want, complete with breeding action. My subscribers truly want to see that fantasy take place in front of them. I do get at least one letter a month saying ‘How dare you!’ but for the most part, the RAW videos have been a success.”


With his models, Bryan has brought “next door guys” to our computers. He actually gets more grief from subscribers complaining about guys with tattoos and piercings than the raw videos. His subscribers are creatures of habit and sometimes the diversity of his models can hurt him. I understand ‘that. People don’t always go for variety and tend to ‘eat the same meal every day.’


“Guys see my models as ‘any guy’ and that keeps them coming back for more. My guys have that attainable look and personality so any guy watching can think ‘Oooh! I can get the straight guy too!’ It’s feeding fantasy for them. And the RAW videos really feed that fantasy!”


His mother even has an opinion about the bareback videos. She told Bryan, “Why would anyone think Porn is bad, that it is much safer these days than driving late at night with drunk drivers, getting hooked on alcohol and drugs ‘cuz your social life is around bars, and certainly safer than having sex with random strangers.” Mom’s blessing! (Sort of…)



THE DIRT
I wanted some more personal information from Bryan. Favourites. Does he have any on the site?
“Favourite guy? That’s a tough one. How about a list of my top ten in no particular order?

Teo, Taylor, Vander, Orlando, Hayden, Eli, Micah, Heath, Parker and Ransom. All are my favourites because I like them personally, they work hard to make the videos hot, are solid no-nonsense performers, and all of them ooze sex in their own way. There are actually about 10 more I could name. I like my team a lot.”

Bryan’s life has changed severely because of ChaosMen. He even gets recognized in the airports. He told a friend that he had been recognized and his friend retorted, ”Did they see the back of your head?”

Bryan tells me this with a big smile and a laugh, and finishes with, “I’m the most famous back of a head on the internet!”

WHAT’S NEXT?
The future? What does it hold for ChaosMen?


“Well,” Bryan started, “the Glory Hole videos are coming back, so fans of those will be happy!”
There is also a cross promotion with another studio in the works, which could be a huge deal.

And there’s a new film with Taylor and Vander in the shower…Raw! Bryan shared a snap of the upcoming video for us! However, with the 'law' being passed down from on high at CCBill, Bryan was forced to re-edit the Vander/Taylor video to cut out some very vanilla piss play. Bryan was told that inclusion of that material on the site was a violation of their rules....therefore the old video was taken off the site and a newer version - sans piss - was posted.

There really aren’t any major changes in the works. ChaosMen works like a well oiled machine now – so don’t fix it if it isn’t broken is Bryan’s motto.


I looked at my watch. Bryan and I had been chatting for over an hour. I wanted to let him get back to work and have some down time. So I decided to close our interview by asking him if he had anything he’d like to say to his fans about the site.
“I guess what I want to say is that most of my guys are like family, so I do feel protective of them and try to keep them ‘distant’ from media engine that the porn industry has got going. They work hard to make something that will excite you, and they push through some major personal limits to do so. So I am glad to hear they have an audience so far away and clearly into them!

“I think when this interview is published, I will put a copy of it out where they can see it. Most don’t have any idea that people really get off to them, and I think they will love to see they have fans that are eager to see them do more.” Then with a laugh, Bryan thought out loud. “It might inspire them to be even naughtier!”

One can only hope!

I want to thank Mr. Ockert for his time and his participation in this interview. He is extremely busy but always found time to chat with me and email. I also want to thank him for use of his pictures. All pictures in this interview are property of ChaosMen and Bryan Ockert. Thanks for letting me venture into your picture library for this story.

Check out ChaosMen guys! It is HOT HOT HOT!!!!

CHEERS!

"The Camera"

INTERVIEW WITH BRYAN OCKERT -- PART ONE

In my time as a blogger and a writer for numerous gay mags, I have always had questions about the gay adult film industry, specifically on the web. With so many websites to choose from, I always wondered why a few of them always seem to rise to the top and come up in conversations about the subject consistently. One site that always is mentioned is ChaosMen.
ChaosMen is run by Mr. Bryan Ockert. He has been running the site for 10 years and has seen the transformation of the web and blogs and websites. Bryan has been able to maintain ChaosMen as one of the top three sites for gay adult videos for many years now and hasn’t gotten sick of the work or the challenges. ChaosMen offers its subscribers numerous types of videos – Solos, Safe Sex, Glory Hole, Edge (where a model’s limits are tested and pushed a bit), Serviced (where one model lays back and gets serviced either by another model or by Bryan himself) …..but there is one type that may have caused a little stir on the web. The Raw video – no condoms, just raw sex between the guys, sometimes with breeding action and sometimes with a mouthful of cum. ChaosMen’s models are good looking guys that you could find in any city or town, which adds to the appeal and the fantasy. The subscriber could see these guys in their town andthat fuels the fire.


I was lucky enough to get to talk with Bryan. When I approached him to do an interview, he was more than gracious and more than happy to talk about his work, his life and his models. Before we started, Bryan told me that he had only done 3 or 4 interviews about ChaosMen but none had ever been the cover story.


Bryan Ockert is a very straightforward bloke – no nonsense, no pretense – just a man with a job to do. He doesn’t try to explain the porn away from what he does. Instead, Bryan fully understands what people want and expect to see from his site and embraces the adult side of the internet. He does this with complete knowledge and understanding of the stigma behind the word “porn” but Bryan doesn’t balk at that. The site takes up so much of his time that he doesn’t have time to react to the gossip or the online stories.


ChaosMen takes up so much time of Bryan’s life that it has been close to ten years since he’s been out on a date. Bryan had an eight year relationship and has no desire to look for or to start a relationship right now.


“I have taken myself ‘off the market’ deliberately,” Bryan said. “For many years I sucked cock for a living. Heck I have awards for it. It takes a strong partner to deal with that. My work pace is, well, astounding. There would be no time to build a proper relationship anyway. People who become my friends make no demands on me for face time. They know how busy I am and never pressure me to go do things. I don’t like to do anything else but work on the site. Even if I go see a movie I get too anxious about all the things I need to be doing. ”


HISTORY OF THE SITE


“I had no desire to be a photographer, videographer or even a pornographer!” Bryan responded when I asked him about the origins of ChaosMen. I had thought it might have been from a desire to be a photographer.


“Way back in early 1998, the Internet and chat rooms were just starting to really take hold. I would chat online, and had invested in this new thing called a ‘digital camera.’ I had never shot film, but liked how instantly I could get a photo from the camera to my computer. While chatting I would take a picture of myself each day, to give the people I was chatting with a sense of seeing me every day. Very low tech compared to today’s camera phones!
I eventually had a ton of photos, and many people online were interested in what it was like to be living in conservative Texas as a young gay man.
So I started a journal, at first compiling the photos, but then taking pictures of my life in Austin, my friends, parties, home projects, you name it. “


Back then, about 1998, Bryan didn’t have all the free blog and free bandwidth access that we have today. However, his photo journal became wildly popular and he had thousands of visitors each week to see what he was up to. And Bryan had to pay for all that bandwidth and traffic.
“I started a small membership area with ONE photo shoot a month of a hot guy I knew or found. My hobby had become so expensive that I needed a way for it to pay for itself. I eventually ended up doing a photoshoot each week and then I started dabbling in video. I added cams around the house. I guess you could say I was on the forefront of the Cam in the House craze!”


Bryan took a breath and leaned forward, saying, “I just didn’t want to do what everyone else was doing, so I stopped doing the photo journal at the time when Blogs took off. I had started shooting video and suddenly, I felt that I needed more privacy in a very competitive field.”


He sits back again and looks right at me.


“Honestly, it was a question of money. How was I going to pay for my online persona? Digital imaging was good, and I loved the creative photography more that I did the ‘porny’ stuff, but the artsy stuff wasn’t paying the bills. Video cameras were getting cheaper; bandwidth was faster and cheaper, so it was only natural to evolve to adult films. I grudgingly went, though. For the first year of the video-oriented version of the site I barely would put anyone naked on the front, still trying to be as artistic as possible.”
With a laugh, Bryan finished, “But that didn’t last because it was clear what the audience really wanted to see, and what would catch their eye!”

Going through the archives of ChaosMen, then called ChaosinAustin.tv, I did come across one very interesting solo video. The very first one, the video of Bryan. I asked him about that video.
“I only did one solo (video), and even then it was just done as an experiment in filming.” Bryan leaned forward again, getting a little quiet. “I am actually very reluctant to be in front of the camera. There are plenty of better built, gorgeous guys out there that SHOULD be filmed or photographed. I just worked with what I had – Me!”


So, I had to tell him about the poll taken in DINK. ChaosMen was voted the hottest site by over 12,000 gay men and Bryan was voted THE HOTTEST site owner. I asked him what he thought of that.
Bryan stopped for a moment and looked a little stunned. Then a smile crossed his lips.

“WOW! I didn’t know that! Not because I don’t appreciate audience feedback, but because I NEVER go look at my competition sites nor do I view affiliate blogs, read reviews or industry magazines. I just do the best I can and I put out the best videos my guys can make. I never know what is going on in the ‘industry.’ It’s like I am in this little bubble, making videos that I would like to jack off to if I was sitting at home cruising for porn.
But as for me being the hottest site owner…..That’s funny. The thing I usually say when I hear things like that is, ‘There’s just no accounting for taste! Thank goodness!’ I am VERY glad people still find me hot at almost 50 and that bodes well that our gay community might not be as ‘ageist’ as we generally think.”


I told Bryan that when I wrote that I was going to interview him, I was flooded with emails and letters with questions to ask him. Many guys out there want to see more of Bryan in videos – like the Serviced and Edge videos. That’s something that other sites don’t really do. And why isn’t the site named after Bryan? Why not BryanOckert.com?


“I think it is a mistake to name a website after a person’s name,” Bryan responded. “ It’s like Shamu the whale. The original Shamu is long gone and the audience doesn’t think or want to know that this isn’t THE Shamu they are seeing. So porn sites that are all about the videographer/pornographer will hit a wall where they can’t perform anymore.
The difference is my vision for the site I think. My vision for ChaosMen was a team of super hero porn stars. I loved comic books growing up and certainly found their physiques sexy. So I am very reluctant to make the site about myself or to show a lot of me. I have been at it 10 years…from 36-46 basically. Your body changes a lot during those years. I still weigh under 160 pounds, but my abs are long gone and I just feel like in an Edge or Serviced video the scene should be about the hot model, and I am just a conduit to their orgasm.” Then with a little laugh in his voice, Bryan said, “I try to keep my clothes on as much as possible.”


IT REALLY IS HARD WORK!


Bryan shared just how much work the site actually is for him. Not only does he manage and book the models, but he picks them up at the airport, shoots all the video and photos, edits the final videos, encodes them, manages the website, answers tech questions and designs the site itself! No rest for the weary. Bryan gets about 6 hours of sleep per day with time also spent at a gym trying to maintain an acceptable weight.


He does have some help….from his parents! His father helped him build his studio and is a CPA- so he does Bryan’s taxes. Mom does his bookkeeping. She even paints rooms before shoots and cleans as well. Bryan has a friend that helps with photo retouching.
But he doesn’t want to do anything else. He loves his job.
“However, when a dude takes 45 minutes to nut, I wish I had a desk job!” he shared with me with an evil grin.


“I think the hardest part for me is dealing with the pace AND being a stand-in parent for a lot of the models. My phone does not stop ringing with phone calls for emergencies they have. From rent or car payments past due, to sick parents or girlfriends, to ‘my fence blew down in a hurricane!’ it’s pretty much non-stop requests to be their hero….or ATM!”


Besides booking the model’s flight and hotel for the shoot, getting them and feeding them, Bryan has the actual video shoot to worry about. He told me that most of the guys are indeed straight and it can take a couple of hours to get 18 minutes of useable footage.
“When I go over the four hour mark, I know we’re in trouble!”

A typical video takes Bryan 2-3 hours to cut, sometimes longer if the guys were struggling to stay hard or cum. Then it takes another day and a half to create the video files, upload and create the content that affiliates need. After all is said and done, it takes about two full days to edit a video. Now do this math – Bryan has 3 releases or more in a week. How many days per week does he edit? He edits constantly.


“I ingest all the video which is much faster now that I shoot video onto a memory card. It may sit for a month before I can get to edit it because I am so far behind in editing. I am usually way ahead in terms of what I have to deploy- at the time of this interview I have enough video to last me till April- it’s just not all edited!”

TUNE IN TOMORROW FOR MORE OF MY INTERVIEW WITH BRYAN! HE TELLS US ALL ABOUT THE MODELS, THE WORK AND THE FUTURE OF CHAOSMEN!

Cheers,
"The Camera"