TWITTER REPORTS THAT MATTHEW RUSH HAS DIED!!!!!!!

OK. The porn star persona of Matthew Rush!
Not the actual Matthew Rush, whose real name is Greg, and who announced his retirement this week on Twitter (of course). "I've told myself when I met the man of my dreams, 'Matthew Rush' dies. I'm sorry, but 'Matthew' died @ 11:45PM last night ... Hi, I'm Greg," he wrote earlier this week.
And with that, Rush's ten plus years in gay porn came to an understated close.
In 2001, Matthew Rush became Falcon's first "lifetime exclusive" and was one of the first (if not the first) bi-racial gay porn stars to enjoy such success.

An exotic bodybuilder's psychique juxtaposed with boy-next-door looks, Rush was intimidating yet innocent. He was shy, yet aggressive. He had muscles as hard as steel, but the skin surrounding them looked at soft as velvet. He was a top, and later he was a bottom. His cock was huge, his ass was bigger. Matthew Rush was both everything a gay porn star was supposed to be and like no other gay porn star anyone had ever seen before.

With industry awards for Best Newcomer, Best Versatile, Best Performer, Best Duo, and Wall of Fame honours, Rush left Falcon in 2009 to work independently for other studios. He crossed over into several gay indie film projects, including Bruce LaBruce's L.A. Zombie and Another Gay Movie. Currently, Rush is appearing in the stage production of Making Porn in San Francisco. Goodbye forever, Matthew Rush! Or goodbye until I see you at the gym with your hot boyfriend who, as your tweets suggests, is indeed hot and worth leaving porn for.

[Some of these pictures - like the one directly above - of Matthew are from a fabulous sunset shoot he did for Manifest Men back in September 2009. "Adult superstar Matthew Rush is a modern legend, the perfect package of think masculine muscle and manly sexual charm and confidence with a dash of youthful enthusiasm," they said on their website. "He has few peers in the world of male erotica but he remains as approachable and friendly as the day he first started out. His confidence blends with his intense sexuality to create a very special blend."]

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!!

REID HUTCHINS - PLAYGIRLS PAST....AND MINE!!!!!

So years ago (in a previous incarnation) I was a Stage Manager for the hit Off Broadway show TONY 'N' TINA'S WEDDING in New York City.
It is an interactive show where the audience are guests at a wedding reception with drinks and food and dancing....It was a great gig and a very fun show to do.
I had been part of the production for about 6 months when they had a cast change. They added a redheaded Irish looking guy to the cast as a brother in the show.
"Really?" I thought.
He also had NO real acting credits....."This ought to be fun," I thought.
Well this was the bloke that they added to our cast.

And then it turns out that he had just done a spread in PLAYGIRL - TOTALLY NAKED!!!
And the producers added this into the show.....WTF?!?!
They even brought out the real magazine during the performance and showed it to audience members!!
This is what they saw, and what I saw every day behind the scenes!!!

Reid had a girlfriend then.
Recently, I found out that he had done a GAY PORN!!!

And more recently he had done a film called DEAD BOYZ DONT SCREAM.....

It is nice to see he is still in great shape and looking fantastic!

Hopefully we will see more from Reid.....

And that is a little piece of my past!
CHEERS!
"The Camera"

IS DAVID HYDE PIERCE THE PERFECT HOST?

David Hyde Pierce stars as an exceptional entertainer in The Perfect Host, but will the Frasier alum ever be the perfect spokesman for the gay community?

“My life is an open book, but don’t expect me to read it to you,” David Hyde Pierce famously quipped in an interview while starring as Frasier’s prissily neurotic Dr. Niles Crane, a role that earned him a record 11 consecutive Emmy nominations and four wins.
That private library card expired in 2007, when Pierce began speaking publicly about his longtime partner, Brian Hargrove, whom he married in California during the brief window in 2008 before Proposition 8 passed. Although the Tony-winning Broadway performer can’t reveal much about his character in Nick Tomnay’s The Perfect Host, which is in theaters today, he graciously opens the door on a discussion about not overdoing gay press, not pleasing everyone, and not singing with Helen Reddy.

In The Perfect Host you star as Warwick, a Los Angeles bachelor who unwittingly invites in a dangerous criminal as he makes preparations to host a dinner party. Because of the various twists involved, it’s a challenging film to talk about beyond that. How are you handling that in interviews?
It’s tricky. I have to put a lot of faith in the interviewer that they won’t publish stuff that gives too much away. Even though I know that people talk about everything anyway with the Internet, I still like to hold on to the possibility of surprise.


Suffice it to say, Warwick is a nutjob — and certainly unlike any character you’ve played before. Were you actively trying to play against type?
I don’t know about that, but I’m just not interested when people send me scripts that are similar to stuff I’ve already done — especially the kind of character that I played for years on Frasier. Because that character was so much in the public eye, that’s the kind of character I get sent a lot; frankly, the writing is usually nowhere near as good as it was on Frasier, so there’s not much motivation to do them. With this film, I loved the script, the story, the twists, the suspense, and all that, and the character was really a feast for an actor. And not only is he very different, so I get to do different things, but also he starts out not all that different, so it lures the audience into thinking, Oh, right, we’ve seen this guy before. Maybe that’s part of the fun of having me play the part.


Your writer and director, Nick Tomnay, doesn’t have a lot of experience as a filmmaker. As an established actor, do you see that as a risk?
I have to take that on a case-by-case basis. In this situation, he’d also made a short film called The Host, on which The Perfect Host is based, so I got to see that as an example of his work. Yes, this is actually his first feature film, but even in that short I could see that he’s very assured and a great stylist with a wonderful sense of humor. He’s able to do both dark and funny at the same time, and that gave me great confidence in him. Plus we met a couple of times before my agreeing to do the movie, and we really hit it off. I respect him and like him a lot.

Helen Reddy plays Warwick’s nosy neighbor. That must’ve been a treat, especially considering she rarely acts and hasn’t done a film in more than 20 years.
She was just wonderful. She’s so sweet, so loving, and she had a very warm, nurturing presence, which was a wonderful thing to have around on a short, very intense, low-budget shooting schedule. We had a good time.


Did anyone break into “I Am Woman” around the craft services table?
It sort of went without singing. But once in a while, I’d think, Wow, I’m in a scene with Helen Reddy.


I’ve read that you and your husband, Brian Hargrove, enjoy hosting parties at home. Do you fancy yourself a perfect host?
We don’t host very often, so wherever you read that, it was kind of a lie. We have friends over occasionally. I’m far from perfect, but Brian’s a great cook, and he has a great ease about having people over. It’s never a big deal for him, so that makes it comfortable for everyone.


It’s been wonderful to hear you open up about Brian and your relationship in the last few years. Yet, when a gay celebrity makes the transition from privately gay to publicly gay, LGBT media has a long tradition of welcoming them to the family, if you will, with a certain amount of fanfare, major features, and often cover stories. But to this day you still haven’t done a great deal of major gay press. Has that been a conscious decision on your part?
Yeah, it’s been an absolutely conscious decision. I’ve done some gay press, and I’ve been interviewed for The Advocate before, but part of my approach to being gay in public has always been that it shouldn’t be a big deal, so I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. But there came a point when I realized that that could be confused with being ashamed or being afraid, and I never wanted to give that impression. I’ve tried to maintain that balance between living my life and not going out of my way to have any fanfare about it. That’s all. Nothing against any gay publications, and certainly I respect The Advocate, but I was always trying to show a different side, a different way of living life that would still be OK.

When you spoke with Jujamcyn Theaters president Jordan Roth at New York City’s 92nd Street Y last year, you said that you had felt bullied into coming out — “like the bully on the playground was pushing your face in the dirt saying, ‘Say it, say it, say it,’” you described it. I wondered if you saw the gay media as a bully in your situation.
Actually, it had nothing to do with gay media. Earlier in my career, when I’d be talking about completely unrelated subjects, people would feel that it was OK to try to get into my private life, not even sexuality but with politics, family. I’d always been a private person about every aspect of my life, and I didn’t see why I had to change that just because I was an actor. Most of us weren’t trained to be public figures, so you sort of learn these things in public as you go along. There came a point [in 2007] when I doing an interview with an Associated Press interviewer, and he wasn’t asking me about anything related to being gay, and that’s why I opened up about Brian, about moving to California because he wanted to purse a career in writing, and stuff like that. As I said, I didn’t want to inadvertently continue to give the impression that I was in any way trying to hide anything, but I also wanted to be able to talk about it in my own way and on my own terms.


How did you perceive the response from the gay community after you came out?
It was a little bit of a shock at first, but it was amazing the array of reactions I got from the gay community. Some people were very supportive, some people said that I had been outed, some people said it was about time, some people said it was too late, and some people just said, “Who cares?” That’s when I realized that you have to do it for yourself, because you can’t please everyone.


What advice would you give you an actor on the fence about coming out?
I would advise anyone not to come out immediately, but whenever you’re ready and feel safe that you can, you’ll be glad you did. However it ended up happening for me, because I was completely honest and because I did come out — even though I resisted that phrase for so many years — I feel I’m a better person, and I’m better able to do everything I do both in my private life and in my professional life.


Since you began speaking publicly about your partner and your marriage — notably as a guest on The View — have you felt pressure from gay rights groups or from gay people in general to be a mouthpiece for the community?
I’ve spoken out about marriage because I believe in it. It’s very personal for me, and I’ve been very lucky to be a part of that. I’ve worked with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS for as long as I’ve been an actor. So no, I don’t feel pressured. I feel like I’m able to do what I always would’ve done. I just try to stand up for what I believe in.

Your name was repeatedly brought up after last year’s controversial Newsweek article, which sparked a debate about whether gay actors couldn’t convincingly play straight roles. I kept expecting you to sound off on the subject at some point, but you never did.
I thought it was stupid and didn’t deserve much time. I talk about what’s important to me, and that was just ridiculous.


On a lighter note, it was recently reported that filmmaker David Wain is planning a prequel to Wet Hot American Summer, in which you starred as a kooky astrophysics professor. Would you participate?
I love David, and I think he’s quite talented, so I’d be happy to work with him anytime.

You’ll make your directorial debut this fall with It Shoulda Been You, a new musical cowritten by your husband, at New Jersey’s George Street Playhouse. Tyne Daly, Richard Kline, Edward Hibbert, and Harriet Harris are set to star. Are you nervous? Do you know what you’re getting into?
I am not nervous because I don’t know what I’m getting into. But I have a great cast, I have wonderful designers, and it’s a really beautiful show, so I’m excited. I just hope I don’t screw it up.

HARRY POTTER NAKED ONSTAGE!!

Daniel Radcliffe, who has played Harry Potter in all of the movies, has taken on another more challenging role. He will play the role of Alan Strang in the Peter Shaffer play Equus in London's West End - the Broadway of England. The role calls for a depth of character as yet unseen in the role of Harry along with simulated sexual intercourse, simulated masturbation and full frontal nudity.

Many have commented about the casting choice stating that "nudity does not a brilliant actor make." Can Radcliffe handle the role?

Producers say that Daniel had no problem with the nudity and that he was eager to "get into the character" of Alan Strang. Radcliffe himself has said that he wanted to try something vastly different to Harry Potter and something that allows his fans and the public see that he has grown up.

Um......yeah........this would be that role then! I can only hope that he does the play justice as this is one of my favourite plays, and he is playing a role that I have played before.

I have tickets and will be seeing this show, so I will report back to you all about it......

Cheers!

"The Camera"