Martha Stewart says the publicity machine surrounding GOPquitter Sarah Palin and her "memoir" is not a good thing. Says the domestic diva: "She's very boring. And a people listen to her ... she's a dangerous person." Stewart was asked if she's seen Palin recently on television: "Ha! I wouldn't watch her if you paid me!"
Martha knows best. Watch it AFTER THE JUMP.
Continue reading "WATCH: Martha Stewart Calls Sarah Palin "Dangerous"" »
During a meltdown on last night's episode of Larry King Live, former Miss California Carrie Prejean refused to take a phone call from a gay viewer. Prejean removed her microphone under the apparent direction of an advisors off stage. "I think you are being extremely inappropriate right now and I'm about to leave your show."
Watch AFTER THE JUMP.
Meanwhile: The anti-gay beauty queen has apparently been caught lying about her XXX video adventures. "Carrie Prejean's ex-boyfriend—the guy to whom she sent the XXX solo video—tells TMZ Carrie and company called him last week and tried getting him to 'lie' and say she was 17 when she shot the video. During an audio interview with TMZ, the man says Carrie sent him the video when they were involved with each other in 2007. He says Carrie sent him numerous explicit videos and insists the one in question was shot when she was 20."
WWJD? The so-called "Christian" Prejean began sending XXX photos and videos to the man after knowing him only for four days. Via JoeMyGod, who has been doing a fabulous job chronicling the Prejean fiasco, watch the meltdown AFTER THE JUMP.
Continue reading "Carrie Prejean Unplugs on Larry King, Refuses Call from Gay Viewer" »
UPDATE: Server problems because of traffic.
Best selling black and openly gay author Everette Lynn Harris passed away overnight. He was on a book tour of the West Coast and only 54 years old.
Harris' work dealt with black gay culture, homophobia, religion and the black community. The plots—often featured around sports or entertainment—were a huge success with black women and made him a fixture on black talk radio. Harris was a passionate University of Arkansas Razorbacks fan and returned to his alma mater a visiting professor in the English department. Harris also recently became a mentor and father figure to two college students and athletes. "He was a very loving and involved dad," adds director Patrik Ian Polk.
In January, Harris wrote his 11th novel, Basketball Jones. The plot was ripped from the headlines about a closeted professional basketball player and a blackmail scandal. The book also featured the character of a well-known black gay blogger, which Harris said was inspired by this blog. Harris told Rod 2.0 the story came to him after a call from the manager of an NBA player. "The player wanted my advice because they were being blackmailed and were thinking about coming out. I was not told his name, or what team he played for, only that he might call and was considering coming out of the closet. ... So I started thinking, 'What if there were a professional basketball player who was involved with a man and wanted to come out?'"
Reportedly the author went into cardiac arrest last night after having dinner in Beverly Hills. Harris recently complained of his health and the stress of the book tour.
The news broke this morning across Twitter, the uber-popular instant message social networking platform. Patrik Ian Polk (@PatrikIanPolk), the director and creator of Noah's Arc, was supposed to meet Harris this afternoon for lunch and Tweets the details to Rod 2.0: "I called the [Peninsula Hotel] in Beverly Hills, to confirm lunch and hopefully laugh about the erroneous reports of his death. When the operator transferred me to a hotel manager, I knew something strange was up. This is unbelievable."
Polk adds that Lynn was visiting with one of his son's frat brothers "when he went into cardiac arrest ... I'm in shock. To have just spoken to him yesterday afternoon, this is hard to believe."
Keith Boykin adds: "Cedars-Sinai Hospital told Lynn's agent that [he] died Thursday night and his body is being transferred to the coroner's office." Harris' novel I Say a Little Prayer included a cameo by Boykin, marking his first appearance in a novel. Boykin's tribute to Harris is at The Daily Voice.
The Detroit native stormed the literary scene in 1994 with Invisible Life, an originally self-published story of bisexual Raymond Tyler. That and the sequel Just As I Am were among the earliest in a new wave of black gay literature that popularized and humanized black gay and bisexual literary characters. Harris was picked up by publishing giant Doubleday and had a string of best selling novels, including Any Way the Wind Blows, Abide with Me, Not a Day Goes By, and I Say a Little Prayer. Harris also wrote a memoir, What Becomes of the Brokenhearted, another New York Times best seller. Harris ultimately had ten New York Times best sellers. This feat has never been rivaled by any black author.
On a personal level: Lynn was a friend, a mentor and a very strong supporter of Rod 2.0. Before meeting in Chicago in the mid 90s, we actually had friends in common for several years and his ex, also named Roderick, was a mutual friend. (The joke was "Which Rod? 'Lynn' Rod or 'Rod Rod'?") Years later, when we finally met, ELH was guarded but extremely loving and giving. Lynn was very supportive of me last year during a personal problem and offered help, which I humbly refused. More importantly: Lynn never lost the common touch. Lynn often made Rod 2.0 his first stop on interviews and many times personally responded to comments, supportive and negative, via email. Classy to the end.
Thanks @PatrikIanPolk!
You May Have Missed...
E. Lynn Harris on New Novel "Basketball Jones" [R20]
A Conversation with E. Lynn Harris [R20]
We Don't Feel Welcome Here [R20]
Say A Little Prayer: ELH Interview [R20]
Clarence Nero is the new urban literary hotness. Maya Angelou has described Nero as "one of our most promising young authors." Beyonce Knowles wished Nero good luck on his book from the set of Dreamgirls. Nero's second novel, Three Sides to Every Story, was a scorching love story with an unapologetic black, gay aesthetic set in fabulous, pre-Katrina New Orleans. Johnny, the college football star whose father is a prominent anti-gay mega-church pastor (sound familiar?), prefers to be discrete. James is unashamedly gay and flamboyant. The unlikely love story of Johnny and James returns for the sequel Too Much of a Good Thing Ain't Bad, which just dropped from Broadway Books. Read a sample chapter here and continue reading the review for your chance to win a free copy of the book.
Too Much of a Good Thing Ain't Bad picks up immediately after Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans. Johnny and his family relocate to Washington D.C. and Johnny attends Wheatley College, "one of the top black schools in the country" and rival to Howard University. James moves into Johnny's apartment, which immediately causes friction because Johnny is pledging his father's fraternity. "I accepted James for who he was and loved everything about him, but sometimes he was just over the top with his fashions and exotic hairstyles. That shit was embarrassing to me. Can you imagine walking down the street with a six foot man sporting pink and blue hair and wearing high platform shoes?"
Add Sheila Doggett to the tension, the "pretty dark skinned sistah with the tight ass body: and Harvard MBA. Sheila was introduced to Johnny by family members who are intent on "turning him on the straight and narrow." Oh and coincidentally she is James' boss at the school where he works as a teacher's aide, and, intent on getting him fired.
Too Much of a Good Thing Ain't Bad is great summer reading. The characters are captivating. The dialogue, and situations, written from three points of view, is at times laugh out loud funny, other times deep and introspective. It's always fresh and always entertaining. Most of all the subject matter should be intimately familiar to Rod 2.0 readers—bourgeois vs. "hood" culture, homophobia, the anti-gay black church, feminine vs. masculine stereotypes, and HIV/AIDS in the black and black gay communities. Oh and there is a special shout-out to Rod 2.0 and its readers in the book, too.
AFTER THE JUMP: Read our interview with Clarence Nero and win a free copy of Too Much of a Good Thing Ain't Bad.
Continue reading "Book Review and Giveaway: Clarence Nero's "Too Much of a Good Thing Ain't Bad"" »
The New York state Senate considers the same sex marriage bill that passed the Assembly and several of the bill’s opponents are being lobbied by phone calls from acclaimed memoirist and poet Maya Angelou, reports the New York Times.
"To love someone takes a lot of courage," the 81-year-old Harlem resident said in an interview. "So how much more is one challenged when the love is of the same sex and the laws say, ‘I forbid you from loving this person’?"
Angelou called three senators last weekmand was joined by actress Cynthia Nixon and former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue. The Empire State Pride Agenda facilitated the lobbying.
Despite Angelou’s celebrity stature and her huge popularity in the black community, the call did not convince State Senator Shirley Huntley, a Queens Democrat who opposes marriage-equality. Huntley tells the New York Times: "I admire her, her poetry. I enjoy listening to it. And I told her that. But that does not change my mind." She added, "If they gave me a million dollars, tax free, I just wouldn’t vote for it."
On the same day the Alabama House of Representatives approves a resolution that praises Miss California Carrie Prejean for her public stand against marriage equality, members vote to add sexual orientation to the state's hate crimes law. The bill sponsored by Democratic Rep. Alvin Holmes of Montgomery was approved by the House on a close 46-41 vote. It updates a hate crimes law passed in 1994 that included race, color, religion and national origin. The bill now goes to the Senate.
· Is Perez Hilton a problem for the gay community?
· Ne-Yo channels Vin Diesel: I'm not gay, I only "date" women in Europe.
· After suffering an injury to his left Achilles tendon, Italian track and field sensation Andrew Howe will abandon the long jump this season and concentrate on sprinting.
· Madonna back with Jesus Luz? Page Six reports Madge has "reunited with her Brazilian man-candy and insiders are crediting her friends in the fashion world. Marc Jacobs 'wrote a letter of support for Jesus' work permit' to allow him to stay in the country, said our source. 'Marc campaigned for Jesus, saying he is highly talented and a necessity to the label.' "
· FOX "News" will not air Obama's prime-time news conference marking his 100th day in office.
· The first book devoted to Michelle Obama's style hits bookstores next week.
· New music: Basement Jaxx's "Rain Drops".
· Union activist Mary Beth Maxwell appointed senior adviser to Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis.
· The first PFLAG chapter in the country "dedicated specifically to the African-American LGBT community" launches in Portland.
· Will the New Hampshire same-sex marriage bill die in the state Senate? "New Hampshire's Senate Judiciary Committee holds a public hearing on
the bill on Wednesday ahead of a full senate vote expected this month
or early in May. Several senators in the Democrat-controlled legislature contacted by
Reuters speculated the bill would face defeat, citing Democratic
Governor John Lynch's opposition, or be tabled indefinitely so
lawmakers can avoid taking a stance on the issue ahead of elections
next year."
· Homophobia much? Esquire
apologizes for the June cover story "How To Be a Man" which
"recommended throwing around curse words to show your machismo. This
included the phrase 'sh*t-sniffing faggot', which Esquire advised you use when talking to your neighbor."
· California Court of Appeal rules transgender woman living out of state may change her California birth certificate.
· Prada's futuristic high-top shoe
· Republican National Chairman Michael Steele launches an attack on President Obama "in a new mass mailing, accusing the president of being part of the ‘blame America first’ crowd."
· See André Leon Talley wear this and other fabulous robes in Valentino: The Last Emperor.
· Sales of menswear up slightly.
· Michelle Obama becomes the first First Lady to hire a full-time makeup artist. Ingrid Grimes-Miles travels with Mrs. O and is credited with making her eyebrows look less "angry."
· Hopefully he is better at writing books than giving speeches. The Daily Beast reports right-wing publishing house Regnery Publishing signs conservative, anti-gay Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal to a book deal. "The book will be about his life and policy ideas, but it won’t take up very much of his time—he’ll be co-authoring it with Peter Schweizer, who has written books about Bush family and President Reagan. There’s speculation that the book deal reveals Jindal’s interest in a 2012 Presidential run."
Over the weekend, "hundreds of gay and lesbian books" written by authors from James Baldwin to E. Lynn Harris "simultaneously lost their sales rankings" as Amazon.com arbitrarily re-classified the titles as "adult". Author Mark R. Probst made the discovery while searching for his gay youth-themed novel The Filly. After contacting Amazon, he received this response:
In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude “adult” material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature.
Much of the outrage spread across the internets via Twitter and by Sunday "it took just an hour for the hashtag #amazonfail to become the top trending topic on the site", Publishers Weekly reports.
LiveJournal community MetaWriter is tracking de-ranked LGBT titles. Classics such as James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room, Annie Proulx's Brokeback Mountain and E.M. Forster's Maurice were among those losing their sales rankings, as well as numerous contemporary titles by black gay authors such as E. Lynn Harris, Frederick Smith and Nathan James. "I am incensed, because ALL of my books have lost their Amazon rankings," James tells Rod 2.0. "The Flesh To Flesh anthology has actually been made unavailable. The page says "we don't know when, or if, this book will be available again."
Flesh to Flesh anthology edited by Lee Hayes, as well as some other titles, are now available. Contrary to the explanation given to Mark R. Probst, an Amazon spokesperson tells Publishers Weekly "a glitch had occurred in its sales ranking feature that was in the process of being fixed. The spokesperson added that there was no new adult policy." Glitch or not, making books harder to find on the basis of their content is never a good idea. And at the same time many LGBT titles were randomly de-ranked and re-classified as "adult", Amazon had "vibrators and anal plugs available in their search system with sales ranks attached."
How you can contact Amazon AFTER THE JUMP.
Continue reading "Amazon Claims "Glitch" to Blame for De-Ranking LGBT Authors " »
To start your week with a smile: Alex-Ade Ogundiran, the Houston-based model-turned-photographer, has just published The Nude Book. This is the photographer's first book, a gorgeous coffee table-sized collection of art male nudes of black models.
Ogundiran says he wants to make the physiques of his models "look glorious and desirable" and for the book to "bring together all shades of black, different body types, diverse attitudes and the originality of what a beautiful black man is."
The handsome Houston-based artist began modeling in college and later began exploring photography. Ogundiran launched his own fashion magazine, Enchant, in 2007.
Proceeds from The Nude Book and his 2009/10 calendar benefit Ogundiran's non-profit Campala Foundation, which focuses on job training training and micro finance to impoverished areas in Western and Southern Africa. Buy a book, enjoy some beautiful men, and give something back. More previews here.
Poor Alex Rodriguez. The Yankees superstar slugger admits to ESPN he used steroids from 2001 to 2003 while playing for the Texas Rangers. That may be the least of the star baseball player's concerns, Outsports reports. "One item that’s not being talked about that much is that the author of the story on SI.com, Selena Roberts, just announced she has a book coming out in May" that promises to examine the secretive life of baseball's highest-paid player—including the many rumors surrounding his sexuality.
Bob's Blitz is one of several sports blogs reporting that the new and very unauthorized biography, Hit and Run: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez, will "look at Rodriguez' struggle with his sexuality as well as his steroid use." The blog references an infamous Daily News article that described Rodriguez's tastes in strippers ... and women:
In New York, A-Rod used to be a regular at the VIP Club, where he always asked for a dancer who performs under the stage name Monique.
Monique is 5-feet-5 with brown hair and brown eyes and has a well-toned, muscular figure, a pal said.
When the stripper jumped over to the Hustler Club, Rodriguez started going there to see her perform and buy sexy lap dances, a source said.
He even took her out for a pricey shopping spree at the Versace store on Fifth Ave., the source said.
A petite stripper at the Hustler Club said A-Rod "likes the she-male, muscular type. They brought me up to the champagne room one time. I spun around once and that was it. I'm not his type."
The book will shed some light on A-Rod's former BFF relationship with Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter which Rodriguez says involved "sleepovers." The reality is "there's been a change in the relationship over 14 years and, hopefully, we can just put it behind us," Rodriguez told ESPN in 2007. "You go from sleeping over at somebody's house five days a week, and now you don't sleep over. It's just not that big of a deal."
Last night Jeter announced he stands "behind" Rodriguez—must be a familiar position.
Hit and Run: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez is scheduled to drop on May 19, exactly one week before the Yankees travel to Texas to play the Rangers.
A-Rod Story Gets A New Wrinkle [Outsports]
Can Pre-Order Selena Roberts' Rodriguez Book [Blitz]
Some Background ....
Toronto Fans Taunt Rodriguez with Madonna Photos [R20]
Kravitz Faults Ex Manager For Rodriguez Rumor [R20]
Rodriguez's Wife Claims Madonna "Brainwashing" [R20]
