LGBT Pride 2013: Busting Out All Over!

June is Pride month and it's busting out all over! Ninety-plus degree weather in NYC, coming out of a chilly, damp spring, and it's time to celebrate. President Obama issued a Proclamation today that began: "The story of America's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community is the story of our fathers and sons, our mothers and daughters, and our friends and neighbors who continue the task of making our country a more perfect Union. It is a story about the struggle to realize the great American promise that all people can live with dignity and fairness under the law. Each June, we commemorate the courageous individuals who have fought to achieve this promise for LGBT Americans, and we rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity."

You can read the whole Presidential Proclamation by visiting this White House page: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/05/31/presidential-proclamation-lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-pride-mon

Meanwhile, in Beaverhausen World, my blog has hit an all-time high regarding views for the month of May! 13,338 views, topping my previous monthly high of 12,529 for December. I love the international stats reflecting my audience; you guys (and gals) are fantastic! It's a disco world & we're all united. Dance on, dance for peace, for equality, for love and for a positive future!

For Pride, I highly recommend reading my ongoing Q & A with classic-disco producer Bob Esty, as he talks about Donna Summer, Cher, Giorgio & much more:

Part 1: http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2013/05/exclusive-q-with-bob-esty-part-1-once.html

Part 2: http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2013/05/exclusive-q-with-bob-esty-part-2-from.html

Also, from guest blogger The Engin33r, an essay on hip hop and LGBT people:

http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-engineer33r-my-first-guest-blogger.html

Of course, hep HBO brought us the Liberace gay tell-all in time for Vegas Pride which kicked things off on the Memorial Day weekend:

http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2013/05/life-with-liberace-behind-candelabra.html

Queens (NY) Gay Pride kicks off this Sunday, with the original Manhattan one set for the very end of the month.

Finally, my Pride memories:
http://djbuddybeaverhausen.blogspot.com/2012/06/gay-pride-ghosts-of-pride-past-present.html

And, post-finally, Hildegarde! (Are we sure she and Christine Jorgensen aren't the same person? Have you ever seen them together?) Enjoy this and Happy LGBT Pride to all:

Life with Liberace Behind the Candelabra

HBO's latest film -- Behind the Candelabra -- is based on the 1988 tell-all memoir, Behind the Candelabra: My Life with Liberace. I prefer to call it Libby Dearest as it's a juicy view through a glass darkly. Well, Viva Las Vegas for that! The glitz, the glamor, the gossip! Why, there's not a skeleton left in Liberace's closet by the time this memoir's been told, never mind a wire hanger!

It must be said that Scott Thorson's story (co-written with Alex Thorleifson) is told by someone whose life has been shady to be sure; sordid to be certain; sleazy easily. Not the most reliable of narrators, perhaps. But what drama!

Surely, screenplay writer Richard LaGravenese and director Steven Soderbergh saw the purple possibilities. The sex scenes in this movie (released on HBO in the USA; theatrically through the rest of the world) are so raw, they even shocked me! I never thought I'd see such high-calibre movie stars act out what's going on in BtC!

This is an all-around solidly made film, however, starring Michael Douglas as legendary lady, Liberace. In my opinion, a crowning achievement in his career. Matt Damon, as Scott, also turns in a powerful performance, though playing a 17-year-old (when our story starts) was quite a stretch. Supporting cast is excellent: Cheyenne Jackson, Rob Lowe, Debbie Reynolds in a scene-stealing role as Liberace's mother; Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula, Paul Reiser!

Set in the Sin City of Vegas, what goes on there obviously doesn't just stay there! BtC takes us behind, on top of, under, over and up the candelabra! The delicious decadence, debauchery, dissipation, depravity, drugs and dirty linen! Divine! Who knew Liberace was such a sex pig?

On a trip to Vegas a few years back, my friend, Tracey, and I cabbed out to the desert to visit the city's cultural conservatory, the Liberace Museum (now closed), to see the opulence and sheer, unashamed excess of the man's cars, coats, jewelry. Yet, not a cock ring in sight! The recreation of Liberace's Vegas bedroom was visited. The room smelled, oddly, as if Lee's body had been buried under the Museum's floorboards. Ah, the aroma!

So, yes, something's rotten in the state of Liberaceland. At the Museum, and on HBO. Long live Liberace!

Dj Buddy Beaverhausen's Hollywood Babble On

Well, it was a couple of days of prattle and tattle, lots of it involving figures in the world of pop music. Let me clue you in:

Darlene Love, on Tuesday, proudly announced, "My agent just informed me the United Nations purchased ALL the tickets to my show at 54 Below Theatre on Monday August 6th which means it's completely SOLD OUT!!!! I wonder who will be showing up!" Well, so do I!  I imagine a room of global dignitaries, guzzling cocktails, letting the weight of the world melt from their shoulders to Darlene belting out "He's A Rebel." Of course, that may not so relaxing for members of the General Assembly, especially those from countries like Yemen and Pakistan.

Maybe Dj Buddy B can get a Q&A with the legendary Rock and Roll Hall of Famer before her next 54 Below performance. (I've got a Q&A coming up soon with another fabulous, powerhouse diva!) I'll keep you posted on both fronts.

Can you believe screen heartthrob and TCM favorite Tab Hunter is 81 today? His autobiography is very gentlemanly. The only performer he didn't seem to get along with was Tallulah Bankhead (drunk and mean when they were in the Tennessee Williams Broadway flop,  The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore), and he even limits saying anything negative about her. Still good-looking, with a still athletic build, he's still performing (dinner theater). Gay fans know him best for starring twice with Divine, in Polyester and in Lust in the Dust. He also had an affair with Anthony Perkins. It's in the book.

It was Miss Britney Spears who left X Factor in the dust due to her spontaneous hissy fit. San Francisco Chronicle claims she "left the set of 'The X-Factor' auditions in North Carolina on Monday after a contestant, dressed in drag, destroyed her pop hit '(You Drive Me) Crazy.'"

How could you "destroy" that?

"Music mogul Reid appeared to feel Spears’ pain during the audition – he patted the singer on the back as Lovato and Cowell tried to hide their disbelief by covering their faces with their hands," said People.com. Or hiding their laughing at a fellow judge.

Simon Cowell, astute as ever, told the contestant, “I don’t think she quite understood your tribute.”

"Spears returned to her seat moments later and added, 'I really respect the tribute. It was really nice," the Chronicle adds.  C'mon! She was told to say that when the producers turned missy around backstage and pushed her back onto the set, reminding her just what that big, fat paycheck is for.

If there's a cruel joke here at all, it was played by the show's producers.

The very tall, dark and very handsome actor, Cheyenne Jackson, has joined the HBO cast of Behind the Candelabra, starring Michael Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as his lover, Scott Thorson. Steven (Magic Mike) Soderbergh directs. I hope Cheyenne has a shirtless scene or two. Why, I would have named this film Beyond the Valley of the Candelabras!

Thank God, when I went to Vegas to see Bette Midler perform, I went out to the desert, beyond the valley, to The Liberace Museum (now defunct). It smelled as if Libby was buried right there, under the floorboards! Incredible.

And, now, two odd facts I want to share with you because I love you:

Fact #1 from Unicorn Booty: "A new study suggests the key to avoiding morning sickness – or the cure for those afflicted with it – is devouring as much of your babydaddy’s semen as humanly possible." It also suggests semen is a cure for nausea. But, really, ladies and gents, can you imagine going in to your partner, waking him up in bed, and saying: "Darling, I think I'm going to puke. Do you mind if I...?"

I think not.  Of course, Joan Crawford had it on hand in a refrigerator. Good for her complexion she swore, applying it as a moisturizer. So you might take that into consideration as far as preparedness is concerned.

Fact #2 comes from my friend, Jennifer Lott Randall: "300 A.D. Christian martyr St. Apollonia, the patron saint of dentistry, is burned by the Romans after having her teeth extracted." We Catholics have a patron saint for oral hygiene! In 300 A.D., that meant just bashing all your teeth out. And St. Apollonia was put to death by the Tea Party of her time for being toothless! (I admit it's not the chicest look for a girl.) Still, I'll never again bitch about dental procedures or orthodontia!
                                          
                                         ***
Well, I hope you've had your fill of my gab and blab. Until our next gossip corner, best wishes and all my love, Buddy B!