Clifton Webb Born November 19th

Clifton Webb was born November 19th. 1889 in Indianapolis, IN and was a Broadway star in musicals before leaving for Hollywood and films. His Mr. Belvidere work was a gold mine for 20th Century Fox and his elderly mother, with whom he lived, was known equally for her can can dances and being a scourge at parties.

Erte Born November 10th

Romain de Tirtoff was born November 10th, 1892 in St Petersburg, Russia. Tirtoff emigrated to France and specifically Paris in 1910 and would adopt the name "Erte" based on the French pronunciation of the initials R and T in his full name. Erte's work became synonymous with the Art Deco style of the twentieth century.

Robert Mapplethorpe Born November 4th

Mapplethorpe was born on November 4th, 1946 in Queens, New York. Photography would never be the same.

Visit the Mapplethorpe Foundation.

Néstor Almendros Born October 30th

Néstor Almendros was born October 30th, 1930 in Barcelona, Spain. In his later years he made the documentary film Mauvaise Conduite about the persecution of gay people in Cuba.

Francis Bacon Born October 28th

The English Irish artist Francis Bacon, descendant of the Elizabethan philosopher of the same name, was born October 28th, 1909.

August Von Platen Born October 24th

German poet and dramatist Karl August Georg Maximilian Graf von Platen-Hallermünde was born October 24th, 1796.

Would I were As Free As My Dreams

Would I were free as are my dreams,
Sequestered from the garish crowd
To glide by banks of quiet streams
Cooled by the shadow-drifting cloud!

Free to shake off this weary weight
Of human sin, and rest instead
On nature's heart inviolate--
All summer singing o'er my head!

There would I never disembark,
Nay, only graze the flowery shore
To pluck a rose beneath the lark,
Then go my liquid way once more,

And watch, far off, the drowsy lines
Of herded cattle crop and pass,
The vintagers among the vines,
The mowers in the dewy grass;

And nothing would I drink or eat
Save heaven's clear sunlight and the spring
Of earth's own welling waters sweet,
That never make the pulses sting.

From Poem Hunter

Read more about this German  poet at GLBTQ.

Ned Rorem Born October 23rd

Pulitzer Prize winning composer Ned Rorem was born on October 23rd. 1923 in Richmond, Indiana.

Visit Rorem's official site.

Lord Alfred Douglas Born October 22nd

Alfred Bruce Douglas, the third son of John Douglas, the 9th Marquess of Queensbury, was born on October 22, 1870 in Worcestershire, England. Douglas, or Bosie as he was nicknamed, met Wilde in 1881. The two men began having an affair despite Wilde being married and with two sons. Bosie's father began to suspect there was more to his son's relationship with Wilde and would divorce his wife over Bosie's defiance at his orders. When rumors of a homosexual scandal surrounded the death of the eldest Douglas son, the Marquess went on the offensive against Wilde, setting into motion events that would lead to the infamous trial. Bosie and Wilde would reunite briefly after Wilde's prison sentence finished, but personal differences and pressures ended the affair.


Letters from Wilde to Douglas

Danieri Basammula-Ekkere Mwanga II Mukasa Born October 18th

Danieri Basammula-Ekkere Mwanga II Mukasa was born on October 18th, 1868 in Nakawa, an area that is now part of Kampala, Uganda. He was Kabaka or king from 1884 until 1888 and from 1889 until 1897 of Bugunda, which is modern day Uganda. Mwanga had sixteen wives and he also expected his male pages to submit to his sexual desires. In the period between 1885 and 1887 forty five of his pages refused to submit and were put to death.

Read more here and here.

Montgomery Clift Born October 17th

Montgomery Clift was born October 17th, 1920 in Omaha, Nebraska and during his all too brief film career he epitomized the moody, sensitive man. Clift is known to have had a relationship with Jack Larson, the actor to play Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen on the 1950s television series.

Oscar Wilde Born October 16th

Oscar Wilde was born October 16th. 1854 and died in exile on November 30, 1900. Yes, if one must be exiled, Paris certainly is a city to salve any wounds.

We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.

Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.

The official Oscar Wilde site.

Billy The Zompire Killer

After years of Buffy fans voicing their hopes for Andrew coming out and having more gay characters, the Buffy Powers That Be listened and got together to discuss the matter. The result is 16 year old Billy who lives with his New Age-y grandmother after being thrown out of his parents' home. Billy deals with bullies on a regular basis, trains in the gym before school starts, and has a ginormous crush on Devon. Little did Billy suspect that Devon was interested, but he is, and in more than just being a boyfriend. Devon persuades Billy that he can become the first male slayer, with Devon being his Watcher.

Buffy Season 9 issue #14 is part one of Billy's two part story, and is available now in comic shops, online sites like Comixology, and perhaps your local Barnes & Noble has copies.                                               

Matthew Shepard - Rest In Peace

  

 December 1st, 1976 - October 12th, 1998



Please visit the Matthew Shepard Foundation.

Robert + Nathanael 9.8.12

It Gets Better: Mathew in NYC & "Reparative" Therapy

Simeon Solomon Born October 9th

  

Youngest of eight chidren, Simeon Solomon was born on October 9th, 1840 in London into a family of painters. Letters tell that Solomon and Algernon Swinburne chased each other naked through painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti's house. Solomon was arrested for the crime of buggery in 1873 and was fined but walked away free, thanks to his class. Solomon would find the world of art and its sources to be closed to him because of his sexuality and he died of heart failure exacerbated by alcoholism.

Read Simeon Solomon - Painter of Androgynes   and Love Revealed: Simeon Solomon and the Pre-Raphaelites  .

Bruno, Rai & Carla - Heaven

Get Real

Breaking Glass Pictures Signs Jules Stewart’s Directorial Debut, K-11, for North America

Philadelphia, PA, October 3, 2012—Philadelphia-based Breaking Glass Pictures has acquired all domestic theatrical and ancillary rights to K-11, the directorial debut of veteran script supervisor Jules Stewart.  The tense drama, which deals with the politics of race and gender identity in the Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail, is slated for North American movie screens in late 2012/early 2013.  The deal was struck post-Toronto between Breaking Glass CEO Rich Wolff and Libertine Films’ Tom Wright.

 

Upon signing, Wright said, “The Breaking Glass team is a great fit for K-11 as they are uniquely positioned to market the film to both a wide audience and the several niche demographics that will love this film.  We’re certain they will truly capitalize on its diverse market appeal."

 

For his part, Wolff is excited to distribute a film that will resonate with a variety of audiences. “We are pleased to be distributing the very talented Jules Stewart’s first film.  K-11 is very unique to say the least and surely will raise a few eyebrows. The acting is dead on, the story is gripping, and we are gunning for multiple award nominations.”  

 

Breaking Glass is eyeing a late 2012/early 2013 theatrical release for the film.

 

The film follows Raymond Saxx Jr. (Goran Visnjic, “ER;” The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo; Beginners), a powerful record producer who wakes from a drug-induced blackout to find himself locked up in K-11, the [real] section of the Los Angeles County Men’s Central jail for gay and transgender inmates. Plunged into an unfamiliar world ruled by a transsexual diva named Mousey (Kate del Castillo, La Reina del Sur; “Weeds”), Raymond is truly a fish out of water.

 

Complicating matters are a troubled young transgender named Butterfly (Portia Doubleday, Kimberly Peirce’s Carrie, Almost Kings), a predatory child molester (Tommy ‘Tiny’ Lister, The Dark Knight) and the ruthless Sheriff’s Deputy, Lt. Johnson (D.B. Sweeney, Hard Ball, Atlas Shrugged: Part II). Ray’s struggle to contact the outside world and regain his freedom seems impossible, so he must learn to navigate this new power structure if he is ever going survive and regain control of his life.

 

The supporting cast includes Jason Mewes (Clerks), Tara Buck (“True Blood”; “Justified”) and Jules Stewart’s son Cameron Stewart in his feature film debut.

 

Jules Stewart, the mother of Twilight actress Kristen Stewart, has recently signed on to direct her next film for Libertine Films, The Locked House, a supernatural thriller about a 15th-century Chinese temple that is unearthed and moved to the States by a billionaire, a process which upsets the ancient spirits inside.

 

Truman Capote Born September 30th

Truman Streckfus Persons was born September 30th, 1924 in New Orleans. Capote stated he was "a beautiful little boy", and it was a fact, not opinion.

If you are unfamiliar with the man who wrote both In Cold Blood and Breakfast At Tiffany's, please visit Capote Bio.

"I don't care what anybody says about me as long as it isn't true."