by Jonathan Warman

Make no mistake, A Steady Rain is the hottest ticket in town because it features two of the hottest male movie stars on the planet. Sure, the first few minutes I found myself mostly admiring Hugh Jackman’s broad figure and striking face and Daniel Craig’s square jaw and brooding demeanor.

After that, however, the show revealed itself to be a gripping, if not particularly deep, psychological thriller. And Jackman and Craig proved themselves to be masterful stage actors, not merely slumming movie stars. We already knew from The Boy from Oz that Jackman could rule the stage, but it’s really nice to find him equally matched with Craig.

Our strapping twosome portrays two Chicago cops and lifelong friends going through a rainy summer. During this time, their respective flaws catch up to them in traumatic and tragic ways, as the more macho of the two (Jackman’s Denny) is hounded by a pimp he has harassed, and Craig’s more conscientious Joey finds himself making some bum choices in both his personal and professional life.

A Steady Rain relies on a lot of familiar formulas about hard-nosed cops, but mixes them up just enough to keep you guessing, to keep the suspense taut. All in all, a superbly acted, reasonably substantial evening of theatre.

For tickets, click here.

For more reviews and interviews by Jonathan Warman, see dramaqueennyc.com.

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SHAMELESS SELF PROMOTION

I am pleased to announce that I will be a special guest host at the Eye Candy Party at Citrinbe next Wednesday, October 7th as a part of the celebration for LGBT recording artist Dina Marie.

The party is properly themed Dina Marie's "Delicious" Birthday Bash. Now none of this is 100% confirmed, but you know me - I'll write it anyway.

From what I've heard, Junior Vasquez will take over the turntables for this one time special event. This rumor has also created a spin-off rumor that Vasquez may be mixing one of the songs for Dina Marie's upcoming debut album.

In addition to the regular weekly Wednesday night hosts at Citrine including Dina Marie, Jason Preston, Marko Ovando, Keoni and Michael Holtz. I will also be joining King Ralphy and Yuhua who are also guest hosts that week.

There's a comp door on Wednesday for Dina Marie's Delicious Birthday Bash, and an open bar starting at 11pm.

Citrine is located at 59 W 21ST Street near the corner of 6th Avenue.

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I feel like I have become an unofficial spokesperson for Bravo, because tonight when a "Top Chef Las Vegas" re-run aired the emails started to roll into my inbox.

It seems like a gamble to me, but the Bravo publicist Sade Council informed me early on Wednesday that no new episode would air on September 30th. Instead, its reheated left overs.

"Top Chef" will return with an all new episode next week, so hold on to your aprons.

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AFTERNOON DELIGHT

Today's Afternoon Delight is a model for one of the fastest growing men's underwear lines in the country. This is Kevin for Andrew Christian Underwear.

Think you can do Kevin's job? Well, this might be your lucky day! Andrew Christian is casting a new model, and he's decided to hit the streets to find the new Kevin!

You never know, you might also be featured as our Afternoon Delight. As for today's model, there are more pictures of Kevin after the break. There's also a schedule of where Andrew Christian will be scouting for the new face (and crotch) of his undies.

Continue reading "Afternoon Delight: Andrew Christian model Kevin" »

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ELECTION RESULTS

John Liu and Bill de Blasio won the run-off elections in New York City on Tuesday and now hold Democratic nomination for comptroller and public advocate respectively.

I probably wouldn't have suspected that either of these man would have won their race, but it could be thanks to low voter. Only between 7 and 8 percent of the nearly three million registered Democrats showed up to vote.

de Blasio is done with his race and will take office as the city's new Public Advocate. There is no GOP candidate for Public Advocate in the general election since Republicans act like there is no such position and don't run candidates for the position. de Blasio beat former Public Advocate and mayoral contender Mark Green.

Liu is well on his way to becoming the first Asian-American to hold city-wide office. He beat fellow City Councilman David Yassky 56 to 44 percent.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is running as an Independent and on the Republican ticket, says that Democrats will likely win all of the city-wide races except (of course) his seat.

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by Jonathan Warman

For years before I first heard John Kelly’s drag impersonation --- channelling, really --- of Joni Mitchell, I had only the vaguest idea of who she was. Judy Collins, though, I had definitely heard of, and her hit version of Mitchell’s “Both Sides, Now” had a solid place in my musical memory. After seeing Kelly, however I became a big fan of both him and Mitchell. Today, I’m much more familiar with Joni’s obscurities than most of Collins’ work.

What a treat then, to see Collins at the Cafe Carlyle and get a better sense of what a dynamic performer she is. She’s an authentic river of song, in truly golden voice at the age of 70. She’ll be talking about a song in passing, and then launch into three or four lines, singing with breathtakingly casual grace and beauty.

When she sings a song in earnest, she’s truly arresting, imbuing each line with subtle style, implying stories behind stories. She’s known as one of the best interpretive artists in pop music, and in this act she brilliantly illuminates songs ranging from traditional folk to Dylan and the Beatles to Sondheim and Jimmy Webb.

The stories she actually tells are truly entertaining, varying from the touchingly personal to the hilariously bawdy. She says she’s working on a memoir, and if what she tells here is any indication, it should be loads of fun. All in all, her spectacular, undiminished talent gave me one of the most intense experiences I’ve ever had in cabaret.

For tickets, click here.

For more reviews and interviews by Jonathan Warman, see dramaqueennyc.com.

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GIVEAWAY

I'm making one final push to get my ass on "The Wendy Williams Show", and I need your help!

Between now and Friday (10/02/09) at noon, I'm giving away Andrew Christian underwear to randomly chosen winners who cut and paste this into a Tweet:

"@WendyShow: I'd love to see GaySocialites.com's @charleswinters introduce you on your show!"

You know I'll repay the love!

Please help me get on the Wendy Williams Show. I love the lady!!

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Malaysia's Film Censorship Board says that Sacha Baron Cohen's latest alter-ego, Bruno, is too gay for their country.

An official who represents the board said that "Bruno" can't be shown in Malaysia because it highlights gay life and has gay sex scenes.

"It's banned because the story is based on gay life ... There are a lot of sex scenes," she said. "It's contrary to our culture."

Gay sex (or as they call it "carnal intercourse against the order of nature,") is punishable by a 20 year prison sentence. Doesn't the government know that most gay men would love to be locked up in a compound with other gay men for 20 years or so?

"Bruno" is also banned in the Ukraine and other countries. It was, however, a box office hit in the United States.

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The 2014 Gay Games will be held in Cleveland, Ohio according to an announcement made at the site of the 2010 Games in Cologne Germany.

"Cleveland demonstrated to the Federation of Gay Games that they understood the mission of the Gay Games and our principles of 'Participation, Inclusion, and Personal Best'," said Kurt Dahl and Emy Ritt, FGG Co-Presidents. "We were highly impressed by the facilities and infrastructure, the widespread community sport, their financial plan and the city's experience in hosting large scale sports and cultural events."

The announcement came after a year of scouting by Gay Games officials. Cleveland edged out Boston and Washington D.C., the two biggest competitors.

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Take a look at Germany's hottest new "power couple", and they're gay! It looks like Free Democratic Party (FDP) Chairman Guido Westerwelle (pictured right) will be the country's next foreign minister.

Nothing is official yet, but Westerwelle is likely to be tapped for the high-profile post of foreign minister in Chancellor Angela Merkel's new government, according to the Associated Press.

The nation's leading newspaper, Bild Daily, splashed a similar photo of the pair hugging on election night on the front-page above the fold in Tuesday's paper. They also gave him their nod for the Foreign Minister's gig.

"His man makes him so strong," Bild wrote about Westerwelle, declaring that his 42-year-old partner Michael Mronz was not only his most important adviser during the campaign, but also "gives him security and ... supports him when he suffers a setback."

Until now Westerwelle and Bild have kept their personal life out of the spotlight.

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The Church of Ladder Day Saints wants to make sure there is no more gay kissing on their Main Street Plaza in Salt Lake City, so they've hung more signs to warn you that they might kick you out!

Signs like this one above have popped up all over the LDS owned plaza after some gay men were "detained" and bounced after they exchanged some spit on Mormon ground.

No that these gay haters have posted their pretty little signs, future visitors who are detained on the space and refuse to leave could be prosecuted for trespassing just like unwanted visitors to a person's home could be.

Earlier this year, the two kissing gay men were also cited for trespassing.

I think these Mormon folk need to find something else to do, because clearly they have too much time on their hands!

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SHOT OF THE DAY

A gay group held a "kiss-in" over the weekend to combat homophobia at Forum des Halles in Paris.

I guess you could say the Parisian gays are really into French kissing.

This is the second "kiss-in" demonstration in Paris this year. They evidently held a similar event over the summer.

The idea is to create some what of a flash mob where the gays come-in, make out and split! This one lasted around five minutes.

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AFTERNOON DELIGHT

Needless to say, I get a lot of e-mails from horny bastards making suggestions for the Afternoon Delight. While we aren't into half-man, half-beast cartoons; we will try to give you what you want (within reason).

That's why for today's Afternoon Delight, we're fulfilling the popular demand for an "East Village boy". This is Robert Joe, and he's an aspiring model and actor who currently lives and works in Brooklyn. From his look, I'm guessing Williamsburg.

There are more pictures of Robert Joe after the break!

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ENTERTAINMENT

As suspected it will be Kate (minus Jon) plus 8 when the Gosselin's dysfunctional family returns to television on TLC.

The new show will be titled "Kate plus 8" and Jon will still have a role, but he won't be a featured player. Jon will still have an executive role on the show and make recurring appearances.

According to the folks at TLC, the relaunch of the show will "include a deeper focus on Kate’s role in the family and her journey as a single mother building the next chapter in her life.”

"Jon's going to be involved in the show," said Eileen O'Neill, TLC's president and general manager, adding that he will be seen less often than before. TLC retains an exclusive arrangement with him, as well as the rest of the family, O'Neill said.

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TUESDAY NIGHT ON TELEVISION

On tonight's "Flipping Out" Jeff realizes it is time to confront Ryan about his betrayal once. The shit hits the fan when a magazine spread on “Valley Oak” reveals that Ryan has taken all of the credit and excluded Jeff.

Will Jeff cut ties with his business partner, former lover and best friend?

But before Jeff has the chance to lay it all out on the table, Ryan pulls the rug from underneath him revealing that he is thinking about moving to Santa Barbara.

With business booming in Santa Barbara, Jeff is suspicious – is Ryan going behind Jeff’s back yet again?

Find out what happens tonight at 10/9c on Bravo.

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