from the archives :: the 59th annual tony awards

oh what a night - and a fantastic night it was. i was honored to have an exclusive spot on the red carpet at the 59th annual tony awards. there i was - little ole me dressed to the nines and snapping photo after photo. they are posted in the gallery. celebrities out the wazoo - seen: dennis haysbert (of tv's '24'), james earl jones (aka. the voice of darth vader and mister verizon), chita rivera and bernadette peters (divas of broadway), tim currey (the sweet transvestite), hank azaria (of tv's 'the simpsons'), marcia cross (of tv's 'desperate housewives'), christina applegate, oh the list could go on and on - check out the gallery for the exclusive pics!

after the red carpet we were rushed across the street for the press party at the rainbow room in the nbc studios in rockefeller plaza. there we got to interview the winners and meet the rest of the press. seen: michael musto of the village voice. i'm sure there were more than a share of important people but the night is a blur!

big winners of the evening ::

night at the piazza - 6 tonys.
doubt and monty python's spamalot taking tony for best play and musical.
la cage au faux winner of the tony for best revival.

again - check out the gallery - i will be adding as much information as i can as soon as i can! it's nearly 5am and it's way past my bedtime. talk soon - and enjoy!

from the archives :: miss usofa pageant

let's try this again - it seems i hit the wrong button on my sidekick and cleared out my last entry.

tonight was the final night of prelims which means (if you are playing along at home) that the scores are in and tomorrow we find out who our top 12 will be. in true pageant tradition - the hotel is buzzing with people's predictions. i tell you what - the judges had a tough job as usual. lots of strong gowns tonight as well as a few cute talents. tomorrow night at the adams mark will be interesting. layla larue has had a fabulous week reports say and tonight was no exception. the formers were lovely - shout outs to alexis gabrielle sherington, raquelle lord, and erica norrell - ladies you rocked tonight. and it wouldn't be complete without the comic antics of our hostess with the mostess - miss sophia mcintosh. as usual she kept us in stitches. it's late - 3am - and groups are up rehearsing. talk about dedication! i for one am heading to bed.

good night and talk to ya'll tomorrow!

from the archives :: miss usofa pageant

dallas, tx

well kids - i made it to dallas - and oh my god - forgot about the humidity! i left nyc when it was 43 and raining - got to dallas and was hit by the humidity like a mac truck! the host hotel (crowne plaza) was a buzz with people talking about the pageant, practicing their dance moves, and gossiping about american idol (of all things).

i met up with owners jerry bird and lou haskell to watch the 2 hour season finale of american idol (go carrie - still can't believe she pulled a kelly clarkson on us and beat out bo!) - and then i headed to s4 to watch the sednesday night show.

fun times let me tell you - s4 is the old village station rebuilt and cleaned up. they expanded the rose room upstairs (which is where the prelims have been held the past few nights) and the light system down on the dance floor is fantastic.

the show was fun and entertaining - i realized last night that it's been a long time since i've seen a drag show like this. of course everyone was there to help send off layla larue as she is giving up her title as miss usofa on friday. she was stunning in her mohawk - made me gag! go layla! can't wait to see what these girls bring tonight and tomorrow!

well kids - i'm off - look for me - i'll be around - i'm staying in the host hotel (1904) - come say hey!

if you are here in dallas - can't wait to meet you - if you aren't - have fun playing along at home! more later - till then - happy dragging!

from the archives :: what a week

so yeah - it's been a while since i've written - lord knows i should get a smack in the bottom for neglecting my people but it's been a busy one. this week was particularly interesting! let's start on monday shall we?

when: monday 5.16.05
where: galore, monster, cafeteria (nyc)

stopped off at xes in nyc for galore early on monday. met up with deryck todd and dj jimmy beats. the week prior i was unable to attend as i was in dc on business - but nonetheless - i had to go to show my love to my friends and support their great evening of music and art. the week prior marked a new month and a new set of artists' work on display (including 4 of my own pieces.) entertainment for the evening was neal croomer. neal is a gay pop star who reminds me a bit of george michael circa 'faith' in his music styles - looks nothing like george michael - talented nonetheless.

after the show i had to duck out to meet up with and out of town friend at monster down in greenwich village. the monster - if you've never been - daddy daddy daddy bar with latino boys amuck on mondays. piano bar upstairs - dance/salsa club below. monday nights is laritza dumonte's show. it is rumored that laritza was the inspiration for john leguizamo's character chichi in the movie 'to wong foo, thanks for everything julie newmar.' her special guests came all the way in from florida. misty eyez and the newly decrowned (for no good reason i may add) miss florida ffi - angelique ali. our good friend antonio edwards was in the crowd - lovely man I might add - it was the first time we had met. laritza did her normal half english half spanish show to some hot latin dance music - she got the crowd pumped and ready for a good time. she was followed by misty who did some very clever camp/comic routines with dance breaks and cute costumes. of course this was followed by the ever-so fishy vocal talents of miss ali. it was good to see miss ali back on her home turf - she let me have it for not being in attendance at her show at therapy the night before.

between acts one and two they brought the night to a hault to have an amateur strip contest. 7 contestants climbed on stage to win a cash prize. if you are ever at the monster on a monday night - this is the time to go outside and smoke, get a drink (or 6), or go upstairs and sing some showtunes with the piano boys. this contest was chuck full of the most random assortment of men you can imagine. the hottest one lost to an old(er) man who pulled down his pants to show his scabby butt with his ass cut out of his kmart undies - scabby butt people - it was so gross. he won - proving that if there's a scandal - you may trick people into screaming no matter how gross you are!

in true monday tradition - the girls did a little runway to close the night. laritza and angelique had to show misty how the new york girls do it - but misty got the hang of it afterall.

after the show we retired to our favorite late night eatery for mac 'n cheese - cafeteria. cafeteria is a trendy little 'gay' 24-hour diner in chelsea with great 2am mac 'n cheese. if you are lucky - you can see one of the olsen sisters chowing down (then puking it up again) in the wee hours. i got to meet misty in person and discovered we were already connected in cyberland. funny how small the world is. long story short - it was good to see old friends and great to have the opportunity to meet new ones.

moving on...

when: tuesday 5.17.05
where: beacon theater - nyc

i got to pop into a semi-private concert at the beacon theatre for aol music live. featured artist was coldplay - one of my absolute favorite bands out there. the show was great and best of all - I sat near gweneth paltrow who looked lovely. see - she's married to the lead singer and the two of them have an adorable child by the name of apple. the concert was great and the energy was kicking. i can't wait for their new cd to come out next month. also in attendance was 'desperate housewives' star teri hatcher and musician beck.

after the show i headed down to the soho area to meet up with my good friends eric himan and meghann robinson. eric himan many of you know as one of our links on our link page. both he and meghann are gay singer/songwriters making names for themselves in the big world. very happy to have them as friends. anyway - we hung out had some beers and then headed home for a good night sleep. i was sad i had to miss eric's show at the bitter end here in nyc to see coldplay but he understood.

wednesday 5.25 i head to dallas to hang out for miss gay usofa (20th anniversary) - way to go usofa! final night of prelims are on thursday and final night is friday. should be a killin' - see ya'll there!

from the archives :: random monday retold

ok - so - mondays in new york - not much going on. i think this is true in most cities. however - new york being what it is - you can always find a little something to keep you entertained.

got a call from my good friend brent and told me to meet him at our friend tommy's and we would then make our way out to the east village for a bit of live music. now who could pass up live music in the evill? so i grabbed tommy's bread (that he left at my house on sunday) - and headed downtown. omg - is mother nature on pms or what - it was a beautiful day and then - bam - cold and windy in the evening - i was so over it - but alas - neither rain, snow, sleet - blah blah - i was going to go out and have a fabu time!

we made our way to starlight. starlight was voted one of the best gay bars in nyc this year in the aol cityguide city's best campaign. starlight is a small bar in alphabet city. it holds about 150 on a good day - but most of the time it feels like 300 people are trying to hang out in there. most days I have to admit - we avoid the starlight because it's so packed. because this was a monday - i figured - can't be that crowded. i was right.

so - why were we there? brent's friend tex was singing in a couple of numbers in the show being presented. the show showcased the live guitar and vocal stylings of paul deboy (pictured at top). now i'll give anyone credit for being on a stage doing their thing. especially when it's a live talent. but talent would be the key to being on stage - if you don't have any - stay away from the stage. listening to this boy's 'poetry' about masturbation, lsd camping trips, and bad covers of songs no one cares about anymore made me wish i were deaf, blind, and comatose. the best part of the show was when he sat and let tex and another singer - jay - take over for a couple of songs. i was thinking to myself - now i'd listen to a bit more of jay thanks - paul - go back to baltimore.

ok - so maybe that was harsh - but i woke up from a good nap for this! thank god it was over in about an hour's time.

now - i don't think that this one experience should keep me from going back on a monday. i did get to meet the producer of the evening's festivities. a very nice gentleman by the name of julian fleisher. he's the man who'll be bringing the new kiki and herb album to a store near you - as he was a producer of their recent carnegie hall extravaganza. also in the 'crowd' of about 20 people was none other than 'hedwig' creator - john cameron mitchell (pictured on right). i have to admit - mister mitchell looked about as bored as the rest of us but cheered on his friend jay as he took the stage.

so after that experience i needed to pep up my night a bit. tommy and brent parted ways headed for dinner and to the cock for their 3rd anniversary of old skool - i went further downtown and slightly east to a bar called sutra. my very good friend rainblo throws a party there every monday night. it's only it's 3rd week but momentum is picking up and it's been quite festive thus far. open bar with fabulous banana martinis and chocolate shots until 11:00.

now - this scene is growing - sporting some of nyc's most fabulous microlebrity glitterati. seen at the party: the absolute legendary kenny kenny, cazwell, queen mother flawless sabrina, tovall, jaisen, xavier j., newbee duch, british sensation davenia, miranda moondust, gogo russell, and artist and promoter deryck todd. i'm sure there were many others but i was too busy just snapping photos and looking at the rather endowed dancers on the bar and stage. dj jamie lee was providing the tunes. typical mix of 80's and today's hits. rainblo (pictured on left) looked stunning as ever!

i spent most of my evening chumming it up with deryck commenting about the party. we were (im)patiently waiting for the show to start. cazwell (the gay eminem) did a little song then there was a contest for $50 where 3 people got up to 'show their stuff' to the crowd. i have to say - less than impressed with all of the above. having the entertainment is fun for a break in the night - but i think the children had better times just dancing it out on the dance floor.

in all - great time at sutra! all that and i was still home in bed at a 'decent' hour! haha - till next time - muah!

from the archives :: 'jackie - beat me down!'

jackie - beat me down!

last night - another whirlwind. started with a night at the opera with my friend russell. we went to lincoln center to see 'candide.' front row center - fantastic seats. beautiful to watch - good music by leonard bernstein - but being that it's 'candide' - the story is a little lacking.

went home afterwards - changed out of my tuxedo and into jeans and headed to xes to meet up with todd, stephen, ryan, shawn, and jason. fun times - quick beer - then off to 'high life -low life' at the slide in the east village.

$10 cover charge gets you into one of the oldest gay establishments in the city (meaning the building is so old and has been pretty much a gay tavern since it was built in the 1800's). now - however - on saturday's it's - 'high life-low life.'

let's start with low life. low life is at the slide - dark and dank - seedy gogo boys dance on a bar while a crowd walks around in the near darkness coping feels by passers by!

high life - just the opposite. light - dancing - glitter - and yes - drag queens. rose royale is the cheerful and quippy cocktail waitress. on stage for the 'preshow' are the delightful silent venyettes from the british gal herself - lavetra coop. dj nita aviance pumps out the sounds which in true east village style - is everything from 80's hair rock to disco and dance hits of today. showtime is somewhere between one and two in the morning. show hostess as always is the fantastic sweetie (pictured on the right). sweetie's show is simple - her and one or two guests. last night was a treat indeed. her guest was the one and only - comedic diva from los angeles - jackie beat!

jackie (pictured at top) bounded the stage looking much like linda richmond (of saturday night live's 'coffee talk') complete with gold sweater set - big teased hair and huge sunglasses. only 3 songs were done - 'bitch slap' (to the tune of 'witchcraft'), a song dedicated to all booger drag queens out there - 'from a distance' (made me pee my pants was so funny) - and a metallica remake in honor of michael jackson about being tossed out of neverland ranch (his home.)

sweetie closed the show lipsyncing to the natalie cole classic and remake from the beatles - 'lucy in the sky with diamonds.'

seen on the scene paying respects to jackie were miss guy and lady bunny. guy looking stunning as ever was dwarfed by bunny's larger than life - um - bag.

come to find out that jackie came all the way from los angeles to pay respects to fez closing later this month. fez is a popular venue for many drag entertainers and unfortunately is closing forever. boo-hoo - what can i say - it happens. an end of an era.

so anyway - enough babbling - if you ever see jackie coming to your town - go check her out - she'll have you in stitches.

until next time -

j

oh and jason k - thanks for the smooch! and dan s - good to see you again after all these years since tracks in dc.

from the archives :: formika rocks

formika rocks!

omg omg - last night's entertainment was nothing less than rockin'!

first off - my good friend russell and i went to see a great show - 'altarboyz' - at the dodger stages on 50th street here in nyc. go see this show - it was the most hysterical thing i've seen in ages. the show runs about an hour and a half. the all male cast portrays a christian n*sync-style boy band - complete with backing band, concert lighting, and shadoe stevens (american top 40 countdown) as the voice of g.o.d.

at about midnight i met up with todd, stephen and ryan (from san francisco), shawn, jason, matt, and anthony and headed down to the east village. stephen and ryan - being from out of town - had never been to opaline so that was our destination. there we met up with brent, russell, tommy, joe and david. the party on fridays is called 'area 10009.' format of the party is classic east village. two dance floors featuring classic hits from the 80's and 90's with mixes in of current classics. the showstopper is on the main stage.

the sexy masseur - matt - will get you naked and give you a full body massage on stage while the entire room dances and pulsates around you. some people have said this is a quite hot experience.

at around 1 or 2 in the morning - i forget what time exactly. the band hits the stage. the show is hosted by the lovely and legendary sherry vine (sherry - pictured on the right - just returned back on the ny scene on new years eve after an extended stay and successful show in germany - welcome back). kids - this is drag at it's finest. these lovely ladies sing live with a live band and truly rock the house. last night included sherry (of course), the beautifully androgynous miss guy, and the once mistress (now michael) formkia (for those of you playing along at home - formika has retired but michael still entertains quite often for the general public - pictured at top).

now - maybe this can only happen in new york - how many times have you ever gone out to a club - filled to the rim with everthing from artsy twinks and gogo boys to gym bunnies and 'aberzombies' and divas for days - where everyone in the room suddenly dances along to a live rock concert? let me tell you - formika took the house down with his rendition of green day's classic 'basket case.' i have not seen a crowd rock so hard for a 'queen' in a long time. it was truly breath-taking!

and to think - the lady bunny was just reported saying in skrufff.com's newsletter how club in nyc is getting 'boring' - honey - get your ass to opaline on a friday - their show will truly change your tune!

from the archives :: 'jimmy james - legend or has-been?'

jimmy james - legend or has-been?

so last night i was out with my old friend, singer/songwriter, eric himan and new friend, photographer, john arsenault. after a wonderful dinner at don giovanni's here in the city - we headed to xes on 24th street. xes is going to be the venue to house the monday party I'll be hosting starting on april 4th. there we met up with friend and author of 'metrosexual guide to style', michael flocker and his friend from san francisco - corey.

we laughed as contestants were eliminated from american idol - sorry kids - you won't be missed - and sipped on our amstel lights and various other beverages. in walks in james beltzer and deryck todd (promoters for galore) and introductions happened. michael and corey shortly thereafter excused themselves and made way to the door.

just at about that time - music starts and a shrill nelly voice comes booming over the microphone, 'the show will begin in about 5 minutes - grab a seat and a drink.' - so we did. we (eric, john and i) propped ourselves by the bar and waited patiently for what would come next.

turns out - each wednesday at about 10:00PM - the (once) legendary jimmy james (pictured at top) tests out his material in a workshop format at xes. i was excited - i've never met nor have i ever seen jimmy james perform. i know him only from his photos taken by the fabulous (may he rest in peace) kevyn aucoin.

for those who know - jimmy james is/was one of the most successful illusionists of the late 80s and 90s. he frequently appeared on talk shows as the one and only marilyn monroe. (i personally thought he looked a bit like anna nichole smith - but beautiful nonetheless). what makes jimmy unique is that he's fully mastered not only the legendary looks of the women he portrays - but he also has mastered their mannerisms and most impressively - their voices. you see - jimmy james performs live music as the entertainers he impersonates.

last night we were treated with a little eartha kitt, patsy cline, nancy sinatra, a sonny and cher duet (where jimmy sang both parts - try that one for talent kids), tina turner, some judy and an interesting marilyn tribute where jimmy played a dvd on the screens in the bar with all images and video on the dvd were him as marilyn (sorry honey but this really showed your age - geraldo, marsha warfield, and sally jesse's talk shows were cancelled years ago).

i was sad to learn that jimmy no longer 'dresses' in these illusions (which made sense as he has gained a few pounds since his heyday - guess that month on the zone diet didn't work too well) but still - i was absolutely captivated by what this man could do with his voice. jimmy was decked out in 'face' and a black blouse and pants - short 'crew' cut and a red tie (think gothic biker lesbian).

the biggest let down of the evening had to be the crowd. lots of drunk straight women talking over the singing and the even drunker chelsea boys heckling the entertainer who was just trying to do his show. (note to the fags - keep your drunk friends at home if they can't handle themselves in public - no one likes a messy fish - or gym bunny for that matter!) the heckling got out of control - which led jimmy to resort to what anyone with a microphone would do - heckle back. we decided that we had had enough by this point and politely said good-bye to friends and headed out into the 20 degree evening.

i was proud to see the bit of the show i saw. very interesting concept. i hope to see more of it in the future. for entertainment value - i was entertained. will i go back - doubt it - but you never know when I may suddenly appear and catch your show - now do ya? um hummm - gals at roscoe's in chicago - you know what i'm talking about!

haha - until next time kids!