Townie Drag Brunch

Every year, the week following P Town's spectacular annual Carnival in August sees one of the best events of the whole season takes place.  What is even more special about it is that fact there is no organizer or planning, people juts know to show up at Bubula's Restaurant on that Thursday at 2 pm.  Wearing drag of course.   

The occasion is Townie Drag Brunch an annual event started originally about 15 years ago ostensibly for all the town residents to who had been working during the actual Carnival Parade itself the previous week.  Over the years the qualification for attendance has relaxed slightly, but the essence of the event is still very much in tact.  Everyone looks to create, make and improvise their own very unique outfits, but even with all that glam piled on, there is never any attempt to even start to disguise the fact that they may all be in DR(essed) A(s) G (irls), they are all (every inch) men.

This year as we filmed the afternoon for PTV we were also invited into the pre-party to witness make-up being applied and shoes being squeezed into whilst bubbly was being consumed.  (No-one ever seems to eat much, even though it is technically a Brunch). The whole spontaneous gathering is a sheer joy to be part of, and also enormous fun to witness when the streets of the Town are full of this outrageously dressed bunch of drag queens-for-a-day as they totter to T Dance in their very high heels to finish the afternoon.

P.S. The (real) lady at the end of movie who is taking in the sights is Marilyn Maye the legendary jazz singer who had been performing in Town.  Click here to see the interview we did with her driving around town in the back of her Rolls Royce.

Video & Editing : Rik Ahlberg

Special Thanks : Patrick Lammerson

http://www.provincetowntv.org/

Subscribe to  http://www.youtube.com/c/RogerWalkerDackReportsPtown

The Best LGBT Movies of 2015 (pt 3 : Next Year's Stars)

Like most LGBT movie critics, queerguru is privileged to see many new films that have been launched at Film Festivals throughout the year, and that (hopefully) should be surfacing in a movie theater near you or on a Streaming Platform in 2016 : here is our pick of the best of them.

11) "The David Dance" 

Late into the night he is Danger Dave, but when this chatty highly-opinionated dj turns off the mike after his gay radio show in Buffalo NY is over, he reverts back into shy Dave who is someone who has a hard time accepting himself, let alone interacting with others. When the movie opens his show has just been cancelled and he is saying goodbye to Chris his assistant, who also happens to be his soon-to-be ex-boyfriend who is moving out of the apartment they share.  It seems like there is really no hope and no life for our hero beyond the studio, but luckily for Dave (and us) all is not lost as we soon find out in this quirky and utterly charming wee tale. It's a first feature from Don Scime its writer and star.

10) "Oriented"

Brit filmmaker Jake Witzenfeld's impressive and heartwarming documentary thankfully settles down after a somewhat uneven start to become an intriguing snapshot of what life is like for gay Arabs living in a trendy suburb of Tel Aviv today.  He follows three extremely engaging best friends in their early twenties for 18 months through 2013 - 2014 when tensions between Gaza and Israel flared up yet again.

9) "Gayby Baby"

Filmmaker Maya Newell has followed her successful Australian TV series "Growing Up Gayby" with this new full length documentary that takes a look at the lives of four different children whose parents all happen to be gay.  It is evidently a subject that is dear to her heart having grown up with two mothers herself. The timing could not have been more perfect as the Australian Government are currently coming under pressure for still refusing to even tackle the whole subject of legalizing same-sex marriage, thus continuing to deny these families the legal recognition they need and deserve.  

8) "Daddy"

Actors Dan Via and Gerald McCullouch respectively wrote and directed this rather entertaining movie, adapted from their own successful stage play, about this May-December relationship with more than one twist to the plot. This very engaging wee independent drama is very much a labor of love for its principal players, and is rather a neat little gem.

7) "Better Half" 

Like most successful gay couples, Tony and Leo seem to be an unlikely pair. They have been together four years now and Leo thinks that this Christmas he should propose to Tony as he knows this is what he wants. The trouble is that Leo still has a commitment phobia which is put even more to the test the next day when Tony moots the idea of them adopting a recently abandoned premature baby. This refreshing new gay drama written and directed by first time filmmaker Michelle Clay intuitively deals with love and loss, and how we can finally see in ourselves what others have seen all along.

6) "Akron"

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Written and co-directed by newbie filmmaker and Akron native Brian O'Donnell,  this a wonderfully refreshing coming-of-age story that simply captures all the passionate excitement of two very fresh-faced wholesome kids in the glow of first love.  Full marks to O'Donnell and his co-director Sasha King for both making the boy's scenes of intimacy tastefully discreet, and secondly for ensuring that when the going got tough, even though voices got raised and heated, they avoided taking the usual cliched route of making a melodrama out of it all.

5) "Winning Dad" 

This smart and incisive drama written and directed by newbie filmmaker Arthur Allen, (who also takes a starring role), plays out very well indeed.  The chemistry between the two middle-aged handsome gay men (the other is played by Jake Street) is very tight and touching, and their scenes together are emotionally charged and very passionate. It is however the bible-loving conservative father who has to run the gamut of all his emotions, who holds our attention most of the time. It is an impressive and powerful performance from Chuck Sigars a comedian and actor in this his first movie role.

4) "Front Cover" 

This second feature written and directed by Hong Kong native filmmaker Ray Yeung is a very perceptive take on the clash of two very different versions on what was once the same culture, and their opposing views on sexuality and self-expression. It's a very fresh and convincing plot, extremely well written, that has some very neat twists, that allow these two strangers to enjoy some very unexpected happiness in their touching and tender romance. The number of LGBT movies with Asian based story lines that get distributed on a global basis add up to no more than a mere handful, which is a great shame.  When they are as good as 'Front Cover', and have a 'message' that audiences will not just relate too but really enjoy too, they so deserve to be seen . 

3) "How To Win At Checkers (Every Time)"

In this refreshing coming-of-age drama from American/Korean filmmaker Josh Kim the two boys sexuality is of no real consequence to anyone at all.  With the help of his excellent young cast, Kim ensures that this tale of social inequality is told without sinking into melodrama or dragging out any of the usual cliched stereotypes. The compassionate fraternal relationship is particular touching and makes this heartbreaking story such a sheer joy to watch.

2) "Women He's Undressed"

Gillian Armstrong's captivating documentary on the Australian three-time Academy Award Winning Costume Designer the larger than life Orry-Kelly is a nothing less than a sheer gem. This flamboyant and gregarious openly gay man had a great zest for life (and especially for alcohol) and was adored by all of Hollywood's leading ladies of the day as well as several of the men, including his boyfriend of many years, Cary Grant. We persuaded the filmmakers to give us a sneak preview, and we so hope that this glorious glimpse of the old Hollywood glamour will now get to be shown in the US and other global markets.

1) "Those People"

This is one of those rare exceptional debut movies from an inspiring new filmmaker Joey Kuhn that seems to be the payback for having to sit through far too many indifferent indie films every day.  This tale of unrequited love is both tender and tough, as it is when are in your early 20's and you have been silently wrestling with it for the past 15 years.  Kuhn however has a very mature approach to treating this story that is partly based on his own life. and he ensures that we are completely engaged from the opening credits to the very end . Every year queer cinema discovers a fresh new voice that is capable of taking the medium to a higher and different plane, our feeling is that Joey Kuhn could just be one that fits this bill for 2016.

There Is Nothing Like A Dame

Explaining the British Honours System where twice a year H.M. The Queen (advised by a Political Appointed Committee) hands out fancy Titles and Awards for allegedly the "good and the great" of the Country, to a non-Brit is far from easy.  In theory any member of the public can be nominated to receive one of these accolades, but in reality the Lists (the latest one being today's New Years Honours) are so littered with cronies of the present Conservative Government, that there has been quite an outcry in the UK media that once again the system has been hijacked to reward the Party's big donors and supporters in particular.

This claim is hardly new, and in fact many of the country's landed gentry and aristocracy owe their present title and position in society to the fact that their forefathers greased the palms of the ruling monarch centuries ago.  It is because, like many things in the UK, it is all so steeped in tradition which none of us ever really see fit to question. For example, why are all the awards given on behalf of the British Empire still (as in O.B.E. : Order of....), and equally important, why is the highest honor given to a woman is when they are made into Dames, which sounds positively like something from a Pantomime or Musical Theater?

Nevertheless despite all the absurdity (or because of ?) it is still something of a British national sport to check the list and see who has made it this time, and try to fathom out why.   It's quite a game trying to work out what was the criteria for deciding who got the best 'honours' whilst similar people ones for the 'runner-ups'!   Here are today's 'winners' that caught our attention.

Matthew Bourne: the out gay award-winning choreographer of the all-male ballet Swan Lake was made a Knight. He is the very first person in the dance world outside of a national ballet company to be so honoured.  

Barbara Windsor:  the 78 year-old 'cockney' actress known for being in all those 'Carry On' Films in the 1960's and now lately in Britain's long running TV soap "Eastenders" and who is something of a gay icon, was made a Dame. 

Siân Phillips : the 82 year-old Welsh classical actress who first caught the public's eye in "I Claudius" and became a favorite star after appearing in the West End as Marlene Dietrich,  and who also was once married to the late Peter O'Toole, was made a Dame. 

Imelda Staunton: has being wowing London's audiences this year for her performance as Momma Rose in "Gypsy" ( a role that she will repeat in Broadway this year) gets a C.B.E. (Commander of British Empire) to add to her O.B.E.  Ms Staunton is married to actor Jim Carter who plays Mr Carson the Butler in "Downton Abbey".

Daman Albarn : the lead singer of Blur gets an O.B.E. 

Peter Morgan : screenwriter of "The Queen" and "Frost/Nixon" gets a C.B.E.

So after they celebrate today what can these people expect?  Well apart from adding the initials of their awards after their name, and some now start being addressed as Dame (instead of Mrs), they'll get to put on a smart frock one anointed day this summer when they will be invited to go to Buckingham Palace for their Investiture where the Queen will hand out their awards (also known as gongs).  However it is getting a tad more relaxed thses days for when leading artist Grayson Perry went to collect his C.B.E. from Prince Charles (who was standing in for the Queen) he also wore a dress too.

Now not everyone approves of the whole system, and there have been several well-known people who have declined 'the offer' of an Award  (such as actress Vanessa Redgrave who was on the List to be a Dame).  Others later change their minds, like John Lennon who returned his MBE to the Palace as a protest against the country's support of the Vietnam War.  And then there are those to turn out to be not so 'good and great' after all, and like Anthony Blunt the Queen's own Art Custodian and later spy and traitor, you can get stripped of your title too.

P.S. There is always a need to read between the lines when it comes to the Brit Honour List as in the case today of the C.B.E awarded to Ms Jacqueline Gold with the citation "For services to Entrepreneurship".  Ms Gold, the 16th richest woman in the UK, is the C.E.O. of the Ann Summers Sex Shops and is best known for introducing the 'Rampant Rabbit' sex toy to Britain, where it remains a bestseller among such intriguing products as the 'Orgasmatron', the 'Shagasaurus' and the 'Vibrating O Ring'.   Just saying...

Aretha Franklin feels 'like a natural woman" dressed in her Mink.

An undoubted highlight of this years Kennedy Center Honors was 72 year old Aretha Franklin (an Honoree in 1994) seranading Carole King with her own "You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman" and reducing the President to tears. BUT why oh why didn't anyone bother to show the Queen of Soul where the cloakroom was so she could have checked that big old heavy mink coat of hers and being relieved of her purse before she sat down at the piano to play?

Barbie REALLY parties on New Years Eve

If there is one night a year that even Barbie gets wasted, then it's New Years Eve. Not only does she behave more 'real' than any of those 'housewives on reality TV shows, but she gets laid by Ken too.  This fabulous 'stop and motion' video is by Sam and Mickey who's You Tube channel promises "more dirty Barbie stop motion films than innocent minds can handle".

100 Years of New Year's Eve Style for Men

Still cannot decide what to wear tomorrow night to celebrate New Years Eve?  Still hanker back to those days when we all really dressed up for the occasion?  Well those clever people over at Mode You Tube Channel have put together another of their very clever videos of their condensed histories of mens; fashion and this time its all about what we have been wearing to party on New Years Eve throughout the ages.

They cover 11 decades starting in 1915 and include some really dapper styles that we wished would re-emerge but also some very questionable outfits that we are in total denial about ever wearing way back then.

P.S.  Personally we would be happy if every handsome gentleman dressed like this still to celebrate. 

Don't Rain On Their Parades

Can anyone really out 'Streisand' our Babs herself?  Hmm, probably not. But several people think they can,  like the ones in this very star studded mashup collection of Divas who are belting out "Don't Rain On My Parade" . See how many you can spot and name.  

Dina Martina's Slightly Belated Christmas Show

Still can't get enough of Christmas?  Or enough of the incomparable and hysterically funny Dina Martina?  Well call Cape Air right now and book a flight to P.Town as everyone's favorite tragic singer, horrible dancer and surreal raconteur is back in Town for just one night only.  Beg, steal or borrow the money to snap up one of the few remaining tickets at the Crown & Anchor for this coming Saturday 2nd January 2016 for this Slightly Belated Christmas Show

Happy 69th Birthday Marianne Faithfull

                                                                                                               photo by Hedi Slimane

This irrepressible and gravelly-voiced British singer, songwriter and actress burst on to the music scene at the tender age of 18 years old after Rolling Stone's Mick Jagger took an immediate shine to her.  Along with fellow band member Keith Richards, he wrote "As Tears Go Bye' which was a big hit for Marianne and set her off on the road to stardom.

                                                                                                                        photo David Bailey

It turned out to be quite a rocky road for Marianne, the daughter of a member of a British Secret Service Agent and an Austrian Baroness, but even from the very low points when she touched rock bottom with  long battle with her drug addiction she bounced back and was inspired to write one of her very best songs ever "Sister Morphine". From affairs with Jagger to headlining tours all over Europe and throughout all the chaos of those years when she was both penniless and homeless, her heart-tugging life story profiled in the documentary "Marianne Faithfull : Dreaming My Dreams", only makes you appreciate her remarkable talent even more.

Our two favorite albums are "Broken English" and "Vagabond Ways" which we can never get enough, and like the lady herself, they both stand up well after all this time.  

In 2014, Marianne recorded her 20th album "Give My Love to London" of all new and original songs and embarked on a 50th Anniversary Tour.

Happy 69th Birthday Marianne Faithfull, Baroness Sacher-Masoch

No Pants Subway Ride

queerguru is not sure what makes people who live in cold northern US cities want to strip off in public in the winter, but here they go again.  Boston's 9th Annual No Pants Subway Ride organized by BostonSOS ( A Society of Shenanigans) is set for January 10th is literally what it says.  We are not quite sure why they do it (!) but over the years it has also grown to includes walks through famous landmarks and a no-pants no-cover after party (Last year it was at the sports bar McGreevy's, where pantless staff served drinks and hot food to hundreds of pantless partiers.)

It's easy to sign up and join in BUT please for all of us that will be wrapped up warm watching from the platforms, please make sure you have a nice pair of new underwear on that would make your mother be real proud of you.   And like most insane but funny ideas this one evidently started in New York by ImprovEverywhere.com, and they will be holding their 15th Event also on January 10th,  so you can join your near-naked fellow New Yorkers if your heart so desires.

Happy (81st) Birthday Dame Maggie Smith CH DBE

Happy (81st) Birthday Dame Maggie Smith CH DBE who, with 6 Oscar Nominations and 2 Wins and countless other awards (don't lets forget the 5 BAFTAS), is one of THE leading actresses of her generation, and one of our favorite gay icons of all time.

From "Desdemona"  with Sir Lawrence Olivier  (Oscar Nomination 1965)

to "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" ( Best Actress Oscar 1969)

and "Travels With My Aunt" ( Oscar Nomination 1972) 

then" California Suite" (Best Supporting Actress Oscar 1978)

plus "A Room With A View" (Oscar Nomination 1985)

leading to "Gosford Park" (Oscar Nomination 2001)

and of course "Downton Abbey"  ( A Golden Globe, 2 Emmys,  & 2 SAG Awards).

and now "The Lady in A Van" which so deserves another Oscar for her stunning performance.

The Drag Vegan Queen Needs Help

If you are wanting to start the New Year doing a good deed, then here is one that might just appeal to you.  It certainly did to Rik Ahlberg my Provincetown based Editor & Director who is not only a dedicated vegan but has quite a penchant for Drag Queens too. He is encouraging me (to encourage you) to help Honey LaBronx fulfill her dream of getting her very successful web series back on air.

Four years ago Miss LaBronx started The Vegan Drag Queen Cooking Show which was a big hit from Day 1.  I mean who wouldn't love someone obviously having such great fun combining their love of drag and veganism to make animal rights accessible to a mainstream audience?

Now she needs a few things to transform her new NY apartment into a multimedia studio where she can freely create new podcasts, as well as her new talk show, record her vegan parody songs and create photography projects. To meet the $8000 cost of equipment, which will include a new camera to film my show, audio and lighting equipment, and a new computer Miss LaBronx has set up a Fund Razr Project.   

BUT it ends on 31st December 2015 and is still well short of its target, so that is where you come in.  Click on the link to watch the video and if you like what you see (and what's not to like?) then click on the link to make a donation.... big or small .... and help make a Vegan Queen happy.  And my Director as well .... is that too much to ask?

The great American artist Elsworth Kelly dies

Elsworth Kelly one of the greatest American Artists of the 20th Century has just died at aged 92. He is survived by his husband of some 28 years the photographer Jack Shear.   Kelly's simplistic and highly colorful work made his work so highly accessible and here are just a few of our many favorite Kelly paintings.

Ellsworth Kelly (May 31, 1923 – December 27, 2015)

Joseph Wilson : Drag Is My Ecstasy

A couple of months ago we stumbled upon a extraordinary and wonderfully exhilarating short movie called "Stance" about 'drag boxing' which was set in a Working Men's Club in London.  It literally blew our fishnets off.  It was made by Joseph Wilson a 27 year-old Brit filmmaker who is one of the leading figures in the alternative drag movement that is currently revitalizing the East End.  We finally caught up with him in a cafe in  Hackney recently and talked to him about how his very first movie "Drag Is My Ecstasy" has literally become his mantra and his life these days too.  He doesn't just possess an exceptional talent but he's quite the charmer too.

Whilst we edit our detailed interview to publish very soon, take a peak at this trailer of his showreel to discover why we are so excited about Joseph Wilson.

Lord Of The Fraud

The main thing about large scale fraud ( apart from the greed) is the sheer audacity,  and no-one has more of that than convicted felon Lord Edward Davenport.  This new short movie by Vice Media tells the true story of his rags to riches story of this high class confidence trickster.  Also known as 'Fast Eddie' he gave the filmmakers unfettered access after his short stint in Prison for a large scale fraud that not only netted him millions of pounds but also he had duped  Sierra Leone out of their London Embassy, said to be worth some £30 million too.  He evidently loves the fact that this film is about him, as he has supplied them archival footage of his early days too.

He started off young in the 1980's by throwing the infamous hedonistic Gatecrashers Balls in London purely for the underage members of the British aristocracy (which despite his claim, he is not a member off) which were essentially drunken sex-orgies for teenagers.  Later on after swindling a few business partners out of their share of the profits, amongst other things he ended up running debauched private sex parties in his London mansion, but this time for adults.

The man oozes more than the traditional amount of British charm and he still steadfastly maintains his total innocence even when confronted with the evidence.  Now freed from a London prison ahead of time because he needed a kidney transplant, it  looks like from his attitude in the film that it will not be too long before he relieves someone or some company or more vast sums of money by fair means or foul.  It's amazing what you can still get away with when you have a Title.

The whole short film is shown below.

Abby Says Please Forget Her

In case you've been nowhere the sports pages this week, then you may not know that Abby Wambach has just played her very last game of soccer. Wambach openly gay and  a six-time winner of the U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year award,  has been a regular on the U.S. women's national soccer team since 2003 earning her first cap in 2001.  As a forward, she currently stands as the highest all-time goal scorer for the national team and holds the world record for international goals for both female and male soccer players with 184 goals. In 2012, Wambach was awarded the FIFA World Player of the Year, becoming the first American woman to win the award in ten years, and earlier this year she was included in Time Magazine's Time 100 list as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

In this real tearjerker of a goodbye that is actually an advert for Gatorade, Wambach wants to now quietly disappear "Forget me," she says. "Forget my number. Forget my name. Forget I ever existed."

From the mouths of drunks and children......

We vowed we would never use the T word once in these pages but we came across two hilarious videos that we wanted to share as what is currently happening in the US Presidential Campaign is so Tragic, we need to laugh with the sheer hope that we may just wake up Tomorrow and realize that it has all been just a bad dream.

Meanwhile here are actual words coming out of the uncontrollable mouth of the Leading Candidate for the Republican Nomination but acted out in this video by your drunk next door neighbor, and they are a perfect fit.

If you have been questioning the IQ of this particular would-be-President, you will know it's hard to guess it exactly.  BUT here is a good clue, in this second video his actual words are read out by an 8 year old boy and suddenly they make much more sense.  Sort of.

Mink Ear Muffs For Everyone (on Liz's List anyway)

Christmas is a time for giving : especially if it is something from N.Y's favorite Department Store Bergdorf Goodman which has been a New York institution for the past 111 years.  Stretching a whole block of Fifth Avenue between 57th & 58th Streets it is the high temple of fashion's elite that has the very best for the very well-heeled Manhattans who love it so much that they literally want to be buried there when they die.  Or at least have their ashes scattered over it. 

If you cannot afford to go shop with the well-heeled then you can at least grab a a copy of Matthew Miele's delightful documentary on the Store from 2012 which squeezes in some 175 interviews and tells the history of the establishment right up to the current day with designers who still have yet to be chosen, and an assortment of celebrities who like having their clothes picked out for them.  

Best of all it stars the legendary Betty Halbreich the veteran personal shopper with impeccable taste, razor sharp wit, and no-nonsense approach to dealing with customers with suspect taste who is an essential pillar of the whole place. Ms Halbreich stole all her scenes and a couple of our favorite anecdotes of hers relate to the Festive season. Like when Elizabeth Taylor ordered white mink ear muffs for her entire Christmas gift list, or the Christmas Eve Yoko Ono asked that they bring some fur coats over to her apartment that night, and John Lennon snapped up 80 of them there and then.

Read our full review of the movie from our sister site http://www.rwd5minmovieguide.com