Recently in Greg's Lists Category

Here are some more encores from the past year, most posts are a little more personal in nature than my celebrity meeting adventures. But there are a few of those in there too just to keep things glamorous. Don't worry, the Greg's List series ends today with regular posts resuming Jan. 2.

- Meeting Officer Studly

- Thank You For Being a Friend

- Postcard From San Diego... and Memories of Los Tres Blogeros...

Sharing their coming out stories...

Hillary Clinton at The Abbey Was a Hot Ticket...

The Athletes We Love 2: Recalling a long ago crush...

Happy First Birthday to Out In Hollywood...

Partying with L.A.'s most eligible...

Celebrating classic TV show theme songs...

Meeting Lauren Bacall... AND Catching up with the indomitable Lauren Bacall...

"No one ever told me when I was growing up that make-up and skirts were just for girls. If you're confident and you own it, [the other kids] are fine with it...I've always supported the lifestyle that I will do what I please and deal with it."
- Dominic Monaghan

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"I feel sorry for him. I think it's really sad. What a tragic character. He's tragic. People like Ted Haggart [sic] - that's tragic. Or Mark Foley. These are living tragedies. They're people who want to be part of a society that does not want them, and so they're willing to be secretive about their sexuality and hide who they are, and really who they are is not bad, it's not criminal at all. But it drives them to sort of criminalizing acts. It's really sad."
- Margaret Cho on disgraced Senator Larry Craig.

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"...In all the years that I was on the show, I had a very strong gay following and I always cherished that, you know? That they didn't think that because of my faith that I was some sort of intolerant, condemning, self-righteous person. I never got that from them. I got a lot of criticism from the faith world, believe me, for the choices I made through the years. I think people are sometimes afraid of somebody who's different from themselves simply because they don't know it. I think anybody that can only stay in their own pew, people who think and act and believe every way exactly the same, I mean...you want to talk about living a boring life. So I've always sensed tremendous support from the gay community and I'm very, very grateful for it..."
- Kathie Lee Grifford about her gay fans from the "Regis" days...

"People from all walks of life are embracing Luke and Noah and want them to be happy. That is pretty awesome. Also, my personal belief is that the hugely positive reaction says a lot about what we stand for as a country. We need to accept each other and embrace differences of all kinds."
- actor Van Hansis (Luke) to fans supportive of the gay love story on "As the World Turns."

"Everyone's gotta have a voice, to be able to speak out. Left supresses right, right supresses left, and what's left and what's right? You know? It's America. You gotta be able to speak out. That's why people came here from all over the world: to have a fair shake. Not more than somebody else - the same."
- Cyndi Lauper

"It's difficult to stand up for gay people. When white people stand up for black people, it's perceived as doing something good. But when straight people stand up for gay people, they're perceived as gay.
- Out former NBA player John Amaechi

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"I have never felt compelled to share with you my bathroom habits or share with you my bedroom habits,' he says. 'Everyone has a right to privacy, so I have never felt--even though I am famous--that I had to share that with anybody."
- John Travolta, when asked about speculation surrounding his sexuality

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"Elisabeth [Hasselbeck] needs a lobotomy! How can she defend the Bush administration? Being pregnant doesn't [screw] with your head that much."
- Sharon Osbourne on "The View" co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck

"I was raised by drag queens, practically ... my mother died when I was four-years-old, so I was effectively raised by a bunch of different people. A lot of those people were friends of my sister, Kathleen, who had all these gay friends. She would baby-sit me everyday, and she would take me over to her friend's houses with all kinds of things going on: tucking, and eyebrow drawing, waxing, all sorts of things. I was literally raised by gay men."
- "Grey's Anatomy" star Ellen Pompeo

" Me, I don't want any children, I don't want responsibility. I am gay, I smoke weed and I do exactly what I want in my life because of my talent. I represent an ideal which others have had to let go and they blame me for that. Especially men."
-- George Michael

So far, the Greg's List postings on my favorite Movies, Television Shows and Events of 2007 have been limited to five. I found that to be impossible so I settled on more than a dozen!!! As I sifted through the months, I was reminded again of how fortunate I am to be able to talk to so many people whose work and abilities I appreciate and admire, who I am a big fan of, or who just make me laugh!
Here are the links to some of my favorite interviews of the past year...

Exclusive: An In-Depth look at being out in Hollywood...

Jodie Foster thanks "my beautiful Cydney" at women's power breakfast...

The Kathy Griffin Interview...

Sitting Down With John Amaechi

Face-to-Face with Anika Noni Rose...

The Tuc Watkins Interview...

My Chat With Joan Rivers and The Joan Rivers Interview: "Edie Falco can drop dead!"

Greg chats up the guys from "Nip/Tuck"

Face-to-Face with Andy Baldwin...

Catching Up With Cheryl Ladd...

The man behind "For the Bible Tells Me So"

Maksim Chmerkovskiy of "Dancing With the Stars" appreciates gay fans...

Marc Cherry and Shawn Pyfrom talk about Andrew Van de Kamp...

My chat with Eric Winter of "Brothers & Sisters"...

Chatting up Matthew Rhys at Outfest....

The coolest part of my job is getting to go to all kinds of events that I'd never otherwise be invited to like the Oscars, the Emmys, the Grammys, the Golden Globes and on and on. It was not easy to narrow down my favorites but I gave it a shot. Here is a recap my top five favorite events of 2007. The selections are based soley on how good a time I had.

The Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon: One really cool thing about the Oscar nominees luncheon is that there is no pecking order when it comes to seating. Nominees are spread out throughout the Beverly Hilton Hotel ballroom which means there is no single table dedicated to "The Departed" or "Babel" etc.
So this is why I found myself sitting right NEXT to Jennifer Hudson at lunch. You know, "Can you pass the butter?" close.Then the table right next to us fills up and i realize I am sitting back-to-back with Leonardo DiCaprio...Even though I have covered the industry for going on eight years, I realize that this is a really singular experience for me and I try and take it all in. But I'm also hungry so I'm not so overcome with awe that I don't dig into an appetizer platter ...;

The 2007 GLAAD Awards: Neil Patrick Harris seemed very at ease as he did interviews on the red carpet. When he got to me he said: "It's enjoyable. This is my first GLAAD Awards and everybody's really nice and it's representing good positivity so I'm all for that."I asked him if being out publicly has changed his life much. "Oh, not at all. But I was never really skulking around so it's all kind of interesting." I met Matthew Rhys (Don't we look cute together? Take THAT Scotty!). When he started talking to me, I had to stop and laugh. I said, "I've never heard you talk with the accent! I've never heard your real voice." The Welsh actor, who does a superb American accent as Kevin, cracked up. Mathew walked the red carpet with co-stars Ron Rifkin and Patricia Wettig and the three of them were having a ball. That must be a fun set. Then a serious question for Mr. Rhys: who is a better kisser? Scotty (Luke MacFarlane) or Chad (Jason Lewis)?
"It's like choosing between a Porche and a Mercedes. But Jason Lewis has very soft lips."
Also gabbed with Loni Anderson about "So NoTORIous," Dave Annable and Jason Lewis about "Brothers & Sisters," Garry Marshall about "Beaches" Darryl Stephens and the cast of "Boy Culture" and John Amaechi and Dave Koz about being out and proud. To read all about my red carpet encounters on that night, click HERE.

The Advocate 40th Anniversary Party:I was invited to anniversary gala for The Advocate as a guest and wanted to enjoy the evening just meeting people and hanging out. But at the last minute, I stick my tape recorder in my pocket (just in case) and I dash out the door. When I got to the party at Republic near West Hollywood, I saw a red carpet and headed straight to it instead of the guest check-in table. I had stars to interview! Had not reserved a space on the red carpet but just crashed it. Just sorta got right in there and stuck my recorder in Nikki Blonsky's face! Got all kinds of great interviews that night including chats with TR Knight, Katherine Heigl and James Marsden. Click HERE for the full recap!

LA Gay & Lesbian Gala: Jenifer Lewis got three standing ovations, Lorri Jean inspired everyone, Alec Mapa had more costume changes than Diana Ross, Shirley MacLaine was in a playful mood, and Linda Ronstadt performed a lovely version of "Time After Time" with the Gay Men's Chorus without telling the audience how sick she was.It was the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center Gala and Auction at the Century Plaza Hotel. It was my first time at this event. I've attended many center events over the years that night was the first time I really got it. I got how good this organization is, how important it is and how much it means to so many people. To read a more extended version from that evening, click HERE.

Outfest 2007: Why does the Los Angeles LBGT Film Festival mean so much to me? It is such a pleasure to be able to see people like me up there on the screen in so many different genres and in well-written, well-acted quality films of substance. I was sititng with a twentysomething friend at one of the screenings this summer who was feeling sort of over everything.
And I said to him: "You know why I'm not over everything? Because I remember what it was like to live in the closet, to not have many gay movies to see and many of those out there were about painful subjects like AIDS and living in the closet. There were so few stories with hope and that really shapes you when you're a teen and in your 20s. You wonder, "How can I ever have a happy life?"
But Outfest is about more than seeing terrifc movies (I took in about 30 this year between screenings and screeners) and meeting stars and directors and writers. It's about having fun with friends and making all kinds of new acquaintances. I've gotten so many nice e-mails in recent days from people saying: "What are we going to do now that Outfest is over?" Mainly, it's just the whole experience of being with thousands of people for nearly two weeks and having so many shared experiences - kind of like an alternative universe of gay people.

On Wednesday, I shared my top five television shows of 2007 and today, I'm doing movies. This is so fun! I feel like Ebert and Roeper. Does anyone else think Richard Roeper is cute? I have a bit of a crush. Anywho, I begin with my favorite movie of 2007: Waitress. I saw it at the Camelot Theatre in Palm Springs and after it was over, had a serious hankering for soime pie. If you've seen it, you know what I mean. If you haven't, go rent or buy the DVD immediately and prepare to hit the Marie Calenders or Bakers Square after that.

Keri Russell left "Felicity" behind for good in this movie about a pie-baking waitress stuck in a bad marriage. She deserves the award nominations she is getting and she is supported by a wonderful cast that includes Andy Griffith with whom she shares some beautiful scenes. Nathan Fillion (now of "Desperate Housewives") plays her doctor (and more), Cheryl Hines is terrific fun as a fellow waitress and most bittersweet is the performance of Adrienne Shelly who not only plays one of the leads, but also wrote and directed the indie film. Adrienne was murdered in NYC before the film was unveiled in Sundance. She leaves behind a beautiful film.

Eastern Promises: Saw this at the $3 Regency Theatre on Fairfax, a few blocks from home. What I remember the most was that after it was over, I didn't want to get up and leave right away. I wanted to spend more time with the characters played by Vitto Mortenson and Naomi Watts. Their performances were first-rate and I am relieved to see that Vitto got SAG and Golden Globe nods after he was criminally ignored for "A History of Violence."

Enchanted: What can I say? I was completely enchanted by this Disney flick. Saw about 20 minutes of it last summer on the Disney lot and could tell that it was something really special. And boy, it sure is. Let's face it, Patrick Dempsey and James Marsden are about the most handsome men in Hollywood and to have them in the same movie is a real treat. Susan Sarandon is always top-notch and is again here as the wicked stepmother. But this film belongs to Amy Adams who deserves an Oscar nomination but probably won't get one because comedies and musicals are almost always passed over. She was perfect as a fairy tale princess who finds herself out of her animated world and in the middle of a live-action Manhattan.

Hairspray: What a blast. A great, old-fashioned musical with terrifically talented people starting with that exciting new discovery, Nikki Blonsky. The scene with her singing on the garbage truck on her way to school is one of my favorites. Zac Efron is just too young and too cute for me to even think about but James Marsden is not! Both are in this movie. And how great was Michelle Pfeiffer as the hateful, racist stage mom? Queen Latifah shines again in this movie after getting an Oscar nod for "Chicago" and I would listen to her version "I Know Where I've Been" anytime - second only to Jenifer Lewis' live version of the song. Christopher Walken is a hoot in this film as the man married to John Travolta! Well, married to Travolta's female characters of Edna Turnblau. I'm surprised that Travolta got ridiculed by some people because I thought he was absolutely terrific and really pulled it off. Kudos to all!

And finally, For the Bible Tells Me So, a brilliant movie that I really think can change hearts and minds. It was screened at Outfest and is on the Oscar short list for best documentary. The film poses these questions: Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate?

Filmmaker Daniel G. Karslake has created something so remarkable that I can see so many in the LGBT community sending a copy to their families. It will give parents who are not accepting of their children [and attribute it to religious beliefs] much to think about and it also educates us. This well-researched film examines what, if anything, the Bible actually says about homosexuality as we know it today.It also intelligently explores the way religious conservatives have systematically misled the public in regards to biblical references of homosexuality and how this campaign continues to stigmatize the gay community.

The heavy price of that is shown through the lives of five Christian families with a gay son or daughter who are profiled in the film. They include Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, the first-ever openly gay man to be elected a Bishop of the Episcopalian Church and the daughter of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt. Karslake wanted to profile her and Mary Cheney but said: "Believe it or not, I ran into a brick wall with the Cheneys."

Last year, I counted down to the new year with the Outie Awards with categories like Star of the Year etc. Instead of making it an annual thing, am gonna treat (or torture!) you with lists of my favorite things in 2007 (I feel like Oprah).

Today is television, the well-written shows that I loved in 2007, shows that were just a treat to sit down and watch. I may do reality shows on another day but want to make clear that scripted shows with actors and plot still beat out people singing or dancing or modeling or losing weight any day!

1. Ugly Betty: Still the best. Each episode is like a delicious morsel with such first-rate acting and writing and really, the best ensemble on TV. Somehow, most members of this huge cast manage to have nice scenes and moments. Betty (America Ferrera) remains the solid anchor and her and Henry (Christopher Gorham) are delicious together. Vanessa Williams is a hoot, pure gold. Michael Urie is not only a gay man this season but a gay man with a boyfriend! If the writers strike continues, we will have an abbreviated season for this and most of the rest of my faves. But so far, so great.

2. Desperate Housewives: The strike has really stuck a dagger in this show's best season since the first year. So many fabulous tweaks, storylines and moments. Best is, of course, the addition of Dana Delaney as a formidable new neighbor with a mysterious past. Delaney is so damned good. Marcia Cross as Bree seems to be rejuvenated as an actress after giving birth to twins because she has this added sparkle and is just perfect in every scene. Loved Polly Bergen as Lynette's (Felicity Huffman) mother and the addition of the gay couple played by Tuc Watkins and Kevin Rahm. This new blood made up for some of the more tired storylines and characters on the show. Gaby and Carlos? Who cares? Edie? They gotta give her something to do, something to be. Andrew Van de Kamp? Give the gay kid a storyline! Maybe some of this is to be addressed in the remaining episodes or perhaps next year when this strike is settled and what is left of network television tries to get its mojo back.

3. Brothers & Sisters: Of course I'm still into Kevin Walker (Matthew Rhys) and whatever is going on with his love life. I'm losing patience with Saul (Ron Rifkin) as he tries to deal with his sexuality in his 60s but am also aware that for men of that generation, this excrutiating journey is legitimate. I find Rob Lowe beautiful to look at and like his scenes with Calista Flockhart. But the best reasons, I think, to watch this show is for the performances of Rachel Griffiths, Patricia Wettig and especially Sally Field. Sally, who deservedly won an Emmy this fall for her portrayal of Nora Walker, is just a revelation week after week. In so many things she says and does, she reminds me of my own mom who also raised a big brood (six) and remains aggressively involved in their lives. I know that Sally was Norma Rae, Sybil, the mom in "Steel Magnolias" and on and on. But on this show. I think she is giving the performance of a lifetime.

4. Dexter: Thankfully, this drama was not impacted by the strike and got through its second season unabbreviated. What a season it was! I thought they would never top season one but they did and along the way, the main characters grew more interesting and complex. Michael C. Hall gives an Emmy worthy performance as the title character (the fact that he was not nominated for season one was a blow to Emmy's credibility) and does the impossible: he exceeds his excellent work as David on "Six Feet Under." He's so good that we root for his survival even though he is a serial killer. The supporting cast of Julie Benz, Jennifer Carpenter, Erik King and a several-episodes-long guest stint from Keith Carradine made it all the better. Can not wait for season three.

5. Gossip Girl: What a wonderful guilty pleasure this show has turned out to be. It wasn't on my radar when it debuted but after I caught a repeat on a Sunday afternoon, I managed to get ahold of some preview DVDs of the first few episodes that I'd missed. It reminds me of the first few seasons of "The OC" with interesting and attractive kids but even better, interesting and attractive parents.

Upcoming lists:

Thursday: Movies
Friday: Events
Sunday: Interviews
Monday: People