Recently in Stars Category

Patrick Dempsey is about as handsome a guy as there is and he handles his stardom well. It's also nice to know that he's appreciative of his gay fans as we learn in the Q&A with Brandon Voss in The Advocate. Patrick is the subject of an upcoming "Big Gay Following" feature. Here are some excerpts:

Do you have a Rupert Everett-like gay best friend?
[Laughs] He's not like Rupert Everett, but yeah, I definitely do. He's a good guy, but it took him a long time to really get out of the closet. Everyone around him knew, and then when he finally came to terms with it and said, "Yeah, I'm gay," we were like, "Finally! Good for you." You could see the release in him where he wasn't having to pretend anymore and was becoming his own person.

We're not talking about T.R., are we?
No, no, no. It's somebody else.

<Your character (in "Made of Honor") often gets mistaken for gay, which also happens to your character in 1989's "Loverboy." Has that happened to you in real life?
Sometimes now, yeah. I try not to read the blogs, but it seems everybody's convinced I'm gay -- especially since Versace. But the great thing with sexuality and being gay is that there's really no stereotype anymore.

At 17, you dropped out of high school to play David in a San Francisco production of Torch Song Trilogy. Did you or your parents have concerns about your taking a gay part so early in your career?
No, not at all. Doing theater, the gay community was always incredibly kind to me -- never aggressive or predatory, always supportive and nurturing. That was the great thing about being a part of that show. Especially being so young, there was a lot of concern only because I was out there on my own and I'd never been in the big city before, but everybody looked after me.

Have you been aware of your gay following since your breakout success in 1987's Can't Buy Me Love?
Yeah, there was some stuff that [celebrity photographer] Greg Gorman and I shot that sort of opened things up, and everybody was telling me about that. It's good fun. It's flattering.
Did you or your agents have any hesitations before accepting a three-episode arc as Will's sportscaster boyfriend on Will & Grace, your first major foray into TV?
No. When I sat down and talked with the show's creators, they were like, "Here's what we want to try to do," and I was like, "Yeah, I'm in for that." It was fun. I loved that character, and certainly that role and being on that show helped turn things around for me profoundly.

Opposite another straight actor, Eric McCormack, was it challenging to make a gay romance appear believable?
No, because you just play a relationship -- two people attracted to each other. You just trust that and don't worry about it. The situation reveals that you're gay; you don't have to play gay to be gay.

As a Versace model, not to mention all the shirtless scenes you have in Made of Honor, do you feel pressure to constantly hit the gym?
Yeah, I work out, but I'm not fanatical about it. I'm not the kind of guy who can be completely cut-up; I just want to stay in shape and be healthy and lean. But there's always the pressure of having the perfect male body. At the same time, I've got way too much going on to worry about it. You just have to go, "Here's my body," and hope people like it.

On People magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive" list, you came in second to Matt Damon in 2007, George Clooney in 2006, and Matthew McConaughey in 2005. How's it feel to be that close to the title for three years?
At least I'm consistently in the top two. And I've been there longer than the other guys, so that's fine.

Which male celebrity do you find sexy?
Johnny Depp, certainly, without question. There's just something about his individuality, his humility, and his sense of style. He's also immensely talented and intelligent, and that's all very sexy.

What's the oddest thing you've done with your character's action figure from Disney's Enchanted?
It's not so much what I have done but what my friends have done with the doll -- and then sent pictures of to my cell phone. They've put the doll in various sexual positions with other dolls -- with Barbie and Ken.

Here is a LINK to the entire interview...

It was so fun to talk to Patrick Duffy a few days ago, one of my early TV crushes. He was the McDreamy of his day and pretty much still is!

Patrick Duffy made his first big splash on television in the late 1970s as the amphibious superhero on "Man From Atlantis." But it was his role as Bobby Ewing on "Dallas" that made him a household name. He starred with Larry Hagman, Victoria Principal, Linda Gray and the rest of the prime-time soap's large cast during most of its historic run from 1978-91.

After a few years, Duffy decided to leave the show and filmed a scene in which he "died." Fans were upset at his departure, he recalled when we spoke this week.

"After the episode aired, a few days later I went shopping and a woman accosted me in the parking lot of Gelson's," he said. "She was wailing and crying and saying: How could you die?"'

Duffy was persuaded to return to Dallas, and writers had to figure out a way to bring him back. In a plot twist that required viewers to suspend disbelief, writers made his death and the entire 1985-86 season, a really bad dream.
He was reintroduced to viewers when Pam Ewing (Principal) opened the shower door, sees Bobby lathering up and tells him of her nightmare.

"That resurrected another three years of my life on the show and I appreciated it to no end," he said. "Anytime you can be even a small percentage connected to an iconic moment in TV, it's like a little Medal of Honor.

"I feel the same way about the shower scene and I know Larry feels the same way about the `Who Shot J.R.?' episode."

Duffy, 59, moved from Los Angeles six years ago to his ranch in Oregon. He returned to L.A. to film episodes of "Bold and the Beautiful" on which he has a recurring role. He's also taking on new challenges like hosting "Bingo America" on the Game Show Network.
"It's a different set of muscles," he said of hosting compared with acting. "It's something I felt that I could do but it took about 4-5 shows before I really felt I was confident. The activity is relentless and you have nothing to fall back on. It's all you."

He's enjoying the gig ("I love giving away other people's money") and hopes to return for a second season.

Duffy, after all, is a man used to long runs. He and wife Carlyn have been married 34 years, "Dallas" ran more than a decade, and he starred for seven years on the ABC sitcom "Step By Step" with Suzanne Somers.

"It was the most fortunate set of circumstances to go from working with my best friend Larry Hagman then I met Suzanne Somers and she became my new Larry Hagman (on `Step By Step')," Duffy said. "We stay in touch with each other and we love each other. When I'm in L.A., Linda, Larry and I still have our lunches and dinners. But I can't tell you where."

Sorry for the lack of posts today. I had to do an interview with Rosie Perez this morning then be on the set of CBS' sitcom "Rules of Engagement" and got to meet that cutie Oliver Hudson and the very funny David Spade. Will post a bit of the Rosie chat in a bit and the "Rules" interviews next week.

For now, I offer you thiis picture of the very handsome Chris Evans at the premiere Thursday night in Hollywood of his latest movie "Street Kings."

The stupidity of Jay Leno asking Ryan Phillippe to give the camera his "gayest look" gives us a good reason to look back on Ryan's days on "One Life to Live" when he was at the center of a breakthrough storyline playing a gay teen. Found this clip on Queerty.

I've enjoyed the trailers for "Nim's Island," the new children's adventure fantasy that stars Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin. Jodie looks completely at ease doing the comedy in this film which came as no surprise to me since she was so good in "Maverick" all those years ago.

But according to an interview with an Australian newspaper, the two-time Oscar winner had to fight for the part.

"I read the script and said, 'I really want to make this movie' and they said, 'hmm, I don't think so'," she said.
"I'm not a known comedy actress, (so) they didn't want me in it."

Jodie finally won the part of Alexandra Rover, a highly-strung, agoraphobic author who is forced out of her comfort zone to tend to a young fan in trouble. Jodie said the was delighted to be a part of a movie with a simple message, which didn't involve high-tech gadgetry or full-blown computer animation.

"It harks back to a time when heroism was actually doing something with your hands," she said. "Kids have lost this idea that if you do something with your hands and you try hard over and over again (then) maybe you'll be good enough and that will bring you success. It is kind of nostalgic and I miss that in kids' entertainment."

Jodie talked about how she copes with fame and unwanted tabloid attention: "You do a job from, say, seven in the morning to eight or nine that evening and when you end that day, you go back to your life. Your social life is not your professional life. They're very separate things, they should be separate things."

As the top-billed star in "Stop-Loss," I said to Ryan Phillippe at Monday night's premiere of the movie: "You're the big attraction here." He replied: "No, Channing is. Just Channing."

That would be Channing Tatum, whose presence was causing quite a sitr. But Ryan was still the biggest star in the room and his performance in the movie adds handsomely to his stellar resume of roles that includes parts in "Breach," "Flags of Our Fathers," "Crash," "Gosford Park" and a real favorite of mine, "Igby Goes Down."

I wanted to know where Ryan ranks the role of Sgt. Brandon King, a decorated war hero who triumphantly returns to his small Texas hometown and, against his will, is ordered back to Iraq for another tour of duty. This tests everything he believes in. As he grapples with the situation, the lives of his soldier buddies - wounded physically or psychologically from combat - are falling apart.

"For me, it was one of the most colorful parts I've ever had - the range of emotions and situations this character goes through," Ryan said. "That's why I wanted to do it really....This is the kind of movie that does kind of stay with you and you think about after you see it...That's the kind of thing I like to make."

With the war in Iraq now five years old, what does Ryan think about the movie's timing? "That's what makes it relevant and also the fact that the movie is from the soldier's perspective. There's no political agenda. This is happening right now. It happened last week, it'll happen next week. Also, the younger generation, they haven't seen the films about soldiers coming back from war and this film will be very new to a lot of people."

Sgt. King being stop-lossed when he was supposed to be finished tests everything he believes in. As he grapples with the situation, the lives of his soldier buddies - wounded physically or psychologically from combat - are falling apart. They are played by Tatum, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Victor Rasuk and Rob Brown.

"Ultimately, it's about this brotherhood, this sense of connection - the bond that these guys formed during a time of war when they are in a combat zone and how that lasts," Ryan said.

The cast itself bonded at the beginning of the film when they participated in a boot camp: "We were out in the woods for seven days with no phones, no TV, nothing. We just had all this time to spend getting to know each other. We all stay in touch."

"We had a good time, Austin is a great place to shoot a movie - the food is great and the music and the beer," he added. "It's sort of a serious movie so we would go out and find time on the weekends to have fun but a lot of time on the set we were pretty focused."

Our gal Rosie O'Donnell just keeps making the news.
It used to be that it was because of what she said...but this week it's more about what people are saying ABOUT her. First there was that idiot Donald Trump wanting her to be on his "Apprentice" show and now, TVGuide's Michael Ausiello reports that the producers of NBC's "Friday Night Lights" are trying to convince Rosie to guest star on the show this fall.
"Rosie's a big fan of Friday Night Lights, as we know from The View, and we heard she was interested in being on the show," executive producer Jason Katims tells Ausiello. "Usually we don't do any stunt casting, but we have a character coming up - six or seven episodes into the new season - of a female soccer coach who is really angry about all of the school's resources going to football. It's a really funny character and I think she'd be perfect for it. There's a scene where she comes in to see Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and slams a dead soccer ball on his desk and basically says, 'You're the guy who gets everything!'" It's a really fun scene, and it's the one time I'm thinking of stunt casting."
Katims says he will formally approach O'Donnell in the coming weeks.

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Tab Hunter was Hollywood's Golden Boy and it is easy to see why when you look at the covers of his autobiography and of a CD featuring his greatest hits (I had no idea he could sing). So Mr. Hunter, who in his later years has lived as an out gay man, turns 76 years old today! Happy B-day to a Hollywood survivor...

More photos of Hunter (with James Dean and Roddy McDowell) after the jump...

In looking over the extensive photos posted on JustJared.com of a very glamorous Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie at the Cannes Film Festival this week, I was excited to see a pair of real movie stars who are in love and cause a real commotion wherever they go around the world. If you turned back the clock 40 years, you could just as easily be talking about jet-setting movie stars Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, the couple basically responsible for the creation of the paprazzi. There are many similarities between the two couples: Taylor and Burton caused a scandal when they fell in love during the shooting of "Cleopatra" since both were married to others at the time while Brad and Angelina fell in love while making "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" while he was married to Jennifer Aniston; Taylor was already an Oscar winner when she met Burton as was Jolie when she got together with Pitt; Taylor and Burton adopted their daughter, Maria Burton, early in their relationship (both had children from previous marriages) while the Pitt-Jolie brood includes four children.


What remains up in the air is whether their love will stand the test of time. It's been less than three years of togetherness for Jolie and Pitt. Taylor and Burton had already been together for two years when they married in 1964. They made many movies together, most noteably 1966's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", before divorcing in 1974. They remarried in 1975 but split again, for good, less than a year later. Still, their love remained even when married to others. They reunited, professionally, for the Broadway play "Private Lives" in 1983 which despite bad reviews, broke house records. When Burton died in 1984, Taylor was devastated and to this day, considers him and her late husband Mike Todd the two loves of her life.

She's come a long ways from the days of Chrissy Snow.
Suzanne Somers, star of "Three's Company" for five seasons, "Step By Step" for seven seasons and let's not forget the two years of "She's the Sheriff," isn't doing as much acting these days. But that doesn't mean she isn't appearing on television. From the Thighmaster to the Facemaster, Somers can be seen on QVC hawking an eponymous line of food, jewelry, and beauty products and has quite a following - including gay men around the country who are buying up her products at private parties in the best Tupperware tradition.

An Advocate.com article explains the phenomenon. Here is an excerpt:
Hosted by "independent Suzanne consultants" since October 2006, the events are a decidedly contemporary take on the Tupperware and Avon parties of yore. Misael Maldonado, a gay man and longtime Suzanne fan, hosted such a happening at the home of charter consultant Mark Paulk in New York City earlier this year.
The eager queens, fag hags, and the occasional straight couple at the gathering started by sampling various food products, including a pot roast prepared with Suzanne's Beef Bourguignon Simmer Sauce and crudités with a cilantro-and-lime dip. “I'll buy this dip. It's delicious,” said party guest Maria Vaccaro as Paulk looked on proudly. Was Vaccaro at all influenced by Somers's association with the creamy yogurt-based concoction? “Well, I've always liked her—for God's sake, she was Chrissy," she said, picking up an order form. Paulk then demonstrated the creation of La Somers's light and fluffy chocolate mousse. Total prep time: three minutes.
The partygoers were particularly spellbound when Paulk demonstrated the Face Master. Using microcurrents of electrical energy (nine-volt battery not included), the gadget is supposed to stimulate and strengthen by zapping face muscles, thus improving facial tone.
The Suzanne business (motto: "Share the joy") is designed to be an ever-growing entity, targeting freelancers, beauty and food specialists, and stay-at-home moms as ambassadors. Consultants, currently numbering around 1,000, are encouraged to bring others into the fold. Aside from income, incentives include exclusive hostess gifts, such as a Maltese cross cuff bracelet or a hand-painted violet chip-and-dip bowl.
“C'mon, she looks damn good for her age," Maldonado said. “The woman's been around for like 200 years. She must be doing something right.”

Remember a few years back when Paris Hilton was on the cover of Vanity Fair? Oscar winner Shirley Jones was so upset that she wrote a letter to the magazine informing them that she would be cancelling her subscription. Who could blame her? It brought the magazine down a notch and made being on the cover seem less special. I mean, who was next? Kimberly Stewart?
But next month's issue gets it right. In this early peak, via JustJared.com, we see Leonardo DiCaprio, the finest actor of his generation and a genuine movie star, on the cover.
Now that's an issue worth buying...

Adorable Dominic Monaghan, current star of "Lost" and a key actor in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, shows just how gay-friendly he is in these photos. Since he's happily coupled with his "Lost" co-star Evangeline Lilly, we know these pics were taken in fun. My fave? The one below with the sign describing himself as "Gay Scottish Sex Symbol." If I were going to date a Hobbit, I'd want him to look just like Dominic Monaghan...

You wouldn't except an interview with Cybill Shepherd to ever be boring would you? The piece with the newest cast member of "The L Word" in the current issue of The Advocate is pretty juicy.
Cybill, the beauty queen turned movie star ("The Last Picture Show," "Heartbreak Kid" and "Taxi Driver") turned television star ("Moonlighting" and "Cybill") turned author ("Cybill Disobendience"), has long been a favorite of mine because she always speaks her mind.
Current girl crush: Salma Hayak. "I've fantasized about her for years" but adds, "Right now I have a boyfriend and we're monogamous."
On her first same-sex love scenes: "I was very turned on immediately...it was surprising and wonderful and crazy."
Shepherd says that off-screen, she says she has not only fooled around with a woman, but was once, years ago, in love with one: "But we never acted on it. I was in love with a woman and in love with her male partner. I was kind of on the verge of becoming his lover. She said, 'You know, women should never do that to women.' I backed off. And we're still all really good friends. That woman will always be somehow one of the loves of my life."
On Martina Navratilova: "I had an incredible sexual feeling for her." She also says she finds Paula Poundstone "very attractive" and that Poundstone was her first choice to play Maryann Thorpe on the "Cybill" sitcom. Christine Baranski won the role, and the Emmy.
She an Baranski had terrific on-screen chemistry but off-screen, they ended up not getting along...

It is GREAT to see John Stamos enjoying a second wave of television success on "ER" which is enjoying a ratings resurgence this season. This impossibly good looking man also stars in the A&E movie "Wedding Wars" (premiering Dec. 11) as a gay wedding planner who goes on strike for the right to marry. Stamos, who kisses his partner TWICE in the film, is hoping that because of his participation, Middle America will start watching the film...and won't be able to stop. For so many of us, he had us at hello (even when he had the mullet!).

Stamos is on The cover of the December 5 issue of The Advocate features the sexy Stamos (sigh) and I wanted to quickly share some of his interview:
"I was excited to get it," Stamos says of the role. "I think I'm actually one of the right guys to deliver this kind of message. I think the gay community will see the film and love it and hopefully me in the role, and that people that are not gay will hopefully want to follow my story and not turn it off 10 minutes in. I felt like it was a safe way to get people to see this and hear a really important message. Hopefully they'll take the trip and be able to look at both sides.
On preparing for the role of a gay man: "It's funny, I never approached it as being different than any other role. I'd never kissed a guy, and i was thinking that'd be really weird for me. In "Cabaret" [on Broadway], I was physical with the other dancers on stage, but "Wedding Wars" was a couple of full kisses...I just approached him as a guy who is in love. Initially, it's not about this issue of gay marriage. It's just the simple fact that his brother gets to have something that he can't have and why shouldn't he get to have it? He can plan a wedding but he can't have one himself."

On understanding homosexuality: "Homosexuality has never been an issue to me. I never really judged it. I remember a dear friend coming out to me when we were younger. It didn't freak me out at all....And he said something that maybe sounds simple, but it was really revelatory to me at the time. He said, 'You know how you feel when you see a pretty girl you like - those butterflies in the stomach and that tingly feeling? Well, that's how I feel when I see a guy.' And I never forgot that. It was just so simple and beautiful."

To read the full online excerpt, click HERE and enjoy!

Of all the men alive, George Clooney is the sexiet one, according to People magazine which announced its annual selection on Wednesday.

The debates are already beginning: what about McDreamy (Patrick Dempsey) or McSteamy (Eric Dane) or the new Bond (Daniel Craig)?

I guess it's just that Clooney, 45, is so damned handsome AND so much more: smart, talented, funny, down-to-Earth, and principled. He joins Brad Pitt as the only two-time honoree of the "sexiest" title which began back in 1986 with Mel Gibson.

What a year for Clooney: he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for "Syriana" and was nominated multiple times for writing and directing "Good Night, and Good Luck." Clooney also further cemented his reputation for social activism, working on behalf of causes to help the troubled Darfur region of Sudan.

And through it all, he's kept his sense of humor intact. "There's a lot of pressure," he says of the Sexiest Man Alive honor. "There are all the events you have to show up for. The sash you have to wear … is embarrassing."

Here is more of his People interview:

On whether he'll ever have children:
"I think it's the most responsible thing you can do, to have kids. It's not something to be taken lightly. I don't have that gene that people have to replicate. But everything in my life has changed over time."

On his vow to "never marry again" – and whether he's changed his mind:
"The truth is, I haven't softened my position on anything, but it's not something I deal with on a regular basis. Who knows? I've been married (in the early '90s, to actress Talia Balsam). It's not something I'm looking out for. The truth is, I'm really happy."

On what he finds attractive:
"Everybody says this, but sense of humor is No. 1 for me. It's certainly what's most attractive. It's not the first thing you notice at 21, but it's the first thing you notice now. You also have to have a sense of humor about my life. It certainly has had an effect on relationships, but I would bet less of an effect than my own issues or insecurities. You can't really blame outside forces for things not working out. You have to take some responsibility."

On being named Sexiest Man Alive for a second time:
"This one's going to be hard for Brad (Pitt) since he's been Sexiest Man Alive twice. He's enjoyed that mantle. I'd say 'Sexiest Man Alive' to him and he'd go, 'Two-time.' So that's been taken away. We used to call him Two Time. So Brad's going to be upset."

In today's issue of The Hollywood Reporter, TV editor Andrew Wallenstein looks at the recent announcements by Neil Patrick Harris and T.R. Knight that they are gay men. He notes that these self-outings (with some help of the tabloids and bloggers) seems to be evidence of how far Hollywood has come since the days of such closeted stars as Rock Hudson and Montgomery Clift.

Both those handsome and very gay leading men (Clift is pictured on the beach) remained closeted for fear of ruining their reputations during what was a far less tolerant era.
Wallenstein wonders if this is progress though. "Neither Harris or Knight is in the m,old of the traditional lewading man, and that's a huge distinction," he writes. "That type of role is predicated on an actor's sex appeal to the opposite gender. Absurd as it sounds, on some level viewers have to believe their object of affection could somehow reciprocate their attraction. Just imagine if ["Grey's Anatomy"] resident hearthrob Patrick Dempsey, who is not gay, had come out. Would McDreamy till be as popular and would that affect the show's popularity?"

Wallenstein believes that given the current climate of gossip-mongering on the Internet that makes it virtually impossible for even a minor celebrity to stay in the closet, it is probably inevitable that a sexy lead actor will be outed.

He writes: "If the disclosures of Harris and Knight seem like a big deal, just wait and see what happens when someone like a modern-day Hudson follows in their footsteps."

In the meantime, i say give some leading roles in movies to such out actors as the sexy and talented Robert Gant, Chad Allen or Rupert Everett to show that they can be sexy and attractive to any gender!

I think Nicole Kidman is THE most gifted and daring actress of her generation. She's also an articulate woman who can promote her projects with intelligence and insight (I"m not talking about "Bewitched" OK?). And best of all, she's a real star who shines brightest on the red carpet at any event she attends.

The Nov. 21 issue of The Advocate spotlights Nicole as a star with a "Big Gay Following." Here are some highlights from her chat with writer John Griffiths:

Asked if she's ever felt repressed, Nicole says: "Of course. I've felt that I've tried to be things that I couldn't be. I've tried to believe things that I couldn't believe...it's probably why I really have [affinity with] a gay man or a gay woman."

If one of her kids were gay: "I'd give them a huge hug and say, 'What do you want from me? How can I help you?What do you need?' I recently lost probably my dearest, closest friend, Robert [McCann, her make-up artist who died unexpectedly last year]. Robert would always say to me, 'This is what you do: You just open your arms and say, 'Here I am, and I love you.' Because you need that unconditional support and love. Because you need that unconditional support and love. Because you're not going to get anywhere else in the world."

On why some people want to believe that straight actors are gay> "(Laughs) I don't know. I suppose, you know, it's nice to fantasize!...Fantasies can exist in your head, and they can be what you want them to be. They're yours and nobody else's."

On gay men ogling her handsome husband, singer Keith Urban: "I'm all for people thinking he's the cutest thing (laughs).

Talented television and Broadway star Neil Patrick Harris has decided to tell the world he's gay following widespread reports about his private life this week.
"(I) am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest," Harris tells People magazine's Web site.
The 33-year-old actor, currently starring in the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother," said he decided to reveal his sexuality to end "speculation and interest in my private life and relationships."

That speculation began with an Oct. 23 item on the Web site Canada.com that claimed Harris had helped his "longtime sweetheart," actor David Burtka, land a part on his hit CBS sitcom. That was followed by an unconfirmed report Nov. 1 that a publicist for Harris said the actor is "not of that persuasion."

Here is Harris' complete statement:
"The public eye has always been kind to me, and until recently I have been able to live a pretty normal life. Now it seems there is speculation and interest in my private life and relationships. So, rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love."

Perez Hilton, Defamer.com and other gossip blogs jumped on the topic, eager to "out" the actor. I wrote about the reports this week in "Out of Hollywood" but it was with mixed feelings. Harris was already widely known to be gay but it really was up to him to come out publicly.

And so he has.

Good for him! He has followed T.R. Knight's example of issuing a statement and leaving it at that. Neither he or Knight need the publicity since both are on hit shows and have a high profile. Of the high-profile coming out stories of recent months, Lance Bass has probably benefited the most. His profile was almost non-existent at that point but coming out on the cover of People magazine and having a high-profile relationship with hunky "Amazing Race" winner Reichen has him on the pages of many magazines and on all the "ET," "Access Hollywood" shows.

With both Harris and Knight playing convincing heterosexuals on their respective shows, they are proving that being openly gay doesn't have to be career suicide. I was at an event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel tonight and was told about yet another high-profile actor thinking of coming out soon. Can't spill just yet, sorry. I hope it's a trend.
As for Harris, HOORAY! I'm a big fan of his professionally and now personally. I am so proud to add him to the Out in Hollywood gallery of out heroes.

>Finally finishing the emptying out of my "Designing Women" reunion notebook from Wednesday night (see previous posts pt. one and pt. two). I think a lot of gay men, if they were really honest about it, would admit to having a little bit of Suzanne Sugarbaker in them. The world revolves around us, we tell it like it is, we sometimes struggle with our weight, we adore men, we have really big hearts and, well, at one point or another, we probably really did want someone to place a tiara on our heads.

That's why I think Suzanne is the perfect gay icon. But she wouldn't be if not for the beautiful actress who brought her to life and created one of the most memorable and funny characters in the history of television comedy: the dazzling Delta Burke.
That's not hyperbole. Check out Nick at Night reruns and see Delta as Suzanne and you will see the perfect melding of actress and character operating on all cylinders.

Until I was about a foot away from her, I didn't realize how stunningly beautiful Delta Burke really is. She is 50 years old, looks more than a decade younger, and that face is right up there with Elizabeth Taylor and Vivian Leigh at their most beautiful. A quite slim Delta was wearing a black knee-length dress and had her hair a flip that reminded me of Mary Tyler Moore and Marlo Thomas from their sitcom hey-days. I was glad to be sitting just a row behind Delta, one seat over, so I could kind of gawk without her noticing. I know I'm going on a bit, but I really was at a loss for words.

But during her years on "Designing Women" (I also loved her as Cherry Cherry on "Popular"), Burke was making terrific television and was the only one of the oh-so-talented leading ladies to receive not one, but two Emmy nominations for best actress in a comedy series.

It's ironic that CBS brass was reluctant to cast her in the part she was born to play and actually had another actress do a run-through with Dixie Carter, Jean Smart and Annie Potts. But Linda Bloodworth-Thomason had written the role of Suzanne for Burke and in the end, got her way.

"When she stepped on the stage, it was so apparent she was the missing part of the puzzle," Linda said at this week's reunion at the Museum of Television and Radio in Beverly Hills. She added that none of the show's four leading ladies were exactly comfortable admitting the similarities between themselves and their characters.
"Delta didn't want to be as aware of the fact that she was the center of her own universe but it came out over time," she said.

And what would "Designing Women" be without the odd, but beautiful relationship between Suzanne and Anthony (Meshach Taylor)? The ultimate Southern belle used to ask Anthony to wax her legs, drive her around, town and even help her get her wigs on right. And when they got stuck in a snowstorm and couldn't get seperate rooms, Suzanne sent Anthony to the van to sleep with a blanket and had the nerve to sweetly say: "Night night. Don't let the bed bugs bite." But, despite the impropriety, she finally allows Anthony share the room with her and their heart-to-heart talk allowed the audience to see another side of Suzanne. Of course a few seasons later she accidentally shoots Anthony, but that's a while other story.
"Meshach and I'd get on the road (for promotion) and sometimes they'd just put us in a suite together," Burke remembers. "It got pretty tight. I knew he had my back."

In the audience Wednesday night was actor Gerald McRaney, Burke's husband of nearly 20 years. They fell in love when he guest-starred on the show as one of her ex-husbands: "He came on and I started acting all girly," she said.

Linda addressed the turmoil on the set during the fourth or fifth season that resulted in Delta leaving the show. Burke was suffering from panic attacks and depression, conditions not well-understood in the late 1980s. It led to misunderstandings between her and Bloodworth-Thomason who said Wednesday: "Despite that little brohaha we had at one point in the show, I think [the mutual respect] grew and continues to grow." Linda said she and Burke "got into a little bit of trouble" because they never talked out their issues." But the two made up when Linda created a series for Delta in the mid-90s called "Women of the House" in which she reprised her character of Suzanne Sugarbaker and they have been thick as thieves ever since.
"She really did want that crown on her head," Linda said of Delta, who is a former Miss Florida in real life and played a fictional Miss Georgia on the show.
Burke said when former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley guested on a fifth-season episode, "I was really pissed when she came on with her crown. I should have at least made the top 10."
But all is forgiven, Burke will serve as a judge at this year's Miss America pageant.

Related links from the "Designing Women" reunion:
-The Dazzling Designing Woman
-Hilarious and Endearing by Design

John Stamos, whose "Jake in Progress" series I so enjoyed, is back on weekly TV in "ER" and is giving this still-compelling series a real boost. But what I'm really looking forward to seeing Stamos in is the A&E Network movie "Wedding Wars" set to air December 11 th at 9 PM.

Stamos, who somehow gets more handsome as he gets older, plays a gay wedding planner whose brother is getting married to the daughter of a conservative governor. The brolther works for his future father-in-law who is portrayed by James Brolin. The guv gives an anti-gay marriage speech which results in Stamos' character refusing to plan the wedding which results in a nationwide strike by gays and lesbians for marriage equality.

I've thought Stamos was mega-cool ever since seeing him as a drummer at a Beach Boys concert in 1987 in San Diego. Plus, he's an OC boy just like me. In fact, last year I profiled Stamos for Orange Coast Magazine and during the conversation, he told his make-up guy that I was currently single and they'd have to set me up with someone. When I mentioned that I was gay, Stamos didn't blink an eye and said, "Well, we're gonna have to find a guy for Greg to go out with."

Gay icon and well-known liberal Barbra Streisand lost her cool Monday night during her concert at Madison Square Garden, according to the New York Post. Streisand, a friend of Bill Clinton but no freind of the current administration, engaged in some President Bush-bashing. This led to a man in the audience shouting "What is this, a fund-raiser?"

The perfectionist Streisand is famous for her carefully choeographed shows (even her chatting between songs with the audience is scripted). But she went waaaay off script with this reply: "Why don't you shut the f- - - up. If you can't take a joke, why don't you leave and get your money back."

The man got up and left then Streisand apologized to the audience.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost it," she said before continuing the show.

"I was surprised," concertgoer Nancy Heller told The Post. "She yelled at the guy. She actually said the f-word."

My take? Well, sometimes, ya gotta just say what's on yer mind.