December 2011 Archives

A gay-inclusive Christmas display at a Claremont church was vandalized over the weekend, and police are calling the incident a hate crime, KTLA reports.

The display at Claremont United Methodist Church featured silhouettes of three couples holding hands: one male couple, one female couple and one male-female couple. Vandals knocked over the figures of the gay couples early Christmas morning, the TV station reports.

The vandalism is classified as a hate crime "because of the content of the artwork that was damaged and the fact that it was on a place of worship or at a church," Lt. Mike Ciszek, a spokesman with the Claremont Police Department tells the station.

The United Methodist Church, as a denomination, does not endorse same-sex marriage, but some churches, including the Claremont congregation, have joined the Reconciling Ministries Network, fighting for LGBT equality within United Methodism.

(The silhouette featuring the heterosexual couple is the last one standing. Others showing a male couple and female couple were vandalized Christmas morning, and police are calling the incident a hate crime.)

Once again, people were up in arms over an image of two men ALMOST kissing, and it happened in - Los Angeles. Sigh.

(I'm so glad heterosexual America embraces homosexuality and is comfortable with images of shirtless men embracing. Ooops Wake-up call. This is 2011. Not so fast, fella. We need to wait a few more decades for that advancement.)

This time, the nefarious image was a billboard on Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood promoting Manhunt's location-based dating app. It showed two shirtless men seemingly ready to lip lock.

That dastardly photo was too much, last month,  for a mom, who had a temper tantrum. She said it was too close to her 9-year-old son's Valley View Elementary School, and she would have to explain the billboard's meaning to him.

The Atlantic Wire chronicles the entire desperate housewife-inspired brouhaha.

(The nefarious Manhunt billboard that caused the brouhaha and a nearby, innocent Michael Kors billboard that was - apparently - too tame to cause an uproar.)

Brett Henrichsen says this weekend's series of Masterbeat New Year's Eve circuit parties will not have live performances from screaming divas, drag queens or pop-princess wannabes.

"We've learned from our guests that what they love about a Masterbeat party is there aren't 4,267 interruptions and shows. They are there to dance," says Henrichsen, who founded Masterbeat and launched the annual New Year's Eve parties in Palm Springs in 1999. "We focus more on production value and visual eye-candy all night rather than interrupting the party."

The party starts Friday night at The Mayan in downtown Los Angeles with DJs Tony Moran and Ana Paula.

Saturday's New Year's Eve fanny bumper will held at the historic Hollywood Palladium and features Ralphi Rosario and Abel Aguilera, who recently were Grammy nominated under their moniker Rosabel.

Henrichsen says the venue will be transformed into the country's largest mega-club with a custom installed four-point line-array sound system, a full-motion lighting and truss system and 360 degree video walls.

The afterhours continue at Arena Café. Henrichsen will be behind the turntables Sunday night at Avalon for the "Recovery" event.

(Brett Henrichsen founder of Masterbeat launched his New Year's Eve parties in 1999 in Palm Springs. He DJs the closing Sunday night "Recovery" event at Avalon. Photo courtesy Project Publicity.)

Remix wizards and DJs Ralphi Rosario and Abel Aguilera garnered their first Grammy nomination earlier this month.

The duo, who are renowned in the circuit and after-hours club scene and remix under the moniker Rosabel, were nominated for their Rosabel Club Mix of the Rihanna hit "Only Girl (In The World)" in the best remixed recording, non-classical category.

The 54th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony will air 8 p.m. Feb. 12 on CBS.

"The nomination represents a lifetime of working in this industry and we're very honored to be recognized in this way," Rosario said in a statement.

Rosario and Aguilera will be spinning in Saturday at the Hollywood Palladium, part of Masterbeat's New Year's Eve festivities.



(Abel Aguilera, left, and Ralphi Rosario have garnered their first Grammy nomination for their Rosabel Club mix of Rihanna's "Only Girl (In the World)."

"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen," starring Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt, will open the Palm Springs International Film Festival Jan. 5, organizers said Thursday, Reuters reports.

The showing will mark the U.S. debut of the British comedy, which was directed by Oscar nominee Lasse Hallstrom ("My Life as a Dog") and written by Oscar winner Simon Beaufoy ("Slumdog Millionaire").

Outside of the festiveal, McGregor can be seen in the drama "Beginners" with Christopher Plummer, who plays a widower who "comes out" to his son (McGregor) and opposite Jim Carrey in the DVD release of "I Love You Phillip Morris," where he and Carrey play jail-house lovers. Both films received rave reviews.

Two other McGregor films will also be shown at the festival: A special presentation of "Haywire," a Steven Soderbergh-directed action film also starring Michael Fassbender, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Channing Tatum and Bill Paxton; and the drama "Perfect Sense," which co-stars Eva Green.

Other titles to be showcased at the festival include James Franco's bio on gay '50s actor Sal Mineo, "Sal."

In all, the festival will host 187 films from 73 countries, including 61 premieres.

(Ewan McGregor stars in "Salmon Fishing in Yemen.")

By Gregory Katz, Associated Press

LONDON -- Fighting back tears, singer George Michael appeared outside his London home Friday to acknowledge he had nearly died during his month-long battle with pneumonia.

Michael, who is openly gay, said it had been "touch and go" while he was in the intensive care unit of a Vienna hospital battling an extremely dangerous form of pneumonia but his representatives had "played it down" to avoid alarming his fans.

"They spent three weeks keeping me alive basically," said the singer, 48, who appeared to have lost weight during his ordeal. "I don't want to take you through all of it because some of it I want to protect my family from and I'm sure I'll get it all written down but it was by far the worst month of my life."

He seemed short of breath and at times had trouble speaking during his 10-minute appearance.

"I'm very weak but I feel amazing," the pop star said, wearing a gray overcoat and scarf as he stood in front of a decorated Christmas tree outside his imposing red brick home in the Highgate neighborhood of north London.

(British singer George Michael leaves his house in north London, Friday. Michael, short of breath and appearing weak, said Friday he has recovered from a life-threatening bout with pneumonia that kept him in a Vienna hospital for a month. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

The Center Long Beach will holds its fifth annual "Christmas at The Center" on Sunday.

The free event will take place from 5 to 9 p.m., and the public is welcome to attend.

"Christmas at The Center" will include a catered dinner, PS3 games, board games and holiday music.

For more information or to make donations, contact Ismael Morales at The Center, 562-434-4455 ext. 230 or by email at ismaelm@centerlb.org.

Associated Press

HELSINKI -- Finnish police say they detained Adam Lambert Thursday after he assaulted people who tried to break up a fight between the former "American Idol" star and his boyfriend in downtown Helsinki.

Detective Superintendent Petri Juvonen said the fight spread from a popular gay bar early Thursday into the street where Lambert was suspected of hitting two people who tried to break it up.

Juvonen said Lambert's boyfriend, "Finnish Big Brother" star Sauli Koskinen, also was held for questioning.

Juvonen said no weapons were used, no one was seriously hurt and it was not "a very serious incident."

Police said the two men were released after a few hours and no further action would be taken.



(Adam Lambert, right, and Sauli Koskinen attend the 2011 OUT100 at the Skylight SOHO on Nov. 17 in New York City. Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images)

By Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, The Associated Press

HONOLULU - Two Long Beach women filed a lawsuit Monday against a Hawaii bed and breakfast, saying the business denied them a room because they are lesbian.

Aloha Bed & Breakfast discriminated against Diane Cervelli and Taeko Bufford, claims the lawsuit filed on behalf of the women by Lambda Legal in First Circuit Court in Honolulu.

Cervelli, 42, called the business in 2007 to book a room because it's in Hawaii Kai, the same east Honolulu neighborhood where the friend they were visiting lived. When she specified they would need one bed, the owner asked if they are lesbians. Cervelli responded truthfully and the owner said she was uncomfortable having lesbians in her house because of her religious views, the lawsuit said.

Refusing to let the couple book a room was solely based on their sexual orientation because the owner indicated she wouldn't have a problem if they were an unmarried heterosexual couple, said their attorney, Peter Renn of Lambda Legal's Los Angeles office.

The lawsuit claims the business violated Hawaii's public accommodation law prohibiting any inn or other establishment that provides lodging from discriminating based on sexual orientation, race, sex, gender identity or expression, religion, ancestry or disability.

Frontiers IN L.A. magazine has an interview with former porn star Traci Lords, who released her latest dance-floor single, "Last Drag," and DJs a special set at Luke Nero's mr. Black Los Angeles Tuesday night.

In the interview, Lords, who also appeared in John Waters' "Cry Baby" and TV's "Roseanne," says "Last Drag" is her proclamation she's stopped running from her demons.

"These days, I invite them in for a martini," Lords says with a laugh in the magazine. "I've learned you gotta keep your addictions in check and know where the edge of the cliff is."

Two Long Beach men were ordered Thursday to stand trial for a Halloween hate crime against two gay men.

During a preliminary hearing in Long Beach Superior Court, Judge Jessie Rodriguez determined that sufficient evidence exists to proceed to trial.

The alleged attackers, Marquise Anton Lucas, 19, and Sierus Lamar Dunbar, 27, were each held to answer for one felony count of battery with serious bodily injury and one felony count of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury.

Lucas also was held to answer for a second felony count of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, while Dunbar was held to answer for a felony count of assault with a deadly weapon, not a firearm, with great bodily injury.

Both men have pleaded not guilty. They are due back in court Dec. 29 for arraignment.

By Greg Risling
Associated Press

VENTURA -- Oxnard teenager Brandon McInerney was sentenced Monday to 21 years in state prison for killing Larry King, his gay classmate, during a computer lab class in 2008, capping an emotional and tumultuous case that focused attention on how schools deal with sexual identity issues.

McInerney was sentenced under terms of a plea agreement calling for him to report to prison next month, after he turns 18.

McInerney pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and unlawful use of a firearm.


(Lawrence King (left) and Brandon McInerney, courtesy of the Ventura County Star)

They're back, sweetie darlings.

In the first new episode of "Absolutley Fabulous" - airing Jan. 8 on Logo - the drunken dynamic duo - Edina Monsoon (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy Stone (Joanna Lumley) - slam one of one of the United States' least favorite exports - the Kardashians.

Monsoon sits at her kitchen table with daughter Saffy (Julia Sawalha), Stone and Saffy's father Justin (Christopher Malcolm). A pile of glossy, gossip magazine is in the middle of the table, Monsoon asks Saffy: 'Darling, who are all these people?'

Saffy says she doesn't know, prompting her mother to get Saffy to ask her who they are.

Monsoon throws her hands in the air and says, "I don't know! They're non names, nobodies, sweetheart.

"Look - there's a new disease called the Kardashians, darling! It's just sort of spread," Moonsoon says.

"They're spreading like herpes," says Stone, as she turns her nose up in disgust. "Each one with their own one with their own reality show. They're multiplying like head lice."

Hopefully these accolades are just the beginning for Christopher Plummer.

In the past week, the 82-year-old Canadian-born actor (who celebrated his birthday Tuesday) received supporting actor nominations from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the SAG Awards and the Golden Globes for his role as a father and widower (Hal) who comes out of the closet near the end of his life in "Beginners."

Plummer (who will be seen in the upcoming film "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo") also heard he will collect the Modern Master Award from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Jan. 28.

In "Beginners" - now on Blu-ray and DVD - Hal comes out to his son (Ewan McGregor) after his wife of 45 years dies. Hal then acquires a rainbow-colored neckerchief and a circle of party-loving friends and sets out to make the most of his remaining time.

Hal becomes the happiest person in the story - even after he's diagnosed with terminal cancer.

"It's because he's found himself. He's free from all that burden of trying to suppress his homosexuality, and he's also in love," Plummer told the Los Angeles Times last month. "I think that's why the film has the lightness of tone that it does -- there's not an ounce of self-pity in it."

The story also is semi-autobiographical - based on the life of the film's writer-director Mike Mills.

(Christopher Plummer, right, wears his rainbow-colored neckerchief and shares a hug with a friend (Goran Visnjic) in a scene from "Beginners." Photo courtesy Focus Films.)

Jeanne Cordova wanted a revolution, so she lead a battle to end discrimination against gays and lesbians in 1970s Los Angeles.

Cordova chronicles those ambitious and historically important efforts in her new memoir, "When We Were Outlaws: A Memoir of Love & Revoultion." Cordova writes about being a columnist with the L.A. Free Press; publishing the nationally influential Lesbian Tide newspaper and picketing the Gay Community Services Center. She protested the Center because the board fired 16 lesbian-feminist staffers, who were deemed dissidents for trying to introduce feminist principles and practices at the center.

Cordova discusses and signs copies of "When We Were Outlaws" at the ONE National Archives 2-4 p.m. Sunday.

An unapologetic activist in every sense of the word, Cordova writes about her life as a radical lesbian during the early cultural struggle for gay rights and women's liberation. Cordova's first-hand accounts and historical contributions in "When We Were Outlaws" have garnered praise from Lambda Literary and a Robin Tyler guest column at the Advocate.com from Lambda Literary.

Cordova's appearance at ONE is in conjunction with the mammoth "Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. !945-1980" exhibit. It's an unprecedented collaboration - initiated by the Getty -  bringing together 68 museums and more than 70 art galleries to recognize seemingly every notable contemporary artist who ever made an artistic statement about the City of the Angels.

ONE is of the galleries participating in the exhibit, and its "Cruising the Archive" is the only LGBT-specific exhibition included in "Pacific Standard Time."

Dr. Frank-N-Furter and Riff Raff get a makeover in "The Dykey Horror Picture Show."

Midnight Insanity presents a lesbian cast in this "Rocky Horror Picture Show" redo.

The timewrap starts 11:30 p.m. Saturday at the Art Theatre Long Beach.

Men and women have swooned for Jessica Sutta since she purred "Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me?" in the Pussycat Doll's smash hit "Don't Cha."

The ex-Pussycat Doll will show some love to her lesbian peeps March 29 at Zelda's in Palm Springs. That's when the 29-year-old singer-dancer will headline the opening-night party of Club Skirts Dinah Shore weekend.

The Dinah 2012 - a women's version of a gay circuit party - will be held March 28-April 1.

Sutta and the Pussycat Dolls caused a sandstorm in the desert in 2006 when they headlined the Dinah. Since leaving the Pussycat Dolls, Sutta has embarked on a much-talked about solo career. Her debut solo CD, "Sutta Pop," is expected to drop in mid 2012. The first single is "Show Me."

In other Dinah news, the identical twin pop duo, Nina Sky, also will perform at the festival. They will headline the "White Diamonds" party March 30.

(Jessica Sutta purrs her stuff.)

Ever want to wear Dorothy's ruby red slippers and click your heels together? If you have $3 million you might get your wish.

A pair of Dorothy's slippers from the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz" will be on the auction block Friday at the "Icons of Hollywood" auction at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills. The slippers have a pre-sale estimate of $2-$3 million.

This particular pair was the one used when Dorothy clicked her heels together three times to return home to Kansas.

Four pairs of slippers that were used in the film are know to have survived. One pair is the center piece of the "Icons of American Culture" exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and is one of the most asked about artifacts at the museum.

The slippers have been viewed so many times that the carpet in front of them has been replaced numerous times.

Larry Forester, the openly gay mayor of Signal Hill, says he is the only U.S. mayor to publicly acknowledge being diagnosed with AIDS.

Forest's status and his sexuality appear to be non issues for Signal Hill voters - He is serving his third term as mayor and fourth on the city council.

In a recent interview with Press-Telegram columnist Tim Grobaty, Forester talks about living with AIDS and the friendly turf wars with Long Beach.










(Signal Hill Mayor Larry Forester loves his 2.2-square-mile city and its 11,000 residents. He says he is also the only U.S. mayor to openly acknowledge being diagnosed with AIDS. Stephen Carr, Staff Photographer)

from The Associated Press

NEW YORK - Elizabeth Taylor's jewelry collection fetched a record-setting $115 million - including more than $11.8 million for a pearl necklace and more than $8.8 million for a diamond ring given to her by Richard Burton - at a Tuesday night auction of gems and other memorabilia amassed by the late actress.

The 33.19-carat diamond ring given to Taylor by the actor she married twice, sold for $8,818,500.

The pearl, diamond and ruby necklace, known as "La Peregrina," purchased at auction for $37,000 in 1969 by Burton for Taylor reached the world record price of $11,842,500. It was estimated to sell for $2 million to $3 million. The price surpassed the previous auction record for a pearl, set in 2007 at Christie's auction house in New York City with the sale of The Baroda Pearls for $7,096,000.

The ring, estimated to sell for $2.5 million to $3.5 million, was included in a collection of Taylor's necklaces, earrings, pendants and rings and other gems that went on sale Tuesday night at Christie's in NewYork. The ring was purchased by a private buyer from Asia, according to a Christie's spokesman.

(This Sept. 1, 2011 file photo shows"The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond," a gift to the actress from actor Richard Burton at Christie's in New York. The 33.19-carat diamond ring sold for over $8.8 million at auction in New York Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2011. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences loves Fred and Ethel Mertz.

William Frawley and Vivian Vance will be inducted posthumously into the Academy's Hall of Fame during a March 1 ceremony at The Beverly Hills Hotel.

Lucille Ball was included in the first Hall of Fame class in 1984. Desi Arnaz was inducted posthumously in 1990.

Vance was the first actress to win an Emmy Award for "Outstanding Supporting Actress" in 1954 for her portrayal of Ethel Mertz. She also played Ball's sidekick for six years (1962-1968) in the follow-up series "The Lucy Show." Vance made six guest appearances from 1968 to 1972 on Ball's third Lucy-themed series "Here's Lucy."

Vance died from cancer in 1979 at the age of 70.

After "I Love Lucy," Frawley went on to star in the sitcom "My Three Sons" as the live-in grandfather-housekeeper, Bud O'Casey. His last TV appearance was a special guest role in 1965 on "The Lucy Show" as a horse trainer. He died the following year at the age of 79.

The others TV personalities to be inducted in the hall of fame are "The Jeffersons" and "Amen" star Sherman Hemsley, "Real World" creators Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray, former Walt Disney Co. CEO Michael Eisner, "Sábado Gigante" gameshow host Don Francisco, lighting designer Bill Klages and producer Chuck Lorre. Bunim died in 2004.

(Vivian Vance and William Frawley in a publicity photo from "I Love Lucy." Courtesy of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences)

Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride has begun its annual holiday toy drive with several locally owned businesses.

People can drop off unwrapped toys at 19 locations around Long Beach, including the Pride office, until Thursday.

Needy families are welcome to visit the Pride offices, 1017 Obispo Ave., on Sunday, when Santa Claus will be handing out the toys.

Toy drop-off locations include:

The Brit, 1744 E. Broadway

The Broadway Bar, 1100 E. Broadway

Christ Chapel, 3935 E. 10th St.

The Crest, 5935 Cherry Ave.

The Crypt, 1712 E. Broadway

The Falcon, 1435 E. Broadway

Flux, 17817 Lakewood Blvd.

The Gay and Lesbian Center of Greater Long Beach, 2017 E. Fourth St.

Hamburger Marys, 740 E. Broadway

The Mineshaft, 1720 E. Broadway

Out of the Closet, 3500 E. Pacific Coast Highway

The Paradise Piano Bar and Restaurant, 1800 E. Broadway

Pistons, 2020 E. Artesia Blvd.

The Pizza Place, 1431 E. Broadway

Rick & Brian's Cafe, 632 Redondo Ave.

Club Ripples, 5101 E. Ocean Blvd.

Sweetwater Saloon, 1201 E. Broadway

Two Umbrellas Cafe, 1538 E. Broadway

Pop open the bubbly, Sweet, Darlings - "Absolutley Fabulous" returns in January, TVGuide.com, reports.

"The Absolutely Fabulous 20th Anniversary Special" will premiere Jan. 8 at 10 p.m. on BBC America and Logo, the website reports.

The special is one of three the networks are planning with everybody's favorite drunken dynamic duo, Edina Monsoon (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy Stone (Joanna Lumley).

This summer, the Daily Mail reported Lumley and Saunders were in London filming an episode. The toxic twosome were parading up and down fashionable Bond Street laden with designer bags from the likes of Louis Vuitton, The Kooples and Lanvin, in the never-ending quest to stay hip and cool.

Lumley was sporting Patsy's trademark beehive hairstyle with a black furry coat and a pair of stone coloured trousers, which she teams with a pair of nude heels and peaked sunglasses.

Saunders, meanwhile, has let Edina go bright and bold in a colour blocked pleated dress and a bright red jacket, finished off her look in a white felt hat.

(The drunken dynamic duo -Edina Monsoon (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy Stone (Joanna Lumley -  in a tame pose.)

Stephen Colbert, on Thursday night's "The Colbert Report," ripped Republican presidential contender Rick Perry on his "great new ad."

That's the one with Perry wearing a "Brokeback Mountain" look-a-like jacket and declaring it's unfair that gays can come out in the military while Christians supposedly must hide their beliefs during Christmas.

"Yes, Governor Perry is right," Colbert begins, "thanks to the gays, our children can't openly celebrate the birth of our savior in school and yet these gays in the military can openly celebrate their favorite holiday -- being away from their family, risking their lives in Afghanistan."

Colbert continues saying, "I, for one, am offended by those who would condem the Christmas lifestyle. They don't understand that, unlike being gay, loving Christmas is not a choice."

Colbert's hilarious, sarcastic assault also makes references to gingerbread men and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The segment ends with a kiss under the mistletoe between two jolly men.

Bravo, Stephen.

The C.A.R.E. Program has received $22,925 from two fundraisers to help cover costs associated with its HIV and AIDS treatment program.

The C.A.R.E. (Comprehensive AIDS Resources and Education) Program at St. Mary Medical Center is the largest nonprofit HIV-AIDS care provider in the Long Beach area.

The organization raised $20,925 in August with its fourth annual C.A.R.E. to Dine fundraiser. The program also received $2,000 this week from a fundraiser hosted by Out and About Long Beach, a social and networking group of gay men that also hosts charitable events.

Money from C.A.R.E. to Dine will be used to purchase food vouchers that clients can use at various grocery stores.

For the event, 42 Greater Long Beach area restaurants and cafes donated 20 percent of their breakfast, lunch and dinner proceeds to the C.A.R.E. Program.

Ten more restaurants participated this year, but sales dropped 5 percent compared to last year, said James Mason, chair of the event.

"We got too big for our britches this year," Mason said, chuckling. "We're going to have less restaurants next year."

This year's donation total, however, was up 33 percent compared to 2008 and 2009, Mason said.

LONG BEACH - Absolut thinks the gay community is fabulous.

The Swedish vodka landed on U.S. shores in 1978 and the first consumer magazine advertisements said "Absolut Perfection" with a halo hovering over the bottle cap.

The following year, that same ad appeared in gay magazine The Advocate, and it was a landmark business decision - Absolut was the first major brand to pursue the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender market.

Absolut became the "first big brand to commit to and pursue the market" by being "the first continuously present major brand in gay media," Michel Wilke, a senior consultant at Out Now Consulting, told the New York Times.

Marketing to the LGBT community was supported by Michel Roux, the president and CEO of Carillon Importers, Absolut's first distributor. Roux thought gay consumers were trendsetters whose brand-buying habits would be adopted by younger, hipper segments of the consumer market.

To mark the anniversary, Absolut has spent more than $4 million on a nationwide advertising campaign using the theme "Absolut Outrageous," which includes the phrase "Celebrating 30 years of going out and coming out."

The campaign includes online and outdoor ads as well as promotional events called the "Outrageous Tour" in many of the country's gay epicenters, such as New York, Miami, Dallas, West Hollywood, Silver Lake and Long Beach.

The tour - on the road in a moving van-sized pink truck with the word "Outrageous" painted on it - stops in Long Beach at the Executive Suite from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. today.

A popular gay penguin couple in China has been given a newly hatched chick to raise. The male penguins were given the hatchling because a female penguin was struggling after giving birth to twins, which is rare for penguins, according to the U.K.'s Metro, ABC News reports.

"In birds, it doesn't matter what sex you are. Both sexes are perfectly capable and absolutely necessary to raise a penguin bird," said Kevin McGowan of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology in Ithaca, N.Y. "It's not like mammals where only one sex can feed."

The penguins were born at Harbin Polar Land in northern China at the end of November. The "gay" penguin couple has been known to try to steal eggs during hatching seasons, according to Metro.






(Two male penguins raises a chick in Antarctica.)

Ever want to wear Dorothy's ruby red slippers and click your heels together? If you have $3 million you might get your wish.

A pair of Dorothy's slippers from the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz" will be on the auction block next week at the "Icons of Hollywood" auction at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills. The slippers have a pre-sale estimate of $2-$3 million.

This particular pair was the one used when Dorothy clicked her heels together three times to return home to Kansas.

Four pairs of slippers that were used in the film are know to have survived. One pair is the center piece of the "Icons of American Culture" exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and is one of the most asked about artifacts at the museum.

The slippers have been viewed so many times that the carpet in front of them has been replaced numerous times.

Oh boy. Pat Robertson and The Pope are not going to like this movie - and that's great.

"Seminarista" follows a young, conservative Colombian seminarian who struggles to choose between his faith and and his sexuality after he has an intimate encounter with a flamboyant, free-spirited man during a trip to the United States.

The 20-minute film premieres 9 p.m. Thursday night at the Art Theatre of Long Beach.

If you want to attend the film, RSVP here.

The film is directed by Long Beach-based filmmaker Henry Corzo.

A Q & A session with the director will follow the Screening.

Mario Trujillo, a candidate for L.A County District Attorney, is the special guest at tonight's LGB2Network mixer at Sababa Restaurant & Lounge.

The admission to the mixer, 7-9 tonight, is free.

Trujillo, Deputy in Charge of the District Attorney's Bellflower office, says he is an advocate for the LGBT community.

The Long Beach Community Business Network - also known as the Long Beach Gay Chamber of Commerce - holds its holiday mixer today at Club Ripples.

The Mexican luncheon, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. - benefits The Center Long Beach's Mentoring Youth Through Empowerment program.

Admission is $20 or a $20 gift card from a local, independent business that carries teen merchandise, for example, Fingerprints in the East Village or Buffalo Exchange on Second Street in Belmont Shore.

Attention gay and gay-friendly bands: Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride want to hear from you.

Festival organizers are accepting musicians' press kits - postmarked by January 31, 2012 - from musicians interested in performing on the main, Fiesta Caliente, county, spot light, dance and urban soul stages at the 29th Annual Long Beach Pride Festival.

The pride festival will take place May 19 and 20.

Press kits should contain several items:

audio CD
promotional DVD
three black & white and two color photos
recent bio
contact name, number and best time to call

Press kits, which will not be returned, should be mailed to:

LBLGP, Inc.
Entertainment Committee - (please indicate stage preference)
P.O. Box 2050
Long Beach, CA 90801

Free, rapid HIV testing and resources are offered in Long Beach. Appointments are encouraged, and walk-ins are accepted.

Bienestar

Where: 525 E. Seventh St., Long Beach

When: 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday

Info: 562-628-9687

CARE Program

Where: 411 E. 10th St., Suite 107 (at St. Mary Medical Center)

When: 9-11:30 a.m. and 1-4 p.m. Monday-Friday

Info: 562-624-4900

The Gay and Lesbian Center of Greater Long Beach

Where: 2017 E. Fourth St.

When: 2-9 p.m. Monday-Friday, noon-3 p.m. Saturday

Info: Ismael Morales, 562-434-4455, Ext. 230

HIV Care and Coordination Clinic

Where: 2525 Grand Ave., Long Beach

When: 8 a.m.-noon, 1-4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday

Information: 562-570-4315

One in five people living with HIV doesn't know he or she is infected, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The report, "New Hope for Stopping HIV," was released Wednesday to coincide with World AIDS Day today. Observed Dec. 1 around the globe, World AIDS Day is dedicated to raising awareness of AIDS, which is caused by the HIV infection.

To mark the occasion, the Long Beach AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence will hold a free Celebration of Life at 5 tonight in Bixby Park. The event ends with a community procession along Broadway.

A few blocks away, The Gay and Lesbian Center of Greater Long Beach also will host a free World AIDS Day program. It features an art exhibit and panel of guest speakers and concludes with a candlelight march to Ocean Boulevard.

In an effort to prevent HIV infections, Dr. Karen Mark, acting chief in the California Department of Public Health's Office of AIDS, advocates that everyone getting tested.

"Just like they get a cholesterol test when they go to the doctor, people should get an HIV test," Mark said. "When people know their status, it will help prevent future infections."

(Workers hang a red ribbon on the North Portico of the White House in Washington, Wednesday. December is AIDS Awareness Month. Haraz N. Ghanbari / The Associated Press)