Ask the Flying Monkey! (July 6, 2009)

Q: Will Jason Lawrence be back in the next season of United States of Tara? -- Christopher, Boston, MA

A: Given that they haven’t started filming the second season yet – there won’t be any new episodes until 2010 – even the producers may not know if Andrew Lawrence will be back in his role as Jason, a bisexual Christian jock, and the object of Tara’s son Marshall’s affections.

“I hope they have me back on the second season,” Lawrence, the brother of Joey and Matthew Lawrence, told Kiwibox.com two months ago. “I would love to do that. There might be a place for that. I hope so, I really do. I love Keir [Gilchrist, who plays Marshall]. He’s such a talented actor, and I loved working with him.”

Jason Lawrence (center) with Keir Gilchrist and Toni Collette

Q: As a gay guy of a certain age, I had a series of crushes on TV “older brothers” such as Tony Dow, (Leave it to Beaver), Luke Halpin (Flipper), Don Grady (My Three Sons), and Richard Thomas (The Waltons). Did any of them turn out gay? – Mike, St. Paul, MN

A: Except for Halpin, who I was unable to confirm one way or another, all are definitely straight. Which is as it should be, at least according to the 2006 study that found that older brothers were the least likely to be gay in a family, with the chance going up with each younger brother.

(Yes, yes, I know that Dow, Halpin, Grady, and Thomas were merely actors playing the roles of older brothers. No word on their real-life birth-order.)

Of course, there has to be an exception and in this case it's Wesley Eure (read our exclusive coming out interview with Eure), who played older brother Will on the 1970s Saturday morning program The Land of the Lost. 

Clockwise from top left: Luke Halpin, Don Grady,
Richard Thomas, and Tony Dow

Q: Miley Cyrus is pictured trying to look sexy with director Adam Shankman in her latest photo scandal. People seem to be split about 50/50 on whether this is appropriate or not for a girl her age. If Shankman were to defend himself by reminding the world that he's gay, do you think that would solve the issue or make it worse? – Ozzy, Minneapolis, MN

A: Make it worse. Whether or not the photographer is, or could be, attracted to Miley isn’t the issue; it’s whether it’s appropriate for a 16-year-old celebrity idol to be posing for a cheesecake shot.

In the case of Cyrus – and this might get me into trouble – I don’t think it is. She’s only 16 years old, and she’s an influential role model for millions of young girls.

And before someone lectures me about how we demonize the expression of teen sexuality in the U.S., I have no problem with teens expressing themselves sexually (responsibly, and only when they’re ready, natch).

I just think it sucks that we, as a society, continue to sexualize underage girls, while also communicating to both men and women that (a) women and girls are only valuable if they’re young and thin and beautiful and, (b) society will adore and respect a woman or a girl only if she takes off all her clothes and poses like a Playboy model.

Next page! Who has bigger body image issues — gay men or straight women?