Ask the Flying Monkey (August 11, 2008)

Q: For the more book-oriented guys like me, what about gay couples who have both won Lambda Awards? – Eric, Manila

A: Bless you for still caring. In fact, author-activists and partners Malcolm Boyd and Mark Thompson were both given “Pioneer Awards” at this year’s ceremony (Thompson is also a former nominee).

Mark Thompson (left) & Malcolm Boyd

And according to book guru Richard Labonte at Books to Watch Out For, plenty of other male couples have won Lambda Awards for books they worked on together: It's Never About What It's About by Krandall Kraus and Paul Borja (Alyson); I Do/I Don't: Queers on Marriage (in which the Flying Monkey has an essay), edited by Greg Wharton and Ian Philips (Suspect Thoughts); and Love, Bourbon Street, edited by Greg Herren & Paul J. Willis (Alyson).

And of course there is the Flying Monkey himself, who won a Lammy earlier this year, and his partner Michael Jensen, the editor of this site, who was nominated for a Lammy (for his excellent gay western novel Frontiers) in 2000.

Q: Tell me something surprising about Jaclyn Smith. – Mikey, Victoria, BC, Canada

A: “Jaclyn’s amazing,” out Shear Genius judge Kim Vo tells AfterElton.com. “She’s everything you think she would be. She’s a true class act.”

Um, okay, thanks, Kim, that’s nice, but not exactly dishy. So … in addition to being the only angel to appear in all five seasons of Charlie’s Angels (as well as one of the recent feature films), Jaclyn pioneered the whole idea of celebrity product lines with her Kmart clothing (not just endorsing products, but also having a hand in creating them). She’s now phenomenally wealthy, easily rich enough to afford the best plastic surgery money can buy ... which is, of course, the question on everyone’s lips, since the 62 year-old woman looks so frickin’ amazing — virtually unchanged from her Charlie’s Angels years:

Has she had work?

Jaclyn Smith now and then

Smith herself credits, “Clean living and a bit of sparkle on the cheek bones,” and there may actually be some truth in her words. Experts say that women with high cheekbones tend to age particularly well — the bone structure lifts the face and keeps everything in place—and boy, does Jaclyn have high cheekbones. So even though she probably has had some Botox and maybe other injections here and there (and perhaps some work on her neck), she may not have had major surgery — which may be exactly why she is so stunning: she still looks like herself.

Have a question about gay male entertainment? Ask the Monkey!