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Ask the Flying Monkey (November 18, 2008)Q: Am I wrong in thinking there is a woeful lack of out gay Latino characters on television? – Roberto, Dallas, TX A: You are seriously not wrong. There’s Oscar Nuñez’ Oscar, a supporting character on The Office (NBC), Justin Suarez (Mark Indelicato) on Ugly Betty (who has been obliquely confirmed as being gay, but it’s never come up on the show) and Wilson Cruz’ Evan on Rick and Steve, the Happiest Gay Couple in All the World, who is a puppet. Cruz also had a very small part on TNT’s recently concluded Raising the Bar. And…that’s it.
Clockwise from top left: Wilson Cruz, Oscar Nuñez, Mark Indelicato Pathetic. Then again, there are still way too few straight Latino characters on TV as well. Q: Oh Flying Monkey…font of endless wisdom, I have a question that I’m sure only YOU can answer. Actually I’m a bit embarrassed to have to ask, but as a HUGE fan of AfterElton.com, I am constantly seeing the term IMHO and I’m ashamed to admit…I have no idea what it means, or what it could stand for. Please enlighten me. -- Brian, North Hollywood, CA A: Remember how in high school your teacher used to say, “There are no stupid questions”? And you’d think to yourself, “What a great thing for a teacher to say!” Because it’s true — how could there be a stupid question in the pursuit of knowledge? But then came that day when your one decent high school teacher, your philosophy instructor, gave that amazing lecture on whether or not humans possess free will, and when she was done and you were breathless with the magnitude of it all, there was that pause before the slack-jawed twit in flip-flops in the third row raised her hand and asked dully, “Is this going to be on the test?” And it was all you could do not to track her down her after class, strangle her, and push her worthless, precious-resource-wasting corpse into a locker? Brian, you learned that day that there are stupid questions, waaaay too many of them. Fortunately, yours isn’t one of them. Slang and abbreviations have a way of becoming “common knowledge” before everyone is quite in the know. For years, the Monkey himself didn’t know what “M.R.S. degree” meant. Or “kitty corner.” Or — and this one is embarrassing to admit — “French kissing.” Speaking of which, for years the Monkey thought that “fringe benefits” were “French benefits.” A dental package? Ooh-la-la! To make a long story short Brian, IMHO stands for “In My Humble Opinion.” Q: Scott Eckern, the artistic director of the California Musical Theater, gave a thousand dollars to the Yes on Proposition 8 campaign. Do you think he should be fired? – Aaron, Sacramento, CA
Scott Eckern, artistic director of the California Musical Theater A: As you probably know by now, Aaron, since you wrote your question, Mr. Eckern has resigned his position. Truthfully? The Flying Monkey can’t quite fathom how a person could work in the theater, literally surrounded by GLBT artists, and then, on his personal time, work to undermine the Constitutional rights of those same people. Has he never attended any of the plays his theater has put on — 99 percent of which argue that love is love, and that people should be judged as individuals? But if he hadn't resigned, should he have been fired? Absolutely not. As noxious as they are, these are this man’s personal religious and political beliefs, and the Monkey doesn’t believe in blacklists or firings for political or religious reasons. If the McCarthy period taught us anything, it’s that a person’s artistic work should be judged solely by the quality of his or her work. Did he personally discriminate against people as the artistic director of the theater? If so, it would have been necessary to fire his ass. But if his attitudes didn’t translate into actions, then they were just him exercising his right to free speech. What do they say? It’s easy to tolerate nice, non-threatening opinions. By the way, the point of free speech isn’t to do bigots like Mr. Eckern any favors. It’s because in the end, we’re all better off. History shows that the best — really the only — way to defeat bad ideas is to confront and debate them, not to suppress and censor them. Are there exceptions? Maybe. The Supreme Court has ruled that our right to free speech doesn’t extend to the right to yell “Fire!” in a crowded theater (potentially causing people physical harm). I think author Orson Scott Card’s paranoid anti-gay rantings — and his suggestion we may need to overthrow the government if it ever grants same-sex marriage rights — come awfully close to that. But in the Monkey’s opinion, giving money to the Yes on 8 campaign doesn’t even come close to reaching the level of Card’s delusions.
Now that being said, the Monkey is furious at the sudden backlash against the fact that we gay folks are finally exercising our rights to free speech by telling folks like Mr. Eckern exactly what we think of their opinions. Confronting the man and debating his
beliefs, protesting peacefully outside his church, and even boycotting the theater where he worked is not "harassment" and it's definitely not religious discrimination. You can't inject your religious beliefs into the public sphere, trying to impose them on the whole country — but then bristle and withdraw back into your church and cry "religious discrimination" when someone tries to debate those beliefs! Submitted by on Mon, 2008-11-17 21:35.  CluelessSubmitted by
FilmBuff1822 (162 points) (35 posts) on Mon, 2008-11-17 22:01.In what way was the tent scene in Brokeback Mountain unrealistic? (FYI: I'm a lesbian, so this is not my territory.)
 well it depends on who you askSubmitted by
 but there's a minimal amount of, um, lubrication. I think that's what the reader meant.
Read my books! Explore "Brent's Brain" at http://www.brenthartinger.com no votes  See, I don't think that'sSubmitted by
Marauder (321 points) (65 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 18:24.See, I don't think that's unrealistic. Painful-looking, yeah, but how is Ennis, a 19-year-old drunken virgin ("you may be a sinner, but I ain't had the opportunity") supposed to know how much spit to use? And it's not like they could have any other kind of lube to work with...also, did you notice that for the rest of that day, though Jack crouches down or lies down, he never sits? It's supposed to be sort of rough and painful and inexperienced.
In the know . . .Submitted by
FilmBuff1822 (162 points) (35 posts) on Mon, 2008-11-17 22:42.Oh, that makes sense. Thanks. You learn something new everyday!
 Rope and GrantSubmitted by
Defft (1408 points) (292 posts) on Mon, 2008-11-17 22:53.Umm, the killers in Rope aren't really "coded" gay characters. You'd have to be Helen Keller to not get that they are gay and involved with each other (as were Leopold and Loeb on whom the characters were based). The only character who might qualify as "coded" was James Stewart's character, but again the dialog indicates that, although he didn't have a romantic or physical relationship with the younger characters, he was in the same fraternity, as it were. And for Cary Grant and Randolph Scott, as hot as the fantasies might be of them having sex together, their simply sharing a house when they were between marriages is not proof. Heck, I've shared living quarters with other confirmed gay guys for years without having sex with them. I for one am tired of this old rumor being accepted as fact. I'm not sure I agreeSubmitted by
In the film, they're "roommates." It's never said they're a couple. But yes, it is screamingly obvious from our 2008 perspective. (Then again, so is the thief in TO CATCH A THIEF, but 1955 audiences didn't pick that up either!)
Read my books! Explore "Brent's Brain" at http://www.brenthartinger.com no votes Rope / Strangers on a TrainSubmitted by
AnnieO (217 points) (42 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 16:55.The problem with both Rope and Strangers on a Train is that the source material was explicitly gay, so Hitchcock didn't actually have anything to do with creating those characters. In the stage version of Rope, the homosexual relationships were much more obvious, but the censors had problems with some of the language used in the movie, so it had to be toned down. Jimmy Stewart's character in particular was not as clearly gay as he had been in the play. The filmmakers could never address it head on in 1948, but it was obvious to everyone involved in the making of the film (as Farley Granger said in The Celluloid Closet) that the main characters were gay. Of course it's entirely possible that straight audiences of the time missed it completely. The movie version of Strangers on a Train retains the homoeroticism, but Patricia Highsmith's novel is much more explict about Bruno's attraction to Guy. Highsmith, of course, was a lesbian, and many of her novels include gay characters. The Talented Mr. Ripley may have been her most famous queer character, but there were several others, and they weren't all villains.  Watch your mouth about Helen...Submitted by
Smartypants (397 points) (92 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 04:57.Considering that Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan were lesbian lovers for decades, I think she would easily have read the Rope code. That said, you'd have to be quite astute to pick up on the sapphic vibe between Patty Duke and Anne Bancroft in The Miracle Worker.
Anne and HelenSubmitted by
Sorcha (10 points) (2 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 17:24.
You post really intruiges me, as I have long had the very strong 'feeling' (suppose it's gaydar or something) that Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller were lovers throughout their years together, but I've tried to find evidence or acknowledgment of it over the internet to no avail- except a couple of places where Anne is referred to as Helen's 'companion', which is very ambiguous... So I'm excited that you share the opinion. I'm just wondering where you got the info/evidence about them being in a relationship? Or is it just your gaydar too? And you're totally right about the chemistry/lesbian subtext in The Miracle Worker... I thought that I was bonkers for noticing! Brandon wait! We still have some yodels left! Dude...I hope not. AnneSubmitted by
Marauder (321 points) (65 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 18:12.Dude...I hope not. Anne Sullivan became Helen Keller's teacher when Helen was six years old. Also, there was a man who Helen wanted to marry but who her family threatened with a gun without her knowledge. (I was in "The Miracle Worker" back in high school and read lots of stuff.) Anne was her companion because Helen needed help getting around in the world - like a more extreme version of those little old Victorian ladies whose families hired companions for them so the old ladies wouldn't forget their medication and would have someone to take care of them. If they were a couple, that would be kind of creepy, like if you got a nanny for a kid when the kid was six and, after the nanny had a nanny/teacher role for years, they suddenly started having sex. "Companion" didn't necessarily have the nudge-nudge wink-wink connotations it does today.
 It may be creepy, but that doesn't mean it didn't happenSubmitted by
Strepsi (521 points) (150 posts) on Wed, 2008-11-19 12:43.Celine Dion was 13 when she met her producer René Angelil, who was 26 years older han her! He "waited" for her to come of age and married her, and they are happy together to today. And if you read the sequels to Twilight, you'll know that the idea of waiting for your ward to reach the age of consent is all the rage! In fact, coming out of an age of arranged marriages and children promised to each other, the further you go back in time the MORE likely something like this is!
Don't agree either...Submitted by
vm54 (195 points) (39 posts) on Wed, 2008-11-19 12:47.I think you're making judgements based on present-day sensibilities and how audiences would perceive these characters. I sense that only a very few folks viewing "Rope" in theaters in 1948 would make the association that Brandon and Philip were gay. Films of that period did tend toward language and gestures that were a bit exaggerated and over-the-top, by today's standards, and may not have set off any alarm bells 60 years ago. I find the characters and dialogue in many older films to be stilted and peculiar -- more theatrical than equivalent modern movies. I actually rewatched "Rope" last night, since my only viewing was perhaps five years ago, and still don't think that the two leads being a gay couple is shockingly obvious. I'll just change my name to Helen.
 Jean Cocteau and Jean MariasSubmitted by
Terence Steiner (268 points) (66 posts) on Mon, 2008-11-17 23:01.need to be included on the famous gay couples making movies together. Together they created two of the greatest films in history, La Belle et La Bete and Orphee.
Not convinced that Hitchcock was a gay brotherSubmitted by
Terence Steiner (268 points) (66 posts) on Mon, 2008-11-17 23:30.Sorry for my Psychology 101 analysis but I believe Hitchcock - obviously not being the prettiest plate in the china cabinet - was acting out his sexual desires for Tippi Hedren and Grace Kelley by tormenting them, because he knew he didn't have a chance. For some fun watching catch Janet Leigh's interview on the DVD release of Psycho. She's in complete denial that Hitchcock was tormenting her, saying Hitchcock was a perfect gentleman even though the prototypes of mother's corpse would somehow wind-up in her trailer.  Gay CouplesSubmitted by
Insideguy (2490 points) (496 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 01:30.First and foremost Hitchcock by his own admission thought he might be homosexual before he met and eventually married his screenwriter wife Alma Revill. I don't have idea how active a sex life they had but having seen home movies of them it is clear they had clear affection for one another and their daughter. Also those who knew him say he was the consumate professional and laid out every frame of his films in story boards long before cameras ever rolled and stuck by them. I do find evidence that he was attracted to icy blondes but he never overstepped relationship with them the way many others directors did. Donald Spoto has a spotty history when it comes to accuracy and thorough research when it comes to his writings. He often interperts facts to fit his theories. A much better resource is Francois Truffaut's legendary book on Hitchcock.
As to the Grant and Scott relationship there is a lot more evidence than those few pictures to the story. Randolph Scxott made a rather large fortune buying real estate and at the time he was buying the house he shared with Grant and used their share of costs to pay down his mortage on the house that has since been torn down. There is also a later picture of the two men in the seated in the ante room of Romanoff's restaurant in the 1950's. They have overcoats in their laps but it appears they are holding hands underneath. Grant was also part of William Haines circle of gay friends, known as "Wisecrackers" as code for being gay in New York before either of them rose to fame.
Finally, Anthony Perkins had a relationship Stephen Sondheim in 1966, when the young composer helped the actor train for the the TV musical EVENING PRIMROSE. So they had known each other long before THE LAST OF SHEILA. INSIDEGUY  Before there were Jared and Jensen,...Submitted by
afhickman (3715 points) (770 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 04:28.afhickman "The mountain has wings." Marlon Brando and Wally Cox had a bromance that dates from their early days in show business. Tab Hunter and Tony Perkins were an item, but I don't think they met on a set. But the greatest screen romance may have been Luchino Visconti and Helmut Berger, who made several pictures together. When Visconti died, Berger claimed to be his "widow." I'd like to think there was something going on between these two as well:
Tab: "Roddy, where do you want your sausage?"  i wishSubmitted by
TerrynJames (420 points) (84 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 05:45.that the boys from supernatural were in a relationship ;) they are some pretttttty men!!! I love the Flying Monkey!!
 JARED&JENSEN HERE! FINALLY!Submitted by
Man-eating humanoid (35 points) (7 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 06:45.The Jared/Jensen bromance is so hot! Not only in your dreams, we all dream of them being together. Do you know they live together now? And they just appeared at a convention this weekend, you should check the pictures and reports here http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/index.php?title=Salute_to_Supernatural_Chicago_2008 Jared has a photo on his cell phone of Jensen sleeping with his two dogs!  And further on SondheimSubmitted by
EricMontreal22 (15 points) (6 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 07:04.Just cuz Sondheim is basically my top obsession--yeah by the time Last of Sheila came out it seems any romance between the two men was over (from all I can tell--who knows I guess for sure), but Perkins didn't star in Sheila. Sondheim and Perkins, who both loved mysteries and puzzles, wrote the murder mystery movie *together*, but neither appeared on screen. It's an extremely clever little puzzler, with tons of bitchy references to Hollywood actors and gossip of the time and highly recommended. I don't really buy the Hitchcock was gay thing, though I do think human sexuality in all its forms deeply fascinated and interested him, and perhaps scared him a bit in terms of seeing it in himself. As for Rope, it was based on a case that involved gay lovers, and the screenplay was written by Arthur Laurents--openly gay--so I think that could play as much a part as Hitchcock's directing. I do wish it had been cast as originally intended with my fave, Monty Clift as one of the young ones and Cary Grant as their old professor but apparantly the actors agents knew that casting might be too dangerous--Jimmy Stewart seems so embarassingly unaware of the gay subtext that the prof coulda had an affair with his student.
Jenson & JaredSubmitted by
Bill S (1844 points) (373 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 07:20.Well, the guys DO share a house together, so they're halfway to fullfilling the fantasies of most of the people reading this. :)
Wait.Submitted by
They really do live together? Oh, I don't like where my mind just went....
Read my books! Explore "Brent's Brain" at http://www.brenthartinger.com Average (1 vote):  I do. I like where it wentSubmitted by
Jeremymlad (623 points) (129 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 14:47.I do. I like where it went just fine!
Well, the story I read...Submitted by
Bill S (1844 points) (373 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 17:39....which I can't seem to find anymore, is that Jensen Ackles was living with another friend who then decided to sell his house. That left Jensen in need of place to stay, so Jared Padelecki put him up at his place. It's a two-story house-Jared's on top, Jensen on the bottom. I CAN'T be the only one who thinks it should be the other way around. :) Sacto's folly, Mouse's misstep, and Roddy's rodSubmitted by
wagville (863 points) (179 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 12:27.Thanks, Brent, for the eloquent words regarding Sacramento Music Theatre. The one thing I would add is that everyone's vote is their private right, and no one should be punished for it...however, when Eckern contributed to a campaign like this -- using, you might say, money he made from the toils of gay artists -- then it's hard not to kick up a fuss about it. As one of the more rabid fans of the Tales books, I couldn't read Michael Tolliver Lives; I thought it so went against the style and history of the previous books that I just didn't want to know about it, and bleeped the first thirty pages out of my mind and returned to my non-Maupin-shared status quo. I hope the new book can be read without the Tolliver book, otherwise I'll just go back to my little delusional world where the series ended before it. And...not that I'm size-obsessed or anything, but common (very common!) knowledge is that Tab might not have been able to accommodate Roddy's sausage; it was known to be one of the more expansive kielbasas in the land of dreams.
The blog doesn't mean to brag, but its posts are frequently over nine inches.  Actually Hitch was a Fag-HagSubmitted by
David Ehrenstein (7805 points) (1725 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 13:58.Read Arthur Laurents Original Story By for all the details on the shooting of Rope. Hitch was an incredibly sophsiticated amn. he delighted in gossip and 'scandal," and spent his entire career pushing the envelope of what could be shown on screen during the heyday of the "Production Code." He "got away with murder" a zillion times over. Gayness figures no only in Rope and Strangers on a Train but North by Northwest as well via Martin Landau's devotion to his boss James Mason.
Nicholas Ray was bisexual. All the details can be found in Mostly About Lindsay Anderson by Gavin Lambert, who was Ray's on-again/off-again lover for many years. Ray was carrying on with Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo during the Rebel shoot. Also key is Live Fast, Die Young: The Wild Ride of the Making of "Rebel Without a Cause" by Lawrence Frascella and Al Weisel whihc has all the poop.
JAMES DEAN WAS GAY. NOT BISEXUAL -- GAY!!!!!
His lover, and S&M slave, was a part-time actor named jack Simmons. In Rebel he's the guy who hands Dean the knife at the fight outside the Griffith Observatory. There's a great story in the book about how one night Dean and Simmons tried to pick Jack Larson (aka. "Jimmy Olson") up for a three-way, but Jack freaked out and turned them down. To the regret of all his friends -- especially Frank O'Hara (who worshipped Dean like a God.)
After Dean's death Simmons gave up acting and made a successful career for himself in real estate. The house Warhol and company used to shoot Heat in was rented to them by Simmons. Wheneer anyone brought up Dean's name Simmons would burst into tears. He loved him above all else until the day he died.  Wasn't there..Submitted by
j U d E (3081 points) (793 posts) on Tue, 2008-11-18 18:37... a rumor once, that George Eads and Eric Szmanda were a couple. But I guess it was just that, a rumor. To Brian and his question - I very very often find answers to my 'stupid questions' on Wikipedia. No kidding! I knew about 'imho' but I checked Wikipedia and there it was! It can also mean 'in my honest opinion', apparently. I didn't know about 'kitty-corner' either and couldn't find it on Wikipedia. But English not being my mother tongue I have an above-average translation site (http://dict.leo.org/ -> German into English, French, Italian, Spanish and Chinese) I often go to and this is what I did for 'kitty-corner' and now I know what it means! And simply Google-ing often helps too. I don't know about Jared, but for Jensen Ackles, may gaydar pinged ever since I saw him on Dawson's Creek (yeah yeah, I know..) -----------------------------------------------------
 Okay, call me shallow...Submitted by
Jamie (1544 points) (350 posts) on Wed, 2008-11-19 12:23.but once my eyes found that picture of Wilson Cruz, I couldn't even focus on what the question was....thanks for that!
 That I understand !Submitted by
Novinous (447 points) (94 posts) on Wed, 2008-11-19 14:38.I find him extremely sexy !
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News, Reviews & Commentary on Gay and Bisexual Men in Entertainment and the Media
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Geez
Nicholas Ray gets it on with everybody. I had heard about him getting down with Natalie Wood during Rebel, but I never heard about Sal Mineo.
I did, however, hear rumors that Sal Mineo and James Dean had a romantic relationship, but apparently Sal Mineo started those rumors. I think in reality Sal was VERY attracted to James Dean, and James had told Sal to use that attraction during filming - which clearly happened, because there is a ridiculous amount of chemistry between those two.
Randomly, I remember reading that Nicholas said he had a tempestuous "spiritual marriage" with James Dean.
There was a lot of gayness going on on that set.
i thnk the Sal/Dean rumors are false
Read my books! Explore "Brent's Brain" at http://www.brenthartinger.com no votes
Giant