Best. Gay. Week. Ever. (February 29, 2008)

IT'S OLD NEWS BECAUSE SAME-SEX PARTNERS GET THANKED ALL THE TIME
It was great to see No Country For Old Men's producer Scott Rudin thank his partner John Barlow and even refer to him as "Honey" at Sunday night's Oscar ceremony.

However, if you weren't watching the actual event, then you probably wouldn't know that he had done so given that virtually no traditional media mentioned the fact. Of course, maybe they used the Academy's official transcript which mysteriously didn't include Rudin's same-sex shout out (kudos to Goodasyou.org for spotting the omission which was later fixed).

Even if you did watch the telecast, the camera didn't pan to John as Scott declared his devotion. I guess you need to be a lesbian of Ellen DeGeneres or Melissa Etheridge's stature to warrant that treatment. I realize Scott is a middle-aged bald, white guy with a middle-aged partner as opposed to a middle-aged white guy with a hot girlfriend twenty-five years younger — cough Harrison Ford cough — but I still find it odd that not one news report mentioned the "Honey" comment or that we never saw Barlow.

The Oscars was rather gratifying for me in a personal respect as Cynthia Wade's documentary Freeheld won the Oscar for best documentary short subject which tells the story of Laurel Hester, a New Jersey lesbian who fought the local government for the right to leave her pension to her partner Stacie Andree. It's not a reach to say that Laurel's fight helped prod New Jersey to legalize civil unions for its citizens.

Vanessa Roth, Stacie Andree, Cynthia Wade

I was involved in this story from very early on — when I wrote for the BigGayPicture, a political blog. I was one of the first folks Laurel's friend Dane Wells contacted about the story, and I covered it extensively, doing one of only two interviews Laurel gave to the media, until she won her case (she died a few months later). It was surreal to see a movie based on a story I know so well score an Oscar with a billion people watching!

WHEN I WEAR RED I LOOK LIKE A GIANT TOMATO
I've mentioned before that in certain respects I'm a bad gay boy. I have a hard time color coordinating my shoes and socks, I hate interior design, and I'm as likely to end up at a Tupperware party as the White Party (just FYI, both are very unlikely!)

But I have to admit I totally have a thing for beautiful, iconic women so I do watch the Oscars in part to see the celebs babed out and looking, well, fabulous. And Sunday night's best dresses came straight out of Chris De Burgh's "Lady in Red" though most were actually worn in part to support raising awareness of breast cancer.

Starting upper right corner and moving clockwise we've got friend-of-gays everywhere Katharine Heigl rocking that outfit. Anne Hathaway goes a little more demure, a little more classic while Helen Mirren shows over fifty need not mean being old-fashioned.

Personally, I wouldn't call Heidi Klum "iconic" and I actually hate that dress, but, hey, I needed a fourth picture! (And, yes, I know I didn't discuss counter-clockwise. It's midnight and I'm deadline. Sue me!)