Weekend Meme: Tony Kushner Snubbed By CUNY (But Not Critics), Plea Deal in Clementi Case, and Eddie McClintock's Lost Shirt

Happy Mother’s Day everyone!

The big news seems to be that The X Factor: USA has named Nicole Scherzinger (whose breasts can compete with Cheryl Cole) and a Brit named Steve Jones as hosts of the show. With the already confirmed judges Cheryl Cole (zero name recognition in the States), and L.A. Reid (great cred, but not exactly a big name), Simon better hope that he can iron out a deal with Paula Abdul by Sunday.

Thomas Roberts sits down with Towleroad to talk about his new gig on MSNBC, being out, and just generally being a hunk.

USOC official Peter Vidmar has resigned his position after having his anti-gay past brought up by activists and athletes alike.

Nick At Night is developing an original sitcom called Daddy’s Home about a stay-at-home dad, starring Scott Baio. After his reality show and his Twitter gaffes, I’m stunned that he’s considered a hot property for a family sitcom.

It’s still a full year before the Smithsonian’s Art of Video Games exhibit opens, but you can already sound off on the games that they include. This is shaping up to be a geek fight of epic proportions.

Molly Wei, the neighbor who was charged in Tyler Clementi’s suicide has entered a plea deal requiring education, community service, and that she testify against Clementi’s roommate Dharun Rav.

A judge has halted the deportation proceedings of Henry Valandia, a Venezuelan national married to U.S. citizen Josh Vandiver. This comes on the heels of Attorney General Eric Holder vacating the deportation decision in another case.

 After Tony Kushner’s honorary degree from CUNY was tabled after a single committee member called him anti-Israel, the plot thickens, and the reasoning stretches to the breaking point.

Speaking of Tony Kushner, his new play The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism With Key to the Scriptures is getting rave reviews, so maybe he can get a shiny new Tony instead of an honorary degree.

Keanu Reeves is in talks to ruin Akira. Somebody come to their senses, please.

MTV is fast tracking a new comedy based around comedian Bo Burnham. I’m torn, because I often find myself laughing at Burnham, but his gay jokes skate over the edge at times.

Anti-gay groups are spending money at the state level in unprecedented amounts, including my home state of West Virginia. But nobody is quite sure where the money is coming from.

It turns out that while it might help to be gay to be in the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, it’s certainly not required.

While I do love Laura Linney, I have trouble imagining her as Eleanor Roosevelt. But not nearly as much trouble as I have imagining Bill Murray as FDR.

Thor is burning up the domestic box office, headed towards an estimated $65 million opening, with Fast Five raking in another $34 million. The two wedding movies, Something Borrowed and Jumping the Broom are opening to fair box office in the $13 million. Is everyone taking mom to the movies?

Brendan Frasier is going to play William Tell. To Americans, that seems like a short movie, with an arrow to the apple and it’s over. But evidently Tell is also a historical figure in Europe who led a rebellion against Austria that helped establish Switzerland. Who knew?

Barbra Streisand and Larry Kramer have failed to bring The Normal Heart to the big screen for 25 years. Streisand says it’s because Kramer wouldn’t budge on the screenplay he wrote, while Kramer says that Streisand rewrote the play to make her Dr. Emma Brookner the star and marginalized the gay characters. How about we give the script to Neil Patrick Harris and finally get a movie?