In a continued effort to bring you all that is important in the world of gay entertainment and ensure that you are being spoon-fed images of gorgeous, commoditized manflesh, we present the newly-minted AfterElton Briefs. Following the usual assortment of carefully-selected news items, interested readers can find a refreshing pic of a hot man in underwear after the jump. Yes, we're serious.

• Happy birthday to gay singer/songwriter Darren Hayes! The former Savage Gardener turns 36.

• The new Broadway show Glory Days, about four high school friends who reunite after their first year of college (and one comes out as gay), closed after one performance, the first time since 1983 that a new show has only lasted one night. If you're in the mood for some bittersweet, check out the opening night coverage.

• In Milk-related news ... May 22nd would have been the gay civic leader's 78th birthday, and the city of San Francisco will be unveiling a statue in his honor at City Hall to commemorate the day.

• Over yonder, you can see a sneak peek of Britney's encore "performance" on How I Met Your Mother. Think Neil Patrick Harris gets hazard pay? Oh, I keed, I keed ...

• Finally, an adorable story about Matthew Pope, the openly gay cheerleader recently named Homecoming King of his high school in Kansas, and how much his fellow students love and support him.

And today's Briefs are brought to you by...

From Rupert Everett to Stephen Fry, from Graham Norton to Sir Ian McKellen, there are several openly gay British celebrities who seem to have made the transition across the pond to American consciousness. But one who has yet to do so is 28-year-old comedian and TV presenter Simon Amstell - and in the meantime, I think Americans are missing out.

Amstell first became a part of my life as a co-host on the cult Sunday morning pop music show Popworld (2000-2006), which took an acerbic - not to say savage - approach to its musical guests, as opposed to the fawning approach favored by most TV shows. While I sometimes felt a bit sorry for the bland cheesy pop stars who trotted into the studio, only to be ripped to shreds by Simon, he was also capable of putting the boot in where it was truly deserved.

In an interview with notoriously homophobic reggae star Beenie Man, for example, Simon explained that he had just broken up with his boyfriend, and then asked for a hug. (Beenie Man said no. Simon gave him a banana with his phone number written on it). In an interview with Lloyd Banks, of 50 Cent’s macho, humorless G-Unit, Simon innocently asked “When was the last time you said ‘Come on fellas, get into the spirit! It’s gay night!’” In an interview with the fat rapper Bizarre, of Eminem’s group D12, Simon first asked to touch his stomach, and then, when Bizarre refused, said “I bet you’ve let Eminem touch it.”

That’s not to say that Amstell necessarily let his gay guests get off easily. In an interview with U.K. gay mag Attitude last year, former Savage Garden star Darren Hayes talked about visiting Popworld in order to promote his 2004 album The Tension and the Spark. Hayes was still closeted at the time, and according to him:

“I sat on Simon’s couch and we were in the middle of the interview and he said ‘so, when are you going to come out then?’ [...] I said ‘Excuse me?’ and he said ‘well, you're obviously gay, but why won't you come out?’ My reaction was so violent. Rather than deny it I said ‘Oh, you want to talk about my sex life, do you?’ [Simon] blinked and I said ‘Yeah, I like to f***, actually. I'm probably more of a top and if you lay on your back I'll show you how I like to f***.’”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, this part of the interview was cut when the segment aired. While Hayes refers to Amstell as “a total prick”, he admits that this event was crucial in spurring him to come out (which he eventually did in 2006):

“I had to come out after that [...] I couldn't let any other complete stranger have that power to rubbish me in the public again. [...] I couldn't allow my sexuality to be this flimsy carpet underneath me that could be ripped out at a moment’s notice.”

This episode leaves me torn: While I don’t generally approve of forced outings, and while I’m sympathetic to Hayes, I do also have a certain sympathy for Amstell’s approach of refusing to treat homosexuality as a dirty secret that can’t be mentioned.

For more on Amstell and some clips of him on his show, click on through the jump...

Out singer Darren Hayes

Every Friday our friend Colin over at NewNowNext tips us off to what's hot in popular music. Enjoy!

Video of the Week: Darren Hayes – “Casey”

Gay Australian singer Darren Hayes does futuristic-meets-‘80s-video-game for his third single from solo album The Delicate Thing We’ve Made. That Casey-mobile takes him all sorts of places! Check out the video after the break!

Raveonettes video – “Candy"

Lust, Lust, Lust may be the name of the game for The Raveonettes, but the Danish duo’s latest work is more bare and affecting. Watch their new music video for single “Candy.”

Robyn NewNowNext interview

Pocket Swedish songster Robyn will take you down! Konichiwa B*tches! Before her first U.S. live performance ever, Robyn spoke exclusively with NewNowNext about her new video and her duet with Snoop Dogg.

New R.E.M. single - "Supernatural Super Serious"

From their upcoming album, Accelerate – the guys will be on CD Number 14 with this one – R.E.M. has a new single, “Supernatural Super Serious,” ready for listening.

Out R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe

Missy Elliot video – “Ching-a-Ling”

It’s the first ever 3-D music video, but if you’ve misplaced your specs, Missy Elliott’s “Ching-a-Ling” video is still major entertainment.

New Nada Surf – Lucky

New York band Nada Surf has a Lucky new album – and could be poised for a much-deserved popular breakthrough.

• The New York Times' Ben Brantley has mostly glowing things to say about Charles Busch's Die Mommie Die! Alas, he doesn't say anything about Van Hansis!

• Out Aussie singer Darren Hayes causes a minor ruckus trying to update his blog. I can SO relate!

• Queerty interviews the always hilarious and insightful Dan Savage.
  

• Stephen Fry is filming a documentary about driving across America and wants you to snap pictures of his car if you see him. I guess this means he's too cheap to hire his own publicists.
  

• Lance Bass will be in New York, New Jersey, Chicago and elsewhere to promote his autobiography which is out tomorrow.

• If this trashy British magazine just LOVES Mark Indelicato then what's with the tacky pictures?

Gay popstar Darren Hayes (formerly of Savage Garden and now solo) played in Sydney last night and here are a few pics from the show. If you're not familiar with Hayes's work, you can check out his latest album, This Delicate Thing We've Made, over here.

Thanks to Arjanwrites, I caught wind of Darren Hayes new video "On the Verge of Something Wonderful" from Hayes upcoming CD This Delicate Thing We've Made. In case you've forgotten, Hayes is the former member of Savage Garden who recently came out -- and his video reflects that sense of newfound freedom. I never paid much attention to Savage Garden, but based on the strength of this single, I'm looking forward to the album. (Although I find the video's use of Janice Dickinson to be rather odd!)

Rounding out our Videodrama: Musical Edition, I've also got another clip from Grizzly Bear which features the out singer Ed Droste (interviewed on the mainpage today, the orginal video for "Go West" from the Pet Shop Boys which is the gayest song with the least gay video I've ever seen, and Houston Bernard's "Say Goodbye" which is currently Number Two on Logoonline's Click List.

Enjoy!