Gale begins work on Street Time tomorrow, playing a rock star just out of prison, with a marriage that, according to the unofficial website, will remind everyone of the Curt Cobain/Courtney Love-fest. He'll be filming for at least two weeks, and will appear in two episodes of the Showtime drama which premieres on August 6. The news page says "if you want a hint about what Gale Harold is going to do for the series, rent the DVD Performance, starring Mick Jagger."

[For those who haven't seen it, reviewer Tom Keogh reports that the 1970 British film revolves around a London gangster who has to hide away for a while and ends up staying with a fading rock star played by Jagger. The latter recognizes something of his old, daring self in the violent criminal, and after pushing open the boundaries of the hood's experience with psychedelics, the two men begin to intertwine as one. The film is an exciting pool of ideas about real and presumed power, about the mysteries of "performance" as a pressing outward toward an abandonment of identity and embrace of revelation. Beneath it all, however, is the idea that the worlds of these two men--pop shaman and underworld soldier--are not dissimilar in their self-serving goals.]

Coincidentally, the Stones arrived in Toronto last night, as Mick and co. will be performing at the SARS benefit concert in Downsview Park tomorrow. Perhaps he and Gale could hook up later on and swap stories? Stranger things have happened........ LOL

Particles of Truth will be screened at the 4th annual Woodstock Film Festival, which takes place in New York, September 17-21. The full lineup will be announced at the kick-off News Conference, August 18th at the Knitting Factory in NYC. Filmmakers and cast members are expected to attend the opening night screenings and WFF's Opening Night Gala, set for September 18.

Principle photography for Season 4 of QAF begins on September 29. Many familiar faces will be back in Pittsburgh, and there will be some surprises as well. Stay tuned for updates on cast members and Property management.

Read the full story.

Several new wallpapers have been added to the couples page at Intense.

In addition to discussing the Queer Fear anthology, Mathieu told Michael he wanted to talk about the various articles he has written for the Advocate, and asked why there is such a huge fascination with the show. Michael replied, "QAF is the first show of it's kind, ever. It gets a lot of criticism and I've heard a lot of the criticism and I've addressed some of [it] in some of the pieces. What I tend to hear the most is gay men saying, 'I don't know anyone like that,' you know, or 'that's not my life.' And it's interesting... to me, it's a manifestation of internalized homophobia, because what we're basically saying by that is 'every show has to represent us' and the minute art starts to have an obligation to represent YOUR life then it ceases to be art and it starts to become a commercial for a certain kind of lifestyle. Traditionally, going right back to "An Early Frost" which is one of the ones Ron and Dan produced--it was an AIDS drama in 1984, I think--it was criticized for showcasing guys with AIDS who were too rich, and too white, and they lived in a beautiful condo, and that was supposed to be a problem. And then you get gay shows who show gay people as derelicts, who live in gutters, and that's supposed to be bad because that represents us badly as well; so basically what we're saying is that we're never going to be happy. I think until we get to the point where we can let these artists tell THEIR story, and if we find something in it that relates to us, that's wonderful; if not, let's just enjoy it for what it is."

More information on the Queer Fear Fiction Anthology
The dark pleasures and anxieties of the Queer Fear books have their roots in the nightmarish, viral machinations of aids and homophobia, as well as the ghoulish, old-fashioned thrills of confronting things that go bump in the night. The original Queer Fear won the Queer Horror Award, and was a finalist for a Spectrum Award and two Lambda Literary Awards and is described on queerhorror.com as "a striking and ambitious collection of gay horror fiction by some of today's hottest authors and talented newcomers, covering a wide range of creatures of the night and all manner of urban terrors. These dark and sometimes disturbing tales expand the boundaries of the horror genre, with the sexuality of their protagonists a point of reference for the "horror" of otherness that defines and, at times, divides us." Queer Fear II: Gay Horror Fiction builds on the successes of its predecessor. The book is edited by Michael Rowe and published by Canada's irreverent Arsenal Pulp Press. James Huctwith illustrated the covers for both Queer Fear and Queer Fear II.

Rhinoceros Eyes, now locked as the official title for Gale's latest indie film (a change to "Prop House" had been rumored late last year) has been submitted to the 28th Toronto International Film Festival®, taking place September 4 to 12, 2003. The complete Film Title List, by programme, of all films to be screened will be available on Tuesday, August 19, 2003, after 2:00 PM.

It's a done deal... the Corvette will be back on screen in season 4! (whether it will bring Michael and Hunter back to Pittsburgh has yet to be determined). For those of you who said you liked Brian in his new vehicle, you will be happy to know that QAF has made arrangements with the owner of the Stingray to use the car for several episodes starting this Fall, after which the car will likely be put up for sale (pending a possible 5th season of the show).

Glen Hanson, the illustrator who inked the cartoon of the QAF Gang for fab magazine a while back, has been hard at work with his partner Allan Neuwirth on CHELSEA BOYS, the book, which will be in stores early in September 2003, and available for order online by late summer. The book is based on the popular comic strip of the same name, about three gay roommates, as different as can be from one another, living together in the heart of Chelsea. On October 23, 2003, a two-week art show will open at the Leslie-Lohman Gay Art Foundation Gallery in Soho, New York City, displaying dozens of original strips from the first five years of "Chelsea Boys" syndication. A new line of greeting cards featuring the strip's characters is also in the works. Alan Cumming (actor/writer/director) says, "Chelsea Boys is not only hilarious, witty and sociologically spot on, but often really touching and sometimes bitingly provocative. Glen Hanson draws as brilliantly as he and Allan Neuwirth write. More, more, give me more, big boys." Now that's a ringing endorsement!

seemyparty.com has a slideshow from the Babylon Tour stop in Toronto last month. Try the direct link, or search for ENTER BABYLON TORONTO, June 7, 2003. You might see yourself... plenty of crowd shots and individual/couple poses. The last stop for the Babylon Tour is in Seattle tonight!

From indieWIRE.com:
iPOP traveled to LA for the IFP Los Angeles Film Festival during its final several days. Among those posing for the camera were filmmakers Helen Stickler, George Hickenlooper, Jennifer Elster and and fest director Richard Raddon. [The photo of Jennifer at the bar is about halfway down the page linked above. Photo credit: Brian Brooks/ © indieWIRE]

"If you look at pay cable, there is all this interesting and sometimes wonderful stuff starting to happen. But, more and more, it's happening only on cable, as opposed to network TV," said Suzanna Danuta Walters, a Georgetown University professor of women's studies and author of "All the Rage: The Story of Gay Visibility in America" (University of Chicago Press).

As Walters puts it in applying the principles to gay identity: "One of the measures of really progressive gay representations is when gays are not just tokenized accessories to heterosexual life, but are depicted as producing, living in and benefiting from a rich and vibrant multicultural gay community. And that's what you are starting to see on pay cable." Showtime's "Queer as Folk," which ended its third season Sunday, is an example of a series moving in that direction.

"My take on 'Queer as Folk' in the early days is that it did show a gay world, but it was gay world denuded of depth and community. It was the gay world as disco and drugs - a silly, narrow version of gay life," Walters said.

"But this season, it started asking political questions, questions about identity, and questions about AIDS. And, in that process, it started showing the many-tentacled layers of the gay community to which these characters are connected. 'Queer as Folk' started getting political this year, and that made a big difference," she added.

[...] "What's happening on pay cable with these images is a good thing," Walters said. "But I'm also afraid that we're going to have an increasingly ghettoized world." [full story]

ProudWear.com has some interesting and fun items you can order online, including t-shirts with logos from the various Pride festivals this year. Visit proudwear.com for more information.

Many fans have been emailing me to ask if there will be a season 4 of QAF. The answer is a resounding yes! The folks are due back this September to begin filming the new episodes. And what about Brian's car? Will Mikey return with the 'vette, or will some lucky new driver's seat get to support Mr. Harold's tush? Well, it seems the producers are interested in bringing the Corvette back for several episodes, but are still in negotiations with the car's owner.

Courtesy of Hal's Lair:
Hal has completed taping I Love the 70s. The show will air in August on VH-1. For those who missed Hal on the G4 channel, Jenny has prepared a page of screen caps and video clips of Hal's appearances on Players and hosting the five-part special, Top 100 Games of All Time. [Revised] In keeping with the "top 100" theme, Hal also provided commentary for TNN's 100 Most Irresistible Women special.

The folks at Duchovny.net, who have a penchant for 'bare naked mulders' (and what fan of the X-files doesn't? ), are hosting a new David & Gale page (still in the works) with a link to photos from the Hollywood and Broadway Salute to Lesbian and Gay Pride 2003 -- many of which we've seen on wireimage and filmmagic.com, but all assembled here on one incredible photo page! If you enjoy David as much as you enjoy Gale, be sure to check out Jen's fabulous fan art at In-X-plicable.org as well.