December 12, 2019 Edition of the Bay Area Reporter

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Holiday gift ideas

RuPaul is in the Hall

ARTS

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13

Smuin Ballet

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Countess Katya

The

www.ebar.com

Serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities since 1971

Gay man confirmed as 9th Circuit judge by Lisa Keen

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he Senate voted 53-40 Tuesday afternoon to confirm a gay man to the nation’s largest federal appeals court. Patrick Bumatay’s confirmation December 10 to the 9th Courtesy Department of Justice U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals makes him Patrick Bumatay the second openly was confirmed as gay man to be ap- a judge to the 9th pointed to a fed- U.S. Circuit Court eral appeals bench of Appeals. seat. The first was Todd Hughes, appointed by President Barack Obama to the U.S. Circuit Court for the Federal Circuit and confirmed by the Senate in 2013 by a 98-0 vote. Charles Moran, managing director of the national Log Cabin Republicans, said the group was “heartened” by Bumatay’s confirmation, adding that it makes him “the highestranking LGBT jurist in the nation.” “He is an accomplished prosecutor with solid experience, and we’re thankful to President Trump for pushing forward with Patrick’s nomination and the Senate confirming him,” said Moran. “I know all Americans will welcome Patrick’s arrival on the 9th Circuit, bringing some sanity back to the circuit most known for being out of the mainstream.” The vote on Bumatay, 41, was along strict party lines, with 53 Republicans voting for confirmation, 40 Democrats and independents voting against, and seven senators not voting. The Senate’s two out members – lesbian Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) and bi woman Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) – voted against confirmation. The sprawling 9th Circuit is the nation’s largest federal appeals court, with 29 seats and jurisdiction over 20% of the nation’s population, covering California and eight western states. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which has 12 judges, deals specifically with disputes involving international trade, government contracts, and federal personnel, among other things. Bumatay’s nomination was opposed by California’s two Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris. During Bumatay’s October 31 confirmation hearing, Feinstein said she appreciated the diversity Bumatay would bring to the bench but that she did not think he has the experience necessary for the job. Feinstein voted against confirmation; Harris was not present for the vote. Bumatay worked in the White House Office of Legal Counsel under President George W. Bush and has worked as a federal prosecutor in San Diego since 2012. He graduated from Yale University and Harvard Law School. Civil rights groups were opposed to Bumatay. Lena Zwarensteyn, fair courts campaign director at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, said Bumatay’s confirmation is part of the president’s “shameless effort to reshape the 9th Circuit.” “The confirmed nominee’s record on civil rights is beyond troubling,” Zwarensteyn said in a statement. “He has served as a political operative in the Trump administration and has pushed a far-right agenda. For example, Bumatay played a central role in reinstating policies that perpetuate the mass incarceration of communities of color. He also played a key role in vouching for the nominations of anticivil rights nominees Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh during their Supreme Court confirmation fights.” See page 9 >>

Vol. 49 • No. 50 • December 12-18, 2019

Harassment, threats lead to restraining orders in Castro Castro Community on Patrol officers Brian Hill, left, and Greg Carey walk about the Castro neighborhood on a recent Friday night.

by John Ferrannini

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s the holiday season brings shoppers to the Castro, residents and merchants are weary of incidents of harassment of women – employees and customers – despite the fact that in at least two cases, stay-away orders have been issued to two men, according to copies of the orders obtained by the Bay Area Reporter, and court records.

Masood Samereie, a straight ally who is president of the Castro Merchants business association, said that he has not heard of the two individuals who are the subjects of the orders harassing anyone since the summer. “We are working closely with Supervisor [Rafael] Mandelman’s office and the Mission Station police captain (on safety), and, as a matter of fact, got additional foot patrol officers,” Samereie said. There will be extra officers “in the area

of Market Street between Castro Street and 19th Street” between 6 a.m. and 1 a.m., as well as around Jane Warner Plaza and the Eureka Valley/Harvey Milk Memorial Library through the holidays, according to spokesmen from the San Francisco Police Department. Ronald Mitchell, 44, was ordered by a San Francisco judge May 8 to stay at least 50 yards away from Orphan Andy’s restaurant at 3991 See page 10 >> Rick Gerharter

5 seats on Castro cultural district board up for election by John Ferrannini

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welve people are running for the first five seats on the inaugural advisory board of the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District. The election takes place Saturday, December 14, according to a news release from the district. Anyone who shows up can vote. Jesse Oliver Sanford, one of the candidates who is also current governance chair for the district, said the voting criteria were “intentional.” “The Castro is not just a neighborhood but a global symbol of the LGBTQ community, and we wanted to recognize and encourage all the various commitments different folks have to it, particularly in the face of the housing crisis,” Sanford wrote in an email. Subsequent elections will be held in the coming months for the remaining 10 seats on the advisory board, according to Sanford. “If someone loses they will be able to run again,” Sanford, a gay man who lives in the Castro, said in a phone interview with the Bay Area Reporter. “The reason we are doing three elections – it was [LGBT Community Center executive director] Rebecca [Rolfe’s] idea – is that picking everyone in a single meeting can throw the direction of the organization.” Rolfe did not respond to a request for comment. Sanford said that the second election is expected to be held in January or February, and that there will be a public notice of 30 days before it occurs. Shaun Haines, a gay black man who is part of the cultural district’s working group, which currently oversees the district’s governance, is also running for the board. He said that one reason the elections are being staggered is to ensure that “we will have the diversity, equity, and inclusion required for us to do a good job.” Elizabeth Lanyon, a lesbian who has been involved with the cultural district for five months, said that she is running for the advisory board to make sure different communities are part of it. “My main goal with running for the cultural district is to ensure diversity is represented, that lesbians have a voice in the process and a seat at the table,” Lanyon wrote in an email to the B.A.R. “We live and work in the Castro, some of us own businesses and homes in the Castro. “It’s important for the leadership of the cul-

Courtesy Castro LGBTQ Cultural District/Rick Gerharter (Haines)

Shaun Haines, left, Jesse Oliver Sanford, and Elizabeth Lanyon are three of the 12 candidates vying for seats on the inaugural advisory board of the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District.

tural district to be representative of the people who contribute to the vibrant neighborhood fabric of the Castro,” she added.

Third LGBTQ district in SF

The Castro cultural district is the third cultural district that seeks to define locations in San Francisco that have a special significance for the LGBTQ community. The first was the Compton’s Transgender Cultural District – named after Compton’s Cafeteria, a diner at Turk and Taylor streets that closed in 1972 where transgender people rebelled against police harassment in 1966 – three years before the Stonewall riots. The second was the Leather and LGBTQ Cultural District, which was established in the South of Market neighborhood that’s synonymous with leather, bondage, and SM culture and which includes storied bars such as the Eagle, the Stud, and Powerhouse. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors gave final approval to the Castro cultural district in July. Sanford said that by designating certain neighborhoods as cultural districts, the city is trying to help the diverse neighborhoods that San Francisco is known for retain their individual characters in the face of gentrification. “It gives organizations more weight in planning and development they place within the area,” Sanford said. “We’d expect to express our opinion about whether a particular development project adds to or takes away from LGBT culture in the district. If it was the whole city,

our opinion would be diluted.” Haines said he has been involved in the cultural district “since day one,” and that while the advisory board will replace the working group in the “leadership role,” he doesn’t expect that the working group will cease to exist. Haines said that if elected, he hopes to help convene focus groups of those with a stake in the Castro for their needs on different subjects. There has already been one for youth, Haines said, but he wants more for “seniors, women, the trans community, and communities of color.” Haines said that “street-level elements,” multimedia, informational kiosks, and creative art can be used to bring people from the cultural district’s boundaries on mid-Market Street to “the core at Market and Castro.” He hopes that creating these things will help create job opportunities. The heart of the district is centered along the 400 and 500 blocks of Castro Street as well as the surrounding residential area. The district’s boundary also stretches down the neighborhood’s commercial corridor along Market Street to Octavia Boulevard where the LGBT community center is located. It also includes the blocks of Laguna Street where the LGBT senior services agency Openhouse has its offices and affordable senior housing development. Also incorporated into the district is the stretch of Valencia Street where the See page 10 >>

<< Community News

2 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

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Escape

to Palm Springs

Rick Gerharter

Cathedral welcomes World Tree of Hope

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onsul General of Japan Tomochika Uyama holds his folded paper crane that will be placed on the Rainbow World Fund’s World Tree of Hope, during the lighting ceremony at Grace Cathedral Tuesday, December 10. The tree is unique in that it is decorated with

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City refines Milk plaza elevator design by Matthew S. Bajko

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ity officials have refined the design for a new elevator to be built at Harvey Milk Plaza in the LGBT Castro district that will provide access to the Castro Muni Station below. While the glass structure will include space for a fourth stop providing direct access to Market Street, it is slated to open with only three stops due to funding constraints. As the Bay Area Reporter has noted in previous stories, Castro residents and community leaders have demanded that the fourth elevator stop be included in the $9 million project, now “likely” to break ground in the fall of 2020 and take upward of 18 months to complete, according to a spokeswoman for San Francisco Public Works. The agency is working with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency on the design for the elevator. The project is moving forward on its own timeline separate from that of the community-led effort to completely revamp the plaza, as there is no funding for that project’s estimated $11 million price tag. The elevator project is being designed with the larger plaza overhaul

Courtesy DPW

A rendering of the proposed elevator for Harvey Milk Plaza that will improve access to the Castro Muni Station below.

plans in mind. Its construction will result in some cosmetic changes to the plaza, mostly in a sunken terraced portion that is currently fenced off and inaccessible to the public. The see-through elevator bank will be built within it, with a street-level stop accessed directly from Castro Street via a walkway connecting the elevator stop to the existing pathway that snakes through the public

parklet. A second elevator stop will be located at the entry-level into the Castro Muni Station, and a third stop will provide access to the inbound platform level. Incorporated into the elevator project are replacements of the lighting fixtures and paving in the plaza, as well as widening a segment of the See page 10 >>

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<< Open Forum

4 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

Volume 49, Number 50 December 12-18, 2019 www.ebar.com PUBLISHER Michael M. Yamashita Thomas E. Horn, Publisher Emeritus (2013) Publisher (2003 – 2013) Bob Ross, Founder (1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird ARTS EDITOR Roberto Friedman BARTAB EDITOR & EVENTS LISTINGS EDITOR Jim Provenzano ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko • John Ferrannini CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Ray Aguilera • Tavo Amador • Race Bannon Roger Brigham • Brian Bromberger Victoria A. Brownworth • Philip Campbell Heather Cassell • Belo Cipriani • Dan Renzi Michael Flanagan • Jim Gladstone David Guarino • Liz Highleyman Brandon Judell • John F. Karr • Lisa Keen Matthew Kennedy • Joshua Klipp David Lamble • Max Leger David-Elijah Nahmod • Paul Parish Lois Pearlman • Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota Bob Roehr • Gregg Shapiro • Gwendolyn Smith Sari Staver • Tony Taylor • Charlie Wagner Ed Walsh • Cornelius Washington • Sura Wood ART DIRECTION Max Leger PRODUCTION/DESIGN Ernesto Sopprani PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland • FBFE Rick Gerharter • Gareth Gooch Jose Guzman-Colon • Rudy K. Lawidjaja Georg Lester • Dan Lloyd • Jo-Lynn Otto Rich Stadtmiller • Kelly Sullivan • Fred Rowe Steven Underhil • Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Paul Berge • Christine Smith ADVERTISING/ADMINISTRATION Colleen Small Bogitini VICE PRESIDENT OF ADVERTISING Scott Wazlowski – 415.829.8937 NATIONAL ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVE Rivendell Media – 212.242.6863

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Fairness Act isn’t fair

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ast week Congressman Chris Stewart (R-Utah) introduced the Fairness for All Act as an alternative to the Equality Act, which passed the House of Representatives in May. But make no mistake, the Fairness for All Act isn’t fair or for everyone. In fact, it would codify a so-called “license to discriminate” that LGBT rights groups have fought ever since Donald Trump became president and his administration began promising rightwing religious bigots the freedom to act unfairly. The Fairness for All Act would provide federal protections for LGBTQ people in housing, education, and public accommodations; but it simultaneously carves out compliance exemptions for churches and religious organizations, including nonprofits like church-affiliated adoption agencies. That’s the problem: it allows people to act on their prejudices balanced against limited equal treatment. You aren’t afforded equal treatment to commercial services, accommodations or access if someone can deny you by self-exempting based on their religious objection. That’s discrimination. While it may sound good, in practice the religious exemption is a deal-killer, as Pride at Work Executive Director Jerame Davis said in a news release. “The religious exemptions carved out in this bill make it a non-starter for LGBTQ working people,” Davis stated. “If I were cynical, I would see this misguided bill as just a deflection to draw attention and support away from the Equality Act, the only bill currently before Congress that would truly give LGBTQ people the equality they deserve.” The Equality Act would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity for protection – it passed in the House May 17 on a bipartisan vote of 236-173 and would provide legal rights to LGBTQ people who experience discrimination in daily life. Tellingly, the White House opposes the bill, which is unlikely to

Courtesy U.S. Congress

Republican Congressman Chris Stewart

see a vote in a Senate that is controlled by Republicans. But it’s difficult to see how the Fairness for All Act would pass muster with Republicans, except for the provisions granting religious exemptions. Importantly, the Fairness for All Act would erode protections that already exist for people based on race, sex, and religion, potentially rolling back rights that have been on the books for decades. It would expand the number of places and situations in which lawful discrimination could occur, according to a joint statement by the Human Rights Campaign, the NAACP, Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the American Civil Liberties Union. “At the same time, it would introduce new, problematic provisions purportedly seeking to prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity with broad exemptions, essentially licensing discrimination against LGBTQ people and women,” the groups stated. “Communities of color, who suffer from disproportionately higher rates of discrimination and harassment, would be especially vulnerable to harm under these broad exemptions. Our nation’s existing civil rights framework already strikes the right balance when it comes

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to the government’s interest in protecting religious freedom and advancing nondiscrimination, and it is wrong to put into law a different system of protections for LGBTQ people and their families.” Not all LGBTQ organizations have rejected the plan. In fact, the Transgender People of Color Coalition is taking a wait-and-see approach. “Today’s endorsement of federal anti-discrimination protections by conservative religious organizations marks a historic moment in the struggle for full equality for LGBTQ people,” Executive Director Kylar Broadus said in a statement. “Especially for LGBTQ people of color living in conservative communities, building bridges across political and religious divides is essential to securing the basic legal protections that our community so urgently needs.” While Broadus has a point about crossing divides, it’s certain that the Fairness for All Act is not the way to achieve basic legal protections for LGBTQs. Religious belief itself is open to wide interpretation so fails to provide a clear or consistent criteria or application. Even conservatives don’t seem enamored with the proposed bill. Andrea Jones, with the Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Religion & Civil Society, which is part of the Heritage Foundation, said the Fairness for All Act actually undermines underlying issues because it treats sexual orientation and gender identity as illegal discrimination, which the foundation doesn’t agree with. “By adding the subjective, mutable categories of sexual orientation and gender identity to this law, the federal government would in essence declare disagreement on conduct or self-perception to be equivalent to racist bigotry, and no amount of religious exemptions can fix this fatal flaw in the Fairness for All Act,” Jones wrote. While we disagree with Jones’ argument that homophobia and racism can’t be equally despicable, we agree the act is unacceptable. The bottom line is that everyone should be treated equally and fairly, free from arbitrary discrimination, religious or otherwise. By trying to split the baby, Stewart’s Fairness for All Act does not provide a viable solution and pleases no one.t

SF Pride looks to 50th celebration by Carolyn R. Wysinger

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an Francisco Pride is marching into its 50th year. Fifty years of joyous celebrations. Fifty years of struggle. Fifty years of new traditions, 50 years of lost family, and 50 years of making LGBTQ people visible in the city of San Francisco as well as the world. We are excited to welcome the world to our party once again next year and I am excited to serve as San Francisco Pride board president for this 50th year. In 2018, the board of the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee embarked on a three-year strategic theme to build up to this moment. It started with “Generations of Resistance,” followed in 2019 with “Generations of Strength,” and, for next year, “Generations of Hope.” The boards believed then, as we do now, that “generations” represents the people who have come into our city for this special event over the last five decades. Resistance represented the origins when our family took to the street to demand that they be seen and heard as members of the community resist what continues to oppress, and hope for possibilities that may never have been reality in our past. Strength represented the resilience of the community over the years as it has pressed on through the hard times, the losses, and the setbacks, yet continued to grow and exist in a world that tried to keep us silent. As we look toward 2020, we do what Harvey Milk taught us, and that’s to remind the community that we have to have hope. Hope is found in our youth. Hope is found at the prospect of not just surviving but thriving in the coming 50 years. In 2016, SF Pride found itself in a financial struggle. The ensuing boards worked hard to rebuild and help the organization find fiscal stability. With that work done we now turn ourselves to strengthening our relationship with our members and our community. Community building is key to our successes this coming Pride year. Some of the ways that we are working at this will be increasing the

Courtesy Carolyn R. Wysinger

Carolyn R. Wysinger

frequency of our public member meetings and meeting with our community affairs committee to increase the opportunities to engage and support our community. We are also committed to listening to the community recommendations around the pressing issues facing the board. I have often said that many of the organizations in our community started as small groups or events where people could gather for various reasons. Over time, these events and groups grew. When an organization grows its responsibility changes. In 50 years, for example, SF Pride has become a massive event that attracts and influences communities around the world. With that come much larger responsibilities than our founders faced. As we commemorate our past we face the issues of the present. Today we grapple with things like the involvement of law enforcement and corporations in our festival. We are actively engaging in conversations to make sure that

organizations that say they are here for our community do just that. Understanding that the word “safe” means a lot of different things for a lot of people, we are also creating conversations to make sure that our marginalized communities can come out to the festival. These are ongoing conversations and absolutely will not be the last you will hear from us about these matters. There was once a time that I, as a black queer woman, did not come to Pride. I did not attend because I felt that I didn’t really see myself there. Perhaps at a stage here or a booth there but I was not wholly seen as a part of the Pride celebration. One of our major goals is uplift our queer, trans, and people of color communities. This means uplifting black and brown community members and organizations that serve them as honorees, finding ways to help more QTPOC organizations march in our parade, and bringing more QTPOC performers to our stages. Visibility is always key and we remain committed to making that happen in our spaces. There are several ways that community members can help. The first is becoming a member of SF Pride. It is easy to become a member from our website. Also, joining us for our public board and membership meetings. Board meetings are generally the first Wednesday of each month and member meetings are the second Wednesday. The website also has additional information such as how performers can apply to perform at Pride. I am so excited to see all of you in 2020. Let’s make #Pride50 our best year yet! t Carolyn R. Wysinger is the board president of the San Francisco LGBT Pride Celebration Committee. For more information on SF Pride, visit http://www.sfpride.org/.

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Politics>>

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 5

Gay lawyer aims to be first out Orange County legislator

by Matthew S. Bajko

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n Southern California, lawyer Bijan Mohseni is running as a Democrat for the state’s Assembly District 72 seat. If elected, the gay Los Alamitos resident would be the first LGBT legislator from Orange County and the first out LGBT caucus member of Iranian descent. Next door in the Assembly District 73 race, gay Mission Viejo Realtor and grandparent Scott Rhinehart is also running to become the first out state lawmaker from Orange County. He first ran in 2018, losing to incumbent Assemblyman William Brough (R-Dana Point). Brough has since been accused of inappropriate behavior by four women and has drawn two Republican opponents and another Democratic challenger in addition to Rhinehart. The California Democratic Party is backing Rhinehart in the race, as is the statewide LGBT advocacy organization Equality California, which announced its endorsement of Rhinehart Tuesday (December 10). EQCA has yet to endorse in the 72nd Assembly District race, whereas the state Democratic Party is supporting Garden Grove City Councilwoman Diedre Thu-Ha Nguyen, a laboratory cancer scientist. She is one of three Vietnamese American candidates in the race. The others are the incumbent, Assemblyman Tyler Diep (RWestminster), and Republican Janet Nguyen, a former state senator now on the board of the Orange County Foundation. Mohseni, who is also of Mexican descent, is hoping his trio of challengers will split Vietnamese voters, who account for about a third of the electorate in the district, allowing him to be one of the two candidates to advance to the general election in November. The district has also swung to favor Democrats, as has much of the rest of Orange County, where GOP congressional candidates were decimated in the 2018 midterm election. Thus, Mohseni believes the fall contest will be between one of the Democrats and one of the Republicans. “Ideally, I would prefer to be the Democrat at the end of the day,” Mohseni, 27, told the Bay Area Reporter in a phone interview this week. He added that he believes the Assembly seat is one the Democrats can pick up next year. “I wouldn’t be running if I thought I was going to lose,” said Mohseni, who left the law firm he was working at in May in order to focus full-time on his campaign, which he officially launched in September. “The more I researched this race, the more I learned how flippable this is.” His father fled Iran at the time of the country’s Islamic revolution and landed a job as an ice cream truck driver in Southern California and later became a car salesman. His Latina mother was

Courtesy Instagram

Bijan Mohseni is running for an Orange County state Assembly seat.

placed in the foster care system in Los Angeles as a child. His parents met after passing each other on the freeway riding in convertibles and his father drove after his mother to exchange phone numbers. They had four children, with Mohseni the second youngest, and settled in the city of Cyprus. After his father died in 2005, Mohseni’s mother worked four jobs, including as a school crossing guard and a middle school cafeteria worker. While he attended Chapman University, from which he earned a political science degree in 2015, Mohseni ran unsuccessfully for a Cyprus City Council seat in 2012 with the backing of several Republican groups. At 18, he had registered as a Republican and at one point thought of becoming a Catholic priest. Later, after coming out, he re-registered as no party preference and a year ago joined the Democratic Party. He graduated from law school at UCLA in 2018, and during a trip that year to London, met his boyfriend who lives there and teaches science at an inner city school. Mohseni told the B.A.R. that he has always been drawn to public policy, seeing it as a way to help lift up other working class families. “One out of three kids in our district lives in poverty. To me that is unacceptable,” he said. “The current leadership we have isn’t going to cut it, that is why I jumped into this race. If you want something done, you have to do it yourself.” To learn more about Mohseni, visit his campaign website at https://www.bijanforassembly. com/.

EQCA endorses incumbent lawmakers

EQCA this week endorsed a number of incumbent state lawmakers running for re-election in 2020, including the four members of the Legislative LGBTQ Caucus who will be on the March 3 primary ballot. They include gay Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Campbell), lesbian Assemblywoman Sabrina Cervantes (D-Corona), and lesbian Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). Also endorsed was LGBTQ caucus chair gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco). He is

facing two challengers from his left – Democrat Jackie Fielder, a queer progressive activist, and Green Party member Barry Hermanson – and Republican Erin Smith. (As of the B.A.R.’s press deadline Wednesday, the city’s elections department listed the qualification status of the trio of challengers as “pending.”) The four out lawmakers were among those incumbents who received pro forma endorsements from EQCA’s political action committee December 9 due to their having perfect scores the last two years on its scorecard. As expected, the list of endorsees included Assemblyman Miguel Santiago (DLos Angeles), as he has had 100% scores from EQCA since being elected in 2014. As the B.A.R. reported last week, gay educator Godfrey Santos Plata is running against Santiago for his 53rd Assembly District seat. As he would be the first out immigrant elected to the California Legislature, Plata had faulted EQCA for not dual endorsing in the race in an interview with the B.A.R. Assemblyman Mike Gipson (D-Carson) also picked up EQCA’s endorsement. He had been facing a gay opponent for his 64th Assembly District seat, but David Cunningham, whose given name is Devund Keiymontae Tinson, has suspended his campaign. There are at least 18 LGBT candidates for state Assembly and Senate seats said to be running in 2020. The secretary of state is expected to release a final list of qualified candidates December 26.

Your December 5 issue makes clear that the Salvation Army has undertaken an effort to rehabilitate its image within the LGBTQ community [“Salvation Army vows LGBTs are welcome”]. Its pledge not to discriminate against us in providing services is indeed welcome, but it’s also the bare minimum that we and local officials should expect. Strikingly, in both Matthew S. Bajko’s

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EQCA dual endorses in San Diego House race

Also this week EQCA confirmed it was dual endorsing queer San Diego City Councilwoman Georgette Gomez and its board member Sara Jacobs, a straight ally, in the race for the 53rd Congressional District seat. It is an open seat as Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-San Diego) opted not to run for re-election in 2020. Political newcomer Janessa Goldbeck, who is queer and a military veteran, is also running for the House seat. In November, Gomez earned the California Democratic Party’s endorsement in the race. If she wins, Gomez would be only the third LGBTQ community member elected to Congress from California. Thus, EQCA’s decision to split its support between her and Jacobs, a former Hillary Clinton campaign adviser, has been met with criticism from some out leaders in San Diego. In his LGBTQ San Diego County News column posted online December 6, former EQCA state board chair Nicole Murray Ramirez blasted the group as being “out of touch” for its dual endorsement. An EQCA spokesman noted to the B.A.R. that no matter if Gomez or Jacobs wins, either would be a strong advocate for LGBT rights on Capitol Hill.t

Letters >> Salvation Army should apologize

Barry Schneider Attorney at Law

article and the accompanying op-ed, Salvation Army Commissioner Kenneth G. Hodder chose not to take the simplest, easiest action to make amends: apologize for the organization’s long history of homophobia and pledge its unequivocal support for full LGBTQ human rights. Until and unless that happens, I’ll continue to send my charitable dollars elsewhere.

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<< Business News

t Holidays a busy time for watch, candle businesses 6 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

by Matthew S. Bajko

T

he yearly holiday shopping season between Thanksgiving and Christmas is peak sales time for a gay watch designer and a queer-owned candle business that also sells a line of “unmentionables.” For James Reeves, the creator and founder of Diefendorff watches, the four-week period in late November through late December is critical. His watches, which he started selling online in October 2018, retail for $749 or $799 depending on the model and are popular gifts this time of year. “For every kind of retailer it is absolutely essential,”Reeves, who is now based out of Chicago, said about the Christmas shopping season in a recent phone interview. “There are great opportunities with it. People are looking to buy products that have a significant price tag for most people at the holidays.” This year he is running a sale through December 31 where everything on his online store at https:// diefendorffwatches.com/ is 20.19% off. In addition, each purchase comes with a free watchstrap changing device, called a Spring Bar tool. “My experience last year was Black Friday and Cyber Monday for strictly online retailers wasn’t as make-orbreak as it is often made out to be. Certainly web traffic did increase,” said Reeves. “But I found more success after Cyber Monday and leading up to the holidays.” Boy Smells co-founders and life partners Matthew Herman and David Kien, who are both queer, told the Bay Area Reporter in a recent phone interview that the fourth quarter of the year accounts for 40% of their yearly sales. Customers can still order their special holiday candle collections on the company’s website at https://boysmells.com/, but retailers who wanted to stock it in their own

stores needed to place their orders by the end of the summer. “Our product is doing phenomenal in San Francisco,” said Kien. “We are in quite a few retailers there.” Despite the name of their company, which they launched out of their Los Angeles home in 2016, and candle scents like Cedar Stack or Ash ($34), women account for 75% of their business. They are known for the pink boxes their candles come in. “The brand itself is about harnessing both sides of the binary and representing the full spectrum of possibilities,” said Herman.

A revolutionary name

Reeves named his company after a distant relative, Captain Henry Diefendorff, who fought in the Revolutionary War and died on the morning of August 6, 1777, after being ambushed in the woods of Oriskany, New York. Two hundred years later to the day Reeves was born as Diefendorff ’s sixth great-grandson. “I was thinking about creating this company and happened to stumble across his story from Ancestry.com,” said Reeves, 42, who grew up outside of New York City. “He was the son of Swiss immigrants. How could I not name the company after him?” His watches use a Swiss-made movement and are assembled in Ohio with leather straps made in Florida. They ship in packaging made in upstate New York. “It is a global watch,” said Reeves, noting that there are 17 big lines and 76 small lines on the front and side of the watch in honor of the year the colonies declared their independence from Great Britain. He named his debut Cornelius

Courtesy Diefendorff watches

Holiday gift-giving is a key time for Diefendorff watches.

Collection of watches after Cornelius Vancamp, a 17-year-old recruited by Diefendorff who married his daughter. Reeves cemented his idea to design his own watch after meeting a man in a bar at a West Coast airport and asking him about the timepiece he was wearing. “He told me it was a gift from his husband for their wedding. He got choked up,” recalled Reeves, who is currently single. “I knew watches were a way to celebrate a milestone. It means something more than just what time is it.” From a young age watches and clocks fascinated him, recalled Reeves. He liked that a watch was a finishing touch to one’s outfit and a way to express one’s self. Creating a line of watches and finding suppliers willing to work with a boutique company, though, proved challenging. “It was a puzzle I enjoyed figuring out,” said Reeves, who for the last decade has worked as a consultant on

Humanity shines when equality reigns. Diversity and inclusion are central to our mission. We respect human dignity in every interaction with the individuals and communities we serve.

corporate sustainability and social responsibility. For now, he plans to remain as an online-based watch seller. He mainly promotes his company via social media platforms. Shipping is free for U.S. customers, but not for those overseas and in Canada. “For sure it is largely an American audience, in part because of that story. I have had some interest in the U.K., which I find ironic,” said Reeves.

A flicker of an idea

On one of their first dates five years ago Herman, 39, and Kien, 34, talked about wanting to open their own store someday. Both worked in the fashion industry and weren’t very impressed by the shops found in most gay neighborhoods. A few years later Kien, who grew up in Garden Grove, California, suggested they try their hand at candle making, thinking it would be a way to relax from their high-stress, longhour careers. “There are a lot of fires to put out in fashion production and then I go and create my own fire with candles,” he joked. “It is a lot harder than you think. There is a lot of experimenting with ratios of wax and wick and the vessels they come in.” Herman, who is from Austin, Texas, helped select the fragrance profiles, as he wears lots of colognes and likes to burn candles. He likened the process to a “weird” comingling of designing and cooking. “You have a palette of options and what you do with them makes something amazing,” he said. “To me designing a fragrance or a gown is not totally different. It is about a balance of different things and the story you are trying to tell.” They started off by gifting their candles to friends and contacts in the fashion industry. From there the company grew and attracted the notice of other retailers who wanted to carry their product, such as the ZGO store in San Francisco’s LGBT Castro district. “It happened pretty organically up until last year when we hired a real director of sales,” said Herman. They finally moved out of their home to a proper business location last year and now employ 11 people. In 2020 they plan to open their first pop-up stores in certain neighborhoods, such as the Castro, and in 2021 aim to have their own flagship retail location on the West Coast. Next fall they intend to introduce a non-gender specific perfume. They already are selling a line of underwear in both men’s and women’s styles that are all made of the exact same colors and fabrics. “So you can mix and match between genders if you are transitioning,” noted Herman. They don’t ship overseas at the moment but are carried by several London retailers, such as Selfridges. San Francisco is their fifth most popular destination for online orders. “It’s been a wild ride. No regrets but a lot of sleepless nights,” said Herman.

Courtesy Boy Smells

Boy Smells’ Ash candle warms the holidays.

“Nothing beats working for yourself and believing in what you are doing.”

Popping the closet

A gay-owned popcorn company with a flagship store in Dyer, Indiana is selling a specialty box of popped kernels aimed at celebrating an LGBT person who has recently come out of the closet or is marking a coming out anniversary. The Coming Out Box ($34.95 plus shipping and taxes) from Epic Gourmet Popcorn features a trio of popcorn bags in different flavors. The Pride Mix is caramel-coated popcorn dusted with cheddar cheese. The Rainbow Mix sports the colors of the Pride flag in fruit flavors. The Love is Love Mix is a combination of the company’s caramel, kettle corn, and Whoa Mama flavors. Founded in Chicago by business partners Bill Rossi and Dan Earles, who are both gay, the company boasts it is the first and only National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce-certified popcorn company in the United States. It launched in 2017 and sources its popcorn from non-GMO kernels. It uses non-trans-fat cheese for its toppings and pops its kernels in coconut oil. The coming out-themed box debuted in October ahead of National Coming Out Day, which is annually observed October 11. To learn more about the company’s product lineup and to order online, visit its website at http://www. epicpopcorn.com.

Drag pay campaign honors 1st bar

A campaign aimed at setting a minimum booking fee for drag performers will present its first seal of approval to an entertainment establishment this month. The Financial District gay bar Ginger’s will be awarded the honor December 19 during the “C U Next Time” drag show that night. Christened the “Werk is Work!” campaign, San Francisco-based drag queen Alexis Atauri launched the effort in June. It had a stated goal of seeing performers paid “at least” $40 for a two-hour show with a maximum of two numbers, or if paid in tips, that they would be guaranteed baseline compensation of $40 by venue owners who would make up the difference if the audience gave less than that amount. Ginger’s will be given a sticker designed by local queer artist Diego Gomez that it can attach to its door or a wall to signify to patrons it has signed on to the pay initiative. “They really do treat the artists well there and we are all so happy to bring the energy and entertainment into this space,” Atauri told the B.A.R. t Got a tip on LGBT business news? Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 8298836 or e-mail m.bajko@ebar.com.

Community News>>

t Palo Alto to pay $500K in anti-gay bias complaint by Heather Cassell

P

alo Alto City Council members have unanimously approved more than a half-million-dollar payout to a gay Latino man settling a claim of police brutality and homophobia. The settlement, which the council voted on November 18, was to resolve a federal lawsuit filed by the man, Gustavo Alvarez. Attorney Cody Salfen of the Salfen Law Group filed the suit April 29. As part of the settlement, the city’s police department will have to undergo LGBT sensitivity training, City Manager Ed Shikada stated in a November 20 news release announcing the $572,000 payout to Alvarez. Retired Palo Alto Police Sergeant Wayne Benitez was also ordered to write a public letter of apology to Alvarez as part of the settlement. “The city believes that this resolution is in the best interests of all involved – including the police department, its police officers, and Mr. Alvarez,” Shikada stated in the release. Alvarez’s lawsuit had sought $10 million in damages, according to the federal complaint obtained by the Bay Area Reporter. A separate 106-page civil rights complaint, also seeking $10 million in damages, was filed by attorney Salfen and the Gordon Law Group August 30.

The arrest

7.625 in.

According to the federal complaint, Alvarez, for whom Salfen didn’t provide an age, was brutalized by Benitez, who was training an estimated seven other police officers who participated in Alvarez’s arrest outside of his family’s mobile home in Palo Alto’s Buena Vista Mobile Home Park on February 17, 2018. Officers claim they arrested Alvarez for allegedly driving on a suspended license, resisting arrest, appropria-

tion of lost property, and possession of drug paraphernalia, reported NBC News. Palo Alto is one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most affluent cities and home to the elite Stanford University. Alvarez’s home security cameras captured the violent incident where Benitez is seen punching him and slamming his head into the windshield and hood of the car, causing him to bleed and a tooth to come loose. Soon after he became disoriented and his speech started slurring, according to the complaint. Alvarez clearly informed the officers they were on camera. Other officers on the scene didn’t attempt to stop Benitez. They did not report the excessive use of force or call for medical assistance, the complaint says. Salfen released the video (www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtuIzpMohyA) to the media in July. Alvarez does have a criminal record that includes convictions for grand theft, driving under the influence, and burglary, but he claims he’s endured years of harassment by members of the Palo Alto Police Department. He told NBC News that’s why he put up the cameras two years ago. Alvarez has lived in the mobile home with his family since 1997 when they moved to the United States from Mexico, he told the station in an exclusive interview in July. The B.A.R. requested to speak with Alvarez, but Salfen said that he wasn’t available for an interview. At the time of the incident, Alvarez was not on probation or parole. There weren’t any active warrants for his arrest. There weren’t any other lawful reasons for detaining him, according to the complaint. Salfen claimed in the complaint that the police unlawfully arrested 9.75 in. and detained Alvarez for two weeks in

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 7

Courtesy Reddit

The city of Palo Alto recently settled a lawsuit filed by a gay Latino man for $572,000.

Santa Clara County Jail without probable cause. Benitez also mocked Alvarez for being gay, poor, and called him a lowlife during a debriefing of the arrest that was captured on an audio recording from the officers’ microphones on their uniforms they were wearing the night of the incident. “No person deserves to be beaten because they are gay, because they are Latino, because they are poor,” said Salfen. Retired Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge LaDoris Cordell, who’s a lesbian and a former independent auditor for the San Jose Police Department, said in an interview that she was disappointed by the conduct of the sergeant, who knew he was being recorded. “There was no hidden camera here,” said Cordell. “Given that he felt confident enough to be racist, to be homophobic, to use excessive force and believe that there were going to be no repercussions ... that’s really shocking,” said Cordell, who noted that Benitez was

training other officers. “They were learning from him, which made this even worse.” Cordell said that she did not hear another officer telling Benitez to stop using the homophobic language. “Nobody’s speaking up, so they are all buying into it,” she continued, stating that officers are required to report misconduct of other officers. “As far as I know, none of the other officers there stepped up.”

False reports

According to the complaint, in reports and court hearings the officers failed to state the use of force and altered their reasoning for, and accounts of, Alvarez’s arrest. They omitted and mischaracterized key facts in their testimony, the complaint stated. The officers’ accounts of Alvarez’s arrest differed widely from the video captured on the camera and audio from the officers’ microphones on their uniforms. Patrol cars are equipped with five different in-car cameras. However, during the incident they were all

pointed away from the scene and therefore couldn’t sync up with the microphones to provide alternative perspectives of Alvarez’s arrest, according to the complaint. The officers weren’t wearing body cameras. The city approved body cameras as a part of the city’s sixmonth experimental program three months after Alvarez’s arrest. The Palo Alto Police Department is conducting an internal investigation, according to the city manager’s release. Cordell and Salfen have questions about the department dragging its feet on the internal investigation, which hasn’t reached the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office. “It does not take almost a year to investigate this,” said Cordell. “We all saw the video. Do they think that we are going to forget about it? Well, we are not going to forget.” In addition to the federal complaint that was resolved with the payout to Alvarez, there’s an ongoing criminal case, Sean Webby, the DA’s public communications officer, told the B.A.R. Law enforcement officials couldn’t comment further due to the cases being under investigation. Cordell also filed a complaint against Benitez with the city of Palo Alto on July 23. In the complaint she cites Benitez’s racism, homophobia, use of excessive force, failing to report his use of excessive force, and falsifying police reports. She has yet to receive a response from the city, she told the B.A.R. December 9. “It’s a department that has a problem,” Salfen told the B.A.R., saying that the problems are “top-down” and “department-wide.” See page 11 >>

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Š££oÂ˜Â˜Ă°c 25 years as an attorney in Alameda County, there Â?£ÔÞB˜˜Â?ÂŁÂƒ are still only B two LaĂŽÂŒŠ ĂŽoĂ?o tinas who have been appointed ÂŁoĂŽ oĂŻÂŒÂ?RÂ?Ăž Â?ÂŁ ÂŒŠ£ŠĂ? Š| to seats on the bench – out of 82 judges,â€? ĂžÂŒo ĂĽ~ĂśĂžÂŒ BÂŁÂŁÂ?Ă­oĂ?Ă”BĂ?ðž Ăž Condes said, according to a copy of ĂŽBĂ” Â?Ă?Š£Â?\c BĂŽ Ă”BÂ?f vperB her speech. “I am the first Latinx žŠ£çžoÂŁĂž žBĂ?—Â?ÂŁÂƒ B in son to run for Superior Court judge Alameda County. The significance of Ă­Â?oĂŽ ĂžÂŒBĂž £Š çĂ?Š¸oBÂŁĂ” this isĂ”ooÂŁ not lostRo|ŠĂ?ož on me. ÂŒBf “We can’t wait for someone to deĂŠ ÂŁf ĂžÂŒo ÂŁfÂ?BÂŁĂ” ƒçÂ?fÂŽ cide when and how many seats at the of ĂžÂŒož table we get,â€?ĂžÂŒoĂ?ocĂ‹ she added. BĂŽ Ă”BÂ?fž ĂŠ ĂžInĂŽBĂ” ĂžÂŒo oÂŁf the interview, sheŠ| saidĂžÂŒoÂ?Ă? the coun-

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<< Election 2020

t 2 out candidates seek Alameda County judge seat

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Cynthia Laird

Elena Condes, left, a candidate for Alameda County Superior Court Judge, greeted Judge Delia Trevino at her kickoff event last week in Oakland.

Like Condes, Fickes said he’s thought about running for judge for awhile. “I’ve spent most of my career litity’s most vulnerable often “have the gating cases in the public interest,â€? he most to lose,â€? when they encounter said, such as whistleblower retaliation. the criminal justice system. Fickes said that his experiences sĂ´ “We see all of the stressors in court have shaped his judicial philosophy. A‚Ò – domestic violence, mental health, “As a gay man, court cases in my üҋ drugs – and the brunt of that is borne own lifetime affirmed my right to by people who find themselves in the 0ĂœAĂŽ marry my partner and raise our chilcriminal justice system,â€? she said. dren with full legal protections,â€? he §üĂœĂ’ Some of Condes’ endorsers include wrote in an email.Â?ÂŁĂ…çÂ?Ă?Ă° “Over a longÂ?ÂŁĂžŠ career, Â?ÂŁfo¸oÂŁfoÂŁĂž ĂžÂ?Š£B˜ ÂŒo˜¸ |ŠĂ? ĂžÂŒoÂ?Ă? \BçĂ”ož ¸Ă?o¸BĂ?of 1BĂžçĂ?fBĂ° ĂžŠ Ă° oÂ˜Ă­Â?ÂŁ ÂŒBÂŁ Brosnahan and Alameda County SuI have seen and lived justice denied, Â?Ž——Ž§¢ ¸ŠÂ˜Â?\o RĂ?çĂžB˜Â?Ăžðž %Ă?ƒBÂŁÂ?Ă´oĂ?Ă” ÂŒBĂ­o Delia íŠÎof ĂžŠ B˜˜oƒof ÂŒŠÂ˜f BÂŁ ç£BçĂžÂŒŠĂ?Â?Ă´of perior Court Judges TreviĂąo but also seen how the law can create 3ÂŒoĂ°Ă?Ă?o çĂ”Â?ÂŁÂƒ ÂŒŠÂ˜f ĂžÂŒo ¸Ă?ŠĂžoÔÞ žBĂ?\ÂŒ ¸Ă?ŠĂžoÔÞ žBĂ?\ÂŒ ĂžŠ ¸Ă?oÔÔ %" %" v Š£Âƒ and Gregory Syren. Ă´ !n‚A positive social BÂ˜Ă”Š change. So, I would say At the event, supporter Lisa Tracy said 1ç£fBĂ°Ă?Ă” Ă?BÂ˜Â˜Ă° ĂžŠ fožBÂŁf 1ç£fBĂ° oĂ­oÂŁ ĂžÂŒŠçƒŒ Â?Ăž ĂžÂŒoÂ?Ă? fožBÂŁfĂ”ž Š£Âƒ BÂŁĂžÂ?ŽƒŠíoĂ?£žoÂŁĂž that my judicial philosophy is to do òn AÂ?§ü¢Ăœ that she’sĂžŠ known for 10 years. my best always follow the law while ÂśnĂŽ ĂŹÂŽ¢¢nĂŽ ĂžÂŒBĂž ĂžÂŒotoƒŠíoĂ?£žoÂŁĂž |BÂ?˜of ĂŽÂ?ÂŁCondes B¸¸Ă?ŠíB˜ 1縸ŠĂ?ĂžoĂ?Ă” ÂŒo˜f B fožŠ£Ă”ĂžĂ?BĂžŠĂ?Ă” BĂ?o Ă”oĂž |ŠĂ? “For as long as I’ve known Elena, being mindful afford every litigant Ă”\Ă?B¸ B RBÂŁtoBfŠ¸Ăžof ĂžÂŒÂ?Ă” |Ă?ŠÂž ¸ŠÂ˜Â?\oc ĂŽÂŒŠ \Â?Ăžof ¸Ă?BĂ°oĂ? Ă?BÂ˜Â˜Ă° 1BĂžçĂ?fBĂ° B£ŠĂžÂŒoĂ? Ă”ÂŒŠÎ Š| \Â?Ă­Â?˜ Ă–ÂŽ Â?Ž——Ž§¢ she’s been a fearless advocate on the the opportunity to be heard and ÂŽb}Ă—ĂžbÞ×Þ Š£ |B\o žBԗÔ BĂžtreatĂ?Â?ԗÔ ĂžŠ uneven ¸çR˜Â?\sentencing ŠĂ?foĂ?ž in the žŠ£ĂžÂŒ ÂŁÂ?ÂƒÂŒĂž ĂžŠ \B˜˜ |ŠĂ? Â?ÂŁĂžoĂ?ÂŁBÂŽ fÂ?Ă”ŠRofÂ?oÂŁ\o BĂ” ĂžÂŒoĂ° issue of ed with respect.â€? kÂŽĂžbހã ¸çR˜Â?\ Ă” ĂžÂŒo Ă”ožÂ?ÂŽBçĂžŠ£ŠÂŽ criminal justice system,â€? she said. FickesƒBĂžÂŒoĂ?Â?ÂŁÂƒĂ”ž said he has not held a kickoff kĂ—}Ăž Mark ÂŒÂ?ÂŁoĂ”o Fickes is a ĂžoĂ?Ă?Â?ĂžŠĂ?Ă°Ă?Ă” civil rights attor%Ă?ƒBÂŁÂ?Ă´oĂ?Ă” fožŽ žŠçĂ” event yet, but hopesĂ”BÂ?f to soon. Some of Professional headshots / profile pics kã€ô ney who lives in Oakland and is also Š£Ă”ĂžĂ?BĂžŠĂ?Ă” his endorsers include Alameda CounΊç˜f fo|Ă° ĂžÂŒo ¸ŠÂ˜Â?ĂžÂ?\B˜ \Ă?Â?Ă”Â?Ă” oĂŻĂžoÂŁfĂ” kÂŽÂŽ Weddings / Events seeking the seat. He told the B.A.R. in ty Superior Court Judge Tara Flana¸ŠÂ˜Â?\o Ro\BçĂ”o Š£Âƒ Â?ÂŁĂžŠ B |Â?|ĂžÂŒ žŠ£ĂžÂŒc ¸Ă?ŠÂŽ kÂŽÂŽ a phone interview that diversity is one gan, one of the few lesbian members k€ 3ÂŒo ÂŒĂ?Š£Â?\˜o ÔÞĂ?Â?Ă­oĂ” ĂžŠ \ŠíoĂ? ĂžÂŒo ÂŁoĂŽĂ” B\\çĂ?BĂžoÂ˜Ă°c |BÂ?Ă?Â˜Ă° BÂŁf Š£ÂƒĂ?Ă” \Š£Ă”ĂžÂ?ĂžçĂžÂ?Š£ ƒçBĂ?ÂŽ ĂžoÔÞoĂ?Ă” BĂ?o he ĂžĂ?Ă°Â?ÂŁÂƒ of the reasons decidedĂžŠ to —oo¸ run. of the bench, and gay East Bay pokĂŁ ÂŒŠ£oĂ”ĂžÂ˜ðž Ăž Â?Ă” ŠçĂ? ¸ŠÂ˜Â?\Ă° ĂžŠ \ŠĂ?Ă?o\Ăž Ă”Â?ÂƒÂŁÂ?|Â?\BÂŁĂž oĂ?Ă?ŠĂ?Ă” Š| |B\Ăž ŠĂ? ĂžÂŒoHe¸Ă?oÔÔçĂ?o BÂŁĂžooĂ” ĂžÂŒo ƒŠíÂŽ noted thatŠ£ the ĂžÂŒo demographics liticos Shawn Ă?Â?ÂƒÂŒĂž KumagaiĂžŠof¸Ă?ŠĂžoÔÞž the Dublin released by the state’s judicialĂžŠcouncil žÂ?Ă”Â˜oBfÂ?ÂŁÂƒ ÔÞBĂžožo£ÞÔž .˜oBĂ”o ĂŽĂ?Â?Ăžo ĂžŠ ŠĂ?Ă?o\ĂžÂ?Š£Ă”c 1BÂŁ oĂ?£žoÂŁĂž ĂžŠ Ă?oĂ”¸Š£f City Council and Victor Aguilar of the ĂŁ Â?Ž——Ž§¢ for 2018 showed that out of the 72 Al- oÂ˜Ă­Â?ÂŁ 370 7152 • StevenUnderhill.com Ă?BÂŁ\Â?Ă”\Š415

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ÂŒBÂŁ Â?Ă”Council. BÂŁ ameda County Superior Court judges ĂœnĂŽĂŽÂź[§Â? In a phone interview, Flanagan ¼ °Üà ŠĂ? Ă”oÂŁf oŽžBÂ?˜ ĂžŠ \ŠĂ?Ă?o\ĂžÂ?Š£Ă”PĂ”|\ÂŒĂ?Š£Â?\˜ož\ŠÂžž |瘘 fožŠ\Ă?B\Ă° BÂŁf BÂŁ ÔÔŠ\Â?BĂžof .Ă?oÔÔ ĂŽĂ?Â?ĂžoĂ?ž who responded, four identified as said that she’s known Fickes for openly LGBT, with only one of those about four years and has been imbeing a man. pressed with his demeanor. She first STEVEN-17160.indd 1 11/19/19 8:54 AM Fickes, 53, is married to William met him when he was representing a Gentry and the couple have two teenclient in a criminal case. age children. He is a partner in Can“Mark managed his client in a calm nata, O’Toole, Fickes, and Olson, a "ŠĂ?ĂžÂŒoĂ? ÂŁ B˜Â?|ŠĂ? ÂŁ Â?BĂ?Ă” way BĂ?ƒ ÔÞ " oĂŽĂ” ¸B¸she oĂ?said. in aodifficult situation,â€? small San Francisco law firm. He said She added that Fickes has been ¸4Âź0Âź-Âź0Âź €Ö£Â?Ă–Ă—ôš that he represents people wronged by out and active in the community, the government. eeĂŽnĂ’Ă’ A—— Â?AŽ— Ăœ§ AœœĂŽ§œĂŽÂŽAĂœn withenÂśAĂŽĂœÂ?n¢Ăœ the East BayAĂœaStonewall Demo-

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Courtesy Fickes for Judge campaign

Alameda County Superior Court judge candidate Mark Fickes

cratic Club and Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom, “He’s very well-rounded and skilled as a lawyer,� Flanagan added. Alameda County Superior Court Judge Victoria Kolakowski, the only elected trans judge in the country, has dual endorsed both Condes and Fickes. She said that she knows each of them and either would make an excellent addition to the bench. The third candidate in the race is Lilla Julia Szelenyi, an administrative law judge for the state workers compensation agency. t For more information on Condes and Fickes, visit www.elenacondesforjudge.com and www. fickesforjudge.com. Full disclosure: Victoria Kolakowski is the wife of Bay Area Reporter news editor Cynthia Laird.

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Donald Trump’s ban of transgender people from serving in the military. “We can’t let the Trump administration try to erase us off the face of this Earth; it’s just not going to happen,� Ms. Lucrecia said at a trans equality rally in 2018. “I’m here to See page 9 >>

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California Museum

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 9

SJ groups gather for ‘Big’ party WALLBEDS

compiled by Cynthia Laird

on YouTube this week at https://bit. ly/340UP89. The other two will go live later this month. To view the videos or make a donation, visit http://castrocbd.org/how-castro-cares-works/.

F

or what is believed to be the first time, several South Bay LGBTQ organizations will gather for a Big LGBTQ Holiday Party Thursday, December 19, from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel, 2050 Gateway Place in San Jose. Participating organizations include the Bay Area Municipal Elections Committee, or BAYMEC; Billy DeFrank LGBTQ Community Center; Human Rights Campaign Silicon Valley; Rainbow Chamber Silicon Valley; the Silicon Valley Rainbow Rotary Club; the Silicon Valley Stonewall Democrats Club; and Silicon Valley Pride. The evening will start with networking until 7, followed by speeches and entertainment. Performers scheduled to appear include drag king Madd Dogg 2020, drag queens Betty Fresas and Shriel Deogracias, comedians Chris Ryan and Timothy Morigeau, dancer Viva Mi Tierra, singer Nina Fong, and DJ music by Sean Bassett. Organizers said that there will be door prizes and happy hour. Attendees are asked to bring donated items for Stand Up for Kids Silicon Valley’s wish list, which is available at https:// www.standupforkids.org/siliconvalley/wishlist. The party is free and all ages are welcome. Advance registration is required; to RSVP, go to https://bit. ly/38cTgqJ.

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Judge

From page 1

During his opening statement at his confirmation hearing, Bumatay introduced the committee to his parents, his sister, his brother-in-law, two nephews, and Alex, “my husband.” He noted he and Alex also had with them their two daughters, who were born in April. The daughters prompted a remark from Louisiana Republican Senator John Kennedy, who called them “precious.” Bumatay is replacing Judge Carlos

AND

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Community News>>

space saving f urniture

Maitri open house

photo

Drag king Madd Dogg 2020 is scheduled to perform at the Big LGBTQ Holiday Party.

Castro Cares launches donation drive

Just in time for the holidays, Castro Cares, a project of the Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District, has launched an online giving campaign. Castro Cares provides homeless outreach and added patrols to the Castro and upper Market areas, according to the website. It contracts with the San Francisco AIDS Foundation for homeless services and the San Francisco Patrol Special Police for public safety services. It relies on donations from neighbors, local merchants, and grants. Castro Community on Patrol, a volunteer safety organization, is one of more than 12 groups helping with Castro Cares, noted Greg Carey, chief of patrol. Three videos help explain why the program is needed and how it helps. The first, “Helping Hands,” launched Bea, who will step away from full-time duties and go on senior status, a San Diego Union-Tribune story reported. While the court is based in San Francisco, Bumatay is expected to maintain chambers in San Diego, the 9th Circuit said Tuesday, according to the paper. Bumatay’s confirmation hearing and the vote were overshadowed by controversy surrounding another Trump nominee to the 9th Circuit: U.S. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lawrence VanDyke. LGBT groups opposed VanDyke’s nomination and the American

Maitri Compassionate Care will hold its annual holiday open house Saturday, December 14, from 2 to 5 p.m. at 401 Duboce Avenue in San Francisco. The hospice welcomes community members to stop by and enjoy food, warm drinks, and entertainment. There will also be guided tours of the facility. Organizers suggested a $10 donation or gifts of toiletries for residents. For more information, visit the Facebook page at https://bit. ly/2P3kXeg; to RSVP email tmoreno@maitrisf.org.

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Bianca Lucrecia, center, worked with San Francisco Mayor London Breed, left, and Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf during her years as an activist in the LGBT community.

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Leader memorial

From page 8

fight for everyone’s rights.” She also opposed the Trump administration’s rollbacks in protections for trans people in health care and homeless shelters, and the termination of the federal Department of Education’s guidance encouraging schools to support the gender identities of students. Ms. Lucrecia was an accomplished hairstylist who coiffed many politicians and celebrities, including Sylvester, the 1970s and 1980s gay disco and R&B recording artist who passed away in 1988. Friends said that Ms. Lucrecia knew and worked with political leaders such as Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers; Gavin Newsom, a former San Francisco mayor who’s now California’s governor; Stuart Milk, the gay nephew of slain San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk;

San Francisco Mayor London Breed; Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf; and Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, the Arizona city’s first Latina mayor. According to an obituary prepared by friends, Ms. Lucrecia began her activism prior to her transition when she worked in the fields picking grapes and supported UFW’s grape boycott. After her transition, she fought with Harvey Milk against Anita Bryant’s anti-gay initiative in Florida and the Briggs initiative in California, which would have barred gays and lesbians from teaching in public schools. In 2013, she co-founded and organized the first LGBT Freedom Day parade in Tucson. Saturday’s celebration of Ms. Lucrecia’s life will take place at noon at the San Francisco LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market Street. A tribute will also be held in Sacramento Friday, December 13, at 5 p.m. at Sol Collective, 2574 21st Street. t

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<< Community News

10 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

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Castro district board

From page 1

San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus recently purchased a permanent home. “We need to do something that will bring traction into the district – something that will make it a more exciting destination,” Haines said. “I’m very much excited about the work we are going to be doing as a district.” Lanyon, the associate director of philanthropy with the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said that she wants to do something to help keep the Castro business community vibrant. “Right now my heart breaks every time we lose another business in the district, and I really hope we can do something to turn that around,” she wrote. “I have been following other cultural districts for some time now as well, to see what is possible and what is expected of these projects.” Christopher Vasquez, a gay man who is the communications director

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Castro harassment

From page 1

17th Street – although that distance still allows him to be on much of 18th Street in the Castro. The order lasts for four years. “He was threatening me and one of my waiters and that’s what instigated it,” said William Pung, one of the coowners of the popular, 24-hour diner, in a phone interview with the B.A.R. “He would stand and shout inside the restaurant and ring my doorbell at 3-4 a.m. One time I went down there and he was threatening and saying things that didn’t make any sense. He said ‘You know what Koreans do to Americans? They murder them.’” There was no attorney listed as representing Mitchell and he could not be reached for comment. Mandelman, a gay man who represents District 8 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, said that he was aware of a stay-away order involving Orphan Andy’s. Pung isn’t the only one having to address harassment. A woman who works in the Castro, but requested anonymity, said that she has had numerous problems with an individual people refer to as “Kenny,” and who court records indicate is Kennith Cargile. “He harasses my staff. One of our employees in particular, he will run toward her as fast as he can,” the woman said. “He targets women. Sometimes he just wants to be my best friend. Sometimes you say you have to leave and he lunges at you and gets aggressive. “It’s honestly terrifying because you don’t know what mood he’s in that day,” the woman added. Pung said he is familiar with that situation, too.

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Milk plaza elevator

From page 2

sidewalk fronting Market Street headed toward Collingwood Street. The Board of Supervisors, sitting Tuesday (December 10) as the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, approved $1.5 million in funding for the design work of the elevator from the Prop K half-cent sales tax for transit projects. “This project is an accessibility upgrade to the station,” said Teresa Kavanagh, a project manager with the SFMTA capital programs and construction division. “It will help numerous folks with all different mobility issues to access the station. Folks have been waiting years for that second elevator, so it is a matter of urgency to get it built.” According to the latest plans for the elevator, it is being designed in order to minimize the structure’s footprint but provide clear sightlines into the elevator cabin. Thus, it is expected to use clear glass and feature translucent etched patterns that create “a beacon of light.”

for NCLR, is also a candidate. He said in his candidate statement that he has been fascinated with the neighborhood since he first visited for four days as a teenager. “As a queer Latino who spends a majority of his time in the neighborhood (including as a resident), I have seen the struggle the Castro has gone through over the past few years as it relates to affordability, attracting new See page 11 >>

Waide Riddle

Shannon Amitin

Alison Sparks

Michael (Tod) Edgerton

Robert Graves

Sam Gray

Anvar Shukurliyev

Christopher Vasquez

Ron Williams

t

“I think everyone knows Kenny,” he said. “He’s kind of a nuisance.” Subsequently, the B.A.R. obtained a June 2019 restraining order directing Cargile, who the order states is between 55 and 60 years old, to stay at least 50 yards away from Ritual Coffee, located at 2299 Market Street Unit A, and to avoid loitering in front of it. The order lasts for four years. There was no attorney listed as representing Cargile and he could not be reached for comment. While a spokesman for the San Francisco Police Department initially told the B.A.R. that “the officers and investigators” at Mission Station “are not familiar with” Kenny, another spokesman indicated that they were aware of him after the B.A.R. was able to provide his full name. Mandelman and aide Tom Temprano said that the supervisor’s office was able to help Ritual Coffee get a restraining order to keep Cargile away. Ritual Coffee officials did not want to speak on the record about Cargile. The anonymous woman said that the sense of danger on the street – including harassment and open-air drug use – sometimes makes it difficult to do business. “I was raised in San Francisco but oftentimes you think it’s gotten worse,” she said. “There’s never been as much of a drug problem. It’s normal to see needles on the ground and step over human shit. It doesn’t faze me anymore. It’s something we expect and mentally prepare for and that the staff is prepped for.” Nevertheless, she is committed to continuing to work in the Castro. “I’m proud to be where we are,” she said. “We have to keep fighting for our city.”

Some businesses shutter

new DA, and we’re going to have to work with Chesa Boudin and hopes he takes this seriously,” he added. Boudin will take office in January. In an emailed statement to the B.A.R. December 9, Boudin said that a sense of safety is a “basic human right” and that those who endanger it “will be held accountable.” “Every San Franciscan has the right to feel safe in this city, regardless of their race, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, or citizenship,” Boudin wrote. “I urge anyone who feels unsafe in their community due to the harassment of others to call local law enforcement or reach out directly to my office.” Greg Carey, the chair of Castro Community on Patrol, said people have an obligation to help keep the community safe and can’t remain in a position of “learned helplessness.” “The fact is that most cops want to arrest bad guys, but they are always under-staffed and need information from the victim and/or witnesses,” Carey said. “We want to see the public become more involved in their own safety.” Carey said that he is aware of Cargile. Carey had several pieces of advice for victims of crime, including telling police that they want to press charges when an officer shows up (what he called the “magic phrase”). Carey said to always ask a 911 calltaker for the computer aided dispatch number, or CAD. Having the CAD allows victims to follow up with the case later by calling the police nonemergency number, which is (415) 553-0123 in San Francisco. Terry Asten Bennett, the general manager of Cliff’s Variety at 479 Castro Street, echoed the sentiment about “learned helplessness.” “There needs to be a return to civility. Some of it comes down to people being afraid to intervene,” she said.

“We have had people threaten our employees and sit outside and wait until we’re all off.” Captain Gaetano Caltagirone, who oversees Mission Station, which covers part of the Castro, was not available for an interview. But a San Francisco Police Department spokesman said the captain is aware of the situation. “Captain Caltagirone is committed to staffing the Castro foot beat and foot beat officers make every effort to contact merchants, residents and visitors during their tour of duty,” said Officer Michael Andraychak in the statement. “Additionally, Mission Station’s sector car officers respond to calls for service in the community. Officers are encouraged to meet and make contacts with members of our community. We encourage our neighbors and business owners to reach out to SFPD to do the same.” SFPD District 8 community liaison Jessica Closson referred questions to Temprano. Carey said that CCOP is looking for volunteers and has a training planned for Saturday, January 18, from 1 to 4 p.m. There is no cost for the training and more volunteers means that CCOP can do safety patrols on the weekends, Carey said. “We suggest people attend even if they are unsure of whether they want to become a volunteer,” Carey wrote in an email. “They can decide after they understand our approach and methods.” CCOP volunteers do not make arrests and mainly provide support to victims or assist in contacting authorities. People interested in signing up for CCOP’s volunteer training can go to www.castropatrol.org and click on the “Sign Up Now” button in the upper right corner, or https://bit. ly/2QJmaZx. t

The feature will help address safety issues at night by making the elevator easy to locate and provide visibility into its interior, explained Jane Chan, a project engineer with DPW. “We want to make it glow like a lantern but with a soft glow,” said Chan. A concourse area in front of the stop at the Muni station entrance would include “seatwalls” or wood benches mounted to the wall defining what the project architect refers to as a “garden room.” The terraced planters behind the elevator would be replanted with drought tolerant species of “swaying plants” and agaves. The existing brick pavers would be replaced with a non-slip terrazzostyle aggregate concrete in order to deal with drainage issues. New fencing would be installed in the area and a damaged commemorative bench would be replaced. “This project will improve access to public transit, and will also include an accessible path from the southwest corner of Market and Castro streets to the Harvey Milk Plaza-level entrance, ensuring all riders can access Muni in the Castro,” stated gay District 8

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro at City Hall.

donations for the project, whose exact cost is yet to be determined. In addition to funding its plaza redesign proposal, the friends group has been told by the city that it needs to determine a funding source to pay for building the access path from Market Street to the elevator’s fourth stop. The current plans call for an elevator with doors that will be able to open on the backside of the shaft where a walkway could be built to connect it to the sidewalk on Market Street. But, as Kavanagh stressed in an interview, “We are not building the fourth elevator stop access platform” as part of the elevator project. It could either be incorporated into the friends group’s plans for the plaza, she said, or be pursued as its own project if funding can be secured and the larger plaza revamp “does not materialize.” A vociferous group of detractors of the plaza overhaul proposal has been calling for a more miniscule upgrade to the parklet to address the accessibility concerns and lackluster landscaping it currently sports. A chief critic of the redesign proposal is the plaza’s original architect, Howard Grant, a

gay man who also expressed concerns about the elevator design. “Regrettably the SFMTA team has been nonresponsive when it has come to suggestions about making the elevator structure compatible with the station architecture,” Grant told the B.A.R. “They polled the community about the various steel and glass curtain wall enclosures but ignored its shape! Curves are a main feature of the station and the old B of A building, but their solution is an awkward rectilinear tower in my opinion.” The MTA is planning to hold community meetings in early 2020 about the elevator design. The city’s arts commission is expected to have a final vote on the proposal next spring, while the engineering division for the regional transit agency BART must also review the project since it owns the station. To learn more about the elevator project for the plaza, the SFMTA has created a website for it at https://www. sfmta.com/projects/castro-stationaccessibility-improvements-project. t

Not everyone has demonstrated such commitment to the neighborhood. Cheri Mims, the owner of the Ixia floral shop that used to be at 2331 Market Street, told Hoodline in April that one reason she left the Castro neighborhood was safety and homelessness. “I think it has an effect on everyone, not just me,” she told the site. Mims did not respond to a B.A.R. request for comment. Deedee Crossett, the founder of the Skin on Market skin care store that’s at 2299 Market Street Unit C, said in a phone interview with the B.A.R. that two of her former employees were harassed by Cargile. Cargile has a “type” of woman he targets, and generally doesn’t treat others the same way, Crossett said. “Two employees who are no longer with me – he gave them a hard time when I wasn’t around,” Crossett said. “It started with smirking and turned into aggressive behavior; he’d stare at them, flex his muscles, and scream. “I’m not his type,” Crossett added. “I don’t know what the deal is.” Crossett said that she has been in touch with Castro Community on Patrol and that Mandelman’s office said that it was “working on” the issue. Mandelman said that the city needs to do something about the sense of danger in the district. “I think a lot of people are fed up and I am fed up,” Mandelman told the B.A.R. “We have a vacancy crisis in the Castro and I’ve heard of numerous people closing their doors because people with serious behavioral issues are wandering into their businesses. “I’ve been pushing for more behavioral health resources and more of a response from the police. We have a

Plaza project

In September 1985 city leaders dedicated the plaza above the then 5-year-old Castro Muni Station after the city’s first gay supervisor. Milk was assassinated in November 1978 along with then-mayor George Moscone. The station and plaza serve as the de facto entrance into San Francisco’s gayborhood, which Milk represented at City Hall and called home, as it was where he opened his Castro Camera store. To create a more meaningful tribute to Milk, the group Friends of Harvey Milk Plaza has been pushing a major overhaul of the area that would see the sunken public parklet be brought to street level with an artistic canopy covering for a reconfigured stairwell entrance into the Muni station. A design competition resulted in a plan that has been significantly reduced in scope as it works its way through the city design review process. The plaza group has pledged to raise at least $10 million in private

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Community News>>

Castro district board

From page 10

businesses, maintaining a distinct LGBTQ culture, and providing a safe space for a fully-diverse community – including lesbians, queer people of color, and transgender individuals,” Vasquez wrote in an email to the B.A.R. “I think my many years of involvement with LGBTQ politics, nonprofit organizations, nightlife, and businesses would make me a great initial member of the cultural district board to start planning for the future of the

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Palo Alto

From page 7

Raising the blue wall

Palo Alto Mayor Eric Filseth and Police Chief Robert Jonsen haven’t publicly denounced the officers’ actions. Instead, city officials and police officials are standing behind the officers. “They are all complicit,” said Cordell. “The blue wall came together. These officers either lied blatantly or lied by omission.” The DA’s office declined to prosecute Alvarez on all four misdemeanor charges brought by the police officers from the arrest due to lack of evidence. Palo Alto city officials and officers “sharply dispute” a majority of Alvarez’s claims and question his “continuing criminal behavior,” according to the city manager’s release. “The city is still not accepting full responsibility,” said Cordell. “Their rhetoric has been to downplay the

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 11

neighborhood,” he added. Sanford said that the percentage of LGBT people living in San Francisco specifically, and the Castro in particular, has fallen in the last two decades due to gentrification. As much as 80% of the Castro may have been LGBT 20 years ago, compared to 50% more recently, according to what Sanford said was an interpretation of census data of how many unmarried adults live in the neighborhood. He said that the cultural district should be about more than commemorating what once was – while

renting a car in a foreign country, a woman who saw his identification noticed his Castro Street address. “She gushed and said ‘That’s one of the hearts of the world,’” Sanford said. The other candidates seeking a seat on the board are Shannon Amitin, a trans activist who is a co-founder of Jolene’s Bar and Restaurant in the Mission; Michael (Tod) Edgerton, an English professor at San Jose State University; Robert Graves, a camping director for the Boy Scouts of America; Sam Gray, a community programs coordinator with the San

Francisco LGBT Community Center; Waide Riddle, a Los Angeles-based writer; Anvar Shukurliyev, a student at City College of San Francisco; Alison Sparks, the executive director of the Masto Foundation; and Ron Williams, a photographer. In his candidate statement, Riddle noted that he doesn’t live in San Francisco. “Though I am based in Los Angeles, I also call Castro my home,” he wrote. “As I pointed out, I travel frequently there for business & inspiration.” In his statement, Williams noted that he cur-

rently lives in Southern California. “I’m apart of the gay elders that lived in the Castro during the early days,” Williams wrote. “Today I’m 75 living in Palm Springs with my husband, Howie.”t

misconduct of the officers and to point fingers at Alvarez. “There is a lot more that this city needs to do, and the chief of police needs to do,” she added. “They all need to step up and do the right thing here and I don’t see that happening.” The Palo Alto Police Department is trying to “deflect” the “spotlight” from “their own criminal conduct” that went far beyond an excessive force case covering the “whole gamut of civil rights violations,” said Salfen. The officers involved remain patrolling the streets of Palo Alto with two exceptions, said Salfen. Benitez retired with a full pension – earning him a package of about $118,600, according to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System – after being put on administrative leave after the incident, reported NBC News. He is now allowed to work at another law enforcement agency, said Cordell. Another officer has since left the department.

Transparency needed

the first available Peace Officer Standards and Training-certified course following the settlement. She reiterated that the training is a new addition to other similar community sensitivity trainings. The course will be extended to all sworn personnel in January 2020. Maribel Martinez, a queer woman who’s the director of the Santa Clara County Office of LGBTQ Affairs, has been following the case closely. She expressed her disappointment that “police departments wait until there is a conflict or issue that escalates and then have to settle and mandate training.” However, she was also hopeful that Alvarez’s case could be a teachable moment. “I feel that many law enforcement agencies can learn from this and be proactive in training their force,” she said, praising the Napa police officer LGBT sensitivity training course and its forthcoming Out to Protect conference in April. “We encourage all law enforcement in the area to attend this wonderful training,” said Martinez, noting that the conference is attracting experts from all over the country. She also encouraged local police departments to create LGBT advisory groups, like San Jose’s Police Department has, and offered additional support locally through the LGBTQ affairs office.

Alvarez, who still lives in Palo Alto, continues to suffer from the aftereffects from the incident, his attorney said. “He has lasting physical effects that stem from the injuries that he sustained,” said Salfen. “He has very serious psychological effects that are very much front and center in his life.” Alvarez still hasn’t received the letter of apology from Benitez nearly three weeks after the settlement, Salfen said. Salfen hopes that Alvarez will be able to leave Palo Alto at some point, but noted that his departure won’t resolve the city and police department’s issues. “Gustavo leaving that city, that’s not going to change the police department,” he said, adding that some citizens are afraid to call the police when real crimes are happening because they fear they will be targeted. “There are plenty of other similarly situated citizens who are just going to be the next victim of this agency until the agency is reformed.” Cordell said the police department must change. “I’m very worried about any other people who look like Alvarez or who look like me who might have an interaction with these officers,” she said. t

Transparency is what the department needs, along with extensive cultural sensitivity training, Cordell and Salfen believe. The city manager’s release said that an officer will complete an online course that starts next month at the Napa Valley College Criminal Justice Training Center. The course covers LGBT awareness for law enforcement. The unnamed officer who will take the course is expected to train other officers upon completion, according to the release. “That’s ridiculous. That’s absolutely absurd. That’s not how you do a training,” said Cordell, who also doesn’t understand why the department didn’t tap into the county’s own LGBT resources and LGBT law enforcement trainings already in place. In a follow-up email, Meghan Horrigan-Taylor, Palo Alto’s chief communications officer wrote that mandatory LGBT sensitivity training for officers is a new law as of this year. The course in Napa happened to be

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Legal Notices>> ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555332 In the matter of the application of: PANG TSU WANG, 901 BAYSHORE BLVD #313, SAN FRANCISCO, CA94124, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner PANG TSU WANG, is requesting that the name PANG TSU WANG, be changed to PETER PANG TSU WANG. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 514, on the 17th of December 2019 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555383 In the matter of the application of: HALLIE CHERTOK, 85 MANCHESTER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner HALLIE CHERTOK & MIRIAM ROTKIN-ELLMAN, are requesting that the name KAYDEN BERNIE CHERTOK ELLMAN, be changed to KAYDEN BERNIE CHERTOK-ELLMAN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Room 103N on the 14th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555381

In the matter of the application of: LANCE DALTON SHANNON, 3533 16TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner LANCE DALTON SHANNON, is requesting that the name LANCE DALTON SHANNON, be changed to GAGE DALTON LENNOX. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Room 103 on the 14th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555377 In the matter of the application of: JOYE WILEY #191156, 2140 SHATTUCK AVE #1108, BERKELEY, CA 94704, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner EDISON ALEXANDRO ENDO, is requesting that the name EDISON ALEXANDRO ENDO, be changed to ALEX ENDO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103, Room 103 on the 9th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038844400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MOOVIETRIBE.COM, 1 AVENUE OF THE PALMS #413, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94130. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JASON HANCOCK. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/28/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/28/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038842000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RW HARBOR AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE, 175 BAY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed RAYMOND WONG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/25/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/25/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038850400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SF LASH HABIT, 409 16TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MARIA VAZQUEZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/30/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/30/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038832100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DEZAYNO, 237 KEARNY ST #9048, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108.This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DAVID GREENE.The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/14/19.The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/21/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038828500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: COSINA MAYAH RESTAURANT, 2909 16TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed RODOLFO MAAY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/17/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 10/17/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038866000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BRAVO PIZZA, 5145 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed PETER PROKOPOS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/14/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038862900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: XSPACE BUILDERS, 3150 18TH ST #222, MAIL BOX 113, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed TOMAS PASCUAL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/12/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038867500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DELCID TRUCKING, 1788 19TH AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122.This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed SANDRA CASTELLANOS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/15/19.The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/15/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038862700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: STRATEGICONCEPTS, 93 CLEARFIELD DR, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DAVID CARRASCO. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/12/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/12/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038863000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: IL CILENTANO, 579 COLUMBUS AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed SANTOLO ESPOSITO & YANESSA BACANI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/12/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/12/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038863600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: G & O TAX SERVICES CORP, 1341 STOCKTON ST #10, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed G & O TAX SERVICES CORP. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/19/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/12/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038856500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SWEET GLORY, 721 LARKIN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed THE GREY HOUSE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/30/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/05/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038860600 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PACIFIC EDGE REAL ESTATE GROUP, 215 WEST PORTAL AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94127. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed ALEC MIRONOV, INC (CA). The

registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 05/15/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/07/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038861900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CALIFORNIA SMART FOODS, 2565 THIRD ST #341, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed RUDY MELNITZER & HELAINE MELNITZER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/01/00. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/08/19.

NOV 21, 28, DEC 05, 12, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555398

In the matter of the application of: SHIRAN STEPHANIE AMIR, 3025 VAN NESS AVE #9, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner SHIRAN STEPHANIE AMIR, is requesting that the name SHIRAN STEPHANIE AMIR, be changed to STEPHANIE SHIRAN AMIR. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103, on the 16th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555408

In the matter of the application of: RUTH CURRY CLEMENTS, 1595 PACIFIC AVE #405, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner RUTH CURRY CLEMENTS, is requesting that the name RUTH CURRY CLEMENTS, be changed to CURRY CLEMENTS COZZI. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103, Room 103 on the 23rd of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019

<< Legals

12 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

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Legal Notices>> ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555410

In the matter of the application of: DEBBIEDAWN ELIZABETH KAHN, 3918 MISSION ST #3, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner DEBBIEDAWN ELIZABETH KAHN, is requesting that the name DEBBIEDAWN ELIZABETH KAHN AKA DEBBIE DAWN ELIZABETH KAHN, be changed to DEBBIE DAWN ELIZABETH KAHN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103, Room 103 on the 23rd of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555406

In the matter of the application of: TAGHI ASTANEHE (SBN# 236334), 819 EDDY ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner CAROL ANN SEBASTIANO-VINCI, is requesting that the name CAROL ANN SEBASTIANO-VINCI, be changed to CAROL ANN SEBASTIANO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Room 103N on the 23rd of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038879000

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: FOCUS INTERNATIONAL, 1539 21ST AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ZHI XIONG HE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/09/90. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/22/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038878900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GODOGPRO, 242 ATHENS ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed REN VOLPE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/22/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/22/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038871900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GREG MESTAS, 648 32ND ST, RICHMOND, CA 94804. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GREG MESTAS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/19/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038876500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SAN FRAN LOCKSMITH, 259 DOLORES ST #2, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MATAN SCHEJTER. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/06/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/21/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038874700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GRILL “N” CURRY INDIAN PAKISTANI CUISINE, 1033 IRVING ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed SHAMEEL A.M. WANI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/20/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/20/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038873100 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PAINTED LADIES TOUR COMPANY, 1020 REDWOOD HWY FRONTAGE RD, #1, MILL VALLEY, CA 94941. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed PAINTED LADIES TOUR COMPANY (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/19/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/19/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038866800 The following person(s) is/are doing business as: EVERGREEN GARDEN RESTAURANT, 3100 18TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed EVERGREEN GARDEN RESTAURANT (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/14/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/14/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038869800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: YARSA NEPALESE CUISINE, 1310 GRANT AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed YARSA NEPALESE CUISINE (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/18/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/18/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038857100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: RAYMOND THOMAS WONG INSURANCE AGENCY, 2655 VAN NESS AVE #1, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed RTW INSURANCE AGENCY LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/30/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/05/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-036169800

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF RICARDO RON IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-19-303348

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of ESTATE OF RICARDO RON C/O TERRENCE P. MURPHY SBN 104739, LAW OFFICES OF TERRENCE P. MURPHY, 5 THIRD ST, #1100, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. A Petition for Probate has been filed by NAKARI RON in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Petition for Probate requests that NAKARI RON be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent. The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: December 23, 2019, 9:00 am, Rm. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the latter of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Attorney for petitioner: Terrence P. Murphy, SBN 104739, Law Offices Of Terrence P. Murphy, 5 Third St, #1100, San Francisco, CA 94103; Ph. (415) 495-3950 ext. 103.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555434

In the matter of the application of: FRANK JAMES GONZALES III, 170 MAJESTIC AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner FRANK JAMES GONZALES III, is requesting that the name FRANK JAMES GONZALES III, be changed to TRE ROSE GONZALES. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept.103, Room 103 on the 14th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555426 In the matter of the application of: APRIL MAI NGUYEN, 4442 KIRKHAM ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner APRIL MAI NGUYEN, is requesting that the name APRIL MAI NGUYEN, be changed to TUYET ANH NGUYEN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept.103, Room 103 on the 7th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555425

In the matter of the application of: AN LI ZHUO, 2639 NEWHALL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner AN LI ZHUO, is requesting that the name AN LI ZHUO, be changed to ANNIE AN LI ZHUO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept.103N, on the 7th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555412

In the matter of the application of: PHILLIPE FLORES FRANCISCO, 3338 26TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner PHILLIPE FLORES FRANCISCO, is requesting that the name PHILLIPE FLORES FRANCISCO, be changed to PHILLIPE FRANCISCO FLORES. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept.103, Room 103 on the 28th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038878700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PADALECKISTUDIO, 61 CENTRAL AVE, #1, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MEGAN ALYSSA PADALECKI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/01/14. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/22/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038887100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: TOPCUTS, 1642A IRVING ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed WEILAN XU. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/27/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/27/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038872700

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: PAINTED LADIES TOUR COMPANY, 629 GUERRERO ST #5, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by JOSHUA STEPHEN ARMEL. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/21/14.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ENGRAFFT, 258 MINERVA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DEREK HANNEMAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/09/14. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/19/19.

NOV 28, DEC 05, 12, 19, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038884800

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038862400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CLEMENT PODIATRY, 505 SANSOME ST #850, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94111. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed LEILA OSTOVAR-KERMANI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/09/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/26/19.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CANDY QUEEN, 81 DUKES CT, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed RAYLINA JOSEPH. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/12/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/12/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038876200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: STARDUST MARKET, 3801 GEARY BLVD, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NAVIN BUDHATHOKI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/21/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038877900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE OPPORTUNIVORE, 885 FULTON ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GIULIA PISCHE DAVID. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/16/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/22/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038876400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ST. CLAIR’S LIQUORS, 3900 24TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a general partnership, and is signed MOUSA R. KHOURI & MAHER R. KHOURI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/17/91. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/21/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038882900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SOTTO CASA, 1351 GRANT AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed VILLA ITALIA GOURMET FOOD & WINE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/25/13. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/25/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF DAVID ROBERT SENECHEK IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-19-303335

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of DAVID ROBERT SENECHEK. A Petition for Probate has been filed by JUDY SENECHEK JARVIS in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Petition for Probate requests that JUDY SENECHEK JARVIS be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent. The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. The petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: January 08, 2020, 9:00 am, Dept. 204, Rm. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the latter of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Attorney for petitioner: Nicole C. Kelly, Esq., The Kelly Law Firm, 345 Franklin St, San Francisco, CA 94102; Ph. (415) 552-0059.

DEC 12, 19, 26, 2019 AMENDED NOTICE OF AMENDED PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF WILLIAM S. ROBINSON IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-14-298188

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of WILLIAM S. ROBINSON. An Amended Petition for Probate has been filed by JEFF ALTMAN in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Amended Petition for Probate requests that JEFF ALTMAN be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent. The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. The amended petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: December 17, 2019, 9:00 am, Rm. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the latter of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Attorney for petitioner: Patricia A. Mayer, Law Office of Patricia Mayer, PC, 100 Larkspur Landing Circle, Suite 112, Larkspur, CA 94939; Ph. (415) 482-7525.

DEC 12, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038884300

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WILLY’S FOOD, 4517 3RD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed WILLY’S FOOD INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/26/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/26/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038878200

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038890700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SANCTUARY CHURCH SF, 382 MADISON ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed RADIANT CHURCH, INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/28/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/22/19.

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE MENISCUS TRANSPLANT CENTER, 3727 BUCHANAN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed KEVIN R. STONE & SUSAN STONE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/12. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/03/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038882600

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038868900

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: FRESH HOME STUDIO, 2309 NORIEGA ST #78, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed COOCRR INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/25/19.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-19-555389

In the matter of the application of: ACHRAF EL KOUHEN, 1745 VALLEJO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appearing from said application that petitioner ACHRAF EL KOUHEN, is requesting that the name ACHRAF EL KOUHEN, be changed to ASHRAF HAROON KOHEN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept.103N, Room 103N on the 14th of January 2020 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038874800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: REBEL NEON, 1745 YOSEMITE AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed AMY PALMS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on NA. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/20/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038895800

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: HIGH RISE FIRE SAFETY DIRECTORS, 2 TOWNSEND ST #2-403, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed SHAWNA MICHELLE MORRISON. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/06/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/06/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038894100

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: FORTUNATE HAPPENSTANCE, 830 HAYES ST #308, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed VINCENT PULITI. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/01/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/05/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038892200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BLUE WARRIORS, 3145 GEARY BLVD #22, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed PEP CEARNAL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/04/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/04/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038867600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BM REALTY, 2501 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed BROOKE MATTICE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/15/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/15/19.

DEC 12,19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038893500

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LILY NAILS SPA, 1198 HYDE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed LY THI DIEU NGUYEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on12/05/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/05/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038876600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LIFSCHITZ LAW, 345 FRANKLIN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed LOELL, PC, (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/25/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/21/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038895700

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: UNION SQUARE DENTAL, 450 SUTTER ST #2414, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed NAZANIN HAKIM DDS/MAHSA HAKIM DDS, INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/06/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/06/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038886200

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CARY LANE, 1615 HAIGHT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed CARY LANE INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/20/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/26/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02,2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038893400

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GREEN LIFT, 2121 NEWCOMB AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed BAY AREA GREEN CROSS DISPENSARY INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/12/17. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/05/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE A-038890600

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE STONE CLINIC, 3727 BUCHANAN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed KEVIN R. STONE & SUSAN STONE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/01/99. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 12/03/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PRESTO INTERACTIVE OPERA, 32 WOOL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed PRESTO INTERACTIVE OPERA (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/10/19. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 11/18/19.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE A-037111200

The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as: TOPCUTS, 1642A IRVING ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by KAREN CHIU. The fictitious name was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 05/24/16.

DEC 12, 19, 26, JAN 02, 2020 AMENDED SUMMONS NOTICE TO DEFENDANTS: HENRY W. AND CHARLOTTE N. BESUDEN, AS CO-TRUSTEES FOR THE HENRY W. BESUDEN AND CHARLOTTE N. BESUDEN REVOCABLE TRUST DATED FEBRUARY 5, 1992; MATTHEW A. WITMAN AS TRUSTEE, OR THE SUCCESSOR TRUSTEE, OF THE SURVIVOR’S TRUST OF THE HENRY WILLIAM WITMAN, III AND BETTY A. WITMAN FAMILY TRUST DATED NOVEMBER 6, 1990; MATTHEW A. AND CAROLYN O. WITMAN, AS CO-TRUSTEES OF THE MATTHEW AND CAROLYN WITMAN REVOCABLE TRUST DATED JUNE 24, 1996, PREDECESSOR OR SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO THE SURVIVOR’S TRUST OF THE HENRY WILLIAM WITMAN, III AND BETTY A. WITMAN FAMILY TRUST DATED NOVEMBER 6, 1990; SAN DIEGO GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CALIFORNIA CORPORATION; WILLIAM M. BALLON, AN INDIVIDUAL; RACHEL BALLON, AN INDIVIDUAL; BERNARD SOLOMON, AN INDIVIDUAL; PERLEE SOLOMON, AN INDIVIDUAL; FRED GEORGE HUMISTON, AS TRUSTEE OF A TRUST WITH AN UNKNOWN NAME; WALLY WINCHELL, AN INDIVIDUAL; THE SOLK RANCH, A DEFUNCT CALIFORNIA GENERAL PARTNERSHIP; ALL PERSONS UNKNOWN CLAIMING AN INTEREST IN THE PROPERTY, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 1; RICHARD N. KRUPP, AS AN INDIVIDUAL AND AS A PARTNER OF THE SOLK RANCH, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 2; THE HEIRS AND DEVISEES OF WILLIAM A. BALLON, DECEASED, AND ALL PERSONS CLAIMING BY, THROUGH, OR UNDER SAID DECEDENT, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 3; THE HEIRS AND DEVISEES OF BERNARD SOLOMON, DECEASED, AND ALL PERSONS CLAIMING BY, THROUGH, OR UNDER SAID DECEDENT, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 4; THE HEIRS AND DEVISEES OF PERLEE SOLOMON, DECEASED, AND ALL PERSONS CLAIMING BY, THROUGH, OR UNDER SAID DECEDENT, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 5; THE HEIRS AND DEVISEES OF FRED GEORGE HUMISTON, DECEASED, AND ALL PERSONS CLAIMING BY, THROUGH, OR UNDER SAID DECEDENT, SUED HEREIN AS DOE 6; AND DOES 7 THROUGH 20, INCLUSIVE. YOU ARE BEING SUED BY PLAINTIFF: RAMONA MUNICIPAL WATER DISTRICT, A PUBLIC AGENCY AND A CALIFORNIA MUNICIPAL WATER DISTRICT CASE NO. 37-2019-00036007-CU-EI-CTL NOTICE!

You have been sued. The court may decide against you without your being heard unless you respond within 30 days. Read the information below. You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this summons and legal papers are served on you to file a written response at this court and have a copy served on the plaintiff. A letter or phone call will not protect you. Your written response must be in proper legal form if you want the court to hear your case. There may be a court form that you can use for your responses. You can find these court forms and more information at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), your county law library, or the courthouse nearest you. If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the court clerk for a fee waiver form. If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case by default, and your wages, money, and property may be taken without further warning from the court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to call an attorney right away. If you do not know an attorney, you may want to call an attorney referral service. If you cannot afford an attorney, you may be eligible for free legal services from a nonprofit legal services program. You can locate these nonprofit groups at the California Legal Services Web site (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), the California Courts Online Self-Help Center(www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp), or by contacting your local court or county bar association. NOTE: The court has a statutory lien for waived fees and costs on any settlement or arbitration award of $10,000 or more in a civil case. The court’s lien must be paid before the court will dismiss the case. The name and address of the court is: SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OFSAN DIEGO, Central Division (Hall of Justice), 330 W. Broadway, San Diego, California 92101 . The name, address, and telephone number of plaintiffs attorney, or the plaintiff without an attorney, is: Stephen E. Boehmer and Elizabeth A. Mitchell, McDOUGAL, LOVE, BOEHMER, FOLEY, LYON & CANLAS, 8100 La Mesa Blvd, #200, La Mesa, CA 91942; Telephone: (619) 440-4444. Date: Sept 27, 2019. Clerk of the Superior Court, by C. Miranda, Deputy.

DEC 05, 12, 19, 26, 2019 CGC-15-545135 Chiang v Chen et al SUPERIOR COURT SAN FRANCISCO Pursuant to 583.210 and 583.250 Cal. Code Civil Procedure, after so many efforts Plaintiffs publish Legal Notice Summons as the First Amended Complaint of August 9, 2016 to caution of the impending Entry of Default Judgment upon all defendants: Ms. QIAO YING CHEN and MR. ZHUO ER LEI, MR. JIAN JUN LEI and MS. HUI NG, MS. (JENNIFER) XING LI FANG and her father Mr. FANG.

CGC-15-545135.indd 1

11/19/19 9:57 AM

16

Fine Fellows

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Flying high

Summer mood

Harry Potted

Vol. 49 • No. 50 • December 12-18, 2019

Chris Hardy

www.ebar.com/arts

Lady Camden brings LGBTQ spirit to Smuin Ballet by Philip Mayard

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he dust has not quite settled (literally) at Smuin Contemporary Ballet’s new headquarters on Potrero Hill yet, but the company moved into the light-filled studios as soon as the electricity was turned on in October, to begin preparations for their annual run of “The Christmas Ballet.” The electricity in the building isn’t just coming from new PG&E wiring. There’s a palpable spark in the air. A sense of joy and gratitude emanates from the staff and dancers, who radiate with positive energy even at the end of a long day of rehearsals. See page 18 >>

Former Smuin company dancer Rex Wheeler as Lady Camden.

David Kim

Tenor Nicholas Phan sang the title role in Handel’s “Judas Maccabaeus.”

Being Ian McKellen by Brian Bromberger Ian McKellen: A Biography by Garry O’Connor. St. Martin’s Press, $29.99

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Hanukkah gelt by Philip Campbell

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hilharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale (PBO) and departing Music Director Nicholas McGegan made a warm-hearted gift to the holiday season last week with performances of Handel’s stirring oratorio “Judas Maccabaeus.” Listeners at Herbst Theatre in San Francisco received chocolate gelt and wishes for a “Happy Hanukkah” upon leaving, a deft and charming gesture after a night of joyful song. See page 16

>>

mong LGBTQ people, Ian McKellen is almost God. In 1988, he was among the first actors of stature to come out publicly, spurred on by the AIDS crisis and stopping Clause 28 from being enacted in the UK, which would have made it illegal for local authorities to promote homosexuality or give money to anybody who did. While McKellen’s homosexuality was an open secret in theatrical circles, during an appearance on a BBC Radio 3 program debating this legislation, he publicly revealed his gayness, becoming the cause’s leading figure. In an era of few major openly gay celebrities, McKellen’s declaration inspired other actors to self-out in the controlled environment he chartered. He would later tell New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley that coming out was “the only thing I’ve ever done. That will be the obituary.” See page 14 >>

{ SECOND OF THREE SECTIONS }

<< Out There

14 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

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THE CHRISTMAS LGBTQ NIGHT BALLET DECEMBER 19! +

Lady Camden is coming to town! Don’t miss her one-night-only appearance at Smuin’s The Christmas Ballet, when she steps into

Marc Olivier Le Blanc/San Francisco Opera

the shoes of the iconic

San Francisco Opera Music Director Designate Eun Sun Kim was introduced to the Company and press.

“Santa Baby” on Smuin’s LGBTQ+ Night, December 19.

Welcoming Eun Sun Kim by Roberto Friedman

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DEC 12 - 23

YERBA BUENA CENTER SAN FRANCISCO

TICKETS ON SALE NOW 415-234-1564 SMUINBALLET.ORG

he heartfelt welcome for incoming Music Director Designate Eun Sun Kim from the San Francisco Opera company, board, orchestra, stage crew and members of the press last Thursday could not have been more excited or sincere. On the stage of the opera house with its majestic view of the beautifully restored auditorium, General Director Matthew Shilvock introduced ESK to the adoring and curious music-lovers assembled. “Moments of artistic transformation are rare for our company,” Shilvock admitted, as “this is only our fourth” Music Director in its

history. He hailed Kim’s “thrilling artistic vision,” apparent to all of us who heard her riveting “Rusalka” in the summer season and were privy to her stellar reputation. Indeed, the youth, vitality, artistic commitment and sheer charisma of this new driver of operatic forces are clear to all. Though she’s selftaught in six languages and won’t conduct an opera until she understands his idiom, Kim said, “Music has always been my language.” She doesn’t take the reins of SFO until the 2021 season, but was set to conduct the Adler Fellows concert the night following the presser (see review this issue) and a production of “Fidelio” next season. Beethoven’s only opera

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Ian McKellen

From page 13

Timed to coincide with McKellen’s 80th birthday this past May, O’Connor’s biography vividly describes this historic moment, including the impact of the discussion McKellen had with gay novelist Armistead Maupin the previous year, deciding that being an openly homosexual actor of his caliber and age (near 50) wouldn’t limit him in Hollywood. McKellen’s activism for the LGBTQ cause over three decades is also highlighted in this affectionate yet opinionated biography. O’Connor, an acclaimed biographer of Laurence Olivier and Alec Guinness, a novelist and director (of McKellen in his early roles), befriended McKellen during their student days at Cambridge in the 1950s. In 2006 he asked him if he could be his official biographer. McKellen replied, “If I did it with you, I’d be wasting your time, my time, correcting, disputing and changing things. I can’t stop you. Write it after I’m dead.” In 2016, McKellen returned a 1.2 million pound advance to his publisher after agreeing to write his memoirs, with the disclaimer, “It didn’t seem very interesting to me. I don’t want to go on a voyage of discovery.” O’Connor wrote his book without worrying about McKellen’s approval. Born in Lancashire, the son of a strongly Christian civil engineer, McKellen was scarred for life when his beloved mother died of breast cancer when he was 12. His relationship with his father was rocky, tragically ending when he died in a car crash after attending his son’s 1964 London stage debut. McKellen attended Cambridge. O’Connor outlines his triumph in a 1976 Royal Shakespeare Company performance as “Macbeth,” co-starring Judi Dench; his American break-

is, she said, “a dream piece for all conductors.” Asked what she does to relax, Maestra Kim allowed herself a sardonic chuckle. “I don’t relax!” Then she told us that she has taken up yoga (“very different from conducting”) beginning two months ago. “It’s not working yet!” ESK has dazzled and impressed leading figures in the opera world from Asia, Europe and across the U.S. for a few years now. With incoming San Francisco Symphony Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen set to begin his reign at Davies Hall in September 2020, this means that the power positions on both sides of Grove Street will shortly be in the hands of two new, fresh, vibrant leaders. The Bay Area classical music community could not be more delighted with what’s sure to be in store.t through and Tony Award for Salieri in “Amadeus” (1980); the doomed gay concentration camp victim in Martin Sherman’s “Bent”; Iago in “Othello”; a Fascist-era “Richard III” onstage and onscreen; and “Waiting for Godot” with Patrick Stewart. McKellen didn’t attain film success until his late 50s, as Magneto in the “X-Men” series and gay Hollywood director James Whale in “Gods and Monsters.” But his most famous role is Gandalf the Wizard in “Lord of the Rings” and “Hobbit” films, which made him rich. The last two roles got him Oscar nominations, though McKellen felt he lost due to Hollywood homophobia. O’Connor explores McKellen’s two longterm relationships, with history teacher Brian Taylor in the 1960s; and actor-director Sean Mathias, who felt “very much in Ian’s shadow,” in the 70s and 80s. We learn McKellen had an unrequited crush on Cambridge student Derek Jacobi, with whom he’s had a friendly rivalry for decades, finally working together as a bickering elderly gay couple in the 2013 ITV series “Vicious.” McKellen had an affair with gay actor Gary Bond (who later died of AIDS) in the last years of his relationship with Taylor that ended their partnership. Surprisingly, we read about a young newcomer, Rupert Everett, who stalked McKellen in 1976, leading to a brief affair. Laurence Olivier was his idol. McKellen was knighted in 1991. O’Connor uses anecdotes, a chatty style, controversy and criticism to keep readers’ interest. Yet despite reminiscences with directors and actors, he remains an enigma. While not definitive, this book will remain the go-to compendium for a remarkable career of the man Out magazine called one of the most influential in LGBTQ history.t

The reindeer are back! Open November 22–January 5 Enjoy live reindeer, falling snow flurries, a polar-themed exhibit, and festive fun throughout the Academy. Save up to $7 per ticket when you buy in advance at calacademy.org.

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<< Music

16 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

Future opera stars concertize now by Philip Campbell

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PBO

From page 13

Handel’s richly melodic London oratorio, one of the greatest hits of his lifetime, gets few hearings today, probably due more to its length and musical requirements than to artistic merit. Written to celebrate the Duke of Cumberland’s victory over rebellious Jacobites, contemporaneous English listeners could relate to the subjugated Israelites of the story, who fight their Syrian enemies repeatedly, ultimately to win and give thanks to the lord. The plot is spare, told only from the Israelites’ point of view. Three characters are named: Judas and his

voice is ready for the taxing part, and another year as an Adler Fellow will add deeper dramatic conviction. She also appeared in an urgent duet from Verdi’s “Don Carlo” with tenor Christopher Colmenero (Burlington, VT). He had his strong solo moment in the second half with an aria from Massenet’s “Le Cid.” Mezzo-soprano Simone McIntosh (Vancouver, Canada) was fiery in an excerpt from Mozart’s “Lucio Silla,” accompanied by Canon on harpsichord. Her amusing duet with tenor Zhengyi Bai (Linyi, Shandong, China) from Rossini’s “Le Comte Ory” drew appreciative laughter. Bai had the unenviable task of opening the concert alone with a very difficult aria requiring a stratospheric high note. He made it. Tenor SeokJong Baek (Jeon-Ju, South Korea) is another full-throated singer who has played the main stage at SFO in numerous roles. He nailed his aria from “Tosca” on the first half, and returned later for a tender aria by Cilea. SFO generously and intelligently gives strong support to generations of Adler Fellows. Immersive training in everything from acting to diction and stage movement also provides insurance for the future of the art. The latest Adler Fellows Concert proved the valuable dividends.t

A traditional concert format, with some sparing use of handheld props, moved the program along briskly. Even after 2½ hours, I got the feeling nobody would have minded a few encores. The contrast between first- and second-year AFs was often noticeable, but everyone earned their place in the line-up, and as with most Adler concerts, there were some delightful surprises. Countertenor Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen (Brooklyn, NY), 2nd-year AF, has been a break-out star from the beginning, and assignments at SFO and abroad put him on the radar of prestigious houses worldwide. His Adler Concert selections included exquisite Handel and Mo-

zart, and a heartbreakingly gorgeous Berlioz song. Who would have guessed mezzosoprano Ashley Dixon (Peachtree City, GA), 2nd-year AF, would also have some expert Handel up her sleeve? Strong performances at SFO alerted us to her bright, warm sound, but Dixon’s flawless coloratura in an aria from Handel’s “Ariodante” showed a whole new world of vocal possibilities. Her love duet from Massenet’s “Cendrillon” with pure-toned tenor Christopher Oglesby (Woodstock, GA), 2ndyear AF, was sweetly believable. Oglesby’s beautiful aria from Tchaikovsky’s “Iolanta” allowed him a shining solo.

Bass-baritone Christian Pursell (Santa Cruz, CA), 2nd-year AF, has proved his Handel chops in performances of “Saul” with Philharmonia Baroque. He also created excellent portrayals at SFO, most notably in “Billy Budd” and as Walter Raleigh in “Roberto Devereaux.” His selections for the concert revealed a maturity of interpretation and flashing wit that suited his moody aria by Rachmaninoff from “Aleko” and a sexy strut through a soldier’s bragging song from a comic opera by Ambroise Thomas. Soprano Natalie Image (Tsawwassen, Canada), 2nd-year AF, also moves confidently and is at ease with comedy and drama. Her rich voice has just enough edge to add personality. Her aria from Mozart’s “Idomeneo,” accompanied on harpsichord by Barrad, was eloquent. She also closed the show with a delightful “Par le rang, Salut a la France” from Donizetti’s “The Daughter of the Regiment.” Coming from the aisles, Image’s collegial Fellows joined her for high-fives and emotional hugs and kisses. Other sparkling contributions from 1st-year AFs gave a foreshadowing of next year’s “graduation” concert. Soprano Mary Evelyn Hangley (Long Beach, NY) was impressive in “Tatiana’s Letter Scene” from “Eugene Onegin.” Her lovely

brother Simon, and Eupolemus, the Jewish Ambassador to Rome; others are called “An Israelitish Woman,” “An Israelitish Man,” “Israelitish Messenger” and “Chorus of Israelites.” Not much to provide dramatic action for an opera, but plenty of fodder for oratorio, with many sorrowful laments, pastoral odes, beautiful arias and duets, and celebratory choruses. “See, the conqu’ring hero comes!” is high on any Handel playlist. Rendered by a marvelously energetic McGegan and Company, Handel’s potentially ponderous score moved with fresh urgency and conviction. The PBO Chorale (Bruce Lamott, director) provided,

righteously, the backbone of the performance. Superb soloists (some taken from the chorus) illuminated the simple libretto by Thomas Morell (1703-84). Basso continuo (harpsichord, organ) was subtly but always audibly achieved, played by Hanneke van Prossdij and Jory Vinikour. American tenor Nicholas Phan is a big favorite of Northern California audiences. Singing the title role with resonant strength, his voice opened beautifully at heroic moments and shaded convincingly when thoughtful. South African baritone William Berger, as Judas’ younger brother Simon, created a clear portrayal. His

tone is steady and firm, perfectly suited to the role. The “Israelitish Man” and “Israelitish Woman” have much to sing. Both are essential to understanding the plot and provide needed theatrical impetus. American Robin Johannsen has a finely etched edge to her bright and warm soprano. Her “Israelitish Woman” paired well with mezzo-soprano/contralto Sara Couden’s memorable “Israelitish Man.” Appreciatively known throughout the Bay Area, Couden’s striking voice and impressive stage presence deserve wide currency. There is a confidence and compelling appeal to her rich tone. Her air “Father of Heav’n” at the top of Act

III earned special praise. Smaller roles were well-sung by mezzo-soprano Jacque Wilson as “Israelitish Messenger” and bassbaritone Sepp Hammer as Eupolemus. All eyes were on conductor McGegan throughout the long but refreshingly brisk concert. The selfproclaimed “semi-bionic maestro” (regarding a scheduled hip surgery at the end of PBO’s last season) radiates infectious enthusiasm and good humor. His current farewell season is appropriately called “Reflections,” but judging by the powerful effect of his rousing “Judas Maccabaeus,” he could probably keep running like the Energizer Bunny.t

version of space travel, and that I had thrilled as a boy to another version of this high-soaring adventure, Mike Todd’s multi-Oscar-winning, three-hour epic “Around the World in 80 Days.” “The Aeronauts,” which should certainly be viewed on a big movie screen, illustrates a cinematic version of what was once called future shock. In 1904, some patrons of the primitive Nickelodeons were frightened by a shot of a steam locomotive seemingly speeding straight at them. In 1956, audiences gushed and Oscars flowed at the sight of a British aristocrat (David Niven) and his manservant (comic actor Cantinflas) clowning their way across the globe in a widescreen take on Jules Verne’s classic tale of man over nature. “The Aeronauts” director Tom Harper has to pack far more thrills into a much tidier package, a mere 101 minutes in 70mm widescreen, to get the buzz that all award-season releases demand these days. Spoiler alert: The balloon is piloted by a woman (Jones’ character is fictional), while Redmayne’s role is based on pioneering scientist James Glaisher, determined to reach the clouds in a bid to invent modern weather-forecasting. Redmayne steals the film as a beautiful guy who nearly freezes to death for the sake of science. His fans should be grateful that their guy has returned from Harry Potter Land to give a

21st-century star turn. Jones delivers as a young woman who shrugs off 19th-century naysayers to pilot the balloon. We get some truly hair-raising scenes as the pair nearly freezes to death at the top of the then-known airspace, leading

to a nail-biting crash to earth. With a large supporting cast that includes veteran actors Tom Courtenay and Himesh Patel, “The Aeronauts” will appear both on big screens and on Amazon streaming through the holiday season.t

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t might seem impossible, but last week’s “The Future Is Now: 2019 Adler Fellows Concert” at Herbst Theatre was more special than ever. One day following the announcement of her new position as Music Director of the San Francisco Opera, Eun Sun Kim took the podium to conduct the SFO Orchestra in the keenly anticipated annual display vehicle for the crème de la crème of singers from the Merola Opera Program. The audience welcomed Kim with a warm ovation. With grace and sensitivity, Kim quickly turned to business. Bernstein’s Overture to “Candide” set the mood for a brilliant night of singing by gifted young artists. Elegantly dressed, 10 first- and second-year Fellows soon appeared, singly and in pairs. Two pianistcoaches, Kseniia Polstiankina Barrad (Kiev, Ukraine), 1st-year AF; and Cesar Canon (Bogota, Colombia), 2nd-year AF, accompanied occasionally. In a range of arias and songs from various operatic genres, the fresh-faced stars of tomorrow exhibited their talent before a packed house of enthusiastic supporters. Merola and Adler events are always at a high artistic standard, but this year’s participants are exceptional.

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Kristen Loken/SF Opera

Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra at “The Future Is Now” Adler Fellows Concert.

Up, up & away! by David Lamble

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t the Castro Theatre the other night I watched actors Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones soar

into the sky over jolly old England, circa 1862, in the breathtaking new Amazon Studios feature “The Aeronauts.” I remembered that the feat depicted was the 19th century’s

Amazon Studios

Scene from director Tom Harper’s “The Aeronauts.”

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Theatre>>

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 17

Harry Potter’s temptations & reservations by Jim Gladstone

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hapter Yet Another: In which Death Eaters meet Day Eaters. The former are dark-hearted followers of Lord Voldemort, ubervillain of the Wizarding World. The latter are the four acts of “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” now playing an open-ended run at the Curran Theater in its first North American production since opening on Broadway last year. On most Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, they’re played in two sittings separated by a dinner break, which essentially demands committing 8½ hours to this latest expansion of the Potterverse. That’s comparable in time and ticket price to a day at Disneyland. On Thursdays and Fridays, you can see the show split over two nights, but that’s sub-optimal; it’s been built for binge-watching. Handsomely mounted and certainly diverting, “Cursed Child” is a long walk on a thin line between imagination and machination. Ardent fans of J.K. Rowling’s book series (and the movies it inspired) will have no complaints about the

deeply thought-through script (by Jack Thorne, based on a plot co-created with Rowling and director John Tiffany), which dovetails seamlessly with the elaborate and complex details of its forebears, even working in a few gasp-inducing Easter Eggs for Loyalists that don’t confuse matters for relative newbies. And the production values, for the most part, are superb. Christine Jones’ gliding set-pieces and the ever-shifting gloom of Neil Austin’s rich, atmospheric lighting carve out dozens of distinctive locations within the space of the Curran stage; and thanks to Katrina Lindsay’s sweeping, caped costumes and Stephen Hoggett’s minutely graceful choreography, the ensemble of over two dozen moves with fluid Swisswatch precision. There are terrific individual performances, too, most notably Jon Steiger as a lovably uneasy Scorpius Malfoy, and David Abeles, whose prankster, grown-up Ron Weasley feels genetically identical to the child in the books. Despite all this well-oiled and genuinely admirable craftsmanship, there’s a deathly hollow at the center

Matthew Murphy

Scene from “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” now playing the Curran Theater.

of it all, an overarching sense that the production is not a natural outgrowth of the landmark book series that, among other positive effects, inspired millions of kids and adults to discover or rediscover the pleasures of leisure-reading. Rather, it feels like a forced bloom teased from the seed of the final book’s epilogue a dozen years after it was published. Rowling’s legions of fans have no good reason to refute her word that the original books were envisioned as an epic, multi-volume series, or

to begrudge her the fortune and film adaptations with which her creativity was rewarded. Once upon a time, J.K. Rowling felt artistically compelled to build a world. “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” builds on a brand. In the final passages of the final Potter novel, Rowling offers a lovely closure that echoes of her series’ beginnings: After dozens of episodic adventures full of setbacks and reversals, the book jumps forward in time to show us an adult Harry

Potter sending his son, Albus, off to begin his own time at Hogwarts; it also sends readers who have grown up with Harry Potter off to have their own adventures. This is a grand feat of literary magic: a simultaneous fusion and separation of the fantasy world and real life. More of an excess than a necessity, “Cursed Child” blows off that graceful closure to dive back into the giddy thrill of episodic adventures and reassert familiar themes of love, death, friendship and filial angst. It’s entertaining, but extraneous; polished fan-fiction by the most talented fans imaginable. There’s magic to be found within the world of Harry Potter, and even within this show. But like scarfing down one more tempting handful of Bertie Bott’s Beans after being sated, a long day with the “Cursed Child” may leave you feeling a bit greedy and a bit disenchanted.t Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Curran Theater, 445 Geary St., SF.Tickets ($59-$289 per sitting): (415) 358-1220, www.harrypotteronstage.com.

A douchey Summer’s eve by Jim Gladstone

“S

ummer” has arrived at the Golden Gate Theatre, and with it a bumper crop of corn. This is a bio-musical built around music that remains compelling, much more for the reminiscences it elicits from original listeners than for the non-distinct success story of its subject. Undoubtedly, many of the enthusiastic Boomers at last Wednesday night’s opening have tales to tell about disco (or Bar Mitzvah) nights when Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” either closed out the festivities or ushered in a juicier second act, which perhaps included a 12-inch single of “Hot Stuff ” or “Love to Love You, Baby.” Summer, played at varying ages by three actresses in this eponymous not-so-hot fluff, is initially uncomfortable being deemed the Queen of Disco, but eventually embraces the title. As well she should have: Her greatest hits made momentary stars of the everyday people who danced to them, whether in a club or in front of a bedroom mirror; they were the throbbing

Matthew Murphy for Murphymade

Alex Hairston (Disco Donna) and the Company of “Summer.”

backbeat to a show about You. But nobody was thinking about Donna on the dance floor. Summer’s most successful music wasn’t particularly autobiographical, and most of her biography isn’t particularly interesting. It’s quite possible that a canny producer could successfully wedge some of Summer’s catalog into a halfdecent, jerry-rigged jukebox narrative along the lines of “Mamma Mia” or “We Will Rock You” (“Bad Girls,” anyone?), but going the bio

route of “Jersey Boys” and “Beautiful” proves a dudly decision. While three writers are credited (Colman Domingo, Robert Cary, Des McAnuff), “Summer”’s lazy book is more like a paint-by-numbers pamphlet. The one-act show clocks in at 90 minutes, remarkably short for a Broadway musical, and revelatory of how little compelling material there was to work with, or how little the creative team cared about digging deep. And so: Donna Summer was

Books for the holidays

by Gregg Shapiro

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emoirs and memories: A follow-up to Carly Simon’s acclaimed 2015 memoir “Boys in the Trees,” “Touched by the Sun: My Friendship with Jackie” (FSG) is an intimate, affectionate portrait of the

singer-songwriter’s comradeship with “Jackie” Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. It includes details of Simon’s 1980s-90s life, including her marriage to Jim Hart, who came out as gay. Fans of the second iteration of “Queer Eye” on Netflix have their favorite style experts, and Jonathan Van Ness ranks near the top. Van Ness’ memoir “Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love” (Harper One) is a no-holds-barred look at his life from his Quincy, Illinois roots to international stardom. “The Life & Times of Butch Dykes: Portraits of Artists, Leaders and Dreamers Who Changed the World” (Microcosm) by Eloisa Aquino originated as a “beloved series of tiny zines” from the 2000s. It features a splendid array of queer heroes who loved women and resisted feminine roles, including Audre Lorde, Chavela Vargas, Martina Navratilova, and Gertrude Stein. “Reading Sedgwick” (Duke U. Press), edited by Lauren Berlant,

features essays by gender theorist Judith Butler, women’s studies professor Robyn Wiegman, and the late Cuban American academic José Esteban Muñoz, celebrating the work of queer theorist Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick. Theater queens are sure to enjoy “To the Max: Max Weitzenhoffer’s Magical Trip from Oklahoma to New York and London and Back” (U. of Oklahoma Press) by Tom Lindley, which follows the personal and professional journey of Weitzenhoffer, an Oklahoman who became a Tony Award-winning Broadway producer and London theatre owner. You know the saying, “It’s funny because it’s true?” That applies to the wicked-funny adult-oriented children’s book “Fuck, Now There Are Two of You” (Akashic Books) by Adam Mansbach, with illustrations by Owen Brozman. A sequel to 2011’s “Go the Fuck to Sleep,” See page 18 >>

once a child. She grew up in Boston. She found her love of singing and hatred of predatory preachermen in church. Her Dad wasn’t particularly domineering. She was discovered in a German stage production of “Hair.” Her early career was molded by opportunistic, sexist male managers, producers and recording execs. She wanted to be considered an Artist, not a Disco Dolly! She fled an abusive first husband. He’s essentially introduced and dispatched in a single repugnant scene set to “No More Tears/ Enough is Enough”: Get it? She broke with her money-grubbing record company and signed on with David Geffen. She fell in love (Steven Grant Douglas plays husband #2 , and his resonant tenor makes a duet of “Heaven Knows” with Dan’yelle Williamson’s Donna #1 a highlight of the show) and raised a family. Before ultimately succumbing to lung cancer, Summer becomes a born-again Christian and alienates her gay fans by being totally misunderstood and never feeling even a sprinkle of homophobia. Well, at least that’s how estate-authorized

“Summer” deals with one of the most potentially dramatic episodes in its subject’s career. Instead of using Summer’s abandonment by many longterm supporters and her efforts to win them back as a source of genuinely complex conflict, we get a whitewashed, leveraging-AIDSfor-sentiment mea non-culpa. If you’re able to ignore the dialogue and story, there’s some great singing to be heard from Williamson and Alex Hairston (playing another Donna), even though many of the songs are brought to a disappointingly short stop, as if they’re included primarily to push the buttons on your emotional jukebox. There are also some perfunctory sets, PowerPoint-quality projections, and dreadful dance routines. Imagine “She Works Hard for the Money” in a boardroom with briefcases. Boom! You’ve got that choreography down. You’d be better off skipping the theater and hitting the dance floor yourself.t Summer. Golden Gate Theatre, through Dec. 29. Tickets (from $40): (888) 746-1799, www.broadwaysf.com.

<< Music

18 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

Music for wonderful Christmas time by Jason Victor Serinus

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elcome to the 2,373rd annual installment of our holiday music survey, filled with goodies for the good, the bad, and the naughty. All albums were auditioned in file format, with high-resolution noted. Most of these albums are also available on streaming platforms, with Tidal, Qobuz, and Amazon Music HD your best options for full CD quality and hi-rez. Diana Ross: Wonderful Christmas Time (Universal) First issued in 1994, 35 years after The Supremes released their only Christmas LP, “Wonderful Christmas Time” was remixed and is now available in vinyl and download formats. The post-Supremes, sanitized Ross sings well, but her highly produced arrangements have about as much soul as Wonder Bread. Hearing Ross sing Stevie Wonder’s “Overjoyed” leaves me wanting the original. The London Symphony Orchestra accompanies five of the 20 tracks; thanks to its potent message, “Someday at Christmas” is one of the best. Gothic Voices: Nowell synge we bothe al and som (Linn/hirez ) This lovely stocking-stuffer abounds with late medieval English carols, chant, mono- and polyphonic songs and motets for Advent and

Christmas. Gothic Voices, the topflight, four-member a cappella medieval ensemble, sings wonderfully 30 years into their career. Selections by Johns Dunstable and Cooke and Leonel Power share the honors with Anon. and his kin. Handel Messiah: La Capella Reial de Catalunya, Le Concert des Nations, Jordi Savall (Alia Vox/ hi-rez) The great Jordi Savall has finally gifted us with his high-rez period-instrument version of Handel’s “Messiah.” Recorded live in the Chapelle Royale du Château Versailles, Savall’s “Messiah” declares its pedigree with tenor Nicholas Mulroy’s authentic-style embellishments. Lord knows, we have “Messiahs” with more mellifluous tenors and countertenors, but soprano Rachel Redmond sounds lovely,

Chris Hardy

Former Smuin company dancer Rex Wheeler in the studio.

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Smuin Ballet

From page 13

On this day in mid-November, the level of giddiness is even higher. A special guest is in the studio, and she’s not wearing pointe shoes. She’s going through the paces of a rigorous ballet while wearing a daz-

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Holiday Books

From page 17

the new book features a samegender couple. “A Generous Spirit: Selected Works by Beth Brant” (Sapphic Classics/ Sinister Wisdom), edited by Janice Gould, compiles essays and poems by Mohawk lesbian writer and activist Brant, who passed in 2015.

zling pair of silver sky-high pumps. Former Smuin company dancer Rex Wheeler, a.k.a. Lady Camden, is here to rehearse the lead role in “Santa Baby,” a work created by late company founder Michael Smuin that will be the centerpiece of “The Christmas Ballet” LGBTQ+ Night on Thurs., Dec. 19. More creative writing: Joint winner of the 2019 Booker Prize, “Girl, Woman, Other” (Black Cat/Grove), the novel by Anglo-Nigerian author Bernadine Evaristo, is experimental as it interweaves the stories of 12 central characters, including “a nonbinary social media influencer” and a 93-year-old woman living on a farm in Northern England. Renowned for his poetic approach to the life of the down-

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Did I really hear the line, “Unlike Yom Kippur, where you zip up your zipper?” Christmas with True Concord: Carols in the American Voice (Reference/hi-rez) Arizona’s Grammy Award-nominated True Concord Voices & Orchestra of Arizona, directed by Eric Holtan, give us 17 English-language Christmas selections. This collection is perfect for anyone seeking a handsomely voiced assortment of familiar titles: Stephen Paulus’ arrangement of “Silent Night” and Robert Shaw’s take on “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming.” Santa Claus Is Coming to Town: New Orleans Jazz Band of Cologne (hi-rez) No, you’re not going blind. With New Orleans in danger of obliteration by hurricanes, German residents of Cologne have stepped in to keep its tradition alive. Performing live in a most unlikely setting, Bad Homburg Castle, the ensemble has an absolute ball. What Cologne-born Beethoven might have thought about the New Orleans Jazz Band of Cologne is unknown, but their music is a blast. Two to avoid: Dallas String Quartet: A Very Merry Christmas Ugh. Awful sound and cheesy melodies. Joe Stilgoe’s Christmas Album Welcome to a second-rate Sinatra trying to sound way cooler than he really is.t

and baritone Matthias Winckhler is quite fine. The 22-voiced choir is superb, and percussion and trumpets in the Hallelujah Chorus are tops. Putamayo Presents Blues Christmas (Putamayo) Anthology specialist Putamayo goes all out with Christmas-themed blues selections from Charles Brown, Kenny Neal, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha, Mel Brown, and more. For people singing about sad, sad Christmas, these singers make upbeat sounds. There’s not a single female soloist to be heard, but you can probably find them on Putamayo’s New Orleans, Latin and French Christmas collections. Christmas: The Gesualdo Six, Owain Park (Hyperion/hi-rez) Exquisite a cappella renditions performed by the beautifully-voiced men of Gesualdo Six. Recorded in

Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge, the program focuses on the birth of Christ. We begin with Philip Lawson’s excellent arrangement of “Veni Emmanuel” before skipping between Thomas Tallis (b. 1505) and Cheryl Frances-Hoad (b. 1980). Highly recommended. Hanukkah+: Various Artists (Reference/Universal) Anyone expecting a traditional Hanukkah album will be taken aback by this pop-oriented collection from singers who include Jack Black, Adam Green, Yo La Tengo, The Flaming Lips, and Loudon Wainwright III. The tracks ride roughshod over lounge music, retro, and country/ western. The collection, available on vinyl as well as CD, includes a Passover Bonus that someone, somewhere won’t want to pass over.

Artistic Director Celia Fushille works through the steps with Wheeler, pointing out the nuances of a role she has danced hundreds of times, always referring to Rex as his alter-ego. “Okay, Lady Camden, go into passé here, then turn out and place your foot here, get some momentum with the chassé before going into the lift.” She watches intently, makes corrections, then asks, “Well, Lady Camden, you ready for a full run?” Wheeler looks hesitant at first. But as his fellow dancers cheer him on, his eyes light up, the glistening pumps are lifted high into the air, and a new chapter of Smuin Ballet history begins. Fushille says, “I’d seen videos of Lady Camden, and I thought that as a trained dancer, she could really do the ‘Santa Baby’ choreography and do it justice.” Fushille had been thinking about an LGBTQ+ night for some time, but she didn’t want to just throw a party – although there will be a celebration after the performance, hosted by Lady Camden and the Imperial Council of San Francisco. According to Fushille, “We decided as a team that we would plan for a year and really make it special. In addition to ‘Santa Baby,’ Lady Camden is choreographing a new work, and she’ll make other cameo

appearances. Some of our other choreography that is normally heterosexual couples, we’re going to mix it up and have two guys or two girls.” For Wheeler, bringing his Lady Camden drag persona into the ballet world has been a somewhat cautious journey. He says, “In my last year or two dancing with the company I had some back injuries. I was really not able to do much for large chunks of time. I started experimenting with drag and makeup, and it made me feel like a kid again. It really helped lift me out of that ‘injury funk.’ Drag was a way to connect my love of being the class clown in the studio with my creativity.” Lady Camden now makes appearances at clubs around the Castro and at Oasis, and as a hostess/performer at Hamburger Mary’s. Simultaneously, Wheeler’s work as a choreographer began to blossom. “I’d been doing drag and choreographing for the company, and I always kept them separate. Not everyone in the ballet world is interested in drag. But Celia is such an open-minded person, she really cares about her dancers, even when they move on. She follows me on social media, and she’d ask me about my shows. She wanted to do an LGBTQ+ night, and she felt I was

the right person to connect these two different worlds. “I’m so happy that the staff and dancers are invested in making LGBTQ+ night happen. Everyone has a great sense of humor, but they take their jobs seriously. As much fun as I’m having, I want to get the steps exactly right and respect Michael’s choreography. And I want to make sure we still make our regular Smuin audience happy with all their favorite classics. We’re just going to intersperse it with a little drag and the LGBTQ spirit.” As he looks around the new studios, Wheeler’s thoughts turn back to Fushille and the company’s late founder. Wheeler says, “What Celia has done here is so amazing. When you meet her, you see that she is smart and knows how to make things happen, but what I realize now is that she’s really ambitious. I think that’s what Michael would be most happy about. He would want the company to grow, do new things and make brave choices.”t

trodden, gay poet in rural Pennsylvania Jeff Walt’s new full-length collection “Leave Smoke” (Gival Press) includes “In Bed I Run the Calluses on Your Palm,” “That Norma Jean Next to Me at the Alibi,” and “My Brother on the Graveyard Shift.” “Tracing the Unspoken” (A Midsummer Night’s Press), the English-language debut of award-winning Slovenian poet and translator Milan Šelj, translated by poet Harvey Vincent, contains more than 60 compact, precise and erotic prose poems. In her eighth book “Somewhere Along the Way” (Bold Strokes Books), lesbian writer Kathleen Knowles takes the reader back to 1981, when Maxine and her gay bestie Chris relocate to SF from the Midwest. Each of them

faces new challenges that lead to their estrangement, the loss of a life and a quest for redemption. Israeli-born, Brooklyn-residing poet Shira Erlichman is the author

of “Odes to Lithium: Poems” (Alice James Books), a collection that deals with mental illness, following Erlichman’s bipolar disorder diagnosis.t

The Christmas Ballet LGBTQ+ Night, Thurs., Dec. 19, YBCA. Tickets: www.smuinballet. org. Use code LGBTQ, 25% of purchase goes to The LGBT Asylum Project. The Christmas Ballet runs Dec. 12-23.

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Arts Events

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Nightlife Events

www.ebar.com

Shining Stars Vol. 49 • No. 50 • December 12-18, 2019

Christmas with the Countess Katya Smirnoff-Skyy’s holiday concert at Feinstein’s by David-Elijah Nahmod

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he Countess Katya Smirnoff-Skyy returns to Feinstein’s at the Nikko on December 19 for a three-night stand in which she will usher in the holidays with songs, stories and strong cocktails designed to make your Yuletide gay. See page 20 >>

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J

oe Dante’s Gremlins, produced by Steven Spielberg, is a Christmas classic that horror fans can sink their teeth into. When first released in 1984, this tale of a fuzzy little creature named Gizmo –who multiplies into hundreds of little monsters after he’s exposed to water– was a huge hit at the box office. The film generated some controversy due to its violent content and helped to usher in the PG-13 rating. See page 22 >>

{ THIRD OF THREE SECTIONS }

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<< Cabaret

20 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

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Christmas with Katya

From page 19

Katya was created about 15 years ago by actor J.Conrad Frank, who tells the Bay Area Reporter that Katya is an amalgamation of two people. “I was an opera singer once upon a time,” Frank said. “Everyone in classical music knows at least one vaguely Eastern European lady who seems to have had a very glamorous life at one point. There’s little evidence of that now.” Frank describes Katya as “a lady

of a certain age” who was born in the Soviet Union and moved to Paris when she was 17, where she married a 78-year-old count who died three months later. From there, Katya evolved into a lady who approaches popular music as a middle-aged classically trained Russian lady might. Katya has since developed quite a following and is, in Frank’s words, “quite beloved.” “I like to think of her as your favorite drunk aunt at the Bar Mitzvah that you think is the most glamorous person in the world,” said Frank. “She can speak to everyone. It’s very

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much in the vein of classic drag theater like Charles Pierce or Charles Busch, with a little bit of Varla Jean Merman and Justin Vivian Bond for good measure.” Katya has become a Christmas fixture in the Bay Area, with this year marking 13 years since the holiday spectacular was first performed. “It’s ironic that she does this big Christmas show,” Frank said. “Because she is in fact Jewish, well, she converted to Judaism. If there’s a holiday where people drink four glasses of wine, sign her up. She sings ‘Eight Nights Only’ to the tune of ‘One Night Only’ from Dreamgirls –in a minor key, of course– which makes it terribly appropriate as a Chanukah song.” In Katya! A Holiday Spectacular! Katya, a holiday hostess, welcomes the audience into her home. She will tell stories from her life and sing songs. Those stories will include the tale of her failed appearance at Radio City Music Hall where she was asked to sing “The Carol of the Bells” and ended up doing something quite different. Towards the end of the show Katya, gives out gifts of things she has acquired over the course of the year but no longer wants. “The gifts speak to me and they tell me who they want to be given to,” Frank said. Songs during the show will include revised ‘classics’ like “Stalin, Baby” and a vast medley of songs from Christmas television specials. “Everything from classic carols to Katya’s version of ‘Proud Mary,’ which is of course the tale of the Virgin Mary on her way to Bethlehem,” quipped Frank. “It’s a special number. People ask me all the time why I do the same material every year, but I change it, things change. But should I cut songs that have become part of people’s holiday traditions? They keep coming, so I’ll keep doing it.” Frank is a local boy, hailing from San Mateo. In his younger years he studied architecture and music at the University of Oregon. He recalls seeing a lot of classical singers

t

Katya Smirnoff-Skyy

who worked very hard and stressed themselves out, and decided that this was not how he wanted to be. “I’ve always been of the philosophy that life isn’t about lyrics or rhythm, these are just suggestions from the composer,” he said. “Music should be something that’s enjoyed, something that makes people laugh. So I created Katya as an outlet to do the kind of performing and the kind of singing that I wanted to do. Everything from classical music to arrangements of Taylor Swift, or The Beatles or Nirvana. There’s something for everybody in a Katya show.” Frank has a long history of performing in Bay Area theaters, both in and out of drag. He’s done plays at New Conservatory Theater and most recently played the Narrator in Ray of Light’s production of The Rocky Horror Show. He considers himself an actor first and foremost

and strives to bring an emotional core to his drag performances. “At a Katya show, you’ll laugh a lot, but sometimes you’ll get teary as well,” he said. “There’s a lot of heart to Katya, because any great comedy comes with depth as well. And I think that’s one thing I do that’s slightly different from most quote unquote ‘drag acts’ that are out there today. What I do is theater-based, character-driven performance.” When Katya takes to the stage at Feinstein’s, she’ll be accompanied by a band of six. Frank says that there will also be several elves who help Katya out. “It’s fun,” Frank promises. “If you can’t be sparkly at the holiday season, then what’s the point?”t Katya! A Holiday Spectacular! December 19-21. $40-$470 ($20 food/drink min.) 8pm. Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason St. feinsteinssf.com

Arts Events

December 12-19, 2019

Fri 13

Plays, musicals, art exhibits and concerts are already unwrapped and waiting for your childlike joy. Read ‘em all at www.ebar.com.

Head Over Heels @ New Conservatory Theatre Center

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<< Drag

22 • Bay Area Reporter • December 12-18, 2019

Femlins

From page 19

As much fun as it is, one might not equate Gremlins with gay culture, yet on December 14 drag superstar Peaches Christ brings her own unique take on the film in what promises to be a wild and wacky drag extravaganza, titled Femlins. The show will be seen at the big, beautiful Castro Theater at 3 and 8 pm. Each show will be followed by a screening of Gremlins in 35mm. “Gremlins is a Christmas movie,” Joshua Grannell, Peaches Christ’s alter ego, told the Bay Area Reporter. “It’s for sure one of the best horror movies set at Christmastime alongside Black Christmas and Christmas Evil. I think people have forgotten just how twisted and disturbing

The full line-up of drag talents in Femlins (L to R): Detox, Phi Phi Ohara, Migette Nielson, Miz Cracker, and Peaches Christ.

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and twisted.” So how to transform this holiday monster movie into a show that appeals specifically to the LGBT community? “Much like any Peaches Christ production, we are taking the story of Gremlins that you know and love and transporting it to a completely queer universe where most people are drag queens and pretty much everyone is queer,” Grannell said. “Aside from that, I think folks should prepare themselves for a bit of a spectacle. I’ve engaged my haunted attraction partner David Flower to come on board and do some special effects for the show and we are super-excited for the audience to experience some of our new gags.” He added that at one point the show’s fourth wall will be broken and that the audience will become performers in the show. A lot of laughter is promised. Grannell addressed the process by which he chooses films to parody. “I really look to see if there’s an audience of people out there who love a particular film and if there’s a bona-fide cult built around it,” he said. “Then I watch it through my own lens and determine whether I think I could create a fun parody out of it. I usually look to see if it has any transgressive qualities or if there’s something we can subvert to make more queer or strange.” Appearing on stage with Peaches Christ will be drag artists Miz Cracker, Detox, Phi Phi O’Hara, and Migitte Nielsen. Grannell explained what he looks for when he books a guest for his show. “I really try to match their own character’s personality with the character they’re parodying and when I write the show I try to create a hybrid that feels natural enough for the audience to get on board,” he said. “As much as there is a cult for these movies, there’s also a cult for some of these queens. So you want to satisfy the fans by casting in a way that’s fun and exciting and that makes sense.” Grannell co-wrote Femlins with Michael Varrati, a screenwriter who describes his work as “focused on the intersection of queer identity and horror.” The two have been close friends for a number of years, with Varrati authoring some columns for

the Peaches Christ website. “Femlins is meant as a loving satire and parody of Gremlins,” Varrati said. “So we took the movie and injected it with a drag aesthetic. Now, instead of a dad giving his son a pet for Christmas, it’s the story of a drag queen giving the pet to her drag daughter in hope that it will help her appreciate the holidays more. From there we played with the absurd elements and just kicked everything up a notch.” Just days ago, Gremlins director Joe Dante tweeted his support for the shows. Varrati pointed out that Gremlins is a horror movie that exists in a heightened reality, just as drag as an art form also plays with heightened reality. “We blurred the lines between glamorous and monstrous and really dared to ask if there was a difference,” he said. “Digging into the material, it was kind of fun to see how much of it lent itself so easily to a drag world. I think people are

going to have a blast.” Varrati has a message for those who might be unfamiliar with Peaches Christ or Gremlins. “I would say come for the spectacle and the celebration,” he said. “This is a holiday party as only legendary drag queens can do. Peaches, Detox, Miz Cracker, Phi Phi, Migitte and the rest of our cast are all next lever performers and truly at the top of their game. With that line-up you’re guaranteed a show! Furthermore, this is not your grandparents’ holiday event. We’ve got monsters and musical numbers and a few surprises that are sure to leave you gagged!” “If you want to escape the world for a few hours,” added Grannell, “and really laugh at get silly and feel part of an audience that’s celebratory and fun, this is a great way to treat yourself.”t Femlins, Saturday December 14, 3pm and 8pm at The Castro Theater, 429 Castro Street. $20-100. www.peacheschrist.com

Gizmo and an evil gremlin from the 1984 film Gremlins.

Nightlife Events December 12-19, 2019

Gooch

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We’re serving up comedy, music, drag and drinks in the coming nightlife calendar, including Cubcake at the Lone Star (see photo). Much more online this week at www.ebar.com.

Fri 13

Cubcake @ Lonestar

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Shining Stars>>

December 12-18, 2019 • Bay Area Reporter • 23

Shining Stars Steven Underhill Photos by

Santa Skivvies Run @ Castro District

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he San Francisco AIDS Foundation’s eleventh annual Santa Skivvies Run drew participants out in festive holiday undergear on December 9 for the brisk short-run fundraiser around the Castro. Host bar The Lookout provided clothes-check and drinks, plus a Noe Street outdoor social area with a Santa for lap-sitting. www.santaskivviesrun.org See plenty more photos on BARtab’s Facebook page, facebook.com/lgbtsf.nightlife. See more of Steven Underhill’s photos at StevenUnderhill.com.

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call (415) 370-7152 or visit www.StevenUnderhill.com or email stevenunderhillphotos@gmail.com

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Nice Packages

From page 19

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done it all, seen it all and still has store to keep them supplied a waistline under 31 inches. with source materials for their His ultimate quote: “Don’t huge coffee table book editions be afraid to take a chance, and on art, culture, entertainment don’t be afraid of the word ‘no.’ and fashion. It seems like that moment of reSoon, The Magazine Bookjection does too much damage store will give their building to men’s self-esteem. Just be a over to The Bob Mizer Foundaman; keep trying.” tion. The late Mr. Mizer conI walked out of his store with tinues to be one of the most excellent magazines and a new influential people in visual culattitude about what I want to do ture and human sexuality. Los and who I want to be. Angeles made him, but the Bay Auto Erotica 4077 18th St. Area gets to keep him. (415) 861-5787. www.twitter. I really scored at the bookcom/autoeroticasf store, buying limited edition Nice packaging for packages at Rock Hard DVD sets of the films My Own sion. He stripped down and the joy In conclusion, the pattern Private Idaho and Apocalypse went unrestrained. I got great immay have emerged that I’ve visited Now as well as season two of the Shopping at Good Vibrations ages, too. Rock Hard has that heavy these wonderful places, had some groundbreaking television program sex vibe. It’s filled to the rafters wonderful cultural experiences and Queer As Folk (US Edition). history of the vibrator and other with sex toys, dolls, lubricants and I purchased products that made me The Magazine 920 Larkin St. sexual devices. They also stage other condoms. In short, the whole nine feel great and rarin’ to go. Visit these www.themagazinesf.com special educational events to get you yards, to help you prepare yourself places. Purchase items. Support to the next level for your next sex for the whole nine inches(or more). gay-owned businesses and feel good I trolleyed up to Castro Street to episode. I walked out with a FleshI didn’t even try to resist buying an about it.t visit Rock Hard Yes, indeed. I rejack, after having a great time with oxblood red leather fringe loincloth member, a few years previous, havthe classy and sassy saleswomen. ing an impromptu photo shoot with from them. Mission St. location, one of porn icon Jon Galt. He was immeRock Hard, 518 Castro St. several. www.goodvibes.com diately recognized, as we walked in, https://rockhardsf.business.site/ and we were given instant permisI hopped on my scooter and Giddy with joy-and that new within minutes was at The leather smell, I walked across Magazine bookstore. the street and fifty feet to Auto As usual, I had a ball! It’s Erotica to get that late ‘70s gay truly another cultural landmark lib homomasculine vibe. It’s just that is indicative of San Franwhat San Francisco is about... cisco. It’s a gay man’s library or should be, sexually, socially, for sale. Vintage Architectural culturally. For fun stocking Digest magazines? They’ve got stuffers of vintage porn mags ‘em. Vintage issues of After and DVDs, plus some classic Dark magazine? They’ve got vintage posters, take that flight ‘em. Rare issues of French Vogue of stairs up to the store. Homme? They’ve got ‘em. Someone should create a I have eavesdropped on condocumentary for the joint and versations held by the owners its owner/operator, Patrick Batt. with the two major publishing I had a long conversation with Auto Erotica firms, Taschen and Universe. The Magazine’s recent window display him about the evolution of gay They call The Magazine bookmale sexuality, and Mr. Batt has

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