GayCalgary Magazine - June 2013

JUNE 2013

® ISSUE 116 • FREE The Voice of Alberta’s LGBT Community

JUJUBEE Bombshell with a Beautiful Heart

Seth Knight

”Twink of the Year” comes to Edmonton

Getting Real with

Natalie Maine PLUS:

Blood: It’s In You To Give…Maybe Maverick Jim: The Gay Caballero Alberta Pride Celebrations ...and more!

Business Directory

Scan to Read on Mobile Devices http://gettag.mobi

Community Map

Calgary • Alberta • Canada

Events Calendar

Tourist Information

Amy Grant

Christian Music Legend STARTING ON PAGE 55

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Table of Contents

Videography Steve Polyak,Sales Rob Diaz-Marino Craig Connell Printers sales@gaycalgary.com North Hill News/Central Web

Printers Distribution Web exPress

Calgary: Gallant Distribution GayCalgary Staff Distribution Edmonton: Clark’s Distribution Calgary: GayCalgary Staff Other: Canada Distribution Post Edmonton: Greenline Other: Canada Post

Legal Council

Courtney Aarbo, Barristers and Solicitors

SalesGeneral & General Inquiries Inquiries

® GayCalgary and Edmonton Magazine GayCalgary Magazine 2136 17th Avenue SW Calgary, AB, Canada Calgary, AB, Canada T2T 0G3 T2T 0G3 magazine@gaycalgary.com

Office Hours: By appointment ONLY Phone: 403-543-6960 Toll Free: 1-888-543-6960 Fax: 403-703-0685 E-Mail: magazine@gaycalgary.com This Month's Cover Cher and Christina Aguilera Main: Jujubeecourtesy of Sony Pictures; Annie courtesy of Mike Owen; TopLennox Right: Seth Knight Rex Goudie.

Middle Right: Natalie Maines, photo by Danny Clinch Proud of:Jim Wright Bottom Right: AmyMembers Grant, photo by

Proud Members of:

Hidden Treasures Publisher’s Column

10 Edmonton Pride 2013 11 Walter Koenig

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Writers and Contributors

Mercedes Mercedes Allen,Allen, ChrisChris Azzopardi, Azzopardi, DallasDave Barnes, Dave Brousseau, Brousseau, JasonSam Clevett, Casselman, AndrewJason Collins, Clevett, Rob Andrew Diaz-Marino, Collins,Janine Emily Collins, Eva Trotta, Rob Evan Diaz-Marino, Kayne, Stephen Janine Eva Lock, Trotta, LisaJack Lunney, Fertig, Steve GlenPolyak, Hanson,Romeo Joan Hilty, San Evan Vicente, Kayne, Ed Sikov, Stephen Krista Lock,Sylvester, Neil McMullen, Nick Allan Winnick Neuwirth, and theSteve LGBTPolyak, Community Carey of Rutherford, Calgary, Romeo SanEdmonton, Vicente, Edand Sikov, Alberta.

Nick Vivian and the GLBT Community of Calgary, Edmonton, and Alberta.

Photography Steve Polyak, Rob Diaz-Marino, Photography Karen Hofmann, B&J, Rob Browatzke Steve Polyak, Rob Diaz-Marino, B&J Videography Steve Polyak, Rob Diaz-Marino

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Mr. Chekov Beams into Calgary

12 Stephen Sadowski

Super-artist drawing Superheroes

13 Made in Calgary: The 1970s

A Decade of Timeless Art Revisited at the Glenbow Museum

15 Discussing Community Safety Personal Safety

16 CRIR 2013

20 Years of Rodeo Fun & Memories

18 Heart in Motion

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Publisher: Steve Polyak Editor: Rob Diaz-Marino Sales: Steve Polyak Design & Layout: Rob Diaz-Marino, Ara SteveShimoon Polyak

JUNE 2013

A conversation with Christian music legend Amy Grant

21 Peace River Pride 2013 22 Deep Inside Hollywood

e n zi

Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are guys who need dolls

23 Cocktail Chatter

a g a

The Gin Rickey

24 Blood: It’s In You To Give…

Maybe

m

25 Team Edmonton Honoured 25 Letters

26 Maverick Jim

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®

The Gay Caballero

28 Out of Town

International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association

4 Unconventional Gay Seaside Getaways

30 Lethbridge Gay Pride 35 Natalie Maines Gets Real

Dixie Chicks singer talks lesbian hair, Rachel Maddow crush and ‘fake’ country music

National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association

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Edmonton Rainbow Business Association

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Table of Contents  Continued From Previous Page

38 Rewriting Jessie Ware

®

Singer on career switch, big gay following and her wildest moment

Magazine Figures

40 Murs Invasion

Monthly Print Quantity:

PAGE 35

British crooner on exhibitionism, gay rumors and cracking America

44 Seth Knight

Readership

“Twink of the Year” comes to PURE Pride Edmonton

Readers Per Copy: 4.9 (PMB) Print Readership: >9800 Avg. Online Circulation: 250,000 readers Estimated Total Readership: >259,800 readers Frequency: Monthly

45 A Bombshell with a Beautiful Heart

PAGE 44

Jujubee lights up Edmonton’s PURE Pride night

47 53 54 55 60

Queer Eye A Couple of Guys Mr. GayCalgary June 2013 - Darrel Reid Directory and Events Classified Ads

a m

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History Originally established in January 1992 as Men for Men BBS by MFM Communications.

Name changed to GayCalgary in 1998.

Independent company as of January 2004.

First edition of GayCalgary.com Magazine published November 2003. Name adjusted in November 2006 to GayCalgary and Edmonton Magazine. February 2012 returned to GayCalgary Magazine.

February 2013, GayCalgary® becomes a registered trademark.

Disclaimer and Copyright Opinions expressed in this magazine are specific to the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of GayCalgary staff and contributors.

Those involved in the making of this publication, whether advertisers, contributors, or the subjects of articles or photographs, are not necessarily gay, lesbian, bisexual, or trans. This magazine also includes straight allies and those who are gay friendly.

No part of this publication may be reprinted or modified without the expressed written permission of the editor or publisher.

Copyright 2013. All rights reserved.

GayCalgary® is a registered trademark.

JULY 2013 Print Deadlines Ad Booking: Wed, Jun 26

Submission: Fri, Jun 28 In Circulation: Fri, Jul 5 Please contact us immediately if you think you may have missed the booking or submission deadline.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Editorial

Hidden Treasures Publisher’s Column

By Rob Diaz-Marino, MSc. On occasion there are events going on in Alberta’s LGBT community that manage to completely elude us.

Surprising, I know, when we are informed about virtually everything happening in our community – even the stuff that may not be eligible for publication in this magazine.

Usually it takes one or two cycles of such an event to transpire before word makes its way to us. In most cases this is because event organizers come from isolated pockets of the LGBT community, and it isn’t until they poke their heads out into the public sphere for the first time that they discover us and other LGBT organizations (or vice versa). This was the case with Lethbridge Pride several years ago, and also Peace River Pride just recently.

However, the Ghost Town LGBT Campout in Wayne, Alberta (15 minutes southeast of Drumheller) was a case that baffles us a little. It has been running annually for the past 32 years and yet we only crossed paths with information of its existence last year. It is a small event of about 50 people, most of whom are regulars that come back year after year, sometimes inviting friends and slowly growing the group’s numbers by word of mouth. In fact, we almost missed this year’s event because we didn’t see any information about it through the usual channels we monitor. It came as just a side mention in an incidental conversation, and so we planned to make our way out to take pictures.

The area is quite scenic – nestled in a small river valley in the badlands.

The campground is adjacent to the Last Chance Saloon, what I’d describe as a diner / biker bar - although this label makes it seem more intimidating than it actually is.

Everyone out for the campout seemed very relaxed and laid back, just having a great time sitting around socializing (and drinking) while taking

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shelter from the intermittent rain. Some made their way over to the bar to compete in shuffleboard and horseshoe matches, and other games. We got photos of some of the campers, and fought with mosquitoes as we played around with an app for our phones to make 3D 360° panoramas.

On our way back to Calgary we stopped in Drumheller to eat our packed dinner, at which point Steve got the idea that he’d like to get some driving practice. As I’ve mentioned in previous columns, Steve has never gone for his driver’s license, although last year he surprised me by finally getting his learner’s. We weren’t prepared for this, but luckily the helpful lady in the Drumheller tourism information centre was able to give us a piece of paper, a felt marker, and even some tape so that I could make a “Student Driver” sign for the car.

The sparse traffic on the streets and highway were ideal for Steve to practice – in fact, it was his first experience with highway driving and subsequently the fastest he’s ever driven in the vehicle. He seemed to enjoy the liberties of being in the driver’s seat, namely the ability to pull over at will to check out some of the sights around Drumheller. Although highway driving was a little scary for him at times, he persevered and got us all the way back to the QE2 before I took over to get us the rest of the way home through the busier traffic. I was certainly happy being able to take a break during the long drive, and proud of him for doing so well. In fact, I’m going to put him to use for the drive between Calgary and Edmonton from now on. Mwahahahaaa.

May 2013 May was our month to get caught up on work, and in some respects we did. I made some headway on our website (see below) as well as getting caught up on a great deal of yard work before the rain started: painting

Continued on Next Page 

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 From Previous Page our front fence, cleaning up all the leaves and branches that were slowly composting behind the retaining wall at the back of our property, and then hauling it off to the dump while the city was still taking yard waste for free.

Later in the month, Cowboys Nightclub held a congratulatory event for the newly elected Empress, Argintina, where they offered to donate cover to the ISCCA. Granted the show time of 8:30pm was a little too early for a drag show, but nevertheless they were able to raise a good chunk of change.

A tournament was held in Calgary last month as part of the North American Gay Volleyball Association circuit. The turnout wasn’t quite what organizers had expected, thanks to complications with American participants crossing the border into Canada. Nevertheless, the show went on, and Steve and I stopped by the Olympic Oval at the University of Calgary a number of times over the course of the weekend to snap photos of the ongoing matches. Steve and I remained professional, but on the inside we were woofing over several of the participants. This is one of the joys of taking photos.

Meanwhile, in the midst of the incessant rainfall, the Fairy Tales Film Festival was kicking off their week. Steve and I went to the opening gala where we saw two very entertaining films: Margarita and Go Doc Project.

Steve often makes fun of me for my lack of pop culture knowledge, especially when it comes to classical gay culture. If it were possible to take away my “gay card”, as the saying goes, it would have been revoked several times over. Most of what I do know, he has been there as I have been exposed to it. This is why, when we went to the retro film night to see The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, he was shocked to learn I had already seen it once before – prior to even being out of the closet, to boot.

When I was a kid, one of my friends who I would regularly hang out with, belonged to a family that was a bit more open minded and receptive to arts and culture, perhaps, than my own. I would sometimes join them for movie night, and one such night the movie was Priscilla. I suppose they had rented it on recommendation of it being a “classic”. Of course, as I kid I didn’t understand most of what was going on, and the cross dressing weirded me out a little bit. So it was good for me to watch it again and put things right in my mind.

Unfortunately, Fairy Tales overlapped our press deadline as it does every year and so Steve and I had to miss a number of movies and events. We particularly regret missing the party at Goliaths after the movie Interior.

Leather. Bar. - a rare opportunity for the whole community to explore the otherwise men-only space.

However, we did manage to squeeze in the IBM and Telus VIP Reception held at Pulcinella in Kensington. We had a great time socializing with Fairy Tales board members and other business professionals while enjoying the food – although I had the oddest mishap while here. One of the appetizers being served was tiger prawns in a slightly spicy red sauce. As I tried to get the remainder of meat out of the tail section by pinching it, my fingers slipped and the tail got launched around my index finger, hitting me square in the right eye before falling to the floor. I recoiled in shock and covered my eye, noticing the hot sauce burning progressively worse. Steve’s hands were full so someone else had to grab me a napkin to dab the sauce away, but I still had to run to the bathroom to thoroughly rinse it out. Good grief, you can’t take me anywhere.

It has been a while since we last covered a Hot Mess dance, so we planned to stop by Local 510 this past month to check it out. However, as we drove by and saw the line-up going down the block, we decided against fighting the crowds. It’s good to see the event doing so well though, and perhaps next time we will need to show up earlier.

On the final night of May, we made our way up to Edmonton to check out and photograph the grand opening of, UpStares Ultralounge - an “everyone

Online Last Month (1/2) Creep of the Week Dave Agema

Facebook’s ever-changing privacy settings can be confusing, but you might want to click the “Only Me” setting if you’re... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3506

NAGVA Championships XXXI In Calgary May 24-26

Calgary is proud to host the National Gay Volleyball Association (NAGVA) XXXI Championship Tournament this... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3511

Creep of the Week Louie Gohmert

There are few topics that raise the collective temperatures of Americans on all sides as much as gun control and... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3507

Deep Inside Hollywood

Sara Gilbert moonlights with Bad Teacher

Success breeds success. As a child star on Roseanne, Sara Gilbert won over the coveted sullen teen demographic with... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3512

Paul Rudd & Tina Fey: Dream Duo

Admission stars talk new film’s acceptance theme, first jobs and shower scene

They say dreams come true, and that one where Tina Fey and Paul Rudd act (and shower) together on the big screen – it’s... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3514

Hear Me Out

Jessie Ware, Ashley Monroe

Jessie Ware, Devotion If you’ve heard British breakthrough singer Jessie Ware’s “Wildest Moments” (and if you haven’t... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3515

Screen Queen: Oscar Winners 2013

Les Misérables, Skyfall, Wreck-It Ralph, Zero Dark Thirty, Lincoln, Life of Pi, Argo

Les Misérables Wins: Actress in a Supporting Role (Anne Hathaway), Sound Mixing, Makeup and Hairstyling... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3517

Thinking Out Loud: Waiting for History

What the Supreme Court marriage cases will mean for equality

This week, as the Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of Prop 8 and DOMA, I’ve heard the following... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3519

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Online Last Month (2/2) The OutField

Go! Athletes fields an all-star team

A team finds success only through teamwork. That’s as true off the playing field as on it. Jay Hayes has earned.... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3518

welcome” concept that is not exclusively a gay bar, but still explicitly LGBT friendly. A familiar face from the early days of FLASH Nightclub, Jeannine Bjornson, is heading up this new project. The space is quite nice, with lots of lounge seating, an awesome disco-style dance floor that does changing light patterns, a few mirror-ball style walls, and several different areas to choose from in which to hang out. The only drawback to the space might be the numerous flights of stairs to climb to get to their floor near the top of the multi-level building. It’s good exercise, and certainly nothing that will sap your strength if you’re going there to dance anyway.

This Month

Last night my partner and I watched The Perks of Being a Wallflower, the sweet, slightly retro coming-of-age film...

Ahh June: my birth month, and probably one of the craziest months for events in the LGBT community. Immediately after this edition hits the stands, Edmonton will be celebrating their Pride week which will be jampacked with events. The night of Saturday, June 8th will be particularly hectic with the Pride Dance, the Bearbash, and the PURE Pride dance all happening at the same time. For more information, look for the 2 page spread in this edition with the Edmonton Pride events listing, as well as ads for Bearbash and PURE Pride.

We’re looking forward to Lethbridge Pride again this year, as the event keeps growing and growing. In previous years we have only made a day trip down to Lethbridge, but this year we plan to stay a few nights to witness and enjoy a bit more of the festivities. Look for their ad in this edition of the magazine for an itinerary of events.

As much as we’re curious to attend Peace River Pride, the 8 hour drive from Calgary (or 5 hours from Edmonton) is a little daunting, especially having to do it again to get back. However, any readers in Grande Prairie would have a much easier time getting there.

http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3520

Website Updates

Creep of the Week

A newer version of the software that we use for playing streaming videos on our website was released last month. The update boasted much wider compatibility than previous versions, using HTML5 to plug many of the compatibility gaps between internet browsers that we’ve experienced with previous versions - and indeed it works as advertised.

Unfortunately when we installed it onto our website, we discovered it was failing in some browsers because our website itself was not HTML5 compliant. Fixing this was a simple matter, however it had unacceptable side-effects on the layout of some parts of our site.

Rather than rebuilding our existing design to look correct with HTML5, we decided it was high time to refresh our website with a brand new look. The design we formulated is inspired by the layout used in Windows 8 and on our Windows phones – high contrast, large fonts, square corners, tiled items, tablet and mobile device friendly – along with the color scheme and some familiar elements from the layout of our own magazine.

First we updated the templates that are common across the many pages of our site – the header and footer, if you will. This fixed the most severe layout problems, leaving just the contents of each page to be transitioned one by one from the old design to the new one.

So far we have transitioned the Magazine area of our website, as it is the most commonly used area and core to what we do. The process of updating this page wasn’t just a matter of fixing the appearance of the existing elements – it was a full reinvention of those elements too, with user-friendliness in mind. In the process we added some useful new features, such as the ability to easily flip to the next/previous edition of the magazine, next/previous article, and even a button to jump to a random article (for fun). Another nice change is to the listing of articles and editions, which are now laid out so that each item is a tile that can wrap on the page to be 2 or more columns. This means a more efficient use of space no matter what resolution of monitor you are viewing the website on, making for less scrolling and easier browsing.

The only remaining eyesore is the comments box at the end of the Magazine page, which will be taken care of as part of the upgrade to the Forum area when that time comes.

All in all, the Magazine page looks a lot cleaner, and seems to operate much smoother than before - take a look for yourself at: www.gaycalgary. com/magazine.

For the next little while, other pages of the website will have some strange clashing between the old and new style but, we look forward to similarly reinventing them over the next several months, as time permits.

Deep Inside Hollywood

Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin: better together?

It’s official: both Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin have canceled talk shows.

And while both also have other career... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3513

Thinking Out Loud: The Thrill of It Remembering the crazy beauty of the coming-out years

Tony Perkins

The only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy who is not having gay sex. At least this seems to be the... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3509

Hear Me Out

Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Gin Wigmore

Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Mosquito Karen O and Co., the New York alt-rock trio widely known as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, went... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3516

Creep of the Week Diocese of Columbus

Imagine that your mother has just died.

This is, for most, a difficult, emotional time. Plus there’s so much to take care... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3510

Thinking Out Loud: Straightening Up At The Boy Scouts Of America It’s Time For The BSA To Take A Tip From Its Own Handbook

Sometime in the ‘20s my grandfather became the then-youngest Boy Scout to obtain the top rank of Eagle Scout... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3521

To Boldly Go Where No Delta Nu has Gone Before

Front Row Centre Players does justice in Legally Blonde the Musical

When the first sun in days came out this morning it was a struggle to drive away from the garden to see an indoor matinee, but before the character Elle... http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3523

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Community

 Photos from Edmonton Pride 2012, by GayCalgary Magazine

Edmonton Pride 2013

By Lisa Lunney The LGBT community in Alberta’s capital city are taking a bold stand to ensure the message of Pride rings loud and clear.

Edmonton’s LGBT community has made significant strides in the pursuit of equality, with a history of early Pride Marches and demonstrations, to being the first Pride celebration attended by an Alberta Premier.

This year’s festival theme is Stand PROUD! For Albertans, this is an easy task, as there is much to be proud of. Stand PROUD! provides a platform for the community to access information, learn the importance of equality and of course, to showcase pride in individuality. Throughout the week, the events will help build visibility and recognition for the LGBT community, and patrons of all ages are encouraged to join in reflecting on the past and building hope for the future.

Edmonton Pride takes place from June 6th - 13th - an entire week of Pride-themed activities, made possible by over 150 volunteers donating their time and effort.

The first official event of Pride Week will take place at the Art Gallery of Alberta (102A Avenue & 99st) from 4:30-7:30pm.

This free event allows families the opportunity to create colorful banners and flags to represent Pride. Friday night’s kick-off is jam packed with plenty of activities to get you in the Pride spirit. Alley Kat Brewing hosts Pack the Pub for Pride!, an event targeted to the 18+ audience beginning at 6pm. Keeping with tradition, Buddy’s Nite Club will be celebrating Pink with Pride at 9pm. The Lockeroom Bar (11834 Kingsway Avenue) will be hosting the BEEF Underbear Party for patrons 18+ (a $10 cover fee will be charged). The Traveling Tickle Trunk (992382 Avenue) will host an 18+ party from 8-11pm with a special discount of 15% off for all patrons.

Mark Saturday June, 8th on your calendar as the annual Pride Parade will begin at noon in Edmonton’s downtown core with an estimated 75 to 80 floats for your enjoyment. The title of Official Parade Marshal for 2013 goes to the Pride Centre of Edmonton. From noon to 8pm, a celebration on Sir Winston Churchill Square will take place with great food, intriguing exhibits, dancing, and more! Angela Bennett, executive director, is excited to share new programming for Celebration on the Square including a second stage in the Virgin Radio Entertainment Zone featuring local bands such as Rae Spoon.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

The Celebration on the Square will have a family fun zone with a bouncy castle, airbrush tattoos and activities for the little ones. Wine on the Square will also take place from 1-5pm for the 18+ audience.

The Edmonton Pride Festival is excited to bring back the Loud “N” Proud dance held at Delta Edmonton Centre starting at 8pm (tickets are $25 in advance, or $35 at the door). The Starlite Room will host the PURE Pride Party at 9pm (tickets are $35 in advance or $40 at the door). The Lockeroom Bar will host another fantastic Bear event, Bearracuda at 8pm ($10 cover charge).

Sunday, June 9th kicks off with Pancakes for Pride at Oliver Hall from 10am to noon. McDougall United Church (10025-101 street) offers a Pride Church Service at 10:30am. The Mercury Room will host the Beef Bear Bust BBQ from noon to 5pm with a charge of $5. Sunday concludes with an intriguing event at The Unitarian Church of Edmonton. Starting at 7:30pm will be a display of wonderful music benefiting the Pride Centre of Edmonton.

Bennett is excited for this year’s festival. She encourages patrons to attend the Saturday, June 15th event from noon to 10pm. “The family picnic is shaping up to be our second largest event for Pride and with ReMax as a sponsor, we are delighted to be able to provide families with some awesome activities including a magic show and movie!”

Meanwhile, another extremely exciting family-based event, the Come Out and Play Picnic, is happening Saturday June 15th from noon to 10pm alongside the aforementioned family picnic. “We look forward to some great interaction at Oliver Park,” says Benett.

Aside from these major events, throughout the week there will be history tours, movie nights, pageants and much more!

The downtown Edmonton Winners will be giving away rainbow flags to gain support and rev up positive energy for the week.

Everyone is welcome to come out and celebrate the many milestones and achievements in the LGBT community of Edmonton. Stand together with the community, and Stand PROUD!

Edmonton Pride Festival June 6th - 13th http://www.edmontonpride.ca

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Interview

Walter Koenig

Mr. Chekov Beams into Calgary

By Evan Kayne Walter Koenig, the original “Pavel Chekov” from Star Trek, was in town for the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo in April. One of the unfortunate things about Expos is that it’s an artificial environment. Actors who know how to play up to a crowd like William Shatner or Wil Wheaton get the praise of everyone.

Yet for some who are quieter and perhaps more introspective, it’s not that good of a showcase – despite these type of actors having a lot more interesting things to say than the showboaters. While preparing this article, I had a chance to watch part of a long interview Mr. Koenig recently did for the Academy of American Television. You do get a better sense of the person and the actor than what I saw for a short time at the Expo.

Given the body of his work and that Mr. Koenig has been in the industry for decades, he has certainly seen a lot of changes – from a three network universe (ABC, NBC, CBS) to a world where not only are there 500 channels, sometimes you don’t even need a network or a television to produce a show. Unlike back in the 1960s, people don’t have to worry as much about being typecast, Mr. Koenig said: “People break out of that all the time...television people go on to movies nowadays” and actors in a genre show will find other work. He didn’t think it was an inhibitor to a career, compared to the past when there was a clearer line between the two. Producers back then, as Mr. Koenig put it, wouldn’t touch anyone for a movie they were already getting for cheap on television.

Besides changes to the industry, as someone who is in his later years, as someone who has worked on a show which had an idealistic vision of the future, and as someone who has given his support to George Takei (he was the Best Man at George’s wedding to his partner), I asked Mr. Koenig what he thought about us slowly turning into the kind of open society in which Star Trek was set.

“I think it’s great we’re more tolerant in many ways, but I’m not sure I could confidently attribute it to Star Trek. I think the country is moving forward and that’s encouraging.

On the other hand, for every three steps we take forward we take two backward.”

Of course, we do have to ask his opinion on the new Chekov (Anton Yelchin). Mr. Koenig has met the Chekov on the new series of films, and described him as “a very bright young man...he’s starred in several movies already.”

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As for his feelings on the new film series? “The first one was great...it’s not our Star Trek. It’s a different generation – this generation is committed to action, adventure... pyrotechnics. I don’t say that in a derogatory way – it’s part of the excitement. Ours...moved slower, we were a little more involved in introspection and the depth of some of the characters.” Funnily enough, while Star Trek Into Darkness has gotten a good reception overall, there are more than a few people who are pointing out the sacrifice of characterization to bright lights, big fights, and explosions.

That being said, if we could magically turn back the clock on all the actors of the original series and have them act in this movie, Shatner would still hog the screen time, Chekov would still speak his few lines in his funny accent and I suspect everyone would be raving about the new Trek movie.

It may not be your father’s Star Trek, and that’s okay, but sometimes we do miss the original – not just for the writing and the ideas, but for the actors in it.

http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3526

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

11

Interview

 Artwork by Stephen Sadowski

Stephen Sadowski Super-artist drawing Superheroes

By Evan Kayne Besides a lot of the big name talent attending the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo, we also keep a watch for other LGBT talent or talent that actively supports our community. This year we met Stephen Sadowski; he’s worked as an artist for DC, Marvel, and Dynomite Entertainment. He’s currently doing some stuff for Vertigo comics – the adult imprint line of DC comics.

Steve has been working in the industry for years: “after 1989 when the first Batman movie came out, I was super inspired to get back into drawing (because I used to draw all the time as a kid)...there was a comic store right next to the theatre. I...went right out and into the comic store and basically decided at that point I was going to start to try.” It then took many years of sending samples to editors and building relationships, until eventually he started to get noticed.

As a gay man who’s been working in the industry, there have been a lot of changes in the last 2 decades when it comes to the acceptance of LGBT characters and LGBT talent.

For the artists and writers, the consensus would seem to be that generally it’s a very open industry. “I know a lot of gay creators...and whenever we get together to try and talk about any kind of homophobic reaction, we all agree we’ve never really experienced any.” Steve has had nothing but good experiences with most of the editors with whom he’s worked.

“As far as the characters in comics...I think there’s a ways to go.” Granted you are seeing gay and even transgender characters in comic books, but Steve thinks there’s room to further explore. What sometimes happens is a softer form of homophobia – in the past it was the girlfriend/wife/female supporting character’s role to suffer at the hands of a villain.

Today, that role is filled by the gay superhero or supporting character. While it may all be justified by the story, and there is no anti-gay agenda, the optics aren’t necessarily great.

Yet what is promising was the response to any homophobic behavior. Recently Orson Scott Card was selected as one 12

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

of several recurring guest authors for DC Comics’ new Adventures of Superman series. Many people know Card for his Ender series of books. He is also a political and social commentator whose opinions, including his opposition to same-sex marriage, have made him a controversial figure.

When the news spread, a massive public outcry against Card overwhelmed DC; resulting in the cancellation of his story.

What Stephen thinks was amazing regarding this fiasco was how the reaction surged so quickly over the Internet because Card’s opinions were widely disseminated. “Knowledge is out there so readily now. Back ten years ago...you would never really know what his policies were...nowadays, everything you put out there is for worldwide knowledge.”

Personally Stephen thinks everyone has a right to their own opinion, and he wouldn’t want to take away anyone’s employment based on their beliefs; but when it comes to a Superman comic, Stephen believes we want writers with greater ideals to write his stories. “We just don’t want to see our heroes under the control of someone whose ideas we are so vehemently against.”

Steve himself has had to face a little bit of criticism himself for this work for injecting a mild amount of homo-eroticism into his drawings. “I always try to imbue all my characters with sexuality...but not over the top. I have a reputation for giving male characters extra large packages, but all I really do is give them a package.”

It’s a straight male dominated group usually doing the artwork, so no one blinks twice about giving a female hero massive breasts, but do something similar for guys and people get nervous. “The minute you give a noticeable – not even overly large – but just realistic package on a male, it’s like Whoa...I feel uncomfortable. I don’t think twice about it. I just draw it the way it would be.”

Stephen Sadowski Art of Stephen Sadowski on Facebook

http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3527

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Made in Calgary: The 1970s A Decade of Timeless Art Revisited at the Glenbow Museum

 “Puddle” by Katie Ohe

By Janine Eva Trotta In the second of five ten-year eras of Calgarian art to be celebrated at the Glenbow, Made in Calgary: the 1970s offers an intimate array of eclectic pieces created by a tightly woven artist community at an explosive time in the city’s art history.

Cleverly selected and hung, no two pieces too alike or too dissimilar are to be found on the same wall. The Glenbow Museum selected a guest curator whose memory and desire to re-exhibit the creative decade is exuded in his excitement and knowledge of each and every piece.

“If you weren’t there you wouldn’t have a hope,” Ron Moppett says about the job of curating this collection. “If they had chosen someone else it would have looked different but it would have looked similar in a lot of ways.”

He is speaking on some of the big names in art of that time that no one would have missed. Names like Katie Ohe, the sculpturess who creates what Moppett calls “these wonderful kinetic kind of things” that many of us have seen and spun without knowing it.

Ohe’s sculptures are showcased on the first, second and fourth floors of the Glenbow, the latter two as part of the show, as well as on the University of Calgary campus. Ohe has been a longtime professor at the Alberta College of Art and Design, sculpting in difficult shiny media. Her works entitled Puddles are composed of spinning chrome steel and bronze, baring the mark of excellent crafts-woman-ship.

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Ohe is known as one of the first Canadian artists to practice abstract sculpture in Alberta.

Moppett happily points out ten silk-screened Christmas cards Ohe made over the course of the ’70s – one from each year of the decade – displayed on a wall of the fourth floor section of the exhibit, intimating he might have been a recipient of such.

Ohe’s husband, Harry Kiyooka, is also featured, his nameless styled canvas conjuring a feeling of one peering through a castle window in some long ago prairie landscape.

Continued on Next Page 

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

13

 From Previous Page Another power art-couple likely to have been selected regardless of curator are the painters Joyce and John Hull.

Their flowery, bright pieces – conceptual still lifes – are perhaps the focal pieces of the entire show, literally drawing one in from across the rooms in which they are hung.

Moppett worked closely with Hall in the days of the Rose Museum, a collection that was on display at the old Glenbow Museum location before it moved to its current home in 1976.

A symbolic throwback to this collection is presented in a glass case on the fourth floor – featuring just what the original exhibit had, virtually anything containing a visual or written rose. This could mean a stencil, a letter, or an actual flower.

The 1970s were an intense time for the art scene in Calgary.

Not only was the Glenbow moved and expanded, ACAD opened its doors and through them walked a realm of artists and instructors from nations wide.

The pieces featured in Made in Calgary are just as the title of the exhibit suggests; they were all crafted or created in the city by artists living, teaching or showing here, though not necessarily by locals.

“You sort of had to be there,” Moppett says on selecting these roughly 100 pieces, adding that in some capacity he knew all of the artists included in the show, either through seeing their work at the time, as a student at ACAD himself, later as a teacher, or in his career as a curator. “You can’t go to a book and find out the top ten best artists in Calgary.”

“The way you make that discernment is like a thousand things synapse in your brain and give you the answer.”

This means resumes were not considered. Nor were sales volumes, or current notoriety, or where the pieces had traveled or showed.

“Some of [the artists] are out there in the public domain and others are retired or more quiet in their practice,”

Moppett says. “It doesn’t make [the art] better, just different circumstance. And some are no longer with us.”

This is art for the sake of art: a dynamic expanse of material and matter. No one theme exists, a fact that Moppett feels distinctive of the Calgary art scene.

The ’70s show conveys an art period where no boundaries existed; when artists abandoned the ideas of the time and gave themselves over to a complete freedom to express. You will, refreshingly, not find a single equine canvas in this show.

You will find, however, an abstract, boxy take of the Calgary Tower, as seen through a window, by artist and selected curator for the upcoming 80s show Jeff Spalding, “referencing a surrealist kind of image thing,” Moppett says.

You will see tapestries of monsters, woolen lava, billowy textile, mixed material sculpture, wood etching, earthenware, photos of installations that occurred throughout the decade, stoneware, and works by “the king of Canadian mail art” himself, Don Mabie.

The button making craze that came out of ACAD was lead by this creative genius, another Calgary artist who never posted a letter without decorating it to the point of assured safe keeping by its recipient.

Moppett says Mabie is “like a saint in the art community” and was a big player in the implosion of artist run centres that occurred in the city in the ’70s. “[Artist run centres] were a new breed of animal that purportedly could respond much more quickly than the institutions,” Moppett said – venues for a new population of artists that had something to say and a wanted to say it now.

“Everybody was just so in the moment that you will see a poster that says August 2nd to 23rd; there’s no year attached,” Moppett says. “That’s kind of a wrinkle.”

If you could travel back to 1963, and ask Moppett as an art student whether he could see himself putting together this show, he likely would have said no. His first three years at ACAD were spent focused in ad art, with an aim to one day work for Walt Disney as an animator.

“Then art school opens your eyes to all of the other options out there that one doesn’t know about,” he says. Furthered by a trip to England, in which he had the opportunity to view what he called “real paintings”, he returned to his fourth year of college with a new desire: a desire to paint.

Curating became his day job, a less emotionally draining career choice than teaching proved to be, and has allowed him to meet a host of fine artists and keep active and relevant in the art community at large.

It also meant he knew where to go to find the pieces that compose this show. With few exceptions, most of the works displayed were procured pretty close to home. Many are taken from the Foundation of the Arts compendium, others from the Glenbow itself, the City of Calgary collection, the Nickle Arts Museum, and ACAD’s store.

Although these Made in Calgary shows will not travel, “there is a hope that after the five decades have gone that a proper catalogue will be published documenting the shows and work that has gone into them,” Moppett says.

In any event, your opportunity to view this intriguing collection is now.

Made in Calgary: the 1970s Until August 11th At the Glenbow Museum, Calgary

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Community

Discussing Community Safety Personal Safety

By Constable Andy Buck Hello again everyone. This is the last article before my first big community event of the year, the ARGRA rodeo out at Strathmore that runs from June 28th to June 30th. If you are planning on attending the event, keep your fingers crossed for some decent weather and please come and search out my colleagues and I to say “Hi”, I would love to see you all.

This month I want to talk about something that is closely related to last month’s article on the work of the Victim Assistance Unit.

In an effort to avoid the need for VAU, the Calgary Police Service reminds citizens of Calgary to keep their personal safety in mind at all times - at home, while driving, while outside walking, and while in the work place. Attacks on a person can be motivated by many factors. These factors include personal gain, power struggle and mental or physical impairment.

Quick personal safety tips

Personal safety at home Do not leave keys in a hiding spot. Keep window coverings closed when home alone, or at night. Establish a “safe room” where you can hide from intruders. The safe room should be equipped with a telephone or cell phone and an escape route or window.

If you witness a crime or emergency situation, please call 9-11 immediately. If you witness suspicious activity, please call the Police non-emergency line at 403-266-1234.

You may think that these tips seem like common sense. Well, they are, but it never hurts to refresh your memory. Remember, despite some of the horrific events that have recently been reported in New York regarding attacks against gay men, these incidents are very scarce especially here in Calgary. Remain vigilant, stay safe and look after each other. As always, feel free to call or email regarding anything that you want to talk about.

See you in Strathmore!

No matter where you are, it’s important to be aware of your surroundings and trust your instincts if you feel a situation may be unsafe. Keep these important tips in mind: • Do not carry large amounts of cash or valuables on your person or in your home. Use banks and safety deposit boxes for safe storage of valuables.

• If you feel you are being followed, stay in busy public areas, drive to a police station, or call the police.

• Carry a personal safety alarm or noise-maker, instead of items like bear spray and mace, which are considered prohibited weapons.

• Carry a cell phone. Call police at 403-266-1234 if you see suspicious activity, or call 911 if you or someone else is in danger, or if you see a crime in progress.

• Limit the number of packages or belongings that you carry in your arms so you don’t become vulnerable.

• If you are attacked, create lots of noise to attract attention.

Do not try to keep possession of valuables.

Constable Andy Buck 403-428-8154 • pol4792@calgarypolice.ca http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3529

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Personal safety while walking Walk on well lit, busy streets and be aware of your surroundings at all times. Walk in the middle of the sidewalk. Avoid isolated areas like parks and alleys. Carry a cell phone on your person at all times if possible. Scream or yell loudly if attacked but keep in mind that bear spray and mace are considered prohibited weapons.

Personal safety while driving Have your keys in hand before reaching the vehicle. Check both front and rear seats before opening the door. Keep valuables out of sight or in your trunk. Tell friends, family, or co-workers where you are going and when you will be back. Park in a well-lit, visible area.

While driving, keep doors locked and windows closed enough to prevent someone from reaching in.

Personal safety in the workplace Avoid isolated corridors or hallways. Be extra careful in stairwells and isolated or poorly lit rest rooms. Avoid entering an elevator which is occupied by only one other person, especially if that person is a stranger to you. Once inside the elevator, stand near the controls, and make a mental note on the location of the emergency button. If you are assaulted in an elevator, push the emergency or help button and push as many floor buttons as possible.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

15

CRIR 2013

20 Years of Rodeo Fun & Memories

 Photos from CRIR 2012, taken by GayCalgary Magazine

By Evan Kayne June 28th to 30th marks the 20th anniversary of the Canadian Rockies International Rodeo and Music Festival. In April, I spoke with ARGRA Communications Director Drew Davidson about the music festival side of the event; we recently reconnected to see what else they’ve got in store.

First, the Midway layout is undergoing a substantial change. With the Tornado nightclub dances being moved from the distant curling rink into the newly renovated barn right beside the rodeo entrance gates, the big push this year is the convenience of the layout, Drew said. You could be dancing your ass off, get hungry and instead of hiking halfway back to Calgary, the food trucks will be “not even ten feet away.”

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

The festival stage is being rotated closer to where the Community Carnival was last year, and the carnival will be moved closer to the grandstand entrance. “Now that we’re not using it (the curling rink) we don’t have to string everything out so much...everything is going to be a real short distance.” Overall, the “look” of the new arrangement of the Midway grounds should be appealing.

As for the Tornado nightclub in its new location, “we are expanding it a little bit...we think that we’re going to have a large amount of people, so we’re moving the bars outside the hall (under tents).” The hall will be strictly for dancing and mingling. Acts booked in the Tornado nightclub include both local talent and beyond. Look for Adam Dready, DJ Kid V, DJ Daina Tribble, DJ John Landry, DJ Nico, DJ Phon3hom3, and DJ Goldstar to generate the beats, with April Storm doing performance segments throughout the night. The local burlesque group “The Garter Girls” will be on both the Tornado and festival stages.

Food and other facilities will be conveniently located right outside the door of the dancehall in the rodeo midway.

“Vendors are contacting us to set up...the Red Light District is still a go and there will be six vendors for that,” Drew explained. The Quonset hut will have the anniversary displays showing 20 years of ARGRA. Furthermore, in the back of the hut will be drag performances and they may put the underwear auction in there as well, but as of press time the exact location of this last item was yet to be confirmed.

Food vendors will be different this year as well; while many may not be finalized until the week of the event, there are www.gaycalgary.com

 Band plays at music festival

 DC Cowboys at 2012 dance

 Goat Dressing

several known new food vendors onsite, and ARGRA is looking into getting some of the local Calgary food trucks to come out to the rodeo.

The GayCalgary Magazine Country Carnival is back again and still accepting submissions. As much fun as the rodeo, the dances or the music acts are, the carnival, for me, has always been a fantastic social event – you can buy an item that catches your eye, find out about local community events, or support a community group with games or the infamous dunk tank. Drew confirmed the tank will be running all three days instead of just the one – the drag queens of the Imperial Courts will split the time with another group.

Speaking of community groups, to highlight their importance, during the Grand Entry at the rodeo on Saturday, representatives of community groups from around Alberta are coming to march under the flags of provinces and territories, along with a piping band and dignitaries who will also take part for the 20th anniversary event.

If the dances, music, and games don’t provide you with enough excitement, there are still openings for the rodeo school on the morning of Friday June 28th. This is your chance to participate in the rodeo by learning how to do calf roping on foot, chute dogging or steer riding (among others).

Finally, ARGRA is doing a few things to recognize the two decades this event has been in existence. As mentioned earlier, they will have a Memorabilia display of past posters, programs, pictures (etc.). They’re still accepting items, but they are specifically looking for programs from 1996, 1997, 1999, and 2002; along with posters from 2002 and

2008. If you have these items, or even other ARGRA / CRIR memorabilia from past years, please contact Janie at trustee@argra.org ARGRA is also selling a special keepsake. “We have our souvenir buckle on sale...people can order online, and it’s about six weeks (for delivery).” It’s selling for $150 for ARGRA members, $165 for non-members. Pictures and the order form will soon be available on their website.

If you’ve never been to the Canadian Rockies International Rodeo, this is your year to go. Grab a friend, make plans with a group, join with other friends who always go, and get your ass out to Strathmore on the July long weekend.

For information on the GayCalgary Country Carnival, Rodeo School, the Souvenir Buckle, tickets, musicians and the rodeo itself, visit the ARGRA website.

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Canadian Rockies International Rodeo 2013 Presented by The Alberta Rockies Gay Rodeo Association (ARGRA) Fri, Jun 28th - Sun, Jun 30th http://www.argra.org http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3530

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

17

Heart in Motion

A conversation with Christian music legend Amy Grant  Photo by Jim Wright

By Chris Azzopardi A call from Amy Grant started as these promo chats usually do. Hellos were exchanged, small talk was made and questions about her first studio album of all-new material in 10 years, How Mercy Looks From Here, were answered.

Then we shifted into territory the most successful Christian music artist of all time, now 52, has never spoken about publicly since hitting the scene in the ’70s with her spiritual pop, before Heart in Motion turned her into a crossover success.

During her first gay press interview, and for an entire hour, the Grammy winner reflected – with her usual sincerity and thoughtfulness – on her loyal gay fan base, how she reconciles Christianity and homosexuality, her “compassion” for gay marriage and the unforgettable dinner she shared with out ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero.

GC: How are you, Amy? AG: Honestly, my brain is so rattled today.

GC: There’s a lot going on in the world right now, especially with the Boston Marathon bombing and the Texas plant explosion.

AG: There is a lot going on, yes. I just want to go somewhere and sit and be very still. I just did, with the band, a kind of unplugged performance for SiriusXM Radio. It was the first time I have sung some of those songs for an audience and, you know, you can create muscle memory with a song. You just work on your technique and then it becomes like muscle memory. But the first couple of times you do it, it engages all the emotions around the song – and I just kept getting choked up.

GC: Which songs from the album were you performing?

AG: The first one was “How Mercy Looks From Here,” and with all the stuff going on I could hardly get the song out. I was going, “Well, great, they’ll be playing this over and over on XM.” So, there 18

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

were the nerves of this being the first time performing those songs for anybody. I guess I have felt emotionally drained, but you’re right – it’s because of what’s been going on. We’re all connected.

GC: How does this new album reflect your life at this point?

AG: It’s funny, being 52 and putting a record out, I have felt this incredible freedom. It feels like this is going to be the least required of me as a person to sell the songs. As a woman, when you’re younger, so much of it has to do with looking pretty, doing a video and wearing the right clothes, because a lot of music is visual.

But there is real freedom in going, “I never have to worry about what I’m going to look like in a bikini again.” Not that I ever looked good in one, but I would feel weird even just putting one on, because I’m old … er. Older! (Laughs) You sort of go, “Whew. That pressure’s not going to be there.” And I feel that way about the music. To me, it feels essentially about the message of the songs and not even a reflection of me. It just feels like collective life experience.

GC: I know you have a thing for eating chips in the studio because the oil coats your throat. How many bags of Lay’s potato chips did you go through while recording How Mercy Looks From Here?

AG: It was funny, because (producer) Marshall (Altman), who I had never worked with before, we did a lot of preproduction work.

I knew him from (working with) Natasha Bedingfield. And when we started comparing notes, and when I made a request to make sure we have Lay’s potato chips, he came around the corner wide-eyed and he said, “I didn’t think about it until you said that. This is part of urban legend that this started with you.” I said, “Well, I don’t know if it started with me, but all those early days up at Caribou Ranch, where it was so dry, that’s when I started doing it.” Marshall said, “You don’t go to a studio if they don’t have a bowl of potato chips.” And I laughed my head off. I said, “Well, it works; the whole world should do it!”

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GC: When the biggest Christian music artist of all time is doing gay press, you know we’ve come a long way. Were you kept at bay from gay press beforehand, earlier in your career?

AG: It never came up.

GC: But you have obviously had a big gay following for quite sometime. Why have gay people connected to you in such profound ways?

AG: All of us sometimes feel disenfranchised or, for whatever reason, like we’re just on the periphery or marginalized. People feel that for all kinds of reasons, and by the time you’ve lived any amount of life, I think anybody has had that experience somewhere. I remember doing concerts back in the early ’80s and going shopping with some of the singers that I was working with and one of them, Donna McElroy, had to get some makeup – and she’s African-American – and I said, “Hey, I’ll meet you back here.”

I ran my errands and I came back and said, “Are you done?” She said, “No one’s waited on me.”

Everybody is outside of some circle, but what I’ve always wanted to do is have a message of honesty and welcoming, and being willing to say this is the good, bad and the ugly. This is who I am. And if I’m saying that about myself, it’s like, jump in, the water’s fine. So I love that. I love that people connect to my music.

GC: At this point in your career, are you at all concerned about people passing judgment on you for talking to gay press?

AG: We all ultimately need to know that we’re loved, and I think it would be really crazy if you said, “I’m not going to talk to this group of people because someone’s looking on that’s not a part of the conversation and might have an opinion about it.” I mean, my whole life has been that. (Laughs) It takes all of our energy to navigate whatever road we’re on. What’s interesting is, this last year I was invited on Monday mornings to go to a woman’s house – also a songwriter, also a singer – and just have some time of quiet stillness all together. But her house wasn’t even quiet. There were workers there sometimes, or there was nowhere to get that was quiet.

As we were sitting there trying to get quiet, she said, “It never gets still, and so I’m not gonna get all rankled in my head. I’m just gonna say, ‘Well, there’s the noise of the person next door blowing off their driveway with that really load motor. There it is. There’s the sound of sirens going up and down the street.’” She said, “When we learn to observe without judgment, then we have the ability to observe and learn, or to observe and be.” And I said, “Do you know how exhausting it is to observe with judgment all the time? It’s just exhausting.” I have thanked her many times. We could all stand to hear that.

GC: You came from a fairly strict religious upbringing, but it sounds like there’s been an evolution in the way you see people.

AG: Well, I don’t know. When you say strict, that’s interesting.

What do you mean by that? (Laughs) I mean, we went to church every Sunday morning, every Sunday night, every Wednesday night.

GC: You’re right. I should say diligently religious.

AG: Yeah. I remember when we moved to Texas and my parents went to this really, I guess, conservative church – a Church of Christ – and something incredible was happening within that church community. I remember seeing this transformation in my mom and dad. I was old enough to remember that. What I remember about our home after that was that it was welcoming … to everybody.

GC: To black people? To gay people?

AG: Just to people.

GC: Did you ever feel that you had to reconcile your Christian faith with your acceptance of homosexuality?

AG: That’s not my life experience. In the same way, if you put my shoes on, you would go, “I thought this experience was going to be one way and it was totally different.” None of us has any idea what somebody’s life experience is like.

GC: Do you remember the first gay person you knew? Did you have a close gay friend?

AG: Absolutely. But my first: maybe college. Someone might have just seemed theatrical or, I don’t know, effeminate, but when I was in high school – I graduated in ’78 – I had friends in high school

who eventually said, “I’m living a gay lifestyle,” but they didn’t say it then. People were very private about their sexuality, period. Maybe not everywhere, but I just don’t remember, “I’m exploring this, I’m exploring that.”

GC: When did you first know you had a gay fan base?

AG: Probably by the time I was 18.

GC: How did you know? Did a fan tell you his or her coming-out story?

AG: No. Just from meeting people. I don’t know. I guess I’m kind of going, that was a long time ago. I’m 52. (Laughs) I’ve never even thought about it. It’s like saying, “There’s gray-haired people in the crowd, too.” If people come to my shows, this is what they say: “Wow, there are people of all ages and lifestyles in your crowd.”

That’s what they always say. But then someone will come up and say, “You know, I saw a guy with a boa on,” and I’ll say, “Oh yeah, yeah, I’ve always had a big gay following.” (Laughs) To me, I don’t give it a second thought. I remember the first time someone from the crew said, “I smell pot in the back of the crowd,” and I went, “Well, fantastic! Yay!” I’m so glad that just people are coming.

GC: From photos I’ve seen and conversations I’ve heard, you seem to have established some close relationships with people in the Gay Friends of Amy Grant group on Facebook over the years.

Can you describe your relationship with them?

AG: When you’ve done something for a long time, there is a great familiarity that comes over the years. I will say that I have a couple of friends that I made – just because they came to shows for a long time – and I figure we must have some things in common because, of all the music we’re all attracted to, at least we share this music in common.

GC: Weren’t you invited to perform at the wedding of one of your gay fans but couldn’t due to your schedule?

AG: I was invited. I was honored to be invited. I have to tell you: Anytime somebody asks me to perform at a wedding, I say, “I do not have a good track record.” (Laughs) A lot of the weddings I’ve performed at, the marriages have ended poorly.

GC: I recall seeing you perform with Melissa Etheridge for Lifetime’s Women Rock! special in 2000 and thinking, as a teenager struggling with his sexuality, “She’s performing with an openly lesbian performer; she’s throwing her gay fans a bone.”

AG: You know what’s so interesting, even when I was discovering my own sexuality and meeting people that had a different experience, I didn’t categorize then, and I don’t categorize right now. It makes me realize that I don’t have any idea of what it would feel like every moment of my life to go somewhere and feel judged.

GC: But you have felt judged, right? Judged for getting divorced.

Judged for your pop crossover, even.

AG: No, no. Do people from a distance have an opinion? Yeah, that’s human nature to have an opinion. Whatever was going on in a rag magazine, or whatever someone was saying behind my back or in a heated conversation, I was never in that circle. I wasn’t part of that conversation. I never, ever pursued one chat room. If there was an article or some argument – “I can’t believe you’re doing this” – I just never pursued it because I thought, “We don’t understand each other.”

There are a lot of times that I wind up in situations that I do not see eye to eye with somebody. And it doesn’t help to throw gas on the fire. Clearly they’re going to have their opinion. Carry on. And I’m gonna go do what I’m gonna go do.

GC: I know you are not a political person.

AG: Yeah, I’m not.

GC: So how do you respond to people when they ask you about your feelings on gay marriage?

AG: In the same way that I did not tell one person who I voted for.

I don’t. I never talk about anything like that. I did tell Vince (Gill, her husband) the day after the election. (Laughs) But I think my response is, I have had so many occasions in my life where I have felt really strongly about something – but that feeling has changed. Those feelings change about different

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Continued on Next Page  GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

19

 From Previous Page situations, and so because I’m a public person – and because I want always to bring people together – I really do say this is a world that’s unfamiliar to me and I am always trying to observe with compassion.

GC: This isn’t a cut-and-dry issue for you, then.

AG: Well, nothing is cut-and-dry. You know, one of the most fascinating dinners I’ve ever spent sitting next to somebody I had not met was at a large function with my family. We were all seated with place cards; it was a large group and I introduced myself to the fellow next to me. It was Anthony Romero (executive director of the ACLU). I mean, we didn’t line up our views; I just said, “Oh my goodness.” And he said, “I think they probably thought this was going to be very funny having us sit next to each other.” (Laughs) I just said, “Tell me about your life.” He asked me the same thing.

He told me good things about his job and hard things about his job. It was two human beings that have had very different lifestyles sitting next to each other and sharing life. Given 10 choices, would Anthony and I choose the same things? Maybe so. Maybe not. But I felt so changed by that. And what I really felt was, well … I … (pauses) GC: What did you feel?

AG: Well, I kept his card for a long time, and I hoped that our paths would cross again. I felt a lot of compassion for his parents, first-generation immigrants, and he described his childhood and what it was like. I went, “This makes total sense that he has invested his life coming to the aid of the people in his world that are disenfranchised because, for a whole different set of reasons, his parents were marginalized.”

GC: And you found that inspiring?

AG: Yes. You know what, we all face challenges in our life that we didn’t anticipate, and the most important thing is that we not face them alone. To me, if there’s anything that comes out of this conversation, in the same way that a relationship cannot be

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nurturing if it’s competitive, it’s this: When you don’t understand something, you can either default to judgment or you can default to compassion. Those take you down completely different roads.

GC: Are you speaking about yourself?

AG: Yeah, and that’s really … ahh, I’m just talking about life in general. This is interesting because I have never done an interview where it feels every question is saying, “Tell me I’m OK.” That’s what feels like the underlying energy behind the questions, and I’m just going, “That’s a powerful kind of energy” – and for different reasons.

Maybe not sexuality. Because that’s what every person’s crying out for. Anyway, sometimes a good night’s sleep helps for more concise answers.

It’s just that we’re living lives that are different from each other. It’s like two people sitting at a dinner table having a long conversation. If you and I were facing each other at a different table and we walked away and somebody asked us to describe where we were, my entire view was behind your head. I mean, I’m gonna describe the place differently than you. That’s just true about all of life and really, I’m trying to listen and learn and in a way have a great opportunity to try to understand the fan base that comes to a show. I’m even more glad they feel welcome. Even more glad after this. Can I say one thing?

GC: Of course.

AG: I know that the religious community has not been very welcoming, but I just want to stress that the journey of faith brings us into community, but it’s really about one relationship. The journey of faith is just being willing and open to have a relationship with God. And everybody is welcome. Everybody.

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Peace River Pride 2013

By Carey Rutherford Peace River, Alberta will host their third annual all ages Peace River Regional Pride weekend June 14th to 16th. The 2013 edition has both the community and the planning committee very eager for festivities to commence.

This unique celebration brings together and celebrates all lifestyles within and around the community, aiming to bridge the gaps between them. The Peace River Regional Pride Planning Committee hopes to inspire confidence, and empowerment towards the unique nature of patrons’ individuality, and sexuality.

This year’s festivities will mark the first celebration including a parade. While previous years have only included a walk through downtown Peace River, a parade marks the growth of festivities and involvement of the community. Last year even included a free barbeque, live music, crafts and an open mic.

Previous years have brought around eighty attendees from in and around the area, from as far as Grande Prairie.

The Peace River Regional LGBT Pride Planning Committee is looking forward to seeing familiar faces as well as making new connections.

The festivities begin Friday June 14th at 7pm. The McNamera Hotel Bar, located in Peace River (1022 100 Street) will host a meet and greet. This will allow for out of town guests to get a feel for the community and mingle.

Saturday the 15th is a packed day; patrons will be kept busy with a colourful set of events. On Saturday morning, behind Horizon, (9801 100 Street) there will be face painting and a craft setup for poster making. At 12pm the parade will kick www.gaycalgary.com

off. Patrons can make a float, walk with a group, ride a bike, scooter down, or just sit back and enjoy the show. Attendees are encouraged to wear their hats and lather the SPF; it is important to have fun outdoors, and be sun-safe at the same time. Following the parade, at 1pm the Riverfront Park activities will begin which will include: a BBQ, face painting, music and other entertainment. At 4pm, River City Cinema will have a free screening of the 14A movie Cloudburst. The evening events will commence at 6pm, with a play and dance party at Java Dominion. Java Dominion will offer music entertainment and an open mic session for sharing experiences at Riverfront Park following the parade.

The weekend will draw to a close Sunday morning with an informal breakfast. This allows for attendees to say their goodbyes to their new friends, and draw a great weekend to a close.

This year hopes to be the biggest and best yet. Invitations have been spread en masse through organizations, town officials and businesses, with an invite even going to the local MLA. The Peace River community encourages all ages to come out and show support.

Peace River Pride Fri, Jun 14th – Sun, Jun 16th Follow them on Facebook http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3532

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Gossip Life Partners’ Gay-Straight Alliance Take one Gossip Girl – Leighton Meester as a young lesbian slacker – and one Community misfit – Gillian Jacob as the hetero best friend – and put them together. The result is Life Partners, the new film from writer-director Susanna Fogel and co-writer Joni Lefkowitz. It’s the story of what happens when the Type-A straight girl vows not to take marriage vows until her friend is legally permitted to do the same.

This comedic rebuke to the forces fighting against marriage equality co-stars Mark Feuerstein (Royal Pains) and Kate McKinnon (hilarious lesbian and spot-on Ellen impersonator from Saturday Night Live) as well as Gabourey Sidibe, Abby Elliott, Beth Dover, Adam Brody and Julie White. Let’s just hope they get it in the digital editing bay, hooked up with a distributor and into theaters before that bad ol’ Defense of Marriage Act gets itself invalidated by the Supreme Court or else its reason to exist will blow away like that plastic bag in American Beauty. Of course, instantly dated or not, if it’s blisteringly funny it’ll have some legs. Hurry up all the same, Life Partners, we’re not amazingly patient.

Ready for four hours with Olive Kitteridge?

 Ross Matthews, photo by Helga Esteb/Shutterstock.com

Deep Inside Hollywood Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are guys who need dolls

By Romeo San Vicente A Guys and Dolls movie with Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt? Is it Awesome Ideas Week or something?

Because in a world of cringe-inducing announcements about this or that unnecessary remake, the thought of a classic musical getting an update with two of Hollywood’s most appealing younger actors – both of whom know their way around a song and dance – is a welcome shot of good news. Twentieth Century Fox has the rights in place to start development and both Tatum and Gordon-Levitt are reported to be interested in starring in the gangsters-meet-gamblers musical (first a Broadway staple, then a great 1955 film with Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando). Of course, anyone who pays attention to the production process knows that projects in development can evaporate like a sneeze, but can some PowerGay make this happen, please? It’d be a great way for Tatum to develop past the Step Up/Magic Mike school of bump-andgrind (something he showed while whisking Charlize Theron literally off her feet at this years Academy Awards) and needed evidence that Gordon-Levitt isn’t only good at being a member of the dancing chorus while Seth McFarlane sings “We Saw Your Boobs.” Breathless anticipation starting now.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

It might help if you knew what Olive Kitteridge is first, right? Well, it’s the title of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Elizabeth Strout, a title that got the attention of Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman of Playtone. That production company will develop it into a four-hour miniseries to be directed

by Lisa Cholodenko (The Kids Are All Right), and Frances McDormand will star as the title character. Kitteridge is a witty but abrasive woman who observes (and, presumably, narrates or comments on) all the uncharacteristically scandalous activities taking place in her small, seemingly peaceful town on the coast of Maine – affairs, crime and other run-of-the-mill human foibles and tragedies. Richard Jenkins will play McDormand’s husband, the town pharmacist. Based on the number of characters and interwoven connections in the book, four hours might not even be quite enough time to include them all, but at least it’ll provide work for actors who can nail that specific accent found among dyed-in-the-wool, North-of-Massachusetts New Englanders. Think less Marky Mark, more Murder She Wrote and you’re almost there.

Hello Ross, we’re ready to watch your talk show called Hello Ross.

It’s good to be funny and know Chelsea Handler. Of course, you might think that in the case of Ross Mathews, who began his chat show sidekick career freaking people out with his excellently high-pitched speaking voice (he went by “Ross The Intern”) on The Tonight Show, that it’d be good to be funny and know Jay Leno. But it’s actually Handler who hooks up her pals. Case in point: Mathews, who guests on the Chelsea Lately comics roundtable on an almost weekly basis, is spinning off into hosting territory thanks to his current boss. Handler’s production company is behind Hello Ross, which will premiere on E! later this year. We’re happy for Ross, who’s both funny and sweetnatured, but sooner or later his show is bound to bring up the tired old argument about masculine versus feminine gay male representation on TV. It’s inevitable. For the record, we don’t care that the author of Man Up! is frequently mistaken on the phone for female, as long as he makes us laugh. So make us laugh, Ross.

Romeo San Vicente thinks a good sense of humor trumps being butch pretty much any day.

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Lifestyle

Cocktail Chatter The Gin Rickey

By Ed Sikov “Whatcha makin’, hot stuff?” I was at the kitchen island mixing an experimental drink; I felt the hand slip around my stomach and jumped slightly before I heard the coo in my ear. Dan never calls me “hot stuff,” so I knew it wasn’t him. But whose hand was suddenly tweaking my right nipple?

“Chipper! You dog!” I gave a slight shiver and felt a certain stirring.

“Seriously, tiger,” Chipper whispered. “Can I try it?”

“My nipple or my drink?” I inquired in a lewd tone. Chipper made a growling noise and started to work on a hickey on my neck. I shook him off, finished making the cocktail and handed it to him. Wasting no time, he took a sizeable gulp.

“Yikes!” he said. “That’s strong! Strong but good! What’s it called?”

“Loooo-cyyyyy?!” was my response.

“The Ethel?”

“Good guess, but no. Not ‘The Ethel.’ Close, though.”

“Certainly not ‘The Fred.’ Not even you would name a drink ‘The Fred.’”

“Indeed not,” I sniffed. “Not ‘The Fred.’”

“The Ricky?”

“Right!” I cried. “You win the prize,” at which point I whirled around and grabbed his nuts. Of course that was precisely the moment for Dan to make his pointless entrance.

“I’m not jealous. You can have him,” he said to Chipper as he continued past the kitchen and into the living room. There is little more deflating than having one’s husband offer you to the nearest mouth.

Chipper and I moved away from each other quickly; our illicit fondling had been killed before it got interesting.

“Yes,” I said. “It’s a Gin Rickey. What do you think?”

“It’s fabulous!” Chipper enthused. “What’s in it?”

“Gin and lime juice and seltzer and that’s all, except for the ice.”

“Wait a minute,” Chipper said. “I thought that was a Collins.”

“Good catch, shortstop!” I said. “A Rickey is a Collins without sugar and with lime juice instead of lemon. But like a Collins, a Rickey can be made with….” “… various kinds of liquors.” Dan was finishing my sentence for me.

“Rum, bourbon, even Scotch.”

“Very good,” I said with a certain edge to my voice. “Would you like me to throw one in your face?”

“No, thank you, darling dearest,” Dan coolly replied. “Just make me a standard Gin Rickey, and don’t be stingy with the gin.” The nerve of some people!

Pink Gin Straight gin has such a degenerate reputation that to drink it without mixing in some other ingredient is to invite either derision or an intervention. I have no idea why. Straight up, on the rocks, or neat, asking for nothing but gin simply isn’t done in public, and pouring a glass at home makes many people so self-conscious that they begin to think they can actually feel the cirrhosis nodules beginning to grow in their livers. Drinking straight gin is the kind of thing folks do with the blinds drawn.

This is sad and quite needless. Juniper-flavored alcohol has a long, formerly proud history as a tonic. Monks made it, for God’s sake – literally. People in the Dark Ages made that drab era a little lighter with it; they drank it as a way of warding off the Plague. Of course it didn’t really work to that end, but gin did make one’s buboes seem a great deal less repulsive for the brief period between their onset and the drinker’s unpleasant and smelly demise. Buboes are best experienced through a gin haze – on that I think we can all agree.

The 17th century, when gin was flavored with turpentine, will not be elaborated upon here except to note that the phase didn’t last long.

Juniper berries returned as the primary flavoring soon thereafter, though today’s premium brands often feature such an array of secondary essences that the roster resembles the ingredients in highend organic shampoo. Beefeater gin, for example, features not only juniper but also eight other botanicals: the seeds and root of angelica,

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The Gin Rickey 3 Tbsp. Beefeater gin 2 Tbsp. lime juice, either bottled or fresh (1 lime’s worth, if the lime is juicy) Seltzer Lime wedge garnish (optional) Put some ice in a highball glass (a tumbler); add the gin, juice and seltzer in that order. That’s all, folks!

Pink Gin 5 dashes Angostura bitters 4 Tbsp. Beefeater gin, chilled Lemon peel garnish (optional) Shake 5 dashes of bitters into a chilled cocktail glass.

(Bitters bottles have caps similar to Tabasco sauce so you can’t overdo it.) Swirl the bitters around until the glass is coated with it, then toss the excess in the sink. Fill the glass with chilled gin and serve.

licorice, almonds, oranges, lemon peel and everybody’s favorite, orris root.

What the hell is orris root? Orris happens to be one of the “notes” in Yves Saint Laurent’s perfume Opium. It’s flowery, and heavily so when sniffed on its own. And apparently witches use it to pry into other people’s subconscious. (Note to readers: If someone you know – say, your mother – wears Opium, be very wary of having even the slightest contact with her, or else your wonderfully filthy fantasy life will be an open book.)

Which brings us to the subject of this column: Pink Gin. Tailor made for lesbian and gay drinkers, Pink Gin is even closer to straight gin than a martini is. Even the driest martinis have something in them besides the main ingredient. Pink Gin, on the other hand, contains nothing but straight gin that is faintly colored by the addition of Angostura bitters.

What’s in Angostura bitters? According to Rachel Maddow, who knows everything worth knowing, the recipe is such a secret that only five people on the planet know it. All the rest of us know is that it’s a tincture of herbs and spices that originated in Venezuela in the 19th century. One of the great Latin American liberator Simon Bolivar’s doctors cooked it up; he may have based his highly guarded recipe on the local Amerindians’ folk medicine. It does not – repeat, not – contain angostura bark, which is poisonous.

Angostura bitters have a very complex taste, one that’s difficult to describe beyond “herbal and spicy.” Easier to describe is the feeling one gets while drinking a Pink Gin – delightful! The botanicals of the gin are well complemented by the bitters. But don’t overdo it. The following recipe creates exactly the right proportion of gin to bitters.

And the color is lovely.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

23

Politics

Blood: It’s In You To Give…Maybe

By Stephen Lock Canadian Blood Services (CBS), in conjunction with Héma-Québec, after years of disallowing any man who had sex with men since 1977 to donate blood, has sought and received approval from Health Canada to amend that policy.

CBS has been lobbied for several years by various gay rights and AIDS groups to rescind the blanket policy, which effectively disbarred any gay man or any other man who has had sex with men from donating blood due to HIV/AIDS and/or Hepatitis concerns.

Activists believed the original policy amounted to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. CBS, of course, disagreed, citing their primary concern was maintaining the safety of Canada’s blood and blood product supply despite there being procedures in place that effectively screen for pathogens.

The new policy is seen, however, as only a partial victory by activists.

While less stringent than the former one, is still somewhat prohibitive.

Under the new policy gay/bisexual men, or any other men who have had sex with men, can donate blood so long as they have been celibate or not had sex with another man for the last five years. Such criteria are not applied to heterosexual men or women.

The argument put forward by activists has always been the policy needs to be based on specific behaviours, sexual or otherwise, that may increase the risk of carrying the Human Immuno-difficiency Virus (HIV) which is believed to be a precursor to AIDS and not whether a potential donor may or may not have had sex with another male.

The CBS does acknowledge on its website that on an international level “...there is no medical consensus on blood donor screening practices for MSM [men who have sex with men]. Some countries in Europe, and the United States, maintain lifetime bans. The UK and Australia have moved to a one-year deferral, and others have different practices altogether.”

The original ban was instituted by the CBS’ forerunner, The Canadian Red Cross, which up to the 1980s was the agency responsible for collecting and maintaining the blood supply. As evidence grew that HIV/AIDS was transmitted through a variety of body fluids, including blood, the Red Cross took steps to protect the supply by instituting the ban against gay/ bisexual men donating blood.

Despite that, hundreds of individuals - primarily hemophiliacs dependent on plasma to prevent life-threatening hemorrhaging due to an inability to clot, but also others who had received blood transfusions contracted HIV and/or Hepatitis C before effective screening procedures were introduced.

A Royal Commission, known as The Krever Inquiry, determined the Red Cross had failed to move quickly enough to stem the danger posed by such pathogens even after the technology was available to do so, and recommended the agency be stripped of its authority to manage the Canadian blood supply, resulting in the creation of the Canadian Blood Services. It also called for victims of tainted blood to receive compensation.

The former Director of the Canadian Red Cross, Dr. Roger Perrault, was eventually acquitted by Ontario Superior Court judge, Mary Lou Benotto, on charges of criminal negligence causing bodily harm. She also acquitted Dr. John Furesz and Dr. Donald Wark Boucher, formerly of Canada’s Health Protection Branch, and Dr. Michael Rodell, a former vice-president of a New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company, of charges relating to their alleged role in the tainted blood scandal.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced a $1.1 billion compensation package for 5,500 people who contracted Hepatitis C before 1986 and after 1990 but who were left out of the original 1988 compensation package.

The Canadian Red Cross was fined $5,000.00, the maximum fine allowable, for distributing a contaminated drug in violation of the Food and Drug Administration Act. Six other charges against the agency were dropped. In addition, the organization agreed to donate $1.5 million to the University of Ottawa for a research endowment fund and a scholarship for family members of those affected by the tainted blood.

This, then, is the environment out of which sprang the blanket ban against men who have sex with men donating blood.

Dana Devine, vice-president of Medical, Scientific and Research Affairs with CBS, has acknowledged the five-year deferral will not satisfy all critics of the new policy. However, Devine did state this is just a first step in what is hoped will be a continued effort in determining what is the best approach to incorporating gay/bisexual men into the donation system.

The Canadian AIDS Society (CAS), a national education and advocacy group on HIV/AIDS, sees this as an “important first step” although still believing the five-year deferral is too long.

Monique Doolittle-Romas, the organization’s Executive Director, was quoted as saying CAS would like to see a model based on a donor’s behaviour rather than the current one based on sexual orientation and gender.

Libby Davies, Health Critic for the federal NDP, and Randall Garrison, NDP critic for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and queer issues, issued a statement stating the five-year ban still discriminates against gay/bisexual men and that the system would be safer if screening focused on eliminating high-risk donors, regardless of sexual orientation.

Meanwhile, an Associate Professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at Western University in London, Ontario, Greta Bauer, called the length of the deferral “excessively cautious”, saying an Australian study showed no increase in contaminated blood donations when that country moved to a one-year deferral policy.

A problem with the life-time ban, and one she fears will also manifest with the current policy, was the lack of compliance. A British study found that 11 percent of gay/bisexual men and other men who have sex with men said they had donated, despite being aware of the ban against doing so. When asked why, some indicated they did not believe, based on their own sexual behaviour, they posed a risk to the supply. But others, Bauer believes, donated blood because of a perception the policy was “blatantly unfair”.

“I’m not sure with the move to a five-year policy if it’s going to increase the perception of fairness to the extent that people will be more compliant with it versus the lifetime deferral,” said Bauer, adding that if the goal of the policy is safety, good compliance on the part of the public is key.

Some studies have indicated uncircumcised men from Sub-Saharan Africa, for instance, regardless of sexual orientation, were also in a high-risk category for contracting HIV/AIDS. Haitians were one of the identified “high risk groups” throughout the 1980s, and yet neither of these two groups had a blanket ban imposed upon them. To do so would be racist, of course. Describing the original policy as homophobic, then, was not such a stretch. The current policy is better but, as has been pointed out by CAS, Egale Canada and the NDP, a policy based not on sexual orientation but on behaviours, including drug use, would be even better. CBS, to their credit, is committed to getting there but says it will ”take time”. Why that is, is unclear.

The policy change request by Canadian Blood Services and HémaQuébec was made to Health Canada in December of 2012 and will be implemented by June 2013.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Team Edmonton Honoured

By Lisa Lunney Last month came the announcement that Team Edmonton has been awarded an Honourable Mention of the Lieutenant Governor’s Leadership for Active Communities Award in the Group Spirit of Community Leadership category.

The Lieutenant Governor’s Leadership for Active Communities Award was developed as a legacy to Norman Kwong’s honorary patronage of the Alberta Active Communities imitative. For Team Edmonton to rank with an honourable mention for such a prestigious award is incredible.

This province-wide awards program recognizes achievements of teams who demonstrate the very best of active community leadership; the breed of individual who works towards making their community and their world a better place. These leaders work to create opportunities for the community at large to better themselves.

June 1st marks the official ceremony for the award recipient.

The ceremony will take place at the Royal Alberta Museum auditorium, with the reception to follow at Government House adjacent to the museum.

On behalf of GayCalgary Magazine, congratulations to Team Edmonton, and thank you for all you do to enrich Alberta’s LGBT community.

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Letters Dear GayCalgary, I for one 100% agree with “Hockey Night In Canada” (HNIC) on CBC Sports commentator Donald S. Cherry on the issue of not allowing women into men’s change rooms before, during, and after sporting endeavours, such as hockey. Mr. Cherry, or as my postcard from him when I was a kid says: “your pal Don” says women shouldn’t be allowed to be in the change rooms as reporters. I for one agree, the change room where hot, sweaty, glistening, half (or fully) naked men should be reserved for gay male reporters to try and develop further relations with players and ogle them. Plus, they can also try and convert the straight men who aren’t married and the players as well over to the gay cause, maybe even get them to perform a healthy switch to a gay centred and focused orientation. Homo-eroticism and stickhandling shouldn’t be considered dirty words, they should be appreciated. Thanks to Don Cherry, gays now have a solid ally in the fight for athletic queer rights and justice!

Graciously, Walter Dean Blake P. S.: I am only eight more weeks away from getting my sex change to gender feminine and becoming the woman I know I can be!

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

25

Maverick Jim

The Gay Caballero

 Spring Valley Guest Ranch

By Carey Rutherford Jim Saville’s life is a bit like Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto. There’s the dramatic, pounding keyboard opening as the 17 year old man leaves Nowhere, Saskatchewan, looking for the city life he hoped would give him something he had not yet found on his parents’ ranch.

“I left here in 1972 because I had to find out who I was. You can only imagine how confused I was at that age, at that time.

But I had a true entrepreneurial spirit: I wanted to own my own business.”

The pounding keyboards settled into a classical exploration of themes as the young man worked at different jobs as a waiter. He then went to college and worked in parks for five years after getting some background in Park Interpretation and Environmental Science.

“But I wanted to be my own boss,” he realized.

So why isn’t Jim’s dream of arts and guests (he hosts writers, photographers, workshops, retreats, concerts, and the occasional

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

Governor-General) based in a bustling metropolis, rather than nestled 60 km off the #1 Highway?

“I was living in Saskatoon, but at that time there were bylaws preventing B&Bs...I could cook; I could clean; I’m not well educated, but I enjoy people, and I’ve travelled. I went through Europe and stayed at B&Bs. It was getting to be big then in Europe.”

With his parents’ help he found an outstanding building and location in Irvine (near Medicine Hat), but there were bylaw issues there as well. Push came to shove, and he sold in Saskatoon and bought in Irvine. He petitioned the residents and presented his bylaw amendment proposal to the town council, only to be turned down. ”So I took the house (he laughs). The town was pissed off because they were going to designate it as a heritage site.”

By “took the house” he literally means he moved the building.

That’s our cowboy! He tells us that the building was originally shipped to Irvine by rail car as a kit that could be purchased from the Eaton’s catalogue. “All the nails, the windows the doors, the wood, it was all there. But you had to put it together.”

Thus, Tchaikovsky’s first movement ends dramatically, with the house being trucked down the road to Jim’s portion of the family ranch.

The house celebrates its 100th birthday in 2013, which is also the 25th year of the annual Ranch Rendezvous GLBT Weekend.

However, after spending this much time raising rare heritage breeds of cattle and poultry, running a successful B&B with a restaurant, bringing in artists for both performances and www.gaycalgary.com

professional development, and not making enemies of any of his immediate family, Jim is wanting a change. Now begins the concerto’s quieter, reflective 2nd movement as Jim considers the future of a single gay rancher.

“I guess I’m getting lonely as I age; I don’t want to be alone. I want to share my life, and I’d love to share my property, but gay men don’t want to live in the country. If they can’t go shopping in a Wal-Mart, get a drink in a piano-bar, and get their hair done... (exasperated sigh); get a life! But they don’t want to feed chickens.”

Fueling these recent reflections was certainly the passing of both of the Saville parents in 2012, separated by only a few months. Jim mentions seeing his mother being cared for in a nursing home like she was their own family. But with neither he nor his 3 siblings having any children, he wonders about the companionship he will retain as the senior years creep up.

“I’ve never had a partner, (never found) anybody that would share this dream. Initially when I came here, when I was 30, I had this passion, to own and start my own business out in the country.”

And he keeps trying new ones. For two years he used the dairy cattle to make his own cheeses: feta, havarti, cheddar. But the focus on that industry cut down on his travelling guests, which he couldn’t stand. And Jim is aware of the challenges of being gay in a ‘straight’ retirement home, so his business mind is whirling again: he put ads in a couple of local publications to see if anyone was interested in a gay retirement/semi-retirement home near his locale: he could make the Ranch into a place for like-minded seniors.

“I’ve had quite a bit of response: there’s definite interest in that. As the baby-boomers age, whether you’re gay or straight, it doesn’t matter: there’s going to be issues with housing, and health-care and long-term care. So then I’m thinking, maybe I don’t need to sell this place.”

“Though location does become critical as we age. And this house isn’t conducive to aging, with stairs to the loft, and stairs to the second-level bedrooms. But I thought that would be the easiest, just to stay here.”

Besides, Jim has 25 years of Ranch Rendezvous (and the first two movements of the Piano Concerto) behind him: though he hasn’t heard the final notes yet, themes have been established and drama has been experienced. He mentions that some of his regulars casually threaten him when he discusses a possible sale: where would they go to kick up their heels in the hills?

This year, the Rendezvous is from August 2nd to 5th, and there will be both a 100th and 25th anniversary celebration, with vintage fashion shows, music, hot tubs, games, meals, and all of the usual shenanigans. If you’ve attended, you’ll know what they are: if you haven’t, it’s a great opportunity to see some of the beauty in the Cypress Hills. Having gone out to see for ourselves, there’s definitely a little bit of magic as you descend into the Spring Valley. A fellow traveler gasped, “It’s like those beautiful little glens you see in the movies!”

So if you’re an investor looking to put money into new developments, a hottie looking to settle down on a historical ranch, someone particularly interested in the prospects of LGBTQ retirement space, or a man or woman simply interested in the Ranch Rendezvous’ 25th incarnation, give Maverick Jim a call. He’s friendly to a fault, and the music hasn’t ended yet!

Ranch Rendezvous Aug 2nd – 5th Spring Valley Guest Ranch http://www.springvalleyguestranch.com http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3538

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

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Out of Town

4 Unconventional Gay Seaside Getaways

 View from Homer Spit of Kachemak Bay and Alaska’s glacier-capped Kenai Mountains. Photo by Andrew Collins

by Andrew Collins Beach vacations come in many forms, especially in the context of gay and lesbian travel. Years ago, GLBT travelers seeking summer fun at the shore tended to focus on several tried-and-true resort communities, primarily Provincetown, Ogunquit, Rehoboth, Fire Island, Laguna Beach, Key West, and Saugatuck. Although all of these towns are as are still justly popular, with their lively gay beach bars and inviting accommodations, America has no shortage of quirky, scenic seaside communities with progressive bents and welcoming vibes.

Here are four great little coastal towns - two on the West Coast and two on the East Coast - you may not have thought much about, especially if you live outside the regions they’re in. Each has plenty going for it, from an abundance of romantic, gay-friendly inns to urbane restaurants to memorable cultural and recreational assets.

Camden and Rockland, Maine To experience a less-developed, ruggedly scenic part of New England, make the two-hour drive north of Portland, Maine to visit the historic seaside communities along western Penobscot Bay, including Rockland and Camden (mainesmidcoast.com). Maine’s Mid-Coast is a place for quiet vacations, ideal if you’re a hiker, photographer, fishing enthusiast, or sailor. Camden is home to a fleet of Windjammer sailing ships, which can be booked not only on multiple-day excursions throughout the region but also for afternoon jaunts along Penobscot Bay. The craggy 1,000-foot peaks of Camden Hills State Park delight outdoors enthusiasts - you can scamper along more than 20 miles of rugged nature and hiking trails through this 28

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unspoiled paradise - there’s also overnight camping. The formerly workaday town of Rockland has come into its own in recent years, with several outstanding restaurants and cafes - don’t miss In Good Company (ingoodcompanymaine. com), a dapper neighborhood wine bar with creative American cuisine, or Primo (primorestaurant.com), where James Beard award-winning chef Melissa Kelly turns out stunning farm-to-table Mediterranean-inspired fare. The key draw in Rockland is one of the country’s best small art museums, the Farnsworth, which focuses on noted regional artists of international acclaim, including Louise Nevelson, George Bellows, and the Wyeth, who are celebrated with their own wing.

Among recommended accommodations, Camden is home to the GLBT-owned Camden Harbour Inn (camdenharbourinn.com), which is situated across from a harbor and has 18 warmly appointed rooms and suites, plus a terrific restaurant. In Rockland, the gay-owned LimeRock Inn (limerockinn.com) is a handsome paintedlady Victorian B&Bs whose rooms are outfitted with all the perks you’d expect of a modern hotel. A lavish breakfast is included in the rates, and downtown restaurants are within easy walking distance.

Homer, Alaska You may not think of Alaska when you’re planning a beach vacation, but the offbeat fishing town of Homer (homeralaska.com) is an endearingly funky and gay-friendly coastal getaway popular both with residents and visitors to the Last Frontier. On the Kenai Peninsula and reached from Anchorage either by a stunning 220-mile drive or an easy 40-minute flight, the town is situated at the mouth of

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Kachemak Bay and affords dramatic views of the glaciercapped Kenai Mountains.

You can stroll among the cool coffeehouses and seafood restaurants along Homer Spit, which pokes out into the bay - good bets include Captain Patties Fish House, which serves delicious crab cakes and a nice selection of Alaska microbrew beers, and Coal Town Coffee & Tea. A must-see here is the fascinating Alaska Islands & Oceans Visitor Center, but also note Homer’s many outdoorsy activities, from sea kayaking to road-biking to wildlife- and whalewatching tours.

For a splurge, consider taking a water-taxi across Kachamak Bay to spend a couple of nights at the secluded and rustic-elegant Tutka Bay Lodge, which overlooks a crystalline fjord and has its own cooking school run by talented chef-owner Kirsten Dixon. Back in Homer, charming, gay-friendly accommodations include Brigitte’s Bavarian B&B (akms.com/brigitte), on a bluff outside town, and the Bay Avenue B&B (bayavebb.com), a modern house with plenty of big windows and great views over the bay.

In Homer’s funky village center, notable dining options abound - be sure to check out colorfully decorated Mermaid Bistro (mermaidbistro.com), which serves out-of-this-world salads, sandwiches, and pizzas with an emphasis on organic ingredients; colorful Café Cups (cafecupsofhomer.com), where you can feast on platters of tiger prawns with honeyhabanero sauce, and charbroiled filet mignon; and adorable Two Sisters Bakery, which is known for seafood chowder, creative salads, and delectable baked goods. There’s not a ton of nightlife in these parts, but offbeat Alice’s Champagne Palace (aliceschampagnepalace.com) is a fun spot for live music, cold beer, and juicy burgers.

Mendocino, California Among the many jewels of the rugged California coastline, the beautiful little town of Mendocino (visitmendocino.com) stands out for its rugged sea cliffs, charming New England– inspired cottages, and serene seclusion. The town is just 150 miles up the coast from San Francisco, and 80 miles via the lovely Anderson Valley from the heart of the Sonoma Wine Country.

This cliff-top community is in the heart of a region where loggers, tourists, winegrowers, writers, farmers, hippies, yuppies, and fishermen all more or less coexist harmoniously. And while it’s not really a gay mecca, it does have a strong following among same-sex couples who appreciate the low-keyed vibe and alluring setting.

The most intriguing activities in coastal Mendocino County usually involve one kind of touring or another. You can rent mountain bikes, kayaks, or canoes and explore the region’s rivers or country lanes. And you can hike along oceanfront bluffs that loom high over the frothy Pacific surf and watch whales during the spring and fall migrations. A great place for this is Mendocino Headlands State Park, an easy walk from downtown. Just north of Mendocino, the once-prosaic lumber town of Fort Bragg has lately gentrified with hip coffeehouses and fun restaurants - it’s also home to such attractions as the 47-acre Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, and the historic 21-mile Skunk Train scenic excursion railroad, which passes through soaring redwood groves.

You can also go wine-touring in the adjacent Anderson Valley, whose cool climate is particularly suitable for turning out stellar Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Mendocino County Wine (mendowine.com) has information on tastings at dozens of vineyards open to the public. The region has no shortage of stellar restaurants. Occupying a dark, wood-paneled room with big windows overlooking colorful gardens, 955 Ukiah (955restaurant.com) serves sophisticated California-style cuisine. Also outstanding, the unassuming Moosse Café (themoosse.com), which is warmed by a fireplace, offers exceptional mod-American www.gaycalgary.com

fare and laid-back yet efficient service, and the MacCallum House (maccallumhouse.com) - also a nice place to stay serves some of the most accomplished regional American cuisine on the Northern California coast.

Mendocino and nearby villages have a bounty of gayfriendly inns and B&Bs, with an emphasis on unpretentious, rustic luxury. The J.D. House (jdhouse.com) is a lovely eight-room B&B surrounded by fragrant gardens, and with an invitingly simple and fresh country-chic aesthetic.

Innkeepers Andrew Hindman and Damien Wood also run two sister inns, the Packard House and Blue Door Inn. A stylish “eco-resort” with one of the country’s most acclaimed vegan restaurants (Ravens’), the Stanford Inn by the Sea (stanfordinn.com) has a breathtaking location overlooking Mendocino Bay. A short drive south of town near verdant Van Damme State Park, the gay-owned Glendeven Inn (glendeven.com) looks like a Maine farmhouse and is surrounded by lush gardens and dewy meadows. Most of the rooms here have private decks overlooking the ocean and are warmed by fireplaces, and the on-site wine bar is a wonderful dining option. Another highlight is the gay-owned boutique resort Stevenswood (stevenswood.com), which is nestled among tall trees and open meadows and has 10 rooms decorated in a light and airy contemporary style. A big draw here is the serene full-service spa. Also nearby is the the 65-room Little River Inn (littleriverinn.com), a rambling and comfy hideaway with a friendly staff and charming rooms - it’s perfect for a romantic getaway - room all face the ocean, and some with fireplaces and Jacuzzi tubs.

Tybee Island, Georgia Every bit as quirky, laid-back, and personable as historic Savannah, which lies just a 20-minute drive inland, Tybee Island (visittybee.com) is one of Georgia’s famed barrier islands, an idyllic locale for beach-bumming, fishing, or boating. In May 2013, this colorful beachside community hosted its first Tybee Gay Days (gaysavannah.com/tybee-gay-days), a weekend of parties and events that organizers plan an annual gathering.

You’ll find plenty of condo and cottage rentals on this compact island, making it a popular destination for extended stays with groups of friends. One very good options is the LGBT-friendly Beachside Colony Resort (beachsidecolony. com), which has upscale one-, two-, and three-bedroom condos set among eight different buildings and adjoins the terrific, lesbian-owned restaurant and bar, Marlin Monroe’s Surfside Grill (marlinmonroessurfsidegrill.com). Here you can feast on tasty seafood and minty mojitos while relaxing on the deck overlooking the sea. Also check out the sister restaurant, Fannies on the Beach (fanniesonthebeach.com), which is steps from the island’s colorful pier and pavilion. And off U.S. 80 as you enter the island, lively Coco’s Sunset Grille (cocostybee. com) has occasional gay parties and is another sure bet for delicious seafood.

The fact that Tybee is so close to Savannah (visitsavannah. com) makes it a great option if you’re keen on a vacation that mixes beach relaxation with touring historic homes, tony galleries, and upscale Southern restaurants - and, of course, you can always overnight in Savannah and visit Tybee as a day-trip. Charming properties like the snazzy yet historic Mansion on Forsyth Park (mansiononforsythpark.com); the stylish and art-filled Bohemian Hotel Savannah Riverfront (bohemianhotelsavannah.com), and the sleek Andaz Savannah (savannah.andaz.hyatt.com) are all favorites with gay travelers, and Club One (clubone-online.com) is a hot spot for dancing and drag shows, it being the home nightclub of Lady Chablis, of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil fame.

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GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

29

Community

 Photos from Lethbridge Pride 2012, by GayCalgary Magazine

Lethbridge Gay Pride

By Krista Sylvester Everyone loves a colourful parade and for the first time in its five year history, Lethbridge Pride Fest will be hosting one in celebration of its half-decade anniversary.

“We’re excited to celebrate our anniversary in style with the community,” Lethbridge Pride Fest Society chair Reid Hollander says. “And we’re having a parade, which is a definite first for Lethbridge.”

The parade will take place at noon on Saturday June 22nd and Hollander invites everyone to cheer on the procession along its route, starting at City Hall and heading north on Stafford Drive. Some confirmed participants in the parade include ARGRA, The Lethbridge HIV Connection and the Lethbridge Roller Derby Guild, just to name a few.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun and we really encourage people to come out and watch if they aren’t (already) in it,” Hollander adds.

Lethbridge Pride Fest has grown a lot over its five year history becoming a more public celebration over time, Hollander explains.

“In past years, a celebration of Pride in June meant someone was having a backyard barbecue to celebrate.

Pride was celebrated in private,” Hollander says. “From there it became a celebration of friends at a restaurant, probably because of all the dishes that had to be done.”

But after a few years, the group needed a bigger restaurant, which sparked “pride in the park” and from there it has grown into a weeklong – and sometimes month-long - festival that starts with a flag raising at City Hall.

And as the festival grows, so does the entertainment.

There is a ton on tap, focusing on local talent and popular headliners.

“Shaela Miller and the Emma Austin Band are coming back for an encore and the group Cosmic Charlie impressed us so much last year at the Owl Acoustic Lounge we’re moving them onto the big stage in the park. Amy Bronson will be singing solo and we’ve also signed The Ruby Plumes as well.”

Barefoot at the Bordello, a group of fantastic entertainers will also be performing for three nights over pride in partnership with the sponsor Barefoot Winery. The group will perform some of the skits from their 10th anniversary show of “Pretty, Witty and Gay”, which will be hosted by Lethbridge’s foremost camp queen Didi d’Edada.

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“We are very excited this year to have Shangela as our special guest headliner. Outloud Talent has been very supportive and helpful in making this happen,” Hollander says. “She is truly an amazing performer and one not to be missed.”

Shangela is of course a renowned drag queen who appeared on RuPaul’s Drag Race and Glee, and will heat up the nights of the festival. Shangela has quite the cult following and is a very exciting addition to the festival. She is the self-professed big personality with even bigger hair drag queen that has sprung to fame proving you truly never know where you may end up one day. Following her dream, Shangela is a popular drag entertainer who stars in many television shows and short films now, too.

Hollander is also excited for the return of Fendi Ashleen La’fierce! Fendi, who has had numerous roles in Pride Fest over the last few years, will be performing throughout the week along with newcomer, Delores Van Cartier. Van Cartier grew up in the area, has spent some time out west, and will be coming home to perform for us.

The city of Lethbridge has been very supportive of the festival, say the organizers who are happy to grow bigger in such an accepting city. Over the last two years the group has been the recipient of funding from the “Heart of the City” initiative and Downtown Lethbridge.

“Both programs encourage activities in the downtown core and we do our absolute best to make sure all of our events are downtown. Both of these groups have sponsored us now for two years and we look forward to their continued support,” Hollander explains. “We’re also very happy to be one of the first events in the new Community Arts Centre for Southern Alberta (CASA). It’s a great facility and we look forward to using it again.”

Hollander would also like to thank the volunteers, the sponsors and the supporters of the event. “Events of this size just can’t move as easily as they do without donations in all forms.”

Lethbridge Pride Fri, Jun 7th – Sat, Jun 22nd http://www.lethbridgepridefest.com

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Natalie Maines Gets Real

Dixie Chicks singer talks lesbian hair, Rachel Maddow crush and ‘fake’ country music  Photo by Danny Clinch

By Chris Azzopardi To quote a Dixie Chicks song, fearless frontwoman Natalie Maines has “been a longtime gone.”

Seven years after one of the most successful country music acts released Taking the Long Way, and its unapologetic single “Not Ready to Make Nice” in response to the singer’s political dig at then-President George W. Bush, Maines goes her own way for her first-ever solo album, Mother. Parting with longstanding bandmates Emily Robison and Martie Maguire for the album (don’t worry, she says there’s a “50/50” chance for a reunion LP), it’s also decidedly not country.

In our recent chat, Maines revealed why she went rock (country “seemed so fake”), how being disowned – and her new short hair – made her feel closer to the gay community and whether now, a decade after her Bush outburst, she’s ready to make nice.

GC: You’re sporting that punkish ’do; before, with the Dixie Chicks, it was the long, blond locks.

NM: I know. Well, with the Chicks, I definitely felt like I was playing dress up a bit – but I liked it!

GC: Are you conscious of your look and how it represents the music?

NM: With two kids, there’s not enough time in the day to spend on what I look like; this is a much easier look. And it fits my personality more. I had short hair growing up, and it always felt right for me.

GC: Has the short hair scored you more lesbian cred?

NM: (Laughs) I barely leave my house. So maybe. But the lesbians liked me already! Yeah, this is definitely a lesbianish haircut I’ve got going on. I don’t mind. I love Rachel Maddow. She would be my lesbian girl crush.

GC: Why Rachel?

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 From Previous Page NM: She’s hot! And she’s smart and beautiful … and I like her hair.

GC: I could see it working out between you two.

NM: Yeah, I think that would work. I don’t know if my husband or her girlfriend would think so. (Laughs) GC: You’ve always had a really loyal gay fan base, even before you publicly chastised George W. Bush. How do you explain your connection with gay fans?

NM: We had some very costume-y, over-the-top looks that the gays do appreciate. (Laughs) But after the controversy, I feel like there was even more of a connection, and that’s just because we both know how it feels to be hated just for who we are – not for doing anything, bothering anyone, murdering anyone or being arrested. Just for being us.

Apparently, that’s not good in some people’s eyes. But also, too, to just continue being and let other people get used to it – learning to be OK with yourself and just putting it out there, and people can either like you or not, but it’s really on them.

GC: Were you noticing more support from the gay community at shows after the incident?

NM: Yeah. And we would get lots of emails, and a lot of the community would come right up and say, “I love that you did this. I didn’t listen to your music before, but after this, I went and bought every record.” However it was that they showed their support, I definitely felt it.

GC: During the time country radio blacklisted the Dixie Chicks and country stars stopped supporting you, what was it like for you behind the scenes?

NM: At the time, I was just in fight mode and feeling defiant and ready to take on everything and everybody. Actually, at the time, we were getting such overwhelming support and letters from people in the industry – actors and all sorts

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of people – and that was all really positive. I was always able to separate business from personal – and my friends weren’t fellow country artists, so I really didn’t care about that. What I cared about was being banned at a corporate level; it felt very un-American and very not OK to me, so that was my issue. And that is my issue with country music.

I don’t have an issue with country music fans. I don’t have an issue with country music artists. I was very honest about my influences and the kind of music I came from – and country was not it. I say that now and people think, “Ooh, she’s mad at country,” and I never listened to country. I would say that if ever asked, but I was never asked as much as I am now. But … I can’t remember what I was talking about. (Laughs) GC: You were talking about not being fond of the country music industry.

NM: Oh, you asked if I felt let down. I mean, it did suck to see all these radio stations cave so quickly to emails and phone calls they were getting and feed the controversy, which was so really nothing and ridiculous. That did feel like a stabbing in the back, just because I felt like we waved that country flag and we had country pride for all those years. But everyone jumped on board. We were fun to hate.

GC: That’s because you were ahead of your time.

NM: Exactly. Always have been.

GC: When hardly anyone in country music was speaking out about equal rights and gay marriage, you were.

NM: Well, that’s why I was so shocked that people were so shocked that I was a Democrat and wasn’t for the war!

I mean, I did not ever feel like I was hiding something. To be in country music, I felt like we were accepted because of our differences, really, and we went beyond your typical country fan base, and I feel like it was because we were different. It was a real surprise to me that people thought I was something that I wasn’t. I felt disappointed in myself!

How could I let anyone think anything else?! (Laughs) But we did always answer questions if we were asked them, and I always supported women’s rights and gay marriage and everything.

GC: Why do you think more country music artists haven’t taken that step in publicly supporting equal rights – even though some of them might?

NM: Well, they weren’t speaking out about it before, either. But I’m sure some do. How I always viewed country music growing up – why I didn’t really relate to it or why I wasn’t drawn to it – was because, to me, it seemed so fake.

Everyone was putting on these fake smiles, nobody had any anger and they were all just happy to be there. I just did not relate to that. Shoot. What was your question again? I get so on a soapbox! (Laughs) GC: About the lack of country artists advocating for equal rights.

NM: I just think that’s the nature of country music. I don’t know. I just don’t feel like they ever have. I have to think that Faith Hill has answered that question, honestly, and that she’s for gay marriage. I don’t know that she is, but I’ve spoken to her some and I know that she’s a pretty liberal person. I don’t keep up with her press so I don’t want to assume these people haven’t spoken out.

GC: Will there ever be another Dixie Chicks album?

NM: I don’t know. It’s possible. I’d say 50/50. (Laughs) I try to not predict the future or project; I just really try to live in the now, so I’m open to it. I have no ill feelings about the Dixie Chicks. I think right now, it’s logistics. There are eight kids among the three of us and, for me, making an album takes a lot of focus and a lot of concentration and a lot of time, and I’m not willing to go to Texas to do that. I wouldn’t expect Martie and Emily to leave their families and come here to do that, either. I just think it’s really hard right now.

GC: With the Dixie Chicks, you covered several Patty Griffin songs, and Mother features Griffin’s song “Silver www.gaycalgary.com

Bell.” What is it about Patty and her songwriting that resonates with you so much? The darkness? The realness?

NM: It’s all of that. I’m bad putting into words things like that, but I love her songwriting. And I hate her because, not only has she written a million songs that are out there, she’s got all these songs that we’ve never even heard. It’s so hard to write a song for me! And I’m so jealous that she has, like, back stock.

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GC: Why was the seven years between Taking the Long Way and this new solo album a necessary break for you?

NM: Basically because kids take a lot of time. (Laughs) I just decided to dive into motherhood and do that 100 percent – just try to enjoy this time and my life and my kids’ lives and be, you know, a stable force in their lives.

I definitely felt like I had worked really hard and been on the road for over 10 years, so I did want to slow down and just get real for a while. So there was a lot of self-realization and a lot of things that went on, but yeah, I needed a long while to just … be.

GC: Why was the distinction between this album and your work with the Dixie Chicks important to you?

NM: It’s just bugged me whenever I would see lead singers do a solo album that sounded exactly like their band. It always seemed to be a way to get all the money for yourself.

(Laughs) So I did want to be different. But I didn’t have to be conscious of that; this is just what I’m naturally drawn to.

When we went into the studio, we didn’t even know we were making a record. I was very upfront about that with Ben (Harper’s) band, just because they were basically coming (to the studio) for free every day; they enjoyed music and they wanted to experiment and see what happens – but I wasn’t telling my management or my label, so there was no money coming from anywhere.

It was really like a band starting from scratch, everybody putting in the same amount of time and hard work … and they got paid eventually. (Laughs) There just wasn’t a discussion; it was just very organic in what naturally comes to me musically or appeals to me.

GC: Are you ready to make nice yet?

NM: I don’t sit around stewing over it or thinking about it at all, but if making nice means making a country record and going back to that, then no, I’m not ready.

GC: Has there been a peace agreement between you and Toby Keith?

NM: Sure, I’ve got no issues. I don’t even think about any of these people. (Laughs) I wouldn’t have even thought of Toby Keith if he hadn’t put out a picture of me and Saddam Hussein cuddling.

GC: He could’ve at least had you cuddling with Rachel Maddow. Gosh.

NM: (Laughs) Exactly!

Natalie Maines - The Dixie Chicks Playing the Stampede, July 12th http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3541

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Rewriting Jessie Ware

Singer on career switch, big gay following and her wildest moment

 Photo by Cherrytree Records/Interscope

By Chris Azzopardi With all the due praise for Jessie Ware’s honeyed debut, Devotion, including a Mercury Prize nomination, no one’s complaining that the Londoner dropped journalism for music.

Least of all Ware herself.

As she heads stateside, the charming “Wildest Moments” singer chatted about changing careers, first recognizing a gay fan base while touring America and the Whitney Houston album that inspired her debut.

GC: Do you think you would’ve pursued a solo career if your mom hadn’t convinced you to?

JW: No. Probably not. It was a joint thing – my mom and my friends put me in a session with some tracks. I felt like I was very lucky to have people who really had faith in me.

GC: Were you a good journalist?

JW: No, I was rubbish! That’s why I didn’t do it for that long. I found it really, really competitive and it just didn’t feel completely right for me. My father is a journalist and I was under the impression that it’s very glamorous and that I’d be a hard-hitting journalist, but no. I just wasn’t very good.

GC: Isn’t music competitive, too?

JW: Yeah, but I feel like I was extremely lucky with how I came into music, because I had people really rooting for me and so I didn’t feel quite guilty about it. I didn’t really have that struggle. I went from backing singer to solo singer, but I was so content being a backing singer. It was really my mates pushing me to get in a session on my own, which I was petrified about.

Look, I put my time in as a backing singer and I was a dance vocalist, but it felt sometimes too good to be true with how generous people were with me, giving me these opportunities.

GC: Your Twitter wallpaper is Barbra Streisand. What kind of influence has she had on you and your career?

JW: She’s brilliant and just so charismatic. I just think she’s a great, great singer and a great performer, and you can just learn a lot from watching any performance of hers – that you must never forget to try your hardest all the time.

GC: Were you an obsessive fan as a kid?

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JW: No, not at all. My grandma made me watch concerts of hers when I was younger and she was just obsessed. My mom took my grandma to a concert and I remember it very vividly.

But no, it was more a later love and find when I started watching Yentl and Funny Girl and things like that, and actually getting so madly into the stuff that she did with Robin Gibb.

GC: Are there other gay-loved singers you idolize that we do as well? Bette Midler?

JW: Uh, hello! I’m partly calling my unborn child – my daughter that I hopefully will have – C.C. because of C.C. Bloom from Beaches, and also because my grandma is called Cecilia, so I’m calling her that. Yeah, there’s a definite Bette Midler love in there. I just love strong Jewish women.

GC: Mariah or Whitney?

JW: Whitney was my one, my love. In fact, I had Whitney and Barbra Streisand vinyls in the recording booth when I made my album just so if ever I wasn’t trying hard enough, I’d just look at them and be like, “Oh no, try harder. Babs wouldn’t do that.

Whitney wouldn’t do that.”

GC: Which Whitney album?

JW: I had the Whitney Houston one – the orange vinyl where she looks very elegant.

GC: Why do you think gay men gravitate toward big female voices like those and yours so much?

JW: Look, I don’t know, but maybe it’s the drama. There’s always a huge passion. I don’t know if it stems from musical theater and the kind of fabulousness of it. I don’t know. You tell me. You’re gay!

GC: I like to say we have good taste.

JW: (Laughs) It’s good taste, but also I feel like you’re always the ones who have your finger on the pulse. You’re always the first to know about people. You’re breaking me! You know what, when I came in January and I saw how many gay people were at my gigs, I breathed a sigh of relief, I’m not gonna lie. I thought, “OK, yes, they’re on my side. Wicked. Let’s go.”

GC: Were you doing a club tour?

JW: No, I didn’t, actually. The only club that I played was in San Francisco, which I think had quite a renowned gay club

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night and that was amazing.

It was the second sellout of the tour. It was just amazing.

I loved it. But I have really catered to the gays in the new video (for “Imagine It Was Us”).

It’s got voguing and lots of beautiful men with no tops on and choreographed dancing and a disco feel to it.

GC: Thank you so much!

JW: Pleasure!

GC: When were you aware that you had a gay following?

JW: I only really realized when I came to America. You know what, I’m still working out who’s coming to see me anyway, but when I saw all these beautiful black men at the front (at one of the shows) I was like, “Oh, heyyy,” and they’d be like, “Gurrrrlfriend!”

It was definitely America that made me realize you were on my side.

GC: What song on Devotion speaks most to your gay fans?

JW: I feel like quite a lot of them like “Taking in Water,” and I don’t know if that’s because it’s about my brother and they know that. It was written when he was having a really tough time, which could’ve been partly to do with sexuality and the struggle of that.

GC: Did you write it about him and his struggle with his sexuality?

JW: It’s not just about that.

It’s kind of the aftermath of coming out. I don’t know. It’s about a few things. I was very protective of him but I wasn’t very good at expressing it, and then I kind of wrote this song. I’m not saying the song  Photo by James Moriarty made us closer at all, but we definitely are much tighter now.

I make sure everyone knows he’s in the audience when he is and I make sure everyone knows it’s about my little brother.

GC: How has having a gay brother influenced the way you feel about gay rights?

JW: I’ve always felt really protective of my brother. I think we all kind of knew he was gay from quite a young age, and I felt like he was picked on at school because of maybe him being more effeminate and not being able to come out and it became an issue. He was having to defend himself and he wasn’t even sure if he was gay yet. You can still see it happening, and people are still so casually homophobic without even knowing it, whether it be, “Oh, that’s so gay.” Things like that. It really annoys me. I feel very protective of him and I’d like to do more supporting gay rights, absolutely, because it’s close to home for me. I don’t think he’s had an easy time being gay, to be honest.

It’s been harder for him, I think.

GC: You really demonstrate a lot of self-control on this album, and the album is better because of that. Were you conscious of keeping your voice in check?

JW: Absolutely. I wanted to tell stories and draw people in and not inundate them with a big powerhouse vocal. It would’ve

been a bit exhausting on the ears. Don’t get me wrong, live I go for it a bit more because I think it’s more necessary. But I definitely wanted to be able to exist in people’s homes, cars and just in the background, and I didn’t want people to want to turn me down.

GC: Were there times while recording where you just wanted to let your voice rip? I feel like you could’ve gone there with “Running.”

JW: For “Running,” it’s just enough, I think. I keep that really long note, and you should see how long I keep it in the live show. It’s ridiculous. I try to test myself and see how long I can hold that note, but no, I think it’s not about me showing off on a vocal; it’s more about what’s necessary for the song.

GC: What’s been your wildest moment so far?

JW: Probably getting the A$AP Rocky verse in the inbox (for the “Wildest Moments” remix). That was pretty amazing and nobody really thought it was going to happen. We were just about to deliver the album, and then he popped up in everyone’s inbox with the verse.

GC: With artists like you, Adele and Florence Welch, and several other emerging female performers who actually wear clothes, I’m reminded of the early ’90s when Mariah, Whitney and Celine didn’t have to look like floozies to sell records.

What do you think of this new wave of women who are bringing a more sophisticated – and clothed – look back?

JW: Oh, I love it. Whenever I dress up, it’s always gotta be something that my mother would be happy with me wearing, so I always have that in the back of my mind. But yeah, I think it’s brilliant. What’s better than a classy woman who can sing?

I mean, I show my tummy a lot. But I think I can get away with a little bit of midriff.

GC: What’re you wearing now, then?

JW: A knitted pink crop top with a really big roll-neck and a lovely silk jacket with high-waisted trousers and slippers.

GC: So you’re completely covered.

JW: There is a tiny bit of midriff. I’m so sorry.

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39

Murs Invasion

British crooner on exhibitionism, gay rumors and cracking America  Photos by Bella Howard

Chris Azzopardi Olly Murs isn’t your average straight dude. The U.K. X Factor alum, who recently released his proper stateside debut Right Place Right Time, has stripped down to a

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thong for an all-queer crowd, championed games of gay chicken and been on the receiving end of a man-spank.

We, uh, uncovered all the nitty-gritty in our recent chat with Murs, who also addressed the gay rumors, taking on America and the threesome he’d like to have with a Kate Beckinsale look-alike … and yours truly?

GC: Some straight guys might have a problem being as chummy as you are with the gays, but not you. Why’s that?

OM: Personally, it’s because I’m so comfortable with my sexuality. I know I like women and it’s simply that. I’ve had gay friends and it’s never been a problem. Sure, there’s obviously boundaries you can’t cross, but nine times out of 10, it doesn’t bother me. I find that gay guys are really funny and quite bitchy – but in a good way. It’s always very funny and it never bothers me if, like, they slap my bum.

It’s not like I’m freaked out by it. I don’t care. That’s why I’m so chill with it.

GC: Using the Kinsey Scale, where 0 is exclusively hetero and 6 is exclusively homo, how gay is your fan base?

OM: Well, it’s funny, because I’ve done a couple of big events in the U.K. I performed at G-A-Y a few times, and every time I perform I have a really great response from the gay fans. I’m really comfortable with my sexuality, and to be around gay guys is fine. I enjoy their company and they enjoy the music as well, which is good. www.gaycalgary.com

GC: So we’re saying maybe a 3 on the scale?

OM: It’s about 3 to 6. I reckon quite a lot of guys like me.

GC: Some interviews you’ve done address how not gay you are. Is that something that comes up a lot?

OM: Yeah, like I said, I’m really comfortable with my sexuality and I’m really extroverted and I like having a good time. Some people have even said, “He’s obviously gay,” because I like to have a good time and I don’t really care.

Some people struggle with that.

GC: What do you make of the gay rumors?

OM: I’m straight and I love girls, but I’ve always been able to hang around with gay guys and have a laugh. I think sometimes that offends straight guys for some reason. I don’t know why they decide to write stupid rumors on Twitter and in different magazines saying that I’m gay. I just think that’s ridiculous. The fact is, they’re probably more worried about their own sexuality than I am.

There are so many people in this industry that I’m friends with who are gay, and if I was so dead against talking to gay people, what kind of person am I? I think that’s just ridiculous. We’re all human beings. We’re all the same.

Whether you’re gay, straight, bisexual – it doesn’t matter.

But for me, I think it’s quite clear that I’m straight and that I like women. So I don’t know. It’s unfortunate. But hey, who cares.

GC: I hear you’re a pro at gay chicken.

OM: (Laughs) You know, I’ve played it twice now. Obviously the game is a straight guy vs. a gay guy, and normally you’d think that a gay guy would last longer. Well, I’ve done it twice now and both gay guys have turned away, which is funny.

GC: So you win?

OM: I won both times!

GC: If you could pick any dude celebrity and play gay chicken with him, who would you pick?

OM: Good question. Who do you think I could play with in America?

GC: Anderson Cooper? Neil Patrick Harris?

OM: Could I do it with Mila Kunis? (Laughs) I’d like to see if Will Ferrell would do it. I’d like to see if he’d actually go for it. I think he would.

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 From Previous Page GC: Who are two gay artists who’ve influenced you musically?

OM: Definitely Elton John. He’s incredible.

I’d probably say George Michael, as well.

Regardless of his personal life and the problems he’s been through, his music and his ability to sing and his performances – he’s an amazing artist. Elton John and George Michael are the two who’ve really inspired me in some way, shape or form musically.

GC: Your first album, In Case You Didn’t Know, never had a proper release in the U.S., and then the label scrapped that for Right Place Right Time. What happened there?

OM: To be honest, I always felt it was a bit weird. I was always unsure about releasing that album over here. I wanted a really good album, but it didn’t feel like it was the right album to release h e r e at the moment.

I was writing at the time, so I said to the label, “Look, hold off for a minute; let me just finish this album.” I told the U.S. label, “I have this really good album coming out. I’m really pleased with it. It’s got ‘Troublemaker,’ which I think will be a big song in the U.K. and hopefully in America.”

GC: How is this album different than In Case You Didn’t Know?

OM: This album has much more depth to it. It’s much more mature.

It’s cooler. I think the American audience is gonna love it a lot more.

The title, for me, says it all: Right Place Right Time. It feels like the right place and the right time for me.

GC: What’s been the biggest challenge of cracking America?

OM: It’s a massive market. I’ve never had my expectations high in America; I’ve always kept them low, and I always knew it was gonna be a tough challenge. I’ve noticed a massive change in the last year. I came from a TV show here in the U.K. – obviously, X Factor – so I came off that show with a huge fan base who knew who I was without any music coming out, but in the states, people don’t really know me, so people haven’t got to know me as a person; they’re just listening to my music. I haven’t really been over there that much to do lots of TV shows or big performances.

To be at the point where we are now, with how well the singles have done, and to see that

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success and to see how much we’ve sold over there, it’s brilliant.

GC: What kind of exposure did The X Factor give you?

OM: It gave me an amazing opportunity.

Reality TV shows seem to put a negative spin sometimes on artists, and people don’t seem to like that I came from The X Factor. For me, it gave me an opportunity to showcase my personality as well as my voice and my performing, and obviously I was able to showcase that to lot of girls and female fans – and, of course, the male fans. People liked it and I enjoyed what I did. It was great for me, and it’s given me the most amazing job and I love it very, very much. I hope I get to do it for many years to come.

GC: You’ve toured with One Direction. Were you a fan of boy bands growing up?

OM: Yeah, massive! I was NSYNC all the way, as well as Backstreet Boys. I was also a massive Spice Girls fan back in the day. I mean, come on, every guy hates to admit it, but we all bought or danced to their songs in a club at some point.

GC: What’s your go-to Spice Girls song?

OM: For me, it’s, (singing) “Stop right now, thank you very much; I need somebody with a human touch.”

GC: Let’s talk about this naked infatuation you have. Pics I’ve seen on the web show you either with your shirt off, pants off, something off. And you stripped at G-A-Y. Are you an exhibitionist?

OM: No, I don’t know why. I just, for some reason, have taken a lot of clothes off in the last three years. And people have taken pictures and caught me with my clothes off. But maybe I am an exhibitionist. I’m not afraid to take my clothes off; that’s basically it. It just happens. If someone dares me to do something, I always do it.

GC: What’s the most ridiculous dare you’ve been asked to do?

OM: Oh god, I was asked to dress up in drag for my documentary (Olly: Life on Murs). It just got weird. They wanted me to dress up as a drag queen and sing one of my songs at a proper evening night at a gentleman’s club or something. I was like, “No way am I doing that! I don’t think I can do it. I’m not that good at it.”

GC: What don’t we know about you?

OM: I can’t stand raw tomatoes. I hate olives. I’m a 32 waist. I am conscious of my belly and I wish I could have a six-pack. And I love Kate Beckinsale. She’s my ideal woman.

GC: So maybe a game of chicken with her, too?

OM: If you could arrange it. We’ll do a threesome.

We’ll have a gay guy, a really hot Kate Beckinsale lookalike and me.

GC: I’m in.

OM: Let’s do it.

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43

Interview

Seth Knight

“Twink of the Year” comes to PURE Pride Edmonton

By Nick Winnick Festival season is kicking off once more, and Edmonton’s Pride week is right near the top of the docket. Organized

by PURE Pride Entertainment, PURE Pride kickoff parties are fast becoming a fixture of western Canada’s major Pride festivals. Headlining this year’s Edmonton event are Jujubee, Nick Bertossi, and the stunning adult film actor Seth Knight, with whom I recently had a chance to speak.

If you like your pornstars lithe, strong, and smooth, the name is doubtless familiar. Knight’s career in porn started at a dead run with him being named Twink.com’s 2011 Twink of the Year just two months after his debut. Starting out light, I asked Knight about maintaining that physique. Does he have a specific workout routine, or is he a calorie-counter?

“No, I eat like a fatty,” he laughed. “It’s hard for me to gain weight [and] I try to work out as much as possible.”

Knight’s only prior visit to Canada was all business; a shoot in Montreal with Jake Bass and Gabriel Clark. Nice work if you can get it. As for Edmonton, and his encore performance in Saskatoon?

“I’m very excited for these two towns because I’ve never been. I’m very excited to meet fans, sign autographs, and I’m definitely excited for [The Starlight Room’s] V.I.P.” It’s safe to say that Edmonton is in for a treat. When I asked about his previous live performance experience, Knight very nearly demurred. While he has worked clubs in the past, this will be his first time in the limelight. “To be honest,” he told me, “I’ve never done a live appearance in front of people, so this will be a new experience for me. I’m a little nervous.” Do be gentle with the poor boy, gentlemen.

Not that the experience is likely to ruffle any of Knight’s feathers. True to his easygoing Texan upbringing, Knight appears well-armoured against the slings and arrows life launches his way. Chatting about his background, Knight told me that he “grew up in Wichita Falls, so it was a little difficult because it’s a lot of straight, redneck cowboys.” As with many gay teens, his local rumour mill had essentially given him a de-facto outing before he came out himself. Ever unflappable, Knight embraced his identity and eventually 44

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won over a good portion of his hometown. “Eventually I just came out and started being me. Everyone started to love me, and wanted to hang with me. Now, when I visit, I get a warm welcome.”

Out is activism enough for the young star, however. Pride events aren’t something that he seeks out specifically, and as for becoming an outspoken advocate? “Being in the public eye is enough for me. When you do porn, you’re in the public eye a lot.” No argument with that last point, given that Knight has been featured in more than a dozen films in a little over two years. Those who’ve grown to love Knight’s work on film may be in for a disappointment, though, as it seems that Knight isn’t particularly keen to be a public figure on a longterm basis. For the foreseeable future, he’s transitioned away from film, and is only booking personal appearances like those coming up in Edmonton and Saskatoon. His real focus at this point in his life, he tells me, is starting his career outside of adult entertainment. While performing, the industrious Knight found time to complete his schooling as a cosmetologist and dental assistant - no word on when he’ll be taking clients.

Far from seeming disillusioned about his time in porn, Knight remembers several of his co-stars, and the experiences he had working with them, fondly. Among his favourites was Jake Genesis, who he liked enough to date seriously for a time. “Yes, sadly it didn’t work,” Knight said, “but wish him the best.” And if you’ve developed a taste for Seth’s exquisite figure, don’t despair. He certainly hasn’t ruled out the possibility of performing again, and would especially like to reprise his performances with Trenton Ducati and Gabriel Clark. He’s also on the lookout for opportunities to perform with Adam Killian, Tom Wolfe, and Austin Wolfe.

Wherever Knight’s future takes him, we certainly haven’t seen the last of this ambitious young Texan. For right now, you can see him at PURE Pride, where the party’s organizer, Dale Plourde, promises a show full of theatricality, suspense, and a soundtrack that can’t be - if you’ll forgive the phrasing - topped.

Seth Knight Performing at PURE Pride Edmonton, June 8th Saskatoon’s Odeon Events Centre, June 15th

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A Bombshell with a Beautiful Heart Jujubee lights up Edmonton’s PURE Pride night

By Janine Eva Trotta On Saturday, June 8th any fan of drag not in Edmonton’s Starlite Room will surely be burning with envy. Pure Pride 2013 was lucky to land blossoming star and busy globe trotter Jujubee amidst her stops in Paris, France, throughout the United States and onto Amsterdam.

Of Laotian descent but born in Boston, Massachusetts, the striking Jujubee received world attention when she was selected among the most talented queens in America to compete as a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 2 at the age of 25.

“It was an amazing experience,” she says. “I can’t say I have that many experiences in films, but RuPaul’s Drag Race has opened up many doors for me.”

Doors to an unthinkable amount of nightclubs, Pride fests, cabarets and shows worldwide. Since June of last year Jujubee has averaged roughly three performances per week at various venues.

Though the travel has to be wearing, she says she is happy to be doing what she loves.

“My international experiences include Cape Town, South Africa; Dublin, Ireland; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Vancouver and soon I’ll be seeing the beautiful faces of Edmonton! I can’t wait!”

Jujubee says it was clear from a very young age that she was destined to be a performer, despite the economic struggles faced by her family.

“I knew since I was a child that performing would be my life,” she says. “It was my way of leaving reality and creating a new world for me and my sisters.”

Like many eccentric souls, growing up in Fresno, California, she never really felt she fit in. Jujubee was created by Airline, who always had a passion for musicals and theatre and auditioned wherever he could.

“It’s really funny thinking back, because I’m not sure there was really anything to fit into,” she says. “I struggled with being different, but my family was poor so that was always first on my mind.”

Her first experience performing drag occurred unexpectedly when she was 16.

“It wasn’t a planned situation, but it definitely opened my eyes to the art,” she describes.

Airline attended the University of Massachusetts Amherts, studying Theatre Arts.

The name Jujubee was selected for him by his drag mom, Karisma Geneva Jackson Tea. Though the name didn’t catch straightaway, Jujubee kept it because of its significance to Karisma.

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 From Previous Page

Jujubee is the eldest of a tight female clan she says is full of dramatics – great training for a diva.

“My youngest sister just moved in so there’s glitter everywhere!” she exclaims. “My friends and family have always been supportive. I couldn’t be happier having them in my life!”

The ladies share an abode in Boston with Jujubee’s doting fiancé of 7.5 years, Chris. “…and if you count the cats (Mister and Priss), we already have a family,” she says.

Though Jujubee does not name dance as one of her talents (it is said – however – that she is a great cook), she certainly possesses an electric grace that the camera has no problems capturing. The drag

queen stars with co Drag Race contestants Raven and Tyra Sanchez in RuPaul’s humourous and colourful music video, Don’t be Jealous of my Boogie, what some are hailing RuPaul’s best track yet.

“Being in one of RuPaul’s music videos is surreal,” Jujubee describes. “Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would happen.”

“The making of the video was so fun and again, Tyra, Raven and I had the chance to grow together as drag queens.”

Jujubee says she got on well with everyone on the show and still does.

“Raven and I became friends quickly and I’m sure we’ll be friends for a very long time; Tyra and I always have a great time when we see each other,” she says. “The three of us definitely shared many moments together that will forever be remembered.”

Fans definitely pick up on the charm and charisma that the star radiates. Jujubee achieved second runner up during her season of Drag Race, and received a 2010 nomination for the NewNowNext Award for “Most Addictive Reality Star”.

Her style and demeanour come completely naturally.

“As far as fashion goes, I just wear what I like,” she says. “I’m not one who knows much about who’s who and what’s in, but I do know fashion is what you make of it.”

Despite being relatively new to performance, Jujubee’s confidence landed her a role as professor on RuPaul’s Drag U Season 2 and Season 3, got her to The Mercedes Benz Fashion Week 2011 runway for Richie Rich, made her a model for LOGO’s The Arrangement, and scored her a spot in her first commercial ad – for Absolut Vodka.

“Wear it, own it and be yourself,” she states.

Life in the limelight does not prevent her from giving back to the community. Jujubee is an activist and voice for gay rights, human rights and animal rights, and donates her time to a variety of charities.

The starlet says she doesn’t like to plan much, and takes things as they come. That said, she promises future projects are brewing, so keep your feelers out.

“One of my dreams is to write and sing,” she says.

To pick up tickets to Pure Pride 2013 with Jujubee, Seth Knight, Nick Bertossi and more, visit ticketfly.com.

Jujubee Twitter: @jujuboston http://www. jujubeeonline.com PURE Pride 2013 http://www.purepride.ca http://www.gaycalgary.com/a3545

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Photography Edmonton Queer Prom

ISCWR - Leather Feathers and Fur

photos by B&J and Karen Hofmann

photos by B&J and Rob Browatzke

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Photography

48

Annual LGBT Campout in Wayne, Alberta

Calgary Outlink Kiss-in

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Photography Grand Opening of UpStares Ultralounge, Edmonton http://gaycalgary.com/pa494

Congratulations Argintina Party at Cowboys Nightclub, Calgary http://gaycalgary.com/pa491

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Photography Fairytales Film Fest, Calgary http://gaycalgary.com/pa492

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Photography NAGVA Weekend, Calgary http://gaycalgary.com/pa493

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Despite admitting he never left the campground during his first visit to the ARGRA Rodeo in 1999, Darrel Reid has come a long way. He has been on the ARGRA board of directors for 8 years, starting as Fundraising Director for 2 years, then as Sponsorship Director for another 2, and finally Rodeo Director for the past 4.

Darrel lives with Ron Gargas, his partner of 10 years. Their house, affectionately nicknamed “Chateau Aubergine Urban Spa” for the indoor hot tub and outdoor swimming pool, has been the location of the ARGRA summer

pool parties for the past 3 years. Aside from the Rodeo which he calls his “little hobby”, the two enjoy spending time and socializing with family and friends.

Darrel has worked as a residential service provider for disabled individuals for the past 22 years. He has worked in this field all his life, and continues to train in Special Education while providing care for several individuals out of his home. Although this means he has to share his personal space, he prefers working out of the home because it allows him greater freedom and control of his life.

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Directory & Events 24

DOWNTOWN CALGARY

41 37

59 34

2 33

35

36

3 1 60

5 6

16

N

13

1 2 3 5 6

Calgary Outlink---------- Community Groups Aids Calgary------------- Community Groups Backlot------------------------Bars and Clubs Texas Lounge-----------------Bars and Clubs Goliath’s--------------------------Bathhouses

13 Westways Guest House-----Accommodations 16 Priape Calgary----------------- Retail Stores 24 Courtney Aarbo-----------------------Services 33 Twisted Element--------------Bars and Clubs 34 Vertigo Mystery Theatre------------- Theatre

FIND OUT!

One Yellow Rabbit-------------------- Theatre ATP, Alberta Theatre Projects-------- Theatre Pumphouse Theatre----------------- Theatre La Fleur------------------------- Retail Stores Theatre Junction--------------------- Theatre

CALGARY

LGBT Community Directory GayCalgary Magazine is the go-to source for information about Alberta LGBT businesses and community groups—the most extensive and accurate resource of its kind! This print supplement contains a subset of active community groups and venues, with premium business listings of paid advertisers.

✰....... Find our Magazine Here

35 36 37 41 58

......... Wheelchair Accessible

Spot something inaccurate or outdated? Want your business or organization listed? We welcome you to contact us!

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Club Sapien (CLOSED)

 1140 10th Ave SW

Accommodations 13 Westways Guest House------------------- ✰

 216 - 25th Avenue SW  403-229-1758  1-866-846-7038  westways@shaw.ca  www.gaywestways.com

Bars & Clubs 3 Backlot---------------------------------- ✰  403-265-5211  Open 7 days a week, 2pm-close

 209 - 10th Ave SW

60 Cowboys Nightclub------------------------  421 12th Avenue SE 5 Texas Lounge------------------------------ ✰

 308 - 17 Ave SW  403-229-0911  www.goliaths.ca  Open 7 days a week, 11am-close 33 Twisted Element--------------------------- ✰

 1006 - 11th Ave SW  403-802-0230

 www.twistedelement.ca Dance Club and Lounge.

Local Bars, Restaurants, and Accommodations info on the go!

59 East Village Bistro

 2nd floor, 610 - 8 Avenue SE Restaurant and lounge.

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 424a - 8th Ave SE

59 East Village Cafe-------------Bars and Clubs 60 Cowboys Nightclub-----------Bars and Clubs

Calgary Eagle Inc. (CLOSED)

FAB (CLOSED)

 1742 - 10th Ave SW

Bathhouses/Saunas 6 Goliaths------------------------------------ ✰

 308 - 17 Ave SW  403-229-0911  www.goliaths.ca  Open 7 days a week, 24 hours a day

Community Groups 2 AIDS Calgary--------------------------  110, 1603 10th Avenue SW  403-508-2500  info@aidscalgary.org  www.aidscalgary.org

✰

Alberta Society for Kink

 403-398-9968  albetasocietyforkink@hotmail.com  http://ca.groups.yahoo.com/ group.albertasocietyforkink

Apollo Calgary - Friends in Sports

 www.apollocalgary.com  www.myapollo.com A volunteer operated, non-profit organization serving primarily members of the LGBT communities but open to all members of all communities. Primary focus is to provide members with well-organized and fun sporting events and other activities.

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Directory & Events Wing Night------------------------------  5-8pm

Calgary Events

At 59 East Village Cafe

Mondays

Buddy Night-------------------------  6pm-6am At 6 Goliaths

ASK Meet and Greet----------------  7-9:30pm

Mosaic Youth Group--------------------  7-9pm

Coffee------------------------------------ 10am

Wednesday, June 26th

 Old Y Centre (223 12th Ave SW)

Lesbian Seniors---------------------------  2pm

Tuesdays

 Kerby Center, Sunshine Room 1133 7th Ave SW

Calgary Networking Club-------------- 5-7pm

Uniform Night-----------------------  6pm-6am

 3rd

At 6 Goliaths

Student Night------------------------  6pm-6am

Lesbian Meetup Group-------------  7:30-9pm

At 6 Goliaths

At 1 Calgary Outlink

Between Men--------------------------- 7-9pm

Alcoholics Anonymous--------------------  8pm

See 1 Calgary Outlink

 2nd, 4th

Karaoke-------------------------  8pm-12:30am At 5 Texas Lounge

Fetish Slosh----------------------------  Evening At 3 Backlot

 2nd

Alcoholics Anonymous--------------------  8pm

 Hillhurst United Church (Gym Entrance) 1227 Kensington Close NW

Stomp and Swoosh-----------------------  8pm

By Calgary Men’s Chorus  Rosza Centre, U of C

Inside Out Youth Group---------------- 7-9pm

 1st

Friday, June 21st

At 6 Goliaths

Thursdays

See 1 Calgary Outlink

 Hillhurst United Church (Gym Entrance) 1227 Kensington Close NW Saturdays

Student Night------------------------  6pm-6am

 Bonasera (1204 Edmonton Tr. NE) See 1 Calgary Outlink

Alcoholics Anonymous--------------------  8pm

 1st

By Prime Timers Calgary  Midtown Co-op (1130 - 11th Ave SW)

Pistols and Pearls------------------------ 10pm

Alcoholics Anonymous--------------------  8pm

 Hillhurst United Church (Gym Entrance) 1227 Kensington Close NW

At Backlot

Worship Time---------------------------- 10am Deer Park United Church

Worship------------------------------  10:30am See

Thursday, June 27th

Wet Jockey Contest---------------------- 10pm

Sundays See

By ISCCA at Texas Lounge

Scarboro United Church

Monday, July 1st

Survivor Party----------------------------  5pm

By ARGRA at Backlot Friday, July 5th

 Hillhurst United Church (Gym Entrance) 1227 Kensington Close NW

Sunday Services---------------------  10:45am

Drag Queen H2O------------------------ 10pm

Karaoke-----------------------------------  7pm

Worship Services------------------------- 11am

Sunday, July 7th

At 3 Backlot

See

Fridays

Church Service----------------------------  4pm

See

Illusions-------------------------------  7-10pm See 1 Calgary Outlink

 1st

Womynspace---------------------------- 7-9pm

See

Hillhurst United Church Knox United Church

By ISCCA at Backlot

BBQ and Show-------------------------- 5-7pm

Rainbow Community Church

By ISCCA at Backlot

Sunday, July 14th

Flashlight Night---------------------  6pm-6am

Broke Back Brunch---------------- 11am-2pm

Wednesday, June 5th

Tee Dance------------------------------- 2-9pm

At 6 Goliaths

By Osteria with Crowsn for Kids

Wednesdays

See 1 Calgary Outlink

Communion Service-----------------  12:10pm

New Directions-------------------------- 7-9pm

3rd Anniversary Party-----------------  All Day By 3 Backlot

Saturday, July 27th

Pool Night-----------------------------  Evening

Heading Out----------------------- 8pm-10pm

Sunday, June 9th

Annual BBQ----------------------------  All Day

See

Knox United Church

At 59 East Village Cafe with

Prime Timers Calgary

See 1 Calgary Outlink See 1 Calgary Outlink

 2nd  3rd  4th

Annual General Meeting-----------------  1pm

By ISCCA at East Village Cafe



www.westerncup.com

• Running (Calgary Frontrunners)

• Monthly Dances--------------------------

 6020 - 4 Avenue NE  badminton@apollocalgary.com

 YMCA Eau Claire (4th St, 1st Ave SW)  calgaryfrontrunners@shaw.ca East Doors (directly off the Bow river pathway). Distances vary from 8 km - 15 km. Runners from 6 minutes/mile to 9+ minute miles.

• Boot Camp

• Slow Pitch

 calgaryfathers@hotmail.com  http://www.calgarygayfathers.ca Peer support group for gay, bisexual and questioning fathers. Meeting twice a month.

• Squash

 http://www.calgarymenschorus.org

• Badminton (Absolutely Smashing)

 Platoon FX, 1351 Aviation Park NE  bootcamp@apollocalgary.com

• Bowling (Rainbow Riders League)

 slow.pitch@apollocalgary.com

 Let’s Bowl (2916 5th Avenue NE)  bowling@apollocalgary.com

 Mount Royal University Recreation  squash@apollocalgary.com All skill levels welcome.

• Curling

• Tennis

 North Hill Curling Club (1201 - 2 Street NW)  curling@apollocalgary.com

• Golf

 golf@apollocalgary.com

• Lawn Bowling

 lawnbowling@apollocalgary.com

• Outdoor Pursuits

 outdoorpursuits@apollocalgary.com If it’s done outdoors, we do it. Volunteer led events all summer and winter. Hiking, camping, biking, skiing, snow shoeing, etc. Sign up at myapollo.org to get updates on the sport you like. We’re always looking for people to lead events.

By Pushing Petals  1209 5th Avenue NW

Legend:  = Monthly Reoccurrance,  = Date (Range/Future),  = Sponsored Event

 Calgary Contd.

• Western Cup 31

By Osteria with Crowns for Kids

 tennis@apollocalgary.com

• Volleyball (Beach)

 beachvb@apollocalgary.com

• Volleyball (Competitive)  vb@apollocalgary.com

• Volleyball (Recreational)  recvb@apollocalgary.com

• Yoga

 Robin: 403-618-9642  yoga@apollocalgary.com

Alberta Rockies Gay Rodeo Association (ARGRA)

 www.argra.org

 Arrata Opera Centre (1315 - 7 Street SW)

✰

Calgary Gay Fathers

Calgary Men’s Chorus

Calgary Queer Book Club

 Weeds Cafe (1903 20 Ave NW)

• Rehearsals

 Temple B’Nai Tikvah, 900 - 47 Avenue SW

Calgary Sexual Health Centre---------

Deer Park United Church/Wholeness Centre

✰

 304, 301 14th Street NW  403-283-5580  http://www.calgarysexualhealth.ca A pro-choice organization that believes all people have the right and ability to make their own choices regarding their sexual and reproductive health.

1 Calgary Outlink---------------------------- ✰

 Old Y Centre (303 – 223, 12 Ave SW)  403-234-8973  info@calgaryoutlink.ca  http://www.calgaryoutlink.com

• Peer Support and Crisis Line

• Calgary Lesbian Ladies Meet up Group • Between Men and Between Men Online • Heading Out • Illusions Calgary • Inside Out • New Directions • Womynspace

 1-877-OUT-IS-OK (1-877-688-4765) Front-line help service for GLBT individuals and their family and friends, or anyone questioning their sexuality.

 77 Deerpoint Road SE  http://www.dpuc.ca

 403-278-8263

Different Strokes

 http://www.differentstrokescalgary.org

FairyTales Presentation Society

 403-244-1956

 http://www.fairytalesfilmfest.com Alberta Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

• DVD Resource Library

Over a hundred titles to choose from. Annual membership is $10.

Gay Friends in Calgary

 http://www.gayfriendsincalgary.ca Organizes and hosts social activities catered to the LGBT people and friends.

Girl Friends

 girlfriends@shaw.ca

 members.shaw.ca/girlfriends

Girlsgroove

 http://www.girlsgroove.ca

Hillhurst United Church

 1227 Kensington Close NW  (403) 283-1539

56

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

www.gaycalgary.com

Directory & Events  Calgary Contd. to address violence. For same-sex domestic violence information, resources and a link to our survey please see our website.

 office@hillhurstunited.com  www.hillhurstunited.com

HIV Peer Support Group

Scarboro United Church

 403-230-5832  hivpeergroup@yahoo.ca

 134 Scarboro Avenue SW  403-244-1161  www.scarborounited.ab.ca An affirming congregation—the full inclusion of LGBT people is essential to our mission and purpose.

ISCCA Social Association

 http://www.iscca.ca Imperial Sovereign Court of the Chinook Arch. Charity fundraising group..

Sharp Foundation

Knox United Church

 506 - 4th Street SW  403-269-8382  http://www.knoxunited.ab.ca Knox United Church is an all-inclusive church located in downtown Calgary. A variety of facility rentals are also available for meetings, events and concerts.

Lesbian Meetup Group

 http://www.meetup.com/CalgaryLesbian Monthly events planned for Queer women over 18+ such as book clubs, games nights, movie nights, dinners out, and volunteering events.

Miscellaneous Youth Network

 http://www.miscyouth.com

• Fake Mustache • Mosaic Youth Group

• Coffee Night

 Good Earth Cafe (1502 - 11th Street SW)  networkscalgary@gmail.com A social, cultural, and service organization for the mature minded and “Plus 40” LGBT individuals seeking to meet others at age-appropriate activities within a positive, safe environment.

Parents for Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)

 Sean: 403-695-5791  http://www.pflagcanada.ca A registered charitable organization that provides support, education and resources to parents, families and individuals who have questions or concerns about sexual orientation or gender identity.

Positive Space Committee

 4825 Mount Royal Gate SW  403-440-6383  http://www.mtroyal.ca/positivespace Works to raise awareness and challenge the patterns of silence that continue to marginalize LGBTTQ individuals.

Pride Calgary Planning Committee

 www.pridecalgary.ca

Primetimers Calgary

 primetimerscalgary@gmail.com  http://www.primetimerscalgary.com Designed to foster social interaction for its members through a variety of social, educational and recreational activities. Open to all gay and bisexual men of any age, respects whatever degree of anonymity that each member desires.

 279R Student Union Club Spaces, U of C  403-220-6394  http://www.ucalgary.ca/~glass Formerly GLASS - Gay/Lesbian Association of Students and Staff.

• Coffee Night

 2nd Cup, Kensington

Safety Under the Rainbow

 www.sutr.ca A collaborative effort dedicated to building capacity and acting as a voice for the LGBTQ community, service providers, organizations and the community at large

www.gaycalgary.com

✰

 Room 117, 423 - 4th Ave SE  403-699-8216  Mon-Fri: 9am-12pm, Sat: 12:15pm-3:15pm

 Room 201, 420 - 9th Ave SE  403-410-1180  Mon-Fri: 1pm-5pm

Wild Rose United Church

Restaurants

36 ATP, Alberta Theatre Projects

 403-294-7402  http://www.ATPlive.com

AXIS Contemporary Art--------------------

 107, 100 - 7 Ave SW  rob@axisart.ca

 403-262-3356  www.axisart.ca

Fairytales

✰

41 La Fleur------------------------------------  103 - 100 7th Avenue SW  403-266-1707 Florist and Flower Shop.  403-283-3555

16 Priape Calgary------------------------- ✰

 1322 - 17 Ave SW  403-215-1800  http://www.priape.com Clothing and accessories. Adult toys, leather wear, movies and magazines. Gifts.

Services & Products Calgary Civil Marriage Centre

 403-246-4134 (Rork Hilford)  MarriageCommissioner@shaw.ca Marriage Commissioner for Alberta (aka Justice of the Peace - JP), Marriage Officiant, Commissioner for Oaths.

24 Courtney Aarbo (Barristers & Solicitors)

 1138 Kensington Road NW  403-571-5120  http://www.courtneyaarbo.ca GLBT legal services.

See Calgary - Community Groups.

 #44, 48 Brentwood Blvd, Sherwood Park, AB

 403-398-9968  info@altview.ca  www.altview.ca For gender variant and sexual minorities.  Howard McBride Chapel of Chimes 10179 - 108 Street  bookworm@teamedmonton.ca

Buck Naked Boys Club

 780-471-6993  http://www.bucknakedboys.ca Naturism club for men—being social while everyone is naked, and it does not include sexual activity. Participants do not need to be gay, only male.

Camp fYrefly

 7-104 Dept. of Educational Policy Studies Faculty of Education, University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2G5  http://www.fyrefly.ualberta.ca

Jubilations Dinner Theatre

 Bow Trail and 37th St. SW  403-249-7799  www.jubilations.ca

Edmonton Pride Festival Society (EPFS)

35 One Yellow Rabbit-------------------------  Big Secret Theatre - EPCOR CENTRE  403-299-8888  www.oyr.org

 http://www.edmontonpride.ca

37 Pumphouse Theatre------------------  2140 Pumphouse Avenue SW  403-263-0079  http://www.pumphousetheatres.ca

✰

Stagewest-------------------------------

✰

 edmontonpt@yahoo.ca  www.primetimersww.org/edmonton Group of older gay men and their admirers who come from diverse backgrounds but have common social interests.

Affiliated with Prime Timers World Wide.

 727 - 42 Avenue SE  403-243-6642  http://www.stagewestcalgary.com 58 Theatre Junction----------------------  Theatre Junction GRAND, 608 1st St. SW  403-205-2922  info@theatrejunction.com  http://www.theatrejunction.com

✰

34 Vertigo Mystery Theatre------------------  161, 115 - 9 Ave SE  403-221-3708  http://www.vertigomysterytheatre.com

EDMONTON Bars & Clubs

Cruiseline

 403-777-9494 trial code 3500  http://www.cruiseline.ca Telephone classifieds and chat - 18+ ONLY.

 www.beefbearbash.com

Book Worm’s Book Club

Theatre & Fine Arts

59 East Village Cafe

 2nd floor, 610 - 8 Avenue SE Restaurant and lounge.

Alberta Bears

AltView Foundation

 403-850-3755  Sat-Thu: 8pm-12am, Fri: 4pm-12am

 1317-1st Street NW

 305 10th Street NW  http://www.thenakedleaf.ca Organic teas and tea ware.

Community Groups

• Centre of Hope

• Safeworks Van

The Naked Leaf----------------------------

NETWORKS

Queers on Campus---------------------

Unity Bowling

 140, 58th Ave SW  403-258-2777 Gay, bi, straight video rentals and sex toys.

Mystique

• Calgary Drop-in Centre

 1213 - 4th Str SW  403-955-6014  Sat-Thu: 4:15pm-7:45pm, Fri: Closed

 Let’s Bowl (2916 - 5th Ave NE)  sundayunity@live.com

Adult Depot-----------------------------

 mystiquesocialclub@yahoo.com Mystique is primarily a Lesbian group for women 30 and up but all are welcome.

11 Steamworks------------------------------- ✰

 11745 Jasper Ave  780-451-5554  http://www.steamworksedmonton.com

• Sheldon M. Chumir Health Centre

Retail Stores

 The Old Y Centre (223 12th Ave SW) For queer and trans youth and their allies.

 403-797-6564

 403-272-2912  sharpfoundation@nucleus.com  http://www.thesharpfoundation.com

Bathhouses/Saunas

SafeWorks

Free and confidential HIV/AIDS and STI testing.

Edmonton Prime Timers

Edmonton Rainbow Business Association

 3379, 11215 Jasper Ave  780-429-5014  http://www.edmontonrba.org Primary focus is the provision of networking opportunities for LGBT owned or operated and LGBT-friendly businesses in the Edmonton region.

Edmonton Illusions Social Club

 5 The Junction  780-387-3343

 groups.yahoo.com/group/edmonton_illusions 4 Edmonton STD

 11111 Jasper Ave

Edmonton Vocal Minority

 780-479-2038  www.evmchoir.com

 sing@evmchoir.com

GLBTQ Sage Bowling Club

6 Buddy’s Nite Club------------------------- ✰

 11725 Jasper Ave  780-488-6636

 780-474-8240

DevaDave Salon & Boutique

14 FLASH (CLOSED)

 10018 105 Street  flashnightclub@hotmail.com

Duncan’s Residential Cleaning

 10242 106th St

 9702 111 Ave NW 780-488-5742  www.hivedmonton.com Provides healthy sexuality education for Edmonton’s LGBT community and support for those infected or affected

by HIV.

 810 Edmonton Trail NE  403-290-1973 Cuts, Colour, Hilights.

 Jim Duncan: 403-978-6600 Residential cleaning. Free estimates.

Lorne Doucette (CIR Realtors)

 403-461-9195  http://www.lornedoucette.com

MFM Communications

 403-543-6970  1-877-543-6970  http://www.mfmcommunications.com Web site hosting and development. Computer hardware and software.

 780-938-2941

The Junction (CLOSED)

✰

InQueeries

Hooliganz Pub

 inqueeries@gmail.com Student-run GLBTQ Alliance at MacEwan University.

 10704 124 St NW

UpStares Ultralounge

 4th Floor, Jasper Ave and 107th Street 12 Woody’s------------------------------------ ✰

 11725 Jasper Ave  780-488-6557

 tuff@shaw.ca

HIV Network Of Edmonton Society----

Imperial Sovereign Court of the Wild Rose

 http://www.iscwr.ca

Living Positive Society of Alberta

 #50, 9912 - 106 Street 780-423-3737  http://www.facebook.com/LivingPoz Living Positive through Positive Living.

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

57

Directory & Events DOWNTOWN EDMONTON

1

N

13 11 6 12

1 Pride Centre of Edm.---- Community Groups 4 Edmonton STD---------- Community Groups

Edmonton Events Boot Camp------------------------------ 7-8pm Team Edmonton

TTIQ------------------------------------- 7-9pm See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

 3rd

HIV Support Group--------------------- 7-9pm See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

 2nd

Tuesdays

QH Youth Drop-in---------------------- 3-8pm See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

Martial Arts---------------------  7:30-8:30pm See

Team Edmonton

Swim Practice-------------------  7:30-8:30pm See

6 Buddy’s-----------------------Bars and Clubs 11 Steamworks----------------------Bathhouses

12 Woody’s-----------------------Bars and Clubs 13 UpStares Ultralounge--------Bars and Clubs

QH Craft Night-------------------------- 6-8pm

QH Anime Night------------------------ 6-8pm

Cycling---------------------------  6:30-7:30pm

Movie Night----------------------------- 6-9pm

Yoga---------------------------------  7:30-8pm

Men’s Games Nights--------------  7-10:30pm

Pride Week

Youth Sports/Recreation-----------------  4pm

Friday, June 7th

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

Mondays See

4

Team Edmonton

See See

Team Edmonton Team Edmonton

Thursdays

 2nd, Last

Saturdays

Youth Sports/Recreation-----------------  4pm

Naturalist Gettogether

QH Game Night------------------------ 6-8pm

QH Youth Drop-in------------------  2-6:30pm

Swim Practice--------------------------- 7-8pm

Monthly Meeting----------------------  2:30pm

See

Youth Understanding Youth

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton See

Team Edmonton

 2nd, 4th

Book Club-----------------------------  7:30pm

QH Youth Drop-in---------------------- 3-8pm

Martial Arts---------------------  7:30-8:30pm

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

Men’s Games Nights

See

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

GLBTQ Sage Bowling Club

See

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

GLBTQ Bowling------------------  1:30-3:30pm See

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

QH Youth Drop-in---------------------- 3-8pm

Women’s Social Circle------------------ 6-9pm

Wednesdays

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

See See

BookWorm’s Book Club

 3rd

Team Edmonton

See

Youth Understanding Youth

 2nd

By Edmonton Primetimers  Unitarian Church, 10804 - 119th Street

 2nd

Bowling-----------------------------------  5pm Team Edmonton

Running------------------------------  10-11am Team Edmonton

Youth Sports/Recreation-----------------  4pm

Intermediate Volleyball--------  7:30-9:30pm

Yoga---------------------------------  2-3:30pm

Counseling----------------------  5:30-8:30pm

Fridays

Men Talking with Pride---------------- 7-9pm

See 1 Youth Understanding Youth See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

Knotty Knitters-------------------------- 6-8pm

See

Team Edmonton

QH Youth Drop-in---------------------- 3-8pm See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

See

Team Edmonton

Ballroom Dancing--------------  7:30-8:30pm Team Edmonton

 Edmonton Contd.

• Counselling

Men’s Games Nights OUTreach

 University of Alberta, basement of SUB  outreach@ualberta.ca  http://www.ualberta.ca/~outreach Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender/transsexual, Queer, Questioning and Straight-but-not-Narrow student group.

✰

 10608 - 105 Ave  780-488-3234  admin@pridecentreofedmonton.org  http://www.pridecentreofedmonton.org  Tue-Fri 12pm-9pm, Sat 2pm-6:30pm We provide a safe, welcoming, and non-judgemental drop-in space, and offer support programs and resources for members of the GLBTQ community and for their families and friends.

 780.488.3234 Free, short-term counselling provided by registered counsellors.

• HIV Support Group

 huges@shaw.ca Support and discussion group for gay men.

• Knotty Knitters

Come knit and socialize in a safe and accepting environment - all skill levels are welcome.

• Men Talking with Pride

 robwells780@hotmail.com Support & social group for gay & bisexual men to discuss current issues.

• Queer HangOUT: Craft Night

Come OUT and embrace your creative side in a safe space.

• Queer HangOUT: Anime Night

Come and watch ALL the anime until your heart is content.

• TTIQ

A support and information group for all those who fall under the transgender umbrella and their family or supporters.

• Women’s Social Circle

 andrea@pridecentreofedmonton.org Women’s Social Circle: A social support group for all female-identified persons over 18 years of age in the GLBT community - new members are always welcome.

Seniors Association of Greater Edmonton

• Movie Night

 780-474-8240

 tuff@shaw.ca

• Queer HangOUT: Game Night

 president@teamedmonton.ca  http://www.teamedmonton.ca Members are invited to attend and help determine the

Movie Night is open to everyone! Come over and sit back, relax, and watch a movie with us.

Come OUT with your game face on and meet some awesome people through board game fun.

58

Edmonton Pride Festival Society

Jun16

BEEF UnderBear Party

By Fellowship of Alberta Bears PURE Pride Dance---------------------  9pm

By PURE Pride at  10030 - 102 Street Bearracuda Dance---------------------  9pm

By Fellowship of Alberta Bears Sunday, June 9th BEEF Bear Bust BBQ

By Fellowship of Alberta Bears

Gay Edmonton Pageant Part 1----------  8pm By

ISCWR at

Hooliganz Pub

Saturday, June 15th

Gay Edmonton Pageant Part 2----------  7pm ISCWR at

Hellenic Hall

Saturday, June 22nd

Concert----------------------------------------8pm

By EVM  Westbury Theatre (Art Barns) 10330 84 Ave

Legend:  = Monthly Reoccurrance,  = Date (Range),  = Sponsored Event

 Unitarian Church (10804 119th Street)

 780-474-8240  tuff@shaw.ca

Pride Centre of Edmonton-------------

By

By

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton See

 2nd

Thursday, June 6th

Friday, June 14th

Sundays See

 Unitarian Church (10804 119th Street) See Edmonton Primetimers

Saturday, June 8th

Buck Naked Boys Club

See 1 Pride Centre of Edmonton

See

Monthly Meetings---------------------  2:30pm

GayCalgary Magazine #116, June 2013

Team Edmonton

board for the next term. If you are interested in running for the board or getting involved in some of the committees, please contact us.

• Badminton (Mixed)

 St. Thomas Moore School, 9610 165 Street

 coedbadminton@teamedmonton.ca New group seeking male & female players.

• Badminton (Women’s)

 Oliver School, 10227 - 118 Street  780-465-3620

 badminton@teamedmonton.ca Women’s Drop-In Recreational Badminton. $40.00 season or $5.00 per drop in.

•Ballroom Dancing

 Foot Notes Dance Studio, 9708-45 Avenue NW  Cynthia: 780-469-3281

• Blazin’ Bootcamp

 Garneau Elementary School 10925 - 87 Ave  bootcamp@teamedmonton.ca

www.gaycalgary.com

Directory & Events Red Deer Events

Lethbridge Events

Wednesdays See

CAANS

Pride Parade----------------------------- 12pm

Sunday, June 16th

LGBT Coffee Night------------------------  7pm

 1st

Pride Dance---------------------------  9:30pm

Saturday, June 22nd

By Lethbridge Pride

Pride Week-----------------------------  All Day

By Lethbridge Pride

Jun22

Pride in the Park----------------------- 1-5pm

By Lethbridge Pride at Galt Gardens

By Lethbridge Pride at Cultural Arts Centre

Peace River Peace River Pride-------------------  Jun14-16

 Edmonton Contd.

• Bowling (Northern Titans)

 Ed’s Rec Room (West Edmonton Mall)

 bowling@teamedmonton.ca $15.00 per person.

• Cross Country Skiing

 crosscountry@teamedmonton.ca

• Curling with Pride

 Granite Curling Club, 8620 107 Street NW  curling@teamedmonton.ca

• Cycling (Edmonton Prideriders)

 Dawson Park, picnic shelter  cycling@teamedmonton.ca

• Dragon Boat (Flaming Dragons)

 dragonboat@teamedmonton.ca

• Golf

 golf@teamedmonton.ca

• Gymnastics, Drop-in

 Ortona Gymnastics Club, 8755 - 50 Avenue  gymnastics@teamedmonton.ca Have the whole gym to yourselves and an instructor to help you achieve your individual goals. Cost is $5.00 per session.

• Hockey

 hockey@teamedmonton.ca

• Martial Arts

 15450 - 105 Ave (daycare entrance)  780-328-6414  kungfu@teamedmonton.ca  kickboxing@teamedmonton.ca Drop-ins welcome.

• Outdoor Pursuits

 outdoorpursuits@teamedmonton.ca

• Running (Arctic Frontrunners)

 Kinsmen Sports Centre  running@teamedmonton.ca All genders and levels of runners and walkers are invited to join this free activity.

• Slo Pitch

 Parkallen Field, 111 st and 68 ave  slo-pitch@teamedmonton.ca Season fee is $30.00 per person. $10 discount for players from the 2008 season.

• Snowballs V

 January 27-29, 2012  snowballs@teamedmonton.ca Skiing and Snowboarding Weekend.

• Soccer

 soccer@teamedmonton.ca

• Spin

 MacEwan Centre for Sport and Wellness 109 St. and 104 Ave  Wednesdays, 5:45-6:45pm Season has ended.  spin@teamedmonton.ca 7 classes, $28.00 per registrant.

• Swimming (Making Waves)

 NAIT Pool (11762 - 106 Street)  swimming@teamedmonton.ca  www.makingwavesswimclub.ca

• Tennis

 Kinsmen Sports Centre  Sundays, 12pm-3pm

 tennis@teamedmonton.ca

• Ultimate Frisbee

 Sundays Summer Season starts July 12th  ultimatefrisbee@teamedmonton.ca E-mail if interested.

• Volleyball, Intermediate

 Amiskiwacy Academy (101 Airport Road)  volleyball@teamedmonton.ca

• Volleyball, Recreational

 Mother Teresa School (9008 - 105 Ave)  recvolleyball@teamedmonton.ca

• Women’s Lacrosse

 Sharon: 780-461-0017  Pam: 780-436-7374 Open to women 21+, experienced or not, all are welcome.

Call for info.

• Book Club

 Monthly, contact us for exact dates.

Theatre & Fine Arts Exposure Festival

 http://www.exposurefestival.ca Edmonton’s Queer Arts and Culture Festival.

The Roxy Theatre

 10708 124th Street, Edmonton AB  780-453-2440  www.theatrenetwork.ca

BANFF Community Groups

• Yoga

 Lion's Breath Yoga Studio (10350-124 Street)  yoga@teamedmonton.ca

Womonspace

 780-482-1794  womonspace@gmail.com  www.womonspace.ca Women’s social group, but all welcome at events.

Youth Understanding Youth

 780-248-1971  www.yuyedm.ca A support and social group for queer youth 12-25.

Bow Valley Cares Centre

 302 Buffalo Street, Banff, AB  PO Box 3160, Banff, AB T1L 1C8  403-762-0690  1-877-440-2437  info@aidscalgary.org

LETHBRIDGE Community Groups

• Sports and Recreation

 Brendan: 780-488-3234  brendan@pridecentreofedmonton.org

Restaurants The Junction (Closed)----------------------

 10242 106th St

 780-756-5667

12 Woody’s------------------------------------ ✰

 11725 Jasper Ave  780-488-6557

Retail Stores Passion Vault

 15239 - 111 Ave  780-930-1169  pvault@telus.net “Edmonton’s Classiest Adult Store”

Products & Services Cruiseline

 780-413-7122 trial code 3500  http://www.cruiseline.ca Telephone classifieds and chat - 18+ ONLY.

Robertson-Wesley United Church

GALA/LA

 403-308-2893  http://www.galalethbridge.ca Gay and Lesbian Alliance of Lethbridge and Area.

• Monthly Dances

 Henotic (402 - 2 Ave S) Bring your membership card and photo ID.

• Monthly Potluck Dinners

Community Groups Affirm

 Sunnybrook United Church  403-347-6073  2nd Tuesday of the month, 7pm Composed of LGBTQ people, their friends, family and allies. No religious affiliation necessary. Activities include support, faith and social justice discussions, film nights, and potlucks!

Central Alberta AIDS Network Society

 4611-50 Avenue, Red Deer, AB  http://www.caans.org The Central Alberta AIDS Network Society is the local charity responsible for HIV prevention and support in Central Alberta.

LGBTQ Education

 LGBTQeducation@hotmail.ca  http://LGBTQeducation.webs.com Red Deer (and area) now has a website designed to bring various LGBTQ friendly groups/individuals together for fun, and to promote acceptance in our communities.

Pride on Campus

 rdcprideoncampus@gmail.com A group of LGBTQ persons and Allies at Red Deer College.

MEDICINE HAT Community Groups Medicine Hat Cares Centre

 356 - 2 Street SE, Medicine Hat, AB  403-527-5882  1-877-440-2437  info@aidscalgary.org

• Support Line

• Telephone Support

 403-308-2893  Monday OR Wednesday, 7pm-11pm Leave a message any other time.

• Friday Mixer

 The Mix (green water tower) 103 Mayor Magrath Dr S  Every Friday at 10pm

 University of Lethbridge GBLTTQQ club on campus.

• Soul OUTing

 1206 - 6 Ave S

• Film Night

 1-888-530-6777

 lethbridgeab@pflagcanada.ca  www.pflagcanada.ca

 galia@uleth.ca

• In-person Support

 M-T: 1:30pm - 4:30pm  W-F: 8:30am - 4:30pm

Community Groups Alberta Trans Support/Activities Group

 Room C610, University of Lethbridge

Gay Youth Alliance Group

 Betty, 403-381-5260  bneil@chr.ab.ca  Every second Wednesday, 3:30pm-5pm

Lethbridge HIV Connection PFLAG Canada

 M-F, 8:30am - 11:30pm

ALBERTA

Gay & Lesbian Integrity Assoc. (GALIA)

• Movie Night

 Bi-monthly, contact us for exact dates.

RED DEER

 McKillop United Church, 2329 - 15 Ave S GALA/LA will provide the turkey...you bring the rest. Please bring a dish to share that will serve 4-6 people, and your own beverage.

 10209 - 123 St. NW  780-482-1587  jravenscroft@rwuc.org  www.rwuc.org  Worship: Sunday mornings at 10:30am People of all sexual orientations welcome. Other LGBT events include a monthly book club and a bi-monthly film night. As a caring spiritual community, we’d love to have you join us!

 Second Sunday every month, 7pm An LGBT-focused alternative worship.

Pride Lethbridge

 lethbridgepridefest@gmail.com

 http://www.albertatrans.org A nexus for transgendered persons, regardless of where they may be on the continuum.

Theatre & Fine Arts Alberta Ballet

 http://www.albertaballet.com Frequent productions in Calgary and Edmonton.

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Classifieds Event

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UltimateMaleMassage.com

The Fetish Slosh at the Backlot!

Come on down to the Backlot the 2nd Tuesday of every month for a no-cover Fetish party.

Upcoming dates are November 13, December 11th, etc. You can dress up in Leather, Latex, cuffs, collars, or just your skivvies. Have the conversation you like without offending a vanilla in sight. The Backlot supports and promotes the alternative lifestyles of Calgary so feel free to express your KINK!

Audition

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Gay Talent Wanted Beauty & Mayhem Production Agency is are looking for Gay Talent to perform in Adult entertainment Productions. Call Pj @ 403 826 2670 E-mail: pj@beautymayhem.ca www.xxxbmpa.com

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Cleaning Best Erotic Male Massage In Calgary • Studio with free parking• Deep Tissue and Relaxation • Licensed, Professional • Video on website 403-680-0533 mike@ultimatemalemassage.com

Models/Escorts

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GayCalgary Magazine is looking for freelance writers in Calgary and Edmonton. Writing sample is required. Must be willing to take article assignments and conduct/transcribe interviews. Contact Steve at:

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Premium organic medical marihuana shipped quickly, discreetly to your door. www.mycm.ca

Clothing/Fashion

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Health

Does your home or business need a professional cleaner? Steve is bonded/Insured.

Flexible prices and brings all his own supplies.

Steve is apart of the LGBT Community and has been cleaning for over 5 years in Calgary. getalifecleaner@gmail.com http://www. getalifecleaner.com (403)200-7384 www. facebook.com/getalifecleaner

Consulting

Writers Wanted

magazine@gaycalgary.com

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GET A LIFE! STOP CLEANING!

Alberta Escort Listings

Help Wanted

Adult Depot Large selection of gay DVDs from $9.95, aromas and toys. Open Mon-Fri 12-11pm, Sat 12-6pm, closed Sundays and holidays.

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Check us out at http://blueflameventures.ca, Email us at info@blueflameventures.ca, Call us at 604-369-1472. Based in Alberta.

It’s not about special treatment. You can’t assume the LGBT person, or the straight person will follow the pack anymore. The LGBT market is becoming more and more aware of what organizations support them, and which ones don’t, ultimately sending them away from businesses and communities that do not recognize them or their lifestyle. Does your staff need LGBT sensitivity training? Want to attract the market but unsure how to proceed?

Most clothing $3! New style? New family?

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Ads starting at $10/mo. for the first 20 words. Submit yours at http://www.gaycalgary.com/classifieds 60

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 Find Out - From Page 59

CANADA Community Groups Canadian Rainbow Health Coalition

 P..O. Box 3043, Saskatoon, SK, S7K 3S9  (306) 955-5135  1-800-955-5129  http://www.rainbowhealth.ca

Egale Canada

 8 Wellington St E, Third Floor Toronto, Ontario, M5E 1C5  1-888-204-7777  www.egale.ca Egale Canada is the national advocacy and lobby organization for gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transidentified people and our families.

www.gaycalgary.com

Products & Services Squirt

 http://www.squirt.org Website for dating and hook-ups. 18+ ONLY!

Theatre & Fine Arts Broadway Across Canada

 http://www.broadwayacrosscanada.ca

OUTtv

 http://www.outtv.ca GLBT Television Station.

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