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IAN-MICHAEL BERGERON
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stories
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Married With Children BY IAN-MICHAEL BERGERON
tagram ianmichaelinwonderland fuck?” so I ordered a margarita on the rocks and, once the waiter left, politely said, “What the fuck?” “She’s bedridden, so it’s never an issue going out. But our daughter called today, so she filled me in.” So O had a wife. A sick wife. And a daughter. “You’re married?” “Oh, yes.” PHOTO BY
W
STEVE BRENNAN
“To a woman?
hen I worked at a restaurant, one of my regulars was O. O was around 50 years old and came in regularly for a drink at our bar. O was definitely gay, and definitely thought I was cute—so, naturally, I maintained a professional level of flirting to keep him coming in and spending his money with us.
“Don’t worry, she has no idea where I spend my evenings.” He explained that she had a spinal injury that left her immobilized from the neck down; a live-in nurse took care of her. The waiter brought our drinks, which I drank quickly.
One day, he asked me to get a drink. I hesitated, so he gave me his card. After thinking about it, I thought: What could one drink hurt?
“Yes, it’s been hard, but when you’re with someone for almost 40 years, you don’t just leave them.”
I asked him where he wanted to meet, thinking this middle-aged doctor would take me somewhere elegant, some speakeasy or piano bar. Instead, he messaged back for me to meet him at G-Lounge in Chelsea.
“That’s awful.”
I choked on my drink. “Forty years? … How old are you?” “Sixty-four.” I finished the rest of my drink in one swift gulp. “Do you want to leave?” he continued. “I know of a great hotel in the area.”
I have nothing against G-Lounge—it’s a great place to gather and get drink specials. But it wasn’t the fancy fantasy extravaganza I’d imagined in my head. All the same, I threw on a pair of leather pants and met him at 6:30.
“To be honest, O, you’re about 15 years older than I thought—and a lot more married than I thought. Also, I guarantee your wife knows more than you let on.” I stood up. “Would you like to walk me out?”
We sat at a small table in the back, behind the bar. I sat across from him, not too intimate, not giving the wrong impression. He smiled and told me he was happy to see me, and that he was worried he’d be late. “My wife just kept talking my ear off. I wasn’t sure I was ever going to get out of the house.”
“I think I’ll stay,” he said, eyeing the room. I nodded and left as quickly as I could, abandoning my buy-one-get-one margarita.
A bartender came by to take our drink order before I could say “What the
O came back to the restaurant a year later, slipping me another business card with the note, “Left my wife—grab a drink?” Of course I didn’t—but, to be honest, I do still want that bogo margarita.
Miss Fire Island BY EILEEN SHAPIRO CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT
T
he afternoon sun reflected the dazzling glitz of the sparkling gowns worn by the contestants of The Miss Fire Island drag pageant, held annually by The Ice Palace on Cherry Grove. The celebrated queens, after spending hours painting and in some cases months preparing for one of the biggest contests in the nation, roamed the Palace with hope and anticipation. The fabulously lavish event was hosted by Ariel Sinclair, Logan Hardcore, and Porsche, accompanied musically by DJ Chuck. Miss Fire Island at The Ice Palace has always been a venue for illustrious drag queens from all over to compete for cash, prizes, honor, glory and the treasured crown, for some a dream of a lifetime, representing larger-than-life entertainment. Originating in 1966, Miss Fire Island has become a tradition for all to see, with categories including Miss Fire Island, Entertainer of the Year and Ms. Fire Island. Robert Lassegue, Ice Palace manager and executive producer, along with Ken Braun, entertainment manager, did a sensational job of orchestrating the activities, making sure all ran smoothly and that everyone remained buzzed and happy until the suspenseful announcement of the winners. This year’s victors were Lady Ivana for Mrs. Fire Island, Holly Dae for Entertainer of the year and finally our own Honey Davenport for Miss Fire Island. I made my way through the tantalizing gown creations, many designed by Michael Perez and Michael Vincent. Some of the contestants included Laydee Alessandra, Honey Davenport, Lady Ivana, LeeLee Heavenly, Anastasia Storm, Zola, Tina Burner, The Countess Mascara, Pearl, Annie Manildoo and so many others. My companions included Jimmy Star and Ron Russell, radio and television masters of the largest Internet show in the world with over four million viewers, who traveled for hours to catch this prestigious event. Get Out! spoke to winner Honey Davenport and asked her how she felt wearing her bright, new, sparkling crown and title. She had this to say: “Incredible! I did this pageant for the past three years. This place is really near and dear to my heart. It’s like another home for me. I’ve been trying my hardest to really become a strong part of this community, and I feel like this title will give me that opportunity.”
interview / GET OUT! MAGAZINE >> GETOUTMAG.COM
Bianca Del Rio ‘HURRICANE BIANCA’
BY EILEEN SHAPIRO
CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT
You haven't experienced the essence of life until you've been insulted by Bianca Del Rio, the most triumphant victor of "RuPaul's Drag Race" ever to emerge from the depths of larger-than-life entertainment. On September 19, "Hurricane Bianca," the long-awaited movie, will premiere in New York City. Besides Del Rio, the season six winner of "Drag Race," the serious comedy/revenge-driven film also features Alan Cumming, Margaret Cho, Willam Belli, Shangela and Alyssa Edwards. In addition to her movie screening, Del Rio will be appearing at PlayStation Theatre on October 20 at 8 p.m. to present her very own show, part of a national and international tour. Her shows sell out in a moment, so buy your tickets now, and save yourself the heartache of missing out. An honor to speak with her as always, Del Rio touched on some very relevant and important topics, as well as sharing some very funny experiences. Her advice is authentic, her conversation is a blast and her performances are epic!
T
he last time we spoke, they were just doing the finishing touches on your movie. Yes. What a treat! You were really, really excited about it. For those who don’t yet know, what’s the premise of the story? Well, basically, in a nutshell, most people aren’t aware that in the United States there are 29 states where it’s legal for you to be fired for being gay. So basically here is a teacher who lives in New York City, who teaches kindergarten, who gets transferred through a student teaching program to a very small redneck town in Texas. There in the town he encounters some people that don’t particularly care for him or his lifestyle and
make that their agenda. So he gets fired for being gay out of social ignorance from this particular group. He wants to seek revenge on this particular town. He returns disguised as Bianca Del Rio to seek his revenge. It’s a serious topic that is dealt with in a very comedic way. I wouldn’t want to do anything too preachy, but the message is there. I personally, myself, was not aware of the fact that there are 29 states that this is legal and that this could possibly happen. It’s kind of insane. Which are those 29 states I wonder? I wasn’t aware either until you just told me. Yeah, and it’s pretty insane, and they just find their own reasons for doing it. It doesn’t
really get discussed much, and like I said, I wasn’t really totally aware of it. When I did find out about it through Matt Kugelman, who wrote the movie, I was dumbfounded. I was like, “Really!” He said that that was the case, that’s how it works [in] 29 states, Texas being one of them. It’s hard to imagine in this day and age. Is it? Is it, with Trump around? If he gets elected, there will be 50 states that have that law. Believe me, Costa Rica is looking good right now. Maybe your next movie could be about him. I’ll go into politics next. You know what, that’s not a bad idea.
Because of RuPaul, and because of the movie, you are like the Messiah of drag. Hahaha! That’s quite the compliment. Don’t tell Ru! How does it feel to hold that title? It’s been amazing. “Drag Race” has opened so many doors. It was great timing for me at my age, and it gave me the opportunity to do the projects that I wanted to do, like this one. I’m about to tour with my new show, starting September 28 in Seattle, then 28 cities in the United States, and then I go to Europe and do 11 cities there. It’s kind of surreal, but yet the last two and a half, three years, we’ve been rocking and rolling. It’s been quite challenging, but the payoff’s been unreal. I mean, everyone in the world knows the name Bianca Del Rio and looks up to you. That’s too kind...and a lie. Haha. After your huge tour, are there any projects in mind for you? There are always some things going on. Some secret things that I’m not allowed to talk about yet. But I’m always thinking of what’s to come ahead. This tour will take me through November, and then I’ll be doing a production in San Francisco of a show that I really can’t talk about yet. I will also be touring Europe all through the spring. It’s just finding that balance of a way to go. There’s opportunities and things that I wanted to do; it’s just the thing of finding the time to squeeze it in and get it done. Currently it is the tour, and I’ll be heading to New York for the premiere of the movie—New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago. It’s kind of a whirlwind. I just had vocal cord surgery, so I’ve been out of the loop in Los Angeles for a minute. It’s been nice but yet a mentally daunting break. That vocal chord surgery seems to be popular these days. I think it’s just me yelling at people at the bars for too many years. What cities are you going to hit in Europe? I’m going to be in London in December for a gig, and then I tour the United Kingdom and Ireland. There’s a lot of cities I’ll be doing there. My London show sold out within a day. They are very kind over there, and they love hate. Haha. I’m truly so grateful for the support there. Tell me a little about your show. I started the show earlier this year. I was able to do it in Australia—I was able to
do it in Melbourne, Sydney. It was great there. I started the show there, and then I was scheduled to do two shows in P-Town, but I had the surgery, but I’ll be making those up next year. I’m just starting in the U.S. It’s been a long time running. It’s standup. It’s just me discussing everything that I hate and things that bother me, which is quite a bit! It’s a pretty lengthy list. I know that in real life, you are really nice to people. I don’t want to let too much of that get out, but... Sure, but I think that people’s schtick is what it is. You do what you do. You know, hate and comedy go well for me. That’s just kind of where I blossom at. If you were to give all those young, aspiring, wannabe drag queens advice, what would you tell them? DON’T DO IT, IT’S A TRAP! You can totally print that. I think it’s such a different world now than when I started. Everything obviously changes. What was normal 20 years ago is different now. Twenty years ago, when I started, you know, there really was no “Drag Race.” Now anybody who puts wig on thinks they’ve got it made, because they’ve watched the show, and they think it’s the end all, be all. I think it’s just important to study history and do the research. There are tons of really epic queens who never did the show, who are older and younger and have been around for a while, and they have something to offer. That’s what’s important. You’ve got to find what suits you and what works best for you, whether it is dancing, whether it is singing. I just think it’s important to find what works for you, and you’re not going to know until you try all of the above. It took me many years to find what works for me, and some people still question if it’s working. You have to find your path. You can’t be intimidated or bothered by anyone else, or threatened, or feeling insecure. You need to find what’s going to work for you and roll with it. And it doesn’t happen overnight. You know, it was 18 years before anything major happened in my career. But I don’t regret those 18 years at all.
@TheBiancaDelRio
Sep 28, 2016 Seattle, WA – Showbox SODO Sep 29, 2016 Portland, OR - Newmark Theater Sep 30, 2016 San Francisco, CA – The Warfield Oct 1, 2016 Los Angeles, CA – The NOVO Oct 5, 2016 Boulder, CO - Boulder Theater Oct 6, 2016 Kansas City, MO – The Folly Theater Oct 7, 2016 Milwaukee, WI - The Pabst Theater Oct 8, 2016 Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Theatre Oct 9, 2016 Chicago, IL - The Vic Oct 12, 2016 Royal Oak, MI – Royal Oak Music Theater Oct 13, 2016 Toronto, Canada – The Danforth Music Hall Oct 14, 2016 Cleveland, OH - Ohio Theater Oct 15, 2016 Columbus, OH - Capitol Theatre Oct 16, 2016 Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Music Hall Oct 18, 2016 Boston, MA – The Royale Oct 19, 2016 Philadelphia, PA - Keswick Theatre Oct 20, 2016 New York, NY - PlayStation Theater Oct 21, 2016 Richmond, VA - The National Oct 22, 2016 Washington DC - Lincoln Oct 25, 2016 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse Oct 26, 2016 Durham, NC - Carolina Theatre Oct 28, 2016 Austin, TX - Paramount Theatre Oct 29, 2016 Dallas, TX – South Side Music Hall Nov 1, 2016 Orlando, FL – The Plaza Live Nov 2, 2016 Ft Lauderdale, FL - Parker Playhouse Nov 4, 2016 New Orleans, LA - Mahalia Jackson Theater Nov 9, 2016 San Antonio, TX - Aztec Theatre
Tickets available at TheBiancaDelRio.com
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interview / GET OUT! MAGAZINE >> GETOUTMAG.COM
l e a h Mic o t s u M BY EILEEN SHAPIRO
CELEBRITY CORRESPONDENT
Michael Musto—New York's openly gay Messiah of the journalistic world, celebrated nightlife icon, television personality, actor, author, pop culture revolutionary and now singer—is soon about to unleash his new single, "I Got Your Back." Musto is probably one of the most colorful and popular personalities to roam the streets of New York's clubs, bars and prestigious events. He is admired by most and of course feared by some, in the best possible way. He was an award-winning writer for The
Michael, just in case someone isn't familiar with who you are, can you please introduce yourself?
Village Voice for more than 29 years and now writes for The New York Times, Out. com, The Advocate and Paper Magazine and guests on Logo's "Cocktails and Classics." Each time I speak with Musto, I learn something new about his alluring and masterful career. This time it was the fact that at one time he had a band called Michael Musto and the Must, and that now he is venturing back into the music industry. Musto pleasantly agreed to talk to Get Out! about his chronicles, as well as his future projects.
column on Out.com called Musto The Musical, a column in the Advocate magazine called Michael Musto's Icons, I have a weekly blog in Paper For 29 years I had a column in the Village Voice. magazine (papermag. com) and I write for the My column was called New York Times. I'm also La Dolce Musto, named on "Cocktails and Classics" after the Fellini film "La Dolce Vita," about a gossip on Logo. I'm one of the first openly gay writers who is columnist surrounded by fabulous people. I really got now flourishing in a world with lots of LGBT media. to run free as an openly gay nightlife/entertainment writer, breathlessly You also have written reporting my tales of going some books, correct? out on the town every I have four books out. One night in the incredible New was a nonfiction guide York landscape. Three called “Downtown.” Then years ago they laid me there was a novel called off, but now I am back “Manhattan on the Rocks.” there as a correspondent. Then there were two They have a great new collections of my columns. owner. I also have a weekly One was called “La Dolce
Musto,” and the other one was called “Fork on the Left, Knife in the Back.”
I love that title.
Me too. That’s all you need is a good title.
You’ve been around nightlight for more than a minute. How do you think it’s changed?
It’s changed dramatically through the years. When I started going out, there was no Internet, there were no apps and sites, so people went out, because they had to leave the house in order to not only find partners, but just to socialize with other people. Clubs were also the way people got their music fixes. That’s
all changed now, because there are other ways to communicate and hook up and get music. So nightlife is not what it was, but there is still a plethora of gay bars, particularly in Hell’s Kitchen. I think there are probably more gay bars than ever. Each one of them seems to have a drag show as a way to lure customers, because otherwise there is not a real drive for people to go out, except to have a drink with friends. So I would say when I started nightlife was obviously a lot more exciting, but I was young, and everything is more exciting when you’re young. For people who are young today, I’m sure they can still find nightlife that excites them.
What’s your take on the selection for the “AllStars”?
The election for president, or “RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars”?
You can visit either one of them, or both. Then you can make your predictions as well.
For president, I think Hillary is going all the way. Trump doesn’t stand for anything, and when he does stand for something, it’s pretty hateful. Particularly in relation to LGBT issues, because I feel that we’ve come so far, as far as our rights, our visibility and our acceptance. The Trump/Pence ticket would obviously be a gigantic step backward. Mike Pence in particular is rabidly homophobic. He wants to take away rights. He wrote an article in the ‘90s that employers should not even hire gay people. This is an appalling state of mind that we have to reject in gigantic force.
Isn’t that scary?
It’s terrifying, in this day and age, after all we’ve accomplished, that this would even be on the table, let alone
being given serious consideration. We have to go out in record numbers obviously and elect Hillary, not just as the lesser of two evils, but as somebody who is far preferable in terms of gay issues. And “Drag Race,” I have no idea. I look forward to seeing what’s going to happen.
Let’s talk about “Cocktails and Classics.” This is the show hosted by Michael Urie of “Ugly Betty” fame, and of course he’s won awards for his theater work, like Buyer and Cellar. It’s basically a movie party where he hosts people like Drew Droege and D.J. Pierce (Shangela), and then I’m one of the drop-ins. I’m on half of the shows, I would say. I drop by and tell my wisdoms about “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane” or “Valley of the Dolls,” and we not only tell back stories, but we also act out scenes. We basically celebrate these movies that have a lot of gay appeal. That’s a great thing for me, because I have a movie club. I’ve had a long-time movie club with Lynn Yaeger, Mickey Boardman and myself.
Anything that you want to add?
Just that I’m amazed to be back at the Village Voice. I’ve had three cover stories this year so far. The most recent one was the most talked about one. They had a picture of me with Madonna’s breast cone bra as my eyeglasses. It was about my memories...or, my mammaries...of Madonna. That one really took off. It was done in conjunction with the anniversary of “Truth or Dare,” the documentary. I told my own experiences from the very beginning, when I had a band with equal billing with Madonna, before she was famous. She was already kind of a diva. And how I came
to ultimately admire her and respect her for what she did for the LGBT community. Which is different from what Lady Gaga has done. Gaga now exists in a time where people are much more vocal. Madonna did everything with imagery and innuendo. She was very effective in elevating the gay audience in the international marketplace.
Did you say that you had a band?
Yeah, we did Motown songs. I used to flail around the stage as the white male version of Diana Ross.
Tell me about that.
In 1980 I got together with a few friends who happen to play instruments. I said, “I love Diana Ross, so why don’t we do like a Motown cover band where I can be campy and funny as a lead singer, but also respect the material, because I love Motown music.” So we got together and premiered at a club called Hurrah, and we ended up for about five years playing gigs all over town. I would sing “Love Child” and “Living in Shame,” and we would also branch out and do like “Get Ready” by the Temptations. It was kind of a soul band, but done from an openly gay point of view. So I was kind of ahead of the curve with Sam Smith. A couple years ago people asked me to start singing again. I’ve been doing that here and there, and I’m actually recording a single with Tyler Stone producing for Trax Records. It’s called “I Got Your Back.” It’s kind of a mid-level pop/dance/ reggae song.
When is it going to be released?
I recorded it, and he’s finishing up the production touches on it, so it will be out soon.
@mikeymusto
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