Washington Blade Television en-us http://washblade.com/rss 2009 - Washington Blade: The Gay and Lesbian News Source of Record - D.C. and National Gay News, Entertainment and Opinion Fri, 11 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EDT Fri, 11 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EDT editor@washblade.com The rainbow tube
Healthy helping of gay content continues on fall TV lineup
By Jaimie Schock
Friday, September 11, 2009
Has 10 p.m. become the gay bewitching hour? It appears so, based on the heavy stream of gay shows that have that timeslot — practically one for every night of the week.

On Bravo, you can't go wrong with “Top Chef Las Vegas,” the ever-entertaining cooking competition, which runs on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. EST. At least three gay competitors were chosen for this season: lesbians Preeti and Ashley and gay man Ash. There is plenty of notable eye candy, as well, and look out for gay and lesbian special guests and judges.

Also on Bravo, check out the new season of “Flipping Out,” a reality show that follows around obsessive-compulsive house flippe ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/9-11/arts/television/15156.cfm Fri, 11 Sep 2009 05:00:00 EST Wendy on the 'waves
Radio vet plans gay-friendly Fox talk show to debut this month
By Joey DiGuglielmo
Friday, July 03, 2009
It's 7:45 a.m. on a run-of-the-mill Tuesday in Washington and radio talk diva Wendy Williams looks like she's ready to take the stage at Ziegfeld's around midnight for a drag performance. With a nearly waist-length Mariah-esque wig, false eyelashes, leopard print top and gargantuan rings on each hand — one a topaz, the other a diamond that should be in the Smithsonian if it's real — she looks ready for her closeup.

The only nod to subtlety is the relatively subdued shade of her lilac lipstick. Sitting in a bland backstage room at the WTTG Fox studios in Friendship Heights, she looks down at her silver glitter-encrusted ballet slippers and says, “Oh, I forgot to s ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/7-3/arts/television/14817.cfm Fri, 3 Jul 2009 05:00:00 EST Cynthia Nixon speaks out for equality
'Sex and the City' star comes to town for Equality Maryland event
By Amy Cavanaugh
Friday, June 05, 2009
She may be best known for playing lawyer Miranda Hobbes on “Sex and the City,” but actress Cynthia Nixon is quickly becoming known for another role — LGBT rights activist.

Nixon is coming to town this weekend to receive an Out for Equality Award at Equality Maryland's eighth annual Night Out for Equality event, to be held at the Marriott Bethesda North Hotel and Conference Center.

In an interview with the Blade, Nixon, who doesn't use the term “lesbian,” and said that “if I have to pick, I would say gay woman, but I would prefer not to pick anything at all,” called being recognized by Equality Maryland “a lovely honor.&rdq ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/6-5/arts/television/14653.cfm Fri, 5 Jun 2009 05:00:00 EST Gays galore
Many new and ongoing shows featuring out characters
By Scott Sode
Friday, March 06, 2009
You'd think now that it's March we could get away from the glum weather and rerun hell. Judging from the blizzard that hit the East Coast this week, I'd say that one of the two is not in the cards so soon.

But the end of winter does signal fresh episodes and a few new series, some of which have gay characters. Here are some of the shows to watch in the coming months while the ground thaws.

Over on the gayest network this side of Logo, ABC, lesbian Portia de Rossi will make a grand return to television in the half-hour comedy “Better Off Ted,” about a large, bureaucratic corporation. If it's half as funny as her last series, Fox's “Arrested Development, ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/3-6/arts/television/14186.cfm Fri, 6 Mar 2009 05:00:00 EST Here come the brides
Soap milestone brings mixed reactions
By Scott Sode
Friday, February 20, 2009
“All My Children” made news last week when it featured TV's first legal same-sex marriage and daytime's first lesbian nuptials but some are disappointed with the way the groundbreaking soap handled the storyline.

Erica Kane's (Susan Lucci) well-intentioned daughter Bianca (Eden Riegel) and girlfriend Reese (Tamara Braun) tied the knot but, as is typical with soap romance, it didn't go smoothly. The night before the ceremony, Reese found herself in a liplock with Bianca's brother-in-law, Zach (Thorsten Kaye).

Naturally, there is some outrage in the gay community. Why must sweet, virtuous Bianca, the unofficial saint of fictitious Pine Valley, Pa., (where &ld ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/2-20/arts/television/14118.cfm Fri, 20 Feb 2009 05:00:00 EST Return of Ru
Drag legend is back with surprisingly good show
By Scott Sode
Friday, February 13, 2009
I didn't expect to enjoy “RuPaul's Drag Race,” Logo's latest foray into programming that isn't a “Queer as Folk” rerun or a really depressing movie about lesbians from 1992.

For one, I'm the token jerk in my group of friends who vehemently claims not to understand the appeal of drag queens (and yes, I know, that makes me a bad, close-minded person), and for another, if given the choice between watching something on Logo or something on any other channel (including, but not limited to, ESPN, SOAPnet or Country Music Television), I'd more than likely choose the latter.

But I'm happy to report that my preconceived notions of what this show would b ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/2-13/arts/television/14072.cfm Fri, 13 Feb 2009 05:00:00 EST New ground for 'Real World'
MTV staple rebounds with several series firsts
By Scott Sode
Friday, January 23, 2009
The one advantage of reality TV is that it's harder to stereotype real people. In a TV climate where gays are usually relegated to the well-worn grooves of one-dimensional depictions, reality shows can be refreshing.

That non-cliched gay content made “The Real World” an all-time guilty pleasure favorite in the '90s. It was one of about only three shows presenting such portrayals at the time.

But like many, I abandoned the series when MTV seemingly began pumping gaseous aphrodisiacs through the vents during the Las Vegas season, and then made fake boobs and half a brain prerequisites for joining any and all future casts. For seven years I have bitterly longe ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/1-23/arts/television/13982.cfm Fri, 23 Jan 2009 05:00:00 EST Tube shots
TV is lame, so here's a drinking game to relieve the boredom
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, January 09, 2009
Luckily, January is not just the month we're forced to ring in (for the foreseeable future) with Ryan Seacrest (is this man really so popular that he must show up — at one point or another — on every channel?).

It also brings an onslaught of new episodes and midseason replacements. There are really only a handful of gay-centric stories and characters (surprise, surprise), but to make an awfully boring TV season that much more interesting (you know something's wrong when the hot new show is “The Mentalist”), I offer up my gay television drinking game. It will soften the blow of a world without legally entangled “Project Runway.”

So g ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/1-9/arts/television/13883.cfm Fri, 9 Jan 2009 05:00:00 EST TV's '08 hits and misses
Many shows took chances on gay characters only to back off
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, January 02, 2009
For gay visibility on television in 2008, there was the good, the bad and the icky.

It was nice to see a record number of gay weddings and generally committed gay relationships. Too bad it wasn't so hard to beat the previous record.

Bravo introduced us to “The Real Housewives of Atlanta,” which was the most fabulous train wreck since, well, “The Real Housewives of New York.” Too bad the same gay-friendly network sabotaged its reality star “Project Runway” by introducing the world to Kenley.

Van Hansis and Jake Silbermann were absolute magic as the young, same-sex couple Luke and Noah on daytime drama “As the World ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2009/1-2/arts/television/13862.cfm Fri, 2 Jan 2009 05:00:00 EST Baby steps
'Battlestar Galactica' bucks sci-fi trend by including gay characters
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, December 26, 2008
Science fiction has always had an enthusiastic gay fan base whether it's “Star Trek,” “Star Wars” or Superman comics.

I confess to recently geeking out hard over the new “Star Trek” trailer, so much so that I spit up the Coke I was drinking all over my bag of popcorn (I'm pretty sure that trailer was more exciting than whatever forgettable, potential Oscar-nominee movie I saw that night).

It's a shame that most science fiction stories and series haven't capitalized on this fanaticism, as gay people have seemingly been banished from all futuristic and alternate galaxies.

The two most-watched sci fi-ish shows on television, ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/12-26/arts/television/13820.cfm Fri, 26 Dec 2008 05:00:00 EST Wisteria gayborhood
ABC guilty of exploiting its characters' same-sex ways on 'Housewives'
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, December 12, 2008
“Desperate Housewives,” as its name implies, isn't about its gay characters.

With a burgeoning cast headlined by six heavy-hitting actresses, I understand that there will never be enough time in an hour-long episode for the series to feature gay neighbors Bob (Tuc Watkins) and Lee (Kevin Rahm), or Bree's gay son Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom), any more prominently. But at least Andrew is the only child of a housewife to survive all five seasons (Pyfrom debuted as a full-fledged series regular this year).

But what bothers me about the otherwise-amusing soap is how it's always utilized these characters simply as a means to ratchet up predictable, plot-driven conflict ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/12-12/arts/television/13720.cfm Fri, 12 Dec 2008 05:00:00 EST Rosie's relevance
O'Donnell still matters despite last week's variety special bomb
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, December 05, 2008
What exactly went wrong with “Rosie Live”?

On paper, the pre-Thanksgiving variety special promised to be the most fantastic gay extravaganza this side of an “American Idol” finale. You had Rosie, Liza, Clay, Alanis and Kathy all sharing one stage. You had the promise that it would be a kitschy throwback to the 1970s and the scandalous (and eventually false) Internet rumor that an R&B star — so incensed by the passing of Prop 8 — would come out of the closet on live television.

It was supposed to be the special that saved a network. Instead it performed worse in the ratings than an episode of “Knight Rider.” And that' ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/12-5/arts/television/13696.cfm Fri, 5 Dec 2008 05:00:00 EST Cheap shots?
SNL returns to form but gays emerge as unfair targets
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, November 28, 2008
It's a cliché to criticize “SNL” as a shadow of its former self; that column has been written repeatedly in all kinds of media outlets during the last 15 years.

After this election, it's clear that when it wants to be, “SNL” can not only be as good as its former self — it can be better. But with Sarah Palin back in Alaska and Tina Fey back at her day job, I've grown a bit disenchanted. The strange barrage of gay-centric sketches in recent post-election episodes have painstakingly highlighted “SNL's” tendency toward the sophomoric for the sake of a laugh, a tendency that feels like a step backward and as irrelevant as a guitar-playi ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/11-28/arts/television/13657.cfm Fri, 28 Nov 2008 05:00:00 EST TV trailblazers
Kudos to DeGeneres, Maddow for boosting gay visibility
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, November 14, 2008
When America elected Barack Obama to the presidency two weeks ago, it was a historic moment that played out on live television. Regardless of who you are or whom you supported — black or white, gay or straight, liberal or conservative — you couldn't help but feel the gravity and transcendence of that moment.

The subdued victory speech, coupled with images of a teary Oprah Winfrey and Jesse Jackson amid a sea of rabid, triumphant supporters, is not something that one can readily forget. That moment affected me in a way that, despite being a lifelong cynic and former Hillary supporter, I'll never forget.

Obama had, in no grandiose, exorbitant speech prior to ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/11-14/arts/television/13588.cfm Fri, 14 Nov 2008 05:00:00 EST Switching gears
TV writers test gay fans' patience with twists and a firing
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, November 07, 2008
A lot has been happening with the gay characters on television. One quit his job. One ran for president. Another disappeared. Here's my take on the shocking new developments taking place over the last couple of weeks.

Back when “Brothers & Sisters” was a show about families fighting over politics (as opposed to what it is today, a show about a family that fights), Kevin Walker (the impeccable, give-him-an-Emmy-now Matthew Rhys) was the unabashed bleeding-heart liberal foil to conservative sister Kitty. So now, two years later, the producers expect me to believe that Kevin would actually take a job working for his brother-in-law Robert, a Republican senator.
< ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/11-7/arts/television/13545.cfm Fri, 7 Nov 2008 05:00:00 EST Alternate views
Hasselbeck occasionally veers from her conservative script
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, October 31, 2008
Obama and McCain can try, but there's nothing better than a “View” feud.

I get the sense that mostly everyone turned off “The View” after Rosie O'Donnell departed and Whoopi Goldberg took her place. I even remember my own breaking point: sometime in September 2007 when co-hosts Joy Behar and Elisabeth Hasselbeck started barking at each other about some political topic, and Goldberg — as moderator — shut down the argument, basically telling them that there were two sides to every issue. I was aghast. Where was “The View” of yesteryear, the one with a split screen? Two sides to every issue? Sure it's true, but it's hardly fun. It's lik ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/10-31/arts/television/13499.cfm Fri, 31 Oct 2008 05:00:00 EST Beauty of 'Betty'
'Ugly' channels gay notions even in non-literal ways
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, October 24, 2008
When you're watching “Ugly Betty,” do you ever feel like the show is (in a lovingly Janice Ian kind of way) almost too gay to function?

I may have made a mistake a couple months back by declaring “Nip/Tuck” and “American Idol” the gayest shows on TV. While they certainly have their moments of over-the-top gayness, nothing makes me feel like Truman Capote has exploded inside my set quite like “Ugly Betty” (Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC). The zany hijinks, the outlandish tele-novella plot twists, the colorful sets, fashion and cutesy themes; I'm surprised there haven't been reports of crazy right-wingers throwing holy water on America Fe ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/10-24/arts/television/13456.cfm Fri, 24 Oct 2008 05:00:00 EST Gay character checklist
Kevin of 'Brothers and Sisters' passes the P.C. test
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, October 17, 2008
Many gay critics are relent-less in their criticism of gay characters on television.

Such characters must be prominent, not peripheral. They can't be stereotypical, but they can't be one-note and boring either. They must avoid a clichéd coming out, and they must not be overly angsty about their sexuality.

Their life should involve complications unrelated to being gay, but we must on a continual basis be reminded that they are, in fact, gay, or they'll be deemed “gay in name only.” 

They can't be promiscuous, they can't be campy, they can't be psychotic. They should preferably be in a relationship, and if they are, they should have aw ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/10-17/arts/television/13420.cfm Fri, 17 Oct 2008 05:00:00 EST Gay soap suds
Daytime TV proves fertile ground for exploration of same-sex super-couples
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, October 10, 2008
I've been obsessed with soap operas since I was in the womb. What can I say — I enjoy the outlandishness, the escapist qualities, the cheesy “Debbie Does Dallas” production values. But soap operas are also fast becoming the medium to watch for gay visibility and I'd be remiss if I didn't commend them for their efforts.

On “As the World Turns” (weekdays on CBS, 2 p.m.), Luke Snyder and Noah Mayer (Van Hansis and Jake Silbermann, who exhibit the kind of chemistry Chace Crawford wishes he could muster with any of his female counterparts on “Gossip Girl”) continue to dabble in their young love relationship. They're the only gay teen couple on ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/10-10/arts/television/13399.cfm Fri, 10 Oct 2008 05:00:00 EST CBS standouts
'Mother,' 'Christine' exceptions to network's dreck
By SCOTT SODE
Friday, October 03, 2008
I'm not ashamed of my viewing habits, but there is something I'll only watch when nobody is around: any show on CBS.

This is, after all, the channel that inexplicably made Ray Romano a celebrity when nobody wanted him to be one and is about two channel clicks away from devoting its entire schedule to CSI knockoffs and spinoffs (I eagerly await the day execs add “CSI: Alaska” to the line-up: “it's just like the original, only colder and we prosecute Russians!”).

While watching a rerun of Emmy-nominated “Two and a Half Men” the other day, I realized that if I were to laugh at a single joke on this immature, predictable, offensive piec ... ]]> http://washblade.com/2008/10-3/arts/television/13373.cfm Fri, 3 Oct 2008 05:00:00 EST