No Gay Sherlock Holmes Movies, Writer's Estate Sez

The controller of the remaining U.S. copyrights for the Sherlock Holmes stories freaks out after Robert Downey Jr. hints at homoerotic subtext to the new movie adaptation:

"I hope this is just an example of Mr Downey's black sense of humour. It would be drastic, but I would withdraw permission for more films to be made if they feel that is a theme they wish to bring out in the future. I am not hostile to homosexuals, but I am to anyone who is not true to the spirit of the books."

Also, the thought of homosexuality makes her uncomfortable and offends her.

Holmes's cocaine habit still a-OK, though!

Facepalm Time Part Two: Claire's "Experimentation" in HEROES

Because a female character's sexuality shouldn't be organic to the story, it should be a gimmick to titillate viewers.

From Contact Music:

HAYDEN PANETTIERE is preparing for girl-on-girl love scenes in the next series of HEROES - her character will reportedly enjoy a smooch with her college roommate.
The 19-year-old actress plays cheerleader Claire Bennet in the hit U.S. show and TV bosses are considering working a lesbian storyline into the upcoming fourth season.
A source tells British newspaper the Daily Star, "It's just girlie fun at first. But it might progress into something more serious. It depends on how viewers respond."

That's right – Claire's lesbianism/bisexuality is such an intregal part of the storyline, we'll let the viewers decide. If they vote "HOT!", there will be more.

And sexual experimentation with a college roommate – that's BOLD! Plus: cheerleader!

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for having more LGBT characters in sci-fi entertainment, across the board. And I think, overall, it's better to have more related characters and storylines than less, even if I think some are either promoted poorly or used purposely as a gimmick.

But I think the reason storylines like Willow becoming gay/bisexual worked for me is that they didn't issue a press release when it happened. It was just part of the story, and I don't feel it was used as a gimmick. If anything, BTVS was at the height of its popularity when Willow and Tara got together, and could have lost (and probably did lose) some viewers in the process.

That's just my 2 cents. I could be wrong. It just would be nice to have a high-profile gay character in a comic or TV show and not promote it as "TEH GAY CHARACTER OMG!!!!!!"

Headlines I Hate: When Mainstream News Covers Comics

From the Dallas Voice (which bills itself as a LGBT news source, but it still looks awful):

"Zowie! She's Gay!"


Sub-sub headline for the same article:


"OUT, OUT! AND A GAY!"


Wait, I have one more coming on...

Lesbian Webcomic Sites Target Of Harassment

I've just received this disturbing report regarding a number of webcomic sites with lesbian-themed content being targeted for harassment.

Megan Rose Gedris, creator of the Yu+Me and I Was Kidnapped By Lesbian Pirates From Outer Space webcomic, reports in her LiveJournal about a particular poster with a scary message of hate. The poster wrote:

"I'm glad all of those girls are dykes, them some ugly bitches!
Anways while those two clam-smackers were fingering each other, I busted in their room with a shotgun. No death-ray guns for me, I prefer the old fashion way since more blood splatters that way. I first shot Susan at her head because that's the only way to cure those people than I shot Janet in the head as well.
Two dead dykes and one big smile on the face.
Now it's time for me to wipe out the rest of the Sapphire Sisters."

Was this another "dumb troll" who was probably just some kid in his mom's basement, nothing to worry about?

No, actually:

"Well, turns out he actually WAS a threat. One of my readers is a police guy, who has been watching this guy's internet activities. He was a 45-year old guy living in Toronto, not too far from me and my family. And he was escalating. His "stories" (he posted such things as this all the time) were getting more and more violent and sadistic, all of them featuring violence towards gay people. Scary, right?"

and what sort of stuff did he have on his computer?

"Thousands of images of illegal, sadistic pornography..."

But the story has a happy resolution, as he was taken into custody:

"He can't actually be convicted for threats against fictional people, but he CAN be for illegal porn! Yay justice!"

So you have a grown man writing stuff like:

"...I prefer the old fashion way since more blood splatters that way. I first shot Susan at her head because that's the only way to cure those people than I shot Janet in the head as well."

Does his writing constitute a hate crime? One person on the LiveJournal thread thinks "yes" --

"First off, he just violated his TOS. Get his account shut down.

Second, you can contact the Hate Crime National Hotline at 206-350-HATE (4283). (http://www.lambda.org/hatecr2.htm)

They might be able to give you guidance on any additional rights that you have."

I firmly believe that the person who wrote those hateful things WAS dangerous, IS dangerous, obviously has a lot of hatred against women and lesbian women in particular.

Don't take these things lightly, don't just assume "it's a troll" and that's it. This wasn't some ordinary trolling, this was a guy who calls himself "Da Solution" who writes about shooting lesbians in the head so their blood spatters. Murder: that was HIS solution.

I think the thing to do here is spread the word that this sort of thing happens, share stories, and, most importantly, point out resources to take legal action.

This story makes me sick.

On a lighter note, I read a big chunk of Yu+Me a while ago, and thought it was great. :-)

A Gay Hutt?

Seriously, is this the best George Lucas could do to include some sexual diversity in the Star Wars mythos?

Now, according to this blog, there has been an openly gay character in the extended Star Wars universe.

And, of course, the "sexuality" of C3PO is under some debate.

But the point is, both "Capote The Hutt" and C3PO, if they indeed are meant to represent homosexuals, represent them as stereotypes.

Isn't there any room at this point for a non-stereotypical gay Star Wars character of more importance than one created for a related videogame or paperback?

But that's the charm of the Star Wars universe, isn't it? It's like seeing everything through the eyes of an eager eight-year-old boy raised on old movie serials from the 1930s and 40s. Lots of fun and adventure, low on subtlety, bits of unintentional offensiveness here and there.

(That's why I like Star Trek just a little bit more. Though they could do a better job in this department as well, as documented here.)

Neil Patrick Harris: "Too Accepted"?

In the following post, the writer questions if openly gay "How I Met Your Mother" star Neil Patrick Harris is too "accepted" by the heterosexual community:

"Plus he sings and dances and is good with little ones! So yeah, all around a pretty down to earth, un-swishy, monogamous, famous geigh dude who can party with the bros. He's a homo hero! Except, I dunno, for me? Something just doesn't feel quite right."

So Harris is not "gay" enough? C'mon. He's just a person. He plays an ultra-heterosexual character convincingly, and this is a liability? It shows that a good actor can play a character with any sexual orientation. It puts a lie to the old Hollywood excuse of, "oh, this openly gay person can't play a straight romantic interest because nobody would believe it." It gives one less reason to maintain the "Celluloid Closet," one less reason for some actresses and actors to live a lie. And I think living a lie because you are afraid of not getting work (or acceptance) is tragic.

I see this "not BLANK enough" label being put on many successful people for many reasons. I think it's stupid. I think people should be judged on their own merits. It is so convenient to see people not as individuals, but a representatives of a larger mass.

That said -- it would be nice if there were more great homosexual roles out there for actors to play -- starring roles, non-cliche roles. In comedies, dramas, horror movies, sci-fi, TV shows, movies. Maybe that is what the author of that post was getting at, as well. That is a valid concern.

And there is also the idea that "being accepted" shouldn't be a goal. When Harris is quoted on the "Out" magazine cover as saying "My job is jester, not advocate...I'm striving to be an example of normalcy," it can be interpreted by some as him "wanting" to be "normal" -- whatever "normal" is defined as. And a critic might suggest that he is defining "normal" as something more along the lines of heterosexual culture.

As the author of the original post writes:

"If he really does want to chill on motorcycles and swill beer and make a living talking about poontang, then fine. But let's not congratulate him so effusively for it."

That said, I still like Neil Patrick Harris a great deal as an actor. And he was the voice of The Flash in the New Frontier cartoon<-----showing off my geek cred.

Censored Star Trek Episode Finally Sees Light Of Day

A "Star Trek The Next Generation" script written by "Trouble With Tribbles" scribe David Gerrold will finally be produced -- by the fans.

The Star Trek fan-film series Phase II has shot the script "Blood And Fire" -- sans special effects -- and will unveil the episode at the Shore Leave 30 science fiction convention tomorrow in Baltimore.

Gerrold's original script was nixed by "Next Generation" producers because it dealt with homosexuality and AIDS. Specifically, the episode featured gay crew members and dealt with, in Gerrold's words, "a plague so horrible that Starfleet had issued standing orders not to attempt rescue of any infected ship but to destroy it immediately."

Phase II continues stories based on the five-year mission of the Starship Enterprise, and its webisodes average around 5 million hits a month.

It makes me almost want to haul my ass over to Baltimore tomorrow to see this.

(via The Baltimore Sun)

George Takei To Marry Long-Term Partner

One day after the California ruling overturning the ban on gay marriage, Star Trek's original Sulu George Takei announced his intention to marry his long-term partner Brad Altman. Takei wrote on his website:

"The California Supreme Court has ruled that all Californians have a fundamental right to marry the person he or she loves. Brad and I have shared our lives together for over 21 years...He is my love and I can't imagine life without him. Now, we have the dignity, as well as all the responsibilities, of marriage."

Good for him! I hope this overturn sticks and we can all move past this issue. If two people really love and are devoted to each other they should be able to get married.

Jay Leno Asks For Ryan Phillippe's "Gay Face"

Regular OS reader Sammy pointed out this recent Jay Leno segment where he's giving Ryan Phillippe a hard time for having played a gay teenager. Oh, of course, it is all in fun, right?

Whitless.com has the transcript, as well as the video:

JAY: Can you give me like -- say that camera is your gay lover -- number two --

PHILLIPPE: Wait a second. Wait a second.

JAY: Can you give me your gayest look? Say that -- say that camera is Billy Bob -- Billy Bob has just ridden in shirtless from Wyoming.

Jeff at Whitless comments:

"So naturally you homed in on how WEIRD and HILARIOUS it was that he played a GAY PERSON -- while Phillippe reasonably tried to shift the conversation to the larger issue of how weird it was to be on a soap opera. But you couldn't be stopped! You went for the comedy gold!"

I'm not saying Leno is a monster for telling this "joke." But, he just wasn't that funny. Some may cry "this is the PC police!" and all that, and assert their right to laugh at his routine. Of course, anybody has the right to laugh at whatever. But the routine is built around the premise that gayness is a punchline in-and-of-itself. And these jokes are told with the implicit understanding that the audience "gets" that punchline, shares those cultural cues.

For another exploration of when pop-culture makes these often offensive assumptions, read Adrian Tomine's "The Donger And Me" webcomic on NPR. It's a good companion piece to the Whitless.com piece, I think, focusing on how the author of each confronted the offending celebrity.