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Description
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ToC Comic Crossing by Merryn Johns (p30); Lost Girl Found by Dar Dowling (p32); Our Annual Music Special (p34); Berlin Girls by Katie Sutton (p47); Rock On (p36); Cover: Brittney Griner Stading Tall (p50); Summer Lovers (p60); Travel by Kathy Belge (p72). Cover Photo by Brandon Sullivan.
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Music Issue
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issue
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5
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Date Issued
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July-August 2014
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Format
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PDF/A
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Publisher
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Frances Stevens
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Identifier
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Curve_Vol24_No5_July-August-2014_OCR_PDFa.pdf
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extracted text
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SUMMER
SlYLE
SPECll\L
PICKS
OUR
TO WEAR,
WATCH,
AND READ
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You're all he has, so when the conversation turns to his future, turn to Wells Fargo Advisors.
Financial Advisors with the ADPAsM designation can help you with everything from saving
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registered broker-dealers: Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC and Wells Fargo Advisors
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service marks of the College for Financial Planning~
reserved. 0912-02542 (1196796)
JULY/AUG
2014
30
COMIC CROSSING
Dana Goldberg's debut
album crosses the line
in the best possible way.
By Merryn Johns
32
LOST GIRL FOUND
The high-flying producer of
our favorite TV show gives
Lost Girl its magic touch.
By Dar Dowling
3~
OUR ANNUAL
MUSIC SPECIAL
Our picks for essential
summer listening.
~7
BERLIN GIRLS
Queer identity may have
had its origins in pre-Nazi
Germany.
By Katie Sutton
56
ROCKON
You're going to be ready
to roar in these cool
country-chic shirts.
60
SUMMER LOVERS
Violet Love headbands are
your crowning glory this
summer.
72
TRAVEL
Living small in Washington
state. By Kathy Beige
COVER
PHOTO
BY BRANDON
SULLIVAN
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
1
JULY/AUG
2014
9
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
IN EVERYISSUE
4
EDITOR'S NOTE
6
CURVETTES
8
FEEDBACK
10
THE GAYDAR
80
STARS
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
TRENDS
REVIEWS
9
BEAUTY
Cool cosmetics, perfect for
summer. By Rachel Shatto
24 BOOKS
Inside the life and love of
lesbian trans couple Diane
and Jacob Anderson-Minshall.
12 LESBOFILE
The best in celebrity gossip.
13
SHE SAID
VIEWS
14 OUT IN FRONT
Lesbian leadership in the
spotlight. By Sheryl Kay
14
IN CASE YOU MISSED
IT ... News from across the
country. By Sassafras Lowry
16 POLITICS
Why lesbian representation
is in the dark at the movies.
By Victoria Brownworth
18 THE TWO OF US
Our monthly profile of captivating lesbian couples who
live, love and work together.
20 LIPSTICK & DIPSTICK
Our popular butch-femme
advice duo.
22 ADVICE
Why we need to boost the selfesteem and positive thinking
of our LGBTteens. By Sherry
Platt Berman and Joy Read
2
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
By Cygnus Fogle & Merryn
Johns
27 CROSSWORD
Test your lesbian logic with
our final queer quiz for the
summer.
28 FILM
A new documentary takes a
look at the era of lesbian chic.
By Merryn Johns
HONEYMOON
YOU'VE
DESTINATION
ORLANDO.FLO
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KNOT.
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frorn
RONTtMERRYN'S
MEMO
Ilitti11g ll1e
l{ig'1t ~Tote
T
his is my fourth year editing Curve's annual Music issue and it's good
news for readers and for musicians that each year my task gets harder,
because the number of new summer releases I need to cover keeps
increasing.
This year, we received a record number of pitches for lesbian
musicians, and sometimes from the musicians themselves. Thanks to the digital age
we live in, the democratization of media, and the restructuring of the record industry,
new and more marginal voices are finding platforms and fan bases almost overnight.
This has been a boon to lesbian and queer musicians, who have previously been locked
out of a male-dominated and heteronormative industry. Women of color, women with
strong political views, and artists with nonnormative gender expressions and identities
are noticeably on the rise.
There is still something to be said for
a clear lesbian identity in music. When
we asked you on Facebook to post your
favorite musicians, the names were
familiar favorites-and
on repeat: Joan
Jett, Tegan & Sara, Melissa Etheridge,
k.d. lang, Indigo Girls, Brandi Carlile,
Mary Lambert, Mary Gauthier, Heather
Peace, Uh Huh Her, Melissa Ferrick,
Kaki King, Tracy Chapman,Jen Foster,
Antigone Rising, Hunter Valentine, and
even Missy Higgins who became engaged
to a man in January. While some readers
wondered if she could still be included in
the list, Higgins' shifting sexual identity
got me thinking about the cachet of'queer" in the music industry-who
among us hasn't
pondered the true sexual preferences of Madonna and Lady Gaga? Even Blondie's Debbie
Harry jumped on the bisexual bandwagon this spring. Female sexual ambiguity is
lucrative, interpreted by the mainstream as an index of desirability. Consequently, we've
had a recent rash of"fake lesbians;' or artists who toy with same-sex attraction: Nicki
Minaj, Jessie J, Katy Perry, Lily Allen. The media even speculates about the intimacies
shared by Lorde and Taylor Swift.
Upfront rap artist Iggy Azalea recently came out as a non-lesbian, stating B.atlyto
PrideSource that, in spite of her chick-centric lyrics and her headliner status at the
world's biggest dyke shindig, Club Skirts' The Dinah, "I don't wanna kiss girls:' Well,
thanks for clearing that up for us!
Enjoy this issue, which is full of real lesbian and queer musicians. I'm sure the charttopping fake lesbian craze isn't quite over, but it's nice to have so many of our own to
choose from and adore.
~·
MERZ
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
merryn@curvemag.com
4
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
curve
THE BEST-SELLING
JULY/AUGUST
2014
»
LESBIAN MAGAZINE
VOLUME
24 NUMBER
PUBLISHERSilke Bader
FOUNDINGPUBLISHER Frances Stevens
EDITORIAL
EDITORIN CHIEF Merryn Johns
MANAGINGEDITOR Rachel Shatto
COPY EDITOR Katherine Wright
CONTRIBUTINGEDITORS Victoria A. Brownworth,
Gina Daggett, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo, Jillian Eugenios,
Sheryl Kay, Stephanie Schroeder, Dave Steinfeld
EDITORIAL
ASSISTANTS
Caitlyn Byrne, Cygnus Fogle,
Francesca Lewis, William Northup, Lisa Tedesco
PROOFREADERElizabeth Harper
OPERATIONS
DIRECTOROF OPERATIONSJeannie Sotheran
EVENTS& MEDIA RELATIONSCOORDINATORRobin Perron
ADVERTISING
NATIONALSALES
Rivendell Media (908) 232-2021, todd@curvemagazine.com
ART/PRODUCTION
ART DIRECTORMeghan Musalo, Ricardo Calvi Vivian
PRODUCTIONARTIST Kelly Nuti
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Melany Joy Beck, Kathy Beige, Jenny Block, Adam L.
Brinklow, Kelsy Chauvin, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo, Traci
Dinwiddie, Maria De La 0, Elizabeth Estochen, Jill
Goldstein, Kristin Flickinger, Gillian Kendall, Kim Hoffman,
Charlene Lichtenstein, Karen Loftus, Sassafras Lowrey,
Emelina Minero, Laurie K. Schenden, Stephanie Schroeder,
Janelle Sorenson, Rosanna Rios-Spicer, Allison Steinberg,
Stella & Lucy, Dave Steinfeld, Edie Stull, Yana Tallon-Hicks,
Sarah Toce, Tina Vasquez, Jocelyn Voo
CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS & PHOTOGRAPHERS
Lauren Barkume, Alex Styles, Meagan Cignoli,
Sophia Hantzes, Janet Mayer, Syd London, Cheryl Mazak,
Maggie Parker, Robin Roemer, Leslie Van Stelten
CONTACT INFO
Curve Magazine
PO Box 467
New York, NY 10034
PHONE{415) 871-0569
FAX {510) 380-7487
SUBSCRIPTIONINQUIRIES(800) 705-0070
(toll-free in US only)
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LETTERSTO THE EDITOREMAIL letters@curvemagazine.com
Volume 24 Issue 5 Curve (ISSN 1087-867X) is published 8 times
per year (January/Febrary, March, April/May, June, July/August,
September, October, November/December) by Avalon Media,
LLC, PO Box 467, New York NY 10034. Subscription price:
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international (U.S. funds only). Returned checks will be assessed
a $25 surcharge. Periodicals postage paid at San Francisco, CA
94114 and at additional mailing offices (USPS 0010-355). Contents
of Curve Magazine may not be reproduced in any manner, either
whole or in part, without written permission from the publisher.
Publication of the name or photograph of any persons or
organizations appearing, advertising or listing in Curve may not be
taken as an indication of the sexual orientation of that individual or
group unless specifically stated. Curve welcomes letters, queries,
unsolicited manuscripts and artwork. Include SASE for response.
Lack of any representation only signifies insufficient materials.
Submissions cannot be returned unless a self-addressed stamped
envelope is included. No responsibility is assumed for loss or
damages. The contents do not necessaraly represent the opinions
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Subscription Inquiries: Please write to Curve, Avalon Media LLC.,
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Canadian Agreement Number: 40793029. Postmaster: Send
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Curve, PO Box 17138, N. Hollywood,
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curvemag.com
2014
5
Curve's online selection of must-do, must-try, must-have extras.
LIFESTYLE
SENIOR
LESBIANS
FERRON'SMUSIC IS THE SOUNDTRACK TO
MANY LESBIAN LIVES
"I was an undergrad at Rutgers in the early
'80s, with an undeclared crush on a stocky,
Italian-Irish junior I'll call Mimi. One day
when we were talking about music, Mimi
drooped her lovely Italian-Irish eyelids and
murmured, 'Oh, Ferroni' She breathed the
singer's name the way someone might say,
CINEMA
FANDOM
THE PHENOMENON OF LESBIAN FANDOM
LIVES ONLINE!
Fandom is ignited through the intense
relationship between two characters in a TV
show, web series or film. Romantic subtext
and "shipping" are a part of why people are
drawn to fandoms, which is why there are
hundreds of lesbian fan fiction stories and
videos made about 'real' pairings. Curvemag.
com has a library of lesbian fandoms worth
checking out: Orange Is the New Black, Once
Upon a Time and Grey's Anatomy. To enter
this world go to
G curvemag.com
ADVICE
COMING
OUT
MY BIG FAT GREEKCOMING OUT
"Growing up as a kid in my Greek family
was great. I tried to follow the rules, get
married, have children, because 'that is
when your life starts,' they would tell me.
That is what they think-definitely
not me.
My life doesn't start with a husband, my life
is me, and I dictate how that goes. Funny
how some people think ..." Read the full
story on G curvemag.com
'the most luscious orgasm' or 'the greatest
singer-songwriter ever produced by Canada,
including Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell.' A
few years later, I attended my first MichFest
and I understood Mimi's breathy enthusiasm.
That was the summer I first called myself a
BLOGGERS
COMEDYCORNER
INTO THE WOODS AT MICHFEST 2014
lesbian, and the first time I bought one of
"What kind of shopping do lesbians like to
Ferron's CDs, starting my collection of the
do? That's right, workshopping! MichFest,
soundtrack to most of my adult life." Read
now in its 38th year, is right around the bend
more on
and there are more workshops at MichFest
G curvemag.com
than you can shake a dowsing stick at. I went
to a Wicca workshop once. I thought I was
going to learn how to make furniture. No,
I learned how to turn a toad into a stool. .."
Read more from laugh-out-loud standup
comics and the Queer Queen of Qomedy
herself, Her Royal Hilariousness Poppy
Champlin on
G curvemag.com
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
We have some of the
leading voices in our
community sharing
their thoughts on
love and romance,
parenting and politics,
and sex and spirituality-not to mention
our huge collection of
lesbian fandom.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
5
KATHYBELGE
Kathy Beige is a journalist
and writer living in Portland,
Ore. She is the co-author of
Lipstick & Dipstick's Essential
Guide to Lesbian Relationships
and Queer: The Ultimate
LGBT Guide for Teens. In this
issue Kathy writes about the
tiny house movement on
page 72. "From the moment
I heard about the tiny house
movement, I was hooked. I
love the idea of simple livingparing your life down to the
essentials plus a few things
that make you happy. And
besides, tiny houses are so
freaking cute!" she says. Until
the day when she can live in
a tiny house of her own, she
enjoys traveling and hiking
with her not so tiny dog,
Olive, absorbing Portland's
ever changing culture and
writing for a world-wide lesbian
audience on About.com. Follow
her on lnstagram @kbelge.
6
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
DAVESTEINFELD
Dave Steinfeld grew up in
Connecticut and is now based
in New York City where much
of his world revolves around
music. He has been obsessed
with it for as long as he can
remember and has written
about it professionally since
1999. Some of the outlets he
has contributed to since then
include American Songwriter,
Beyond Race, Blurt, Bust,
Classic Pop, The Daily News,
and The San Diego UnionTribune. He began writing for
Curve, by accident, in 2007.
Since then, he has interviewed
many artists for the magazine
including Ani DiFranco, Patti
Smith, Yoko Ono, The Indigo
Girls, and Lucas Silveira. For this
issue, Dave interviewed Catie
Curtis, Nikki Glaspie, Hannah
& Maggie and Starnes & Shah.
A firm believer that variety is
the spice of life, when he is
not writing for Curve he enjoys
watching football with his dad.
LISA TEDESCO
Lisa Tedesco was born in
Connecticut and moved out to
San Francisco when she was 19
to pursue a degree in Motion
Pictures and Television from
The Academy of Art University.
When she was 22 she moved
back to Connecticut to take
a job at Sikorsky Aircraft
as an electrical installer for
US Navel helicopters. Now
28, Lisa has gone back to
school to finish an Associates
Degree in Media Studies and
is attending the University of
Hartford to major in Media and
Communication Relations with
a minor in Gender Studies.
An avid admirer of the arts,
Lisa is involved in various
aspects of filmmaking, writing,
photography and theatre. Lisa
is an out and proud lesbian
who recently proposed to the
love of her life, Amy, and the
two will be celebrating with
a marriage ceremony next
October.
CAITLYN BYRNE
Caitlyn Byrne grew up in the
California sunshine. A member
of Elon University's graduating
class of 2012, she earned her
degree in English-creative
writing. Her story "Lavender
and Want" has been published
in The Susquehanna Review.
She is currently a Public Affairs
Specialist for the US Army, and
an active duty military member.
Caitlyn plans on pursuing
an MFA in creative writing,
as well as a career in public
affairs/editing and firefighting,
balancing both writing and
physicality. Reading, writing,
exercise, and art are her
passions. She currently lives
in North Carolina, and is proud
to be a lover of ladies, one in
particular, and a member of the
LGBT community.
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Adoption, Not IVF
As an LGBT woman who
was the product of an un~
planned pregnancy and put
up for adoption by my Cath~
olic natural mother, I was
saddened to read the article
about artificial insemination
for LGBT women [Vol. 24#4,
"So You Want to Have a
Baby?"]. It doesn't make sense
to me that we create new
life while healthy babies are
being aborted by our preg~
nant sisters who deem their
pregnancies" inconvenient:'
Those aborted baby boys
and girls could be adopted
by loving LGBT couples and
single persons. Instead of
fighting for abortion rights
we should be fighting for
adoption rights. More baby
girls are aborted than baby
boys. Does that sound like
women's rights to you? I
realize that the adoption laws
can be discriminatory against
LGBT couples and single
persons in several states. But
Orange Is the Warmest
Color
Thank you so much for fea~
turing my favorite show ever
on the cover of Curve!As a
woman who has a partner who
was incarcerated for a white
collar "crime" I understand the
behind~closed~doors drama
that this excellent and very
queer show portrays well.
Thanks for a great article, and
all the other excellent articles
in the Pride issue, too.
-Cindy Stolman, Panama City
Beach,Fla.
Posts from our Facebook fans
·· ···· ······· · ·· · ·····facebook.com/curvemag
••
Orange Is The New Black Is Back!
Yeow!!!! -Wendy Johnson
Can't wait for new series
-Dani Crumb
Orange is the new L Word!
- Tori Lawrence
0mg she is gorgeous ....fakk.
never thought of her much
when she was a red head on
that '70s show. Damn
-Vanessa Snow
Shes gorgeous with darker
hair. -Nita Mc
I just watched the rest of
the first season last night!!
When is it coming back?! I'm
obsessed! -Heather Simms
I have not seen it at all. I
MUST get into it.
-/fa Halima Bumi
Great show!!
-Karen Zadworny
maybe instead of spending
thousands of dollars for arti~
ficial insemination the LGBT
couples could relocate to a
Crazy Eyes!!!!! I've missed
you!!!!! -Rosemary
Unconditional/
Where are Alex's glasses?
She looks like a hot librarian
or something. Grrrrrr
-Amanda Michelle Spears
Hot hot hot -Wendy Johnson
Glad I'm a subscriber ...YAY!!!
Taylor -Lauren Wilson
I love orange ..and black
..and lesbian weddings ..
-Gire/ea Andy
OMG I love that show its so
funny and amazingly cool
-Gary Miner
Gods, I LOVETHESE TWO!!
-Ronnie Abernathy
I DIED. -Leigh Loffe/1Dawson
state with LGBT adoption. It
may not be the ideal solution
but they'd have a new baby.
- Kathy Apker, Eugene, Ore
WHICH
RECENT
CELESBIAN'S
COMING
OUT
SHOCKED
YOU
THE
MOST?
8%
Crystal
Bowersox
11%
Michelle
Rodriguez
14%
Robin
Roberts
WRITE
Curve magazine, PO Box 467, New York, NY 10034
letters@curvemagazine.com
LISI 510.380.7487
curvemag.com/letters
Send to:
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JULY/AUGUST
Online:
2014
Subscriber Services are now available at
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subscribe
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TRENDS/
BEAU
Sun Kissed
GOLDEN HUESAND METALLICSHIMMER MAKE THIS
SUMMER'SBEAUTYTRENDSSIZZLE. BY RACHEL SHATTO
Summer Shimmc1•
Beachy bronzes and warm sugar tones make Bobbi Brown's
Raw Sugar Shimmer Brick Eye Palette the must-have
for summer glamour. Featuring 10 richly pigmented,
pearlescent colors, this palette is inspired by sandy beaches
and summer bronzed skin, and is ideal for any complexion.
($49, bobbibrowncosmetics.com)
Take Jlc ~\wa~·Tote
Treat yourself, head-to-toe, to a day at the beach right at
home, with Lush's Beach Box. Complete with Ocean Salt face
and body scrub, Sea Vegetable soap, Seanik shampoo bar,
Dream Cream hand and body lotion, and Sea Spray hair mist,
this set has everything you need for a quick coastal-inspired
staycation. ($30, lushusa.com)
n1·onzc nombshcll
Get the summer sun-kissed glow
without the summer sun damage
with Stila's stunning Sun Gel. This
ultra-sheer bronzer glides on smoothly
and leaves skin golden, moisturized,
and ready to hit the beach. ($24,
stilacosmetics.com)
\ nright Idea
For a subtle healthy glow, Nars' llluminator in
the oh-so-summery shade of Hot Sand will
capture the light and give leave your face
looking subtly sun-kissed. It can be used as a
highlighter to make cheekbones pop or add a
little to your favorite tinted moisturizer for an all
over glow. ($30, narscosmetics.com)
Protection Pc1·1cction
Everyone knows the best beauty
secret is sunscreen and Benefit's
Dream Screen really is a dream
come true, for your face. This
invisible, broad spectrum SPF 45
sunscreen absorbs instantly, won't
compete with other cosmetics and
leaves skin matte and moisturized.
($32, benefitcosmetics.com)
Lcgcndm•~· Lips
Golden glam meets luscious
lips with Smashbox's
Santigolden Age Lipstick Ring.
Inspired by artist Santigold,
this snakeskin and Swarovski
ring contains a hidden, limited
edition shade of Be Legendary
Lipstick inside. Perfect for
quick post make-out touch
ups. ($49, smashbox.com)
Last Resort
Make your manicure pop with
Essie nail color in Resort Fling.
This peachy coral hue is flirty,
warm and free-just like summer
should be. ($9, essie.com)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
9
NDS/
p
%
THE GAYDAR
THEGAYDAR
Takes one to know one? Let our gaydar help
you decide who's hot, who's not, who's
shaking it and who's faking 1tin lesboland.
BY RACHEL SHATTO
Think Glenn Beck can't sound
more idiotic? Check out his
latest gem: "I'm telling you,
Hillary Clinton will be having
sex with a woman on the, on
the White House desk if It
becomes popular."
Be still our hearts,
Cameron Diaz
confesses to
WWHL that she
has been with a
lady!
In rumors-that-neverdie news, the Internet
once again proclaims
Kristen Stewart
a lezzie. Well, the
Internet says it sooo ...
welcome to the lady
pond, K-Stew
The Real L Word star
appears on the news web
series The Point sans her
trademark do. RIP Whitney
Mixter's dreads-shorn but
never forgotten
WTF?Naya
Rivera has
been booted
from the
season five
finale of Glee.
If Santana
isn't back for
season six,
we riot
Are you as excited to
see Kathy Bates play
a lesbian in Tammy
as we are? Yep,
thought so
As if we weren't
already excited
enough about
season two
of Masters of
Sex, Sarah
Silverman
signs on to
play Betty's
girlfriend!
_J
k.d.lang
reignites our
crush with her
hilarious guest
starring role on
the season finale
of Portlandia
Out funny lady
(and the best
part of SNl) Kate
McKinnon is
rightfully named
Best Supporting
Actress on a
Television Series
at the American
Comedy Awards
Congratulations to
Jodie Foster and
Alexandra Hedison
who are officially
gay married ladies!
The Voice does it
again, we've tried
to quit this annual
heartbreaker but they
always pull us back in
with a new lezzie to
root for. This time
it's the fabulous
Kristin Merlin
10
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
In greatest-thingever news: Out
producer Megan
Ellison is bringing
the lesbian liaison
between Greta
Garbo and Marlene
Dietrich to TV. We're
jumping up and
down in anticipation
of this Sapphic silver
screen flashback
Queen Latifah
is set to play the
iconic bisexual
songstress Bessie
Smith in a film by
out director Dee
Rees. She's just
messing with us
now, right?
get you rs today.
curvemag.com
Want to see your pet here? We'd love to meet them, too.
Visit curvemag.com/satisfied for details.
NDStGOSSIP
p
LESBOFILE
-
Ellen talks coming out, Cameron's Sapphic
confession, and 1sMichelle single?
BY JOCELYN VOO
Turning The Page
topless makeouts during beach vacations. I
She may be a celebrity, but the trials of
mean, seriously, I ate up every bit of gossip
coming out hold the same sentiment for
on them because they clearly weren't hid-
any closeted person: "I was carrying a
ing their affections.
tremendous amount of shame and guilt for
not being out," actor Ellen Page told Ellen
But at least one outlet has its doubts on
whether or not they're still romantically
DeGeneres. "I felt isolated from the LGBT
linked. Celeb Dirty Laundry speculates that,
community and now I don't."
"people have been saying that Michelle's
The X-Men star, who came out in
February in a bold address at the Human
Rights Campaign's "Right to Thrive" con-
really into their relationship. However, the
same may not necessarily be true of Cara."
On top of potential emotional distance,
ference benefitting LGBTyouth, has found
geographical space also has been separat-
her stride since then. "I knew that I would
ing them: while Rodriguez was Stateside,
be a happier person," she explains of her
Delevingne has been working abroad.
decision to put her sexuality on the record.
Although it's unclear what their status is
"I knew that I was going to feel better, but
(and it's true, we haven't heard much about
Crushing In Cannes
I did not anticipate just how happy I would
them in awhile), they'll always hold court as
Adding one more notch on her belt for her
feel in every aspect of my life, just an ease
one of my favorite pairs.
stellar performance in Blue /s the Warmest
Welcome to the L-List
two actors presented with the Trophee
and a comfort and it has really been quite
extraordinary to feel the shift. It was really
overnight, too."
Standing ovation for this one. Bravo,
Page, bravo.
Looks like actor Cameron Diaz, queen of
Chopard, an award given to promising
the heterosexual rom-com and ex-girl-
young talent at the Cannes Film Festival.
friend to "It" men in their own rights Justin
Is It Over?
Color, Adele Exarchopoulos was one of
Guest of honor Cate Blanchett joked,
Timberlake and Alex Rodriguez, may not be
"I have an inappropriate crush on both
so straight and narrow after all! In an inter-
of them," referring to Exarchopoulos and
Be still my heart: My hands-down favorite
view with Andy Cohen on his Bravo TV talk
The Perks of Being a Wallflower's Logan
lady couple of the last few months was
show, Diaz was faced with the ever-popular
Lehrman, the other award recipient.
actor Michelle Rodriguez and supermod-
question of whether she'd ever been with a
el Cara Delevingne, based primarily on
lady-to which she replied affirmative.
you have a crush on me," Exarchopoulos
their cavalier, D.G.A.F.attitudes towards
"More than once?" Cohen asked.
replied when she accepted the award. "I
what anybody thought about their antics.
"You didn't ask explicitly how I was with
have a crush on you, too."
Paparazzi, who? Drunken makeouts while
a lady, but I have been with a lady," Diaz
courtside at high-profile basketball games,
replied.Hollywood stars-they're just like us!
12
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
And the feeling was mutual: "I am happy
Oh, if only it were more than just a little
girl talk between friends.•
TRENDS/
z
:5
I
0
:5
0
....I
....I
:i:
<(
"People are
always interested
in how people bend. I've
never shied away from it. I
mean, I'm pretty straight. Let
me just put it this way: I've never
had sex with a woman. I haven't.
I've made out with more than
one woman, but it just sort
of happened."-Sarah
McLachlan to Pride
Source
SHEs
st
r•II
PROFILE
Chas (CD) Kirven
Dallas» LGBTRights
It's hard to know when Chas (CD) Kirven
sleeps. Energetic and tireless in her fight
against discrimination, she's been getting
the message out since she was 16 and
spray-painted "Fuck the Police-Free
Rodney
King" on the side of the new green Cutlass
I
her dad had just given her. "He took away
the Cutlass," recalls Kirven, "but I remember
feeling so empowered because I took a stand
against injustice."
A nationally recognized artist, drag king
every year to activism in her hometown of
Dallas and around the country. Three years
ago, you would have found her in jail in
Washington, D.C., after she was arrested at
then Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's
office, along with three other lesbian Get
Equal activists who were demanding an
affirmative vote on ENDA.
Two years later, Kirven took on a fundraising campaign for Youth First Texas and
collected over $2,000 for Crime Stoppers for
the arrest and capture of the attackers who
shot lesbian couple Mollie Judith Olgin and
Mary Kristene Chapa. And more recently, she
THE
JERUSA
teamed up with the League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC), the Gay Rodeo
Association, Resource Center Dallas, and
the Urban League of Dallas to put together
"I'm a woman, I'm an African American, and
I'm gay," says Kirven. "I'm doing this because
it impacts my life to a degree that I had to take
action. I just felt like I should be an African
American out there fighting for gay rights, so
that Hispanic and African American kids could
think, The gay rights movement looks like me."
-Sheryl Kay
14
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
young woman had left the Pride event, a man who
first offered to give her directions then took her to a
nearby graveyard and raped her. The man has been
arrested. Activists say that the young woman was
targeted because of her sexual orientation.
to step down as coordinator o
social m1n1stnesthat provide f
to the hungry at St Francis Xa
Catholic Church 1nKansas Cit
Mo, when church leaders lear
she was married to a wo
Colleen's work was profil
Kansas City Star, which 1n
1nformat1onabout her w1f
Rev Donna Sim
Hope and Peace L
The freelance Jour
the piece hadn't 1n
the couple Callee
told her employer
but avoided using
finds the time to devote hundreds of hours
Movement called Cowboys for HIV Awareness.
MISSED
IT ...
COLLEEN
SIMON
WAS
FORCEDattendance
(aka Jamie Fauxx), and filmmaker, Kirven still
a program for the Dallas/Fort Worth Pride
IN:bAu~•~
I
Court has found
Klonsky damaged the l1vel1hood
Nur1t Melamed, a dance instruct
when he publ1c1zedher sexual
orientation The Rabbi had sent a
letter to the community saying that
Melamed was a lesbian and telling
people to stay away After the
at classes plummeted
Rabbi Klonsky must apologize and
pay 60,000 shekels ($17,300) to
compensate her
DOLL,
KITTEN,
AND
BRYNN,
three lesbians 1nMassachusetts
who made headlines last year
with their marriage ceremony are
expecting their first child Although
three people aren't able to legally
marry 1nany state, the women
have worked with lawyers to draw
up paperwork that connects them
and their assets. Kitten 1scurrently
six months pregnant with the
throuple's first child
~~::~::~~':,:h
~~~a:~~;:,~tal
LOFRENCH
lesbian was kidnapped at gunpoint
1nMay by her devout Muslim
relatives who were opposed to
her "lifestyle" The woman had
fled her home to live with a friend
across the country after her family
tried to force her into an arranged
marriage The woman's friend
witnessed her abduction and
;:;,~~e~~~,~~:d
the car
POLITICS
»
ADVICE
»
COMMUNITY»
POLITICS»
Coming Out, Going
Looking for lesbians at the movies.
BY VICTORIA
CURVE
on Screen
A. BROWNWORTH
The morning I began writing this, a friend in the U.K. tweeted
that her local library refused to post a flyer about an upcoming
lesbian film festival. It was, the library told her, too controversial.
I was stunned. It is, after all, 2014, and marriage equality is
legal in England and Wales and soon will be in Scotland. It was
only a flyer. No one was asking to show lesbian erotica in the chil~
dren's section.
And yet, I could also understand why the library might be
concerned. The pornification of lesbianism in film was codified
decades ago. Watching two beautiful women have sex together
has long been a straight man's fantasy. But that faux depiction of
lesbianism as something for men-featuring
lesbians replete with
long lacquered nails and flicking tongues-has
now infiltrated
16
()razy
JULY/AUGUST
2014
mainstream films, even films directed by women. Extricating our~
selves from the male POV has proven to be a difficult task. Films
in which we can see ourselves-our
true lesbian selves-are still
very much a work in progress.
Before I knew I was a lesbian, I fell in love with women on the
big screen. Since then, I've taught and written about film, even
co~authored a book, Film Fatales(with filmmaker Judith M. Red~
ding), on women and film. For me, the movies and lesbianism are
inextricably connected, which makes my desire to see films told
from our point of view all the more pressing-and
tantalizing.
Yet if the films that tell lesbian stories via the female gaze have
been few, even fewer have been those that tell our stories without
conflicting tropes: the woman might be bisexual, not lesbian; a
VIEWS/POLI
decades ago. What I want to see is lesbians
who look not just like lesbians, but like us,
living our real, non-psychotic, non-sleeping-with-men lives. Watching The Kids
Are All Right was like watching Personal
Best with the women grown to adulthood.
The outcome was the same, despite the
30 years between the two films. Society's
criteria for inclusion had not expanded
and cinematic depictions of us had not
improved.
No lesbian film has created more controversy than last year's winner of the
Palme d'Or at Cannes, Abdellatif Kechiche's
lesbian romance, Blue Is the Warmest Color.
The graphic, extended sex scenes, shown
Art, Lost and Delirious,The Edgeof Heaven, without background music, created quite
and Mulholland Drive, but assimilationism
a stir-but
the film also got a standing
ovation from the Cannes audience, and the
also churned out some frothy lesbian romances: Imagine Me & You, Kissing]essica jury, led by Steven Spielberg, was adamant
that it was indeed the best film, not just
Stein, and I Can't Think Straight.
There have been more lesbian-themed
the most daring. The jury gave the award
to the director and to the film's two stars.
films since 2007 than in the 30 years prior,
but mainstream depictions of real-life
And for all the controversy, including
complaints about the director from the
lesbianism remain maddeningly elusive.
two lead actors, Blue was a sincere and solAnd they're still almost always telling one
id evocation of a realistic, if heartbreaking,
of two stories: Coming Out or The Crazy
lesbian love affair-a film that belongs on
Lesbian.
I remember my anticipation of The the plus side of the lesbian cinematic canon,
Kids Are All Right (2010), with its two
not in the discard pile.
Stacie Passon's Concussion was anothOscar-winning actors as leads and a lesbian
er impressively compelling film from last
director. The buzz was so intense. And
year, even though it again tells a story of
then the film itself slapped me hard, not
The Crazy Lesbian, in this instance a
only with an incomprehensible liaison between one of the lesbian characters and a 40-something woman who begins living a
double life as a lesbian prostitute after an
man, but with concomitant and seemingly
accident makes her realize how much is
endless scenes of heterosexual sex and no
lacking in her relationship with her wife.
lesbian sex scenes. My disappointment
But Contracted, also released last year,
was immense.
gives us a vile scenario of lesbianism, rape,
Finally, here was a mainstream lesbian
and infection that epitomizes all that can
film not about coming out or psychosis,
go wrong when men write lesbianism for
and starring two superb middle-aged
the screen.
actors a breath away from 50-yet, the
One of the ironies of the assimilation of
story was really about the dissolution of
lesbians into straight culture is that mainlesbianism, its slapped-together ending
stream films about us are becoming fewer
notwithstanding.
and fewer.
Meanwhile, that same year, Natalie
I've been a judge at Q Fest, the PhiladelPortman won the Oscar for Best Actress
phia International Gay and Lesbian Film
for her role as a deranged ballerina, NinaFestival, for years. Lesbian films that will
one of the most pathological lesbian charget distribution to theaters are becoming
acters in years-in
Darren Aronofsky's
more rare, not more plentiful. Searching
Black Swan. While, from a fetishistic perNedlix or the indie circuit for new lesspective, the scenes with Mila Kunis were
bian films reveals that, for the most part,
super-sexy, overall, Black Swan was an
the same two themes prevail: coming out
extremely dark presentation of a mentally
ill lesbian.
and psychosis.
Yet it's on that indie circuit that the
None of these women were any more
familiar to me than the on-screen lesbians of
best lesbian films are still to be found.
lesbian is often depicted as deeply, irreparably damaged-even
psychotic.
For decades, the pathologizing of lesbianism has been a dominant theme in
mainstream cinema. The 1960s presented
the oppressive lesbianism of The Fox, The
Killing of Sister George,and The Children's
Hour. The 1970s eroticized the killer
lesbian in a dozen vampire films. The
1980s turned lesbians into actual killers
in Windows and The Hunger, while the
1990s continued the trend with Heavenly
Creatures,Bound, Sister My Sister, and, of
course, Basic Instinct.
In the 2000s, the murderous or suicidal
or drug-addicted lesbian appeared in High
The majority of them are foreign, like Blue.
Stunning films like the 2011 Sundance
winner, Maryam Keshavarz's Circumstance,about young lesbians in the antigay
environment of Iran (the film was banned
in Iran and Keshavarz has been barred
from returning to her native country), or
Indian filmmaker Deepa Mehta's lush and
emotionally wrenching Fire, or Baltasar
Kormakur's complex and brooding 101
Reykjavik, situate lesbians of various ages
within the larger context of the milieu in
which they live-and the conflicts those
milieus create.
Black U.K. genderqueer director CampbellX's new film, Stud Life, broadens
the depictions of lesbians still further as
gender and lifestyle blur. CampbellX describes her film as "a postmodern LGBT
She'sGotta Have It for the YouTube generation;' and says her film deals with sex and
sexuality and taboo subjects in the queer
community.
CampbellX's film and Dee Rees's Pariah,
which tells the story of a 17 -year-old African American lesbian as she navigates life
in her Brooklyn neighborhood, are films in
which the director tells a story she knows:
The verisimilitude feels rich and full, and
the films, like the foreign films noted
above, are immensely satisfying for the
lesbian viewer, even if the endings are not
necessarily "happy:'
In a recent interview, the lesbian mystery writer Katherine V. Forrest told me
that our lesbian literature is still very
young and we have many stories yet to tell,
but we have barely gotten through coming
out as a subgenre of LGBT literature.
The same is obviously true of filmthere is so much more to us than coming
out and psychosis, more than 20-somethings and fluffy romances. But who will
tell those stories, and how will we get to
see them, when even some libraries are still
discomfited by the very idea of us on film?
Our hunger for representation has been
there for decades, with each new generation of lesbians searching for any films in
which we appear. Yet even iconic films like
Desert Hearts seem so singular. The canon
of lesbian films remains very incomplete.
We ache for more and better images of
ourselves-portrayals
in which we grow
up and out and don't go nuts or end up in
bed with men or wielding a weapon. We
are still waiting for those films to be made.
For how much longer? •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
17
T
heir music is reminiscent of
walking through golden fields with
your lover, warm sunlight on your
shoulders. Their voices mix and flow, creating a harmony that resonates. They are
The Lovebirds, an incredible folk/pop duo,
and their third album, Breakup Shmakeup,
is out this summer.
Falling somewhere on the female
duo scale between The Indigo Girls and
Tegan and Sara, The Lovebirds consist of
award-winning songwriters Lindsay White
and Veronica May. Once an inseparable couple (Lindsay and Veronica were
featured in The "Two of Us" two years
ago), The Lovebirds' Breakup Shmakeup
chronicles the experience of ending their
WHEN
WELAST
INTERVIEWED
YOU,
YOU
WERE
VERY
MUCH
TOGETHER.
WHEN
DID
YOU
REALIZE
YOUR
RELATIONSHIP
WAS
ONTHEROCKS?
anniversary, we had a long, late-night,
brutally honest talk about how we were no
longer fulfilling each other's relationship
needs, but how we both kept trying
LINDSAY:There was never one particular
because we couldn't imagine our lives
epiphany. Coming back to some state of
without making music together. We decided
normalcy after Veronica's hospitalization in
that breaking up would be the best way to
2011 proved to be very challenging for both
relieve the pressure and salvage the great
of us, but we just kept trying to make it work
things about our partnership.
for the next couple of years because there
VERONICA: It was a fizzle really...we were
was still so much love there.
lying in bed and it was really late ...probably
VERONICA:There was never a specific "on
3 A.M. I looked over at Lindsay and she was
the rocks" moment. In 20111 had another
staring at the ceiling. I said, "Is everything
big manic episode that put me out of
OK?" and she looked over at me and without
commission for a year. The mental illness
saying a word a voice in my head said, "We
piece definitely played a part but there was
are breaking up right now." I think we both
no one thing. We really wanted to make
kind of saw it coming but didn't want to lose
their musical partnership. We decided to
it work because the love has always been
The Lovebirds so we would have rather just
revisit the pair post-split and discover how
there. It was just time.
toughed it out to keep this special bond of
HOW
DID
YOU
ULTIMATELY
BREAK
UP?
got together there was music and we were
LINDSAY:About a week after our third
and are willing to always fight for it.
romantic relationship in order to preserve
they managed to do well what so many
of us do badly, and how they continue to
make beautiful music together.
18
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
music we had always shared. Before we ever
VIEWS/
TOGETHER
TOWORK
CONTINUED
YOU
YOU
DID
HOW
GOING.
BAND
THE
KEEP
AND
THAT?
ACCOMPLISH
LINDSAY: The breakup was one of the
hardest pills for me to swallow because I
truly believed Veronica was my soul mate.
It felt like I had lost my life and my purpose
but still had to figure out how to live without
had to step it up in the communication
department. I'd say the biggest hurdle was
moving through the process of dating other
though. We show up on time and we don't
people. It took a lot of communication and
respect. We've gotten so much better at
tears before but those raw emotions are a
speaking our mind, hearing each other out,
and respecting each other's feelings and
easy and it felt really good.
opinions. At the end of the day, we want
each other to be happy so again, it's all
GOING
LESBIANS
FOR
ADVICE
YOUR
WHAT'S
ABREAKUP?
THROUGH
her-that's what the song "Whiplash" is
about. Processing those emotions at the
about keeping a bigger perspective.
time was hard because we were still playing
VERONICA: Rock, Paper, Scissor.
shows together. I focused on allowing
myself to feel whatever I was feeling in the
TWO OF
LOVES?
NEW
HAVE
BOTH
YOU
DO
cancel last minute so we did what we had
to. Both have us have had to sing through
distant memory. The writing part was very
LINDSAY: Um, start a band-everything
will
be just fine! But seriously, I think it depends
on the couple's goals. If there's something
worth salvaging, look to that as your clarity
appropriate time and place. I focused on
letting go of control and on accepting the
LINDSAY: My partner Audrie has my heart
Universe's greater plan for us. And most
of all, I focused on the bigger picture of
now, and we're making a happy little life
much pain or resentment and you need to
together. I feel so lucky to be with someone
so loving, secure and supportive about our
take space until time does its thing. There
whole whacky situation. Veronica's partner
Mandi has also been such a trooper to
to call each other-we
keeping our music alive and intact. In many
ways our music was like the child of our
divorce, and we did everything in our power
to protect it from getting hurt. Another
important piece to the equation was a sense
of humor. If we weren't able to laugh at
the absurdity of our situation, we wouldn't
have been able to get through it. Hence the
come into this whole thing without really
knowing a lot of the backstory, but still
showing Veronica so much love and being
supportive of our band. As for V and I, I'm so
in the dark times. Sometimes there's just too
was about a week where we decided not
needed to create
a boundary where we could grieve the
loss and learn how to be OK on our own.
Allow yourself to feel your emotions in an
appropriate place. Vent to a friend, not to
your ex. Honor your emotions by sitting
album title Breakup Shmakeup.
grateful that we were able to "stay together"
through our shared passion for music, and
that's more than enough for me.
VERONICA: The music has always saved us.
friends. It hurts a lot to do it this way, but
VERONICA: Both of us are in good
you'll move through it faster. Also, listen to
relationships and are very happy. Lindsay is
with a wonderful person who treats her with
our new album-that
Even during the darkest hours when I was
in a full manic state, the music served as
some sort of anchor. I feel like if I lost The
Lovebirds I would be losing one of my life's
biggest purposes. Lindsay and I were meant
respect and is rock solid. Someone who can
take care of her too.
to share our music.
A
BUT
BEBAD.
CAN
BREAKUPS
LESBIAN
OFYOURS!
OUT
CAME
ALBUM
NEW
WHOLE
CHANGED WAS
ACOUPLE
BEING
NOT
HAS
HOW
AND
SONGS
THOSE
TOWRITE
ITHARD
MUSIC?
TOMAKING
APPROACH
YOUR
THEM?
PERFORM
LINDSAY: We don't see each other as
much since we no longer live together.
Much of our latest album (except for the
song "Echo") was written separately then
arranged together. We're currently in the
process of making dedicated writing time,
which I am excited about since I find such
joy in writing with V.
VERONICA: I feel like it has actually gotten
easier to create and perform music now that
we are no longer in a relationship. We get
on the stage with clean slates and a clear
purpose.
CONFLICTS
RESOLVE
YOU
DO
HOW
WERE
YOU
TOWHEN
NOW
DIFFERENTLY
INVOLVED?
ROMANTICALLY
LINDSAY: We were never the best
communicators when we were a couple-I
think we were always afraid of hurting each
other's feelings. Since the breakup, we really
LINDSAY: Writing the songs came easily
and naturally, but performing them was
definitely a challenge in the beginning. I
probably cried during "Boat Train" the first
20 times we performed it. Sometimes I can
still get a little choked up out of nowhere,
but now those tears are tears of
gratitude. As time passes it becomes
with them and acknowledging them in a
safe environment by yourself or with trusted
will help.
VERONICA: Be mature and play nice. It
seems when relationships end we forget
why we were with that person. I find it
silly that this person becomes our best
friend, our confidant, our love, our family
and then when something goes sour they
become our worst enemy, the person we
speak ill of, the person we hate most. Every
relationship I have ever had has served a
wonderful purpose and they all happened
for a reason. I learned new things from each
one. Even if you can't remain friends, there
is a certain respect that should be there.
(thelovebirds.com) •
easier for those songs to transition
from personal property to public
property, which is where they are the
most useful to listeners. As a whole,
I think the process of writing and
recording the album was what helped
us stay focused on our common goal.
Music saves the day yet again!
VERONICA: At first it was very difficult.
We had a show less than a week after
our breakup and it was probably
the hardest show I have ever had to
do. Lindsay and I are professionals
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
19
st
LIPSTICK+DI
PSTICK
Up Close and
Personal
Lipstick: Dipstick, you goof,
Online chatting turns into spicy erotica.
she didn't want writing tips,
BY LIPSTICK & DIPSTICK
she wanted relationship tips.
Filthy Frenchy, have you met
this woman, or seen her on
Skype? Do you want this to
Dear Lipstick and Dipstick: I recently
came out of a seven-year partnership and
am taking baby steps into the on line dating
world via Curve Personals. I started texting
with a woman a month ago, and now we
are writing erotica. I think this is a fun way
to engage and add some spice. Any tips,
or warnings? What things would you look
for?-Filthy French Maid
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Dipstick: You go, Girl! While
''
lot of erotica.
potentially turn into something more? If so, I've got a
big warning for you: Make sure
she's for real, and not some
greasy, toothless dude in his
grandma's basement. Or a
married straight woman who
will break your heart into a
million pieces. If your feelings
are even slightly involved, you
need to break through this
smoky, riding-crop-fantasy
looking glass as soon as pos-
Remember, the crux of erotica
sible. We've heard from lots of
I~YOU'R[
JUST
INTO
TH[TH
Rill
0~[ROTICA,
HAVt
ATIT,SIST[R!
AND
THtN
COM[
HtRtAND
B[ND
OV[R,
SOI CAN
SPANK
YOU.
''
I wouldn't call it taking baby
is the story. Build the tension
women who've blindly fallen
steps when you're texting
and don't leap straight to
in love with someone online,
erotica to a woman you've
the sex. Weave in a plot twist
and when they finally meet
here and bend over, so I can
never met, I do appreciate
before giving the reader what
face to face, it's a big scary
spank you.
at it, Sister! And then come
your aplomb. I've got a few
she wants. Surprise is sexy.
disappointment.
tips for you: Don't forget
And don't forget your sense of
umentary Catfish. If you're just
Dear Lipstick and Dipstick:
character development.
humor. I find that missing in a
into the thrill of erotica, have
I'm stuck in a tough situation.
20
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
Rent the doc-
Months ago, my girlfriend Caron and
of the pyramid! Trust me when I say that
I planned and booked a 10-day trip to
the resentments will only build. You need
Egypt. We were so excited to have our
to be clear and tell Caron what you need
first trip together and were planning lots
without worrying about how this is going
of romantic things to do-a sailboat on
to make her feel. You're absolutely right
the Nile, exploring the pyramids-just
when you say she's putting someone
for the two of us. Caron is not out to
else's feelings first. I don't know if this
her coworkers and one of them, Sheila,
vacation or this relationship can be saved.
suddenly decided to book a room at this
Lipstick, what do you think?
resort for the same days we will be there.
We will even be on the same flights. I was
Lipstick: I think my blood is boiling,
very upset when I found this out. Sheila is
Dip. This is outrageous. Third Wheel, I'm
assuming the three of us will be hanging
glad you wrote to us, because you're not
out together every day, as friends, and
overreacting at all-in
Caron is kind of endorsing this idea by not
more reactive. Is an ultimatum appropri-
telling her otherwise. It also means we
ate? Hell yes! An ultimatum is not always
have to pretend to be straight all the time.
a bad thing, especially in a situation like
So much for a romantic vacation! Caron is
yours. It's gotten a bad rap. An ultimatum
fact, you must be
a people-pleaser and can't say no. I made
is you simply drawing a line in the sand
the obvious suggestions-ask Sheila to
about how you're willing to live your life.
bring a friend with her, or just come right
And that is a very good thing-you
out and tell her that we're gay and that we
live in a closet any longer. It's clear to
won't
can't spend much time with her because
me that your girlfriend isn't just lying
this is a romantic trip for the two of us.
to Sheila-she
But she won't do or say anything-except
you either. Sheila just happens to book
complain to me about how upset she is.
a trip to the same place, on the same
I am extremely frustrated and sad that
flights, during your romantic trip, and
isn't being honest with
Caron seems to be more worried about
it's a coincidence? If I were you, here's
Sheila getting hurt, or finding out we are
the bottom line: Caron gets a frickin'
gay, than she is about our relationship. I
backbone or you're out. This backbone
don't want to start making ultimatums,
includes coming clean about who you are
but I am close to it. How do I handle this
and who she is. There is no other solution.
situation? Am I just overreacting? Sheila
Give Caron a deadline, sometime before
is extremely needy and clingy, and I
your trip is nonrefundable.
know she won't be able to spend a
out to Sheila, this will kill all the buzzards
If she comes
moment alone. I'm sure she'll even try
circling your relationship with one stone.
to stay in the same room with us. I don't
Whether Sheila is needy or not, you'll be
even want to go anymore. Thank you for
able to look her in the eye and say, "Get
any advice you can give me.-Third Wheel
out, we need alone time," and she'll have
in My Own Life
the right expectations for her own vacation. Dip's suggestion about Codependent
Dipstick: TW, this is bad. And not just a
No More is a great one, too. Love this
little bit. This is a grave sign for your rela-
book. Everyone in the world should read
tionship. I can't decide which one of you
it, as Beattie's insight blows the lid off a
is more codependent-neither
whole bunch of unnecessary suffering.
is willing to
stand up for what you truly want, for fear
You're going to get a terrified tantrum
of how someone else might react. Go to
from Caron, but she'll thank you later. I've
the store immediately and pick up a copy
got my fingers crossed
of the classic Codependent No More by
that she picks you over
Melody Beattie. Caron is so worried about
the choking fear!•
how someone else might react that she
is willing to sacrifice her own happiness.
Do you have a burning
And you are so afraid of rocking the boat
question for Lipstick
with Caron that you are not speaking up
& Dipstick? Write to
for yourself. This vacation is just the tip
ask@Ii pstickd i pstick.com
The Kids Are Not All Right
Why we must foster positive career identity in our queer youth.
BY SHERRY PLATT BERMAN AND JOY READ
W
hen you were growing up, did you dream of all the
things you could become? Or did you suppress your
deepest desires for fear of not having those dreams
come true? Did you see yourself in a business suit as
the CEO of a company? An attorney standing before the jury? A
senator voting in Congress? A professor or a minister or a doctor?
An author? A filmmaker?
To have professional success, healthy career growth, and abun~
dant financial well~being, you must have two key elements in your
life. One is dreaming-imagining,
exploring your options for the
future. The other is support-positive
reinforcement, acceptance,
and mentorship from the adults that surround you. Leadership
skills, personal achievement, confidence and assertiveness, all are
influenced by your childhood and adolescent experiences. Paren~
tal support, community involvement, positive interaction with
peers all create the launching pad to a positive relationship with
work and financial independence for the rest of your life.
Here is a story about Simple Simon-a parable of sorts, about
an uncomplicated man who repeatedly saves his village from
22
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
catastrophe, only to be told that he can't. The town floods, and
Simple Simon pushes back the waters with his hands, until
someone tells him, "Simon, you can't do that-it's
impossible:•
And Simon says, "Oh, it is?" Then he drops his hands, and the
destructive waters rush forth. A huge boulder dislodges from a
mountain and rushes toward the town hall where all the citizens
are gathered, and Simon runs up the hill and holds it back-until,
once again, someone says, "Simon, you can't do that-it's impos~
sible:' And, once again, Simon says, "Oh, it is?" And he drops his
hands and the boulder rushes forward and brings destruction.
Like Simon, many LGBT youth are full of talents and inno~
cence, brilliance and gifts, dreams and hope, until the rest of the
world steps in and tells them they are wrong. They are not good
or strong enough, not capable. Our LGBT youth face all the same
stressors that straight teens experience, with the additional chal~
lenges of prejudice and heterosexist bias in the schools.
When our LGBT youth are not supported by family, educa~
tors, and community, not accepted for who they are, not given
the same opportunities for personal growth and development as
VIEWS/AD
OUR
lGBT
YOUTH
~ACt
All THtSAMt
STRtSSORS
THAT
STRAIGHT
TttNS
tXPtRltNCt,
WITH
THt
ADDITIONAl
CHAlltNGtS
0~PRrJUDICt
AND
HtTtROStXIST
BIAS
INTHtSCHOOlS.
the other kids, they miss the two primary
elements necessary to become confident
leaders who can accomplish their dreams
and have meaningful, lucrative careers.
Research studies show that LGBT
adults live in poverty at much higher rates
than heterosexuals do. The anti~discrimi~
nation bill (ENDA) that ends workplace
prejudice against LGBTs has been before
Congress since the 1990s and has never
passed. According to a recent poll pub~
lished by the Human Rights Campaign,
53 percent of LGBT employees remain
closeted at work; and, according to a
recent report from CNN, one in four
LGBT respondents continue to hear offen~
sive comments in the workplace. About
35 percent of LGBT employees say they
actively lie about their personal lives.
These statistics reinforce the messages
our LGBT youth are receiving-that
the
world of work is a limiting and hostile
environment. What messages did you get?
Have you met a fate similar to Simple Si~
mon's? Did you get a chance to dream of a
life filled with opportunity? Are you living
the life you want to live? Did you pick a
career from scarcity instead of abundance?
Are you performing to your full potential?
Are you a leader in your field?
ABOUT
THE
AUTHORS
The answers to these questions begin
with dreaming.
If not for the realized dreams of LGBT
teens, we would not have been dazzled by
their achievements as adults, when they
became our heroes. What if Oscar Wilde
had given up and seen himself as worth~
less? What if Gertrude Stein had decided
she'd make a better baker or seamstress
than a visionary and writer? What if Billie
Jean King had believed she'd never be any~
thing more than a ball girl on the tennis
court?
The parable of Simple Simon does not
have a happy ending-the
boulder kills
him in its destructive path-but
at his
own funeral he sits up, alive and well, only
to be told once again he can't do that, it's
impossible; so he lies back down and dies.
How many of our LGBT youth meet the
same symbolic fate, eventually giving up
their dreams, not striving to excel. Con~
sider the talent that is lost when positive
career identity among LGBT youth is not
fostered. What potential doctors will not
take the path to healing? What inventions
will not come forth because we as a com~
munity did not step forth to help our chil~
dren dream and explore?
LGBT youth can be given a completely
Sherry Platt Berman, MA, is a career
and employment counselor specializing
in LGBT professional development.
(lavendercareers.com)
(careerwisdomei nstitute.com)
different world of opportunity, broader
and with far fewer limitations, provided
they are able to hear the voices of those
telling them what is possible instead of
what is not, provided they are shown that
we believe in them and support them, as
any parent or mentor should. And we,
too, as adults, can experience a different
outcome; at any time along our own path,
we can stop and look back at all that we
have let go of or shut away, and decide that
we can believe in ourselves, as well. All of
us should be pushed and encouraged to
dream, and should encourage one another.
If there are LGBT teens in your life,
be sure to foster and mentor them. Many
LGBT programs in cities throughout the
country provide opportunities for gay and
lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth
to develop their full potential in a safe
and supportive environment. Those pro~
grams could use your support. Consider
taking on an LGBT apprentice. Allow a
queer youth to shadow you throughout
your workday. And be sure to take some
time for yourself, to reflect and wonder
how your own dreams and explorations
may have been thwarted. Now may be the
perfect time to consider those dreams that
were long ago sent away to die. •
Joy Read is a writer and a photographer
living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
(bhaa/uphotography.com)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
23
•
-
.••
•
,.:~•·
••••
•!!.,.
'
: I
Modern Love
A true story of love, transition, and happily ever after.
BY CYGNUS FOGLE & MERRYN JOHNS
A
t a time when the popularity
of Orange Is The New Black
extends beyond the LGBT
community and Transgender
Dysphoria Blues is on rotation beyond
your local queer tranarchist's basement,
it seems trans rights are finally coming
to the fore. Across the nation laws are
gradually being put into effect to end
discrimination
in workplaces and universities, and health insurance companies
are removing policies that discriminate
against transgender patients.
Enter Diane and Jacob Anderson-Minshall, partners in life and work for 23 years,
and co-authors of QueerlyBeloved:A Love
Story AcrossGenders.To say that Diane and
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CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
Jacob are members of the LGBT community is a severe understatement. Both are
tireless contributors to myriad publications,
anthologies and projects-including
but
not limited to the publications Alice, Girlfriends, Curve and The Advocate. They've
also combined their creative efforts in the
past, having co-authored the Blind Eye
mystery series. Queerly Belovedis the comprehensive frosting on their multi-tiered,
rainbow-colored cake, and is a dizzying
whirlwind that travels across a vast landscape of shared experiences and emotions
as it details Jacob's transition and how
both he and Diane have stayed together
throughout it all.
"I just feel like there's such a dearth of
stories around trans narratives that we
haven't even begun to scratch the surface
of all of the variegated identities that fall
under that transgender umbrella;' explains
Diane. "To us this book seems in a lot of
ways very simple, it's a very simple love
story, it's a story of our transition and
Jake's coming out, but I just feel like any
story that adds to that transgender canon
is moving us one step forward to a more
general recognition in popular culture:'
The book is about the quest ( theirs and
ours) to be recognized by society. "Each
opportunity we've had to get a sliver of
recognition for our relationship-every
domestic partnership registry, every 'symbolic' wedding, every chance we had-we
would jump at it, even though someone
would inevitably come along afterwards
and take it back, or say it still didn't give
us the legal rights of straight couples;' says
Diane. "Our story is about fighting for the
right to be a couple, to be a family, to stay
together through all these odds. I remind
people that same-sex marriage is a trans
issue not just because there are trans people who are gay or bisexual, but also because
trans marriages are still sort of suspect:'
And as for the "straight privilege" of
trans couples? Diane cites legal cases in
which individuals have been living in
their preferred genders for decades and
in a legal ( opposite-sex) marriage and
yet, after a divorce or after the death of
the partner, rights have been rescinded.
"They've lost their property, [been] kicked
out of their homes and lost custody of
their kids because they are trans. Marriages that involve trans people are still
on very shaky grounds legally:'
Diane believes that the fight for marriage-and employment-equality is something we all share and for a time she was
worried about the impact of Jacob's transition on her professional standing. "When
I got that, 'Hey, your wife of 15 years is
actually a dude' moment, we both immediately worried about my career. I was
editor in chief of the world's largest lesbian magazine, Curve. We both worried
that I wouldn't be seen as authentically
lesbian enough to run the magazine if it
came out I now had a husband. I went to
my publisher, Frances Stevens, and told
her what was going on and she was fully
supportive. She told me I was the best
person for this job, hands down, regardless of my partner's gender. It felt great
and she always set a standard for how my
colleagues should treat me:'
How Diane classified herself also
changed-and
remained the same. "How
do I define myself? Today I'm either a
lesbian-identified bisexual or bisexualidentified lesbian. Truthfully, I prefer queer
because it's a word I started using when I
was 18 and it still fits now (for both of us,
really). The first six months, maybe even
a year, after Jacob came out I was very
insistent about my lesbian identity. I was
very overcompensating actually. I would
go to the grocery store and if the clerk
complemented my bag, I'd say'Oh thanks,
it was a gift from my husband. He used to
be my wife. He had a sex change. But I'm
still a lesbian:"
Both Jacob and Diane understand the
importance of sharing their unique story
in a world where trans folks are starving
for any relatable representation in the
media-where
often our relatable narratives come in the form of supernatural or
sci-fi storylines. As Jacob explains early on
in the book: "I started to look back at my
life through the lenses of gender-colored
glasses, and suddenly I could read all the
signposts and see all the clues and breadcrumbs I'd left for myself along the way.
How could I not have seen them? It's like
in the Matrix when the endless, indecipherable strings of numbers and equations
suddenly resolve into individual people
and Neo can see the matrix. That's how
my life looked to me, like it finally made
sense-some
of the choices
I'd made, the places I'd felt
uncomfortable, the times I'd
sabotaged my own success
and couldn't figure out why.
Suddenly I got it:'
Capturing their story-as
individuals and as a couplewas also a challenge. "When
we got the initial edits back
from our editor, her note
said something like, 'You've
got a really great start here
but what I need you to do is
cut out the first 23 chapters:
I was flabbergasted. When
we cut it, it eliminated the
first 16 years of our marriage
and really narrowed the focus to Jacob's transition and
the eight years since then;'
says Diane. "It literally cut
Suzy out of the book, which
I think makes it harder for
people to understand how
much I felt I lost when Jacob
came out. Plus I'm sure that
was phenomenal writing;'
she laughs.
And in spite of this voluminous output
of wordage on the subject, Diane admits
that she hasn't really hit on the right
words or the "answer" to explain what she
feels. "Culturally I feel lesbian identified
because I've been part of the lesbian community for so many decades. And I feel
most closely identified with and attracted
to other women. But I also don't want to
hide or be part of bisexual erasure.
''After Jacob transitioned and I began
to know other trans men, I began to ... see
them as better men: many trans men were
enculturated as women and have seen what
it's like to be in a world that still privileges
men over women. So you have masculinity in a feminist package. So I don't know
what that makes my orientation. What I
do know is that I have a husband who does
not care one iota if I identify as a lesbian or
a bisexual; he's comfortable enough with
himself and with our relationship to know
that he's the main attraction in my life:'
(anderson-minshall.com/ queerly-beloved/) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
25
REVIEWS/
BOOKS
Editor's J'ick
BY MERRYN JOHNS
THE INVISIBLES: VINTAGE
PORTRAITSOF LOVE AND
PRIDE, SEBASTIENLIFSHITZ
(RIZZOLI): Who might you
have been if you were a lesbian
in another era? What might
you have looked like? Could
you have "passed;' and might
you have found love with another woman? The new book,
The Invisibles,is a unique collection of vintage photographs
that invites such speculation.
It depicts real-life gay couples,
cross-dressers, queers, and
gender nonconformists from
1900 to 1960. While we now
take our visibility for granted,
this book time travels to other
eras less forgiving of nonheterosexuals. Nevertheless,
according to these surprising images, there was plenty
of fun, frolicking, love and
sexual intimacy to be had and
happily paraded for the lens of
the camera. Here are lesbian
26
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
SEBASTIEN
couples getting on with it,
keeping the memory of their
love alive through a relatively
new medium, and groups of
gay girls socializing and documenting their dressing up in a
pre-Stonewall era.
Discovered by artist and
filmmaker Sebastien Lifshitz
at flea markets and garage sales,
these photos (some of which
were preserved in family-style
photo albums) are testament to
the strength of LGBT identity
in the face of discrimination and
persecution. Lifshitz was captivated by these images and even
though the identities of the subjects have been lost to the mists
of time, these frank individuals
were our queer and fearless forebears and have a message for us
today: we're queer, we're here,
and we always have been. •
2014
LIFSHITZ
THE INVISIBLES
Vintage Portraits
ofLove and Pride
REVIEWS/CROSSWORD
CROSSWORD BY MYLES MELLOR
ACROSS
33. Stylist's stuff
6.
Director of Go Fish, Rose_
1.
34. Women's Lib was one
7.
Lover of Martina Navratilova,
Judy_
37. Kate McKinnon piece
9.
Time just before
38. Lived
10.
sex clothes
40. Writer of Unbearable
Lightness: A Story of Loss
and Gain
12. Stars and Stripes land
She played Bonnie in Will &
Grace
4.
The L Word cast member,
first name
8.
What Ellen did when she said
"Yep, I'm gay" (2 words)
11. Harlem theatre where Billie
Holliday's career started
35. Betrayed, with on
14. High_; (shoes)
15. Genuine
13. "Yes, I am" singer, Melissa
43. DJ who went out with Lindsay
Lohan
17. Brittney Griner's sport
46. Glee star, Jane
18. Over, poetically
19. As
47. Goes with kissing
22. Flemish painter of "Three
Graces"
on TV!
20. US women's soccer star,_
Rapinoe
21. No or Pepper?
DOWN
16. Complete
2.
27. Arrival time
31. But I'm a Cheerleader
director, Jamie
Roe-A-Fella Records DJ, first
name
3.
Freudian term
32. The L Word actor,
Daniella
4.
Krazy _ of the comics
30. Author of "Dykes to Watch
Out for" comic strip, Alison_
5.
Picture
31. Spelling contest
30. Wild party
36. Hubbub
39. She played a lesbian vampire
in True Blood Evan Rachel
41. Managed
42. Quiet!
44. Control
45. French for 'you'
24. LBGT advocate and the first
out gay senator, Tammy_
First openly gay anchor to
host a prime-time news
program in the US, first name
28. Compass direction
33. Grand Touring (auto), for
short
23. Single
1.
25. Bill Withers "_ me"
32. Comic who is married to
Alex, Wanda
26. Elton John title
29. Malicious
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
27
A new documentary celebrates the legendary Sunday nights at Cafe Tabac. ev MERRYN JOHNS
I
magine a lesbian bar so chic and glamorous that even rich and famous culture-makers-Madonna
and Jean
Paul Gaultier, Kate Moss, Naomi
Campbell, Queen Latifah-would
climb
to the top of the stairs to join the party.
Did it ever exist? Once upon a time it did.
Flash back to New York City's East Village in the early 1990s, when on Sunday
evenings Cafe Tabac opened its doors to
lesbians and their friends, creating the
upscale, inclusive environment where the
media phenomenon known as "lesbian
chic" was born.
The club closed some time ago, and
Manhattan lesbians have yet to see the
28
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
likes of that legendary night again. But
for those wanting to relive the glory days
of go-getter gay girls, a new film executive
produced by Wanda Acosta, the co-host
with Sharee Nash of Cafe Tabac, documents this brief and shining moment in
the history of lesbian nightlife .
Sundays at Cafe Tabac, which reached
its Kickstarter goal last year and is now
receiving its finishing touches, revisits the
history of this sexy, aesthetically inclined,
and totally original club night. Acosta
decided to make the film because 20 years
later she was still talking to friends about
the night. "We'd get together and have dinner and talk about those early days of the
party and why it still really resonated with
women. And the more we talked about it
the more we realized it was a historic time,
and we thought we really needed to tell
that story and find out what was happening
in the early '90s that pushed this transformation for lesbians:'
What was happening was a desire to
come out and be fabulous together as gay
women and men after the turmoil and
heartache of the AIDS era, and a need
to embrace self-expression as a response
to the buttoned-down
lesbian-feminist
movement that eschewed glamour and
commercialism. In the '90s, a groundswell
of "lipstick" lesbians rebelled against the
REVIEWS/
"granola'' separatist-feminist image of the
'70s and '80s, and the term "lesbian chic"
was coined to describe the sudden emergence of fashion-conscious gay girls who
saw style not as patriarchal oppression but
as a tool for empowerment.
"Women were feeling they didn't need
to adhere to those stereotypes from the
old days;' says Acosta. "[Lesbian chic] was
a way to own their sexuality and express
it in a way that was completely different
from what lesbians had done prior:' The
media was quick to pick up on the trend,
and lesbians (or at least lesbian imagery)
were featured on the covers of mainstream
magazines such as Vanity Fair (remember
the Herb Ritts photo of Cindy Crawford
"shaving" k.d. lang?)."It was a very very hot
moment for us, feeling really special and
being OK with being out there-visible
and fashionable and owning it;' says Acosta.
"I thought that was very transformational,
and it was certainly going to trickle down
into mainstream culture somehow. There
was definitely The L Word before The L
Word in that room on Sundays:'
Acosta saw Cafe Tabac as a salon-a
crucible for lesbian communication and
creativity. "We had all kinds of women
there-creative, powerful, downtown New
York women who were certainly making
things and doing things. There were directors there, TV people, so it was only a
matter of time before that became part of
the mainstream culture, like we see with
The L Word and more films that are coming out as well:'
We all loved (and loved to hate) The L
Word, but one allegation many lesbians
leveled at the show was its lack of inclusivity-real or imagined. Cafe Tabac started
because Acosta "wanted something a little
more glamorous. I really wanted to get
dressed up and have a proper drink and be
able to meet someone or bring someone on
a date. It didn't exist. And when I started
the party, there was a level of discomfort
in the beginning. Women would come up
and ask, 'What section of this restaurant
is for us:"-not recognizing that the whole
''
FlLM
mimic Cafe Tabac, because "it was never
going to happen again. You can't really recreate that:'
When you look at the lesbian scene in
New York today, there seem to be fewer
options than ever. The upscale Dalloway
closed last year. What's leftr The beer-centric boites ( the Cubbyhole and Henrietta
Hudson), a few semi-regular girls' nights,
and a party circuit based mostly in Brooklyn. "Unfortunately, the way the economy
is in New York, it's almost prohibitive to
have a lesbian space. The mentality is still
that lesbians are not consistent and they
don't spend money, which I think is a
myth;' says Acosta. "The younger ones do
go out, but they'd rather socialize on Facebook or online, and then have meet-ups. I
don't think they go to bars as much:'
until we all tire
In the meantime-and
of talking to each other with our thumbs,
in our virtual little worlds-watch
out
for Sundays at Cafe Tabac. The film features over 50 interviews with celebrities,
including Eve Salvail, Patricia Field,
Lea DeLaria, Guinevere Turner, Edie
Windsor, Sandra Bernhard, and k.d. lang.
Vibrant visuals using archival images,
animation, and reenactments will recreate those long-lost Sunday nights where
the hippest music set the mood. Meshell
Ndegeocello's original score recreates the
ambience of this Sapphic salon.
'Tm so excited, I can't wait for this to
happen;' says Acosta. "It's a long process,
but it's gotten so much support. We're really excited to be able to tell this story:'•
THtRt
WAS
Ot~INITtlY
TH[l
WORD
Bt~ORt
TH[
l WORD
INTHAT
ROOM
ONSUNDAYS.
''
space was for them. We were shoving ourselves in the corner or in the basement
because that's what we were used to. So
the moment that everyone felt comfortable within the room, it was just incredible
and wonderful to see-to be able to own
it, embrace it, and enjoy self-expression:'
Far from being exclusive, Acosta wanted
Cafe Tabac to be a celebration of lesbian
community in all its forms, a celebration
of its interconnectedness. "I started it as
a lesbian night, but what was interesting
was that the women were so incredible
that other people just wanted to be in that
space-they were attracted to the energy,
the beauty, the community. It was really
about community. It was about coming in
and feeling like you were family. Everyone
was welcoming and warm and had something to say, and you could have a conversation with a stranger and leave there
feeling like you'd met a new friend, which
is something that I feel is lost as technology and globalization have taken place. It
was pre-cell phones, pre- Internet. It was a
very different way of socializing:'
But times do change, especially in New
York City, which has lost many venues
through the gentrification of neighborhoods. Cafe Tabac closed its doors not due
to a lack of lesbian patronage, but due to
rising rents. Acosta organized other parties, such as Starlight Sundays, which ran
for 19 years, but she didn't want to try to
Wanda and Sharee present
BE
PART
OF
LESBIAN
HISTORY
Sundays at Cafe Tabac is currently in postproduction and finishing funds are
needed, especially for the soundtrack. Curve readers can help by going to the
website's Donate page. cafetabacfilm.com
NODAYLIKESUNDAY
Sundays 7pm-1am
Cafe Tabac 232 East 9th st.
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
29
FEATURES/
T
LAUGHTRA
he two words I
So this is your first album.
out. There were even a couple
used to describe
What inspired you to record
of times one specific audience
back to those communities that
one of my
it and why now?
member who had too much to
support me. It's nice to bring
favorite lesbian
country. It feels good to give
That's the best thing about
drink made me laugh so hard
humor to some pretty serious
comics, Dana Goldberg,
this album. It wasn't a planned
I had to leave the stage for a
topics. I've had the pleasure of
were "hot and hilarious."
recording. I happened to be
moment. It was pretty classic.
doing comedy and live auctions
And I'm happy to report that
plugged into the sound board
it's still the case, except
that night and had a really great
It has been a great year for
Rights Campaign events around
now you can add "about to
set. I was on, the audience was
our community politically,
the country, where people like
at several high profile Human
be super-famous" to the
on, and when I listened to the
so what is there to kvetch
Eric Holder, Vice President Joe
superlatives. Goldberg
recording I thought, "This could
about?
Biden, J-Lo, and many other
has just released her first
make a great album!"
stand-up album, Crossing
I'm a Jew, there's always
A-listers have been honored for
something to kvetch about' It
their work in the advancement
of LGBTequality. I really feel
the Line, and she's following
Crossing the Line suggests
has been a great year for the
that with a busy summer of
you're going to be a bad
LGBTcommunity, but the world
lucky to be a part of the events.
touring that's sure to win
girl, which we love. What
in general is still a goldmine of
Very happy to say over the last
her legions of new fans,
transgressions do you make
material. I mean every time
four years I've helped to raise
lesbian and otherwise.
with this material?
Michele Bachmann or Sarah
almost $2 million for the HRC.
I grabbed my favorite
Well as you know, I always like
Palin speaks, an angel loses its
Another one of my favorite
comedy crush for a quick
to push the boundaries a little,
wings, and I gain five minutes
events is the Southwest Funny-
chat before she hit the road
step right on up to the edge
of material.
fest which I produce each year
and here's what she told me
and then back away a little. This
about va-jay-jays, lesbian
time, I cross the line a time or
But it was a not-so-great
help benefit New Mexico AIDS
breakups, why she likes her
two. I get to say what everyone
year for relationships-or
Services. It's in its eigth year and
over the course of those, we've
down in Albuquerque, N.M. to
audiences drunk, and other
else is thinking. Why not use
so they tell me. What's new
secret ingredients to her
that little bit of power and have
to be said about lesbian
raised over $25,000 for the
stand-up magic.
some fun? I definitely take some
breakups?
organization. In April I brought
hard shots at some GOPers and
Oy, I don't know what's new
in Gloria Bigelow, Gina Yashere,
may or may not touch on the
to be said about the break-
and Suzanne Westenhoefer.
topic of vajazzling. I mean ...
ups, but I think with time and
There was a good chance we
really, who hasn't?
experience those who want to
would need bail money at some
better themselves and grow
point during the weekend.
Why did you record this
will find that inner strength and
live at Seattle's Theatre Off
motivation to dig deep, change
I think if you read your
Jackson-what was special
their experiences, and pick
grocery list you would be
about the venue or the
better relationships in the future.
funny, but what is your
gig itself?
Those who choose not to? Well,
personal favorite bit on
Theatre Off Jackson is a great
they just end up in my act.
this album?
You combine humor with
"Gas Powered Sex Toys." I have
show in someone's living room
humanitarianism. What
a joke where I talk about getting
with a bunch of friends. That
good deeds did you do
busted at the airport and ask
night the crowd was really
this year and what are
the audience what kind of toys
rowdy, a bit drunk as you'll
your favorite charities
they use. Someone yelled out
hear in the first track of the CD,
and causes?
"gas powered" and that was
and I was right on top of every
I really love working with chari-
all I needed to take it and run.
heckle and comment shouted
ties and non-profits around the
(danagoldberg.com) •
My personal favorite is definitely
theatre that holds about 150
people. It feels like I'm doing a
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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31
FEATURES/
V
anessa Piazza is just as dy~
namic, talented, and badass
as the women in front of
the camera on Showcase
and SyFy's hit series Lost
Girl, and frankly I didn't expect anything
less from the show's executive producer.
When I caught up with her, she was in the
middle of filming the premiere episode of
season five, which is so loaded with action
that it requires two episodes to tell the
tale. "It's been like shooting a feature film;'
says Piazza.
While Piazza clearly loves the job she's
got, becoming a producer was initially not
on her radar. (She majored in history in
university.) Fresh out of school, she moved
to Toronto, snagged a job in the editorial
department of a magazine, but then the
fates-or maybe the Faes-intervened.
A job opened up at Jay Firestone's new
Prodigy Pictures and she was all in, start~
ing at the bottom, working her way up,
jumping into projects feet first. "Some~
times, getting tossed into the fire can be
a great education;' she says. Although
she claims that she "fell into producing;' it
turned out to be a perfect match for her, so
much so that these days she is partnering
with Firestone.
She's also a little, or maybe a lot, smit~
ten with celluloid, especially the potential
inclusiveness and diversity offered by the
medium. 'Tm really thankful that I work
in an industry where it's so creative, open,
and progressive:' And where you don't nee~
essarily need to have gone to film school
to move ahead: for Piazza, it's all about
having talent, whether you're on screen or
behind the camera. "What's great about
film and TV is that people from all walks
of life can excel, you don't have to have a
cookie~cutter education:'
No one is more enthusiastic about Lost
Girl than Piazza. "Every morning I wake
up and I'm excited to be here-and
that's
amazing:' While that's partially due to the
Lost Girl team, it's also about what the
show has brought to people's lives, and
how the small screen's queerest, sexiest
show has "such a strong message of em~
powerment:'
That message resonates behind the
scenes too, where lots of women are in~
valved in making the series happen, from
directors to production staff, and where
there is a strong LGBT presence. "Having
diversity in front of and behind the camera
is very important to me;' says Piazza. So
it's not surprising that age, sexuality, race,
and religion are non~issues on the show.
For Piazza, it's all about the characters,
and she is really proud that the show has
"made diversity normal:'
Of course Piazza has been to a Comic~
Con or two, and like the cast she was
both surprised and thrilled by the show's
popularity. While Piazza is every inch
the high~powered producer, she is also all
heart, and the fans' stories and shared mo~
ments really touch her. Fans often tell her
just how much the show has changed their
lives-how it has given them the courage
to be who they want to be. It's here that
THE L LI
it gets very real for Piazza, who is clearly
moved by how much the series has spoken
to people. "Whether that's coming out or
something else, we've helped people, and
that's amazing:'
When she starts talking about the
women in the show, it's obvious that she's
thrilled by how talented they all are. Each
of them brings something unique to the
show."It's an embarrassment of riches;' she
says. Surrounded by all that talent, having
an amazing team, working on a show with
lots of diversity, relatable characters, and a
high fun factor are all pluses, but for her
the best part of Lost Girl is that "there is a
lot of heart in the show:'
All that heart, combined with lots of
action and plenty of heat, keeps us coming
back for more, whether we're jonesing to
see what'll happen to Bo and Lauren, or
just curious about whether quirky side~
kick Kenzi will be resurrected. But we will
have to wait, because Piazza is not giving
up any spoilers.
When Piazza talks about Lost Girl's
embarrassment of riches, she probably
isn't including herself, but she should.
We have her to thank, at least in part,
for the phenomenon that is the Doc~
cubus, and frankly I can't wait to see
what she has in store for us next season.
( showcase.ca/lostgirl)
•
LOST GIRL AIRS ON SHOWCASE
IN CANADA AND SYFY IN THE
U.S. LOST GIRL IS PRODUCED BY
PRODIGY PICTURES
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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taking a
ca
CD
.cI
;;
of the music
world
:::s
E
BY LISA TEDESCO
H
eather Peace released her newest album, The Thin
Line on June 9, the follow up to her 2012 debut
Fairyta/es. Set to mark her arrival as an exciting new
musical talent to a wider audience than ever before, The
Thin Line is a soulful, organic pop gem that incorporates
Peace's love of '60s girl groups, Motown and '80s pop. It
rightly puts her rich vocals at the fore against a backdrop
of lush pop strings, piano riffs and fat bass lines. Produced
by James Lewis (Arctic Monkeys, Superfood), the album
was mostly recorded live then overlaid with brass sections,
strings and drenched in massive vocal harmonies from
rnL
:Y..AUGUSiT
4
Peace. "I love Dusty Springfield and '60s girl groups-and
from the beginning James and I knew we wanted an album
that was recorded in homage to Specter's Wall Of Sound,"
says Peace. Over the last three years, Peace has performed
three sold-out U.K. tours with her full band along with four
sold-out solo acoustic tours. An actor for 16 years, she
recently left her role in BBC One drama Waterloo Road
to make the album. "This is the first time I feel confident
enough to take a break from acting to give [music] my full
attention," says Peace, who started singing with a church
choir at the age of 5. (heatherpeace.com) •
C
)
solo
CATIE
CURTIS
•
GETS
READY
FOR
THE
atie Curtis has been releasing albums of
pristine folk-pop for over 20 years now.
But her latest disc, Flying Dream, is significant in several ways. For one thing, it's the first
release on her own label, Catie Curtis Records,
and the first time she's enlisted fellow singersongwriter Kristen Hall (formerly of Sugarland)
as producer.
But it's also significant for another, more
personal reason. Between her last studio effort,
2011's Stretch Limousine on Fire, and Flying
Dream, Curtis and Elizabeth Marshall-her
partner of 17 years-split. When I spoke with her
on the phone, Curtis was finalizing her plans to
move out. "It's definitely hard for everybody right
now," she admits. "It's a big time of transition."
That "everybody" includes not just Curtis and
Marshall but their adopted daughters, Lucy and
Celia, as well.
The album Flying Dream doesn't explicitly
chronicle the end of her marriage-but on some
songs the subject seeps in, like a premonition.
"I was not fully conscious that we were on the
verge of separating [while making this album],"
says Curtis, "but I think I was starting to feel it.
Like in [the song] 'Flying Dream.' It's partly about
going to Guatemala and meeting the kids' birth
families and having this surreal experience. But
it's also about taking a leap that feels really scary
and not knowing what's next."
The album is not all doom and gloom, "Live
Laugh Love" could be the feel-good song of
the year, and "The Queen" is an upbeat track
based on an actual experience Curtis had. "I was
playing an inaugural ball [at the White House] last
year," says Curtis. "Queen Latifah was supposed
to go on before me and she never showed up! So
I had to play twice as long and make up stuff on
the fly. [But] I had this kickass band and we had
the absolute best time playing."
To me, the best song on Flying Dream is one
that deals not with lost love but with the possibility of new love. "Maybe Tomorrow" contains
lovely lyrics, and the musical textures that
complement them perfectly. "That's my [favorite]
too!" Curtis says. "When Kristen and I wrote it,
I remember saying to myself, It's about anticipating something new and exciting in your life.
It probably had something to do with my heart
getting ready for the next step."
And Curtis does sound like she's ready. As
difficult as the breakup has been, she's staying
busy. In addition to being a mom, Curtis plans to
tour later this year to support Flying Dream; she
recently became a spokesperson for the Tomboy
X clothing line; and, after being ordained by the
Unitarian Universalist Church, she's officiating at
same-sex marriages. "I still believe in marriage.
There is a lot of disappointment in a relationship ending. It can be devastating and it can
be painful. But that doesn't mean that it's the
wrong thing to happen ...Marriage doesn't have
to be declared a failure if it doesn't last forever."
(catiecurtis.com) •
V
.. W
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ca
G)
.cI
en
::I
E
ith their '90s punk
sound and silly
onstage antics, Sarah
Corcoran, Fiach O Briain, and
Niamh Hanley of the Dublin
band Kate's Party offer up
a serious dose of nostalgia.
Accompanying the feel-good
riffs and upbeat tempos, however, are the expressive voice
and confessional lyrics that
may remind you of early Tegan
& Sara. Citing their influences
as The Truman Show and the
weather, Kate's Party doesn't
like to take itself too seriously. Despite this, their debut
release, Hollow, is lying-onyour-bed, staring-at-the-ceiling
material. We caught up with
Kate's lead singer, Niamh
Hanley, to talk fun, roots, and
promoting awareness.
There's a playful camaraderie in
your behind-the-scenes videos.
How do you think that positive energy influcences your
performances?
We've been a band a little over
four years, and I don't think
we would've lasted if we didn't
have that playfulness to us.
When we were writing our
album, we locked ourselves
away in the studio for weeks,
and at one point the electricity
went-it was winter, it was
horribly cold, and I had walked
in a puddle. We were all ready
to explode, so we spent the day
singing Will.I.Am covers and
it really diffused the explosiveness and eased the whole
writing process!
Kate's Party is an Irish band.
What does that mean to you?
We are lucky to be from a country that is so small but has such
a thriving music scene-every
second person in Ireland is a
musician! There really is a lot of
respect for the music industry.
We are also lucky to share a
home with a lot of internationally renowned artists, which is
really inspiring.
You just opened for the
Japanese legends Shonen Knife.
How did that feel?
Shonen Knife has a stage
presence unlike anything I've
ever seen before, and it's really
cool that their style translates
BY FRANCESCA LEWIS
Your mother is Venezuelan,
your father is Lebanese. How
has this cultural diversity
influenced you as an artist?
I think one of the reasons
I love music so much is
because it's a universal
language, even if we don't
understand the lyrics. Music
has always brought my family together. With the recent
tensions in Venezuela, I was
inspired to write a song
called "We Are Listening" to
show support and raise awareness. My dad always used to
play guitar for my mum when
they lived in Beirut, during the
war, in times of trouble.
Which artists have influenced
you?
I love a bit of everything, but
as far folk artists go, Laura
Marling, Coco Sumner, The
Weepies, and Caitlin Rose.
My dad is a huge Clapton fan
and my mum is an Elvis fan,
so that was my soundtrack to
school every morning!
What was the idea behind the
video for "Mum, I Like a Girl"?
The idea behind the video was
to show a positive and happy
reaction to me coming out. I
consider myself very lucky to
have had the support and love
from my friends and family,
and I wanted to share my experience with others who may
not be quite so lucky. I asked
my best friend's mum to play
the part of my mother, and
she actually drove all the way
down from NYC to Boston to
shoot at Island Creek Oyster
Bar! It was a special and emotional day, to say the least!
The song was the runner-up
in Berklee's annual songwriting competition, Songs for
Social Change. What change would you like to see?
The main thing I would like to see in this world is
peace. I'm a big fan of the Peace One Day campaign.
I remember seeing Annie Lennox sing live for the first
time in a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2008, and
got to see her speak at my graduation last year, which
was pretty surreal! I'm also working on making an informational and educational video about what's going
on in Venezuela, and I hope that both Venezuela and
Lebanon will find a time of peace. (soundcloud.com/
sofiacloudmusic) •
I
t takes a certain level of
guts to book a show at
a much-buzzed-about
Minneapolis hotspot before
even assembling a band.
That's exactly what Melany
Joy Beck did as she plotted
her entrance back into the
scene with her hot new band,
Delavan.
"I had written a bunch of
songs, a decade after I had
been touring as a solo artist,"
Beck says. "I was very excited
about it because it was such
a different direction than I
had done before: country
and western garage rock. It
was an amalgamation of all
of the genres I was interested in," she says, settling
in on the red couch of her
Minneapolis living room.
"I needed to have a band
to play shows. I went ahead
and booked a show because
if I had a gig people would
want to play with me.
Sometimes you have to jump
and the net will appear,"
Beck says.
Beck recorded the band's
first single, "Chula Vista"
with the assistance of Erik
Koskinen, a renowned musician and producer, while the
band came together.
Guitarist James Gould
and drummer Mark Larson
joined fresh off their stint
with Minneapolis-based
the4onthefloor. Bassist Vero
Sanchez-Hunter Valentine
heartthrob and The Real L
Word star-rounded out the
group after relocating to
Minneapolis from New York.
"The season of The Real L
Word just finished, and she
is a really good bass player.
I knew she could play this
music. I approached her at
the Driftwood Char Bar in
Minneapolis and I said. 'Hey
I'm putting a band together,
would you be interested?' I
played her the songs and I
convinced her," Beck says.
Playing under the name
Delavan, the four-piece have
quickly charmed crowds with
their country and western
influenced indie rock sound.
38
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
With a voice that has been called equal
parts Grace Potter and Lucinda Williams,
Beck snarls and wails through songs ranging from the driving and catchy "Chula
Vista" to the sweet Country Western
sounds of "Loveshine," a nod to falling in
love to the sweet taste of moonshine.
As for the name, Delavan, Beck says,
"It just came into my head. I wanted a
one-word band name. I don't exactly know
where it came from other than I had literally just bought a van at the time. It's a big
1994 Chevy G20 and I really liked it. I think
that inspired it, really," she says.
plans for a fall tour, Beck has no intention
of slowing down. For a girl who booked
a gig without a band and not only found
one, but managed an ensemble of the hottest musicians in town, the future is bright
and she moves forward, pistols blazing.•
u,.
en
..
3
I
:::r
m
CD
C
-·
en
n
wild
thing
BROOKLYN-BASED
BOMBSHELL
MIA
WILSON
AND
HER
BAND
THE
BRIGHT
SMOKE
RELEASE
THEIR
LATEST
SINGLE.
BY LISA TEDESCO
D
espite an endless
stream of new musicians releasing albums,
it's still a rare and wonderful
thing to discover a new artist.
The Bright Smoke and its lovely
and talented Mia Wilson is one
such discovery.
Wilson is a queer songwriter
whose deep and somber voice
on The Bright Smoke's new
album Virginia Et Al. will leave
you swaying, eyes closed and
wanting more-especially
the fifth track, "Wild Again,"
a low-key arrangement with
full-bodied beats and harrowing piano melodies in which
Wilson and her band mate
Quincy Ledbetter create a noirblues inspired tune that draws
on Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen,
and Cat Power.
Originally from the suburbs
of Chicago, Wilson grew up
with a rich and imaginative
fantasy life. "When I was about
four, I developed an alter
ego for a few years named
Mrs. Fafia. She was a fussy
divorcee in her early 60s, who
wore a large Sunday bonnet at all times and had,
what I'm assuming, were
some pretty questionable
beliefs regarding class and
personal entitlement." Wilson
was drawn to music at an
early age and the guitar became more than just an after
school hobby.
As she got older, she
began playing music
everywhere she could,
from Chicago to Virginia
and then off to England and
even Namibia. Today the
globetrotting Wilson calls
New York City home.
In coming out, Wilson
says she "struggled most
with categorization and the
experienced rejection that
can ensue from either being
not enough for one group or
being too much for another."
Consequently, she refers to
herself as queer because of
her "ability to be attracted to
and involved with individuals of varying orientations,
gender identities and
expressions."
And just because she's out
doesn't mean she takes her
lesbian fans for granted. "I
don't think coming out be-
stows on artists a magical and
immediate lesbian following;
that doesn't seem to allow for
musical taste and personal
preference. Some lesbians
love Bach, some lesbians love
Beyonce ...l'd be thrilled with
a big lesbian following, in the
same way that I'd be thrilled
with a small lesbian following, or even a following of
medium-sized lesbians. I think
you just have to make the
absolute best work you can
and be very grateful for any
people that find it meaningful
and worth listening to."
(thebrightsmoke.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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t's a familiar story: band gets record
deal, thinks life has changed forever,
music business changes, record label
struggles, band finds itself back where it
started. Such was the fate of the alt-pop
duo The Murmurs, Leisha Hailey and
Heather Reid. Their unique harmonies
and out status made them the queer darlings of the Lilith Fair era, sealing them
in amber as a good thing gone too soon.
When their short-lived follow-up band,
Gush, broke up, Reid and Hailey went
their separate ways. Hailey's story we all
know-from indie movies to The L Word
to Uh Huh Her-but Heather Reid's journey is less well-known. After forming the
indie-rock band Redcar in the mid-'OOs,
Reid took a break from the limelight,
penning a musical, writing for Shakira,
becoming a mother. Lucky for us, she's
ready to return to the stage with her
debut solo album, Cross Words.
You were half of The Murmurs, with
Leisha Hailey. What was it like being out
as a gay musician in the '90s?
Ahh, the '90s! Back in the '90s, Leisha
and I were almost always referred to as a
"gay" band, or "lesbian" singers. We had
k.d. lang and Melissa Etheridge among
a handful of brave artists leading the
way and inspiring us, but at the time the
road still appeared to be long. Now, it
seems like the labeling has fallen to the
side. So many talented musicians are out
now, and it is so much less of a describing factor when someone's art is being
discussed.
You've worked behind the scenes, writing
songs for other musicians and even writing a musical. Do you think you're more
introverted than the average musician?
I am a little shy [some might disagree],
however, I love to perform my music in
a live setting. I experience so much joy
when I'm sharing my music with a crowd
of people. A live show can be grounding,
exhilarating, and healing for me.
You say Cross Words is about heartbreak,
but not about feeling sorry for yourself.
Why the distinction?
I am an optimist, and I'm always trying
to figure out what the lesson is. In this
album, I do explore the great sadness of
a heartbreak, but I also search for hope
and discover the complexities of my situation. This album is also about resilience
and owning my part in the story.
40
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JULY/AUGUST
2014
You've been in different bands over the
years. How does going solo compare?
Being a solo artist is very intimidating. I
feel more vulnerable, which is possibly
why I waited so long to set out on my
own. It's also very freeing, and I'm at a
point in my musical journey where I'm
curious to explore the artist I've evolved
into. I still love to collaborate, though. I
love being inspired and blending the colors that other musicians and songwriters
bring with mine.
The video for "Ivy" has you walking
around different parts of New York City.
What has the city meant to you and
your music?
NYC will always have a huge place in
my heart. I met some of my dearest
friends there, at the American Academy
of Dramatic Arts, and New York City is
where my musical journey formally began. I've lived in L.A. for a long time now,
but I usually go back a couple of times
a year to refuel. From Broadway shows
to Broadway bars-the Pyramid Club in
the '90s, CBGB's Gallery-the people, my
friends, and the overall energy, I'd say
that my early days in the city are a part
of my creative blueprint and I'll always
be grateful.
You're known as something of an alt-rock
and female empowerment icon. How
does that feel?
Wow, a huge compliment. My goal is
to be true to myself. If women and girls
take away anything from hearing my
music, I would hope that it would be to
own their voice and to channel it in the
ways that are most organic for them.
Writing music was always my vehicle.
It's different for everyone.
(heatherreidmusic.com) •
all about eve
MEET
MODEL,
DJAND
FASHION
MUSE
EVE
SALVAIL.
BY DAR DOWLING
E
ve Salvaii may have become one of the hottest DJ's in the country,
known to fans as DJ Evalicious, but Salvail is a beautiful and talented
chameleon, having reinvented herself many times over the years.
Before she was "manning" the decks at parties in New York, Chicago, Miami,
and Los Angeles, she was a top model owning catwalks from Milan to New
York-and she was the muse of fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier.
When asked about those modeling years, it's clear that for Salvail it wasn't
a love affair, even if the camera loved her-and it most certainly did. In fact,
for Salvail, who originally wanted to follow in her artistic parents' footsteps
by studying photography and graphic design, her modeling career started
out as a lark. She was in college, sporting a mohawk, when some friends
convinced her to sign up for a modeling contest-and she won. "It started
out as a joke, but in the end the joke was on me," she says.
The French-Canadian
Salvail made a huge
splash in the tough-asnails modeling scene
because she is as badass
as she is beautiful and talented. In fact, when you
see her you may just think
she is the original girl with
the dragon tattoo-she
hasa rather fierce bronze
dragon inked onto the
side of her head.
Salvail has always
been a trendsetter, and
back in the early '90s she
wanted to be the first bald
model, but her artistically
inclined father suggested
being even bolder, and it
was then she decided on
the tattoo. While she was
a success, she suffered.
"[Modeling] was unbelievably painful, I wanted
to quit every second."
She didn't, and proved to
be even braver than her
fellow closeted celebrities by coming out very
publicly on the Tyra Banks
Show. It wasn't because
she wanted to share her
private life-she didn't.
The super-private Salvail
did it because she wanted
to help young people feel
less alone. "It was nerve
wracking," she says of her
coming out. "Not because
I was ashamed, but because it was very intimate
to me."
Music has been a
source of comfort,
strength, and self-expression to Salvail (she's been
singing and writing music
since the age of 14). "I
absolutely love being a
DJ,"she says, but even
as she continues to spin
her spell, something new
is brewing. Salvail is a
woman on the verge of
once again re-inventing
herself, she has written a
TV series. Although she's
not giving up too many
details, she did finally
admit that it's a psychological game show. "It's
on, bitches," she says. If
history is any indication,
this contest is going to be
hot. (evesalvail.net) •
I
f you're still searching for
the next Indigo Girls, you
would do well to check
out these two talented lesbian
duos, both based in the
Greater New York area.
Starnes & Shah are Zilpha
Starnes and Dania AbuShaheen. These women
met while attending Sarah
Lawrence and became not
only musical partners but
life partners as well. Their
backgrounds couldn't be
more disparate, however.
Where Starnes is originally
from Dallas and was weaned
mainly on musical theater,
Abu-Shaheen hails from
Lebanon-where, incidentally,
it's still not legal to be openly
gay. Unlike Starnes, she grew
up listening to mainstream
folk, rock, and pop-and not
just the obvious influences,
such as Ani DiFranco and
Bonnie Raitt, but the British
rockers Oasis and guitar
greats like Stevie Ray Vaughan
and Mark Knopfler. "It's funny;'
she notes, "whatever is a
weakness of mine, or whatever I lack, Zilpha has a strength
in ...Her background in music
theory has been very helpful."
Starnes & Shah have been
together since 2005 and
unveiled their latest album,
Shilling for Dreamtown, at the
end of last year. Containing a
dozen songs, Shilling is nothing short of a modern folk-pop
gem. Just check out "Nothing
on Me" and the lovely, catchy
"Gatling Girl:' In the studio,
the duo's sound veers more
toward folk and pop, but
onstage they often play with
a full band behind them and
they can really rock! "Back in
the day, it was just two vocals
and a guitar," says Starnes.
"Now we have a band and [I
play] synthesizer. The synthesizer is almost incorporated
[as] a third voice."
Like Starnes & Shah,
Hannah (Hickok) & Maggie
(Kraus) met while they were
attending college-Smith,
in their case. But unlike S&S,
H&M are not a couple. They
are also a bit younger and
are still basically two voices
and a guitar. But those two
42
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
voices blend together in a haunting way-especially on songs like
"September," the closing track on
their new disc, In the Company of
Strangers. "I wrote that song the
first September after I graduated
from college," Hickok remembers.
"It was so surreal knowing that
all the students were returning to
school while I was having to make
my own way in the world:' In the
Company of Strangers comes two
years after Hannah & Maggie's sophomore set, Muscle & Bone. "We've
really matured, both as people
and as songwriters, since Muscle
& Bone;' says Hickok. "That album
came from a time when both of our
lives were very conflicted ... In the
Company of Strangers comes from
a less fraught place emotionally."
H&M are similar to S&S in that
their musical influences are complementary. "Where we really differ is
that Maggie grew up listening more
to punk rock, while [I] was listening
to Broadway soundtracks," Hickok
explains. "But we're both big fans
of Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor,
Joni Mitchell, and other folk [musicians]." It's those shared influences
that come to the fore on Company
and make H&M-like S&S-heirs to
the Indigo Girls' school of harmony
laden, folk-pop. (hannahandmaggie.
com, starnesandshah.com) •
u,..
..
she kissed a girl
en
I
:::r
m
CD
3
C
-·
JILL
SOBULE
RETURNS
WITH
ANEW
ALBUM.
en
BY LISA TEDESCO
R
emember the song "I Kissed a Girl"?
No, not the 2008 chart topper by
pop diva Katy Perry. Almost two
decades before Perry used the title, a quirky
girl named Jill Sobule wrote and sang "I
Kissed a Girl," and in 1995 it became the
anthem of an emerging lesbian chic. But for
her new album, Dottie's Charms, she draws
inspiration from an entirely different source.
To someone else, a vintage charm
bracelet might have been just another piece
of jewelry, but to Sobule the charms came
to represent the highlights of a narrative.
"When I first was given the bracelet, I put
it in my 'drawer of forgotten and misfit
gifts.' Two years ago, I made a visit to the
drawer and saw the pewter cowboy hat
charm peeking out. I fished the bracelet out
and gave it, for the first time, some real
attention. I became obsessed. Here was a
bracelet with 20 charms, or 20 clues to a
woman's life. Who was she?"
To tell the story, Sobule recruited the
help and literary skills of 10 of her favorite
authors, and asked each of them to write
a track on her new album. "To my joy and
surprise, most on my wish list harbored
a secret desire to write a song, and were
game," says Sobule. "I sent each of the
writers a different charm to write a lyric
to." Among the authors she chose are
David Hajdu, Jonathan Lethem, Mary Jo
Salter, Luc Sante, James Marcus, Sara
Marcus, Sam Lipsyte, Nina Mehta, Rick
Moody, and Vendela Vida.
Over the span of the next year the
n
writers worked on their lyrics and Sobule
orchestrated the musical accompaniment,
which seems tender yet dark. Dottie's
Charms is Sobule's first solo project in
over five years. "I will probably never have
a pop semi-hit again," says Sobule. "So
why try for mainstream success? That and
getting older has given me even more
permission to write whatever I want. To
not have constraints, and to have fun."
The creative mind can work in mysterious ways. Taking an old piece of jewelry
and finding within it the inspiration for a
solo album is what separates Jill Sobule
from many other mainstream artists of
the day. Dottie's Charms begins a new
chapter in the life of this indie rocker.
(jillsobule.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
43
T
his music artist is a breed
of her own, she is talented beyond belief and
the poetry of her lyrics pairs
perfectly with the rise and fall
of her melodic voice. Her name
is Diane Cluck and her ecstatic
vocal style has been noted for
its uniquely clipped, glottal
beauty. This multi-talented
artist accompanies herself on
instruments ranging from guitar
to piano, harmonium, zither,
percussion, and toy accordion.
She also often plays alongside
cellist Isabel Castellvi.
Cluck's seventh album,
Boneset, is a rich journey seeded with boldness and heart.
The richness of the imagery is
inspired by art. "I went to an
exhibit of Charles Burchfield
paintings at The Whitney
Museum a few years ago, and it
made a big impression on me,"
says Cluck. "Burchfield had a
long career, in his 60s returning
to works he'd started in his 20s.
As a musician I like to grant myself the freedom to ruminate on
ideas and return to themes."
The intellectual backbone of
Cluck's work has earned her the
admiration of her peers. Fellow
folk musician Devendra Banhart
championed her early, referring
to her as "my favorite singersongwriter in all of New York
City." CocoRosie invited Cluck
to open shows in the U.S.
and Europe and released her
Countless Times album through
their personal label imprint.
Sharon Van Etten, Florence
Welch (of Florence And The
Machine), and Laura Marling
have all cited Cluck's work as
influential.
Cluck wrote the songs for
Boneset over a 10-year period.
"They surfaced and hung
together easily, making their
own story, I realized, it's a kind
of Mobius strip-one can start
from any point in the album and
listen forward and a continuity
or new story emerges." The album, says the out musician, is a
meditation on life and renewal.
"Even as parts are dying off ...
our core is still strong and new
buds form. These songs are
about venturing out, despite
fear and despair, to find that
help and light meet us when we
do." (dianecluck.info) •
The Nth Power is aptly
named as four of its five members have names that begin
with the letter "N." In addition
to Glaspie, the band includes
Nick Cassarino on guitar and
vocals; Nigel Hall on keyboards
and vocals; Nate Edgar on
bass; and Weedie Braimah on
percussion. It's a diverse lineup
in terms of gender, race and
musical pedigree and it all
adds up to a soul-funk powerhouse
in the tradition of such '70s artists
as Tower of Power and ParliamentFunkadelic. I asked Glaspie how
leading her own band is different
from being a side musician.
"It's way different," she responds.
"I have the biggest responsibility on
my shoulders [and] am involved in
every aspect of the band. If you're
a person that likes pointing fingers,
being a sideman is the perfect job.
Anyone who has been in a band
knows that things go wrong all the
time-but there is always someone
[else] to blame. In this case, that
person is me. [But] I'm excited at the
opportunity [of] being blamed for
spearheading possibly the greatest
band of our time!" This fall, The Nth
Power will release their full-length
debut, Abundance. "It's a mixture
of R&B, jazz, funk, rock, reggae
and anything else you can think
of," Glaspie says of the album. "Our
music is simply music for the soul.
We hope to change lives for the
better [and] to spread the message
of love and light through music. So
the sound of it is very uplifting." If the
song "Only Love" is any indication,
that's an understatement.
While she's excited about stepping
out from behind the drum kit and
forging her own path, Glaspie values
the experience she's gained working with others. Asked
what it was like being part of Beyonce's live band, The
Sugar Mamas, she says, "I learned a lot from her. Work
ethic, stage presence, how to run a business, being
a leader and overall talent make her who she is. I saw
the world three times over with her and it was a life
changing experience. I can honestly say, "been there,
done that"-performed
in places that I didn't even know
existed. Those experiences changed me, and I feel it's
my responsibility to share [them] with the world. That is
ultimately what I gained from working with Beyonce."
In addition to The Nth Power's imminent debut,
Glaspie has another reason to be happy these days:
she recently got engaged to her longtime girlfriend. "If
people want to get married, they should get married and
that's it," she declares. "Nobody else's opinion should
matter. I feel great. I found my person and I'm happy
about it." (nikkiglaspie.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
45
C
ountry-rock singer-songwriter
and out lesbian, Gina Villalobos
has made her triumphant return
to the music scene with the sensational
new album, So/a. The record, which
marks the artists fourth studio effort,
dropped in May and fans of Villalobos'
talent for creating passionate but aching
melodies have not been disappointed.
Villalobos began working on So/a in
January 2012 after a five-year hiatus from
music-one born of necessity after years
of touring left the singer
creatively exhausted. Villalobos began
touring across the U.S.,Europe, Australia,
and New Zealand in 2004, following the
release of her second album Rock 'N'
Roll Pony. Two years later the release of
Miles Away earned the musician greater
recognition, this time in the U.K.While
the success was welcome, touring
ceaselessly and releasing four albums in
just seven years took its toll. "I couldn't
write, I couldn't draw, I had no imagination or ability to reflect anymore," says
Villalobos. "I didn't have the physical
energy to do so." So in 2011she took a
break from making music entirely.
It seems the time away is just what she
needed to revive her musical muse. In
2012 a reenergized Villalobos assembled
a group of talented and accomplished
musicians to help bring her new songs
to life. "It's about setting up mood and
attitude," says Villalobos.
In So/a Villalobos has created an auditory confession that lays bare the trials
and tribulatins she has faced and the
result is raw and stunningly beautiful."
Hold on to Rockets" delves into the ways
we self-sabotage and can at times be
our own worst enemy. "Come Undone"
is a romantic two-step in slow time that
aches like a heartbreak and then builds
to a swooning crescendo.
The overall experience of listening to
So/a is one of catharsis, and so it's little
surprise that Villalobos takes a visceral
and intimate approach to songwriting,
"I'm inspired by interactions, touching
things, smelling things, and just opening my eyes," she says. "It's involuntary
and then you get these urges to be
creative, to write. Having a creative urge
as an artist is actually painful sometimes. Writing songs satisfies the urge."
(ginavillalobos.com) •
QUEERIDENTITYMAY HAVEHAD
ITSORIGINSIN PRE-NAZIGERMANY.
KATIE SUTTON
1920s butch fashion Oas Magazin, August 1926
(Source: BPK Bildagentur fur Kunst, Kultur und
Geschichte)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
47
tanding in the heat and crowds
across the Atlantic in Germany, where, in
and "transvestites." They were inspired
on Fifth Avenue last June, watch-
the decade before the Nazis seized power
by the work of doctors such as Magnus
ing Edie Windsor perched on the
in 1933, one of the world's first organized
Hirschfeld, who in 1919 founded the Insti-
backseat of a convertible as one
homosexual rights movements was born.
tute for Sexual Science in Berlin. This soon
became a leading center for progressive
of the grand marshals of New
At a time when Marlene Dietrich was
York City's 2013 Pride, I was
strutting the silver screen in a top hat and
sex research, political activism, and coun-
reminded of just how eventful
tails, queer women joined their gay brothers
seling, as well as medical services for men
the past year had been. The historic DOMA
to fight laws against male homosexuality
and women with same-sex attractions and
challenge was a win not just for the mar-
and establish organizations such as the
for trans individuals.
riage equality movement but also for the
Bund fur Menschenrechte (the League of
many binational married couples who could
Human Rights). They also produced some
now choose to call this country home, since
of the first magazines aimed specifically at
the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services
women with same-sex attractions, such as
By the mid-1920s, the monocles, short
had to recognize the legality of their same-
Girlfriend (Die Freundin, 1924-1933), Wom-
haircuts, trousers, and sharply tailored
sex relationship.
anly Love (Frauenliebe, 1926-1930), and
tuxedos that were conquering mainstream
Bachelorette (Garc;;onne,1930-1932).
German fashion were also acquiring a
These latest developments are often
seen as a legacy of Stonewall in 1969,
where brave demonstrators laid the ground-
Writers for these magazines referred to
couples as "girlfriend" (Freundin) and "boy"
Before Butch and Femme: Virile
and Feminine Gender Identities
particular erotic meaning within Berlin's
female homosexual subculture. The queer
work for what is now a global network of
(Bubi), or as "virile" and "feminine" women,
magazines feature "flappers" or "New
queer media, activism, and Pride marches.
early ancestors of "butch" and "femme."
Women" on their covers, as well as reports
But today's LGBT identity politics actually
Some also used the new language of
of women who "pass" as men (often for
have a longer prehistory-one
sexual science, referring to "homosexuals"
decades on end), and fictional stories of
48
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
that begins
2014
FEATURES/
H1ST
ATATlMtWHtN
MARltNt
STRUTTING
OltTRICH
WAS
THtSllVtR
SCRttN
IN
ATOP
HAT
ANO
TAllS,
OUttR
WOMtN
JOINtO
THtlR
GAY
BROTHtRS
TO~IGHT
lAWS
AGAINST
MAltHOMOStXUAllTY.
same-sex desire that reveal a wide a range
marriages cheat on their wives?" There were
of gender identities-from
also heated discussions about virile-virile or
readers suggest an increasing need to dis-
turous "gigolos" with a passion for driving
feminine-feminine relationships, and whether
tinguish between categories of gender and
and smoking, and boyish "Bubi" sporting
masculine women were more intelligent
sexuality. As a result, some women argued
muscular builds and male pronouns, to saucy
(most readers agreed they were not). These
that although they enjoyed wearing mascu-
feminine "vamps" and "exotic" women. Like
women sought to balance feminist beliefs
line suit jackets and ties, these should be
today's drag kings, the virile 1920s woman
with a range of personal and erotic gender
combined with skirts to underline the wear-
poor but adven-
At the same time, letters from magazine
was often praised for "doing" masculinity
identities, foreshadowing butch/femme
er's femaleness. For others, though, only
better than a man. As one fictional charac-
debates by almost half a century.
full masculine attire would suffice-as
ter declared to her lover in a 1930 edition of
How you are like a man but with the soul
Between Homosexual
and Trans
of a girl."
The 1920s were a period of gender in tran-
Garc;onne: "O you, my beloved, strong boy!
At other times, though, the masculine
sition, and there was a crossover between
the
self-identified transvestite E.K. declared in
Die Freundin: "I will do without the tuxedo,
but not the trousers."
A look into the historical archive of Weimar
Germany reveals a vibrant and complex queer
homosexual woman was a controversial
masculine homosexual and trans identi-
subculture that in many ways foreshadows
figure. In 1931, writers for Girlfriend and
fications. The queer women's magazines
today's identity politics and activism, includ-
Bachelorette fiercely debated the ability of
published regular columns on transvestite
ing the beginnings of identifications including
virile women to remain faithful to their part-
issues, while Lotte Hahm, a prominent
dyke, butch boi, drag king, and transgender.
ners. The Garc;onne reader Ilse Schwarze,
figure in her bow tie and pants, led not
When we celebrate the DOMA challenge or
for example, questioned why queer women
only the main transvestite organizations in
the end of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, let's also
should mimic the problems of heterosexual
Berlin but the homosexual League of Ideal
remember this longer history of LGBT political
relationships: "Is it good that men in 'normal'
Women's Friendship as well.
activism and queer gender diversity. •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
49
BRITTNEY
GRINER'S
CAREER
HAS
TAKEN
OFF
AND
SHE'S
READY
TOSOAR.
BY LYNDSEY D'ARCANGELO
50
CURVE
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2014
oARJZONA
(;\51
__,
I
/
----
G ncK RE
SORT
,~'-"
rrobile
JULY/AUG
UST
2014
CURVE
51
CURVE
JULY/A
UGUST
t doesn't take much to make Brittney Griner
happy. The 23-year-old basketball phenom is a
self-proclaimed country girl, and if she were ever
stranded on a desert island, there are only two
things she'd need to survive: an ATV and a big
crate of bacon. Tm country enough to figure
out how to make a fire," Griner says with a slight
Southern drawl. "So I'd just need some bacon to
go with it."
It's a simple answer, but that's just how Griner rolls. She's laidback and relaxed-even when she considers the prospect of being
stranded on that island. But life wasn't always this simple. In her
best-selling memoir, In My Skin, she reveals a much more vulnerable side, which for years was kept hidden from the public. ''A lot of
times people try to sugarcoat things, instead of telling the fl.at-out
truth;' Griner admits. "But it's hard to get
a good clean message across, if you're going
to leave out certain things:'
In the book, Griner confesses that her
youth was filled with confusion and isolation, especially when she began to look
physically different from her peers. For
a long time, she saw it as a disadvantage.
It wasn't until the ninth grade, when she
started playing basketball, that she realized her height and build were actually a
gift. Others started to notice as well. Once
a video of her dunking the ball was uploaded to YouTube, the entire country started
paying attention.
"That clip definitely changed a lot in my
life;' says Griner. "People started coming
up to me all the time. They'd call me The
YouTube Girl and everything:'
For Griner, as public recognition of her
on-court skills increased, the attention
was overwhelming and exciting, but it also
opened the door to more negativity. Some
people refused to believe she was authentic. After all, girls can't jump
like that. They aren't 6 foot 8. They don't wear a men's size 17 shoe,
or have an 86-inch wingspan. She must be taking steroids. "She"
must be a "he:'
"That bothered me;' Griner admits. ''All through high school
and even college, I got,'Oh, she's a man. It's not fair-there's something going on. She must be on steroids. That's why she's so tall
and she can dunk: That bothered me, because people always have
to find something wrong when something special happens. And
I'm like, 'Why?',,
The more Griner began to break records, and the more physically dominating she became on the basketball court,
the louder the questions got. Instead of
embracing her for helping to further the
women's game by taking it to another level,
people criticized her instead.
"Everyone wants the WNBA to be
as entertaining as the NBA;' Griner explains. "But then people want to question
it and tarnish it by throwing all these crazy accusations out. Do ya'll really want us
to evolve, or do you just want us to stay
the same?"
Despite the backlash, Griner was a
three-time All-American at Baylor University, where she scored 3,283 career points
(No. 2 in Division I women's history) and
blocked 748 shots (No. 1 all-time). In addition to propelling Baylor to a national
title in 2012, she also earned national
Player of the Year honors in both her junior and senior seasons. But success didn't
come without sacrifice. While at Baylor, Griner was asked to keep
her sexuality private-an issue that she and the head coach, Kim
Mulkey, often argued about. Griner describes their relationship as
"complicated;' but says she has nothing but respect for Mulkey.
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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53
"She knew how to get me to perform well;' Griner explains."She
learned what it took to get me going. And she knew how to chal~
lenge me, 'cause she knew that if someone told me I couldn't do
something, then I'd find a way to get it done:'
Even though Baylor, a private Baptist university, has a strict
policy against homosexuality, Griner doesn't regret her decision to
attend school there. "I am happy I went to Baylor;' she says. "My
closest friends right now I met at Baylor. Sometimes, you just have
to find the silver lining in everything:'
After Griner's collegiate career was over, her private life quickly
became public. On the day of the 2013 WNBA draft, she was
asked about her sexuality-a question Griner had been waiting to
answer honestly since her freshman year at Baylor. Her answer to
that question became breaking news all over the Internet.
"When the story broke, I just went with it;' says Griner. "I didn't
need to be like, 'Oh hey, everybody, I'm gay!' because so many
people kind of already knew:' If anyone thought that her admis~
sion would hurt her on draft day or influence any endorsement
deals, they were wrong. She was drafted number one overall by the
Phoenix Mercury and scored an endorsement deal with Nike to
model both male and female clothing.
Today, Griner is out and proud. She boldly laughs at the social
media trolls and uses her past experience as motivation to com~
bat bullying. "A lot of young fans reach out to me on Instagram;'
Griner says earnestly. "I try to respond, especially because I've got~
ten some real serious comments:'
Griner is also in the process of developing a mobile appBG:BU-for kids who are being bullied. The app will provide an
outlet and a supportive place for kids to communicate what they're
going through. Users will be able to upload original content, con~
nect with and support one another, and find resources. The goal of
BG:BU is to raise global awareness of the bullying problem and
encourage more people to address the issue.
With her memoir published, her Nike endorsement deal signed,
and her mobile app about to be released, Griner is flying high. But
now that a new WNBA is season under way, she's focusing once
again on basketball, where her overall goals are to win a WNBA
Championship and to become one of the best women's basketball
players of all time.
"I have been through a lot of things, and I could have given up;'
Griner says. "But I pushed through. You just have to try. Anything
is possible:' (wnba.com) •
54
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2
I HAVE
BEEN
THROUGH
A LOTOFTHINGS.
AND
I COULD
HA
VE
GIVEN
UPBUTI
PUSHED
THROUGH.
YOUJUST
HAVE
TOTRY.ANYTHING
ISPOSSIBLE.
''
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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55
FEATURES/
ST
FEATURES/
ST
VIOLETLOVEHEADBANDS
AREYOURCROWNING
GLORY
THISSUMMER.
Where's your head at this summer? Whether
you're a hippie or a hipster, everyone
loves a distinctive head accessory to make
the season memorable. If you think the
trucker cap is a little bit last season, and
the bandana is, well, so last decade, try a
Violet Love headband to put you head and
shoulders above the rest this summer. These
no-slip, absorbent, durable, fade-resistant
and machine washable headpieces work
well at outdoor concerts, picnics, sweaty
gym sessions, or as a splash of color to an
ordinary outfit. Created by activewear
designer Rebecca M. chaels, they pair
perfectly with shorts, capris, minis, bikinis,
and your favorite worn-in tee. Choose
from a range of vibrant prints and bold colors
retailing at $17 at specialty boutiques and
onliµe. (violedoveheadbands.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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61
FEATURES/
ST
UNDERCOVER
NO-SWEAT
PERFECTFIT
UNDIES FOR
SUMMER.
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
63
There's nothing worse than bulky, scratchy undies at the
height of summer. REAL Underwear, created by Morris
Rishty, a veteran designer in women's retail including Victoria's
Secret, Hanes, and Maidenform, has released the Fusion line
of underwear for women who want to feel comfortable and
elegant in their undies. The Fusion collection, made with the
latest fusion technology, includes seamless hipsters and thongs
that don't dig, bunch or curl like other seamless underwear.
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FEATURES/
ST
You can barely feel that you're wearing underwear at all in these
generously-sized yet elegant foundation pieces that are perfect
underneath a work suit, evening wear, and also at the gym. These
laser-cut intimates move with your body and are invisible under
clothing, plus they're comfortable whether you prefer the hipster
or the thong. They also come in 6 appealing colors, starting at $12.
Look good and feel good in these no-sweat knickers this summer.
(realunderwear.com)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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0
n Saturday, March 15, The L.A.
Gay & Lesbian Center hosted a
kick~off concert event featuring
a performance by Joan Jett & the Black~
hearts to promote this year's An Evening
with Women event.
t~)tf
V:\
..
t.:.
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Since 2002 An Evening with Women,
produced by Linda Perry and presented by
Lexus Financial Services, has raised more
than $4.1 million for the women and girls
served by the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center.
The intimate concert was held at the
legendary Roxy in West Hollywood,
and included guests such as Sharon Os~
bourne, Carmen Electra, and Perry's wife
Sara Gilbert. Perry played dual roles as
both host and the Master of Ceremonies.
(lagaycenter.org) •
T
he coolest queer women from around
the world descended on Las Vegas
the weekend of April 24-27 for Girl
Bar, Truck Stop Girlz and Total Rewards
by Caesars Entertainment's annual Dinah
Vegas 2014." We are once again thrilled
with the fantastic experience and warm
welcome Dinah Vegas patrons received
across the hottest properties on the
Strip!" says founder and producer San~
dy Sachs. Now in its third Vegas year,
thousands of lesbians took full advantage
of the non~stop entertainment, cuisine,
cocktails and gaming that makes the city
that never sleeps a top draw for lesbians.
Dates are already set for next year's event
on April 23-26, 2015. Bottoms up, ladies!
( dinahshoreweekend.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
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FEATURES/
I
t's called the Flannel Takeover Company,
but Bostonians refer to it as FTC, "a
roaming women's party that will take over
the institutions that were secretly always
built for women: everything, everywhere:'
Since January 2013, hundreds
of
women have "taken over" straight bars
in Boston on the third Saturday of every
month. Past venues include People's Republik in Cambridge, every straight guy's
favorite Communist themed bar, and
Who's On First in Fenway, a notorious
hang out spot for college frat boys and
their girlfriends. Imagine the reactions of
these regular patrons when 400-plus lesbians storm in.
In preparation, the venues add staff
and even sometimes hold emergency
gender and sexuality workshops for employees. The goal, as one of the organizers
Ashley Lucas explains, is to "create comfortable experiences that you might not
be able to have otherwise:'
Kara Smith, an FTC regular and Curve
reader since 2000, raves about FTC for
"providing new opportunities to make
lnstaFriends ... with FTC, you're never
alone in Boston:' At FTC events, some
come alone, some come with their friends,
some come with their partners. Ages of
women I've met at FTC range from early
20s to midA0s. It's a real mix and match
of different women whose social circles
otherwise wouldn't overlap.
The organization has a group of volunteers called "The Corps" that comes
around to welcome you and introduce
you to others. By midnight, they are
smearing glitter on anyone who consents.
It's comfortable, sexy, and somehow
SCE
makes you feel like your excessive drinking and dancing contributes to a clandestine social movement for the greater good
of lesbians everywhere.
FTC's umbrella organization,
The
Welcoming Committee (TWC), also organizes takeovers of destinations, ranging
from the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum in Boston to the city of Montreal.
I joined TWC on their takeover of
Foxwoods Casino in November, not
knowing any of the other 99 queers
spending the weekend with me in TheMiddle-of- Nowhere, Connecticut. The
details of what we got up to are our little secret, but let's just say that Kathy
Griffin retweeted us with the hashtag
"#BusFullOfGays;' and I've returned to
Boston with nearly a hundred new friends.
( thewelcomingcommittee.com)
•
JULY/AUGUST
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FOR woMEN
FEATURES/
0
n Thursday, May 1, in New York
City, Ms. Foundation for Women
celebrated cofounder Gloria Steinem's 80th birthday as well as the organization's 40th anniversary at its annual gala.
During her remarks, Steinem announced
the appointment of Teresa C. Younger as
the organization's new CEO and president.
''At this time of both feminist success and
backlash against it, Teresa Younger is the
perfect person to continue the grassroots
strength of the Ms. Foundation, and build it
into policy and protection against backlash;'
said Steinem. "She knows how to make the
needs of the majority of women into guiding principles of action:'
Held at the posh restaurant Cipriani in
midtown Manhattan, the star-studded event
was attended by entertainers, politicians,
cultural icons, and activists alike, including
Chelsea Handler, Gabourey Sidibe, Kathy
Najimy, Amy Schumer, Olivia Wilde, Billie Jean King, Sally Kohn, Judy Gold, Suze
Orman, the band BETTY, and U.S. Reps.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and
Maxine Waters (D-CA).
On the red carpet, CNN contributor and
political correspondent Sally Kohn spoke
about what she felt to be the strengthened
relationship between the gay rights movement and the women's movement in recent
years: "Women's rights are human rights are
gay rights ... forgive the grammar. The point
is a good one: it's all one fight. The foreMs. FOUNDATION
F
WOM
SCE
,, ..-
M FOUNDATION
oR wot-'
1/s \~ut;DATION
Ms. FOUNDAT
FOR WOMEN
I
Ms.F
f
es that are against equality for women are
those against equality for gay folks:'
Comic Judy Gold observed that strengthened relationship, particularly between lesbians and straight women, was the fortunate
consequence of the AIDS Crisis of the '80s
and '90s: "If you think about the turning
point of the gay rights movement, when gay
men were dying, and, those men couldn't be
in the closet anymore ... who came to their
aid? Lesbians and straight women. And I really think we are a way more powerful community now, and, unfortunately, that's such
a horrible reason, but I do believe I felt the
unity at that time:'
Suze Orman was quick to note that the
history of relations between lesbian and
straight women has not been an easy one: "I
Ms. rouNDAiJV"
FG
w1)M
N
don't think it's the women's movement that
has incorporated [the lesbian community]
differently, I think it's the world that has
incorporated it differently. Should the women's movement have spoken up for it years
ago, before it was accepted everywhere?
They absolutely should have, and they did
not. They turned their back on Ellen at a
time that they should've stood up for Ellen.
And so therefore they're now standing up
for it because it's easy to stand up for it, because everybody's standing up for it:'
Steinem has voiced her unequivocal
support of the LGBT community in recent years, and particularly for the trans
community, which, in its fight for gender equality, has done nothing less than
transform and re-energize the collective
feminist movement. "I believe that transgender people, including those who have
transitioned, are living out real, authentic
lives;' she wrote in an op-ed for The Advocate in 2013. "[T]here is much similarity among the challenges of transgender
people and all women-from
healthcare
to harassment to discrimination in the
workplace ... ! know we've all worked hard
on and are celebrating the Supreme Court
marriage rulings this spring, but there is
so much work to do to reach full LGBT
equality-and
ensuring that transgender
people also have equality under the law
has been the most left out and therefore
should become foremost on that list:'
(forwomen.org)
•
JULY/AUGUST
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W
ile some folks will always
elieve that bigger is beter, and the more stuff they
have the happier they'll be, there's a quiet
klatch of people who are finding joy in
simplicity, paring down their possessions
and living in tiny spaces. Jenn Kliese and
Kim Langston are two of those people.
Kliese lives outside Olympia, Wash., in
a 135-square-foot home on wheels, which
she designed herself. Langston is finishing
up building hers.
A few years ago, Kliese and Langston
were looking for ways to cut down on
expenses, so that Kliese could have more
time for her art, when they met Dee Williams, who lived around the corner in a
tiny 85-square-foot house. (Williams has
since become somewhat of a celebrity
as an advocate for living in tiny spaces.)
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2014
When they began to hang out with Williams, they learned that one of the benefits
of tiny houses fit in perfectly with their
dream of living on less: They could own
a home without incurring long-term debt.
They formed a Tiny House Club and
began to network with other enthusiasts.
Kliese took a home-design class and began
to sketch out what her tiny house would
look like. They both took workshops and
helped other people build tiny homes. Like
many tiny houses, the one Kliese built is
on wheels, so that she can move it. That
made for challenging design elements.
"When you're pulling this house down the
road, it's like it's in an earthquake and a
hurricane at the same time;' she says.
Even though Kliese and Langston are a
committed couple, they decided early on
that they would each build their own tiny
house and live together by living on the
same piece of property. Langston thrives
on social interaction and likes to invite
friends and strangers to gather around.
Kliese is more introverted and wants space
to do her art. "We decided we wanted to
go small, but couldn't live together in that
small a space;' says Kliese.
Before they could even think about
moving into a tiny space, Langston and
Kliese had to get rid of a lot of stuff. They
were living in a three-bedroom house filled
with furniture, tools, mountaineering
equipment, canning supplies, and miscellaneous friends' belongings. "Downsizing
is an adventure;' Kliese says."It's spelunking
in your heart and soul. It's not something
you do in an afternoon, or a week, or even
a month. It takes years to untangle yourself from stuff:'
FEATURES/
Kliese lives in her tiny house on a friend's
property, where she pays $75 a month to
park it and about $11 a month in utilities.
Langston is in the process of building her
second tiny home. The first one was de~
stroyed in a fire in 2012 when it was 60
percent completed. Currently, no insurance
company will cover tiny homes on wheels,
so the fire cost Langston thousands of dol~
lars and months of work. She was heart~
broken. But the community came to her
support, and after a successful fundraising
campaign she is now rebuilding and hopes
to complete her house this year.
Their reasons for wanting to go tiny
are many, and include the environmental
impact as well as the long~term savings.
Because of the size of their homes, the
two are able to afford some unique design
features that would have been impossible
on a larger scale. 'i\.ll of the wood is just
stunning;' Kliese says. "The attention to
detail that so many people put into these
places is just overwhelming:'
Langston says, "I have so many friends
who own homes, and they're always stressed
out:' If something goes wrong with the tiny
house, its accessible financially. Everything is
so much more affordable.
"I can look at every aspect of my house
and know who touched it. Because we
went small, we got to be very intention~
al with where we sourced materials;'
Kliese adds. She estimates that she spent
$36,000 on her house. She used all her
savings, cashed in a retirement account,
and maxed out her credit card. Just as it is
impossible to get insurance, it is impossi~
ble to get a mortgage for a tiny house, and
most people pay cash for their homes. "I
have some debt from the house;' she says,
"but most people pay for 30 years. I'm go~
ing to be done in two:'
As we talked, the three of us in Kliese's
tiny sitting room, it didn't feel cramped at
all. In fact, with the tall ceilings and big
TRA
windows, it felt bright and spacious.
Of course, there are some downsides
to tiny~house living. "It's hard to have
two people cooking at the same time;'
says Kliese. And she doesn't have a bath~
room (she uses the neighbors'), although
Langston's house will have one. They have
a freezer in a barn on the property, because
both like to garden and cook.
Eventually, Langston and Kliese would
love to live on a piece of land with a shared
community building. It would have a big
kitchen to handle the canning from their
vast vegetable garden, a shower and laun~
dry facility, and a place to store camping
and biking equipment.
For now, they are content with the tiny
life they've created. Kliese says, "I think,
living in a house that I designed and help
build-I can't even comprehend, it's so cool.
My heart can't even wrap around it:' •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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73
I . CALL AHEAD.
Remember, your needs are legitimate and you have every right
to ask for them to be met. "Before you stay at a hotel, make
contact with them;' says Carole
Zoom. 'J\sk for a specific item
to be provided for you. If the
concierge is unresponsive, that
is not the hotel for you:'
11
0~,1lOHTO
HA~Hlmay be questioned
11
We all say it, but what we really
mean is that we love to go places. We dread the inconvenience
of the crowds, the security, the
delays, and dream of a perfect
trip where the journey is a delight, all the while knowing
it's much more likely to be a
pain in the ass. For people with
non-conforming bodies, traveling is more than inconvenient; it
can feel like a series of stressful
encounters and insurmountable
obstacles, an impossible nightmare they'd rather not face.
People of size may have to
contend with narrow seats, short
seatbelts and unkind glances or
comments. People with disabilities may be faced with inaccessible spaces, unwilling staff
and belittling or dehumanizing
attitudes. People of non-normative gender (trans, genderqueer,
butch females, femme males)
74
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JULY/AUGUST
about their
identity or medications/ prosthetics and subjected to exposing pat-downs and scans.
These things do not happen
on every journey or with every
company but they are common enough to make people
with non-conforming bodies
anxious about travel.
There is no way to control
every aspect of your journey,
no matter how organized you
are, but it is entirely possible to
greatly reduce the likelihood of
the issues mentioned above.
Here is our guide for travellers
with non-conforming bodies,
with tips gathered from fat
activist/ educator, Stacy Bias;
artist/ activist with disabilities,
Carole Zoom; public relations
manager for American Airlines, Bob Witeck, and The
National Center for T ransgender Equality (NCTE).
2014
2.
DO YOUR RESEARCH.
There are many websites,
apps and adaptive items that
might help your trip run more
smoothly. "You can use SeatGuru.com to learn the measurements of every model of
commercial airplane currently flying and to help choose
the best seats;' says Stacy
Bias. "You can join the Flying
While Fat Facebook group to
ask questions and get general
support:'
0.CHECK GUIDELINES.
If you know the rules and regulations ahead of time, you'll
be able to pack appropriately
and come up with solutions for
problems in advance. "Being
prepared is so much simpler
now that you can visit websites
like the U.S. Department of
State's up-to-speed guidance;'
says Bob Witeck. "Documen-
tation matters for everyone,
and for individuals whose documents are changed or changing to reflect their true gender
identity, if you know before
you go, then you will be safer,
smarter and travel smoothly:'
4.KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.
Knowledge is indeed power,
so find out exactly what rights
are afforded to you as a general citizen and as a person with
a non-conforming body. "You
may request a private screening
or to speak to a supervisor at
any time during the security
screening process;' says a representative from the NCTE.
"Screening can be conducted
in a private screening area with
a witness or companion of the
traveller's choosing:'
5.
KEEP YOUR COOL.
Whether things are going well
or falling apart, both you and
the people around you will
benefit from your patience. "Be
clear and gentle with your instructions so that everyone feels
well-informed and prepared to
do what they can to help;' says
Zoom. 'J\s much as possible,
keep your cool when things go
awry and be assertive, firm but
also patient:'
FEATURES/
b.
EXPECT RESPECT.
Don't forget that you deserve
to be treated fairly-you don't
have to put up with rudeness or
abuse. "It's OK to expect to be
treated like a real live human be~
ing. You are one!" says Bias.'t\nd
you're a paying customer:'
7.TRUST THE STAFF.
A bad experience in the past
may lead you to assume that
everyone is going to be intol~
erant and hostile, but people
who work in the travel indus~
try are trained to be sensitive
to your needs. "Flight crews are
very seasoned and they work
hard to handle almost every~
TRA
thing that comes their way;'
says Witeck. "They recognize
that differences are not distinc~
tions, since everyone deserves
to be treated equally:'
6.RELAX.
If you have followed the tips
listed above, there is nothing
else to do but sit back and en~
joy the scenery. Should a prob~
lem arise, you will be ready to
handle whatever comes your
way. "If you are seated next to
Fussy McJerkington, have a
selfcare plan in place (head~
phones, a book, a breathing
technique, a TylenolPM) to
self soothe;' says Bias. •
OINFO
CAROLE ZOOM: carolezoom.com
STACY BIAS: stacybias.net
AMERICAN AIRLINES: aa.com
FLYING WHILE FAT
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR
FACEBOOK GROUP:
TRANSGENDER EQUALITY:
facebook.com/groups/flyingwhilefat/
tra nsequa Iity.org
"Dancing On Duval" Block Party • Pool Parties!
Live Model Art Show • Water Sports
Island Ladies Home Tour • Beach Party!
T
womenfest.com
gaykeywestfl.com
305-294-4603
TheFlorid~Keys
KeyWest
Close To Perfect - Far From Normdl
JULY/AUGUST
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When it comes to finding the best trav~
el destinations, only a few cities in the
world have a true mix of diverse and tol~
erant cultures embedded in their way of
life. One of those cities is Buenos Aires.
Its rich cultural heritage stems from the
immigrants-from
Spain, Italy, France,
and Germany-who
have made Argen~
tina their home.
The capital city of Argentina, Buenos
Aires is situated on the Plata River ( so
vast you could mistake it for an ocean) and
embellishes its South American ambience
with European flourishes most noticeable
in the design and layout of its plazas,
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2014
parks, and boulevards, and in the quality
and variety of its fashion boutiques and
galleries. The ornate facades adorning
hotels and apartments may have you
thinking you've stumbled into 19th~
century Paris. Other European qualities
include greetings with a kiss (males in~
eluded), wine with most meals, a pen~
chant for art in everyday life, and the
kind of crazy driving you think you'd see
only in Rome.
Some time ago, Buenos Aires was
labeled the gay mecca of Latin Americaafter all, it's had civil unions since 2002
and gay marriage countrywide since 2009.
WHERE TO STAY
There are many different accommodation
options in BA-from
upscale business
hotels, to elegant, palatial structures built
during the belle epoque, to contemporary,
style-centric and gay-friendly hotels. I
stayed at the Be Hotel, formerly the supergay Axel Hotel (its tagline is "hetero
friendly:') The Be continues to attract gay
and lesbian guests, possibly because of its
handy location in the San Telmo area, a
short walk from the tango neighborhood,
nightlife, cafes, grocery stores, and most
of the main sights of BA. Plus, the minimalist decor with furniture by Eames,
Mies van der Rohe, and Eileen Gray, the
night-clubby bar, and a swimming pool on
the terrace don't hurt! The rooms are compact and industrial in their finishes but
have everything you need. The showers are
open-plan prisms of polished concrete and
glass, quite the novelty. Free Wi-Fi and a
buffet breakfast will get your day off to a
good start.
If you prefer to stay in Palermo, known
as the gay district of Buenos Aires and situated 20 minutes from the city center, we
were also recommended the BA Sohotel
(basohoteLcom), a bright and spacious art
hotel with deluxe king and corner suites, a
pool, and a Jacuzzi, or the chicly decorated
Vitrium, where the wallpaper is designed
by Isaac Mizrahi! (vitriumhoteLcom).
WHAT TO DO
If you're staying at the Be Hotel, a short
walk to the end of the street brings you
to the Feria de San Telmo in Plaza Dorrego, an antiques and flea market held
on weekends. But it's the neighborhood
of Palermo that really offers retail attractions for design-savvy gay folk and culinary adventurers who want to get beyond
the requisite tango posters, the Argentine
beef and empanadas. The businesses in
this area are up-to-the-minute in fashion,
food, and fine arts, contributing to a very
pleasant streetscape.
Buenos Aires has many interesting
neighborhoods, so my advice is to walk,
walk, and walk. You never know what
you'll stumble upon, but it is a big city,
so keep your wits about you and always
know where your wallet is. La Recoleta
Cemetery is a must, whatever your take
on the afterlife. This necropolis is home to
JULY/AUGUST
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77
its most famous resident, Eva Peron-and
countless cats. Peruse over 4,000 intricately
carved vaults and crypts, and marvel at the
wealth this city attracted at the height of
its power.
Snap back into life with a tango show
at one of the numerous theater restaurants
in the city. If the paradigm of male~female
dance partners is too straight for your
taste, check out Mariana Docampo's Tango
Queer (tangoqueer.com) while you're in
town. The bold aesthetic of the tango is
also found in La Boca, an old port neigh~
borhood with brightly colored buildings,
where artists sell their equally vivid, tango~
inspired artworks on the street.
For something even more lively,and close
to your heart, if your visit is in November,
La Marcha del Orgullo is the local version
of a Gay Pride parade. Here, gays, lesbi~
ans, genderqueer, allies, and exhibitionists
gather to celebrate the rainbow commu~
nity's visible presence in the city.
WHERE TO EATAND DRINK
You'll have no shortage of steak and good,
cheap red wine, but there are also many
78
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2014
other choices, from sushi to tapas. For
a little romance, I can recommend Mil~
ion (milion.com.ar), a tempting gem of
an establishment in a beautiful colonial
building. Begin your evening with a per~
fectly mixed drink upstairs at the chic yet
welcoming bar, where the resident black
cat may just be invited by the bartender
to lap from a martini glass of water to a
bossa nova beat. Downstairs, the modern
Latin American cuisine is served al fresco,
and the wait staff is sophisticated and
friendly. If you want to check out the gay
restaurant, Inside (insiderestobar.com) is a
cozy, campy choice. Don't go for the food
(bland), go for the atmosphere, the plasma
screens playing Madonna in concert, and
the saucy attitude of the wait staff-you'll
possibly be offered freshly ground pepper
from a very phallic peppermill.
IF YOU GO
American Airlines (aa.com), with its
gay~friendly service and familiar hospital~
ity, is a good choice for a long flight to an~
other hemisphere. More information and
ideas for itineraries at argentina.travel. •
(/)
z
I
2
z
FEATURES/
TRA
MEET
THE
LOC~~~GS
LAETITIA ORSETTI, DIRECTOR, FAB
BEST NEIGHBORHOOD
FOR LESBIANS
Palermo Soho and Palermo
Hollywood, walking distance fromd
the best bars and restaurants
vean
lived
hill environment. I Ha
super
c
If
for
10
years
and
still
here myse
love it like the first day.1
YOUR FAVORITETANGO
RESTAURANT
La Marshall Milonga Ga~
en El Beso-the gay one.
(lamarshallmilonga.com.ar) anl~
Rojo Tango en t he Faena Hote
simply beautiful although much )
more pricy (rojotangoshow.com
BEST GAY BARS OR
NIGHTCLUBS FOR
LESBIANS
YOUR SECRETPLACE
YOU'D BE WILLING TO
SHARE
II Matterello in La Boca (next
. ) to
The
the famous soccer stadium . "f
•
st eat platter 1
lasagna is a mu
et a bit sketchy
visiting this colorful Y
h
•
hood But remember cas
w;ththe blackmarkt
exchange rate is worth the tnp.
BESTTIME FOR LESBIANS
TO VISIT BA
•
between the months
Summertime,
Christmas
f November and March.
o d New Year's is a nonstop party
. &..
an
week
with panoramic
i ir eworks
.
I
across the city on both nights.
InstantAccessto the
Nation'sTopGay&
Lesbian
Realtors.
To plan a lesbian Argentine wedding,
go to: fabulousweddings.com.ar
Fiesta Jolie is the new be~t party
• on Wednesday for girls
night
• TAZZon Armenia Street).
onth in
(located in
Casa Brandon is once a m
Niceto Club and is one of the m_ost
• I sive LGBTparties in BA. Pink
• Just
• f or giris and runs
Jmestufor Us is
Glam nightclub holds
u
downtown.
.d a
girls' night called Unna on Fnhays.
Fiesta Dorothy (once every t ree
h ) ·s surreal! Fiesta Plop
mont s I
•
fun Fiesta
(every Friday) is very ho .identify as
Eyeliner is for thkoseanwd
underground.
op-roe er
queer, P
·ence about
Ultimate is a new expen
b launched especially for
to
ho want to visit all the
foreigners w
Look
clubs within a cou~le of ~ii~IP
it up when you arrive to
.
treatment all night long.
Trip
Ou !
For 25 years,
the women's
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listed women's
clubs, resorts,
cruises, tours &
more, across the
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call today for 20% off!
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Got iPhone?
Find Gurl Scout in iTunes.
www.damron.com
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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TLOOKtSTARS
Heat Wave
Your sizzle index hits a high note with both Venus and
Mars in flirty air signs. By Charlene Lichtenstein
CANCER /,;%
(June 22-July 23) ;%
Sapphic Crabs are clever ;%
gals when it comes to ;%
money management. They ;%
;%
have the innate ability to
;%
make a little bit of money ;%
go a long, long way and ;%
tend to earn it in little bits ;%
and pieces from many ;%
small transactions just like ;%
a shopkeeper or a waitress. ;%
She is not a wheeler ;%
;%
dealer stock market trader
;%
with her stash, however, ;%
preferring to put her ;%
money where it is safe. The ;%
bank at a rousing 2 percent ;%
fully taxable interest is ;%
good enough for her, ;%
;%
thank you very much'
;%
;%
LEO ;%
(July 24-Aug. 23) ;%
The proud Lioness has ;%
;%
an uncanny knack to
;%
make money, probably ;%
because she gravitates to ;%
high profile careers like ;%
acting, which if you are ;%
bold, pushy, confident and ;%
talented enough, you can ;%
pull in the big bucks with ;%
;%
relative ease. She is her ;%
own best self-promoter
;%
and can often get even ;%
her meager and half- ;%
assed efforts recognized ;%
and rewarded. In the ;%
corporate food chain, her ;%
;%
professional plate always
;%
seems to have a dessert... ;%
and rightly so, she says! ;%
;%
Charlene
Lichtenstein
is the author ;%
;%
of HerScopes:
A Guide
to Astrology
;%
forLesbians
(Simon& Schuster)- ;%
;%
tinyurl.
com/HerScopes.
;%
Nowavailableas anebook. 1/,
80
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
Cancer (June 22-July 23)
Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 22)
Pisces (Feb. 20-March 20)
Your summer can be filled with
The political machinations
You are steamy hot this
summer as your love life heats
lots of family related business
going on behind the scenes
from a reunion. Whatever
are no match for astute
up. The secret to your success
the fates have in store for
Scorpios this summer. Not
is to not be scorched by
you, it will be cathartic,
only do you sniff out stale
jealousy and possessiveness.
liberating and affirming. A
maneuvers, you also take
Be as magnanimous and
secret romance is about to be
decisive action to upend
carefree as you can. It will act
exposed. Will she upset your
devious plans. Feel your oats
as an aphrodisiac. Use this time
carefully domesticated
and take it on the road. There
to refresh and rejuvenate your
are a bevy of beauties waiting
for you in some far off corner
home surroundings. Add a few
pillows ...and maybe a couple
of the world.
of pillow queens.
Certain gal pals have certain
Sagittarius (Nov. 23-Dec. 22)
Aries (March 21-April 20)
plans for you and it won't be
Plan a range of events this
Anything you say now can be
completely platonic. So strap
summer designed to bring
far-flung girlfriends together.
that may not be a bad thing!
Let's hope so-you
life?
need some
shaking up.
Leo (July 24-Aug. 23)
on your best and get ready to
held against you, Aries. And
get down. Expand your social
It's been too long and they will
Hold her fast and hold her
circle into a globe and start
provide a buzz of good vibes.
close all summer. Use your gift
navigating new territories.
If your relationship is in need
of gab to refresh any moribund
Lionesses can give out a
of a stimulus, find out exactly
relationship or launch a new
good roar of their pithy
what stimulates her and go for
one. Maybe talk is cheap. Action
opinions that will travel to
it. Those Sagittarians seeking a
is often required. If so then use
important corners. Who
new romantic connection will
that mouth of yours for more
find it if they look for it. And it
than just fanning the air.
knows where it can lead?
Virgo (Aug. 24-Sept. 23)
will be electrifying.
Taurus (April 21-May 21)
They love you at work and
Capricorn (Dec. 23-Jan. 20)
why not? Not only are you
Capricorns are the stars of
can buy you great luxuries this
especially charming with
the higher-ups, you are also
the office as the summer gets
underway. It is not only that
summer. You even manage to
use your oil to grease the way
clever and creative. So use
your personal grease to rub
co-workers find you charming
to sultry romances and zesty
and helpful, they also see that
adventures. But sometimes
the corporate cogs into a
you are a talented shooting
the true path to enjoyment
Money is honey because it
well-oiled corporate machine.
corporate star and want to
must be earned and not just
Take charge, Virgo, and see
grab on to your tail as you
yearned. So enjoy your gotten
how much progress you can
ascend. Let your past hard
gains by combining pleasure
personally make. It will pay off
work be your calling card to
with business. Put in the effort
for you so you can then pay it
the corner office.
at work and reap the rewards
forward.
Aquarius (Jan. 21-Feb. 19)
at play, Taurus.
Adventure awaits all
Gemini (May 22-June 21)
All eyes turn to you, Gemini,
this summer. You need to see
Aqueerians with time and
money to travel. Don't let the
and be seen. Glad hand and
summer go by before you get
open for your entry. What now?
be gladly handled. You are
out and about. The festivities
Are you ready for your grand
a magnum force full of pep,
continue even if you find
entrance into the epicenter of
personality and panache.
yourself staying closer to home
influence and general party
So don't store it in a bottle
with a range of invitations and
fun? You are certainly Ms.
on your pantry shelf. Pour
a choice of parties. The time
Popularity this summer so
yourself out and see who
to sit at home and wait for a
show off your considerable
takes a sip. Just watch out
delivery is in the winter. For
assets and see who checks out
your cup doesn't overflow.
now, get going.
your bottom line.•
Libra (Sept. 24-Oct. 23)
Nobody puts Libra in a corner
2014
and suddenly the velvet ropes
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JULY/AUG
2014
30
COMIC CROSSING
Dana Goldberg's debut
album crosses the line
in the best possible way.
By Merryn Johns
32
LOST GIRL FOUND
The high-flying producer of
our favorite TV show gives
Lost Girl its magic touch.
By Dar Dowling
3~
OUR ANNUAL
MUSIC SPECIAL
Our picks for essential
summer listening.
~7
BERLIN GIRLS
Queer identity may have
had its origins in pre-Nazi
Germany.
By Katie Sutton
56
ROCKON
You're going to be ready
to roar in these cool
country-chic shirts.
60
SUMMER LOVERS
Violet Love headbands are
your crowning glory this
summer.
72
TRAVEL
Living small in Washington
state. By Kathy Beige
COVER
PHOTO
BY BRANDON
SULLIVAN
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
1
JULY/AUG
2014
9
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IN EVERYISSUE
4
EDITOR'S NOTE
6
CURVETTES
8
FEEDBACK
10
THE GAYDAR
80
STARS
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
TRENDS
REVIEWS
9
BEAUTY
Cool cosmetics, perfect for
summer. By Rachel Shatto
24 BOOKS
Inside the life and love of
lesbian trans couple Diane
and Jacob Anderson-Minshall.
12 LESBOFILE
The best in celebrity gossip.
13
SHE SAID
VIEWS
14 OUT IN FRONT
Lesbian leadership in the
spotlight. By Sheryl Kay
14
IN CASE YOU MISSED
IT ... News from across the
country. By Sassafras Lowry
16 POLITICS
Why lesbian representation
is in the dark at the movies.
By Victoria Brownworth
18 THE TWO OF US
Our monthly profile of captivating lesbian couples who
live, love and work together.
20 LIPSTICK & DIPSTICK
Our popular butch-femme
advice duo.
22 ADVICE
Why we need to boost the selfesteem and positive thinking
of our LGBTteens. By Sherry
Platt Berman and Joy Read
2
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
By Cygnus Fogle & Merryn
Johns
27 CROSSWORD
Test your lesbian logic with
our final queer quiz for the
summer.
28 FILM
A new documentary takes a
look at the era of lesbian chic.
By Merryn Johns
HONEYMOON
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frorn
RONTtMERRYN'S
MEMO
Ilitti11g ll1e
l{ig'1t ~Tote
T
his is my fourth year editing Curve's annual Music issue and it's good
news for readers and for musicians that each year my task gets harder,
because the number of new summer releases I need to cover keeps
increasing.
This year, we received a record number of pitches for lesbian
musicians, and sometimes from the musicians themselves. Thanks to the digital age
we live in, the democratization of media, and the restructuring of the record industry,
new and more marginal voices are finding platforms and fan bases almost overnight.
This has been a boon to lesbian and queer musicians, who have previously been locked
out of a male-dominated and heteronormative industry. Women of color, women with
strong political views, and artists with nonnormative gender expressions and identities
are noticeably on the rise.
There is still something to be said for
a clear lesbian identity in music. When
we asked you on Facebook to post your
favorite musicians, the names were
familiar favorites-and
on repeat: Joan
Jett, Tegan & Sara, Melissa Etheridge,
k.d. lang, Indigo Girls, Brandi Carlile,
Mary Lambert, Mary Gauthier, Heather
Peace, Uh Huh Her, Melissa Ferrick,
Kaki King, Tracy Chapman,Jen Foster,
Antigone Rising, Hunter Valentine, and
even Missy Higgins who became engaged
to a man in January. While some readers
wondered if she could still be included in
the list, Higgins' shifting sexual identity
got me thinking about the cachet of'queer" in the music industry-who
among us hasn't
pondered the true sexual preferences of Madonna and Lady Gaga? Even Blondie's Debbie
Harry jumped on the bisexual bandwagon this spring. Female sexual ambiguity is
lucrative, interpreted by the mainstream as an index of desirability. Consequently, we've
had a recent rash of"fake lesbians;' or artists who toy with same-sex attraction: Nicki
Minaj, Jessie J, Katy Perry, Lily Allen. The media even speculates about the intimacies
shared by Lorde and Taylor Swift.
Upfront rap artist Iggy Azalea recently came out as a non-lesbian, stating B.atlyto
PrideSource that, in spite of her chick-centric lyrics and her headliner status at the
world's biggest dyke shindig, Club Skirts' The Dinah, "I don't wanna kiss girls:' Well,
thanks for clearing that up for us!
Enjoy this issue, which is full of real lesbian and queer musicians. I'm sure the charttopping fake lesbian craze isn't quite over, but it's nice to have so many of our own to
choose from and adore.
~·
MERZ
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
merryn@curvemag.com
4
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
curve
THE BEST-SELLING
JULY/AUGUST
2014
»
LESBIAN MAGAZINE
VOLUME
24 NUMBER
PUBLISHERSilke Bader
FOUNDINGPUBLISHER Frances Stevens
EDITORIAL
EDITORIN CHIEF Merryn Johns
MANAGINGEDITOR Rachel Shatto
COPY EDITOR Katherine Wright
CONTRIBUTINGEDITORS Victoria A. Brownworth,
Gina Daggett, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo, Jillian Eugenios,
Sheryl Kay, Stephanie Schroeder, Dave Steinfeld
EDITORIAL
ASSISTANTS
Caitlyn Byrne, Cygnus Fogle,
Francesca Lewis, William Northup, Lisa Tedesco
PROOFREADERElizabeth Harper
OPERATIONS
DIRECTOROF OPERATIONSJeannie Sotheran
EVENTS& MEDIA RELATIONSCOORDINATORRobin Perron
ADVERTISING
NATIONALSALES
Rivendell Media (908) 232-2021, todd@curvemagazine.com
ART/PRODUCTION
ART DIRECTORMeghan Musalo, Ricardo Calvi Vivian
PRODUCTIONARTIST Kelly Nuti
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Melany Joy Beck, Kathy Beige, Jenny Block, Adam L.
Brinklow, Kelsy Chauvin, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo, Traci
Dinwiddie, Maria De La 0, Elizabeth Estochen, Jill
Goldstein, Kristin Flickinger, Gillian Kendall, Kim Hoffman,
Charlene Lichtenstein, Karen Loftus, Sassafras Lowrey,
Emelina Minero, Laurie K. Schenden, Stephanie Schroeder,
Janelle Sorenson, Rosanna Rios-Spicer, Allison Steinberg,
Stella & Lucy, Dave Steinfeld, Edie Stull, Yana Tallon-Hicks,
Sarah Toce, Tina Vasquez, Jocelyn Voo
CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS & PHOTOGRAPHERS
Lauren Barkume, Alex Styles, Meagan Cignoli,
Sophia Hantzes, Janet Mayer, Syd London, Cheryl Mazak,
Maggie Parker, Robin Roemer, Leslie Van Stelten
CONTACT INFO
Curve Magazine
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Volume 24 Issue 5 Curve (ISSN 1087-867X) is published 8 times
per year (January/Febrary, March, April/May, June, July/August,
September, October, November/December) by Avalon Media,
LLC, PO Box 467, New York NY 10034. Subscription price:
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international (U.S. funds only). Returned checks will be assessed
a $25 surcharge. Periodicals postage paid at San Francisco, CA
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of Curve Magazine may not be reproduced in any manner, either
whole or in part, without written permission from the publisher.
Publication of the name or photograph of any persons or
organizations appearing, advertising or listing in Curve may not be
taken as an indication of the sexual orientation of that individual or
group unless specifically stated. Curve welcomes letters, queries,
unsolicited manuscripts and artwork. Include SASE for response.
Lack of any representation only signifies insufficient materials.
Submissions cannot be returned unless a self-addressed stamped
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Subscription Inquiries: Please write to Curve, Avalon Media LLC.,
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curvemag.com
2014
5
Curve's online selection of must-do, must-try, must-have extras.
LIFESTYLE
SENIOR
LESBIANS
FERRON'SMUSIC IS THE SOUNDTRACK TO
MANY LESBIAN LIVES
"I was an undergrad at Rutgers in the early
'80s, with an undeclared crush on a stocky,
Italian-Irish junior I'll call Mimi. One day
when we were talking about music, Mimi
drooped her lovely Italian-Irish eyelids and
murmured, 'Oh, Ferroni' She breathed the
singer's name the way someone might say,
CINEMA
FANDOM
THE PHENOMENON OF LESBIAN FANDOM
LIVES ONLINE!
Fandom is ignited through the intense
relationship between two characters in a TV
show, web series or film. Romantic subtext
and "shipping" are a part of why people are
drawn to fandoms, which is why there are
hundreds of lesbian fan fiction stories and
videos made about 'real' pairings. Curvemag.
com has a library of lesbian fandoms worth
checking out: Orange Is the New Black, Once
Upon a Time and Grey's Anatomy. To enter
this world go to
G curvemag.com
ADVICE
COMING
OUT
MY BIG FAT GREEKCOMING OUT
"Growing up as a kid in my Greek family
was great. I tried to follow the rules, get
married, have children, because 'that is
when your life starts,' they would tell me.
That is what they think-definitely
not me.
My life doesn't start with a husband, my life
is me, and I dictate how that goes. Funny
how some people think ..." Read the full
story on G curvemag.com
'the most luscious orgasm' or 'the greatest
singer-songwriter ever produced by Canada,
including Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell.' A
few years later, I attended my first MichFest
and I understood Mimi's breathy enthusiasm.
That was the summer I first called myself a
BLOGGERS
COMEDYCORNER
INTO THE WOODS AT MICHFEST 2014
lesbian, and the first time I bought one of
"What kind of shopping do lesbians like to
Ferron's CDs, starting my collection of the
do? That's right, workshopping! MichFest,
soundtrack to most of my adult life." Read
now in its 38th year, is right around the bend
more on
and there are more workshops at MichFest
G curvemag.com
than you can shake a dowsing stick at. I went
to a Wicca workshop once. I thought I was
going to learn how to make furniture. No,
I learned how to turn a toad into a stool. .."
Read more from laugh-out-loud standup
comics and the Queer Queen of Qomedy
herself, Her Royal Hilariousness Poppy
Champlin on
G curvemag.com
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
We have some of the
leading voices in our
community sharing
their thoughts on
love and romance,
parenting and politics,
and sex and spirituality-not to mention
our huge collection of
lesbian fandom.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
5
KATHYBELGE
Kathy Beige is a journalist
and writer living in Portland,
Ore. She is the co-author of
Lipstick & Dipstick's Essential
Guide to Lesbian Relationships
and Queer: The Ultimate
LGBT Guide for Teens. In this
issue Kathy writes about the
tiny house movement on
page 72. "From the moment
I heard about the tiny house
movement, I was hooked. I
love the idea of simple livingparing your life down to the
essentials plus a few things
that make you happy. And
besides, tiny houses are so
freaking cute!" she says. Until
the day when she can live in
a tiny house of her own, she
enjoys traveling and hiking
with her not so tiny dog,
Olive, absorbing Portland's
ever changing culture and
writing for a world-wide lesbian
audience on About.com. Follow
her on lnstagram @kbelge.
6
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
DAVESTEINFELD
Dave Steinfeld grew up in
Connecticut and is now based
in New York City where much
of his world revolves around
music. He has been obsessed
with it for as long as he can
remember and has written
about it professionally since
1999. Some of the outlets he
has contributed to since then
include American Songwriter,
Beyond Race, Blurt, Bust,
Classic Pop, The Daily News,
and The San Diego UnionTribune. He began writing for
Curve, by accident, in 2007.
Since then, he has interviewed
many artists for the magazine
including Ani DiFranco, Patti
Smith, Yoko Ono, The Indigo
Girls, and Lucas Silveira. For this
issue, Dave interviewed Catie
Curtis, Nikki Glaspie, Hannah
& Maggie and Starnes & Shah.
A firm believer that variety is
the spice of life, when he is
not writing for Curve he enjoys
watching football with his dad.
LISA TEDESCO
Lisa Tedesco was born in
Connecticut and moved out to
San Francisco when she was 19
to pursue a degree in Motion
Pictures and Television from
The Academy of Art University.
When she was 22 she moved
back to Connecticut to take
a job at Sikorsky Aircraft
as an electrical installer for
US Navel helicopters. Now
28, Lisa has gone back to
school to finish an Associates
Degree in Media Studies and
is attending the University of
Hartford to major in Media and
Communication Relations with
a minor in Gender Studies.
An avid admirer of the arts,
Lisa is involved in various
aspects of filmmaking, writing,
photography and theatre. Lisa
is an out and proud lesbian
who recently proposed to the
love of her life, Amy, and the
two will be celebrating with
a marriage ceremony next
October.
CAITLYN BYRNE
Caitlyn Byrne grew up in the
California sunshine. A member
of Elon University's graduating
class of 2012, she earned her
degree in English-creative
writing. Her story "Lavender
and Want" has been published
in The Susquehanna Review.
She is currently a Public Affairs
Specialist for the US Army, and
an active duty military member.
Caitlyn plans on pursuing
an MFA in creative writing,
as well as a career in public
affairs/editing and firefighting,
balancing both writing and
physicality. Reading, writing,
exercise, and art are her
passions. She currently lives
in North Carolina, and is proud
to be a lover of ladies, one in
particular, and a member of the
LGBT community.
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Adoption, Not IVF
As an LGBT woman who
was the product of an un~
planned pregnancy and put
up for adoption by my Cath~
olic natural mother, I was
saddened to read the article
about artificial insemination
for LGBT women [Vol. 24#4,
"So You Want to Have a
Baby?"]. It doesn't make sense
to me that we create new
life while healthy babies are
being aborted by our preg~
nant sisters who deem their
pregnancies" inconvenient:'
Those aborted baby boys
and girls could be adopted
by loving LGBT couples and
single persons. Instead of
fighting for abortion rights
we should be fighting for
adoption rights. More baby
girls are aborted than baby
boys. Does that sound like
women's rights to you? I
realize that the adoption laws
can be discriminatory against
LGBT couples and single
persons in several states. But
Orange Is the Warmest
Color
Thank you so much for fea~
turing my favorite show ever
on the cover of Curve!As a
woman who has a partner who
was incarcerated for a white
collar "crime" I understand the
behind~closed~doors drama
that this excellent and very
queer show portrays well.
Thanks for a great article, and
all the other excellent articles
in the Pride issue, too.
-Cindy Stolman, Panama City
Beach,Fla.
Posts from our Facebook fans
·· ···· ······· · ·· · ·····facebook.com/curvemag
••
Orange Is The New Black Is Back!
Yeow!!!! -Wendy Johnson
Can't wait for new series
-Dani Crumb
Orange is the new L Word!
- Tori Lawrence
0mg she is gorgeous ....fakk.
never thought of her much
when she was a red head on
that '70s show. Damn
-Vanessa Snow
Shes gorgeous with darker
hair. -Nita Mc
I just watched the rest of
the first season last night!!
When is it coming back?! I'm
obsessed! -Heather Simms
I have not seen it at all. I
MUST get into it.
-/fa Halima Bumi
Great show!!
-Karen Zadworny
maybe instead of spending
thousands of dollars for arti~
ficial insemination the LGBT
couples could relocate to a
Crazy Eyes!!!!! I've missed
you!!!!! -Rosemary
Unconditional/
Where are Alex's glasses?
She looks like a hot librarian
or something. Grrrrrr
-Amanda Michelle Spears
Hot hot hot -Wendy Johnson
Glad I'm a subscriber ...YAY!!!
Taylor -Lauren Wilson
I love orange ..and black
..and lesbian weddings ..
-Gire/ea Andy
OMG I love that show its so
funny and amazingly cool
-Gary Miner
Gods, I LOVETHESE TWO!!
-Ronnie Abernathy
I DIED. -Leigh Loffe/1Dawson
state with LGBT adoption. It
may not be the ideal solution
but they'd have a new baby.
- Kathy Apker, Eugene, Ore
WHICH
RECENT
CELESBIAN'S
COMING
OUT
SHOCKED
YOU
THE
MOST?
8%
Crystal
Bowersox
11%
Michelle
Rodriguez
14%
Robin
Roberts
WRITE
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Sun Kissed
GOLDEN HUESAND METALLICSHIMMER MAKE THIS
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Make your manicure pop with
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JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
9
NDS/
p
%
THE GAYDAR
THEGAYDAR
Takes one to know one? Let our gaydar help
you decide who's hot, who's not, who's
shaking it and who's faking 1tin lesboland.
BY RACHEL SHATTO
Think Glenn Beck can't sound
more idiotic? Check out his
latest gem: "I'm telling you,
Hillary Clinton will be having
sex with a woman on the, on
the White House desk if It
becomes popular."
Be still our hearts,
Cameron Diaz
confesses to
WWHL that she
has been with a
lady!
In rumors-that-neverdie news, the Internet
once again proclaims
Kristen Stewart
a lezzie. Well, the
Internet says it sooo ...
welcome to the lady
pond, K-Stew
The Real L Word star
appears on the news web
series The Point sans her
trademark do. RIP Whitney
Mixter's dreads-shorn but
never forgotten
WTF?Naya
Rivera has
been booted
from the
season five
finale of Glee.
If Santana
isn't back for
season six,
we riot
Are you as excited to
see Kathy Bates play
a lesbian in Tammy
as we are? Yep,
thought so
As if we weren't
already excited
enough about
season two
of Masters of
Sex, Sarah
Silverman
signs on to
play Betty's
girlfriend!
_J
k.d.lang
reignites our
crush with her
hilarious guest
starring role on
the season finale
of Portlandia
Out funny lady
(and the best
part of SNl) Kate
McKinnon is
rightfully named
Best Supporting
Actress on a
Television Series
at the American
Comedy Awards
Congratulations to
Jodie Foster and
Alexandra Hedison
who are officially
gay married ladies!
The Voice does it
again, we've tried
to quit this annual
heartbreaker but they
always pull us back in
with a new lezzie to
root for. This time
it's the fabulous
Kristin Merlin
10
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
In greatest-thingever news: Out
producer Megan
Ellison is bringing
the lesbian liaison
between Greta
Garbo and Marlene
Dietrich to TV. We're
jumping up and
down in anticipation
of this Sapphic silver
screen flashback
Queen Latifah
is set to play the
iconic bisexual
songstress Bessie
Smith in a film by
out director Dee
Rees. She's just
messing with us
now, right?
get you rs today.
curvemag.com
Want to see your pet here? We'd love to meet them, too.
Visit curvemag.com/satisfied for details.
NDStGOSSIP
p
LESBOFILE
-
Ellen talks coming out, Cameron's Sapphic
confession, and 1sMichelle single?
BY JOCELYN VOO
Turning The Page
topless makeouts during beach vacations. I
She may be a celebrity, but the trials of
mean, seriously, I ate up every bit of gossip
coming out hold the same sentiment for
on them because they clearly weren't hid-
any closeted person: "I was carrying a
ing their affections.
tremendous amount of shame and guilt for
not being out," actor Ellen Page told Ellen
But at least one outlet has its doubts on
whether or not they're still romantically
DeGeneres. "I felt isolated from the LGBT
linked. Celeb Dirty Laundry speculates that,
community and now I don't."
"people have been saying that Michelle's
The X-Men star, who came out in
February in a bold address at the Human
Rights Campaign's "Right to Thrive" con-
really into their relationship. However, the
same may not necessarily be true of Cara."
On top of potential emotional distance,
ference benefitting LGBTyouth, has found
geographical space also has been separat-
her stride since then. "I knew that I would
ing them: while Rodriguez was Stateside,
be a happier person," she explains of her
Delevingne has been working abroad.
decision to put her sexuality on the record.
Although it's unclear what their status is
"I knew that I was going to feel better, but
(and it's true, we haven't heard much about
Crushing In Cannes
I did not anticipate just how happy I would
them in awhile), they'll always hold court as
Adding one more notch on her belt for her
feel in every aspect of my life, just an ease
one of my favorite pairs.
stellar performance in Blue /s the Warmest
Welcome to the L-List
two actors presented with the Trophee
and a comfort and it has really been quite
extraordinary to feel the shift. It was really
overnight, too."
Standing ovation for this one. Bravo,
Page, bravo.
Looks like actor Cameron Diaz, queen of
Chopard, an award given to promising
the heterosexual rom-com and ex-girl-
young talent at the Cannes Film Festival.
friend to "It" men in their own rights Justin
Is It Over?
Color, Adele Exarchopoulos was one of
Guest of honor Cate Blanchett joked,
Timberlake and Alex Rodriguez, may not be
"I have an inappropriate crush on both
so straight and narrow after all! In an inter-
of them," referring to Exarchopoulos and
Be still my heart: My hands-down favorite
view with Andy Cohen on his Bravo TV talk
The Perks of Being a Wallflower's Logan
lady couple of the last few months was
show, Diaz was faced with the ever-popular
Lehrman, the other award recipient.
actor Michelle Rodriguez and supermod-
question of whether she'd ever been with a
el Cara Delevingne, based primarily on
lady-to which she replied affirmative.
you have a crush on me," Exarchopoulos
their cavalier, D.G.A.F.attitudes towards
"More than once?" Cohen asked.
replied when she accepted the award. "I
what anybody thought about their antics.
"You didn't ask explicitly how I was with
have a crush on you, too."
Paparazzi, who? Drunken makeouts while
a lady, but I have been with a lady," Diaz
courtside at high-profile basketball games,
replied.Hollywood stars-they're just like us!
12
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
And the feeling was mutual: "I am happy
Oh, if only it were more than just a little
girl talk between friends.•
TRENDS/
z
:5
I
0
:5
0
....I
....I
:i:
<(
"People are
always interested
in how people bend. I've
never shied away from it. I
mean, I'm pretty straight. Let
me just put it this way: I've never
had sex with a woman. I haven't.
I've made out with more than
one woman, but it just sort
of happened."-Sarah
McLachlan to Pride
Source
SHEs
st
r•II
PROFILE
Chas (CD) Kirven
Dallas» LGBTRights
It's hard to know when Chas (CD) Kirven
sleeps. Energetic and tireless in her fight
against discrimination, she's been getting
the message out since she was 16 and
spray-painted "Fuck the Police-Free
Rodney
King" on the side of the new green Cutlass
I
her dad had just given her. "He took away
the Cutlass," recalls Kirven, "but I remember
feeling so empowered because I took a stand
against injustice."
A nationally recognized artist, drag king
every year to activism in her hometown of
Dallas and around the country. Three years
ago, you would have found her in jail in
Washington, D.C., after she was arrested at
then Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's
office, along with three other lesbian Get
Equal activists who were demanding an
affirmative vote on ENDA.
Two years later, Kirven took on a fundraising campaign for Youth First Texas and
collected over $2,000 for Crime Stoppers for
the arrest and capture of the attackers who
shot lesbian couple Mollie Judith Olgin and
Mary Kristene Chapa. And more recently, she
THE
JERUSA
teamed up with the League of United Latin
American Citizens (LULAC), the Gay Rodeo
Association, Resource Center Dallas, and
the Urban League of Dallas to put together
"I'm a woman, I'm an African American, and
I'm gay," says Kirven. "I'm doing this because
it impacts my life to a degree that I had to take
action. I just felt like I should be an African
American out there fighting for gay rights, so
that Hispanic and African American kids could
think, The gay rights movement looks like me."
-Sheryl Kay
14
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
young woman had left the Pride event, a man who
first offered to give her directions then took her to a
nearby graveyard and raped her. The man has been
arrested. Activists say that the young woman was
targeted because of her sexual orientation.
to step down as coordinator o
social m1n1stnesthat provide f
to the hungry at St Francis Xa
Catholic Church 1nKansas Cit
Mo, when church leaders lear
she was married to a wo
Colleen's work was profil
Kansas City Star, which 1n
1nformat1onabout her w1f
Rev Donna Sim
Hope and Peace L
The freelance Jour
the piece hadn't 1n
the couple Callee
told her employer
but avoided using
finds the time to devote hundreds of hours
Movement called Cowboys for HIV Awareness.
MISSED
IT ...
COLLEEN
SIMON
WAS
FORCEDattendance
(aka Jamie Fauxx), and filmmaker, Kirven still
a program for the Dallas/Fort Worth Pride
IN:bAu~•~
I
Court has found
Klonsky damaged the l1vel1hood
Nur1t Melamed, a dance instruct
when he publ1c1zedher sexual
orientation The Rabbi had sent a
letter to the community saying that
Melamed was a lesbian and telling
people to stay away After the
at classes plummeted
Rabbi Klonsky must apologize and
pay 60,000 shekels ($17,300) to
compensate her
DOLL,
KITTEN,
AND
BRYNN,
three lesbians 1nMassachusetts
who made headlines last year
with their marriage ceremony are
expecting their first child Although
three people aren't able to legally
marry 1nany state, the women
have worked with lawyers to draw
up paperwork that connects them
and their assets. Kitten 1scurrently
six months pregnant with the
throuple's first child
~~::~::~~':,:h
~~~a:~~;:,~tal
LOFRENCH
lesbian was kidnapped at gunpoint
1nMay by her devout Muslim
relatives who were opposed to
her "lifestyle" The woman had
fled her home to live with a friend
across the country after her family
tried to force her into an arranged
marriage The woman's friend
witnessed her abduction and
;:;,~~e~~~,~~:d
the car
POLITICS
»
ADVICE
»
COMMUNITY»
POLITICS»
Coming Out, Going
Looking for lesbians at the movies.
BY VICTORIA
CURVE
on Screen
A. BROWNWORTH
The morning I began writing this, a friend in the U.K. tweeted
that her local library refused to post a flyer about an upcoming
lesbian film festival. It was, the library told her, too controversial.
I was stunned. It is, after all, 2014, and marriage equality is
legal in England and Wales and soon will be in Scotland. It was
only a flyer. No one was asking to show lesbian erotica in the chil~
dren's section.
And yet, I could also understand why the library might be
concerned. The pornification of lesbianism in film was codified
decades ago. Watching two beautiful women have sex together
has long been a straight man's fantasy. But that faux depiction of
lesbianism as something for men-featuring
lesbians replete with
long lacquered nails and flicking tongues-has
now infiltrated
16
()razy
JULY/AUGUST
2014
mainstream films, even films directed by women. Extricating our~
selves from the male POV has proven to be a difficult task. Films
in which we can see ourselves-our
true lesbian selves-are still
very much a work in progress.
Before I knew I was a lesbian, I fell in love with women on the
big screen. Since then, I've taught and written about film, even
co~authored a book, Film Fatales(with filmmaker Judith M. Red~
ding), on women and film. For me, the movies and lesbianism are
inextricably connected, which makes my desire to see films told
from our point of view all the more pressing-and
tantalizing.
Yet if the films that tell lesbian stories via the female gaze have
been few, even fewer have been those that tell our stories without
conflicting tropes: the woman might be bisexual, not lesbian; a
VIEWS/POLI
decades ago. What I want to see is lesbians
who look not just like lesbians, but like us,
living our real, non-psychotic, non-sleeping-with-men lives. Watching The Kids
Are All Right was like watching Personal
Best with the women grown to adulthood.
The outcome was the same, despite the
30 years between the two films. Society's
criteria for inclusion had not expanded
and cinematic depictions of us had not
improved.
No lesbian film has created more controversy than last year's winner of the
Palme d'Or at Cannes, Abdellatif Kechiche's
lesbian romance, Blue Is the Warmest Color.
The graphic, extended sex scenes, shown
Art, Lost and Delirious,The Edgeof Heaven, without background music, created quite
and Mulholland Drive, but assimilationism
a stir-but
the film also got a standing
ovation from the Cannes audience, and the
also churned out some frothy lesbian romances: Imagine Me & You, Kissing]essica jury, led by Steven Spielberg, was adamant
that it was indeed the best film, not just
Stein, and I Can't Think Straight.
There have been more lesbian-themed
the most daring. The jury gave the award
to the director and to the film's two stars.
films since 2007 than in the 30 years prior,
but mainstream depictions of real-life
And for all the controversy, including
complaints about the director from the
lesbianism remain maddeningly elusive.
two lead actors, Blue was a sincere and solAnd they're still almost always telling one
id evocation of a realistic, if heartbreaking,
of two stories: Coming Out or The Crazy
lesbian love affair-a film that belongs on
Lesbian.
I remember my anticipation of The the plus side of the lesbian cinematic canon,
Kids Are All Right (2010), with its two
not in the discard pile.
Stacie Passon's Concussion was anothOscar-winning actors as leads and a lesbian
er impressively compelling film from last
director. The buzz was so intense. And
year, even though it again tells a story of
then the film itself slapped me hard, not
The Crazy Lesbian, in this instance a
only with an incomprehensible liaison between one of the lesbian characters and a 40-something woman who begins living a
double life as a lesbian prostitute after an
man, but with concomitant and seemingly
accident makes her realize how much is
endless scenes of heterosexual sex and no
lacking in her relationship with her wife.
lesbian sex scenes. My disappointment
But Contracted, also released last year,
was immense.
gives us a vile scenario of lesbianism, rape,
Finally, here was a mainstream lesbian
and infection that epitomizes all that can
film not about coming out or psychosis,
go wrong when men write lesbianism for
and starring two superb middle-aged
the screen.
actors a breath away from 50-yet, the
One of the ironies of the assimilation of
story was really about the dissolution of
lesbians into straight culture is that mainlesbianism, its slapped-together ending
stream films about us are becoming fewer
notwithstanding.
and fewer.
Meanwhile, that same year, Natalie
I've been a judge at Q Fest, the PhiladelPortman won the Oscar for Best Actress
phia International Gay and Lesbian Film
for her role as a deranged ballerina, NinaFestival, for years. Lesbian films that will
one of the most pathological lesbian charget distribution to theaters are becoming
acters in years-in
Darren Aronofsky's
more rare, not more plentiful. Searching
Black Swan. While, from a fetishistic perNedlix or the indie circuit for new lesspective, the scenes with Mila Kunis were
bian films reveals that, for the most part,
super-sexy, overall, Black Swan was an
the same two themes prevail: coming out
extremely dark presentation of a mentally
ill lesbian.
and psychosis.
Yet it's on that indie circuit that the
None of these women were any more
familiar to me than the on-screen lesbians of
best lesbian films are still to be found.
lesbian is often depicted as deeply, irreparably damaged-even
psychotic.
For decades, the pathologizing of lesbianism has been a dominant theme in
mainstream cinema. The 1960s presented
the oppressive lesbianism of The Fox, The
Killing of Sister George,and The Children's
Hour. The 1970s eroticized the killer
lesbian in a dozen vampire films. The
1980s turned lesbians into actual killers
in Windows and The Hunger, while the
1990s continued the trend with Heavenly
Creatures,Bound, Sister My Sister, and, of
course, Basic Instinct.
In the 2000s, the murderous or suicidal
or drug-addicted lesbian appeared in High
The majority of them are foreign, like Blue.
Stunning films like the 2011 Sundance
winner, Maryam Keshavarz's Circumstance,about young lesbians in the antigay
environment of Iran (the film was banned
in Iran and Keshavarz has been barred
from returning to her native country), or
Indian filmmaker Deepa Mehta's lush and
emotionally wrenching Fire, or Baltasar
Kormakur's complex and brooding 101
Reykjavik, situate lesbians of various ages
within the larger context of the milieu in
which they live-and the conflicts those
milieus create.
Black U.K. genderqueer director CampbellX's new film, Stud Life, broadens
the depictions of lesbians still further as
gender and lifestyle blur. CampbellX describes her film as "a postmodern LGBT
She'sGotta Have It for the YouTube generation;' and says her film deals with sex and
sexuality and taboo subjects in the queer
community.
CampbellX's film and Dee Rees's Pariah,
which tells the story of a 17 -year-old African American lesbian as she navigates life
in her Brooklyn neighborhood, are films in
which the director tells a story she knows:
The verisimilitude feels rich and full, and
the films, like the foreign films noted
above, are immensely satisfying for the
lesbian viewer, even if the endings are not
necessarily "happy:'
In a recent interview, the lesbian mystery writer Katherine V. Forrest told me
that our lesbian literature is still very
young and we have many stories yet to tell,
but we have barely gotten through coming
out as a subgenre of LGBT literature.
The same is obviously true of filmthere is so much more to us than coming
out and psychosis, more than 20-somethings and fluffy romances. But who will
tell those stories, and how will we get to
see them, when even some libraries are still
discomfited by the very idea of us on film?
Our hunger for representation has been
there for decades, with each new generation of lesbians searching for any films in
which we appear. Yet even iconic films like
Desert Hearts seem so singular. The canon
of lesbian films remains very incomplete.
We ache for more and better images of
ourselves-portrayals
in which we grow
up and out and don't go nuts or end up in
bed with men or wielding a weapon. We
are still waiting for those films to be made.
For how much longer? •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
17
T
heir music is reminiscent of
walking through golden fields with
your lover, warm sunlight on your
shoulders. Their voices mix and flow, creating a harmony that resonates. They are
The Lovebirds, an incredible folk/pop duo,
and their third album, Breakup Shmakeup,
is out this summer.
Falling somewhere on the female
duo scale between The Indigo Girls and
Tegan and Sara, The Lovebirds consist of
award-winning songwriters Lindsay White
and Veronica May. Once an inseparable couple (Lindsay and Veronica were
featured in The "Two of Us" two years
ago), The Lovebirds' Breakup Shmakeup
chronicles the experience of ending their
WHEN
WELAST
INTERVIEWED
YOU,
YOU
WERE
VERY
MUCH
TOGETHER.
WHEN
DID
YOU
REALIZE
YOUR
RELATIONSHIP
WAS
ONTHEROCKS?
anniversary, we had a long, late-night,
brutally honest talk about how we were no
longer fulfilling each other's relationship
needs, but how we both kept trying
LINDSAY:There was never one particular
because we couldn't imagine our lives
epiphany. Coming back to some state of
without making music together. We decided
normalcy after Veronica's hospitalization in
that breaking up would be the best way to
2011 proved to be very challenging for both
relieve the pressure and salvage the great
of us, but we just kept trying to make it work
things about our partnership.
for the next couple of years because there
VERONICA: It was a fizzle really...we were
was still so much love there.
lying in bed and it was really late ...probably
VERONICA:There was never a specific "on
3 A.M. I looked over at Lindsay and she was
the rocks" moment. In 20111 had another
staring at the ceiling. I said, "Is everything
big manic episode that put me out of
OK?" and she looked over at me and without
commission for a year. The mental illness
saying a word a voice in my head said, "We
piece definitely played a part but there was
are breaking up right now." I think we both
no one thing. We really wanted to make
kind of saw it coming but didn't want to lose
their musical partnership. We decided to
it work because the love has always been
The Lovebirds so we would have rather just
revisit the pair post-split and discover how
there. It was just time.
toughed it out to keep this special bond of
HOW
DID
YOU
ULTIMATELY
BREAK
UP?
got together there was music and we were
LINDSAY:About a week after our third
and are willing to always fight for it.
romantic relationship in order to preserve
they managed to do well what so many
of us do badly, and how they continue to
make beautiful music together.
18
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
music we had always shared. Before we ever
VIEWS/
TOGETHER
TOWORK
CONTINUED
YOU
YOU
DID
HOW
GOING.
BAND
THE
KEEP
AND
THAT?
ACCOMPLISH
LINDSAY: The breakup was one of the
hardest pills for me to swallow because I
truly believed Veronica was my soul mate.
It felt like I had lost my life and my purpose
but still had to figure out how to live without
had to step it up in the communication
department. I'd say the biggest hurdle was
moving through the process of dating other
though. We show up on time and we don't
people. It took a lot of communication and
respect. We've gotten so much better at
tears before but those raw emotions are a
speaking our mind, hearing each other out,
and respecting each other's feelings and
easy and it felt really good.
opinions. At the end of the day, we want
each other to be happy so again, it's all
GOING
LESBIANS
FOR
ADVICE
YOUR
WHAT'S
ABREAKUP?
THROUGH
her-that's what the song "Whiplash" is
about. Processing those emotions at the
about keeping a bigger perspective.
time was hard because we were still playing
VERONICA: Rock, Paper, Scissor.
shows together. I focused on allowing
myself to feel whatever I was feeling in the
TWO OF
LOVES?
NEW
HAVE
BOTH
YOU
DO
cancel last minute so we did what we had
to. Both have us have had to sing through
distant memory. The writing part was very
LINDSAY: Um, start a band-everything
will
be just fine! But seriously, I think it depends
on the couple's goals. If there's something
worth salvaging, look to that as your clarity
appropriate time and place. I focused on
letting go of control and on accepting the
LINDSAY: My partner Audrie has my heart
Universe's greater plan for us. And most
of all, I focused on the bigger picture of
now, and we're making a happy little life
much pain or resentment and you need to
together. I feel so lucky to be with someone
so loving, secure and supportive about our
take space until time does its thing. There
whole whacky situation. Veronica's partner
Mandi has also been such a trooper to
to call each other-we
keeping our music alive and intact. In many
ways our music was like the child of our
divorce, and we did everything in our power
to protect it from getting hurt. Another
important piece to the equation was a sense
of humor. If we weren't able to laugh at
the absurdity of our situation, we wouldn't
have been able to get through it. Hence the
come into this whole thing without really
knowing a lot of the backstory, but still
showing Veronica so much love and being
supportive of our band. As for V and I, I'm so
in the dark times. Sometimes there's just too
was about a week where we decided not
needed to create
a boundary where we could grieve the
loss and learn how to be OK on our own.
Allow yourself to feel your emotions in an
appropriate place. Vent to a friend, not to
your ex. Honor your emotions by sitting
album title Breakup Shmakeup.
grateful that we were able to "stay together"
through our shared passion for music, and
that's more than enough for me.
VERONICA: The music has always saved us.
friends. It hurts a lot to do it this way, but
VERONICA: Both of us are in good
you'll move through it faster. Also, listen to
relationships and are very happy. Lindsay is
with a wonderful person who treats her with
our new album-that
Even during the darkest hours when I was
in a full manic state, the music served as
some sort of anchor. I feel like if I lost The
Lovebirds I would be losing one of my life's
biggest purposes. Lindsay and I were meant
respect and is rock solid. Someone who can
take care of her too.
to share our music.
A
BUT
BEBAD.
CAN
BREAKUPS
LESBIAN
OFYOURS!
OUT
CAME
ALBUM
NEW
WHOLE
CHANGED WAS
ACOUPLE
BEING
NOT
HAS
HOW
AND
SONGS
THOSE
TOWRITE
ITHARD
MUSIC?
TOMAKING
APPROACH
YOUR
THEM?
PERFORM
LINDSAY: We don't see each other as
much since we no longer live together.
Much of our latest album (except for the
song "Echo") was written separately then
arranged together. We're currently in the
process of making dedicated writing time,
which I am excited about since I find such
joy in writing with V.
VERONICA: I feel like it has actually gotten
easier to create and perform music now that
we are no longer in a relationship. We get
on the stage with clean slates and a clear
purpose.
CONFLICTS
RESOLVE
YOU
DO
HOW
WERE
YOU
TOWHEN
NOW
DIFFERENTLY
INVOLVED?
ROMANTICALLY
LINDSAY: We were never the best
communicators when we were a couple-I
think we were always afraid of hurting each
other's feelings. Since the breakup, we really
LINDSAY: Writing the songs came easily
and naturally, but performing them was
definitely a challenge in the beginning. I
probably cried during "Boat Train" the first
20 times we performed it. Sometimes I can
still get a little choked up out of nowhere,
but now those tears are tears of
gratitude. As time passes it becomes
with them and acknowledging them in a
safe environment by yourself or with trusted
will help.
VERONICA: Be mature and play nice. It
seems when relationships end we forget
why we were with that person. I find it
silly that this person becomes our best
friend, our confidant, our love, our family
and then when something goes sour they
become our worst enemy, the person we
speak ill of, the person we hate most. Every
relationship I have ever had has served a
wonderful purpose and they all happened
for a reason. I learned new things from each
one. Even if you can't remain friends, there
is a certain respect that should be there.
(thelovebirds.com) •
easier for those songs to transition
from personal property to public
property, which is where they are the
most useful to listeners. As a whole,
I think the process of writing and
recording the album was what helped
us stay focused on our common goal.
Music saves the day yet again!
VERONICA: At first it was very difficult.
We had a show less than a week after
our breakup and it was probably
the hardest show I have ever had to
do. Lindsay and I are professionals
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
19
st
LIPSTICK+DI
PSTICK
Up Close and
Personal
Lipstick: Dipstick, you goof,
Online chatting turns into spicy erotica.
she didn't want writing tips,
BY LIPSTICK & DIPSTICK
she wanted relationship tips.
Filthy Frenchy, have you met
this woman, or seen her on
Skype? Do you want this to
Dear Lipstick and Dipstick: I recently
came out of a seven-year partnership and
am taking baby steps into the on line dating
world via Curve Personals. I started texting
with a woman a month ago, and now we
are writing erotica. I think this is a fun way
to engage and add some spice. Any tips,
or warnings? What things would you look
for?-Filthy French Maid
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Dipstick: You go, Girl! While
''
lot of erotica.
potentially turn into something more? If so, I've got a
big warning for you: Make sure
she's for real, and not some
greasy, toothless dude in his
grandma's basement. Or a
married straight woman who
will break your heart into a
million pieces. If your feelings
are even slightly involved, you
need to break through this
smoky, riding-crop-fantasy
looking glass as soon as pos-
Remember, the crux of erotica
sible. We've heard from lots of
I~YOU'R[
JUST
INTO
TH[TH
Rill
0~[ROTICA,
HAVt
ATIT,SIST[R!
AND
THtN
COM[
HtRtAND
B[ND
OV[R,
SOI CAN
SPANK
YOU.
''
I wouldn't call it taking baby
is the story. Build the tension
women who've blindly fallen
steps when you're texting
and don't leap straight to
in love with someone online,
erotica to a woman you've
the sex. Weave in a plot twist
and when they finally meet
here and bend over, so I can
never met, I do appreciate
before giving the reader what
face to face, it's a big scary
spank you.
at it, Sister! And then come
your aplomb. I've got a few
she wants. Surprise is sexy.
disappointment.
tips for you: Don't forget
And don't forget your sense of
umentary Catfish. If you're just
Dear Lipstick and Dipstick:
character development.
humor. I find that missing in a
into the thrill of erotica, have
I'm stuck in a tough situation.
20
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
Rent the doc-
Months ago, my girlfriend Caron and
of the pyramid! Trust me when I say that
I planned and booked a 10-day trip to
the resentments will only build. You need
Egypt. We were so excited to have our
to be clear and tell Caron what you need
first trip together and were planning lots
without worrying about how this is going
of romantic things to do-a sailboat on
to make her feel. You're absolutely right
the Nile, exploring the pyramids-just
when you say she's putting someone
for the two of us. Caron is not out to
else's feelings first. I don't know if this
her coworkers and one of them, Sheila,
vacation or this relationship can be saved.
suddenly decided to book a room at this
Lipstick, what do you think?
resort for the same days we will be there.
We will even be on the same flights. I was
Lipstick: I think my blood is boiling,
very upset when I found this out. Sheila is
Dip. This is outrageous. Third Wheel, I'm
assuming the three of us will be hanging
glad you wrote to us, because you're not
out together every day, as friends, and
overreacting at all-in
Caron is kind of endorsing this idea by not
more reactive. Is an ultimatum appropri-
telling her otherwise. It also means we
ate? Hell yes! An ultimatum is not always
have to pretend to be straight all the time.
a bad thing, especially in a situation like
So much for a romantic vacation! Caron is
yours. It's gotten a bad rap. An ultimatum
fact, you must be
a people-pleaser and can't say no. I made
is you simply drawing a line in the sand
the obvious suggestions-ask Sheila to
about how you're willing to live your life.
bring a friend with her, or just come right
And that is a very good thing-you
out and tell her that we're gay and that we
live in a closet any longer. It's clear to
won't
can't spend much time with her because
me that your girlfriend isn't just lying
this is a romantic trip for the two of us.
to Sheila-she
But she won't do or say anything-except
you either. Sheila just happens to book
complain to me about how upset she is.
a trip to the same place, on the same
I am extremely frustrated and sad that
flights, during your romantic trip, and
isn't being honest with
Caron seems to be more worried about
it's a coincidence? If I were you, here's
Sheila getting hurt, or finding out we are
the bottom line: Caron gets a frickin'
gay, than she is about our relationship. I
backbone or you're out. This backbone
don't want to start making ultimatums,
includes coming clean about who you are
but I am close to it. How do I handle this
and who she is. There is no other solution.
situation? Am I just overreacting? Sheila
Give Caron a deadline, sometime before
is extremely needy and clingy, and I
your trip is nonrefundable.
know she won't be able to spend a
out to Sheila, this will kill all the buzzards
If she comes
moment alone. I'm sure she'll even try
circling your relationship with one stone.
to stay in the same room with us. I don't
Whether Sheila is needy or not, you'll be
even want to go anymore. Thank you for
able to look her in the eye and say, "Get
any advice you can give me.-Third Wheel
out, we need alone time," and she'll have
in My Own Life
the right expectations for her own vacation. Dip's suggestion about Codependent
Dipstick: TW, this is bad. And not just a
No More is a great one, too. Love this
little bit. This is a grave sign for your rela-
book. Everyone in the world should read
tionship. I can't decide which one of you
it, as Beattie's insight blows the lid off a
is more codependent-neither
whole bunch of unnecessary suffering.
is willing to
stand up for what you truly want, for fear
You're going to get a terrified tantrum
of how someone else might react. Go to
from Caron, but she'll thank you later. I've
the store immediately and pick up a copy
got my fingers crossed
of the classic Codependent No More by
that she picks you over
Melody Beattie. Caron is so worried about
the choking fear!•
how someone else might react that she
is willing to sacrifice her own happiness.
Do you have a burning
And you are so afraid of rocking the boat
question for Lipstick
with Caron that you are not speaking up
& Dipstick? Write to
for yourself. This vacation is just the tip
ask@Ii pstickd i pstick.com
The Kids Are Not All Right
Why we must foster positive career identity in our queer youth.
BY SHERRY PLATT BERMAN AND JOY READ
W
hen you were growing up, did you dream of all the
things you could become? Or did you suppress your
deepest desires for fear of not having those dreams
come true? Did you see yourself in a business suit as
the CEO of a company? An attorney standing before the jury? A
senator voting in Congress? A professor or a minister or a doctor?
An author? A filmmaker?
To have professional success, healthy career growth, and abun~
dant financial well~being, you must have two key elements in your
life. One is dreaming-imagining,
exploring your options for the
future. The other is support-positive
reinforcement, acceptance,
and mentorship from the adults that surround you. Leadership
skills, personal achievement, confidence and assertiveness, all are
influenced by your childhood and adolescent experiences. Paren~
tal support, community involvement, positive interaction with
peers all create the launching pad to a positive relationship with
work and financial independence for the rest of your life.
Here is a story about Simple Simon-a parable of sorts, about
an uncomplicated man who repeatedly saves his village from
22
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
catastrophe, only to be told that he can't. The town floods, and
Simple Simon pushes back the waters with his hands, until
someone tells him, "Simon, you can't do that-it's
impossible:•
And Simon says, "Oh, it is?" Then he drops his hands, and the
destructive waters rush forth. A huge boulder dislodges from a
mountain and rushes toward the town hall where all the citizens
are gathered, and Simon runs up the hill and holds it back-until,
once again, someone says, "Simon, you can't do that-it's impos~
sible:' And, once again, Simon says, "Oh, it is?" And he drops his
hands and the boulder rushes forward and brings destruction.
Like Simon, many LGBT youth are full of talents and inno~
cence, brilliance and gifts, dreams and hope, until the rest of the
world steps in and tells them they are wrong. They are not good
or strong enough, not capable. Our LGBT youth face all the same
stressors that straight teens experience, with the additional chal~
lenges of prejudice and heterosexist bias in the schools.
When our LGBT youth are not supported by family, educa~
tors, and community, not accepted for who they are, not given
the same opportunities for personal growth and development as
VIEWS/AD
OUR
lGBT
YOUTH
~ACt
All THtSAMt
STRtSSORS
THAT
STRAIGHT
TttNS
tXPtRltNCt,
WITH
THt
ADDITIONAl
CHAlltNGtS
0~PRrJUDICt
AND
HtTtROStXIST
BIAS
INTHtSCHOOlS.
the other kids, they miss the two primary
elements necessary to become confident
leaders who can accomplish their dreams
and have meaningful, lucrative careers.
Research studies show that LGBT
adults live in poverty at much higher rates
than heterosexuals do. The anti~discrimi~
nation bill (ENDA) that ends workplace
prejudice against LGBTs has been before
Congress since the 1990s and has never
passed. According to a recent poll pub~
lished by the Human Rights Campaign,
53 percent of LGBT employees remain
closeted at work; and, according to a
recent report from CNN, one in four
LGBT respondents continue to hear offen~
sive comments in the workplace. About
35 percent of LGBT employees say they
actively lie about their personal lives.
These statistics reinforce the messages
our LGBT youth are receiving-that
the
world of work is a limiting and hostile
environment. What messages did you get?
Have you met a fate similar to Simple Si~
mon's? Did you get a chance to dream of a
life filled with opportunity? Are you living
the life you want to live? Did you pick a
career from scarcity instead of abundance?
Are you performing to your full potential?
Are you a leader in your field?
ABOUT
THE
AUTHORS
The answers to these questions begin
with dreaming.
If not for the realized dreams of LGBT
teens, we would not have been dazzled by
their achievements as adults, when they
became our heroes. What if Oscar Wilde
had given up and seen himself as worth~
less? What if Gertrude Stein had decided
she'd make a better baker or seamstress
than a visionary and writer? What if Billie
Jean King had believed she'd never be any~
thing more than a ball girl on the tennis
court?
The parable of Simple Simon does not
have a happy ending-the
boulder kills
him in its destructive path-but
at his
own funeral he sits up, alive and well, only
to be told once again he can't do that, it's
impossible; so he lies back down and dies.
How many of our LGBT youth meet the
same symbolic fate, eventually giving up
their dreams, not striving to excel. Con~
sider the talent that is lost when positive
career identity among LGBT youth is not
fostered. What potential doctors will not
take the path to healing? What inventions
will not come forth because we as a com~
munity did not step forth to help our chil~
dren dream and explore?
LGBT youth can be given a completely
Sherry Platt Berman, MA, is a career
and employment counselor specializing
in LGBT professional development.
(lavendercareers.com)
(careerwisdomei nstitute.com)
different world of opportunity, broader
and with far fewer limitations, provided
they are able to hear the voices of those
telling them what is possible instead of
what is not, provided they are shown that
we believe in them and support them, as
any parent or mentor should. And we,
too, as adults, can experience a different
outcome; at any time along our own path,
we can stop and look back at all that we
have let go of or shut away, and decide that
we can believe in ourselves, as well. All of
us should be pushed and encouraged to
dream, and should encourage one another.
If there are LGBT teens in your life,
be sure to foster and mentor them. Many
LGBT programs in cities throughout the
country provide opportunities for gay and
lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth
to develop their full potential in a safe
and supportive environment. Those pro~
grams could use your support. Consider
taking on an LGBT apprentice. Allow a
queer youth to shadow you throughout
your workday. And be sure to take some
time for yourself, to reflect and wonder
how your own dreams and explorations
may have been thwarted. Now may be the
perfect time to consider those dreams that
were long ago sent away to die. •
Joy Read is a writer and a photographer
living in the San Francisco Bay Area.
(bhaa/uphotography.com)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
23
•
-
.••
•
,.:~•·
••••
•!!.,.
'
: I
Modern Love
A true story of love, transition, and happily ever after.
BY CYGNUS FOGLE & MERRYN JOHNS
A
t a time when the popularity
of Orange Is The New Black
extends beyond the LGBT
community and Transgender
Dysphoria Blues is on rotation beyond
your local queer tranarchist's basement,
it seems trans rights are finally coming
to the fore. Across the nation laws are
gradually being put into effect to end
discrimination
in workplaces and universities, and health insurance companies
are removing policies that discriminate
against transgender patients.
Enter Diane and Jacob Anderson-Minshall, partners in life and work for 23 years,
and co-authors of QueerlyBeloved:A Love
Story AcrossGenders.To say that Diane and
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CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
Jacob are members of the LGBT community is a severe understatement. Both are
tireless contributors to myriad publications,
anthologies and projects-including
but
not limited to the publications Alice, Girlfriends, Curve and The Advocate. They've
also combined their creative efforts in the
past, having co-authored the Blind Eye
mystery series. Queerly Belovedis the comprehensive frosting on their multi-tiered,
rainbow-colored cake, and is a dizzying
whirlwind that travels across a vast landscape of shared experiences and emotions
as it details Jacob's transition and how
both he and Diane have stayed together
throughout it all.
"I just feel like there's such a dearth of
stories around trans narratives that we
haven't even begun to scratch the surface
of all of the variegated identities that fall
under that transgender umbrella;' explains
Diane. "To us this book seems in a lot of
ways very simple, it's a very simple love
story, it's a story of our transition and
Jake's coming out, but I just feel like any
story that adds to that transgender canon
is moving us one step forward to a more
general recognition in popular culture:'
The book is about the quest ( theirs and
ours) to be recognized by society. "Each
opportunity we've had to get a sliver of
recognition for our relationship-every
domestic partnership registry, every 'symbolic' wedding, every chance we had-we
would jump at it, even though someone
would inevitably come along afterwards
and take it back, or say it still didn't give
us the legal rights of straight couples;' says
Diane. "Our story is about fighting for the
right to be a couple, to be a family, to stay
together through all these odds. I remind
people that same-sex marriage is a trans
issue not just because there are trans people who are gay or bisexual, but also because
trans marriages are still sort of suspect:'
And as for the "straight privilege" of
trans couples? Diane cites legal cases in
which individuals have been living in
their preferred genders for decades and
in a legal ( opposite-sex) marriage and
yet, after a divorce or after the death of
the partner, rights have been rescinded.
"They've lost their property, [been] kicked
out of their homes and lost custody of
their kids because they are trans. Marriages that involve trans people are still
on very shaky grounds legally:'
Diane believes that the fight for marriage-and employment-equality is something we all share and for a time she was
worried about the impact of Jacob's transition on her professional standing. "When
I got that, 'Hey, your wife of 15 years is
actually a dude' moment, we both immediately worried about my career. I was
editor in chief of the world's largest lesbian magazine, Curve. We both worried
that I wouldn't be seen as authentically
lesbian enough to run the magazine if it
came out I now had a husband. I went to
my publisher, Frances Stevens, and told
her what was going on and she was fully
supportive. She told me I was the best
person for this job, hands down, regardless of my partner's gender. It felt great
and she always set a standard for how my
colleagues should treat me:'
How Diane classified herself also
changed-and
remained the same. "How
do I define myself? Today I'm either a
lesbian-identified bisexual or bisexualidentified lesbian. Truthfully, I prefer queer
because it's a word I started using when I
was 18 and it still fits now (for both of us,
really). The first six months, maybe even
a year, after Jacob came out I was very
insistent about my lesbian identity. I was
very overcompensating actually. I would
go to the grocery store and if the clerk
complemented my bag, I'd say'Oh thanks,
it was a gift from my husband. He used to
be my wife. He had a sex change. But I'm
still a lesbian:"
Both Jacob and Diane understand the
importance of sharing their unique story
in a world where trans folks are starving
for any relatable representation in the
media-where
often our relatable narratives come in the form of supernatural or
sci-fi storylines. As Jacob explains early on
in the book: "I started to look back at my
life through the lenses of gender-colored
glasses, and suddenly I could read all the
signposts and see all the clues and breadcrumbs I'd left for myself along the way.
How could I not have seen them? It's like
in the Matrix when the endless, indecipherable strings of numbers and equations
suddenly resolve into individual people
and Neo can see the matrix. That's how
my life looked to me, like it finally made
sense-some
of the choices
I'd made, the places I'd felt
uncomfortable, the times I'd
sabotaged my own success
and couldn't figure out why.
Suddenly I got it:'
Capturing their story-as
individuals and as a couplewas also a challenge. "When
we got the initial edits back
from our editor, her note
said something like, 'You've
got a really great start here
but what I need you to do is
cut out the first 23 chapters:
I was flabbergasted. When
we cut it, it eliminated the
first 16 years of our marriage
and really narrowed the focus to Jacob's transition and
the eight years since then;'
says Diane. "It literally cut
Suzy out of the book, which
I think makes it harder for
people to understand how
much I felt I lost when Jacob
came out. Plus I'm sure that
was phenomenal writing;'
she laughs.
And in spite of this voluminous output
of wordage on the subject, Diane admits
that she hasn't really hit on the right
words or the "answer" to explain what she
feels. "Culturally I feel lesbian identified
because I've been part of the lesbian community for so many decades. And I feel
most closely identified with and attracted
to other women. But I also don't want to
hide or be part of bisexual erasure.
''After Jacob transitioned and I began
to know other trans men, I began to ... see
them as better men: many trans men were
enculturated as women and have seen what
it's like to be in a world that still privileges
men over women. So you have masculinity in a feminist package. So I don't know
what that makes my orientation. What I
do know is that I have a husband who does
not care one iota if I identify as a lesbian or
a bisexual; he's comfortable enough with
himself and with our relationship to know
that he's the main attraction in my life:'
(anderson-minshall.com/ queerly-beloved/) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
25
REVIEWS/
BOOKS
Editor's J'ick
BY MERRYN JOHNS
THE INVISIBLES: VINTAGE
PORTRAITSOF LOVE AND
PRIDE, SEBASTIENLIFSHITZ
(RIZZOLI): Who might you
have been if you were a lesbian
in another era? What might
you have looked like? Could
you have "passed;' and might
you have found love with another woman? The new book,
The Invisibles,is a unique collection of vintage photographs
that invites such speculation.
It depicts real-life gay couples,
cross-dressers, queers, and
gender nonconformists from
1900 to 1960. While we now
take our visibility for granted,
this book time travels to other
eras less forgiving of nonheterosexuals. Nevertheless,
according to these surprising images, there was plenty
of fun, frolicking, love and
sexual intimacy to be had and
happily paraded for the lens of
the camera. Here are lesbian
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JULY/AUGUST
SEBASTIEN
couples getting on with it,
keeping the memory of their
love alive through a relatively
new medium, and groups of
gay girls socializing and documenting their dressing up in a
pre-Stonewall era.
Discovered by artist and
filmmaker Sebastien Lifshitz
at flea markets and garage sales,
these photos (some of which
were preserved in family-style
photo albums) are testament to
the strength of LGBT identity
in the face of discrimination and
persecution. Lifshitz was captivated by these images and even
though the identities of the subjects have been lost to the mists
of time, these frank individuals
were our queer and fearless forebears and have a message for us
today: we're queer, we're here,
and we always have been. •
2014
LIFSHITZ
THE INVISIBLES
Vintage Portraits
ofLove and Pride
REVIEWS/CROSSWORD
CROSSWORD BY MYLES MELLOR
ACROSS
33. Stylist's stuff
6.
Director of Go Fish, Rose_
1.
34. Women's Lib was one
7.
Lover of Martina Navratilova,
Judy_
37. Kate McKinnon piece
9.
Time just before
38. Lived
10.
sex clothes
40. Writer of Unbearable
Lightness: A Story of Loss
and Gain
12. Stars and Stripes land
She played Bonnie in Will &
Grace
4.
The L Word cast member,
first name
8.
What Ellen did when she said
"Yep, I'm gay" (2 words)
11. Harlem theatre where Billie
Holliday's career started
35. Betrayed, with on
14. High_; (shoes)
15. Genuine
13. "Yes, I am" singer, Melissa
43. DJ who went out with Lindsay
Lohan
17. Brittney Griner's sport
46. Glee star, Jane
18. Over, poetically
19. As
47. Goes with kissing
22. Flemish painter of "Three
Graces"
on TV!
20. US women's soccer star,_
Rapinoe
21. No or Pepper?
DOWN
16. Complete
2.
27. Arrival time
31. But I'm a Cheerleader
director, Jamie
Roe-A-Fella Records DJ, first
name
3.
Freudian term
32. The L Word actor,
Daniella
4.
Krazy _ of the comics
30. Author of "Dykes to Watch
Out for" comic strip, Alison_
5.
Picture
31. Spelling contest
30. Wild party
36. Hubbub
39. She played a lesbian vampire
in True Blood Evan Rachel
41. Managed
42. Quiet!
44. Control
45. French for 'you'
24. LBGT advocate and the first
out gay senator, Tammy_
First openly gay anchor to
host a prime-time news
program in the US, first name
28. Compass direction
33. Grand Touring (auto), for
short
23. Single
1.
25. Bill Withers "_ me"
32. Comic who is married to
Alex, Wanda
26. Elton John title
29. Malicious
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
27
A new documentary celebrates the legendary Sunday nights at Cafe Tabac. ev MERRYN JOHNS
I
magine a lesbian bar so chic and glamorous that even rich and famous culture-makers-Madonna
and Jean
Paul Gaultier, Kate Moss, Naomi
Campbell, Queen Latifah-would
climb
to the top of the stairs to join the party.
Did it ever exist? Once upon a time it did.
Flash back to New York City's East Village in the early 1990s, when on Sunday
evenings Cafe Tabac opened its doors to
lesbians and their friends, creating the
upscale, inclusive environment where the
media phenomenon known as "lesbian
chic" was born.
The club closed some time ago, and
Manhattan lesbians have yet to see the
28
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
likes of that legendary night again. But
for those wanting to relive the glory days
of go-getter gay girls, a new film executive
produced by Wanda Acosta, the co-host
with Sharee Nash of Cafe Tabac, documents this brief and shining moment in
the history of lesbian nightlife .
Sundays at Cafe Tabac, which reached
its Kickstarter goal last year and is now
receiving its finishing touches, revisits the
history of this sexy, aesthetically inclined,
and totally original club night. Acosta
decided to make the film because 20 years
later she was still talking to friends about
the night. "We'd get together and have dinner and talk about those early days of the
party and why it still really resonated with
women. And the more we talked about it
the more we realized it was a historic time,
and we thought we really needed to tell
that story and find out what was happening
in the early '90s that pushed this transformation for lesbians:'
What was happening was a desire to
come out and be fabulous together as gay
women and men after the turmoil and
heartache of the AIDS era, and a need
to embrace self-expression as a response
to the buttoned-down
lesbian-feminist
movement that eschewed glamour and
commercialism. In the '90s, a groundswell
of "lipstick" lesbians rebelled against the
REVIEWS/
"granola'' separatist-feminist image of the
'70s and '80s, and the term "lesbian chic"
was coined to describe the sudden emergence of fashion-conscious gay girls who
saw style not as patriarchal oppression but
as a tool for empowerment.
"Women were feeling they didn't need
to adhere to those stereotypes from the
old days;' says Acosta. "[Lesbian chic] was
a way to own their sexuality and express
it in a way that was completely different
from what lesbians had done prior:' The
media was quick to pick up on the trend,
and lesbians (or at least lesbian imagery)
were featured on the covers of mainstream
magazines such as Vanity Fair (remember
the Herb Ritts photo of Cindy Crawford
"shaving" k.d. lang?)."It was a very very hot
moment for us, feeling really special and
being OK with being out there-visible
and fashionable and owning it;' says Acosta.
"I thought that was very transformational,
and it was certainly going to trickle down
into mainstream culture somehow. There
was definitely The L Word before The L
Word in that room on Sundays:'
Acosta saw Cafe Tabac as a salon-a
crucible for lesbian communication and
creativity. "We had all kinds of women
there-creative, powerful, downtown New
York women who were certainly making
things and doing things. There were directors there, TV people, so it was only a
matter of time before that became part of
the mainstream culture, like we see with
The L Word and more films that are coming out as well:'
We all loved (and loved to hate) The L
Word, but one allegation many lesbians
leveled at the show was its lack of inclusivity-real or imagined. Cafe Tabac started
because Acosta "wanted something a little
more glamorous. I really wanted to get
dressed up and have a proper drink and be
able to meet someone or bring someone on
a date. It didn't exist. And when I started
the party, there was a level of discomfort
in the beginning. Women would come up
and ask, 'What section of this restaurant
is for us:"-not recognizing that the whole
''
FlLM
mimic Cafe Tabac, because "it was never
going to happen again. You can't really recreate that:'
When you look at the lesbian scene in
New York today, there seem to be fewer
options than ever. The upscale Dalloway
closed last year. What's leftr The beer-centric boites ( the Cubbyhole and Henrietta
Hudson), a few semi-regular girls' nights,
and a party circuit based mostly in Brooklyn. "Unfortunately, the way the economy
is in New York, it's almost prohibitive to
have a lesbian space. The mentality is still
that lesbians are not consistent and they
don't spend money, which I think is a
myth;' says Acosta. "The younger ones do
go out, but they'd rather socialize on Facebook or online, and then have meet-ups. I
don't think they go to bars as much:'
until we all tire
In the meantime-and
of talking to each other with our thumbs,
in our virtual little worlds-watch
out
for Sundays at Cafe Tabac. The film features over 50 interviews with celebrities,
including Eve Salvail, Patricia Field,
Lea DeLaria, Guinevere Turner, Edie
Windsor, Sandra Bernhard, and k.d. lang.
Vibrant visuals using archival images,
animation, and reenactments will recreate those long-lost Sunday nights where
the hippest music set the mood. Meshell
Ndegeocello's original score recreates the
ambience of this Sapphic salon.
'Tm so excited, I can't wait for this to
happen;' says Acosta. "It's a long process,
but it's gotten so much support. We're really excited to be able to tell this story:'•
THtRt
WAS
Ot~INITtlY
TH[l
WORD
Bt~ORt
TH[
l WORD
INTHAT
ROOM
ONSUNDAYS.
''
space was for them. We were shoving ourselves in the corner or in the basement
because that's what we were used to. So
the moment that everyone felt comfortable within the room, it was just incredible
and wonderful to see-to be able to own
it, embrace it, and enjoy self-expression:'
Far from being exclusive, Acosta wanted
Cafe Tabac to be a celebration of lesbian
community in all its forms, a celebration
of its interconnectedness. "I started it as
a lesbian night, but what was interesting
was that the women were so incredible
that other people just wanted to be in that
space-they were attracted to the energy,
the beauty, the community. It was really
about community. It was about coming in
and feeling like you were family. Everyone
was welcoming and warm and had something to say, and you could have a conversation with a stranger and leave there
feeling like you'd met a new friend, which
is something that I feel is lost as technology and globalization have taken place. It
was pre-cell phones, pre- Internet. It was a
very different way of socializing:'
But times do change, especially in New
York City, which has lost many venues
through the gentrification of neighborhoods. Cafe Tabac closed its doors not due
to a lack of lesbian patronage, but due to
rising rents. Acosta organized other parties, such as Starlight Sundays, which ran
for 19 years, but she didn't want to try to
Wanda and Sharee present
BE
PART
OF
LESBIAN
HISTORY
Sundays at Cafe Tabac is currently in postproduction and finishing funds are
needed, especially for the soundtrack. Curve readers can help by going to the
website's Donate page. cafetabacfilm.com
NODAYLIKESUNDAY
Sundays 7pm-1am
Cafe Tabac 232 East 9th st.
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
29
FEATURES/
T
LAUGHTRA
he two words I
So this is your first album.
out. There were even a couple
used to describe
What inspired you to record
of times one specific audience
back to those communities that
one of my
it and why now?
member who had too much to
support me. It's nice to bring
favorite lesbian
country. It feels good to give
That's the best thing about
drink made me laugh so hard
humor to some pretty serious
comics, Dana Goldberg,
this album. It wasn't a planned
I had to leave the stage for a
topics. I've had the pleasure of
were "hot and hilarious."
recording. I happened to be
moment. It was pretty classic.
doing comedy and live auctions
And I'm happy to report that
plugged into the sound board
it's still the case, except
that night and had a really great
It has been a great year for
Rights Campaign events around
now you can add "about to
set. I was on, the audience was
our community politically,
the country, where people like
at several high profile Human
be super-famous" to the
on, and when I listened to the
so what is there to kvetch
Eric Holder, Vice President Joe
superlatives. Goldberg
recording I thought, "This could
about?
Biden, J-Lo, and many other
has just released her first
make a great album!"
stand-up album, Crossing
I'm a Jew, there's always
A-listers have been honored for
something to kvetch about' It
their work in the advancement
of LGBTequality. I really feel
the Line, and she's following
Crossing the Line suggests
has been a great year for the
that with a busy summer of
you're going to be a bad
LGBTcommunity, but the world
lucky to be a part of the events.
touring that's sure to win
girl, which we love. What
in general is still a goldmine of
Very happy to say over the last
her legions of new fans,
transgressions do you make
material. I mean every time
four years I've helped to raise
lesbian and otherwise.
with this material?
Michele Bachmann or Sarah
almost $2 million for the HRC.
I grabbed my favorite
Well as you know, I always like
Palin speaks, an angel loses its
Another one of my favorite
comedy crush for a quick
to push the boundaries a little,
wings, and I gain five minutes
events is the Southwest Funny-
chat before she hit the road
step right on up to the edge
of material.
fest which I produce each year
and here's what she told me
and then back away a little. This
about va-jay-jays, lesbian
time, I cross the line a time or
But it was a not-so-great
help benefit New Mexico AIDS
breakups, why she likes her
two. I get to say what everyone
year for relationships-or
Services. It's in its eigth year and
over the course of those, we've
down in Albuquerque, N.M. to
audiences drunk, and other
else is thinking. Why not use
so they tell me. What's new
secret ingredients to her
that little bit of power and have
to be said about lesbian
raised over $25,000 for the
stand-up magic.
some fun? I definitely take some
breakups?
organization. In April I brought
hard shots at some GOPers and
Oy, I don't know what's new
in Gloria Bigelow, Gina Yashere,
may or may not touch on the
to be said about the break-
and Suzanne Westenhoefer.
topic of vajazzling. I mean ...
ups, but I think with time and
There was a good chance we
really, who hasn't?
experience those who want to
would need bail money at some
better themselves and grow
point during the weekend.
Why did you record this
will find that inner strength and
live at Seattle's Theatre Off
motivation to dig deep, change
I think if you read your
Jackson-what was special
their experiences, and pick
grocery list you would be
about the venue or the
better relationships in the future.
funny, but what is your
gig itself?
Those who choose not to? Well,
personal favorite bit on
Theatre Off Jackson is a great
they just end up in my act.
this album?
You combine humor with
"Gas Powered Sex Toys." I have
show in someone's living room
humanitarianism. What
a joke where I talk about getting
with a bunch of friends. That
good deeds did you do
busted at the airport and ask
night the crowd was really
this year and what are
the audience what kind of toys
rowdy, a bit drunk as you'll
your favorite charities
they use. Someone yelled out
hear in the first track of the CD,
and causes?
"gas powered" and that was
and I was right on top of every
I really love working with chari-
all I needed to take it and run.
heckle and comment shouted
ties and non-profits around the
(danagoldberg.com) •
My personal favorite is definitely
theatre that holds about 150
people. It feels like I'm doing a
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
31
FEATURES/
V
anessa Piazza is just as dy~
namic, talented, and badass
as the women in front of
the camera on Showcase
and SyFy's hit series Lost
Girl, and frankly I didn't expect anything
less from the show's executive producer.
When I caught up with her, she was in the
middle of filming the premiere episode of
season five, which is so loaded with action
that it requires two episodes to tell the
tale. "It's been like shooting a feature film;'
says Piazza.
While Piazza clearly loves the job she's
got, becoming a producer was initially not
on her radar. (She majored in history in
university.) Fresh out of school, she moved
to Toronto, snagged a job in the editorial
department of a magazine, but then the
fates-or maybe the Faes-intervened.
A job opened up at Jay Firestone's new
Prodigy Pictures and she was all in, start~
ing at the bottom, working her way up,
jumping into projects feet first. "Some~
times, getting tossed into the fire can be
a great education;' she says. Although
she claims that she "fell into producing;' it
turned out to be a perfect match for her, so
much so that these days she is partnering
with Firestone.
She's also a little, or maybe a lot, smit~
ten with celluloid, especially the potential
inclusiveness and diversity offered by the
medium. 'Tm really thankful that I work
in an industry where it's so creative, open,
and progressive:' And where you don't nee~
essarily need to have gone to film school
to move ahead: for Piazza, it's all about
having talent, whether you're on screen or
behind the camera. "What's great about
film and TV is that people from all walks
of life can excel, you don't have to have a
cookie~cutter education:'
No one is more enthusiastic about Lost
Girl than Piazza. "Every morning I wake
up and I'm excited to be here-and
that's
amazing:' While that's partially due to the
Lost Girl team, it's also about what the
show has brought to people's lives, and
how the small screen's queerest, sexiest
show has "such a strong message of em~
powerment:'
That message resonates behind the
scenes too, where lots of women are in~
valved in making the series happen, from
directors to production staff, and where
there is a strong LGBT presence. "Having
diversity in front of and behind the camera
is very important to me;' says Piazza. So
it's not surprising that age, sexuality, race,
and religion are non~issues on the show.
For Piazza, it's all about the characters,
and she is really proud that the show has
"made diversity normal:'
Of course Piazza has been to a Comic~
Con or two, and like the cast she was
both surprised and thrilled by the show's
popularity. While Piazza is every inch
the high~powered producer, she is also all
heart, and the fans' stories and shared mo~
ments really touch her. Fans often tell her
just how much the show has changed their
lives-how it has given them the courage
to be who they want to be. It's here that
THE L LI
it gets very real for Piazza, who is clearly
moved by how much the series has spoken
to people. "Whether that's coming out or
something else, we've helped people, and
that's amazing:'
When she starts talking about the
women in the show, it's obvious that she's
thrilled by how talented they all are. Each
of them brings something unique to the
show."It's an embarrassment of riches;' she
says. Surrounded by all that talent, having
an amazing team, working on a show with
lots of diversity, relatable characters, and a
high fun factor are all pluses, but for her
the best part of Lost Girl is that "there is a
lot of heart in the show:'
All that heart, combined with lots of
action and plenty of heat, keeps us coming
back for more, whether we're jonesing to
see what'll happen to Bo and Lauren, or
just curious about whether quirky side~
kick Kenzi will be resurrected. But we will
have to wait, because Piazza is not giving
up any spoilers.
When Piazza talks about Lost Girl's
embarrassment of riches, she probably
isn't including herself, but she should.
We have her to thank, at least in part,
for the phenomenon that is the Doc~
cubus, and frankly I can't wait to see
what she has in store for us next season.
( showcase.ca/lostgirl)
•
LOST GIRL AIRS ON SHOWCASE
IN CANADA AND SYFY IN THE
U.S. LOST GIRL IS PRODUCED BY
PRODIGY PICTURES
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
33
V
..
E
taking a
ca
CD
.cI
;;
of the music
world
:::s
E
BY LISA TEDESCO
H
eather Peace released her newest album, The Thin
Line on June 9, the follow up to her 2012 debut
Fairyta/es. Set to mark her arrival as an exciting new
musical talent to a wider audience than ever before, The
Thin Line is a soulful, organic pop gem that incorporates
Peace's love of '60s girl groups, Motown and '80s pop. It
rightly puts her rich vocals at the fore against a backdrop
of lush pop strings, piano riffs and fat bass lines. Produced
by James Lewis (Arctic Monkeys, Superfood), the album
was mostly recorded live then overlaid with brass sections,
strings and drenched in massive vocal harmonies from
rnL
:Y..AUGUSiT
4
Peace. "I love Dusty Springfield and '60s girl groups-and
from the beginning James and I knew we wanted an album
that was recorded in homage to Specter's Wall Of Sound,"
says Peace. Over the last three years, Peace has performed
three sold-out U.K. tours with her full band along with four
sold-out solo acoustic tours. An actor for 16 years, she
recently left her role in BBC One drama Waterloo Road
to make the album. "This is the first time I feel confident
enough to take a break from acting to give [music] my full
attention," says Peace, who started singing with a church
choir at the age of 5. (heatherpeace.com) •
C
)
solo
CATIE
CURTIS
•
GETS
READY
FOR
THE
atie Curtis has been releasing albums of
pristine folk-pop for over 20 years now.
But her latest disc, Flying Dream, is significant in several ways. For one thing, it's the first
release on her own label, Catie Curtis Records,
and the first time she's enlisted fellow singersongwriter Kristen Hall (formerly of Sugarland)
as producer.
But it's also significant for another, more
personal reason. Between her last studio effort,
2011's Stretch Limousine on Fire, and Flying
Dream, Curtis and Elizabeth Marshall-her
partner of 17 years-split. When I spoke with her
on the phone, Curtis was finalizing her plans to
move out. "It's definitely hard for everybody right
now," she admits. "It's a big time of transition."
That "everybody" includes not just Curtis and
Marshall but their adopted daughters, Lucy and
Celia, as well.
The album Flying Dream doesn't explicitly
chronicle the end of her marriage-but on some
songs the subject seeps in, like a premonition.
"I was not fully conscious that we were on the
verge of separating [while making this album],"
says Curtis, "but I think I was starting to feel it.
Like in [the song] 'Flying Dream.' It's partly about
going to Guatemala and meeting the kids' birth
families and having this surreal experience. But
it's also about taking a leap that feels really scary
and not knowing what's next."
The album is not all doom and gloom, "Live
Laugh Love" could be the feel-good song of
the year, and "The Queen" is an upbeat track
based on an actual experience Curtis had. "I was
playing an inaugural ball [at the White House] last
year," says Curtis. "Queen Latifah was supposed
to go on before me and she never showed up! So
I had to play twice as long and make up stuff on
the fly. [But] I had this kickass band and we had
the absolute best time playing."
To me, the best song on Flying Dream is one
that deals not with lost love but with the possibility of new love. "Maybe Tomorrow" contains
lovely lyrics, and the musical textures that
complement them perfectly. "That's my [favorite]
too!" Curtis says. "When Kristen and I wrote it,
I remember saying to myself, It's about anticipating something new and exciting in your life.
It probably had something to do with my heart
getting ready for the next step."
And Curtis does sound like she's ready. As
difficult as the breakup has been, she's staying
busy. In addition to being a mom, Curtis plans to
tour later this year to support Flying Dream; she
recently became a spokesperson for the Tomboy
X clothing line; and, after being ordained by the
Unitarian Universalist Church, she's officiating at
same-sex marriages. "I still believe in marriage.
There is a lot of disappointment in a relationship ending. It can be devastating and it can
be painful. But that doesn't mean that it's the
wrong thing to happen ...Marriage doesn't have
to be declared a failure if it doesn't last forever."
(catiecurtis.com) •
V
.. W
..
E
ca
G)
.cI
en
::I
E
ith their '90s punk
sound and silly
onstage antics, Sarah
Corcoran, Fiach O Briain, and
Niamh Hanley of the Dublin
band Kate's Party offer up
a serious dose of nostalgia.
Accompanying the feel-good
riffs and upbeat tempos, however, are the expressive voice
and confessional lyrics that
may remind you of early Tegan
& Sara. Citing their influences
as The Truman Show and the
weather, Kate's Party doesn't
like to take itself too seriously. Despite this, their debut
release, Hollow, is lying-onyour-bed, staring-at-the-ceiling
material. We caught up with
Kate's lead singer, Niamh
Hanley, to talk fun, roots, and
promoting awareness.
There's a playful camaraderie in
your behind-the-scenes videos.
How do you think that positive energy influcences your
performances?
We've been a band a little over
four years, and I don't think
we would've lasted if we didn't
have that playfulness to us.
When we were writing our
album, we locked ourselves
away in the studio for weeks,
and at one point the electricity
went-it was winter, it was
horribly cold, and I had walked
in a puddle. We were all ready
to explode, so we spent the day
singing Will.I.Am covers and
it really diffused the explosiveness and eased the whole
writing process!
Kate's Party is an Irish band.
What does that mean to you?
We are lucky to be from a country that is so small but has such
a thriving music scene-every
second person in Ireland is a
musician! There really is a lot of
respect for the music industry.
We are also lucky to share a
home with a lot of internationally renowned artists, which is
really inspiring.
You just opened for the
Japanese legends Shonen Knife.
How did that feel?
Shonen Knife has a stage
presence unlike anything I've
ever seen before, and it's really
cool that their style translates
BY FRANCESCA LEWIS
Your mother is Venezuelan,
your father is Lebanese. How
has this cultural diversity
influenced you as an artist?
I think one of the reasons
I love music so much is
because it's a universal
language, even if we don't
understand the lyrics. Music
has always brought my family together. With the recent
tensions in Venezuela, I was
inspired to write a song
called "We Are Listening" to
show support and raise awareness. My dad always used to
play guitar for my mum when
they lived in Beirut, during the
war, in times of trouble.
Which artists have influenced
you?
I love a bit of everything, but
as far folk artists go, Laura
Marling, Coco Sumner, The
Weepies, and Caitlin Rose.
My dad is a huge Clapton fan
and my mum is an Elvis fan,
so that was my soundtrack to
school every morning!
What was the idea behind the
video for "Mum, I Like a Girl"?
The idea behind the video was
to show a positive and happy
reaction to me coming out. I
consider myself very lucky to
have had the support and love
from my friends and family,
and I wanted to share my experience with others who may
not be quite so lucky. I asked
my best friend's mum to play
the part of my mother, and
she actually drove all the way
down from NYC to Boston to
shoot at Island Creek Oyster
Bar! It was a special and emotional day, to say the least!
The song was the runner-up
in Berklee's annual songwriting competition, Songs for
Social Change. What change would you like to see?
The main thing I would like to see in this world is
peace. I'm a big fan of the Peace One Day campaign.
I remember seeing Annie Lennox sing live for the first
time in a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in 2008, and
got to see her speak at my graduation last year, which
was pretty surreal! I'm also working on making an informational and educational video about what's going
on in Venezuela, and I hope that both Venezuela and
Lebanon will find a time of peace. (soundcloud.com/
sofiacloudmusic) •
I
t takes a certain level of
guts to book a show at
a much-buzzed-about
Minneapolis hotspot before
even assembling a band.
That's exactly what Melany
Joy Beck did as she plotted
her entrance back into the
scene with her hot new band,
Delavan.
"I had written a bunch of
songs, a decade after I had
been touring as a solo artist,"
Beck says. "I was very excited
about it because it was such
a different direction than I
had done before: country
and western garage rock. It
was an amalgamation of all
of the genres I was interested in," she says, settling
in on the red couch of her
Minneapolis living room.
"I needed to have a band
to play shows. I went ahead
and booked a show because
if I had a gig people would
want to play with me.
Sometimes you have to jump
and the net will appear,"
Beck says.
Beck recorded the band's
first single, "Chula Vista"
with the assistance of Erik
Koskinen, a renowned musician and producer, while the
band came together.
Guitarist James Gould
and drummer Mark Larson
joined fresh off their stint
with Minneapolis-based
the4onthefloor. Bassist Vero
Sanchez-Hunter Valentine
heartthrob and The Real L
Word star-rounded out the
group after relocating to
Minneapolis from New York.
"The season of The Real L
Word just finished, and she
is a really good bass player.
I knew she could play this
music. I approached her at
the Driftwood Char Bar in
Minneapolis and I said. 'Hey
I'm putting a band together,
would you be interested?' I
played her the songs and I
convinced her," Beck says.
Playing under the name
Delavan, the four-piece have
quickly charmed crowds with
their country and western
influenced indie rock sound.
38
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
With a voice that has been called equal
parts Grace Potter and Lucinda Williams,
Beck snarls and wails through songs ranging from the driving and catchy "Chula
Vista" to the sweet Country Western
sounds of "Loveshine," a nod to falling in
love to the sweet taste of moonshine.
As for the name, Delavan, Beck says,
"It just came into my head. I wanted a
one-word band name. I don't exactly know
where it came from other than I had literally just bought a van at the time. It's a big
1994 Chevy G20 and I really liked it. I think
that inspired it, really," she says.
plans for a fall tour, Beck has no intention
of slowing down. For a girl who booked
a gig without a band and not only found
one, but managed an ensemble of the hottest musicians in town, the future is bright
and she moves forward, pistols blazing.•
u,.
en
..
3
I
:::r
m
CD
C
-·
en
n
wild
thing
BROOKLYN-BASED
BOMBSHELL
MIA
WILSON
AND
HER
BAND
THE
BRIGHT
SMOKE
RELEASE
THEIR
LATEST
SINGLE.
BY LISA TEDESCO
D
espite an endless
stream of new musicians releasing albums,
it's still a rare and wonderful
thing to discover a new artist.
The Bright Smoke and its lovely
and talented Mia Wilson is one
such discovery.
Wilson is a queer songwriter
whose deep and somber voice
on The Bright Smoke's new
album Virginia Et Al. will leave
you swaying, eyes closed and
wanting more-especially
the fifth track, "Wild Again,"
a low-key arrangement with
full-bodied beats and harrowing piano melodies in which
Wilson and her band mate
Quincy Ledbetter create a noirblues inspired tune that draws
on Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen,
and Cat Power.
Originally from the suburbs
of Chicago, Wilson grew up
with a rich and imaginative
fantasy life. "When I was about
four, I developed an alter
ego for a few years named
Mrs. Fafia. She was a fussy
divorcee in her early 60s, who
wore a large Sunday bonnet at all times and had,
what I'm assuming, were
some pretty questionable
beliefs regarding class and
personal entitlement." Wilson
was drawn to music at an
early age and the guitar became more than just an after
school hobby.
As she got older, she
began playing music
everywhere she could,
from Chicago to Virginia
and then off to England and
even Namibia. Today the
globetrotting Wilson calls
New York City home.
In coming out, Wilson
says she "struggled most
with categorization and the
experienced rejection that
can ensue from either being
not enough for one group or
being too much for another."
Consequently, she refers to
herself as queer because of
her "ability to be attracted to
and involved with individuals of varying orientations,
gender identities and
expressions."
And just because she's out
doesn't mean she takes her
lesbian fans for granted. "I
don't think coming out be-
stows on artists a magical and
immediate lesbian following;
that doesn't seem to allow for
musical taste and personal
preference. Some lesbians
love Bach, some lesbians love
Beyonce ...l'd be thrilled with
a big lesbian following, in the
same way that I'd be thrilled
with a small lesbian following, or even a following of
medium-sized lesbians. I think
you just have to make the
absolute best work you can
and be very grateful for any
people that find it meaningful
and worth listening to."
(thebrightsmoke.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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V
..
.. I
E
ca
G)
.cI
en
::I
E
t's a familiar story: band gets record
deal, thinks life has changed forever,
music business changes, record label
struggles, band finds itself back where it
started. Such was the fate of the alt-pop
duo The Murmurs, Leisha Hailey and
Heather Reid. Their unique harmonies
and out status made them the queer darlings of the Lilith Fair era, sealing them
in amber as a good thing gone too soon.
When their short-lived follow-up band,
Gush, broke up, Reid and Hailey went
their separate ways. Hailey's story we all
know-from indie movies to The L Word
to Uh Huh Her-but Heather Reid's journey is less well-known. After forming the
indie-rock band Redcar in the mid-'OOs,
Reid took a break from the limelight,
penning a musical, writing for Shakira,
becoming a mother. Lucky for us, she's
ready to return to the stage with her
debut solo album, Cross Words.
You were half of The Murmurs, with
Leisha Hailey. What was it like being out
as a gay musician in the '90s?
Ahh, the '90s! Back in the '90s, Leisha
and I were almost always referred to as a
"gay" band, or "lesbian" singers. We had
k.d. lang and Melissa Etheridge among
a handful of brave artists leading the
way and inspiring us, but at the time the
road still appeared to be long. Now, it
seems like the labeling has fallen to the
side. So many talented musicians are out
now, and it is so much less of a describing factor when someone's art is being
discussed.
You've worked behind the scenes, writing
songs for other musicians and even writing a musical. Do you think you're more
introverted than the average musician?
I am a little shy [some might disagree],
however, I love to perform my music in
a live setting. I experience so much joy
when I'm sharing my music with a crowd
of people. A live show can be grounding,
exhilarating, and healing for me.
You say Cross Words is about heartbreak,
but not about feeling sorry for yourself.
Why the distinction?
I am an optimist, and I'm always trying
to figure out what the lesson is. In this
album, I do explore the great sadness of
a heartbreak, but I also search for hope
and discover the complexities of my situation. This album is also about resilience
and owning my part in the story.
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2014
You've been in different bands over the
years. How does going solo compare?
Being a solo artist is very intimidating. I
feel more vulnerable, which is possibly
why I waited so long to set out on my
own. It's also very freeing, and I'm at a
point in my musical journey where I'm
curious to explore the artist I've evolved
into. I still love to collaborate, though. I
love being inspired and blending the colors that other musicians and songwriters
bring with mine.
The video for "Ivy" has you walking
around different parts of New York City.
What has the city meant to you and
your music?
NYC will always have a huge place in
my heart. I met some of my dearest
friends there, at the American Academy
of Dramatic Arts, and New York City is
where my musical journey formally began. I've lived in L.A. for a long time now,
but I usually go back a couple of times
a year to refuel. From Broadway shows
to Broadway bars-the Pyramid Club in
the '90s, CBGB's Gallery-the people, my
friends, and the overall energy, I'd say
that my early days in the city are a part
of my creative blueprint and I'll always
be grateful.
You're known as something of an alt-rock
and female empowerment icon. How
does that feel?
Wow, a huge compliment. My goal is
to be true to myself. If women and girls
take away anything from hearing my
music, I would hope that it would be to
own their voice and to channel it in the
ways that are most organic for them.
Writing music was always my vehicle.
It's different for everyone.
(heatherreidmusic.com) •
all about eve
MEET
MODEL,
DJAND
FASHION
MUSE
EVE
SALVAIL.
BY DAR DOWLING
E
ve Salvaii may have become one of the hottest DJ's in the country,
known to fans as DJ Evalicious, but Salvail is a beautiful and talented
chameleon, having reinvented herself many times over the years.
Before she was "manning" the decks at parties in New York, Chicago, Miami,
and Los Angeles, she was a top model owning catwalks from Milan to New
York-and she was the muse of fashion designer Jean-Paul Gaultier.
When asked about those modeling years, it's clear that for Salvail it wasn't
a love affair, even if the camera loved her-and it most certainly did. In fact,
for Salvail, who originally wanted to follow in her artistic parents' footsteps
by studying photography and graphic design, her modeling career started
out as a lark. She was in college, sporting a mohawk, when some friends
convinced her to sign up for a modeling contest-and she won. "It started
out as a joke, but in the end the joke was on me," she says.
The French-Canadian
Salvail made a huge
splash in the tough-asnails modeling scene
because she is as badass
as she is beautiful and talented. In fact, when you
see her you may just think
she is the original girl with
the dragon tattoo-she
hasa rather fierce bronze
dragon inked onto the
side of her head.
Salvail has always
been a trendsetter, and
back in the early '90s she
wanted to be the first bald
model, but her artistically
inclined father suggested
being even bolder, and it
was then she decided on
the tattoo. While she was
a success, she suffered.
"[Modeling] was unbelievably painful, I wanted
to quit every second."
She didn't, and proved to
be even braver than her
fellow closeted celebrities by coming out very
publicly on the Tyra Banks
Show. It wasn't because
she wanted to share her
private life-she didn't.
The super-private Salvail
did it because she wanted
to help young people feel
less alone. "It was nerve
wracking," she says of her
coming out. "Not because
I was ashamed, but because it was very intimate
to me."
Music has been a
source of comfort,
strength, and self-expression to Salvail (she's been
singing and writing music
since the age of 14). "I
absolutely love being a
DJ,"she says, but even
as she continues to spin
her spell, something new
is brewing. Salvail is a
woman on the verge of
once again re-inventing
herself, she has written a
TV series. Although she's
not giving up too many
details, she did finally
admit that it's a psychological game show. "It's
on, bitches," she says. If
history is any indication,
this contest is going to be
hot. (evesalvail.net) •
I
f you're still searching for
the next Indigo Girls, you
would do well to check
out these two talented lesbian
duos, both based in the
Greater New York area.
Starnes & Shah are Zilpha
Starnes and Dania AbuShaheen. These women
met while attending Sarah
Lawrence and became not
only musical partners but
life partners as well. Their
backgrounds couldn't be
more disparate, however.
Where Starnes is originally
from Dallas and was weaned
mainly on musical theater,
Abu-Shaheen hails from
Lebanon-where, incidentally,
it's still not legal to be openly
gay. Unlike Starnes, she grew
up listening to mainstream
folk, rock, and pop-and not
just the obvious influences,
such as Ani DiFranco and
Bonnie Raitt, but the British
rockers Oasis and guitar
greats like Stevie Ray Vaughan
and Mark Knopfler. "It's funny;'
she notes, "whatever is a
weakness of mine, or whatever I lack, Zilpha has a strength
in ...Her background in music
theory has been very helpful."
Starnes & Shah have been
together since 2005 and
unveiled their latest album,
Shilling for Dreamtown, at the
end of last year. Containing a
dozen songs, Shilling is nothing short of a modern folk-pop
gem. Just check out "Nothing
on Me" and the lovely, catchy
"Gatling Girl:' In the studio,
the duo's sound veers more
toward folk and pop, but
onstage they often play with
a full band behind them and
they can really rock! "Back in
the day, it was just two vocals
and a guitar," says Starnes.
"Now we have a band and [I
play] synthesizer. The synthesizer is almost incorporated
[as] a third voice."
Like Starnes & Shah,
Hannah (Hickok) & Maggie
(Kraus) met while they were
attending college-Smith,
in their case. But unlike S&S,
H&M are not a couple. They
are also a bit younger and
are still basically two voices
and a guitar. But those two
42
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JULY/AUGUST
2014
voices blend together in a haunting way-especially on songs like
"September," the closing track on
their new disc, In the Company of
Strangers. "I wrote that song the
first September after I graduated
from college," Hickok remembers.
"It was so surreal knowing that
all the students were returning to
school while I was having to make
my own way in the world:' In the
Company of Strangers comes two
years after Hannah & Maggie's sophomore set, Muscle & Bone. "We've
really matured, both as people
and as songwriters, since Muscle
& Bone;' says Hickok. "That album
came from a time when both of our
lives were very conflicted ... In the
Company of Strangers comes from
a less fraught place emotionally."
H&M are similar to S&S in that
their musical influences are complementary. "Where we really differ is
that Maggie grew up listening more
to punk rock, while [I] was listening
to Broadway soundtracks," Hickok
explains. "But we're both big fans
of Simon & Garfunkel, James Taylor,
Joni Mitchell, and other folk [musicians]." It's those shared influences
that come to the fore on Company
and make H&M-like S&S-heirs to
the Indigo Girls' school of harmony
laden, folk-pop. (hannahandmaggie.
com, starnesandshah.com) •
u,..
..
she kissed a girl
en
I
:::r
m
CD
3
C
-·
JILL
SOBULE
RETURNS
WITH
ANEW
ALBUM.
en
BY LISA TEDESCO
R
emember the song "I Kissed a Girl"?
No, not the 2008 chart topper by
pop diva Katy Perry. Almost two
decades before Perry used the title, a quirky
girl named Jill Sobule wrote and sang "I
Kissed a Girl," and in 1995 it became the
anthem of an emerging lesbian chic. But for
her new album, Dottie's Charms, she draws
inspiration from an entirely different source.
To someone else, a vintage charm
bracelet might have been just another piece
of jewelry, but to Sobule the charms came
to represent the highlights of a narrative.
"When I first was given the bracelet, I put
it in my 'drawer of forgotten and misfit
gifts.' Two years ago, I made a visit to the
drawer and saw the pewter cowboy hat
charm peeking out. I fished the bracelet out
and gave it, for the first time, some real
attention. I became obsessed. Here was a
bracelet with 20 charms, or 20 clues to a
woman's life. Who was she?"
To tell the story, Sobule recruited the
help and literary skills of 10 of her favorite
authors, and asked each of them to write
a track on her new album. "To my joy and
surprise, most on my wish list harbored
a secret desire to write a song, and were
game," says Sobule. "I sent each of the
writers a different charm to write a lyric
to." Among the authors she chose are
David Hajdu, Jonathan Lethem, Mary Jo
Salter, Luc Sante, James Marcus, Sara
Marcus, Sam Lipsyte, Nina Mehta, Rick
Moody, and Vendela Vida.
Over the span of the next year the
n
writers worked on their lyrics and Sobule
orchestrated the musical accompaniment,
which seems tender yet dark. Dottie's
Charms is Sobule's first solo project in
over five years. "I will probably never have
a pop semi-hit again," says Sobule. "So
why try for mainstream success? That and
getting older has given me even more
permission to write whatever I want. To
not have constraints, and to have fun."
The creative mind can work in mysterious ways. Taking an old piece of jewelry
and finding within it the inspiration for a
solo album is what separates Jill Sobule
from many other mainstream artists of
the day. Dottie's Charms begins a new
chapter in the life of this indie rocker.
(jillsobule.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
43
T
his music artist is a breed
of her own, she is talented beyond belief and
the poetry of her lyrics pairs
perfectly with the rise and fall
of her melodic voice. Her name
is Diane Cluck and her ecstatic
vocal style has been noted for
its uniquely clipped, glottal
beauty. This multi-talented
artist accompanies herself on
instruments ranging from guitar
to piano, harmonium, zither,
percussion, and toy accordion.
She also often plays alongside
cellist Isabel Castellvi.
Cluck's seventh album,
Boneset, is a rich journey seeded with boldness and heart.
The richness of the imagery is
inspired by art. "I went to an
exhibit of Charles Burchfield
paintings at The Whitney
Museum a few years ago, and it
made a big impression on me,"
says Cluck. "Burchfield had a
long career, in his 60s returning
to works he'd started in his 20s.
As a musician I like to grant myself the freedom to ruminate on
ideas and return to themes."
The intellectual backbone of
Cluck's work has earned her the
admiration of her peers. Fellow
folk musician Devendra Banhart
championed her early, referring
to her as "my favorite singersongwriter in all of New York
City." CocoRosie invited Cluck
to open shows in the U.S.
and Europe and released her
Countless Times album through
their personal label imprint.
Sharon Van Etten, Florence
Welch (of Florence And The
Machine), and Laura Marling
have all cited Cluck's work as
influential.
Cluck wrote the songs for
Boneset over a 10-year period.
"They surfaced and hung
together easily, making their
own story, I realized, it's a kind
of Mobius strip-one can start
from any point in the album and
listen forward and a continuity
or new story emerges." The album, says the out musician, is a
meditation on life and renewal.
"Even as parts are dying off ...
our core is still strong and new
buds form. These songs are
about venturing out, despite
fear and despair, to find that
help and light meet us when we
do." (dianecluck.info) •
The Nth Power is aptly
named as four of its five members have names that begin
with the letter "N." In addition
to Glaspie, the band includes
Nick Cassarino on guitar and
vocals; Nigel Hall on keyboards
and vocals; Nate Edgar on
bass; and Weedie Braimah on
percussion. It's a diverse lineup
in terms of gender, race and
musical pedigree and it all
adds up to a soul-funk powerhouse
in the tradition of such '70s artists
as Tower of Power and ParliamentFunkadelic. I asked Glaspie how
leading her own band is different
from being a side musician.
"It's way different," she responds.
"I have the biggest responsibility on
my shoulders [and] am involved in
every aspect of the band. If you're
a person that likes pointing fingers,
being a sideman is the perfect job.
Anyone who has been in a band
knows that things go wrong all the
time-but there is always someone
[else] to blame. In this case, that
person is me. [But] I'm excited at the
opportunity [of] being blamed for
spearheading possibly the greatest
band of our time!" This fall, The Nth
Power will release their full-length
debut, Abundance. "It's a mixture
of R&B, jazz, funk, rock, reggae
and anything else you can think
of," Glaspie says of the album. "Our
music is simply music for the soul.
We hope to change lives for the
better [and] to spread the message
of love and light through music. So
the sound of it is very uplifting." If the
song "Only Love" is any indication,
that's an understatement.
While she's excited about stepping
out from behind the drum kit and
forging her own path, Glaspie values
the experience she's gained working with others. Asked
what it was like being part of Beyonce's live band, The
Sugar Mamas, she says, "I learned a lot from her. Work
ethic, stage presence, how to run a business, being
a leader and overall talent make her who she is. I saw
the world three times over with her and it was a life
changing experience. I can honestly say, "been there,
done that"-performed
in places that I didn't even know
existed. Those experiences changed me, and I feel it's
my responsibility to share [them] with the world. That is
ultimately what I gained from working with Beyonce."
In addition to The Nth Power's imminent debut,
Glaspie has another reason to be happy these days:
she recently got engaged to her longtime girlfriend. "If
people want to get married, they should get married and
that's it," she declares. "Nobody else's opinion should
matter. I feel great. I found my person and I'm happy
about it." (nikkiglaspie.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
45
C
ountry-rock singer-songwriter
and out lesbian, Gina Villalobos
has made her triumphant return
to the music scene with the sensational
new album, So/a. The record, which
marks the artists fourth studio effort,
dropped in May and fans of Villalobos'
talent for creating passionate but aching
melodies have not been disappointed.
Villalobos began working on So/a in
January 2012 after a five-year hiatus from
music-one born of necessity after years
of touring left the singer
creatively exhausted. Villalobos began
touring across the U.S.,Europe, Australia,
and New Zealand in 2004, following the
release of her second album Rock 'N'
Roll Pony. Two years later the release of
Miles Away earned the musician greater
recognition, this time in the U.K.While
the success was welcome, touring
ceaselessly and releasing four albums in
just seven years took its toll. "I couldn't
write, I couldn't draw, I had no imagination or ability to reflect anymore," says
Villalobos. "I didn't have the physical
energy to do so." So in 2011she took a
break from making music entirely.
It seems the time away is just what she
needed to revive her musical muse. In
2012 a reenergized Villalobos assembled
a group of talented and accomplished
musicians to help bring her new songs
to life. "It's about setting up mood and
attitude," says Villalobos.
In So/a Villalobos has created an auditory confession that lays bare the trials
and tribulatins she has faced and the
result is raw and stunningly beautiful."
Hold on to Rockets" delves into the ways
we self-sabotage and can at times be
our own worst enemy. "Come Undone"
is a romantic two-step in slow time that
aches like a heartbreak and then builds
to a swooning crescendo.
The overall experience of listening to
So/a is one of catharsis, and so it's little
surprise that Villalobos takes a visceral
and intimate approach to songwriting,
"I'm inspired by interactions, touching
things, smelling things, and just opening my eyes," she says. "It's involuntary
and then you get these urges to be
creative, to write. Having a creative urge
as an artist is actually painful sometimes. Writing songs satisfies the urge."
(ginavillalobos.com) •
QUEERIDENTITYMAY HAVEHAD
ITSORIGINSIN PRE-NAZIGERMANY.
KATIE SUTTON
1920s butch fashion Oas Magazin, August 1926
(Source: BPK Bildagentur fur Kunst, Kultur und
Geschichte)
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
47
tanding in the heat and crowds
across the Atlantic in Germany, where, in
and "transvestites." They were inspired
on Fifth Avenue last June, watch-
the decade before the Nazis seized power
by the work of doctors such as Magnus
ing Edie Windsor perched on the
in 1933, one of the world's first organized
Hirschfeld, who in 1919 founded the Insti-
backseat of a convertible as one
homosexual rights movements was born.
tute for Sexual Science in Berlin. This soon
became a leading center for progressive
of the grand marshals of New
At a time when Marlene Dietrich was
York City's 2013 Pride, I was
strutting the silver screen in a top hat and
sex research, political activism, and coun-
reminded of just how eventful
tails, queer women joined their gay brothers
seling, as well as medical services for men
the past year had been. The historic DOMA
to fight laws against male homosexuality
and women with same-sex attractions and
challenge was a win not just for the mar-
and establish organizations such as the
for trans individuals.
riage equality movement but also for the
Bund fur Menschenrechte (the League of
many binational married couples who could
Human Rights). They also produced some
now choose to call this country home, since
of the first magazines aimed specifically at
the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services
women with same-sex attractions, such as
By the mid-1920s, the monocles, short
had to recognize the legality of their same-
Girlfriend (Die Freundin, 1924-1933), Wom-
haircuts, trousers, and sharply tailored
sex relationship.
anly Love (Frauenliebe, 1926-1930), and
tuxedos that were conquering mainstream
Bachelorette (Garc;;onne,1930-1932).
German fashion were also acquiring a
These latest developments are often
seen as a legacy of Stonewall in 1969,
where brave demonstrators laid the ground-
Writers for these magazines referred to
couples as "girlfriend" (Freundin) and "boy"
Before Butch and Femme: Virile
and Feminine Gender Identities
particular erotic meaning within Berlin's
female homosexual subculture. The queer
work for what is now a global network of
(Bubi), or as "virile" and "feminine" women,
magazines feature "flappers" or "New
queer media, activism, and Pride marches.
early ancestors of "butch" and "femme."
Women" on their covers, as well as reports
But today's LGBT identity politics actually
Some also used the new language of
of women who "pass" as men (often for
have a longer prehistory-one
sexual science, referring to "homosexuals"
decades on end), and fictional stories of
48
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JULY/AUGUST
that begins
2014
FEATURES/
H1ST
ATATlMtWHtN
MARltNt
STRUTTING
OltTRICH
WAS
THtSllVtR
SCRttN
IN
ATOP
HAT
ANO
TAllS,
OUttR
WOMtN
JOINtO
THtlR
GAY
BROTHtRS
TO~IGHT
lAWS
AGAINST
MAltHOMOStXUAllTY.
same-sex desire that reveal a wide a range
marriages cheat on their wives?" There were
of gender identities-from
also heated discussions about virile-virile or
readers suggest an increasing need to dis-
turous "gigolos" with a passion for driving
feminine-feminine relationships, and whether
tinguish between categories of gender and
and smoking, and boyish "Bubi" sporting
masculine women were more intelligent
sexuality. As a result, some women argued
muscular builds and male pronouns, to saucy
(most readers agreed they were not). These
that although they enjoyed wearing mascu-
feminine "vamps" and "exotic" women. Like
women sought to balance feminist beliefs
line suit jackets and ties, these should be
today's drag kings, the virile 1920s woman
with a range of personal and erotic gender
combined with skirts to underline the wear-
poor but adven-
At the same time, letters from magazine
was often praised for "doing" masculinity
identities, foreshadowing butch/femme
er's femaleness. For others, though, only
better than a man. As one fictional charac-
debates by almost half a century.
full masculine attire would suffice-as
ter declared to her lover in a 1930 edition of
How you are like a man but with the soul
Between Homosexual
and Trans
of a girl."
The 1920s were a period of gender in tran-
Garc;onne: "O you, my beloved, strong boy!
At other times, though, the masculine
sition, and there was a crossover between
the
self-identified transvestite E.K. declared in
Die Freundin: "I will do without the tuxedo,
but not the trousers."
A look into the historical archive of Weimar
Germany reveals a vibrant and complex queer
homosexual woman was a controversial
masculine homosexual and trans identi-
subculture that in many ways foreshadows
figure. In 1931, writers for Girlfriend and
fications. The queer women's magazines
today's identity politics and activism, includ-
Bachelorette fiercely debated the ability of
published regular columns on transvestite
ing the beginnings of identifications including
virile women to remain faithful to their part-
issues, while Lotte Hahm, a prominent
dyke, butch boi, drag king, and transgender.
ners. The Garc;onne reader Ilse Schwarze,
figure in her bow tie and pants, led not
When we celebrate the DOMA challenge or
for example, questioned why queer women
only the main transvestite organizations in
the end of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, let's also
should mimic the problems of heterosexual
Berlin but the homosexual League of Ideal
remember this longer history of LGBT political
relationships: "Is it good that men in 'normal'
Women's Friendship as well.
activism and queer gender diversity. •
JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
49
BRITTNEY
GRINER'S
CAREER
HAS
TAKEN
OFF
AND
SHE'S
READY
TOSOAR.
BY LYNDSEY D'ARCANGELO
50
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2014
oARJZONA
(;\51
__,
I
/
----
G ncK RE
SORT
,~'-"
rrobile
JULY/AUG
UST
2014
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51
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JULY/A
UGUST
t doesn't take much to make Brittney Griner
happy. The 23-year-old basketball phenom is a
self-proclaimed country girl, and if she were ever
stranded on a desert island, there are only two
things she'd need to survive: an ATV and a big
crate of bacon. Tm country enough to figure
out how to make a fire," Griner says with a slight
Southern drawl. "So I'd just need some bacon to
go with it."
It's a simple answer, but that's just how Griner rolls. She's laidback and relaxed-even when she considers the prospect of being
stranded on that island. But life wasn't always this simple. In her
best-selling memoir, In My Skin, she reveals a much more vulnerable side, which for years was kept hidden from the public. ''A lot of
times people try to sugarcoat things, instead of telling the fl.at-out
truth;' Griner admits. "But it's hard to get
a good clean message across, if you're going
to leave out certain things:'
In the book, Griner confesses that her
youth was filled with confusion and isolation, especially when she began to look
physically different from her peers. For
a long time, she saw it as a disadvantage.
It wasn't until the ninth grade, when she
started playing basketball, that she realized her height and build were actually a
gift. Others started to notice as well. Once
a video of her dunking the ball was uploaded to YouTube, the entire country started
paying attention.
"That clip definitely changed a lot in my
life;' says Griner. "People started coming
up to me all the time. They'd call me The
YouTube Girl and everything:'
For Griner, as public recognition of her
on-court skills increased, the attention
was overwhelming and exciting, but it also
opened the door to more negativity. Some
people refused to believe she was authentic. After all, girls can't jump
like that. They aren't 6 foot 8. They don't wear a men's size 17 shoe,
or have an 86-inch wingspan. She must be taking steroids. "She"
must be a "he:'
"That bothered me;' Griner admits. ''All through high school
and even college, I got,'Oh, she's a man. It's not fair-there's something going on. She must be on steroids. That's why she's so tall
and she can dunk: That bothered me, because people always have
to find something wrong when something special happens. And
I'm like, 'Why?',,
The more Griner began to break records, and the more physically dominating she became on the basketball court,
the louder the questions got. Instead of
embracing her for helping to further the
women's game by taking it to another level,
people criticized her instead.
"Everyone wants the WNBA to be
as entertaining as the NBA;' Griner explains. "But then people want to question
it and tarnish it by throwing all these crazy accusations out. Do ya'll really want us
to evolve, or do you just want us to stay
the same?"
Despite the backlash, Griner was a
three-time All-American at Baylor University, where she scored 3,283 career points
(No. 2 in Division I women's history) and
blocked 748 shots (No. 1 all-time). In addition to propelling Baylor to a national
title in 2012, she also earned national
Player of the Year honors in both her junior and senior seasons. But success didn't
come without sacrifice. While at Baylor, Griner was asked to keep
her sexuality private-an issue that she and the head coach, Kim
Mulkey, often argued about. Griner describes their relationship as
"complicated;' but says she has nothing but respect for Mulkey.
JULY/AUGUST
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"She knew how to get me to perform well;' Griner explains."She
learned what it took to get me going. And she knew how to chal~
lenge me, 'cause she knew that if someone told me I couldn't do
something, then I'd find a way to get it done:'
Even though Baylor, a private Baptist university, has a strict
policy against homosexuality, Griner doesn't regret her decision to
attend school there. "I am happy I went to Baylor;' she says. "My
closest friends right now I met at Baylor. Sometimes, you just have
to find the silver lining in everything:'
After Griner's collegiate career was over, her private life quickly
became public. On the day of the 2013 WNBA draft, she was
asked about her sexuality-a question Griner had been waiting to
answer honestly since her freshman year at Baylor. Her answer to
that question became breaking news all over the Internet.
"When the story broke, I just went with it;' says Griner. "I didn't
need to be like, 'Oh hey, everybody, I'm gay!' because so many
people kind of already knew:' If anyone thought that her admis~
sion would hurt her on draft day or influence any endorsement
deals, they were wrong. She was drafted number one overall by the
Phoenix Mercury and scored an endorsement deal with Nike to
model both male and female clothing.
Today, Griner is out and proud. She boldly laughs at the social
media trolls and uses her past experience as motivation to com~
bat bullying. "A lot of young fans reach out to me on Instagram;'
Griner says earnestly. "I try to respond, especially because I've got~
ten some real serious comments:'
Griner is also in the process of developing a mobile appBG:BU-for kids who are being bullied. The app will provide an
outlet and a supportive place for kids to communicate what they're
going through. Users will be able to upload original content, con~
nect with and support one another, and find resources. The goal of
BG:BU is to raise global awareness of the bullying problem and
encourage more people to address the issue.
With her memoir published, her Nike endorsement deal signed,
and her mobile app about to be released, Griner is flying high. But
now that a new WNBA is season under way, she's focusing once
again on basketball, where her overall goals are to win a WNBA
Championship and to become one of the best women's basketball
players of all time.
"I have been through a lot of things, and I could have given up;'
Griner says. "But I pushed through. You just have to try. Anything
is possible:' (wnba.com) •
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2
I HAVE
BEEN
THROUGH
A LOTOFTHINGS.
AND
I COULD
HA
VE
GIVEN
UPBUTI
PUSHED
THROUGH.
YOUJUST
HAVE
TOTRY.ANYTHING
ISPOSSIBLE.
''
JULY/AUGUST
2014
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FEATURES/
ST
FEATURES/
ST
VIOLETLOVEHEADBANDS
AREYOURCROWNING
GLORY
THISSUMMER.
Where's your head at this summer? Whether
you're a hippie or a hipster, everyone
loves a distinctive head accessory to make
the season memorable. If you think the
trucker cap is a little bit last season, and
the bandana is, well, so last decade, try a
Violet Love headband to put you head and
shoulders above the rest this summer. These
no-slip, absorbent, durable, fade-resistant
and machine washable headpieces work
well at outdoor concerts, picnics, sweaty
gym sessions, or as a splash of color to an
ordinary outfit. Created by activewear
designer Rebecca M. chaels, they pair
perfectly with shorts, capris, minis, bikinis,
and your favorite worn-in tee. Choose
from a range of vibrant prints and bold colors
retailing at $17 at specialty boutiques and
onliµe. (violedoveheadbands.com) •
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FEATURES/
ST
UNDERCOVER
NO-SWEAT
PERFECTFIT
UNDIES FOR
SUMMER.
JULY/AUGUST
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There's nothing worse than bulky, scratchy undies at the
height of summer. REAL Underwear, created by Morris
Rishty, a veteran designer in women's retail including Victoria's
Secret, Hanes, and Maidenform, has released the Fusion line
of underwear for women who want to feel comfortable and
elegant in their undies. The Fusion collection, made with the
latest fusion technology, includes seamless hipsters and thongs
that don't dig, bunch or curl like other seamless underwear.
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2014
FEATURES/
ST
You can barely feel that you're wearing underwear at all in these
generously-sized yet elegant foundation pieces that are perfect
underneath a work suit, evening wear, and also at the gym. These
laser-cut intimates move with your body and are invisible under
clothing, plus they're comfortable whether you prefer the hipster
or the thong. They also come in 6 appealing colors, starting at $12.
Look good and feel good in these no-sweat knickers this summer.
(realunderwear.com)
JULY/AUGUST
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0
n Saturday, March 15, The L.A.
Gay & Lesbian Center hosted a
kick~off concert event featuring
a performance by Joan Jett & the Black~
hearts to promote this year's An Evening
with Women event.
t~)tf
V:\
..
t.:.
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2014
Since 2002 An Evening with Women,
produced by Linda Perry and presented by
Lexus Financial Services, has raised more
than $4.1 million for the women and girls
served by the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center.
The intimate concert was held at the
legendary Roxy in West Hollywood,
and included guests such as Sharon Os~
bourne, Carmen Electra, and Perry's wife
Sara Gilbert. Perry played dual roles as
both host and the Master of Ceremonies.
(lagaycenter.org) •
T
he coolest queer women from around
the world descended on Las Vegas
the weekend of April 24-27 for Girl
Bar, Truck Stop Girlz and Total Rewards
by Caesars Entertainment's annual Dinah
Vegas 2014." We are once again thrilled
with the fantastic experience and warm
welcome Dinah Vegas patrons received
across the hottest properties on the
Strip!" says founder and producer San~
dy Sachs. Now in its third Vegas year,
thousands of lesbians took full advantage
of the non~stop entertainment, cuisine,
cocktails and gaming that makes the city
that never sleeps a top draw for lesbians.
Dates are already set for next year's event
on April 23-26, 2015. Bottoms up, ladies!
( dinahshoreweekend.com) •
JULY/AUGUST
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FEATURES/
I
t's called the Flannel Takeover Company,
but Bostonians refer to it as FTC, "a
roaming women's party that will take over
the institutions that were secretly always
built for women: everything, everywhere:'
Since January 2013, hundreds
of
women have "taken over" straight bars
in Boston on the third Saturday of every
month. Past venues include People's Republik in Cambridge, every straight guy's
favorite Communist themed bar, and
Who's On First in Fenway, a notorious
hang out spot for college frat boys and
their girlfriends. Imagine the reactions of
these regular patrons when 400-plus lesbians storm in.
In preparation, the venues add staff
and even sometimes hold emergency
gender and sexuality workshops for employees. The goal, as one of the organizers
Ashley Lucas explains, is to "create comfortable experiences that you might not
be able to have otherwise:'
Kara Smith, an FTC regular and Curve
reader since 2000, raves about FTC for
"providing new opportunities to make
lnstaFriends ... with FTC, you're never
alone in Boston:' At FTC events, some
come alone, some come with their friends,
some come with their partners. Ages of
women I've met at FTC range from early
20s to midA0s. It's a real mix and match
of different women whose social circles
otherwise wouldn't overlap.
The organization has a group of volunteers called "The Corps" that comes
around to welcome you and introduce
you to others. By midnight, they are
smearing glitter on anyone who consents.
It's comfortable, sexy, and somehow
SCE
makes you feel like your excessive drinking and dancing contributes to a clandestine social movement for the greater good
of lesbians everywhere.
FTC's umbrella organization,
The
Welcoming Committee (TWC), also organizes takeovers of destinations, ranging
from the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum in Boston to the city of Montreal.
I joined TWC on their takeover of
Foxwoods Casino in November, not
knowing any of the other 99 queers
spending the weekend with me in TheMiddle-of- Nowhere, Connecticut. The
details of what we got up to are our little secret, but let's just say that Kathy
Griffin retweeted us with the hashtag
"#BusFullOfGays;' and I've returned to
Boston with nearly a hundred new friends.
( thewelcomingcommittee.com)
•
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FOR woMEN
FEATURES/
0
n Thursday, May 1, in New York
City, Ms. Foundation for Women
celebrated cofounder Gloria Steinem's 80th birthday as well as the organization's 40th anniversary at its annual gala.
During her remarks, Steinem announced
the appointment of Teresa C. Younger as
the organization's new CEO and president.
''At this time of both feminist success and
backlash against it, Teresa Younger is the
perfect person to continue the grassroots
strength of the Ms. Foundation, and build it
into policy and protection against backlash;'
said Steinem. "She knows how to make the
needs of the majority of women into guiding principles of action:'
Held at the posh restaurant Cipriani in
midtown Manhattan, the star-studded event
was attended by entertainers, politicians,
cultural icons, and activists alike, including
Chelsea Handler, Gabourey Sidibe, Kathy
Najimy, Amy Schumer, Olivia Wilde, Billie Jean King, Sally Kohn, Judy Gold, Suze
Orman, the band BETTY, and U.S. Reps.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and
Maxine Waters (D-CA).
On the red carpet, CNN contributor and
political correspondent Sally Kohn spoke
about what she felt to be the strengthened
relationship between the gay rights movement and the women's movement in recent
years: "Women's rights are human rights are
gay rights ... forgive the grammar. The point
is a good one: it's all one fight. The foreMs. FOUNDATION
F
WOM
SCE
,, ..-
M FOUNDATION
oR wot-'
1/s \~ut;DATION
Ms. FOUNDAT
FOR WOMEN
I
Ms.F
f
es that are against equality for women are
those against equality for gay folks:'
Comic Judy Gold observed that strengthened relationship, particularly between lesbians and straight women, was the fortunate
consequence of the AIDS Crisis of the '80s
and '90s: "If you think about the turning
point of the gay rights movement, when gay
men were dying, and, those men couldn't be
in the closet anymore ... who came to their
aid? Lesbians and straight women. And I really think we are a way more powerful community now, and, unfortunately, that's such
a horrible reason, but I do believe I felt the
unity at that time:'
Suze Orman was quick to note that the
history of relations between lesbian and
straight women has not been an easy one: "I
Ms. rouNDAiJV"
FG
w1)M
N
don't think it's the women's movement that
has incorporated [the lesbian community]
differently, I think it's the world that has
incorporated it differently. Should the women's movement have spoken up for it years
ago, before it was accepted everywhere?
They absolutely should have, and they did
not. They turned their back on Ellen at a
time that they should've stood up for Ellen.
And so therefore they're now standing up
for it because it's easy to stand up for it, because everybody's standing up for it:'
Steinem has voiced her unequivocal
support of the LGBT community in recent years, and particularly for the trans
community, which, in its fight for gender equality, has done nothing less than
transform and re-energize the collective
feminist movement. "I believe that transgender people, including those who have
transitioned, are living out real, authentic
lives;' she wrote in an op-ed for The Advocate in 2013. "[T]here is much similarity among the challenges of transgender
people and all women-from
healthcare
to harassment to discrimination in the
workplace ... ! know we've all worked hard
on and are celebrating the Supreme Court
marriage rulings this spring, but there is
so much work to do to reach full LGBT
equality-and
ensuring that transgender
people also have equality under the law
has been the most left out and therefore
should become foremost on that list:'
(forwomen.org)
•
JULY/AUGUST
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W
ile some folks will always
elieve that bigger is beter, and the more stuff they
have the happier they'll be, there's a quiet
klatch of people who are finding joy in
simplicity, paring down their possessions
and living in tiny spaces. Jenn Kliese and
Kim Langston are two of those people.
Kliese lives outside Olympia, Wash., in
a 135-square-foot home on wheels, which
she designed herself. Langston is finishing
up building hers.
A few years ago, Kliese and Langston
were looking for ways to cut down on
expenses, so that Kliese could have more
time for her art, when they met Dee Williams, who lived around the corner in a
tiny 85-square-foot house. (Williams has
since become somewhat of a celebrity
as an advocate for living in tiny spaces.)
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2014
When they began to hang out with Williams, they learned that one of the benefits
of tiny houses fit in perfectly with their
dream of living on less: They could own
a home without incurring long-term debt.
They formed a Tiny House Club and
began to network with other enthusiasts.
Kliese took a home-design class and began
to sketch out what her tiny house would
look like. They both took workshops and
helped other people build tiny homes. Like
many tiny houses, the one Kliese built is
on wheels, so that she can move it. That
made for challenging design elements.
"When you're pulling this house down the
road, it's like it's in an earthquake and a
hurricane at the same time;' she says.
Even though Kliese and Langston are a
committed couple, they decided early on
that they would each build their own tiny
house and live together by living on the
same piece of property. Langston thrives
on social interaction and likes to invite
friends and strangers to gather around.
Kliese is more introverted and wants space
to do her art. "We decided we wanted to
go small, but couldn't live together in that
small a space;' says Kliese.
Before they could even think about
moving into a tiny space, Langston and
Kliese had to get rid of a lot of stuff. They
were living in a three-bedroom house filled
with furniture, tools, mountaineering
equipment, canning supplies, and miscellaneous friends' belongings. "Downsizing
is an adventure;' Kliese says."It's spelunking
in your heart and soul. It's not something
you do in an afternoon, or a week, or even
a month. It takes years to untangle yourself from stuff:'
FEATURES/
Kliese lives in her tiny house on a friend's
property, where she pays $75 a month to
park it and about $11 a month in utilities.
Langston is in the process of building her
second tiny home. The first one was de~
stroyed in a fire in 2012 when it was 60
percent completed. Currently, no insurance
company will cover tiny homes on wheels,
so the fire cost Langston thousands of dol~
lars and months of work. She was heart~
broken. But the community came to her
support, and after a successful fundraising
campaign she is now rebuilding and hopes
to complete her house this year.
Their reasons for wanting to go tiny
are many, and include the environmental
impact as well as the long~term savings.
Because of the size of their homes, the
two are able to afford some unique design
features that would have been impossible
on a larger scale. 'i\.ll of the wood is just
stunning;' Kliese says. "The attention to
detail that so many people put into these
places is just overwhelming:'
Langston says, "I have so many friends
who own homes, and they're always stressed
out:' If something goes wrong with the tiny
house, its accessible financially. Everything is
so much more affordable.
"I can look at every aspect of my house
and know who touched it. Because we
went small, we got to be very intention~
al with where we sourced materials;'
Kliese adds. She estimates that she spent
$36,000 on her house. She used all her
savings, cashed in a retirement account,
and maxed out her credit card. Just as it is
impossible to get insurance, it is impossi~
ble to get a mortgage for a tiny house, and
most people pay cash for their homes. "I
have some debt from the house;' she says,
"but most people pay for 30 years. I'm go~
ing to be done in two:'
As we talked, the three of us in Kliese's
tiny sitting room, it didn't feel cramped at
all. In fact, with the tall ceilings and big
TRA
windows, it felt bright and spacious.
Of course, there are some downsides
to tiny~house living. "It's hard to have
two people cooking at the same time;'
says Kliese. And she doesn't have a bath~
room (she uses the neighbors'), although
Langston's house will have one. They have
a freezer in a barn on the property, because
both like to garden and cook.
Eventually, Langston and Kliese would
love to live on a piece of land with a shared
community building. It would have a big
kitchen to handle the canning from their
vast vegetable garden, a shower and laun~
dry facility, and a place to store camping
and biking equipment.
For now, they are content with the tiny
life they've created. Kliese says, "I think,
living in a house that I designed and help
build-I can't even comprehend, it's so cool.
My heart can't even wrap around it:' •
JULY/AUGUST
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I . CALL AHEAD.
Remember, your needs are legitimate and you have every right
to ask for them to be met. "Before you stay at a hotel, make
contact with them;' says Carole
Zoom. 'J\sk for a specific item
to be provided for you. If the
concierge is unresponsive, that
is not the hotel for you:'
11
0~,1lOHTO
HA~Hlmay be questioned
11
We all say it, but what we really
mean is that we love to go places. We dread the inconvenience
of the crowds, the security, the
delays, and dream of a perfect
trip where the journey is a delight, all the while knowing
it's much more likely to be a
pain in the ass. For people with
non-conforming bodies, traveling is more than inconvenient; it
can feel like a series of stressful
encounters and insurmountable
obstacles, an impossible nightmare they'd rather not face.
People of size may have to
contend with narrow seats, short
seatbelts and unkind glances or
comments. People with disabilities may be faced with inaccessible spaces, unwilling staff
and belittling or dehumanizing
attitudes. People of non-normative gender (trans, genderqueer,
butch females, femme males)
74
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about their
identity or medications/ prosthetics and subjected to exposing pat-downs and scans.
These things do not happen
on every journey or with every
company but they are common enough to make people
with non-conforming bodies
anxious about travel.
There is no way to control
every aspect of your journey,
no matter how organized you
are, but it is entirely possible to
greatly reduce the likelihood of
the issues mentioned above.
Here is our guide for travellers
with non-conforming bodies,
with tips gathered from fat
activist/ educator, Stacy Bias;
artist/ activist with disabilities,
Carole Zoom; public relations
manager for American Airlines, Bob Witeck, and The
National Center for T ransgender Equality (NCTE).
2014
2.
DO YOUR RESEARCH.
There are many websites,
apps and adaptive items that
might help your trip run more
smoothly. "You can use SeatGuru.com to learn the measurements of every model of
commercial airplane currently flying and to help choose
the best seats;' says Stacy
Bias. "You can join the Flying
While Fat Facebook group to
ask questions and get general
support:'
0.CHECK GUIDELINES.
If you know the rules and regulations ahead of time, you'll
be able to pack appropriately
and come up with solutions for
problems in advance. "Being
prepared is so much simpler
now that you can visit websites
like the U.S. Department of
State's up-to-speed guidance;'
says Bob Witeck. "Documen-
tation matters for everyone,
and for individuals whose documents are changed or changing to reflect their true gender
identity, if you know before
you go, then you will be safer,
smarter and travel smoothly:'
4.KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.
Knowledge is indeed power,
so find out exactly what rights
are afforded to you as a general citizen and as a person with
a non-conforming body. "You
may request a private screening
or to speak to a supervisor at
any time during the security
screening process;' says a representative from the NCTE.
"Screening can be conducted
in a private screening area with
a witness or companion of the
traveller's choosing:'
5.
KEEP YOUR COOL.
Whether things are going well
or falling apart, both you and
the people around you will
benefit from your patience. "Be
clear and gentle with your instructions so that everyone feels
well-informed and prepared to
do what they can to help;' says
Zoom. 'J\s much as possible,
keep your cool when things go
awry and be assertive, firm but
also patient:'
FEATURES/
b.
EXPECT RESPECT.
Don't forget that you deserve
to be treated fairly-you don't
have to put up with rudeness or
abuse. "It's OK to expect to be
treated like a real live human be~
ing. You are one!" says Bias.'t\nd
you're a paying customer:'
7.TRUST THE STAFF.
A bad experience in the past
may lead you to assume that
everyone is going to be intol~
erant and hostile, but people
who work in the travel indus~
try are trained to be sensitive
to your needs. "Flight crews are
very seasoned and they work
hard to handle almost every~
TRA
thing that comes their way;'
says Witeck. "They recognize
that differences are not distinc~
tions, since everyone deserves
to be treated equally:'
6.RELAX.
If you have followed the tips
listed above, there is nothing
else to do but sit back and en~
joy the scenery. Should a prob~
lem arise, you will be ready to
handle whatever comes your
way. "If you are seated next to
Fussy McJerkington, have a
selfcare plan in place (head~
phones, a book, a breathing
technique, a TylenolPM) to
self soothe;' says Bias. •
OINFO
CAROLE ZOOM: carolezoom.com
STACY BIAS: stacybias.net
AMERICAN AIRLINES: aa.com
FLYING WHILE FAT
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR
FACEBOOK GROUP:
TRANSGENDER EQUALITY:
facebook.com/groups/flyingwhilefat/
tra nsequa Iity.org
"Dancing On Duval" Block Party • Pool Parties!
Live Model Art Show • Water Sports
Island Ladies Home Tour • Beach Party!
T
womenfest.com
gaykeywestfl.com
305-294-4603
TheFlorid~Keys
KeyWest
Close To Perfect - Far From Normdl
JULY/AUGUST
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When it comes to finding the best trav~
el destinations, only a few cities in the
world have a true mix of diverse and tol~
erant cultures embedded in their way of
life. One of those cities is Buenos Aires.
Its rich cultural heritage stems from the
immigrants-from
Spain, Italy, France,
and Germany-who
have made Argen~
tina their home.
The capital city of Argentina, Buenos
Aires is situated on the Plata River ( so
vast you could mistake it for an ocean) and
embellishes its South American ambience
with European flourishes most noticeable
in the design and layout of its plazas,
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2014
parks, and boulevards, and in the quality
and variety of its fashion boutiques and
galleries. The ornate facades adorning
hotels and apartments may have you
thinking you've stumbled into 19th~
century Paris. Other European qualities
include greetings with a kiss (males in~
eluded), wine with most meals, a pen~
chant for art in everyday life, and the
kind of crazy driving you think you'd see
only in Rome.
Some time ago, Buenos Aires was
labeled the gay mecca of Latin Americaafter all, it's had civil unions since 2002
and gay marriage countrywide since 2009.
WHERE TO STAY
There are many different accommodation
options in BA-from
upscale business
hotels, to elegant, palatial structures built
during the belle epoque, to contemporary,
style-centric and gay-friendly hotels. I
stayed at the Be Hotel, formerly the supergay Axel Hotel (its tagline is "hetero
friendly:') The Be continues to attract gay
and lesbian guests, possibly because of its
handy location in the San Telmo area, a
short walk from the tango neighborhood,
nightlife, cafes, grocery stores, and most
of the main sights of BA. Plus, the minimalist decor with furniture by Eames,
Mies van der Rohe, and Eileen Gray, the
night-clubby bar, and a swimming pool on
the terrace don't hurt! The rooms are compact and industrial in their finishes but
have everything you need. The showers are
open-plan prisms of polished concrete and
glass, quite the novelty. Free Wi-Fi and a
buffet breakfast will get your day off to a
good start.
If you prefer to stay in Palermo, known
as the gay district of Buenos Aires and situated 20 minutes from the city center, we
were also recommended the BA Sohotel
(basohoteLcom), a bright and spacious art
hotel with deluxe king and corner suites, a
pool, and a Jacuzzi, or the chicly decorated
Vitrium, where the wallpaper is designed
by Isaac Mizrahi! (vitriumhoteLcom).
WHAT TO DO
If you're staying at the Be Hotel, a short
walk to the end of the street brings you
to the Feria de San Telmo in Plaza Dorrego, an antiques and flea market held
on weekends. But it's the neighborhood
of Palermo that really offers retail attractions for design-savvy gay folk and culinary adventurers who want to get beyond
the requisite tango posters, the Argentine
beef and empanadas. The businesses in
this area are up-to-the-minute in fashion,
food, and fine arts, contributing to a very
pleasant streetscape.
Buenos Aires has many interesting
neighborhoods, so my advice is to walk,
walk, and walk. You never know what
you'll stumble upon, but it is a big city,
so keep your wits about you and always
know where your wallet is. La Recoleta
Cemetery is a must, whatever your take
on the afterlife. This necropolis is home to
JULY/AUGUST
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its most famous resident, Eva Peron-and
countless cats. Peruse over 4,000 intricately
carved vaults and crypts, and marvel at the
wealth this city attracted at the height of
its power.
Snap back into life with a tango show
at one of the numerous theater restaurants
in the city. If the paradigm of male~female
dance partners is too straight for your
taste, check out Mariana Docampo's Tango
Queer (tangoqueer.com) while you're in
town. The bold aesthetic of the tango is
also found in La Boca, an old port neigh~
borhood with brightly colored buildings,
where artists sell their equally vivid, tango~
inspired artworks on the street.
For something even more lively,and close
to your heart, if your visit is in November,
La Marcha del Orgullo is the local version
of a Gay Pride parade. Here, gays, lesbi~
ans, genderqueer, allies, and exhibitionists
gather to celebrate the rainbow commu~
nity's visible presence in the city.
WHERE TO EATAND DRINK
You'll have no shortage of steak and good,
cheap red wine, but there are also many
78
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
2014
other choices, from sushi to tapas. For
a little romance, I can recommend Mil~
ion (milion.com.ar), a tempting gem of
an establishment in a beautiful colonial
building. Begin your evening with a per~
fectly mixed drink upstairs at the chic yet
welcoming bar, where the resident black
cat may just be invited by the bartender
to lap from a martini glass of water to a
bossa nova beat. Downstairs, the modern
Latin American cuisine is served al fresco,
and the wait staff is sophisticated and
friendly. If you want to check out the gay
restaurant, Inside (insiderestobar.com) is a
cozy, campy choice. Don't go for the food
(bland), go for the atmosphere, the plasma
screens playing Madonna in concert, and
the saucy attitude of the wait staff-you'll
possibly be offered freshly ground pepper
from a very phallic peppermill.
IF YOU GO
American Airlines (aa.com), with its
gay~friendly service and familiar hospital~
ity, is a good choice for a long flight to an~
other hemisphere. More information and
ideas for itineraries at argentina.travel. •
(/)
z
I
2
z
FEATURES/
TRA
MEET
THE
LOC~~~GS
LAETITIA ORSETTI, DIRECTOR, FAB
BEST NEIGHBORHOOD
FOR LESBIANS
Palermo Soho and Palermo
Hollywood, walking distance fromd
the best bars and restaurants
vean
lived
hill environment. I Ha
super
c
If
for
10
years
and
still
here myse
love it like the first day.1
YOUR FAVORITETANGO
RESTAURANT
La Marshall Milonga Ga~
en El Beso-the gay one.
(lamarshallmilonga.com.ar) anl~
Rojo Tango en t he Faena Hote
simply beautiful although much )
more pricy (rojotangoshow.com
BEST GAY BARS OR
NIGHTCLUBS FOR
LESBIANS
YOUR SECRETPLACE
YOU'D BE WILLING TO
SHARE
II Matterello in La Boca (next
. ) to
The
the famous soccer stadium . "f
•
st eat platter 1
lasagna is a mu
et a bit sketchy
visiting this colorful Y
h
•
hood But remember cas
w;ththe blackmarkt
exchange rate is worth the tnp.
BESTTIME FOR LESBIANS
TO VISIT BA
•
between the months
Summertime,
Christmas
f November and March.
o d New Year's is a nonstop party
. &..
an
week
with panoramic
i ir eworks
.
I
across the city on both nights.
InstantAccessto the
Nation'sTopGay&
Lesbian
Realtors.
To plan a lesbian Argentine wedding,
go to: fabulousweddings.com.ar
Fiesta Jolie is the new be~t party
• on Wednesday for girls
night
• TAZZon Armenia Street).
onth in
(located in
Casa Brandon is once a m
Niceto Club and is one of the m_ost
• I sive LGBTparties in BA. Pink
• Just
• f or giris and runs
Jmestufor Us is
Glam nightclub holds
u
downtown.
.d a
girls' night called Unna on Fnhays.
Fiesta Dorothy (once every t ree
h ) ·s surreal! Fiesta Plop
mont s I
•
fun Fiesta
(every Friday) is very ho .identify as
Eyeliner is for thkoseanwd
underground.
op-roe er
queer, P
·ence about
Ultimate is a new expen
b launched especially for
to
ho want to visit all the
foreigners w
Look
clubs within a cou~le of ~ii~IP
it up when you arrive to
.
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JULY/AUGUST
2014
CURVE
79
TLOOKtSTARS
Heat Wave
Your sizzle index hits a high note with both Venus and
Mars in flirty air signs. By Charlene Lichtenstein
CANCER /,;%
(June 22-July 23) ;%
Sapphic Crabs are clever ;%
gals when it comes to ;%
money management. They ;%
;%
have the innate ability to
;%
make a little bit of money ;%
go a long, long way and ;%
tend to earn it in little bits ;%
and pieces from many ;%
small transactions just like ;%
a shopkeeper or a waitress. ;%
She is not a wheeler ;%
;%
dealer stock market trader
;%
with her stash, however, ;%
preferring to put her ;%
money where it is safe. The ;%
bank at a rousing 2 percent ;%
fully taxable interest is ;%
good enough for her, ;%
;%
thank you very much'
;%
;%
LEO ;%
(July 24-Aug. 23) ;%
The proud Lioness has ;%
;%
an uncanny knack to
;%
make money, probably ;%
because she gravitates to ;%
high profile careers like ;%
acting, which if you are ;%
bold, pushy, confident and ;%
talented enough, you can ;%
pull in the big bucks with ;%
;%
relative ease. She is her ;%
own best self-promoter
;%
and can often get even ;%
her meager and half- ;%
assed efforts recognized ;%
and rewarded. In the ;%
corporate food chain, her ;%
;%
professional plate always
;%
seems to have a dessert... ;%
and rightly so, she says! ;%
;%
Charlene
Lichtenstein
is the author ;%
;%
of HerScopes:
A Guide
to Astrology
;%
forLesbians
(Simon& Schuster)- ;%
;%
tinyurl.
com/HerScopes.
;%
Nowavailableas anebook. 1/,
80
CURVE
JULY/AUGUST
Cancer (June 22-July 23)
Scorpio (Oct. 24-Nov. 22)
Pisces (Feb. 20-March 20)
Your summer can be filled with
The political machinations
You are steamy hot this
summer as your love life heats
lots of family related business
going on behind the scenes
from a reunion. Whatever
are no match for astute
up. The secret to your success
the fates have in store for
Scorpios this summer. Not
is to not be scorched by
you, it will be cathartic,
only do you sniff out stale
jealousy and possessiveness.
liberating and affirming. A
maneuvers, you also take
Be as magnanimous and
secret romance is about to be
decisive action to upend
carefree as you can. It will act
exposed. Will she upset your
devious plans. Feel your oats
as an aphrodisiac. Use this time
carefully domesticated
and take it on the road. There
to refresh and rejuvenate your
are a bevy of beauties waiting
for you in some far off corner
home surroundings. Add a few
pillows ...and maybe a couple
of the world.
of pillow queens.
Certain gal pals have certain
Sagittarius (Nov. 23-Dec. 22)
Aries (March 21-April 20)
plans for you and it won't be
Plan a range of events this
Anything you say now can be
completely platonic. So strap
summer designed to bring
far-flung girlfriends together.
that may not be a bad thing!
Let's hope so-you
life?
need some
shaking up.
Leo (July 24-Aug. 23)
on your best and get ready to
held against you, Aries. And
get down. Expand your social
It's been too long and they will
Hold her fast and hold her
circle into a globe and start
provide a buzz of good vibes.
close all summer. Use your gift
navigating new territories.
If your relationship is in need
of gab to refresh any moribund
Lionesses can give out a
of a stimulus, find out exactly
relationship or launch a new
good roar of their pithy
what stimulates her and go for
one. Maybe talk is cheap. Action
opinions that will travel to
it. Those Sagittarians seeking a
is often required. If so then use
important corners. Who
new romantic connection will
that mouth of yours for more
find it if they look for it. And it
than just fanning the air.
knows where it can lead?
Virgo (Aug. 24-Sept. 23)
will be electrifying.
Taurus (April 21-May 21)
They love you at work and
Capricorn (Dec. 23-Jan. 20)
why not? Not only are you
Capricorns are the stars of
can buy you great luxuries this
especially charming with
the higher-ups, you are also
the office as the summer gets
underway. It is not only that
summer. You even manage to
use your oil to grease the way
clever and creative. So use
your personal grease to rub
co-workers find you charming
to sultry romances and zesty
and helpful, they also see that
adventures. But sometimes
the corporate cogs into a
you are a talented shooting
the true path to enjoyment
Money is honey because it
well-oiled corporate machine.
corporate star and want to
must be earned and not just
Take charge, Virgo, and see
grab on to your tail as you
yearned. So enjoy your gotten
how much progress you can
ascend. Let your past hard
gains by combining pleasure
personally make. It will pay off
work be your calling card to
with business. Put in the effort
for you so you can then pay it
the corner office.
at work and reap the rewards
forward.
Aquarius (Jan. 21-Feb. 19)
at play, Taurus.
Adventure awaits all
Gemini (May 22-June 21)
All eyes turn to you, Gemini,
this summer. You need to see
Aqueerians with time and
money to travel. Don't let the
and be seen. Glad hand and
summer go by before you get
open for your entry. What now?
be gladly handled. You are
out and about. The festivities
Are you ready for your grand
a magnum force full of pep,
continue even if you find
entrance into the epicenter of
personality and panache.
yourself staying closer to home
influence and general party
So don't store it in a bottle
with a range of invitations and
fun? You are certainly Ms.
on your pantry shelf. Pour
a choice of parties. The time
Popularity this summer so
yourself out and see who
to sit at home and wait for a
show off your considerable
takes a sip. Just watch out
delivery is in the winter. For
assets and see who checks out
your cup doesn't overflow.
now, get going.
your bottom line.•
Libra (Sept. 24-Oct. 23)
Nobody puts Libra in a corner
2014
and suddenly the velvet ropes
PNCBANK
•
•
EHABILIT~
ETI MEN
RE-HOMI ----------
RE
E
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