Challenge - June 2012 by GAAMC

The Best Damn Newsletter in New Jersey! ®

CHALLENGE The Newsletter of the Gay Activist Alliance in Morris County - Continuously Serving the GLBTI Community since 1972

Volume 38, Issue 5, June 2012

Tipping Point

by Mickey Suiter A couple of recent political stories indicate that we may have finally reached a tipping point in our quest for equal rights. While we have been making slow but steady progress for several decades, I think we may have hit a critical mass where that slow progress begins to accelerate. First, President Obama has finally come out for marriage equality. Very few of us doubted that he would eventually. His ‘evolving’ was a convenient way of putting off making a commitment. Yes, he was probably pushed into going public a bit earlier than he would have liked by Vice President Biden’s supportive comments. Even so, he has obviously decided that being on the side of marriage equality is no longer a political liability — that enough people support that position, especially among his core backers, so that it is no longer damaging to voice his opinion. The second political event got far less press coverage than the President but may be even more significant. Republican pollster Jan van Lohuizen, who worked for former President George W. Bush, has put out a memo to Republican operatives recommending that it is time Republican politicians change their positions on gay issues. He said that recent surveys have shown a change in public support "at an accelerated rate with no sign of slowing down." Even among Republicans he has found there is significant support for

Staying Over? The Westin Governor Morris is offering attendees of GAAMC's

Ruby Ball a special room rate of

$119 per night for those who wish to stay at the Westin Saturday or Sunday night. Keep an eye on future issues of Challenge for more details as they develop!

ENDA, the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, protections against bullying, and some kind of recognition of gay relationships. In 2004, George W. Bush advocated a constitutional amendment to prevent same-sex marriage and it worked to his advantage. This year most pundits seem to think the issue will be somewhat neutral, that it won’t help or hurt President Obama much. In the near future, it will probably help our supporters and hurt our opposition. And while we’re still losing when our rights are put up for a vote by referendum (our biggest supporters are young people who tend to vote in lower number than our biggest opponents, the elderly), I think we’ve reached the point where that will start to change as well. As a long-time activist I would like to believe that the efforts of activist organizations have something to do with this shift in public opinion. But I also believe that perhaps the main reason for the change is the number of people who have come out and now live their lives openly. It wasn’t so long ago we were used to hearing politicians saying absurdities like, “There are no gay people in my district.” And most people said they didn’t personally know any gay people. Now everyone has a family member, friend, neighbor, co-worker, or acquaintance who they know is gay. And being able to put a face on the issue has done more to change minds than anything else. So as we continue to come out, we will continue to change society.

Inside Challenge Challenge Information.... ................................ page 2 GAAMC Events.............................................. page 2 Bulletin Board .............................................. page 3 Gleanings: Queer news from around the world .... page 4 Dancing to Architecture: music reviews............. page 5 Calendar ..................................................... page 7 The $1.98 Beauty Pageant: A Reminiscence.......... page 9 The Little Box of Concerts.............................. page 11 Poetry: Ghana; Selling Pencils on 5th Avenue...... page 12 GAAMC Board Mini-Minutes, April 2011.............. page 13 This Month's Contributors............................... page 13 GAAMC Information...................................... page 14

Page 2 CHALLENGE June 2012 CHALLENGE Volume 38, Number 5 June 2012 ISSN 0277-1675 Staff Editor .....................Allen Neuner Assistant Editor ............. Bill Stella Advertising Manager ............. open Circulation Manager ............. open List Manager ................ Sue Harris Submissions The deadline for all articles, inserts, and advertisements is the fifteenth of the previous month. All submissions must be provided as electronic files. E-mail submissions to Challenge @ GAAMC.org. Ad Rates Single issue: Full page, $125.00; Half page, $85.00; Quarter page, $45.00; Business card, $25.00. For multi-issue rates, contact the Editor at Challenge @ GAAMC.org. GAAMC members may place one free classified ad per month, of no more than 200 characters in length. Change of Address Please let us know your new address! All address changes should be sent to the List Manager at ChangeAddress @ GAAMC.org. Challenge is © 2012-2013 by the Gay Activist Alliance in Morris County, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt not-for-profit corporation. All rights reserved. All articles reflect the views of the original contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of GAAMC, its officers, or executive board. All copyrights revert to the original contributors upon publication. No portion of this publication may be reproduced without the express written permission of the contributor. All articles, contributions, and advertisements are printed at the discretion of the Editor and/or GAAMC Executive Board.

GAAMC Events for June 2012 Discussion Groups OpenTalk: A regular weekly discussion group, open to all. Moderators: Kerry (June 4); Gordon (June 11, 25). 7:00, Library; on Film Festival nights, discussion may follow the film. Main Events All start at 8:00 unless otherwise noted. June 4: Post Pride Prolixing! Tonight we chill — and spill. What a day it was yesterday at Jersey Pride! Twenty-one years of celebrating Pride in New Jersey should give you some amazing stories to tell. Come share them with us tonight! You say you had a quiet day? Then come share your favorite sunburn cure — or what you do when your feet are all prided out! June 11: Out in Jersey at GAAMC! Pete Frycki, publisher of Out in Jersey, comes to GAAMC to talk about what it takes to cover LGBTI news in the Garden State. June 18: The GAAMC Film Festival presents BearCity. NYC's Gay Bear scene: Ground Zero for a loose but tight-knit pack of friends. Romance! Mishaps! Lust! Binge Eating! Plus superb songs from the cream of Bearapalooza, and beyond! Experience a cast of colorful, diverse characters as they gear up for a big party weekend. Join us for laughs and camaraderie. We'll have popcorn! NOTE: All Film Festival screenings start at 7:00 pm. June 25: We haven't received information about tonight's event at press time. Check GAAMC.org for up-to-date information on all our events! Coming in July! July 2: GAAMC's Ice Cream Social cools you down while providing hot fun in the summertime! Enjoy your favorite frozen treats served in the Terrace Room and on the Terrace by your favorite soda shoppe sommeliers, Andy and Sherri! There will be egg-free egg creams, root beer floats, and toppings of many kinds. Ice cream (including the no-sugar-added kind) will be on hand, and pass the sherbert to me, Herbert -- we'll have that too! If there's something special you'd like to share with us, send a quick email to Socials @ GAAMC.org and let us know what you're bringing! Our special guests will be from Triad House, a safe environment for LGBTI Youth. July 9: Summer Tales! It's time to kick back and talk about what's been amazing about the summer so far. GAAMC's Andiamo (Italian for "let's go") is an extended discussion which starts with brainstorming for a topic, letting you exercise your right to choose, then letting the discussion follow the topic where it may! All programs and discussion groups are subject to change. For the most up-to-date information, go to GAAMC.org

GAAMC Tip of the Month GAAMC's socials are a great way to mingle with friends old and new in a relaxed social setting. Part of the fun is in trying out dishes brought by other members — and everyone is encouraged to pitch in! You don't have to cook for a hundred people — just bring enough to serve 6 to 10. Contact Socials @ GAAMC.org to find out what would be welcome!

June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 3

Bulletin Board Hudson Pride Connections Center invites you to attend "SOLOS", an exhibition of paintings by Seth Ruggles Hiler, at Gallery 32, located at the Hudson Pride Connection Center in Jersey City. The exhibition runs until June 8th; gallery hours are Monday through Friday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information go to www.HudsonPride.org. Garden State Equality announces its 2012 Equality Walk on June 23rd at 4 pm. The Walk this year is to raise funds towards the goal of overriding Governor Chris Christie's veto of the marriage equality bill earlier this year. If you're willing to walk, contact EqualityWalk @ GardenStateEquality.org. If you're willing to donate, go to www.GardenStateEquality.org. Activities, tours, hikes, picnics, trips, dinners, socials… It’s all on GayOutdoors.org (GO), an online national webbased organization for guys to plan events and participate in those scheduled gatherings. Online membership is free, but there is an annual fee to have access to post or host events. In the NJ/PA/NY area, GAAMC member Ed Schell has posted plans for the following: June, a hike in the Great Swamp; July, a Pocono hike and pool day at Rainbow Mountain Resort; August, river tubing; September, a hikenic in Schooley's Mountain Park; and October, a canal hike and lunch in Stockton. Any questions regarding the locally hosted events? Contact Ed at sche357 @ aol.com.

@ Saturday, June 30th @ 4:00 PM NY Liberty v. Seattle Storm at Prudential Center, Newark, NJ

GAAMC will provide the tickets, \RX EULQJ WKH WHDP VSLULW« ...and a bunch of your friends. (PDLO \RXU JURXS¶V FRQWDFW LQIR (a name, number of tix and cell) to

NYLiberty@GAAMC.org RSVP by June 28, 2012

Save the Date! GAAMC members Gordon Sauer and Javier Montalvo are planning another one of their renowned fundraising buffet dinners to benefit GAAMC. If you haven't been to one, you've missed out on a night of great food, good company, and live entertainment! The date will be July 21st. Watch this space for future announcements! The Carol G. Simon Cancer Center of the Morristown Medical Center provides free or reduced charge breast exams, Pap tests, and PSA/DRE prostate screenings to Morris County residents without health insurance who earn up to $27,000. Men’s clinics are held four times per year; men are examined by a male urologist. Women’s clinics take place bimonthly, but may take several months to book; women are examined by a female nurse practitioner. For more details, or to set an appointment, please call (973) 971-6581.

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Gleanings

Queer news from around the world Dharun Ravi, a former Rutgers University student who used a webcam to spy on his gay roommate, was sentenced to just 30 days in jail — a punishment that disappointed some activists but came as a relief to others who feared he would be made a scapegoat for his fellow freshman's suicide. Ravi could have gotten 10 years behind bars for his part in a case that burst onto front pages when Tyler Clementi threw himself to his death off the George Washington Bridge. Instead, Superior Court Judge Glenn Berman gave Ravi a month in jail, placed him on three years' probation, and ordered him to get counseling, serve 300 hours of community service, and pay $10,000 toward a program to help victims of hate crimes. Prosecutor Bruce Kaplan said he will appeal the sentence, calling it insufficient. Ravi is expected to appeal his conviction. (Associated Press) Charges were filed against 13 people allegedly involved in the hazing death of a gay clarinet player who’d just been chosen as a drum major at Florida A&M University. Robert Champion died on November 19, 2011, after a ritual called “crossing bus C,” in which a band member is forced to walk between other band members each kicking or punching him. He began vomiting, complained of breathing difficulty, and later died. Initially his band mates claimed they had no idea. His parents later told reporters that witnesses had come forward and said that their son was hazed for being gay, or ironically, for being against hazing rituals himself. The crackdown at Florida A&M, a historically African-American university, will be one of the biggest criminal cases ever to tackle hazing. (Advocate.com) President Barack Obama announced he has changed his mind and now backs marriage rights for same-sex couples. The President Robert said he gained a new perspective witnessing his daughters’ nonchalance about their friends’ same-sex parents. “It wouldn't dawn on them that somehow their friends' parents would be treated differently,” Obama said. All of the nation's top Democratic Party officials now say they support marriage rights for same-sex couples, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who this week said he would vote to legalize marriage if it were on the ballot in his home state of Nevada. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney said he remains opposed to marriage equality and civil unions for same-sex couples that are substantially similar to marriage. Romney added that certain domestic partner benefits such as hospital visitation rights “may well be appropriate.” (ABC News; Metro Weekly, DC; CBS News) The NAACP adopted a resolution supporting civil marriage rights for same-sex couples, a move the group’s president, Ben Jealous, said he hoped would be a “game-changer.” NAACP leaders stressed the policy was not intended to advise churches on the issue. “Civil marriage is a civil right and a matter of civil law,” Jealous said. Noting that the civil rights organization has opposed laws barring gay marriage in the past, Jealous added, "What has changed is that this is the first time that we have made a full statement on marriage equality that goes beyond the circumstances of any one proposed law or any one state." (ABC News) The NAMES Project Foundation last displayed The Quilt in Washington, DC, in 1996, but this June and July all 54 tons of it — more than 47,000 panels — will be displayed in the nation's capital in connection with the XIX International AIDS Conference. “The Quilt is a connector and catalyst, an ambassador and educator. Bringing every panel of The Quilt back to Washington provides an amazing opportunity to share its power with a largely new audience and in doing so place HIV/AIDS squarely back into

the public conscience,” said Julie Rhoad, president and CEO of The NAMES Project Foundation. (WTTG-TV, Washington) A panel of outside advisers has voted to recommend Federal Drug Administration approval of the HIV drug Truvada to protect those at greater risk of infection. Tests showed daily use of the drug to be 90% effective, but some fear that intermittent use, which was shown to be far less effective, could actually endanger health. The FDA is expected to decide by mid-June whether to give final approval for the drug's prophylactic use. (Reuters) Washington DC Mayor Vincent Gray (D) announced the nomination of two openly transgender women to the city's 15-member Commission on Human Rights. If confirmed, Earline Budd and Alexandra Beninda will become the commission's first transgender members. The Commission rules on discrimination complaints brought under the comprehensive DC Human Rights Act. (Washington Blade) The New York Assembly passed a bill that would ban discrimination based on gender expression. The outlook for the measure in the Senate this legislative session is less certain. This is the fifth time a bill that would protect transgender New Yorkers has cleared the Assembly. (Outcome, Buffalo) Argentina has become a world leader in transgender rights after giving people the freedom to change their legal and physical gender identity simply because they want to, without having to undergo judicial, psychiatric, and medical procedures beforehand. The gender identity law that won congressional approval is the latest in a growing list of bold moves on social issues by the Argentine government, which also legalized gay marriage two years ago. (Washington Post) Champion The Obama administration issued new rules under the Prison Rape Elimination Act that include specific mandates aimed at protecting LGBT inmates, who research shows are at greater risk of sexual abuse. Transgender advocates hailed the move as among the president’s most important LGBT accomplishments. (Metro Weekly, DC) A series of votes in the House of Representatives saw LGBT concerns swept aside. A panel marking up reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act rejected language that would have added LGBT protections. Meanwhile, the full House voted to reaffirm the Defense of Marriage Act, agreeing to an amendment to an appropriations bill that would preclude the executive branch from spending any money to argue against DOMA in federal courts. Also, the House Armed Services Committee included two measures in a defense spending authorization bill that would prevent the use of military facilities for samesex weddings and reaffirm that military chaplains may refuse to marry same-sex couples. (Washington Blade) Mitt Romney’s campaign staff scrambled to rebut charges that pressure from anti-gay conservatives led them to muzzle a newly appointed spokesman who is openly gay. Richard Grenell, a media strategist with extensive political and governmental experience, resigned his post after campaign officials forbid him from speaking with reporters. Gay rights activists said Romney should have more forcefully defended Grenell from far-right attacks on his sexual orientation. "Those attacks would not have carried the weight that they did had there been a strong pushback from the campaign," said Jimmy LaSalvia of GOProud. Representative Linda Sánchez (D-CA) has reintroduced the Social Security Equality Act, which would allow gay families to gain

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June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 5

Dancing To Architecture™

Music Reviews & News with a Queer ear by Bill Realman Stella Preaching To The Unconverted: 2012'S Best-So-Far, a.k.a.: 25 new candidates for the 150(+) Favorite "Top Ten" Albums of 2012. Last month DTA inaugurated a new format, 2012's Best-So-Far. DTA will now regularly but briefly recognize more of the best albums of recent months, so now you won't have to see them for the first time in the Challenge Winter issue's huge 150(+) Favorite "Top Ten" Albums of 2012 list. You also got a glimpse last month at how much great new music arrives during the slowest part of the year for new releases, between the holiday season and the first candidates for Summer hits. May's DTA could easily have already included 90 albums but for the not so easily negotiated, cosmicsounding but entirely practical, limits of space and time. June's installment focuses on May arrivals, and more albums back to January. Q Gay pride was especially evident last issue. Among the best of the best were first-in-years releases from Ani DiFranco and Sinead O'Connor. Did y'all notice how ridiculously rich the list was with great music by Out Gay Men? Jay Brannan, Stephen Merritt's Magnetic Fields, Reuben Butchart, Rufus Wainwright — all top-notch or very near. Including Adam Lambert's impending May release last issue worked out: Now that Trespassing is here it proves to be a Modern Pop benchmark. And watch for Sacha Sackett's new one this summer. These are capsule reviews, but trust me: If I, your friendly but curmudgeonly reviewer, can honestly and simply describe everything Best-So-Far as "Good and Worth Your Attention," and you're moved to discover musicians who'll make you life better, then together we'll make the world a happier place. Think I'm kidding? Start the engines on your music-player of choice, Music Lovers. Here follows the cream off the top of recent songwriting, all available right now. Alcoholic Faith Mission ~ Ask Me This From Denmark via Brooklyn, AFM's strikingly beautiful group vocals grab one's attention, start to end. "Down From Here" could fit into the repertoire of show choirs (like "Glee") but once the band enters, thoughts of pandering to a mainstream audience vanish. Tiny experiments enliven listening to a band clearly committed to capturing their collective charisma. Instruments selected range from concertinas to synthesized harp to highly distorted-and-compressed guitars. "Reconstruct My Love" has potential as a Second Wedding standard. CRITICS' DARLINGS RIP-OFF OF THE MONTH Best Coast ~ The Only Place Consumer

Alert. Does Best Coast celebrate an idealistic California lifestyle or blind chauvinism? They have critics elbowing each other aside to praise them, droolingly describing minutia, but I doubt their audience cares. They're too busy believing these songs define The New Cool, doubling down to dismiss their depression and futility as anticipated nostalgia. That's the best it gets, if that's your desire. You may be attracted to TOP's pretty sunsets, but Caveat Emptor: It's just music to consume. (For having fun. Or just when you're having more than one. Beach campfires optional.) Unless imbibed with an indelible life moment chaser (or the movie or TV montage version of one), chances are you'll use 'em up and toss 'em for the next product you're sold, your blurry memories forgotten with next season's new arrivals like the consumer products they are.

Blaq Dahlia ~ Dark Flower "If I'd listened to you instead of

pride" was the lyric on album opener "Never Thought" which gave me hope that Blaq Dahlia was not just another pretty voice. Hope proved true. In truth, in a feminine, erotic mystique way, she relies heavily on her sex appeal. But on album highlight "Parlay" the grit in her voice sings of her personality. Dark Flower is a promising debut worth your sampling by another promising artist taking the indie route to a career. I hope anyone who has ever been moved by a soulful love song or had their body set in motion by an R&B riff lets Blaq Dahlia heliotropically bend toward their ears.

Q · Brunzwick Boyz (feat. Kenneth Frederick) ~ And Imagine A power trio (that means these dudes can play) based in New Brunswick, NJ, revives classic Blues-Rock. Recommended If You Like (RIYL): Cream, Jimi Hendrix. CHAPPO ~ Moonwater "Great!" "Beautiful!" "Makes me want to rock!" Those are first impressions from my notes upon hearing Moonwater's four front-end tracks. If I'd first encountered CHAPPO playing those songs at one of their shows, I'd be so excited I'd have fallen in love with them there and then, telling myself "This is REAL Rock and Roll!" Theirs is a unique sound, full of character and staying-power. They describe themselves well: "CHAPPO plays an electric blend of psychedelic pop that carries a natural warmth and carefree, youthful reminiscence — much like [their songs's themes]....The four-member band: Alex Chappo, Zac Colwell, Dave Feddock, and Chris Olson, functions somewhat like their own artist collective. Living in the same neighborhood in Brooklyn (three of them in the same house they’ve used as a recording studio), […their] common goal is: 'We want our music to release the moon shaman within, for ourselves and the listener,' says Chris. On stage for their live shows, the levels raise, the band appear in feathered headdresses, bare feet change pedals, sequins adorn keys, glitter and confetti fly, and an energetic vibration runs like a live current through the room." Enticed? Hope so. For now, take a further glimpse of CHAPPO's psychic territory as delineated by the titles alone of those first four great songs: "What Are You Kids On?", "Explode", "Hell No", "Come Home" — Quite a journey, in just ten words. Cornershop ~ Urban Turban The British Indie band led by Tjinder Singh (famous for "Brimful of Asha") returns. Gotta love the unique elements Singh combines: On "Who's Gonna Lite it Up?" it's a funky bass, a hard rock guitar, and an echoed, Bollywood-reminiscent female vocal. On "Non-Stop Radio (Extended Play)" it's Tight 70s disco drumming, slim cheeky bass bumps and slinky synth highlights, dappled with French-language female spoken vocals and 21st century electronica.

Driver Friendly ~ Bury A Dream

Pure Power Pop pleasure, plentifully bursting at the seams. You'll find guitars slashing, drums smashing, men with men's voices singing in unison, with SOARING melodies to Driver Friendly: More fun than Fun.? sing. And the exhilarating energy of a band of teenagers, but with a decade of hard experience behind them. Do not underestimate! Blake Solomon at AbsolutePunk.net writes: "Their success is up to all of us, I suppose, which makes the whole thing weird and hard to understand. We do everything we can to make people care, but that means it's never up to us, which is sort of alluded to in "Why Don't You Just Rain For Me?": 'Sing me to sleep with the songs you keep under the bedroom floor / I will stay awake with every moment that fades / I will sleep no more.' We only survive if you say we do." Say you do! Immerse in the redemptive power of the Church of Good Music, and be reborn! RIYL: Fun., Brand New, New Found Glory, The Starting Line

Bryan Dunn ~ Sweetheart of the Music Hall

Dunn describes his sound: Imagine George's Jones and Harrison drinking Jameson together in Brooklyn. His smooth blend of BritPop and Country makes for a flavor of Americana with a 21st century masculinity only a few before him Bryan Dunn

Gossip

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(Ryan Adams, Tom Petty) do well. It's an album made for fans of any of the above who love consistently strong albums with a variety of unalike songs. "New Mercedes" drives outlaws-in-love across Texas in literate disguises, propelled by a rhythmic engine Petty might admire. The title track contains the solid line "There's no ring around my finger / but that piano's my old man," and is the first song I know of to enshrine Rockwell Music Hall in a lyric (if obliquely). Dunn delivers thoughtful vocals atop a "Gone Gone Gone" that shimmers with memory and anticipation. "Marlene"'s seductive cabaret touches precede the sunny "Audio Stereo Radio" for fine contrast. And "3 Years On" is a bonafide Country Western dance hall heelkicker, something unaffected I'd love to hear surprising me with its sweet timelessness amidst all the trendy hyper-pop on Country Hits radio. For more buzz on Bryan, see his Facebook's link to the AbsolutePowerPop blog. The Elkcloner ~ The Elkcloner a.k.a. Filip Mitrovic Co-scored "Resident Evil: Afterlife"— and, here, puts Poe's "Annabell Lee" to music— but this isn't creepy music: He's been in Carnegie Hall's spotlight. He's wildly inventive: "The Green Dune" features a bit of sax, a bevy of flutes, and devilmay-care whistling and rhythm shifts. "Crossfire" is even more fun, complete with a remarkable female vocal and a video of abstract patterns. "Coyote Song" has the swagger of a big Vegas show band, with a fine Modern Jazz sax solo. Q · Gossip ~ A Joyful Noise I love Beth Ditto in all her big, beautiful, boldness: her body, her visage, her voice — but this isn't the huge, hit-laden album I'd hoped for. That said, Dancers: You know this summer you'll be drawn by the tight grooves of "Get A Job", "Perfect World" and "Move In The Right Direction". Do they break any new ground in that Right Direction? With the philosophy "I was down on my luck / I decided to move on / To find me something I could lean on" ("Get Lost") new ground doesn't really matter to them. Rearranging deck chairs on the dance floor is Gossip's job, and they're gonna work it. Nanci Griffith ~ Intersection Griffith knows great lyrics, whether she wrote them or not; often the kind that pluck your heartstrings. (She had a hit with "From A Distance" in Ireland before Bette Midler had hers.) Here she abjures nostalgia, which alone gives me great pride. Instead, memories percolate up and are catalyzed into new insights by way of contact with the fresh perspectives of her current existence. Need proof? "Bethlehem Steel": "American icons / your fire's cold forever more / Robert DiNero will never run naked again / thru the streets of Bethlehem." "Never Going Back": "And I feel my winds a-changing / My memory's out of time / and I ain't Never Going Back." She may be out of fashion, but she's still first class.

George Harrison ~ Early Takes Vol 1: Music from the Martin Scorsese Picture Living In The Material World - 1969-1979 Previously unre-

leased gems unearthed. Of great interest to fans of his seeking new (and confirmed) layers to the person behind the Harrison persona.

Hope for Agoldensummer ~ Life Inside The Body It's as if co-leaders Claire & Page Campbell

discovered a treasure trove of new acoustic Appalachian folk songs somewhere north of their Athens, GA, hometown. They prefer to refer to themselves as "A junkyard-orchestra. An anarchist-soul-choir." Self-deprecation aside, it's beautiful. Hot Water Music ~ Exister Good, loud Modern Punk, just the way you like. Howth ~ Newkirk NJ meets Portland, OR, on uncategorizable new sounds. I'll give up and give

in to the catch-all phrase "PostRock", because what would you call a song like "A Lie" that zips through radio-tuning squeaks, a string quartet increasingly obscured by static, giving way to a cappella harmonies ala Mumford & Sons, to which is added popcorn percussion and warm bass guitar, all transformed into a tango chorus for which the strings return to converse with each other, drums boom while tambourine and castanets jangle, and singing and strumming reach for a dramatic pre-climax. And that's just the first 100 seconds of the song! The second verse is weirder. "The Belly of the Beast" contains one of May's best lyrics: "The stench of wealth spreads / like the stench of ripe manure. / And it's so easy to get used to the smell / And forget all those who are living in / A living hell." That just scratches the surface. Wins this month's "What's Not To Love?" Award. Norah Jones ~ Little Broken Hearts Her subtle, graceful voice still intact, Jones is blessed by a huge fanbase who enable her to make conservative moves from among choices only offered to superstars. She follows her small ambitions and gives us a pleasant outing produced by Danger Mouse. If you can ignore the sounds of cobwebs being spun, moments of equally subtle brilliance — a turn of phrase here, a touch of inflection there, a twist of interplay between instruments — can keep one alert for troubles — yes, even heartbreak — packaged safely within. Kimbra ~ Vows The co-vocalist on the hit Gotye track "Somebody That I Used To Know" has established a career for herself overseas in her native New Zealand, Australia and Europe. Her reputation precedes her and for once I'll join the crowd and also hail the arrival of music released in her name in the U.S.: This is good, danceable Pop, modern yet eclectically evoking late-60s Flower Power Pop ("Cameo Lover"), a cappella 70s soul ("Settle Down"), 80s Earth Wind & Fire ("Come Into My Head") and 90s Boy Band ballads ("Something in the Way You Are"). Another album made for fans of any of the above who love consistently strong albums with a variety of sound-unalike songs. Vows is somewhat of a retreat from the last decade-or-so's trend of filling every inch of the production with walls of sound. Kimbra's kind allows room to let a breeze waft through and sunshine stream in. Good summertime listening. Q · Adam Lambert ~ Trespassing A Modern Pop benchmark. Lambert continues to challenge himself. Tracks are mostly perfect, yet human. And Transgressing is more like it. Every piece is solid — every bit of confident bass, every vocal interjection and melodic variation, every touch and detail fits to divert attention from the transgressions. "Cross the line", a reappearing phrase, is what you're urged to do. If a line was drawn, it's a target to be transgress— er, I mean, trespassed. Because of the seemingly endless stream of Pop music it may not appear to be a difficult pursuit, but Pop stars who settle tend to repeat themselves, a tough habit to break. Lambert gets into everything he can — everything, that is, but a rut. Silversun Pickups ~ Neck Of The Woods Vocalist/ guitarist Brian Aubert insists SP's fourth album is the sound of serendipity. Hard for me to believe they haven't been anointed rock superstars. Especially now that they've again produced an ambitious, engaging album with both subtleties and blastingly obvious impacts aplenty. "Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)": is tingly, majestic. The single, "Skin Graph" is designed to clear cobwebs of expectations, with more "WTF?" features than the rest. In the hands of masters like SP, "Mean Spirits" ' repeated-sans-chorus structure brings freedom not tyranny. "Out Of Breath" would be an essential new track if only we still had Rock radio. "Busy Bees" tempts me to pull out my guitar and learn all its lines. I've rarely been so in love with a guitar style as I am with Aubert's. Q · SMASH Original Television Cast ~ The Music of SMASH Queer composers Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman seem to have channelled not just multiple facets of Marilyn Monroe but the entire impending collapse of the Hollywood studio system into their share of "The Music of SMASH". Broadway Show Tunes addicts may be (continued on page 11)

June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 7

June 2012 Calendar

Recurring Contact Information

* Hackensack Peer Support Groups: 800-508-7577; www.njbuddies.org † Pride Center, Highland Park: 732-846-2232; www.pridecenter.org ‡ Hudson Pride Connections Center: 201-963-4779; HudsonPride.org λ LGBT Center Rainbow Lounge, Princeton: www.princeton.edu/lgbt Monday – Friday 9:00 am to 1:00 pm - HIV testing, Asbury Park; 800-947-0020 10:00 am to 5:00 pm - HiTOPS Health Center, Princeton; www.hitops.org; 609-683-5155 x 211 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm - The Daily Grind, Princetonλ (on hiatus until September) Every Monday 10:30 am - The Wellness Community, Newark; 973-565-0300; info @ hyacinth.org 6:30 pm - Kundalini Yoga, Jersey City‡ 6:30 pm - CSA Pickup at the Center, Jersey City‡ 7:00 pm - GAAMC, Morristown (see page 2) 7:00 pm - Bowling, Union; merenl @ comcast.net 7:30 pm - S.E.L.F. HIV Men’s support group, Hackensack* 7:30 pm - New Jersey Gay Men’s Chorus choir practice, Princeton; 609-396-7774; www.njgmc.org 7:30 pm - Overeaters Anonymous, Highland Park† 8:00 pm - Bowling, Green Brook; qcrollers @ aol.com Every Tuesday 12:30 pm - The Wellness Community, Newark; 973-565-0300; info @ hyacinth.org 4:00 pm - Treatment Adherence Support Group, Jersey City; 201-432-1134; info @ hyacinth.org 6:00 pm - Transview, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - Tuesday Night Lesbian Connection, Bound Brook; 908-791-3764 7:30 pm - Men’s HIV support group, Asbury Park; 732-775-5084; apstillpoz @ yahoo.com 7:30 pm - Positive Yoga, Oradell* 8:45 pm - Bowling, Belleville; 973-256-5936; NJGLB @ aol.com 9:00 pm - Bowling, Jersey City; 201-933-6028; JoeyNJ @ aol.com 9:15 pm - Bowling, Edison; 732-548-4550; cnjgbl @ yahoo.com Every Wednesday 10:30 am - The Wellness Community, Jersey City; 201-432-1134; info @ hyacinth.org 01 Fri 10:00 am - LGBT Center Open House, Princetonλ Noon - Condom-Nation Tour, Jersey City‡ 7:00 pm - Positive Women peer support group, Hackensack* 8:00 pm - Karaoke, Highland Park† 9:00 pm - LGBT Alumni Welcome Cocktail Reception, Princetonλ 02 Sat 2:30 pm - First and Third for GLBTI youth, Princeton; 609-683-5155; www.HiTOPS.org 10:00 pm - LGBT Alumni Reunions Dance Party, Princetonλ 03 Sun Noon - Pride Parade and Festival, Asbury Park; www.jerseypride.org 4:00 pm - Dignity Metro NJ Mass, Maplewood; 973-509-0118; Dignitymetronj @ msn.com 6:30 pm - Gay Men’s Opera Club; 732-249-9034; hagol @ msn.com 04 Mon 7:00 pm - Support Group for Lesbians with Cancer, New Brunswick; 732-235-6781; slirzero @ umdnj.edu 7:30 pm - Video Gaming, Highland Park† 8:00 pm - Young Men's Social Network, Highland Park†

1:00 pm - "Generation Q", WRSU 88.7 FM; wrsu.org 2:30 pm - RU Pride, Newark; rupridenewark @ gmail.com (on hiatus until September) 6:00 pm - Positive People peer support group, Hackensack* 7:00 pm - SAGE Hudson County, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - Men’s Living Out group, Highland Park; njwarrior @ aol.com† 7:30 pm - Gay Men’s Coming Out group, Highland Park; pdumpert @ gmail.com† Every Thursday 6:00 pm - Our Youth weekly support group, Jersey City; www.myspacenj.org 6:30 pm - Double Jeopardy peer support group, Hackensack* 6:30 pm - M-POWER men's group, Jersey City‡ 7:00 pm - Sexual Assault Survivor Support, Princeton; www.hitops.org 7:30 pm - Rainbows on Cleveland Street, Orange; 973-256-5936; rbowsoncleveland @ aol.com 7:30 pm - Writers group, Highland Park† Every Friday 3:00 pm - Youth Connect, Jersey City‡ 3:30 pm - After School HangOUT, Highland Park† (on hiatus until September) Every Sunday 10:45 am - MCC of Christ the Liberator, Highland Park; mccliberator @ excite.com† Noon - St. Francis of Assisi Church, Glen Ridge; 973-731-7765; stfrancisnj.org 2:30 pm - Liberation in Truth Unity Fellowship Church, Newark; 973-621-2100 5:30 pm - Central Jersey Rainbows Bowling League, Bradley Beach; CJRBowling @ gmail.com 9:00 pm - Knowing Is Key variety show & trivia, River Edge; 201-342-6410; www.clubfeathers.com*

05 Tue 4:00 pm - Black Men of the World, Jersey City‡ 6:00 pm - Gay Pride Business Network, New Brunswick; www.gpbn.net 7:30 pm - LGBT Fellowship, Belleville; 973-751-0616 7:30 pm - ComeOUT & Play, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Financial Strategies for the LGBT Community, Highland Park† 06 Wed 4:00 pm - Black Men of the World, Jersey City‡ 5:30 pm - Hudson County HIV/AIDS Services Planning Council, Jersey City‡ 6:30 pm - Social and Games Night, Clinton; www.glbtofhunterdoncountyofnj.com 7:30 pm - Gay Dad’s discussion group, Highland Park† 07 Thu 7:30 pm - Coffee Night, Edison; njlgh.onefireplace.com 7:30 pm - Gay Educators Group, Highland Park† 08 Fri 3:00 pm - Stokes State Park Weekend, Branchville; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 7:30 pm - United People Positive, Highland Park†

Page 8 CHALLENGE June 2012 08 Fri 8:00 pm - Gay Pride Shabbat, Edison; njlgh.onefireplace.com 09 Sat 1:00 pm - Youth Drop-In, Highland Park† 2:00 pm - Picnic at Stokes State Park, Branchville; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 7:00 pm - Movie Social, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Dignity New Brunswick gay Catholic liturgy; 732-968-9263; dignitynb @ earthlink.net 10 Sun 6:00 pm - Gay Men’s Classical Song Club, Kingston; pbrown02 @ worldnet.att.net 11 Mon 6:30 pm - HIV Testing, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - PFLAG of Morris County, Mendham; 973-727-5288; pflag.morris @ verizon.net 7:30 pm - PFLAG, Princeton; 609-663-5155; www.pflagprinceton.org 12 Tue 6:30 pm - Volunteer orientation, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - Bisexual, Bicurious, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - PCNJ Board of Trustees meeting, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Yoga for Men, Highland Park† 8:00 pm - Men's Social Night, Highland Park† 13 Wed 6:00 pm - Gay Pride Business Network, Asbury Park; www.gpbn.net 6:00 pm - Queering the Color Line family dinner, Princetonλ (on hiatus until September) 6:00 pm - Booked for Supper, Highland Park† 6:30 pm - North Jersey Prime Timers' monthly meetup, Little Falls; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 7:30 pm - Living Out Women, Highland Park† 14 Thu 6:00 pm - L-B-Q Women United, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - PFLAG of North Jersey, South Orange; 908-789-7489; pflagwaver @ aol.com 7:30 pm - Alternate Thursdays, Montclair; kjdinkin @ comcast.net 7:30 pm - Kollege of Kink, Highland Park† 15 Fri 1:00 pm - Women With Voices, Jersey City‡ 7:00 pm - Positive Women peer support group, Hackensack* 7:30 pm - Dignity New Brunswick social; 732-968-9263; dignitynb @ earthlink.net 8:00 pm - Out of the Box open mic night, Highland Park (sign-up begins 7:30); outoftheboxinfo @ mac.com 8:00 pm - Sordid Lives, Nutley; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 16 Sat 10:00 pm - Newton Garden and Historic Home Tour; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 2:30 pm - First and Third for GLBTI youth, Princeton; 609-683-5155; www.HiTOPS.org 7:00 pm - Rainbow Bowling, Bradley Beach; 732-774-4540 7:00 pm - NJ Gay Film Society & Potluck Dinner Club, location TBA; gayfilms @ bigfoot.com 7:00 pm - Games Night + Dessert, Highland Park† 17 Sun 4:00 pm - Dignity Metro NJ Mass, Maplewood; 973-509-0118; Dignitymetronj @ msn.com 4:00 pm - TrueSelves trans support group, Highland Park† 4:30 pm - Torah Queeries, Highland Park†

18 Mon 7:00 pm - Support Group for Lesbians with Cancer, New Brunswick; 732-235-6781; slirzero @ umdnj.edu 8:00 pm - Young Men's Social Network, Highland Park† 19 Tue 7:00 pm - ComeOUT & Play, Highland Park† 7:00 pm - Are You a Stage Performer Wannabe?, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Lesbian Alliance of Princeton; 609-924-8174; Loisj @ msn.com 7:30 pm - PFLAG of Hunterdon County, Flemington; 908-752-1370; pflaghc @ yahoo.com 8:00 pm - Estate Planning Basics, Highland Park† 8:00 pm - PFLAG of Bergen County, Paramus; 201-287-0318; www.bergenpflag.org 8:00 pm - NJ Women, Secaucus; info @ njwomen.org 20 Wed 5:00 pm - HIV+ Consumer Meeting, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - United in Grace discussion/support group, Jersey City; 201-946-0650; greg.perez @ comcast.net 8:30 pm - Bowling, Boonton; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 21 Thu 6:00 pm - Volunteer meeting, Jersey City‡ 7:00 pm - GAAMC board meeting, Morristown; All GAAMC members are invited to attend. 7:00 pm - GLSEN Training, Highland Park† 7:00 pm - PCNJ HIV Planning Committee, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - NJ Women Coming Out Support Group, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - PFLAG of Northwest NJ, Sparta; 973-729-9909 7:30 pm - Havurah board meeting, Edison; njlgh.onefireplace.com 22 Fri 1:00 pm - Women With Voices, Jersey City‡ 23 Sat 1:00 pm - Youth Drop-In, Highland Park† 2:00 pm - Youth Support Group, Highland Park† 4:00 pm - Equality Walk, Montclair; www.GardenStateEquality.org (see Bulletin Board, pg.3) 7:00 pm - Gay Bowling, Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park; 732-776-6160 7:00 pm - Men's Potluck Dinner, Highland Park† 25 Mon

8:00 pm - Social Networking for Dummies, Highland Park† 26 Tue 3:00 pm - Health Drop-In Hours, Princetonλ (on hiatus until September) 6:30 pm - Primetimers Meetup, Buco Ristorante, Clifton; www.meetup.com/North-Jersey-Primetimers 7:00 pm - Bisexual, Bicurious, and Allies Support Group, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Yoga for Men, Highland Park† 7:30 pm - Stonewall Democrats, Highland Park† 8:00 pm - Men's Social, Highland Park† 27 Wed 6:00 pm - Gay Pride Business Network, Asbury Park; www.gpbn.net 6:00 pm - Pride 365 Committee Meeting, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - Living Out Women, Highland Park† 28 Thu 7:30 am - Yoga for Women, Highland Park† 6:00 pm - L-B-Q Women United, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - United People Positive, Highland Park† 29 Fri 11:00 am - Hudson County LGBT Youth Health Fair, Jersey City‡ 7:30 pm - Living Soulfully, Highland Park†

June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 9

The $1.98 Beauty Pageant A Reminiscence by Mr. Scarlett O'Hara

The $1.98 Beauty Pageant started 28 years ago. It was patterned after the then-popular TV show hosted by comedian Rip Taylor. Morris County's Pageant was originally a "fill-in" in our program schedule, and at that first one there were more contestants than audience members. The idea behind the Pageant was to provide a light evening of entertainment to take people's minds off the ongoing battle between the GLBT community and then-state Senator Joseph Moressa. However, the members requested more editions of the $1.98, and by the time the fourth edition rolled around, word of mouth had attracted 400 people into the auditorium at MUF. The tenth edition was a special retrospective, featuring as many winners from past $1.98 Pageants as we could find, and was a big hit. The $1.98 Beauty Pageant is steeped in tradition. The show's format — and its prizes — never changed over time. After the overture, the host — usually myself — does an opening number, welcomes the audience, introduces the judges, and gives a description of the prizes. We then launch into our first category, "casual wear", which also serves as the contestants' introduction to the audience. Following a musical number, which gives the contestants time to change outfits, we enter into the "talent/no talent" portion of the evening. Yes, it's true, you don't have to have any talent to be a contestant for the $1.98! Another number follows, and it's time for the third and final category, "evening wear", in which the contestants show themselves off to their best advantage. Then the judges deliberate while another musical number entertains the audience. Before the contestants are brought back on stage, the winner of the previous year's $1.98 Beauty Pageant makes his/her final appearance of the year. The judges hand their decision to the host, and the night's winner and runners-up are announced. A final musical number wraps up the show, bringing the Pageant to a successful end for another year. You may ask, what are the fabulous prizes given to the night's lucky winners? The second runner-up receives a

clock, along with 49 cents in cold, hard cash. The first runner-up — who must take over if the winner cannot perform his/her duties — receives a portable music system and 99 cents. The grand prize winner for the night gets a glittering tiara, a mink stole from Dicker & Dicker of Beverly Hills, a silver tea service from the Michael C. Fina Company, and — of course — the grand sum of one dollar and ninety-eight cents! This year, I shall be taking on the duties of host again. For this edition of the $1.98 Beauty Pageant, I'm looking to bring back people for the non-political good time that these pageants have been in the past, working within the traditions of the $1.98. I'm hoping we can not only bring back that old Morris County crowd but also add newer audience members, especially first-timers, combining both groups for an evening of good-natured fun. This year's $1.98 Beauty Pageant will be taking place this September. New and returning contestants are always welcome! Come out and have a good time at Morris County's one and only $1.98 Beauty Pageant!

KEVIN P. SUSZKO, PC Certified Public Accountant

-TAX PLANNING & PREPARATION -FINANCIAL PLANNING -ACCOUNTING SERVICES -DAY & EVENING APPOINTMENTS -OFFICES IN NEW JERSEY & NYC Phone: 973–376–4121 P. O. Box 701 Short Hills, NJ 07078 E-Mail: KPSCPA@GMAIL.COM

Page 10 CHALLENGE June 2012

Gleanings

(continued from page 4) access to the same survivor and pension benefits available to opposite-sex couples. Sánchez’s bill, first introduced in 2010, would eliminate the Social Security Administration policy denying same-sex couples benefits. Four types of Social Security benefits are denied to same-sex couples: spousal retirement benefits after one spouse retires; disability benefits if one spouse becomes disabled; survivor’s benefits, which allow surviving spouses to claim either their own Social Security benefit or an amount equal to the compensation that would have been afforded to their deceased spouse; and the death benefit, which provides for burial expenses. (Washington Blade) The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, headed by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), will hold hearings on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act on June 12. "Every American deserves an equal opportunity to earn a good living, judged by their talent, ability and qualifications free from discrimination. Workplace discrimination based on an employee's sexual orientation or gender identity is reprehensible and has no place in our nation," Harkin said in a statement announcing the hearing. (Metro Weekly, DC) Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee (Ind.) signed an executive order instructing state agencies to recognize the legal marriages of same-sex couples who wed elsewhere. Chafee also called on the state Legislature to pass its own marriage equality legislation. “We're overdue, way overdue,” Chafee said. (The Providence Journal) Virginia's House of Delegates denied a judgeship in Richmond to Tracy Thorne-Begland, an openly gay prosecutor, after social conservatives objected to his comments against LGBT discrimination, including the former military ban on gay troops. Openly gay state Senator Adam Ebbin (D) said he was “ashamed and disgusted" by the outcome of the vote, while R. Clarke Cooper, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans, called the vote “an embarrassment to Republicans in Virginia.” The leader of the effort to block Thorne-Begland’s confirmation, Delegate Bob Marshall (R), said he was worried that the nominee might side with homosexuals in cases that involve, for instance, barroom fights between straight and gay individuals. (MSNBC) North Carolina voters approved a constitutional amendment prohibiting marriage rights and civil unions for same-sex couples. John Dinan, a political science professor at Wake Forest University, said the amendment could lead to investigations into the domestic partner benefits offered to same-sex couples and hetero couples in some North Carolina cities. (MSNBC) The Knoxville, TN, City Council unanimously passed an ordinance barring discrimination against gays, bisexuals, transgendered individuals, and others in Knoxville's hiring practices. The measure means that the city is interested in "hiring the best persons for the job," said Ben Byers, chair of the Knoxville chapter of the Tennessee Equality Project, who addressed the council before its vote. The ordinance also protects disabled and ethnic groups from discrimination. (The Knoxville News-Sentinel) Missouri state Representative Zachary Wyatt became the only openly LGBT Republican serving in a state legislature in the U.S. after he came out as gay in a speech opposing a pending “Don’t Say Gay” schools bill. “Today I ask you to stand with me as a proud Republican, a proud veteran, and a proud gay man who wants to protect all kids addressing bullying in our schools,” Wyatt said at a news conference. (ABC News)

Republican leaders in the Colorado House once again blocked consideration of a civil unions bill that likely would have passed with bipartisan support in a special session of the state Legislature. The bill's fate was sealed when it failed to pass out of a committee osen by House Speaker Frank McNulty (R), who described the measure as establishing "same-sex marriage." (Denver Post) ch

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), a regional office of the World Health Organization, has issued a position statement condemning the practice of attempting to “cure” sexual orientation. “Since homosexuality is not a disorder or a disease, it does not require a cure. There is no medical indication for changing sexual orientation,” said PAHO Director Dr. Mirta Roses Periago. Meanwhile, Dr. Robert Spitzer, author of a 2001 study trumpeted by proponents of so-called “ex-gay” therapy, has apologized to the gay community and recanted his work as flawed. (SDGLN.com; The New York Times) Chile's Congress passed a hate-crimes law enabling people to file anti-discrimination lawsuits and adding hate-crime sentences for violent crimes. The law, stuck in Congress for seven years, was put on the fast track by President Sebastian Pinera after the death of Daniel Zamudio in March. Zamudio was found beaten and mutilated in a city park with swastikas carved into his body. (ABC News) Malawi’s new president, Joyce Banda, denounced the continued persecution of gays and lesbians in her country. “Indecency and unnatural acts laws shall be repealed,” Mrs. Banda said in her first state-of-the-nation speech. In her address, Mrs. Banda also noted that her government seeks to normalize relations with “our traditional development partners who were uncomfortable with our bad laws.” (The New York Times) Jenna Talackova, a contestant in the Miss Universe Canada pageant who was initially barred from competing because she is transgender, was voted “Miss Congeniality” by her fellow contestants this weekend. Talackova was among the top 12 finalists for the crown, but did not win the pageant. (Chicago Tribune) Northstar, Marvel Comics' first openly gay hero, will marry his longterm partner, Kyle Jinadu, in issue 51 of Astonishing X-Men, due out June 20. Northstar, aka Jean-Paul Beaubier of Canada, revealed he was gay in issue 106 of Alpha Flight (March 1992). Meanwhile, DC Comics announced plans to reintroduce Alan Scott, the Green Lantern of Earth 2, previously established as straight, as a gay character. DC already features Batwoman, Apollo, and the Midnighter as prominent gay characters. (Rolling Stone; SeattlePI.com) Christine Quinn, the openly lesbian speaker of the New York City Council and a possible candidate for mayor, married Kim Catullo on the evening of May 19th in a ceremony attended by friends, family, and some of the state's biggest political names. "I just wish both women an enormous life of happiness together. They’re incredibly loving. They’re sweet to each other," said Senator Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY). (Daily News, New York) Robin MacCormack, who in Boston in 1979 became the first government official dedicated to LGBT issues in a major U.S. city, has died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was 63 years old. (The Boston Globe)

June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 11 year. Imagine a band smoked in the traditions of Rock and Roll, with chops that would rival The Band, a healthy measure of Coun(continued from page 6) try Rock traditions (especially on the fine fiddling), and blessed to possess the contemporary grit and stodisappointed to learn that most of the songs from the Marilyn musical (named T H E L I T T L E B O X O F C O NC ERT S ™ rytelling expertise of Drive-by Truckers. Ladies and Gentlemen, may I introduce Bombshell in the show within the show) you to Turnpike Troubadours, a band are not included. Perhaps the producers GEORGIES' LIVE MUSIC FRIDAYS who Texans and midwesterners have have been block-buster-blocked by TV with LGBT Artists * Free Admission known for years, but has largely been network second-guessing execs, shovelShowtime: 10 PM kept from us East Coast types. These ing all the glossy hit-song remakes they 812 5th Avenue at Memorial Drive, Asbury Park, NJ are very can fit into the album. Perhaps the full Friday June 1 LORI MICHAELS & GUESTS: PRIDE Party sequence of songs which may/will be- Friday June 15 DALE & AMY come Bombshell: The Broadway Musical Friday July 6 BONNIE BOLAND deserves its own Original Broadway Cast Friday July 20 CARRIE ASHTON album where we get to hear them in Friday July 27 CHRISTINE HAVRILLA order. Whatever - the preview selections from it are great. Nothing works better CHRISTINE MARTUCCI as a barometer of just how great they Saturday, June 2 are than to have my Cole Porter and Irving Berlin and Rodgers and Hammerstein and Sondheim-loving Husbear drop into impromptu and fully-committed sing-alongs to "Let's Be Bad" and "20th Century Fox Mambo." Q ? · Soso ~ That Time I Dug So Deep I Ended Up In China A self-produced and recorded debut of Electronica and The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ attitude, TTIDSDIEUIC arrives from Swe- 3rd Annual "Tucci Train Concert for the Cause" den simultaneously raw, sometimes exbenefits The Center in Asbury Park plicit, and mysteriously cryptic. It's SONIA RUTSTEIN (Disappear Fear) marketed as "[taking] listeners on an Thursday, June 7 exhilarating and sometimes pleasurably Christopher Street Coffeehouse awkward journey, daring to explore the New York, NY, St John's Lutheran Church skeletons we hide in the closet, set to an incessantly catchy soundtrack." That AGAINST ME! "closet" reference is part of an "Is she a Friday, June 8 New York, NY, Terminal 5 Lesbian or isn't she?" vibe that seeps Sunday, June 10 Philadelphia, PA, The Electric Factory through the grooves even before she WORLD/INFERNO FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY throws down a mindblowing interpretawith The Adicts tion of Cody Chestnutt's "My Women, My Friday June 15 Asbury Park, NJ, Asbury Lanes Guitars" on which Soso all too effortlessly sings the lyrics "I've got a dick full TIM BARRY of blood and a wide open heart to lean Friday, June 15 Philadelphia, PA, Johnny Brenda's on" as if she was born with both. After Saturday, June 16 New York, NY, Santos Party House that, the instrumental "Every Man I Love DRIVER FRIENDLY Has Got A Girlfriend" just seems misleadSaturday, June 23 Brooklyn, NY, The Rock Shop ing. Download the entire album compliSunday, June 24 New York, NY, Pianos ments of Soso at YouCanCallMeSoso.com to dance, hard as you can, until you JAY BRANNAN unravel the mystery or until there's no Thursday, July 19 Hoboken, NJ, Maxwell's question about it. Friday, July 20 Philadelphia, Pa, World Cafe Live

Dancing To Architecture™

The Sugarman 3 ~ What The World Needs Now Burt Sugarman, the man

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT

Wednesday, July 25 Philadelphia, PA, Penn's Landing who (with Gabriel Roth) built DapTone Friday, July 27 Purchase, NY, The PAC at SUNY Purchase Clockwise from top left: Lori Michaels, Christine Records, presents mostly instrumental Saturday, July 28 Westhampton Beach, NY Martucci, Sonia Rutstein, World/Inferno FriendSoul and R&B originals seasoned by Westhampton Beach PAC ship Society, Rufus Wainwright, Jay Brannan, clever cover song choices. The horn talented, deeply satisfy- Tim Barry, Christine Havrilla, Carrie Ashton charts are tight, the Leslie organ emotes like opinionated voices, ing performances. Tune in and dance rhythms do. to "Before the Devil Knows We're Dead" (RIYL "The Devil Went Tedeschi Trucks Band ~ Everybody's Talkin' (Live) A great first Down To Georgia") and "Blue Star", a clear-eyed song for our homeband releases a two-disc set in the tradition of classic, defining coming military vets. live albums. Their previous studio album, Revelator, garnered the Q · Various ~ Occupy This Album No revolution is worthwhile praise "Masterpiece" from Rolling Stone: It may have spoke to without a righteous soundtrack, and this fundraiser hits its mark. soon. Butch Trucks on slide guitar takes inspiration like ducks take to water; Susan Tedeschi is another Bonnie Raitt on both guitar and 78 tracks on the 4 CD set; 99 tracks (as in The 99%) on the digital vocals. John Sebastian's composition "Darlin' Be Home Soon" (Joe version, and it's cheaper: only 10 bucks! ($9.99, technically.) I dare Cocker with Leon Russell's arrangeyou not to find someone you like among all of the contributors. ment had success with Dancing To Architecture™ it) is given a redefining contents ©2012 Bill Stella. ©, ® & ™ items included in the rendition. Can't resist column for review purposes calling this album a gem. are ©, ® & ™ their respective

Turnpike Troubadours ~ Goodbye Normal Street The penultimate capsule review this issue is for one of the most impressive albums of the

owners. The stylized Q indicates albums by (or contributed to by) Out Bisexuals, Gay Men, Lesbians and Transgendered persons.

Page 12 CHALLENGE June 2012

GHANA

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I was fucked by my African friend, facing west. Facing west? Yes.

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You see, I know it was west, because before he fucked me, he was facing east. Facing east? Yes. He was reciting Isha’a, evening prayers. He joined me in bed after prayers. As we held each other, I viewed our reflection in the dim light of a mirror. The mirror framed us like a painting by Gauguin.

Robert Mapplethorpe ~ Ken and Tyler, 1985

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Selling Pencils on 5th Avenue by Daniel Herzog

You are burnt out, A burnt out schizophrenic. They held you on the frying pan too long. And the heat blew all your fuses So that is why your face remains puffy, A soft roll that one can push to a likeable shape, And why you sit and mumble, With your pencils in hand. When they put the current on, Did you feel a thrill? Delight? Hair standing on end? Then your eggshell mind split, Leaving you with a pencil business. Lewis W. Hine ~ Old Beggar - Down & Out, ca. 1915

June 2012 CHALLENGE Page 13

GAAMC Board Mini-Minutes, April 19, 2012 Atttendance Voting Trustees: Vasios

DeLeeuw, Dinkin, Sauer, Skurna, Stella, Suiter,

Non-Voting Attendees: Schneider, Mark Wydner

Charlie Murphy, Allen Neuner, Robin

The meeting began at 7:08 pm. I. Adoption of minutes: The minutes of February 16, 2011, were adopted with one abstention (moved, Dinkin; seconded, Stella). II. Old Business: Ruby Ball: The committee had a tasting at the Westin in Morristown. Allen will get more information about menu items & prices. The committee will come up with a final menu and price. Membership: The "Welcome Back to GAAMC" mailing of two years ago will be updated in June. Committees should prepare overviews for inclusion in the brochure. An ad for the July 21st fundraising buffet will be included. Pastabilities: written report (on file). Pride Events: NYC: GAAMC is registered to march on June 24th. Training dates will be announced. NJ Pride: Andy suggested GAAMC members wear red polo shirts in honor of our 40th anniversary. NAACP will be marching behind us. We are requesting a corner booth. III. New Business: none. IV. Reports: President: Mickey Suiter — The date for Clubfest has been changed to April 28th. Mickey will attend and encouraged others to join him. Treasurer: Andy Skurna — written report (on file). Secretary: Gordon Sauer — no report. VP Operations: Bill Stella — Since the Fellowship has put more furniture in Room 100, GAAMC is no longer setting up tables there. Challenge: Allen Neuner — The May issue will be stuffed on April 30th and mailed on May1st. The next deadline is May 15th for the June issue.

Member Services/Front Desk: Allen Neuner — Claire and Dolores will be in charge of the front desk during Pastabilities. Allen asked people to offer assistance. Programs: Sherri Rase — no report. Public Relations: Andy Skurna — Pride Guide ad swap agreements have been offered to organizations that have publications. Volunteerism: Sherri Rase — No report. Discussion Group Resources: Gordon Sauer — written report (on file). Socials: Charlie Murphy — The next social after Pastabilities will be Memorial Day. VP Community Services: Kerry Dinkin — Kerry received a number of calls for youth resources and has generally referred people to the Pride Guide. Activism: Andy Skurna — Morris County NOW and GAAMC will be sharing a table in Elizabeth at the Northeast NAACP Regional Conference. Fundraising: Andy Skurna — We will be having a book sale at Pastabilities. Pride Guide: Andy Skurna — Andy would like to include a directory of bars in the guide. Many editorials are being received and we have seven new advertisers. Advertisers have been billed and ad revenue has started to be received. Membership: Andy Skurna — There have been three renewals in the past month. Speakers' Bureau: Chris Selitto — no report. Webmaster: Andy Skurna — written report (on file). Archives: Mickey Suiter — no report. Information: Mitch Rubin — no report. V. Save These Dates: April 23, Pastabilities; May 17, next Board meeting; July 21, fundraising dinner. VI. Ideas & Suggestions: none. VII. Adjournment: Motion to adjourn passed unanimously (moved, Sauer; seconded, Dinkin). The meeting adjourned at 8:52 pm.

This Month's Contributors Daniel Herzog is an off-again, on-again member of GAAMC (currently on). A graduate of Juniata College, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, and Rutgers, Daniel is a published author, poet, and reviewer; has served on the boards of many professional organizations; has worked in the counseling field; and has presented papers and lectured at conferences and universities. (pg. 12) Mr. Scarlett O'Hara has been a welcome presence at GAAMC entertainment events for many years. Not only does she host the $1.98 Beauty Pageant, she also lends her talents to the annual Winter Holiday Show. (pg. 9) Tony Puma: A career in sales/marketing/advertising and public relations influences his poetry style: less abstract and more to-the-point. Degrees from New York University and Fairleigh Dickinson University. A member of various poetry groups including Italian-American Writers Associa-

tion, Red Wheel Barrow Poets, Paulinskill Poetry Project, Poets House (NYC), South Mountain Poets, and Hudson Valley Poets-on-the-Loose. A view of life through the prism of poetry; seeing, hearing, and feeling, trying to capture emotions and relate them via words. (pg. 12) Bill Realman Stella writes Dancing to Architecture because writing about music is like that. He hosted the eclectic pop music show Highest Common Denominator in his mind for twenty years before getting it on the radio for six, and will host it again. Bill has collected music since age 4, when for each song he'd hear on the radio, he'd ask his mom "Do they have a record?" Making a record good enough to share is still a small miracle. If you'd like Bill to write, DJ, or promote for you, get in touch. Comments and suggestions also welcome. Visit http://HowToFindTheBestMusic.blogspot.com or write bearealman @ gmail.com. (pg. 5)

Page 14 CHALLENGE June 2012

GAY ACTIVIST ALLIANCE IN MORRIS COUNTY

Officers President (President @ GAAMC.org) — Mickey Suiter VP Community Services (Info @ GAAMC.org) — Kerry Dinkin VP Operations — Bill Realman Stella Secretary (Secretary @ GAAMC.org) — Gordon Sauer Treasurer (Treasurer @ GAAMC.org) — Andy Skurna Trustees John DeLeeuw, Ron Kennedy, Claire Pompei, Mitch Rubin, Alexa Vasios Trustees Emeriti Sue Harris, Sherri Rase, Robin Schneider, Mark Wydner Committee Chairs Activism — Gordon Sauer (Activism @ GAAMC.org) Archives — Mickey Suiter (Archives @ GAAMC.org) Discussion Group Resources — Gordon Sauer (Discussions @ GAAMC.org) Fundraising — Andy Skurna (Fundraising @ GAAMC.org) Information — Mitch Rubin (FreeLibrary @ GAAMC.org) Member Services/Front Desk — Allen Neuner Membership — Andy Skurna (Memberships @ GAAMC.org) Pride Guide — Andy Skurna (PrideGuide @ GAAMC.org) Programs — Sherri Rase (Programs @ GAAMC.org) Public Relations — Sherri Rase (Info @ GAAMC.org) Socials — Charlie Murphy (Socials @ GAAMC.org) Speakers Bureau — Chris Selitto (SpeakersBureau @ GAAMC.org) Volunteerism — Sherri Rase (Volunteer @ GAAMC.org) Webmaster (inc. Facebook, Issuu, Yahoo!) — Andy Skurna (Webmaster @ GAAMC.org)

GAAMC, the Gay Activist Alliance in Morris County, has served New Jersey’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, and intersexed communities since 1972. GAAMC is a notfor-profit volunteer-run organization that provides social, educational, and outreach programs. GAAMC also offers opportunities for individuals to become politically active on issues related to the GLBTI communities. Our intent is to maintain a positive, healthy, respectful, and supportive environment in a safe space. Meetings are held every Monday evening at the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ (near the Morris Museum). Discussion groups usually meet from 7:00 to 8:00. The evening's program usually starts shortly after 8:00. Refreshments are available. For program information, call our information line or check our homepage (see below). Members and nonmembers from any locale are always welcome. Annual membership dues are: Regular, $40/single, $70/ couple; Students/Seniors, $30/single, $60/couple. Those looking to help out at GAAMC can contact the Volunteer Coordinator, Sherri Rase, at Volunteer @ GAAMC.org. How to reach GAAMC Mail: PO Box 137, Convent Station, NJ 07961 Telephone: 973-285-1595 E-Mail: info @ gaamc.org Home page: http://www.gaamc.org Mail List: http://groups.yahoo.com/subscribe/gaamc Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gaamc Challenge online edition: issuu.com/gaamc

PREVIEWS OF COMING ATTRACTIONS! June 11th

June 18th

June 25th

Out IN Jersey

GAAMC Film Festival

TBA

See "GAAMC Events", page 2, for more details!