News

There’s been a lot of Oscar buzz for Ron Howard’s drama “Hillbilly Elegy” with Amy Adams and Glenn Close premiering Nov. 24 on Netflix. But thi Oscar winner is also a strong contender in Best Documentary Feature for his well-received film “Rebuilding Paradise.” It was unveiled in January at Sundance, released theatrically and digitally in July, and will air commercial free Nov. 8 on National Geographic.

The NatGeo premiere is on the second anniversary of the devastating Camp Fire that destroyed almost all of the picturesque town of Paradise, California and surrounding areas killing 85 people, uprooting 50,000 residents and destroying some 95% of the town’s structures including hospitals and schools.

In “Rebuilding Paradise,” Howard, who won Oscars for producing and directing 2001’s “A Beautiful Mind,” vividly captures the harrowing firestorm that took 10 days to contain; the bravery of the firefighters and police, the tragedy of lives and homes lost; and the...

Recently, CBS delivered the new,official synopsis/spoilers for their upcoming "Person Of Interest" episode 2 of season 4. The episode is entitled, "Nautilus," and it sounds like things will get pretty intriguing as Finch has to make a choice whether or not to help out a student that's in major danger, and more. In the new, 2nd episode press release: Finch is going to have to decide if he can help a brilliant student engaged in a life-and-death scavenger hunt without alerting Samaritan. Press release number 2: Although Finch is going to insist that he no longer wishes to help with new numbers, his interest will get piqued when Reese learns that the newest Poi is a brilliant college student engaged in a mysterious, life-and-death scavenger hunt. Guest stars will feature: Quinn Shephard (Claire), David Starzyk (David), Andreas Damm (Romeo), Samantha Posey,(Pushy Student), Dan McCabe (Hipster Geek), Quinn Meyers (Barista...

After facing multiple run-ins with the law, it looks like Justin Bieber is finding faith by turning to religion.

The 20-year-old teams up with Christian rapper Brandon Burke for a new rap video titled “The Pledge.”

In the clip, Justin and Brandon strive to get one million people to pledge themselves to God. During the newly released video, Bieber states, “God loved the world so much he gave up his own son, right?”

“Imagine, like, someone killing your son,” Bieber continued, adding, “God forgave everyone and they killed his son. That shows how much grace God has.”

Check out the clip below.

Have any friends who don't know what God is? Or haven't heard the story of Jesus? Need to find a :30 way to explain it to them? Let Justin Bieber do it! The Biebs appeared in the music video for a Christian rapper named Brandon Burke. The song is called "The Pledge" and Bieber doesn't actually perform on the song -- he's just in the video at the end ... sitting on a couch ... talking about God.

Washington, May 10: Justin Bieber has co-starred in a rap video by Brandon Burke.

The 20-year-old Canadian musician has joined Christian rapper Burke's mission to raise one million pledges for God and is seen sitting on a couch with the rapper talking about God, Jesus and forgiveness, in his dramatic video called 'The Pledge', Us Magazine reported.

Bieber also mentioned that "God forgave everyone" even though they killed his son, which shows how much grace God has.

The 'Baby' hitmaker was previously scouring Manhattan for a property with a private pool so he could be baptized by the Hillsong Church. (Ani)...

Well, this should be fun. The three judges for Nationals on Glee are going to be Rex Lee, Lindsay Lohan, and Perez Hilton. Considering Perez has used Lindsay as a money making business for years, that could be awkward.

Well, Morgan, meet the parents: Joseph Gordon-Levitt has cast Tony Danza as his father in his directorial debut, in which Levitt plays a porn addicted player trying to change his ways.

Heather Wilson, a New Mexico Republican running for Senate, says the Student Non Discrimination Act is unconstitutional, because kids before puberty don't know they're gay, compromises the free speech rights of bullies, and criminalizes teasing, which she sees as a rite of passage. Are we sure she's not from Arizona?

We now have a real sonic screwdriver for when the Daleks invade.

Students at Nyu protested against Chik-Fil-a being on campus, but John Sexton, president of Nyu, says that while...

The Carrie Diaries will explore a young Miss Bradshaw as she discovers the love of her life, New York City. And it can't be NYC without a gay best friend, even if he doesn't know he's gay yet. The CW pilot cast Brendan Dooling in the role of Carrie's best friend. Austin Butler will play the love interest, presumably for Carrie.

In a little noticed bit in a December interview that's now making mainstream news, Rick Santorum says that if elected, he'd make sure that not only would we get a federal Constitutional amendment against marriage equality, it would nullify all existing same-sex marriage, which numbered 131,000 in the 2010 census. The family values crowd sure does like destroying families.

If you're my age, you owe a huge hunk of your childhood to Ralph McQuarrie, who passed away at age 82 this weekend. McQuarrie designed much of Star Wars, from Chewbacca to Darth Vader.

Towleroad has the details about today's firestorm involving Adam Lambert and this tweet from GQ:

Birthday Shoutouts! Steve Buscemi is 54, Wendie Malick is 61, and out pop star Anthony Callea is 29

Stephen King's Bag Of Dessicated Orange Meat And Hair ... has been canceled.The Faboo Christine Baranski will reprise her role as Leonard's mother on the upcoming 100th episode of The Big Bang Theory.Five questions for first-time Glee director Matthew Morrison. Brendan Burke's dad Brian continues to honor his son by combating homophobia in sports. Below you can see Thomas Roberts talk to out retired serviceman Bob Garon about his breakfast conversation with Mitt Romney.

Speaking of Thomas Roberts, something has been irking me for a while. Take a look at this promo pic for the entire MSNBC lineup. Notice something missing? Thomas has had his 11 Am show for quite a while, and yet it's nowhere to be found.

I'm just going to go ahead and get this over with: TV Line has basically the entire episode of Glee next week spoiled, from the musical to Sebastian, to yes, Klaine's special moment. Which sounds like it happens entirely off screen, while we know that Lea Michele complained about how sweaty Cory Monteith was for their scene, so we'll get to see that.

Tons of congress people and corporations have filed amicus briefs in favor of Doma being struck down.

Good news! The Catholic Archdiocese has decided that Satan does not, in fact, make gay babies. We can now go back to blaming the only obvious culprit: straight people having sex.

Houston Chronicle parenting blogger Kathleen McKinley thinks that if we want gay teens to stop killing themselves, we should encourage denial and staying closeted for them, not acceptance and love. I think the Houston Chronicle should be encouraged to...

Next Magazine scored an amazing interview with Happy Ending's Adam Pally that's worth clicking over just for the pictures they took. But if you take the time to read it, you see just how awesome Pally is, and no only his commitment to Max being the Dawn of a New Gay, but a very unique sensibility to his wife as well. "My wife would rather me be a gay icon than a sex object for females."

Farewell to British writer/producer David Croft, who passed away at age 89. While out British readers can thank him for countless shows, Americans will most likely know him for Are You Being Served?

The NHL appears to be circling the wagons to protect Wayne Simmonds after he called Sean Avery a "f*cking faggot" on the ice. Despite video evidence, the league says "“Since there are conflicting accounts of what transpired on the ice,...

Force Field! Jesse Tyler Ferguson gets a rubdown from hot neighbor James Marsden in an upcoming episode of Modern Family

For our readers in Canada, CBC aired the documentary The Legacy of Brendan Burke last week, which included interviews with his family, discussions about coming-out in pro sports, and insight from Gareth Thomas. (Unfortunately the vid can't be viewed outside of Canada because those Canadians are just plain mean! Oh sure, they act all nice, but we know the truth...). h/t to Campion We're inching ever closer to being able to see Anderson Cooper in our homes every day! Okay, we can actually do that now, but not in daytime! I'm From Driftwood continues their 50-state Story Tour, collecting true Glbt stories from all across America to send a powerful message to youth: You are not alone. Below you can see Kyle McElwain tell his coming-out and bullying story,...

Plus you can dress like Lafayette, visit Wipeout's Big Balls, and was Little Fockers really necessary?

A moment of silence, because the world has stopped turning. Thursday was the last taping of As the World Turns, even though the final episode doesn’t air until September.

Speaking of As the World Turns, fans of Van Hansis are starting early this year raising funds to donate in Van’s name to Walnut Hill School for the Arts.

When I next start to complain about my life, I’ll think about Rick Oliver. Actually, I’ll probably still complain but I’ll feel bad about it, because Oliver was struck by lightning, and a few weeks ago was mauled by a bear.

I’ll be honest, reading Vanity Fair’s review of the Audi Q7, I kept hearing bow-chica-bow-wow music, because it reads like the script from an adult film. This may...

After the recent gay-baiting in Chicago around the recent National Hockey League championship — first by the Chicago Tribune which posted a picture of Philadelphia Flyer Chris Pronger in a skirt, then by someone in the lockerroom of the Blackhawks who wrote "Chris Pronger is gay" on a board — it's nice to be able to report that the Blackhawks have decided to participate in this year's Gay Pride Parade in Chicago.

Blackhawks President John McDonough is sending the Stanley Cup (the trophy awarded to the winner) to the parade and Brent Sopel, a defenseman for the Blackhawks, is going to represent the team. Said Sopel, "I am honored to do it." Sopel will be joined by his wife and their four kids which I think is a great sign of how much the world has changed.

No doubt Tony Perkins of the American Family Association is already composing a press release condemning the whole thing.

Plus Details should stick to covers, Glee isn't family-friendly viewing, and Mike White is racing to HBO.

JustJared has the info on three upcoming covers of Details which feature the hunks of True Blood, including Alexander Skarsgard. I think Details should just stick to covers and forget about the crappy content inside. A former High Court Justice in Australia would swap ten judges for one out Ricky Martin. Um ... I hear one of our Supreme Court Justices may be retiring soon.

Oxygen's Tori & Dean debuted its fifth season this week, and it remains one of the best shows on TV for positive gay visibility. The premiere was built around a cross-country Rv road trip, and while Tori's gay Bff Mehran couldn't join them, "guncles" Scout and Billy made the trip. This season will find the pair continuing their plan to adopt a baby, and below you can see that Billy is a natural.

Unlike Sir Elton, he wears grease well.

Following this assortment of carefully-selected news items, interested readers can find a refreshing pic of a hot man in underwear. Yes, we're serious.

Above you can see Ewan McGregor on the cover of Out, and I'd just like to state: This man is now my hero. He has become the first member of Hollywood to call horsepuckey on how all these gay-themed movies are presented. There was quite a lot of talk at Sundance that, ‘Well, it’s not a gay movie. It’s a film about guys who happen to be gay.’ And I was thinking, it’s nothing but a gay movie. It’s about a gay couple, about a man’s sexuality, and he comes out. It’s not the point of the film, but let’s not pretend it’s not a gay film. Will & Grace creators David Kohan...

Brendan and Brian Burke

In truly sad news, it was reported late Friday night that that twenty-one-year old Brendan Burke, son of Toronto Maple Leafs' general manager Brian Burke, was killed in a car accident in Indiana. According to a statement released by the team, Burke "succumbed to injuries he suffered in an auto accident earlier (Friday) in Indiana. The family asks for privacy at this difficult time."

Reports say the accident occurred in Wayne County, Indiana a black Jeep slid into the opposite land and hit another vehicle head on. Weather, including heavy snows, were cited as the cause. 

Brendan made headlines when his coming out story was made public last year on Espn.

Before the Ball dropped in Times Square to ring in 2009, the Great Gay Debate was underway in America. Prop. 8 was the catalyst, and in its wake everyone had an opinion on Glbt civil rights. We listened. We blogged. But someone else was watching too. Someone who sees you when you're sleeping, who knows when you're awake. Someone who knows when you've been bad or good — and keeps a list to prove it.

Yep, Santa Claus is coming to town in just a few days, and we've managed to get our hands on his 2009 Naughty and Nice list. The folks on the Naughty list will get a lump of clean burning coal in their stockings this year, and a rainbow-colored Asshat. The Nice list will receive an AfterElton.com Crown of Visibility, and "Glee: The Music, Volumes 1 and 2."

The Naughty List

The Fort Worth, Texas Police Department

2009 marked the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots,...

A record number of celebrities came out in 2009, making it that much easier for the next one.

Gay celebrities used to mostly follow one of two formulas for coming out:

1. Get caught in an personal situation by a tabloid, i.e. Danny Pintauro

2. Get tired of not being out and call up favorite lifestyle magazine to break the news gently to their three fans who hadn’t already succumbed to the rumors. i.e. Ellen DeGeneres, Lance Bass

But something new happened in 2009, because the path to a celebrity's closet door became as varied as it is for those of us in the real world. We had the “I was always out” or the “casual mention” coming out. Then we added the “bring the boyfriend to an event” coming out which took the nonchalant route. And perhaps then there is most interesting: the “product tie-in” which, as far as I know,...

Every week we pick the gays who we think have made the biggest splash in television (or pop culture in general) and leave it to you, the keepers of the flame, to decide who will be crowned Gay of the Week.

Last week's results had soap opera character Oliver Fish beating out the real live Brendan Burke for the crown. Many, many people were frustrated by that result and felt it was unfair (and perhaps shallow) to pit frothy popular fictional characters against real world heroes. Well, we definitely heard you and are trying something a little different moving forward.

As you may have noticed, the Best Gay Week Ever column now contains a Hero of the Week poll, which allows us to recognize those real world individuals with more substantial contributions to the world at large. Moving forward, that's where we'll tip our hat to the Brendan Burkes, the Rachel Maddows,...

Every week we pick the gays who we think have made the biggest splash in television (or pop culture in general) and leave it to you, the keepers of the flame, to decide who will be crowned Gay of the Week. We'll announce the winner on Friday, and that champ will reign until a new set of challengers are introduced the following week to try to steal his title.

Last week everyone was off for the Thanksgiving weekend, so no one was crowned. We're back with a vengeance this week with four fine contenders courtesy of a jealous cop, an album drop, a change in Facebook relationship status, and a gay son's hockey-infused coming out story.

Check them out after the break, and vote for your favorite!

This week's contenders:

One Life to Live's Oliver Fish (played by Scott Evans). Oliver's become quite a fixture around here. We thought...

Broadway Speaks is hosting "A Very Mary Christmas" to benefit The Ali Forney Center in providing services to homeless Glbt youth. Guests are Sandra Berhardt and RuPaul's Drag Race winner Bebe Zahara Benet (pictured in teaser photo), while performers include Nick Adam's biceps, Logo's own Jeffery Cole, Cole Escola, Bd Wong and more. Tickets are available from $25.

I spend so much time writing about homophobic NFL players and homophobic NBA players that I don't know what to do with gay-supportive NHL players. First we had a retired player write an editorial in USA Today wishing he'd done more to combat homophobia. Now we have Brendan Burke, son of hockey legend Brian Burke, coming out to his family, and his college team, and finding nothing but support.

It's not enough that The Daily Show is the best advocate we have on television, they have to go and make it even easier to love them,...