There’s long been a desire for a gay version of “The Golden Girls.”

GenX (and younger) fans who have loved that show’s iconic quartet of aging female “frenemies” have been clamoring for it since the actual “Golden Girls” was still on the air – so by the time the creators of “Mid-Century Modern” came up with the idea for a show about three gay friends “of a certain age” (and one cantankerous mother) living together in Palm Springs, it was hardly an original idea. Yet even if they weren’t the first to fantasize about a show featuring the gay male equivalents of Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and Sophia, it hardly matters. They were the ones that actually made it happen.

That’s due in large part to who they are – or at least, what they’ve done before. The two men who hatched the plot (Max Mutchnick and David Kohan) were also responsible for “Will & Grace.” After they teamed up for a brainstorming session with queer TV powerhouse Ryan Murphy – who eagerly joined forces with them as the show’s executive producer – there was enough viability behind it to bring the long-gestated dream to fruition at last.

The “at last” came this week, when all 10 episodes of the show’s debut season dropped on Hulu, and it’s undeniable that there was not only a dream behind it, but also a considerable amount of talent – most obviously in its casting. Headlining (as “lingerie mogul” Bunny Schneiderman) is longtime stage/screen/TV star Nathan Lane, a multi-award winner who is a legend for his “Bird Cage” performance alone, with eternally hunky Matt Bomer adding a whole different flavor of star power as ditsy-but-sweet-hearted (and blithely promiscuous) flight attendant Jerry. The trio of friends is rounded out by former fashion columnist Arthur, played with imperious aplomb by Nathan Lee Graham, a lesser-known but equally well-rounded veteran performer whose resume includes roles in “Zoolander” and “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert,” as well as a guest appearance on “Absolutely Fabulous.” Finally, sitcom royalty (and Tony-winner) Linda Lavin – who passed away in December, after filming had completed on the show’s inaugural season – is on hand to steal scenes as Sybil, Bunny’s pull-no-punches mother, who owns the house they all live in and makes sure to assert her matriarchal dominance at every opportunity.

In the pilot episode, titled “Bye, George,” Bunny, Jerry, and Arthur reunite to mourn the death of an old companion, with whom the trio of friends once formed a quartet. With each of them facing the uncertainty of a new life after changes in the old one have left them to cope on their own, Bunny decides to invite his two remaining buddies to move with him to Palm Springs, to live with his mother Sybil in a spectacular mid-century modern (hence the name) house that would probably make Frank Sinatra jealous. The arrangement, however, becomes precarious even before it officially begins, when Bunny connects with a much-younger hook-up and becomes smitten – forcing his two would-be roommates into a scheme to bring him back to his senses before he rescinds their invitation and offers it to his new “boyfriend” instead. It’s classic sitcom material, of course, with lots of crossed wires and jumped conclusions to fuel the wackiness – though in this case, at least, the show stops short of the zany hijinks one might expect from Lucy and Ethel (or even Rose or Blanche) before wrapping things up with a friendship-affirming bow. We can’t fault it for that; there’s a premise to be launched here, after all.

Besides, there’s plenty of other comfortable old-school sitcom fun to be had throughout: a sparring match between Arthur and Sybil, whose love-hate dynamic quickly sets the stage for an ongoing battle of sharp wits and sharper tongues; the air-headed naivete of Jerry, with Bomer both leaning into and undercutting the cliché of the pretty-but-dumb aging “twunk”; and Bunny’s sincere but impulsive starry-eyed sentimentality, which is frequently undercut by his “Dorothy-esque” natural instinct (and Lane’s natural talent) for bitchy queendom.

Yet while there are clear choices to mirror the iconic personality traits of the original “Golden Girls” crew in “Mid-Century Modern,” the new series seems less regimented in defining each of its characters quite so succinctly, opting instead for a sort of “blend” in which the familiar personas of the former show’s leading ladies are spread a little more evenly between the four of them together. The result is a show that is obviously a new variation on an established theme, but one in which echoes of the original can be detected in each of its disparate elements rather than confined within the plainly-delineated parameters from which they have been inherited. To put it more plainly, it’s a show that acknowledges and embraces the material which inspired it, but goes beyond mere imitation to carve a space of its own. Neither a remake nor a reboot, it’s more like an offspring, a separate entity unto itself despite the DNA it shares with its progenitor.

Which is, of course, the only way a show like this can have any real chance of success; to attempt a direct copy of the series that inspired it would spark inevitable (and well-deserved) criticisms of laziness, along with the myriad quibbles which would undoubtedly arise from displeased “Golden Girls” fans; yet to diverge too radically from the established format would eliminate the very reason for its existence. Its seasoned creators were savvy enough to know that a gimmick only goes so far, and they build a show that leaves room for growth beyond its origin as a nostalgic homage into a series with the potential to succeed in its own right. And with the first season helmed by director James Burrows (an 11-time Emmy-winner for his work on shows like “Taxi,” “Cheers” “Frasier” and “Will & Grace”), who brings the experienced hand necessary to create the kind of authentically “retro” piece of entertainment that this one aspires to be, the old-school vibe feels as fresh as it did when “The Golden Girls” debuted – almost 40 full years ago.

Whether that nostalgic pull is enough to make the show a hit is hard to predict. It has laugh-out-loud moments, and convincingly reasserts the importance of genuine friendship and chosen family that has always been a common element in such shows. At the same time, while “The Golden Girls” was unequivocally queer-friendly, it was not specifically queer-themed. Given today’s polarized sensibilities around queer content, the timing might be wrong to permit this decidedly queer evolution of its premise – which saucily pulls no punches when it comes to the details of queer sexuality as personified in its three very different but equally randy protagonists – to have the same universal appeal that made it a long-running mainstream hit.

Only time will tell. For now, you can watch the entire first season on Hulu, and make that call for yourself. For our part, we’re just happy to have another high-profile queer show to enjoy, because we all really need that right about now.

You’re invited to a rare night of music with comedian Margaret Cho.  After an eight year hiatus from playing music, yes, you heard that correctly – playing music – this five-time Grammy nominee released her “Lucky Gift” album in February.    

On Tuesday April 1, following an in-depth Q&A with music journalist Lyndsey Parker,  Cho and her band will perform selected songs from “Lucky Gift.” The band will also be discussing the new album and her creative process – followed by the special performance. This event will be happening at The Grammy Museum.

We have partnered with The Grammy Museum to give away pairs of tickets to our lucky winners. Win your tickets by entering here!

The ticket giveaway will close Friday, March 28 at 4P.M. PT.

Check out our exclusive chat with Cho about her return to music, activism and Pop Diva saviors!

Billboard will be hosting the Women in Music event this Saturday, March 29 at the Youtube Theatre, featuring Doechii as the Woman of the Year and Laverne Cox as host.

Becky G will be among the award presenters during this event, alongside many other exciting performers and presenters.

Los Angeles Blade partnered with Billboard to announce a ticket giveaway for a lucky winner to win a pair (2) tickets to the event.

To enter to win, visit our Instagram page and like, comment and share the post about the ticket giveaway. Make sure to tell us in the comments why you deserve to win and who you look forward to seeing live!

The ticket giveaway will close tomorrow, Tuesday, March 25 at 4P.M. PT.

For more information on the event, visit the Women in Music page.

During a time when members of politics seem hell-bent on keeping queer voices silenced, Los Angles continues to be home to a thriving, queer community of poets. On March 28^th at 5 pm, 19 renowned LGBTQ+ poets and authors from across the country will be tongue tied at Precinct in Downtown Los Angeles for a free poetry event titled ‘Tongue Tied.’

This group of writers will be reading their queerest work while shibari bondage artist Jupiter will create rope ties on the poets while they perform. The night asks: what does it mean to create under restraint?

The mastermind behind Poetry Unbound is Brian Sonia-Wallace, a leading figure in the literary world with published work and who also served as the 4th Poet Laureate of West Hollywood. He is also a performance artist who has written poetry for strangers in the most unconventional of ways. We talked with Sonia-Wallace about his career, the literary community in L.A and what to expect from the event.

What was your first exposure to poetry, and what attracted you to get into that literary genre?

I was a fantasy nerd growing up and loved the songs and spells in Tolkien, CS Lewis, Ursula Le Guin, and Susan Cooper. The idea that you could invent a world with words — and new languages to inhabit that world — blew my little gay mind. Wizards always need a magic word.

This has, I think, affected my view of poetry in the world. I have, well, an academic interest in poetry’s history and structure, but I’m more curious about how pure language can short-circuit our ability to feel. People use poetry — at weddings, at funerals, on anniversaries. I think the goal of all artists is to say the ‘unsayable’ and in that little piece of magic make it suddenly sayable by anyone. Poetry feels to me like the most pure way to do this.

How does your queerness add to your poetry?

I think queer people are natural poets — we’re masters of the ‘unsayable.’ We’ve all had long conversations with ourselves before deciding whether or not to let anyone in. 

As a type of performance art meets poetry, you have literally written poetry for strangers on the street. What is your mission with this type of writing?

Capitalism, baby! Honestly, this is how I accidentally started my business (we do lots of everything from weddings to corporate events to museums now with poets at typewriters). 

But getting a little deeper, let me share this passage from my book:

“It seems to me that most people just need their stories to be heard. And that need is the right word. That we lose something when our stories are not heard. That something not only in us, but in the world, dies.

With every poem I write, I remember that the value of a story doesn’t depend on how many likes or retweets it gets, or how many people it reaches.

Sometimes, just one person hearing a story — is enough.”

-The Poetry of Strangers

Does any particular stranger you wrote for stick out in your memory?

So we did an event this week for Sketchers (thanks for the shoes, Sketchers!) where I got to write for various shoe executives from around the country. Almost all the women wanted poems about their kids, toddlers or young adults, on whom these mothers had spent so many thankless hours. About half of them cried, hearing their stories reflected back – having them witnessed. How often is that love and labor seen and acknowledged?

Likewise, one young man spent 15 minutes just pouring out his gratitude for his mom. She was his biggest cheerleader growing up, and when he packed up to move for this job a quilt she made him was the first thing he packed and unpacked. Who else can a man gush to about his mom?

Finally, an older man, from the South, white-haired, almost-military-bearing. Traditional, you understand. Who knows how he voted? I didn’t ask. He wanted a poem for his mom. The first thing he told me was that she was an alcoholic, but had been sober 30+ years, ever since his daughter was born and he’d given her an ultimatum: booze or the grandkid. The grandkid won. And now grandma was dying of cancer, he felt guilty his wife was taking care of her back home. His mom could always laugh at herself, he told me. He remembered when he was six her running down the sidelines with him all the way to a touchdown in a peewee football game. 

After I read him his poem, he hugged me so hard the event photographer practically jumped on top of us and started snapping photos, eager to capture the emotion.

It’s become cliche to talk about the crisis of masculinity in the US. What these experiences show me is that there’s a vulnerability and even an eagerness to engage with it, but we’re not always helping people find the tools. Therapy is one. But so’s poetry. So’s bowling. You know. Being with people. Seeing and being seen.

You also served as the fourth West Hollywood City Poet Laureate for a number of years. What was your biggest accomplishment or best memory from serving in that position? 

The Laureateship taught me so much and really helped me feel like I could and should speak about and with our community. I think I’m most proud of helping re-start the APLA Health Writers’ Group for older adults living with HIV, which has existed since 1989 but was defunct until we relaunched it on Zoom during the COVID lockdowns. That, or the poetry walk on Santa Monica Blvd on the median strip west of The Abbey, check it out!

One of my goals is always to bring poetry to unlikely places, and where better to start in WeHo than the gay bars on the Santa Monica Blvd strip? We started an open mic at Micky’s and now are at The Wild (check out our UnBound series, March 19 is the next one!) — it’s been a joy running an event that focuses on people’s voices and stories in places that are often purely physical, and creating a platform for hundreds of artists in our community.

Tongue Tied — what is the correlation between poetry and shibari?

When Jupiter first tied me up I knew I had to get him for a poetry show. The work he does with shibari, the exploration of discomfort and trust, felt weirdly similar to what I do, emotionally, at the typewriter. It’s about a moment of intentionality and slowing down that has the potential to be transformational.

That said, I’m also a theater person and get bored at poetry readings. I need visuals! Cue: watching poets get tied up. I love the juxtaposition, the reminder that these minds are also bodies, and the challenge to the poets to not just come do their usual schtick but to have a genuine, first-time moment with their work and with all of us.

You have quite an impressive group of poets for this event, how did you gather them all together?

Gosh, some great people said yes, didn’t they? These queens have Pulitzers and professorships. I’ve attended the AWP Conference for three years now, and built relationships through that time — but I’ve also just been a fan and asked! There’s nothing like when your idol says they’ll do your show.

What do you want the audience to walk away with the most from experiencing Tongue Tied?

I hope they leave tongue-tied! Ok, ok, I couldn’t resist. I hope folks will go away having seen something they’ve never seen before and will never see again, that they find their new favorite artist, befriend their idol, and, if they’ve never written a poem before, promptly go and do so.

Tell us about the thriving queer poetry community in Los Angeles.

LA is one of those cities where I’m constantly finding out about new events and pockets I’d never heard of. The Nonfiction Show at Nico’s Wines in Glendale? So cool! Empty Trash (formerly at The Ruby Fruit)? How do they get these writers?! Act 3 Open Mic in DTLA (@act3openmic)? So many queer rappers practicing their craft. 

And that’s not counting the bookstores. I don’t know if you’ve been following the news, but reading is gay now. Always has been.

What are the biggest challenges facing a queer poet in today’s social and political climate?

It’s a sign of my middling success in the literary world that none of my books has been banned yet, and I’ve been known to talk about trans witches and pups getting fisted, so go figure. But we know about book banning.

I think the thing we’ll be seeing coming up is a shift in our language. Queer folks have always developed their own language to pass undetected (think Polari) and now as we’re seeing the widespread destruction of funding and even mention of anything BTQ+ and even LG, I’m thinking with some smart people about how to shore up support at the local level and lie convincingly, in a way that lets only friend in, at the national level.

It’s bleak, but we’ve always found each other. Always will.

What else can we look forward to from your group this year? 

Pride Poets will be at the WeHo/LGBT Center’s Pride Arts Festival, and partnering with Beverly Hills to help with their 4th ever Pride celebration — and look out for some poetics at World Pride in DC as well! I have a commission out there premiering that week at a certain highly reputable institution with a new cheeto-haired chairman, if I don’t blow it by being too gay first.

What is your message to the queer community?

Be gay, do crime.

Always gotta lead with that. But really: find your people, trust your people are out there, and don’t be afraid of anyone, especially yourself.

Event Details:

Location: Precinct, 357 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013

Date & Time: Friday March 28, 5-7 pm

Free Admission

The featured poets include Pulitzer Prize winners, Poets Laureate, professors, activists, and published authors: Paul Tran, Chen Chen, Lloyd Schwartz, Kai Coggin, Shangyang Fang, Benjamin Garcia, Sam Sax, Randall Mann, Armen Davoudian, Gustavo Hernandez, Hieu Minh Nguyen, Yazmin Monet Watkins, Dorothy Randall Grey, Elizabeth Burch-Hudson, KÁNYIN Olorunnisola, Yosimar Reyes, Frankie Tan, and Pastiche Queen.

If you’ve ever headed off for a dream getaway that turned out to be an AirBnB nightmare instead, you might be in the target audience for “The Parenting” – and if you also happen to be in a queer relationship and have had the experience of “meeting the parents,” then it was essentially made just for you.

Now streaming on Max, where it premiered on March 13, and helmed by veteran TV (“Looking,” “Minx”) and film (“The Skeleton Twins,” “Alex Strangelove”) director Craig Johnson from a screenplay by former “SNL” writer Kurt Sublette, it’s a very gay horror comedy in which a young couple goes through both of those excruciatingly relatable experiences at once. And for those who might be a bit squeamish about the horror elements, we can assure you without spoilers that the emphasis is definitely on the comedy side of this equation.

Set in upstate New York, it centers on a young gay couple – Josh (Brandon Flynn) and Rohan (Nik Dodani) – who are happily and obviously in love, and they are proud doggie daddies to prove it. In fact, they are so much in love that Rohan has booked a countryside house specifically to propose marriage, with the pretext of assembling both sets of their parents so that each of them can meet the other’s family for the very first time. They arrive at their rustic rental just in time for an encounter with their quirky-but-amusing host (Parker Posey), whose hints that the house may have a troubling history leave them snickering. 

When their respective families arrive, things go predictably awry. Rohan’s adopted parents (Edie Falco, Brian Cox) are successful, sophisticated, and aloof; Josh’s folks (Lisa Kudrow, Dean Norris) are down-to-earth, unpretentious, and gregarious; to make things even more awkward, the couple’s BFF gal pal Sara (Vivian Bang) shows up uninvited, worried that Rohan’s secret engagement plan will go spectacularly wrong under the unpredictable circumstances. Those hiccups, and worse, begin to fray Josh and Rohan’s relationship at the edges, revealing previously unseen sides of each other that make them doubt their fitness as a couple  – but they’re nothing compared to what happens when they discover that they’re also sharing the house with a 400-year-old paranormal entity, who has big plans of its own for the weekend after being trapped there alone for decades. To survive – and to save their marriage before it even happens – they must unite with each other and the rest of their feuding guests to defeat it, before it uses them to escape and wreak its evil will upon the world.

Drawing from a long tradition of “haunted house” tropes, “The Parenting” takes to heart its heritage in this campiest-of-all horror settings, from the gathering of antagonistic strangers that come together to confront its occult secrets to the macabre absurdity of its humor, much of which is achieved by juxtaposing the arcane with the banal as it filters its supernatural clichés through the familiar trappings of everyday modern life; secret spells can be found in WiFi passwords instead of ancient scrolls, the noisy disturbances of a poltergeist can be mistaken for unusually loud sex in the next room, and the shocking obscenities spewed from the mouth of a malevolent spectre can seem as mundane as the homophobic chatter of your Boomer uncle at the last family gathering.

At the same time, it’s a movie that treats its “hook” – the unpredictable clash of personalities that threatens to mar any first-time meeting with the family or friends of a new partner, so common an experience as to warrant a separate sub-genre of movies in itself – as something more than just an excuse to bring this particular group of characters together. The interpersonal politics and still-developing dynamics between each of the three couples centered by the plot are arguably more significant to the film’s purpose than the goofy details of its backstory, and it is only by navigating those treacherous waters that either of their objectives (combining families and conquering evil) can be met; even Sara, who represents the chosen family already shared by the movie’s two would-be grooms, has her place in the negotiations, underlining the perhaps-already-obvious parallels that can be drawn from a story about bridging our differences and rising above our egos to work together for the good of all.

Of course, most horror movies (including the comedic ones) operate with a similar reliance on subtext, serving to give them at least the suggestion of allegorical intent around some real-world issue or experience – but one of the key takeaways from “The Parenting” is how much more satisfyingly such narrative formulas can play when the movie in question assembles a cast of Grade-A actors to bring them to life, and this one – which brings together veteran scene-stealers Falco, Kudrow, Cox, Norris, and resurgent “it” girl Posey, adding another kooky characterization to a resume full of them – plays that as its winning card. They’re helped by Sublett’s just-intelligent-enough script, of course, which benefits from a refusal to take itself too seriously and delivers plenty of juicy opportunities for each of its actors to strut their stuff, including the hilarious Bang; but it’s their high-octane skills that bring it to life with just the right mix of farcical caricature and redeeming humanity. Heading the pack as the movie’s main couple, the exceptional talent and chemistry of Dodani and Flynn help them hold their own among the seasoned ensemble, and make it easy for us to be invested enough in their couplehood to root for them all the way through.

As for the horror, though Johnson’s movie plays mostly for laughs, it does give its otherworldly baddie a certain degree of dignity, even though his menace is mostly cartoonish. Indeed, at times the film is almost reminiscent of an edgier version of “Scooby-Doo”, which is part of its goofy charm, but its scarier moments have enough bite to leave reasonable doubt about the possibility of a happy ending. Even so, “The Parenting” likes its shocks to be ridiculous – it’s closer to “Beetlejuice” than to “The Shining” in tone – and anyone looking for a truly terrifying horror film won’t find it here.

What they will find is a brisk, clever, saucy, and yes, campy piece of entertainment that will keep you smiling almost all the way through its hour-and-a-half runtime, with the much-appreciated bonus of an endearing queer romance – and a refreshingly atypical one, at that – at its heart. And if watching it in our current political climate evokes yet another allegory in the mix, about the resurgence of an ancient hate during a gay couple’s bid for acceptance from their families, well maybe that’s where the horror comes in.

The City of West Hollywood and its LGBTQ+ Commission will host the annual Rainbow Key Awards to recognize nominees who have made outstanding contributions to the LGBTQ+ community. 

This year’s Rainbow Key Awards Ceremony will be free and held in-person on Sunday, April 6, at 6PM at the city’s Council Chambers and Public Meeting Room, located at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard.

This year’s awards will honor the awardees who were selected by the LGBTQ+ Commission listed below.

• Dapper Dyke Vivian Escalante is a leader in lesbian activism who established Dykes on Bikes in West Hollywood and Long Beach. In a time of limited representation, her work toward the visibility and empowerment of the lesbian community stood out above others.
• Rebecca Gitlin Ph.D served as the first LGBTQ+ Services Specialist at the LA County Department of Mental Health’s Anti-Racism, Inclusion, Solidarity and Empowerment Division. She now serves as a clinical supervisor at the LACDMH Hollywood Mental Health Cooperative. Gitlin has been instrumental in ensuring that both identity and gender-affirming are included in all of the services provided by LACDMH.
• LZ Love is a legendary African American transfeminine singer who has entertained for decades with her blues, gospel, and dance music. She started her career at age 16 and served as a background vocalist for the great disco diva Sylvester. She has performed at Pride events across the nation and has performed at the City of West Hollywood’s annual Transgender Day of Remembrance.
• Brian Sonia-Wallace founded Pride Poets, the band of LGBTQ+ typewriter poets who have collectively written thousands of free custom poems at West Hollywood Pride events and beyond since 2019, giving the community a chance to have their stories of love, loss, and celebration honored through poetry. He served as West Hollywood’s 4th Poet Laureate from 2020-2023, creating space for hundreds of LGBTQ+ writers to express themselves and build community through the APLA Writers’ Workshop, The Mic @ Micky’s, and the West Hollywood Slam Team.
• Jackie Beat is a drag superstar who has been entertaining audiences across the U.S. and Europe for over three decades. Beat is known for her razor-sharp comedy and hysterical song parodies. Apart from her live tours, Beat has also worked in the film and television industry and has often used her talents to raise money for HIV and AIDS charities and other organizations supporting the LGBTQ+ community.The awards ceremony will be immediately followed by a reception and afterparty on the Respite Deck at the West Hollywood Park Aquatic and Recreation Center, adjacent to West Hollywood Library.

Additional information for this free event, including registration details, is available at the city’s website or by RSVP at Eventbrite. For those unable to attend, the event will also be live-streamed and recorded on the city’s WeHoTV channel on YouTube.

As part of Los Angeles Blade’s mission to get to know our community, we continue to do a deep dive into personalities who represent the queer culture of entertainment, nightlife, activism and politics.

In this “Meet Your Local” column, we celebrate club culture.

For those of us who frequent the queer nightlife, we have come to know dancer Jake Mathews, SoCal’s go-to go-go boy. Jake’s dance card is full as you can find him at any of the popular nightclubs throughout the week, sometimes dancing in multiple locations in one day.

He’s keeping busy, raising money to continue his education. He has been instrumental in adding some positive energy to the nightlife space and his personality makes any patron feel welcomed and comfortable. His trademark dance moves reflect his extensive training in dancing with the pole, it is an art form unto itself.

We sat down with Jake in between his dance sets to get to know the person beyond the persona.

Hometown: Morgan City, Louisiana 

How did you get into go-go dancing?

I got into go-go dancing at 19 on the reboot of the show Queer as Folk. Since then, I haven’t turned back and have danced in numerous cities and bars!

What do you love most about dancing in the queer LA nightlife?

I love the community that I’ve found. When people make an effort to come support me it means a lot. 

What do you love most about life in LA?

The resources that are available for our community. 

What are some of the misconceptions people have about a go-go dancer in LA?

They often sexualize us and believe they have easy access to us. Some of us live a completely different life outside of dancing and put on a persona while on stage. 

You are also a pole artist. How does that differ from your go-go dancing?

Pole dancing feels more like an art, rather than entertaining a crowd on energy. 

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How does being queer add to your dance artistry?

I like to freely express myself while dancing and am not limited to any societal standards. 

How do you balance your personal life with the nightlife?

I don’t get much sleep. Go-Go dancing allows me to live my daytime life, which consists of being busy. I’m starting my master’s program this summer thanks to Go-Go dancing! 

What is your biggest pet peeve while go-go dancing?

I don’t like when people touch my private areas. As I previously said, the audience does not have that access or permission to do so. 

What are some of your favorite venues to dance at and why?

I love dancing at the Abbey because of the co-workers! It feels like I’m part of something greater than me – especially with Chappell’s “Pink Pony Club.”

What do you want most out of your career?

I want to inspire others to give it a try. 

Any advice to give a new Go-Go dancer?

Don’t worry too much about those negative thoughts in your head. In other words, if you’re thinking about how the crowd is perceiving you, find a way to redirect that thinking. People love you for you! You shouldn’t be like everyone else. 

Favorite hobbies when you aren’t dancing:

I like to read & write, travel and listen to live music. 

Is dating hard while being such a big part of the nightlife?

No. Nightlife is just another job! A partner should be able to accept the work one enjoys. Scheduling together time may be difficult, but this is common with many careers.

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A post shared by jake (@jakemtws)

What is your signature dance move?

It used to be shoulder stands until I damaged my ear. I usually just freestyle and hope for the best!

Favorite song to dance to:

I like to dance to EDM because I feel so free!! 

And your message to the queer community?

We need everyone in our community to come together and support each other in the daytime and the nighttime. This means coming out to nightlife, supporting queer artists, volunteering for our community, and acting as a safe space for each other.  

Follow Jake on IG: @jakemtws

Earlier this year, the organization expressed transphobic remarks on social media through the Queer Mercado Instagram account. The co-founder Diana Díaz, says she trusted the wrong person to run that account and represent the Queer Mercado and also says that the person who made the comment didn’t realize they were commenting through the brand’s account. 

Díaz says she believes that she is now making better decisions to benefit Queer Mercado and continue nurturing it, so it can continue growing. She is open to conversations regarding the event and how to make it a safer space for the communities involved. 

In an interview with Díaz, she said she was inspired to create this space because as a school counselor for K-12 public school education in Boyle Heights, she was the first person that parents would go to when their child would come out as queer. Her students trusted her as an ally to go to when they felt like they needed support as queer and trans children. 

“I worked at all the local school districts as a school counselor and I got to see how the family would react to their child coming out and it was very painful and very personal to me because I love these kids,” said Díaz. 

She said that she couldn’t understand why so many of those parents reacted the way they did, knowing that these children were perfectly healthy and only looking for safety and support during a difficult and confusing time. 

Although Díaz admits that she is not part of the LGBTQ+ community, she has strong ties to the community as an ally for children who have to not only deal with coming out and coming to terms with their identities, but who also have to deal with the extra burden of coming out within the Latinx community, which often reinforces misogyny, homophobia and transphobia. 

Under this particularly hostile administration, it is rare to find an ally like Díaz, who not only stands up for the most vulnerable members of the LGBTQ+ community, but who also tirelessly works to make spaces like Queer Mercado, where the families of those children can feel welcome to explore these identities and this community in a way that is inclusive of all ages. Díaz says she made this space for the Latinx families and parents of LGBTQ+ children in an effort to build stronger relationships. 

“I recruited artists and other volunteers to help me start the market,” said Díaz. “I didn’t see a problem with an ally doing it because there is no other free public space for queer families like [Queer Mercado].” 

She also notes that this is the only space designated for art and community, specifically catered to the Latinx community in a city with one of the largest demographics of queer and trans Latinx people. 

“I know not every grandma is going to be able to go to The Abbey, you know in West Hollywood, or Precinct. Some of us like to go to bed early.” 

Díaz was first the founder of Goddess Mercado and says that when she started it, one of her students asked her about creating a space for LGBTQ+ families and this is when she thought of creating the Queer Mercado. She saw the need for this space and realized she could be the person to bring the representation that was needed. 

Díaz comes from a family who made their living as vendors at swapmeets and other community spaces, so a space like this for her is deeply personal. 

ChiChi LaPinga, multi-hyphanated activist and community leader in queer and trans spaces,  was recently hired as Director of Outreach for the Queer Mercado. They are now in charge of facilitating ideas about how to better the Mercado and make the space as safe as possible for everyone who identifies as a member of the queer and trans communities. 

Earlier this year when the Queer Mercado was caught up in this issue, many community members, vendors and attendees who avidly supported the event, said they no longer wanted to support it, if Díaz didn’t step down. Díaz founded the event and continues to believe that she can do more to bridge the gap between hostile families and their queer and trans children, by continuing her efforts as founder. 

What she now says, is that she needs to take steps to gain community trust back by bringing in people who are willing and able to learn, grow, evolve and make the space better than ever. 

As part of that action plan, the Mercado released a survey to the community in February to gain a better understanding of community needs going forward. 

“I think that this [incident] is a perfect example of why there needs to be queer people in positions of leadership – so that people who aren’t part of the queer community like Diana, are guided through the process,” said ChiChi LaPinga. 

ChiChi LaPinga is a Mexican, trans and nonbinary community leader and activist in Los Angeles who has built a reputation throughout years, working and representing the queer, trans and Latinx communities. 

They say that people like Díaz should be putting people who are queer, who are part of the community, in these positions of influence and power and this incident proves why that is so important and crucial to a space like this. 

“It was a very unfortunate situation. It was an error made by ignorance and something that I personally do not condone, right me as a transgender, non binary person, as a decent basic, you know, as a decent human being,” said ChiChi La Pinga. “I am also not the expert on all things, and I rely on my community to educate me on those things, and that is what all allies should do.”

Starting in March, and going forward, ChiChi LaPinga said they have pushed for there to be more panel discussions incorporated into the events where they can discuss issues that affect the community from different perspectives. 

“One of the changes that I’ve always wanted to see at the Queer Mercado was to have panel discussions on stage, which is something that I introduced last month and am continuing this month,” said ChiChi LaPinga. 

In our candid conversation, ChiChi LaPinga opened up about their own identity and struggles with embracing their identities within a culture that is misogynistic, homophobic and transphobic. They say they understand the community response and push-back for change in leadership, because Queer Mercado should be run by people who are inclusive and accepting of all identities within the LGBTQ+ umbrella.

However, Díaz says she founded the mercado, which is why she hopes to continue leading it, but in a new way that incorporates new voices into conversations about how to move forward.

She saw a need for a space like this and made it happen for her students and their families. She says she hopes that the conversations can continue to help her make better decisions going forward.

Ultimately, ChiChi LaPinga advices the community to make the decision to return to Queer Mercado on their own and only if they feel ready to do so.

“If you do not feel safe in certain spaces, make the decision that is best for you, because I would do the same,” said ChiChi LaPinga.

The 13th annual Queerties hit off this year at the biggest venue yet, honoring the best in queer culture and media across the internet, podcasting, TV, film, sports, music and entertainment. 

Over 2.5 million votes were cast to nominate and award the best in LGBTQ+ entertainment. 

The awards ceremony hit off in Hollywood, bringing together the LGBTQ+ community from across LA and beyond. 

Honorees and nominees from David Archuleta to Marissa Bode and a plethora of Ru Paul’s Drag Race queens came together to make this year’s awards ceremony unforgettable. 

Glee star, Chris Colfer presented this year’s Groundbreaker award to Marissa Bode, who made history by playing Nessarose Thropp in the box-office hit, Wicked. 

Colfer gleefully presented the award to Bode, while expressing his own personal experience of having a sibling who uses a wheelchair. He sincerely thanked her for the valid representation she brought on screen as he presented her with the award.

Bode accepted the award for her historic representation as Elphaba’s sister on Wicked. She used her acceptance speech as an opportunity to thank the marginalized communities that she represents as a queer, brown, disabled person. 
The next award was presented to legendary drag king Murray Hill by queer actor Tim Bagley, who is the co-star in Somebody Somewhere, alongside Hill. 

The one and only and absolutely legendary Hill, accepted the Trailblazer Award for paving the way as a historic Drag King who has officially and finally, brought the much-needed drag king representation to mainstream audiences. Hill is a pioneer in entertainment and is hot off a West Coast mini tour spanning through LA, Las Vegas and Palm Springs. After 30 years, he continues to blaze the trails to showbiz for the next generation of queer and trans comedians, drag performers and entertainers. 

His acceptance speech proved why Hill has gained and maintained his reputation as a comedy king in a career that spans decades. He playfully jabbed at the young generation of queers, poked fun at the presenters and reminded us what it means to be a true icon in the queer and trans community. 

LA Blade was on the scene at the red carpet and had a chance to catch up with Hill amidst all his busy endeavors. 

“I personally think it’s my duty to get that weedwacker and forge a path, go through it and have the kids go right behind you,” said Hill on the red carpet. “That’s what it means to be a trailblazer in my opinion.” 

We asked Hill what advice he had for the next generations of queer and trans kids. 

“Fuck ‘em!,” said Hill. “And the other thing is, don’t let anybody – [politicians], administration, neighbors – take away your queer joy or tell you that you are not valuable. We gotta tell ourselves that we are worthy, we deserve equality, and everyone else can go fuck off.”

RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 8 winner and most recently, a contestant on The Traitors, Bob the Drag Queen hosted the awards ceremony, holding the audience captive with her quick quips and Karla Sofía Gascón drags. Proving once again that she is a force to be reckoned with, Bob brought the host vibes we needed to get us through the next four years under the current administration. 

Actor and comedian John Early presented the Icon Award to his good friend and collaborator Cole Escola, who is best known for his undeniable impact on queer comedy and massive success on Oh, Mary!

Bentley Robles and Madison Rose closed out the night with an electrifying performance of their nominated track “Ultra High Def Lover,” turning the venue into a full-blown dance party. 

The Queerties will premiere worldwide on March 18, through WowPresentsPlus. 

For the full list of nominees, awards and winners, visit the Queerty site.

Uzoukwu is enjoying his time in the spotlight, holding his own alongside Laverne Cox and comedy great, George Wallace in Norman Lear’s last comedy. Clean Slate centers on Desiree (Cox), a proud trans woman who is finding her footing in life as she returns to her small hometown and tries to re-build a relationship with her father (Wallace) as his now-daughter.

The show is a comedy with many touching moments and comes at a time when trans representation is so needed. Uzoukwu shines as Desiree’s best friend Louis a closeted gay man who serves as the local church’s choir director. Together the two find their way.

Uzoukwu is also a 2021 Acting Fellow of the Hillman Grad Mentorship Program, led by Lena Waithe. He is also a writer and co-wrote two seasons of Issa Rae’s audio drama “Fruit,” and has been Reader-Endorsed on The Black List for his award-winning spec pilot “Kinfolk.”

We chatted with Uzoukwu about his family, career, self-discovery journey and joining the Norman Lear legacy.

He credits a strong family foundation for teaching him the tools for life as a proud son of immigrant parents.

“I was raised first generation by very proud Nigerian parents, who definitely had their sights set on me being a doctor or a pharmacist. Those are very stable jobs, especially in a country that doesn’t really give you a lot of breaks as an immigrant, even more. They just wanted something that was stable for me. My parents have shown me just what it takes to live in this country as an immigrant. The tenacity, the persistence, the strive to be better. They instilled all of those attributes in me.”

Despite Uzoukwu’s parents wanting him to work in a stable profession, they came to support his dream to become an actor. He ended up graduating cum laude from Temple University, with a Bachelors in Film and Theatre.

“They chose to support my dreams instead of admonishing me for them and it takes a very open and honest heart to say, ‘I want my child to be the best they can be in whatever they choose to do in this life, because it’s their life and not mine.’ That isn’t always easy for parents, but especially more so for immigrant parents, especially Nigerian parents, that’s just something that we did not grow up with. So beyond the tenacity and the perseverance, they also taught me unconditional love and support and those are attributes that I carry with me to this day. They were with me at the [Clean Slate] premier and it was just great to have my father and mom there by my side. It’s a dream come true.”

In typical Norman Lear style, Clean Slate pushes the envelope and makes current hot topics part of the norm. The show deals with trans and queer community narratives, deals with self-acceptance in the face of bigotry, faith v. religion struggles and questions what exactly a family looks like in today’s age. The show, which focuses on a Black family, is part of the current boom in queer storylines in minority-driven programming.

Uzoukwu explains the increase in representation:

“I just think we are more aware of what’s out there. We have so much more access to other people’s lives at our fingertips. Social media has been a very huge plus in that respect. In a way, it has normalized the idea of having queer people in our lives. We always have, we just weren’t allowed to really be public about it. But now it is normalized and hopefully even more so going forward. I think there is a little bit of a pushback. People talk about a pendulum swing right now, but I think that it forces us to be even more brave and adamant about staking our place in society. We have a right to be here. We all have a right to exist and pursue lives of love and freedom, our God-given rights. I think the more we press forward and continue to live our lives, the more that presence and existence will be seen in our media because we are what we see.”

Uzoukwu nailed his audition for Clean Slate. Reading the sides, he resonated at once with the character of Louis. He sent in his audition tape – which also required singing and two and a half weeks later – he did his screen test. Then BOOM, it was booked. As a queer actor, did Uzoukwu have any trepidation about taking this role for fear of being pigeon-holed?

“There’s always going to be fears about only being seen as one thing. I’m not going to lie, I did kind of have that fear. But I get that anytime I do a bigger project that kind of feels like something that could establish me as a performer in other people’s eyes. You watch a great performance of somebody and you’re like, wow, I could only see them as that. That is something that happens a lot. So there’s always that fear, but I don’t know if it’s something that I necessarily have to worry about. My team is very aware of my talent and what I can do, so my goal is to just go out and try to play as many parts as I can. I just want to keep looking forward and see what else is next, hopefully a season two. Fingers crossed!”

With Norman Lear’s recent passing, being part of the legacy that created All in the Family, One Day at a Time, Maude, The Jeffersons, and so many others, is an actor’s dream. Especially for someone as young as Uzoukwu.

“I definitely still have to pinch myself sometimes when I think about that aspect. I never really saw myself being a comedy actor when I first started out. I thought I was just so much better at drama. So for me to land my first big role in a comedy is kind of like, ‘Oh, you thought you knew what you were about? You thought you knew what you could do, but God had a different story for you.’ You just don’t know what the world, what life will bring. So to be a part of a comedy like this, but also one that is connected to that legacy is a huge deal.

I definitely don’t take it for granted. It means the world to me. When we talked about the show and sort of leading the charge on telling stories of other people and how we can all coexist, he was that person for generations. To be a part of his last comedy is truly a gift. You never could have had me predict that for my future.”

Uzoukwu hopes his personal journey serves as an example for other actors. His message to the community is also his message to himself.

“I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what kind of person I wanted to be in this industry, whether or not I was going to be comfortable enough to come out and be an out gay actor in Hollywood. I didn’t know if it was the smart choice or the right choice.

I realized that in order for me to really tell the stories the way they needed to be told, I had to commit to an identity for myself. I had to choose to be comfortable with myself. That’s something I hope future generations don’t have to sort of battle with or try to figure out for themselves that they can just be and that’s okay. It wasn’t always the case.  I am glad that I took this circuitous journey to choose myself. I hope that the community continues to choose themselves and that they don’t feel that they have to decide between safety and freedom, that we can have both. Because we deserve both.”

Clean Slate is now streaming on Prime.