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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2006)
1 Eugene Center. $25 from box office, 541-682-5000 or www.huftcenter.org.) The Embers presents Deaf Comedy Night, a popular annual showcase of deaf actors using American Sign Language with a voice interpreter. (7:30-9:30 pm. 110 NW Broadway. $5.) Find out what all of Europe has been talking about: Berlin cabaret diva Dahlia revisits Dietrich—if Dietrich had done post-punk electro disco—with 3asic and DJs Boy and Puppet at Porky's Pub. (9 pm. 835 N Lombard St. $5.) San Francisco trio True Margrit performs piano-pop vignettes featuring catchy choruses and the husky/sweet/surreal voice of queer vocalist Margrit Eichler at Mississippi Studios. (9 pm. 3939 N Mississippi Ave. $10.) DJ Suppoz spins at gay-owned Crush. (9 pm. 1400 SE Morrison St. $2.) Singer/songwriter Garrison Star opens for Roger Clyne and Peacemakers at Berbatis. (9:30 pm. 231 SW Ankeny St. $15 at the door, $13.50 in advance from TicketWeb.) White Bird presents Inbal Pinto Dance Company's surreal circus fable May 3. Amnesty International USA convenes for its 2006 Annual General Meeting through April 30 at the Hilton Hotel. Highlights include a panel discussion covering police brutality against queers and a Saturday night concert at Roseland Theater featuring Collective Soul, Suzanne Vega and Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino. (921 SW Sixth Ave. $80 $ 100 from www.amnestyusa.org/events/agm.) Bad Girls presents Dyke Night at the Eagle featuring an auction, a raffle and live performers. Proceeds benefit Bradley-Angle House. (9 pm-midnight. 1300 W Burnside St $4-$10 donation.) The Blow performs with Scout Niblett, Faerie Talk and Everything Is Fine at Berbati's. (9:30 pm. 231 SW Ankeny St. $7.) DJ Chef Gabriel spins during Hot Misery at Gotham Bldg Tavern. (10 pm-1 am. 2240 N Interstate Ave.) SAT • APRIL 29 Discover high-paying, high-skilled careers in the construction- related trades during the 14th annual Women in Trades Career Fair at the National Electrical Contractors Association/lnternational Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Training Center. (9 am-4 pm. 16021 NE Airport Way.) The Imperial Sovereign Court of the Emerald Empire presents Damsels, Divas and Dudes, a family-friendly evening of music, dance and impersonation, at Hult Center's Soreng Theater in Eugene. Proceeds benefit HIV Alliance. (7 pm. S a Hie Tisdale reads from Women of the Way: Discovering 2,500 Years of Buddhist Wisdom, a groundbreaking new book celebrating women's Buddhist lineage, at In Other Words. (7:30 pm. 8 NE Killingsworth St.) WED • MAY 3 Elder Resource Alliance holds a business meeting at Friendly House. (3:30-4:30 pm. 1737 NW 26th Ave.) Turner Classic Movies premieres Stardust: The Bette Davis Story, a startling portrait of one of Hollywood's most gifted and enig matic legends. (5 and 8 pm.) THU • MAY 4 Celebrate the return of golfing weather April 30 with Ladies on Blackfish Gallery, Classic Greek the Links. Theatre of Oregon, CoHo Productions and Readers Theatre Repertory join together to create the Portland's best drag performers face off during Kings and first-ever MythFest, a collaborative celebration of the Queens Battle Royale followed by a huge dance party at power of myth, through June 10. (Fora complete sched the Egyptian Club. Proceeds benefit Basic Rights Oregon. ule visit www.mythfest.org.) (9 pm. 3701 SE Division St. $5.) Missnomer presents Funk Is Its Own Reward during Hot Misery at Gotham Bldg Tavern. (10pm-1 am. 2240 N Interstate Ave.) SUN • APRIL 30 Regdy for sunshine, fun and the return of golfing weather? Ladies on the Links and the Hambleton Project host a Spring Extravaganza featuring three bands and two per formances at Vitis Enoteca. Proceeds benefit the Leukemia B Lymphoma Society Team in Training. (5-9 pm. 535 NW 16th Ave. $7 donation, www.ladiesonthelinkspdx.org.) MON • MAY 1 Pull down your fedora, grab your trench coat and join 2Boards Productions for Gala “Noir'' at Theater Theatre. The fund-raiser features a silent auction, food, drink, music, a classic radio play and a sneak preview of the new theater company's summer show, Private Eyes. (6:30 pm. 3430 SE Belmont St. $10 from 503-232-5375.) The Bisexual Community Forum hosts a casual discussion group every first Monday at 3 Friends Coffeehouse. (7:30 pm. 201 SE 12th Ave 503-285-4848.) TUE • MAY 2 Gay pianist Bill Wells and Portland superstar Susannah Mars present Make Your Own Party— Part Deux, an eclectic evening of music including songs by Jacques Brel, Jason Robert Brown, Dave Frishberg, Stephen Sondheim and Kurt Weill, at Wilf's Restaurant and Piano Bar. (7:30 pm. 800 NW Sixth Ave. $15 from 503-223-0070.) She's got Bette Davis eyes. Stardust Memories To whet our appetites for a tantalizing monthlong marathon of films starring Bette Davis, Turner Classic Movies is airing a new documentary on the life and legendary Hollywood career of the iconic Do You Need a Kahneeta? actress, who might be remembered more as a gay cultural hero than as a phenomenal performer and Rochelle Sprunk was talking with some friends about how often socializing is done in bars and taverns. They casually outlined ways to get their lives out of the bars and into other experiences. groundbreaking celebrity. Though Stardust: The Bette Davis Story gives her inspiration to countless gay men and drag queens It was just conversation at that point, but Sprunk couldn’t stop thinking about those ideas. Her back its due—mostly thanks to an interview with out playwright Charles Busch (Die, Momrnie, Die! ), who nice ground in marketing and desire to offer different options led her to start a company focused on fun and ly juggles reverence and astuteness in his assessments—neither is it the best source of deep insight into socializing for women who love women. that aspect of this great star’s appeal. For that, see Daniel Harris’ invaluable essay “The Death of Camp.” The result was Girls on Gay. Sprunk handles the marketing, sales and executive management, while Rather, Stardust is an excellent, informative, well-researched and balanced introductory survey of Davis’ her lover, Karen Hooper, conducts all computer-related tasks, including the Web site and advertising life and times: from the Puritan upbringing that gave her the work ethic required for studio-era Hollywood package design. stardom to the endlessly strained familial, romantic and work relationships through which she forged and A year later, after such successes as lesbian speed dating and The L Word premiere, Girls on Gay practiced her immensely compelling willfulness—and, not least, her impressive body of work in film and presents I Needa Kahneeta, a weekend lesbian getaway at the popular Central Oregon resort. Sprunk television. Interviews with subsequent female movie legends who rose to fame and acclaim in Davis’ wake— hopes to offer this package at least twice a year, including a future event that will include children. Jane Fonda, Ellen Burstyn and, as narrator, Susan Sarandon—shed some clarifying light on what specifi Fees include transportation to and from the resort (either by shuttle or, for a $45 upgrade, in a limo cally made her a hero to them personally and a one-of-a-kind, too-often-overlooked but genuinely worthy with lots of extras) and all meals, including a Friday evening private dinner and a Saturday evening acting talent. Best of all, surprisingly, is the ever-unlikable James Wtxxls, who sounds almost homophobic outdoor traditional salmon bake featuring tribal dancers. Participants have three options for Saturday when he recalls avoiding What Ever Happened to Baby Jane/ for years based on its campy reputation, rolling activities: 18 holes of golf, kayaking the Warm Springs River or a deluxe spa treatment that, Sprunk his eyes as he says “gay icon”—but that makes it all the more vindicating when he goes on to acknowledge notes, has been mentioned in Shape Magazine as one of the five best in the United States. In addition, the actual fineness of both the film and Davis’ performance. guests will receive vouchers for the double Olympic-size pool (with a 140-foot slide), horseback riding, And Davis is a figure more in need of vindication than most. Unlike her notorious rival (and fellow gay saint) Joan Crawford, Davis was utterly allergic to ingratiating herself, making her something like hiking, biking and volleyball. Sprunk stresses the commitment Girls on Gay has to the queer community and acknowledges support for political as well as social needs. The goal of Girls on Gay is “to bring the community together.” The weekend costs $390 per person, $770 per couple or $1,380 per foursome. Register online at the Courtney Love of her era—a talent whose “unladylike” antics overshadowed her achievements. She is ripe for just the kind of rediscovery TCM is offering the uninitiated—and on that front, Stardust serves www.girlsongay.com by May 15 (May 5 if paying by check). For more information call 877-630-7900 or its primary purpose. Stardust airs 8 p.m. May 3 followed by an all-night marathon of Davis films, plus another Davis all- 360-260-7900. nighter every Wednesday through the end of May. —Patricia L. MacAodha —Christopher McQuam
