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by Marty Davis
NEWSMAGAZINE
Shop 'Til You Drop
VOL. 24 NO. 3
DECEMBER 1, 2006
But remember to shop our advertisers, shop gay, shop local
h, ’tis the season. Don we now our gay apparel, shop 'til we drop,
energy of the Mississippi, Alberta, Hawthorne and Belmont districts. Come out
roast our chestnuts and harbor no feelings of ill will. Hey, 1 can go
to North Portland and St. Johns. Put power in your shopping dollars.
with three out of four. (If this was e-mail, I’d insert the annoying
happy-face emoticon right here.)
recently spent a lot of time downtown and in the Northwest part of Portland.
That aside, welcome to the now-official holiday season and the
If you haven’t been into the Pearl and Burnside areas for a while, you are in
Just Out Holiday Guide. Our role, and one we take very seriously, is to be the | for quite a surprise. The change is amazing, and there appears to be no end in
appetizer—the cheese plate, so to speak—of newspaper gift guides. We do not
sight for the new growth and development.
foist upon you an 84-page glossy handout of electronic gifts that no one over a j
And like a wildfire in summer, the spread of this development has now
certain age understands. Nope, we simply want to take this opportunity to
jumped the boundary, the once-thought-unbreachable Bumside Street. Stark
reinforce a tew shopping philosophies that we hold near and dear. Shop our
Street, as we know it, cannot possibly exist for much longer. Where only a
advertisers, shop gay, shop local. Take our humble suggestions as the starting
couple of years ago the city spoke of creating a cultural trust zone, now hotels,
points for your own holiday shopping adventures.
cinemas and shops lap at the edges of our once-ffeestanding Burnside Triangle.
We ask you to support our advertisers for the obvious reason. They are the
It’s going away, folks. Will the Club Portland building become the new
sole financial support of this paper. Because of them, this small-business owner I Niketown?
is able to provide jobs, salaries and benefits for nine employees. Because of our
advertisers, Just Out is able to donate back thousands of dollars annually in ■
he first-ever Just Out Toy Drive is winding down. Soon the piles of toys will
sponsorship for local gay, lesbian, bi and trans groups and organizations. Our
be taken away and prepared for their new homes. That part will be exciting to
advertisers provide the financial foundation for the Just Out Scholarship Fund
watch. For a toy drive that was originally intended to he a one-event function,
and have been crucial in the success of this year’s first-ever Just Out Toy Drive.
we ended up with a fine amount of trucks, games, balls and coloring books. We
Your support of our advertisers keeps this paper going. As such, I need to ask
were lucky to receive two “Dress-Me Elmos,” a toy designed to test all your sen
you to make sure that our advertisers know you are out there purchasing their
sibilities. I dare you to play with it without looking around for hidden cameras.
goods, services and products. It is key to the continuation of this publication.
Thanks go out again to Pauline Miriam and the Hot Flash dancers, Becky
Each year, America loses a few more gay and lesbian newspapers. We received | Bilyeu of Touchstone Coffee House and Julie Cantonwine of Healthy Pets
word Nov. 30 of the loss of Out in the Mountains, a 21-year-old Vermont news- J Northwest. You folks stepped up big time this year and made a difference. Many
others have already signed up for next year, and together we are going to rock.
paper. According to board president Brian Cote: “Twenty-one years ago people
relied on this newspaper for information about our community. Now, mainstream i I’m looking forward to partnering with Kim Davis of the Egyptian Club and Bob
press outlets in Vermont are covering gay issues.” He also mentioned that many
Mensel of the Portland Gay Men’s Chorus. Many more of you will hear from
people get their news from the Internet and that advertising revenues have
me late next summer. It’s all quite exciting.
been lagging. Sadly, his tale is true and one shared by gay papers across the
The Nov. 29 presentation of 20120 was a study of the giving habits and
country. You, the reader, have the power to make the difference in who fails and
patterns of different demographic groups across the country. The host, John
Stossel, presented numerous statistics, not the least of which was that the most
who succeeds.
Support our advertisers, and support gay- and lesbian-owned businesses, even
generous and giving group came from “red" states with people identified as the
most conservative and most closely aligned with religious and right-leaning
if they aren’t advertising with us. Small-business owners have much in common.
politics. According to this show, liberals and the “middle class” were not as
We’re all working for the same goals. We work to support our families, to create
strongly identified as givers. Well, not so here, and next year we’re going to
jobs, to be leaders in our communities. We strive to make a difference.
prove it even more.
Shop local whenever you can. Enjoy the diversity and beauty of the city.
Thank you for all your generosity. ©
Explore the neighborhoods. Save gas, make friends, form community. Enjoy the
I
T
reflections
10 Years Ago in Just Out... volume 14 number 3, december 6, 1996
• The Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania has
approved the development of "a rite or rites for
the blessing of committed relationships between
persons of the same sex," reports The
Philadelphia Inquirer.
• Three anti-gay radio ads sponsored by the
Youth Action Committee began airing Oct. 7 on
the soft-rock station KAFE-FM in Bellingham,
Wash. According to The Northwest Gay Times,
the ads were pulled after three days, presumably
because of the effectiveness of an activist
campaign to notify other advertisers about the
offensive and divisive ads.
• For Sale: The City Nightclub. The City Nightclub
is open and operating and is ready for a new
owner/operator who wants to provide important
services to the gay and lesbian community and
receive an excellent financial return on the
investment.
• This year's internationally televised Hollywood
Christmas Parade will include an entry from the
Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, sponsored
by the West Hollywood HIV/AIDS pharmacy Capitol Drugs. The float will
highlight the center's 25th anniversary and feature openly gay actor Dan
Butler [Frasier) and his life partner, Richard Waterhouse.
• Debi Easterday, a lesbian married to a
preoperative female transsexual, was
escorted by police from the property of
Medina Church of the Brethren in Akron,
Ohio, because she "remains unrepentant and
seeks to mock God," according to a
statement released by church leaders.
FEATURE
22 HOLIDAY
GIFT GUIDE 2006
Give it away like nobody’s business
NEWS
8-17 NORTHWEST
Portland shapes up; play with your hair;
Victor’s Secret conies out; Portland ranks as
fourth-gayest city; college group raises
money, gixxl times; Cruz goes out in style;
roundtable opens house; concert for a
cause; public hero honored with
proclamation; register for GLSEN
conference; task force leaders hold
discussion; join PFLAG for cleanup and
holiday fun; a wake-up call for PABA;
Portland man helps homos hang on this
time of year; grant means gain for seniors;
the face of family
18-19 NATIONAL
Same-sex couples appeal to Supreme Court;
Miami University employees keep benefits
20-21 WORLD
Spain’s Congress passes trans bill; Brit gay
leader targets blood ban; Canadian
Parliament considers reopening marriage
debate; Outgames lost money; Argentine
cross-dressers decriminalized; reports claim
Iranian gay was hanged
ARTS AND CULTURE
43 THEATER
Portland Opera welcomes new chorus
master
45 MUSIC
Siren Nation takes Portland women’s
community to the next level
46-51 FILM
Wrestling with Angels takes a close-up look
at acclaimed, politically outspoken
playwright; Northwest Film Center
remembers one of Hollywood’s earliest
leading lesbians; documentary takes a
psychological l<x>k at drag
53 CULTURE
Jefferson Theater strippers bare all
54-55 BOOKS
Relive your teen angst with these novels
aimed at young readers
• The Metropolitan Human Rights
Commission is soliciting information
regarding the experiences of sexual minority
youth. The data will be compiled in a report
that will be sent to the Governor's Task Force
on Teen Suicide, as well as to Multnomah
County and Portland city officials.
• One of Oregon's most visible gay and
lesbian rights advocates is leaving her job to
make room for "fresh, new leadership." Julie
Davis, director of Basic Rights Oregon, the
successor organization to the No on 13
campaign, will officially step down from her
post Dec. 31.
International performing artists Cris
Williamson and Tret Fure perform their second annual holiday concert in
Bend. A special fund-raising reception after the concert will benefit Beyond
the Closet, a community educational organization.
COLUMNS
37 EPIQUEEREAN
All in rhe Numbers
41 MS. BEHAVIOR
I Touch Myself
42 OUT GOING
A Night to Remember
57 DEAR ETHEL
Calendar Girls
58 JIM'S CLOSET
Oh, Susannah!