Modern Family / ABC

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“I keep hearing about this ‘Modern Family’ effect,” says Steven Levitan, co-creator of the hit ABC series being lauded for spearheading the recent renaissance of comedy on TV. He’s on the set, plopped on a chair in the dining room of what audiences have come to know as Jay and Gloria’s swanky home. Dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt, Levitan is self-deprecating and awkward — hardly what you’d expect from the savior of the sitcom.
But that’s the position he — along with the show’s co-creator, Christopher Lloyd — finds himself in.
That’s not to say that the genre was totally dead when “Modern Family” launched in 2009. CBS sitcoms such as “Two and a Half Men” and “The Big Bang Theory” were doing quite well. But comedies were mostly in the trough, with reality fare such as “American Idol” and “Dancing With the Stars” crowding the top-rated show rankings year after year alongside tried and true dramas. Now, the genre is experiencing a revival, more than any time since “Friends” and “Everybody Loves Raymond” ended their runs in the early ’00s. And “Modern Family” is leading the parade.
“We sort of got noticed right off the bat,” Levitan said. In its first season, the show averaged 11 million viewers and put an end to “30 Rock’s” winning streak at the Emmys, grabbing top honors in the comedy category. It was widely embraced by critics; the Los Angeles Times’ Mary McNamara applauded it as “sharp but not cruel, amused but not judgmental.” (Fellow Times critic Robert Lloyd was so overwhelmed by the near universal raves that he wrote of how odd it felt “critically, to remain so unmoved by things that have moved so many.”)
The show’s boffo ratings and award wins (five Emmys this year alone) continued to pick up momentum through the second season. The third-season premiere Sept. 21 brought in 14.3 million viewers — up more than 1.5 million from last season’s premiere. Putting it into perspective: “Modern Family” beat out the heavily hyped premiere of Simon Cowell’s “The X-Factor” — and it has continued to beat the reality series since the start of the season.
“I’m sure Simon Cowell has a target on my back,” Levitan said. Jokes aside, news of the blow against reality TV came with some satisfaction. Levitan posted on Twitter: “It’s extremely gratifying that a scripted comedy finally beat an overhyped karaoke contest. Thank you, #Modern Family fans!” As if to crystallize “Modern Family’s” pop cultural impact, Apple even featured the series in its iPhone 4S presentation this month.
And the so-called “Modern Family” effect seems to be spreading. The first pickup of the season went to Fox sitcom “New Girl.” And half-hour comedy series — including “New Girl” and fellow rookie “2Broke Girls” — had a big showing during fall premiere week among adults ages 18 to 49. New ABC comedies “Suburgatory” and “Last Man Standing” and NBC’s “Up All Night” are off to solid starts. Meanwhile, veterans “Two and a Half Men” and “Big Bang Theory” have posted notable gains in ratings.
“Modern Family’s” success has also reinvigorated the family comedy. Reports of edgy family sitcoms in development — including two for NBC, one created by Ryan Murphy, the other starring Snoop Dogg — made the rounds this month.
“That’s what happens in Hollywood,” Levitan said. “It’s just weird when you’ve got the show people want to imitate. How many times did people try to re-create ‘Friends’?” It’s not like we’re the holy grail. Something else will come along eventually. We were just lucky to have created the right show at the right time.”
So what is “the right show” for the current moment of economic uncertainty and technological transformation? One that seamlessly manages to feel edgy and forward-looking while also being as comforting as an old sofa.
“It gives you the family hug at the end of each episode,” said Jason Winer, an executive producer and director on the series.
Consider the episode being filmed on this day. In one scene, Phil (Ty Burrell) seeks advice from his curmudgeonly father-in-law, Jay (Ed O’Neill), about a job offer. “I have three kids and at least one of them is going to college,” Phil says sincerely. “Worst-case scenario, they all go.” The droll scene hints at the financial realities parents face — but instead of getting too serious, it wraps with Jay urging Phil to follow his heart.
Similarly, a story line from a first-season episode in which Phil shoots his son with a BB gun could easily have been in “Leave It to Beaver.” But the series’ humor relies on our understanding that Phil is trying hard (and not quite succeeding) to live up to an echo of traditional masculinity, adding a layer of currency.
“This isn’t the 1950s anymore,” said O’Neill, who plays the patriarch. “This show reflects society as it is today. And that’s not easy.”
That means not being afraid to portray a gay couple trying to navigate parenthood or, in the age of Twitter and Apple products, giving prominence to the role technology plays in the characters’ lives. (The Disney-owned network received criticism for devoting an entire episode of the series to Phil’s desire to have an iPad; at the time, Steve Jobs was the largest shareholder in Disney.)
To further distinguish itself from the old-school family sitcom, “Modern Family” borrowed the mockumentary format previously used on such workplace comedies as “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation,” which provides a kind of distancing effect.
“Visually, what we try to do with the camera is let it feel like the audience is observing the joke,” Winer said. “I think the audience has grown more sophisticated over the years because we now have a whole generation of people growing up with YouTube and reality content. People like to discover things — rather than showing you the joke, the show likes to let you find the joke.”
That means the writing has to be much more on point, Lloyd said. “We don’t even have the benefit of an audience to react to it,” he added.
But it’s the family-friendly sensibility that has rendered the series a hit at a time when shows have shifted toward being less broad in their appeal, said Bill Carroll, a media analyst with Katz Television Group.
“TV was missing a show the whole family could watch,” Carroll said. “And TV was missing a show that wasn’t so specific in its sense of humor. ‘Modern Family’ deals with everyday circumstances, not someone going back to community college, or a quirky person running an office, or people at a TV show. Those are well-done shows, but pretty much everyone knows what it’s like to have a family.”
As family men themselves, Levitan and Lloyd thought creating a show that reflected the lives they were now living might translate to success. “There’s something to be said about writing what you know,” Levitan said. “We were both living this life — raising kids, dealing with very contemporary issues specific to these times.”
Lloyd, whose father, David, wrote for “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “Taxi,” is well versed in the comedy scene: His first writing gig was on “The Golden Girls.” From there, he worked on the 1990s NBC sitcom “Wings” and served as an executive producer on “Frasier” for many years. Levitan also wrote for “Wings” and “Frasier.” He would later create and develop the pilot for “Just Shoot Me!,” which ran for seven seasons. But things stalled from there, with comedies “Stacked” and “Back to You” (the latter co-created with Lloyd and also featuring Burrell) quickly getting canceled.
“I just sort of stopped and asked, ‘What am I doing wrong?’” Levitan said. “I remember my agent saying, ‘What do you want to be doing?’ and I said, “I want to win awards. I want to do the show that’s respected.’ I don’t care about the biggest hit or the biggest syndication deal. I cared about creating a show that I was proud of…. And yes, that meant one that got Emmy love.”
Levitan would later wax lyrical on the burden that now comes with those ambitions becoming a reality. “Every scene we do, in the back of my mind is a bunch of cynical comedy writers on other shows saying, ‘Boy, they have really lost it,’ or ‘I don’t see what all the fuss is about.’ I want them to say, ‘I hate to say it, but that was a great episode.’ That’s what’s on my mind at the beginning of every scene now. Every single scene.”
The show’s actors, who have mostly found fame late in long careers (with O’Neill as the most obvious exception, having starred on “Married … With Children” for 11 seasons), are also appreciative but cautious.
“I’m the great naysayer on set,” said Julie Bowen, who stars as high-strung Claire and previously appeared on NBC’s “Ed” and ABC’s “Boston Legal.” “I’m always looking for the backlash and for things to go terribly wrong. I’ve been on the darling that became the not darling. I’ve been on the one that never quite got off the ground. I’ve been on the one that sort of middled around for a while. I’ve been on those, so I’m prepared for it, I’m waiting for it.”
Burrell, much like his on-screen persona, takes a more jovial outlook.
“I have a job that will last for a while,” he said. “That’s pretty darn cool.”
from The Los Angeles Times
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James Franco

The Oscar nominated actor thinks outside the box with his latest artistic endeavor, which recreates salacious behind-the-scenes stories from the classic James Dean film.
Inspired by the raunchy behind-the-scenes tales from James Dean’s iconic Rebel Without a Cause, James Franco used some risqué and gender-bending tactics for his most recent art project.
In a feature for Flaunt Magazine, Marc-Edouard Leon gives a first hand account from the set of Franco’s Rebel project. Filmed in the Chateau’s Bungalow 2, the very same place where James Dean, Sal Mineo, Natalie Wood, Dennis Hopper and director Nick Ray engaged in backstage shenanigans, Franco asked his actors to dress in drag as they performed a dramatic reenactment of the controversial stories.
“I played James Dean in a biopic, so I also felt connections to the original film. I’d done research and talked to most of the people that had done Rebel Without a Cause that were still alive. I realized that the stories about the making of were fascinating and that there was an equally compelling drama going on behind-the-scenes,” Franco explained of his desire to do the project. “Over the years, I felt like there was a lot of stuff to mine in that original movie. I didn’t want to dramatize the behind the scenes in a traditional way though.”
Among the booze-fueled highlights of the project are a high-speed nude drive down Sunset Blvd, tons of fake blood, an orgy complete with sex dolls and dildos, and a 5 a.m. swim to wash away the sins.
“I get back to Bungalow 2 a few hours later to interview Franco,” writes Leon. “He is unnervingly chipper. He laughs about the sex scene he orchestrated. ‘Having sex with dolls with plastic dicks is fucking great,’ Franco exalts, ‘because you get to examine that act without the onus of people just looking at it and saying, ‘That’s pornography.’ You can actually think about it for a second and ask yourself what is happening there when you’re doing that for real.’ The whole venture is pretty weird. No matter what anyone says, Franco is producing ideas, turning them into art. James Franco is an artist.”
from The Hollywood Reporter

Geoffrey Nauffts

Noodles may be flung. At the Geffen Playhouse, actors Geoffrey Nauffts and Betsy Brandt are rehearsing a tense hospital scene in “Next Fall.” A box of Chinese takeout — not to mention tempers — is about to fly. Director Sheryl Kaller isn’t sure they can make the noodle bit work. It will be Nauffts’ call in the end; after all, he wrote the play.
After a successful 2010 Broadway run featuring Patrick Breen in the role, Nauffts is finally playing Adam, a character suspiciously close to Nauffts’ own personality, in the West Coast premiere of his Tony-nominated drama. No wonder he’s so good at it. “Geoffrey has an amazing exuberance on stage,” says James Wolk, who plays Adam’s significant other, Luke. “It’s great to play off his energy. And when we have a question about the text, the writer’s right here.”
Set in New York, “Next Fall” elegantly combines romantic comedy, hospital room melodrama and hot-button issues (homosexuality, religion) into an intimate study of love and belief. Fortysomething worrier Adam falls for Luke, a young Southerner from a fundamentalist background. Luke believes in Jesus Christ; Adam puts his faith in Truman Capote and a bottle of good Merlot. The play moves back and forth in time between their five-year relationship and a long night in an emergency room that brings everyone’s values into stark relief.
The production also features Lesley Ann Warren, Jeff Fahey, Ken Barnett and Brandt, known for her role as the kleptomaniac wife of DEA agent Hank Schrader on the AMC Series “Breaking Bad.”
“‘Next Fall’ is about family,” says Kaller, who has been with the play since its earliest readings at New York’s Naked Angels theater company in 2007. “How we show up for each other, even through crises and disappointments.”
“Next Fall” is Nauffts’ first full-length play after several decades of acting and directing that began with one line in a community theater production of “Oklahoma!” (Nauffts’ father played Curly) and led to roles on Broadway, including “Biloxi Blues” and “A Few Good Men.”
Early in the play’s development, Nauffts considered playing Adam. But he got good advice from Naked Angels’ then-artistic director Jenny Gersten. “She said, ‘Just be the writer. It’ll be better for the play.’” Nauffts admits there were times during the New York production when he wanted to “jump up there and play.” And now that he has? “I see why some of the difficult moments to play are difficult,” he says wryly. “Time to consider rewrites.”
In the play, Adam struggles with the fact that Luke has not told his religious father about his sexual orientation — a secret that can destroy one relationship if it’s kept, another if it’s revealed. Nauffts knew he was gay from an early age but says he tried “to sort of will it away. When I was growing up there were no images to hold on to. No ‘Will & Grace,’ no Tim Gunn. I didn’t broach the subject with my family until I fell in love with another man.”
While Nauffts acknowledges that today’s “Glee”-ful culture has become more accepting, he believes “the actual moment of telling someone is still scary. The other day I was watching a YouTube video of a soldier coming out over the phone to his father. It was incredibly moving.” Nauffts will explore similar themes in his next project, an HBO movie called “81 Words,” the story of the American Psychiatric Assn.’s 1973 decision to remove homosexuality from its definition of sexual deviance.
“Next Fall’s” themes of acceptance are as personal as they are political. “It’s practically a documentary,” Breen jokes. “Geoffrey once said to me, ‘Adam’s religion isn’t atheism, it’s hypochondria.’ And that’s Geoffrey. He’s convinced he’s coming down with the next fatal illness.”
Sitting down with a glass of wine after rehearsal, Nauffts admits he’s a fearful person. “I do envy Luke’s sense of belief. His peace. There’s an unsettled quality I carry around. A fear of the unknown, of the thing you can’t control. A big part of the play is Adam learning how to believe in the here and now.”
Hence the play’s allusion to “Our Town.” Luke lands the Stage Manager role in the Thornton Wilder play. Nauffts smiles. “Emily’s speech about people not realizing how wonderful life is as they’re living it has always resonated with me.”
That sense of urgency is shared by Nauffts’ collaborators. Kaller says her approach to “Next Fall” is influenced by the early deaths of her parents. “Both my parents died in the twinkling of an eye. Directing this play has so much to do with being in the moment. Don’t put off for next fall what you can do today. I try to live that every day.”
The accolades don’t hurt, Nauffts says, but the greatest tribute has been the audiences. “In New York, people would take the long way home so they could keep talking about it.” Breen remembers families crowding around outside the stage door after the show. “It was incredible. Adult gay children with their parents. Straight couples. All saying thank you. It seems to be a play that fosters dialogue.”
Nauffts continues to work on the script during rehearsals at the Geffen. “He’s still tweaking,” says Kaller. “Like all good actors, he knows how to listen. And from that he’s able to improve the storytelling. Just honing these characters, making them very real people.”
Including Adam. “You can’t ask for a juicier role,” Breen says. “It’s a ride on the Cyclone. You go through a five-year relationship with someone you love in the space of two hours. You say funny things and sad things happen. It’s the role of a lifetime.” Breen laughs. “And it’s partly selfish on my part. Geoff is such a fantastic actor. I just want to see him do it.”
from The Los Angeles Times

Rick Perry

Texas Governor Rick Perry pressed a conservative social agenda at an appearance in New Hampshire, calling for the repeal of the state’s 2009 law legalizing same-sex marriage.
Perry also praised efforts in the state to end funding for birth control and health services for low-income women provided by Planned Parenthood in the state.
The comments were made late Friday at an event in Manchester sponsored by conservative activist group Cornerstone Action.
A poll from the University of New Hampshire this month showed that 62 percent of residents oppose repealing the same-sex marriage law — including a plurality of likely Republican primary voters — while only 27 percent support repealing it.
Regardless, Republicans who swept to power in both state chambers of the state legislature in 2010 have this year introduced a bill to repeal.
“I applaud those legislators in New Hampshire who are working to defend marriage as an institution between one man and one woman,” Perry said, adding that he supported the “sanctity of traditional marriage.”
New Hampshire has become a battleground this year in a push by opponents of abortion to end all government family planning and women’s healthcare contracts with Planned Parenthood because some of the organization’s clinics provide abortions.
Planned Parenthood is barred from using public funds for abortion under federal law and finances such services from private funds.
In June, three members of the state’s Executive Council, which must approve all state contracts over $10,000, vetoed a contract worth up to $1.8 million with a Planned Parenthood affiliate to provide birth control and services such as pelvic exams to low-income women in about half the state.
The funding, from a federal grant program, was restored by Washington in September when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ruled the state was in violation of rules requiring it to provide family planning services statewide.
Perry, who this year signed legislation in Texas cutting family planning and women’s healthcare funds to Planned Parenthood, criticized the federal government’s move as an unconstitutional infringement of state’s rights.
“If you want to stop Washington’s big violations of the (constitution), especially when it comes to the most basic principle of protecting life, then we must make President Obama a one-term president.”
Planned Parenthood supporters picketed outside Friday’s event.
“Governor Rick Perry is far out of the mainstream on women’s health and, if elected President, would be a disaster for women’s health in America just as he has been for women in Texas,” said Jennifer Frizzell, a spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood.
UNH polling shows that New Hampshire is more supportive of abortion rights than the nation as a whole.
A poll done in February found that 88 percent of state residents think abortion should always be legal or legal in limited circumstances, including 82 percent of Republicans.
A CNN/Time poll this week showed Perry sixth among Republican presidential contenders in New Hampshire with 4 percent support. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney leads with 40 percent.
from Reuters
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Axel Axgil

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK – Axel Axgil, whose struggle for gay rights helped make Denmark the first country to legalize same-sex partnerships, has died. He was 96.
Axgil died in a hospital in Copenhagen on Saturday following complications from a fall, Danish gay rights group LGBT Danmark said.
Axgil, born Axel Lundahl-Madsen, was among the founding members of the organization – one of the oldest gay rights groups in Europe – in 1948.
On Oct. 1, 1989, he and his partner Eigil were among 11 couples to exchange vows as Denmark became the first country to allow gays to enter civil unions, with nearly the same rights as heterosexual couples. Eigil Axgil died in 1995.
In the 1950s, both were sentenced on pornography charges to short prison terms for running a gay modeling agency that issued pictures of naked men. The men melded their first names into a new surname, Axgil, and used it in a public show of defiance.
Vivi Jelstrup, a spokeswoman for LGBA Danmark, said Axgil in many ways personified the struggle for gay rights in Denmark.
“But Axel Axgil was a modest man who never cast himself as a lonely warrior,” Jelstrup said. “He always underscored that there were many involved in the work and that it was a common cause.”
Funeral arrangements were not immediately clear. LGBT Danmark said it planned a memorial service for Axgil at the organization’s annual meeting on Nov. 5 in Aarhus, western Denmark.
from The Associated Press

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TAIPEI, TAIWAN – Thousands of gay rights supporters have marched through Taiwan’s capital, calling for increased tolerance and the enactment of anti-discrimination legislation.
The Saturday event is the ninth annual gay rights parade in Taipei, which has one of Asia’s most vibrant gay communities.
The parade has attracted gays from around the world, with many marchers dressing up as prom queens, zombies or sumo wrestlers.
About a dozen men and women marched behind a Malaysian flag, deploring the absence of gay rights in the mostly Muslim country.
Ming Yueh of Kuala Lumpur said, “We hope to learn from Taiwan so we can help our friends back home.”
Parade organizers called for legislation to wipe out deep-rooted gay discrimination in Asian cultures.
from The Associated Press

More American companies are bending to shareholder pressure to reveal their spending to sway political campaigns despite court decisions allowing unfettered corporate cash in elections, according to a study released on Friday.
Colgate-Palmolive Co (CL.N), IBM (IBM.N) and Merck & Co (MRK.N) are among the big names with the best grades from the Center for Political Accountability, a foundation-funded group that pushes companies to open up their books.
The landmark Citizens United ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2010 ended most restrictions on campaign donations by corporations and unions, giving these groups the ability to write fat checks to back political causes.
But pressure has been building for years from shareholders of public firms to shed light on such spending. Proponents of disclosure argue that getting involved in politics poses big risks for a company’s reputation and brand.
Target Corp (TGT.N) learned that lesson the hard way, when it gave $150,000 in 2010 to a Minnesota business group that backed a Republican candidate for governor who was a staunch opponent of gay marriage.
Potential shareholder ire “has got the attention of companies because now there is greater recognition that political spending poses real risks,” said Bruce Freed, president of the Center for Political Accountability. “Are they there yet? No. But the direction is important.”
The candidate ultimately lost the race but Target was forced to defend itself from shareholders and some in the public, who threatened a boycott.
Shareholders have had increasing success in pushing companies to open up about their donations. Of the 33 resolutions at major companies that made it to a shareholder vote in 2011, the average support was about 34 percent, according to the Center. Several years back, support of such resolutions was about 10 percent.
Three-fifths of the Standard & Poor’s 100 companies are now reporting direct corporate spending, while 43 companies report some information about political spending through third parties like trade groups, the survey found.
Before the Citizens United ruling, companies could spend $5,000 from their employee-funded political action committees on a candidate per election. Now, there are no limits.
Citizens United and other legal rulings will help make the 2012 presidential election the costliest ever, with a price tag of $6 billion or more, according to some independent estimates.
Some well-known corporations say they would not risk their brand by giving to a group with an overly political agenda.
“Most companies are worried about alienating consumers,” said Wesley Bizzell, assistant general counsel of tobacco conglomerate Altria (MO.N), which scored in the top tier in the survey.
Under Citizens United, pro-business trade groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other tax-exempt entities won new powers to spend unlimited pools of cash without disclosing donors.
Corporate America has a ways to go in detailing this funding, Freed and other activists said.
“All of the secret money is being laundered through tax- exempt groups, which means, if a corporation is going to agree to disclose its political activities, to be effective, it must include the money it gives to trade associations,” said Fred Wertheimer, a veteran campaign finance lawyer and president of Democracy 21, which promotes campaign finance reform.
The use of funds from undisclosed sources rose to $135 million in the 2010 elections, up from about $76 million in 2008, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.
IBM, for example, requires that the money it gives to the Chamber not be for political activity such as advertising.
But most companies do not put such restrictions on the funds to these organizations.
“There is a lot of latitude for organizations to have it both ways.” said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.
from Reuters

BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS – A group of gay active and retired military personnel who are married sued the federal government Thursday for the same benefits as straight military couples, arguing it’s a matter of justice and national security.
The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston says the government’s Defense of Marriage Act violates their constitutional rights and asks the military to recognize their marriages and provide spousal benefits.
Under the federal Defense of Marriage Act, the Pentagon is required to ignore same-sex marriages, which are legal in six states and Washington D.C. and were legal for a time in California.
Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which filed the lawsuit on behalf of eight service members, said it’s about “one thing, plain and simple.”
“It’s about justice for gay and lesbian service members and their families in our armed forces rendering the same military service, making the same sacrifices, and taking the same risks to keep our nation secure at home and abroad,” Sarvis said in a press release.
The lawsuit also says the continued denial of benefits to gay spouses “Is a threat to national security.” It argues that given the extreme mental and physical demands of modern warfare, the military has already recognized that “service members who are distracted by thoughts that their loved ones are not being cared for may render the service members less effective combatants.”
The lawsuit comes about a month after the military officially ended its “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which forbade gays from serving openly.
Elaine Donnelly, president Center for Military Readiness, which opposed the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” said Thursday’s lawsuit is an attempt to impose throughout the military a definition of marriage that’s accepted in just a handful of states.
Military members are very mobile, and if the plaintiffs prevail, gay personnel would have to be treated as if they were married, even if they live in states where gay marriage isn’t legal, she said. In addition, there would be pressure to extend the same marriage benefits to service members in committed gay relationships who aren’t legally married, she said.
It’s all designed to undermine the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which protects one state from having to abide by other states’ marriage laws and wasn’t supposed to be affected by the “don’t ask, don’t tell” repeal, Donnelly said.
“What you have here is an attempt to impose a minority view on the majority,” she said.
The lawsuit names as defendants Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki.
The plaintiffs say they don’t believe the government will contest the lawsuit, quoting an Oct. 1 statement from President Obama about DOMA in which he said, “I believe the law runs counter to the Constitution, and it’s time for it to end, once and for all.”
In a statement, Pentagon spokesman Capt. John Kirby said officials will evaluate the complaint and consult with the Justice Department, while continuing to follow the law. Kirby noted that service members can already designate some benefits to anyone they choose, regardless of sexual orientation.
“In connection with `Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ repeal, the Defense Department is engaged in a careful and deliberate review of the possibility of extending eligibility for benefits, when legally permitted, to other individuals including same-sex partners,” Kirby said.
Peter Sprigg of the Family Research Council, which opposes gay marriage, said he hoped attorneys for the U.S. House of Representatives who’ve defended DOMA in other cases will step in here if the Justice Department doesn’t contest the lawsuit.
“These (plaintiffs) by law and by tradition and culture are not spouses,” he said. “The federal government has the right to set its own standards for what it will recognize as a marriage and Congress did that in 1996 in an overwhelming, bipartisan fashion.”
The lawsuit lists various benefits given to straight married couples they say gays are being wrongly denied, including medical and dental benefits, housing allowances, travel and transportation allowances, survivor benefits and the right to be buried together in military cemeteries.
“While the repeal of (don’t ask, don’t tell) was an important first step in the military’s march for equality, it is time to take the next step and provide equal benefits for equal work,” the lawsuit says.
The lead plaintiff in the case is Maj. Shannon McLaughlin, a judge advocate general in the Massachusetts National Guard who married her wife in Massachusetts in 2009 and has 10-month old twins, according to the lawsuit.
Another plaintiff is Navy Lt. Gary Ross, an Arizona resident who was married in Vermont, but whose husband travels to Mexico for health care- and was recently at the border when gunfire broke out – because they can’t afford health insurance for him, according to the lawsuit.
Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan of the New Hampshire National Guard said she has cancer and is worried her spouse and their daughter would be unable to receive survivor’s benefits if she died.
“We are only asking for equitable treatment as a recognized family,” Morgan said.
from The Associated Press
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To commemorate his one-year anniversary at TBS, Conan O’Brien is taping his late-night show Conan at New York’s Beacon Theater next week, but that milestone won’t be the only cause for celebration. Vulture hears that O’Brien will be officiating an on-air wedding during one of those episodes, and it’s the sort of marriage ceremony that couldn’t have taken place back when O’Brien used to tape his show in New York: a legal wedding between two men.
Show sources are quick to caution that the potentially groundbreaking event is no mere publicity stunt, and isn’t intended to make light of gay marriage — in fact, O’Brien will be marrying a longtime staffer and his partner.
If the idea of a late-night wedding sounds familiar, you may be thinking of the union between Tiny Tim and Miss Vicki on The Tonight Show nearly 42 years ago, a televised marriage ceremony that shattered late-night ratings records. Weddings have since been big business for morning talk shows and sweeps-week prime-time serials, but they’ve been surprisingly absent from the late-night landscape until now. Still, don’t expect a save-the-date card just yet: Producers are still determining which night the Conan wedding will air.
from New York Magazine

CHILLICOTHE, OHIO – School and law enforcement officials still are evaluating evidence in the Oct. 17 beating of a Unioto High School freshman whose mother thinks the attack was tied to his sexual orientation.
Rebecca Collins said Thursday she thinks the school has not done enough to address bullying.
“I’ve called and called and called … (The response) has been real lackadaisical, ‘kids will be kids,’” Collins said.
Officials, however, say they still are evaluating evidence, including a cellphone video and a Facebook post, that came to light after the school’s initial investigation, which indicated the fight was not motivated by the boy’s sexuality.
During the two years her son has been at Unioto, and even at his previous school, Collins said her son repeatedly has been called names relating to his sexuality.
Oct. 17 was the first time those taunts escalated into a physical attack, she said. Before the assault, Collins said she was not aware her son had any issues with the boy who struck him.
“I just want it to stop. I want my son to be left alone. I worry about my son every time he walks out the door,” Collins said, adding people should accept others regardless of sexual orientation, race or any other differences.
The Gazette is not using the names of either boy involved in the incident in compliance with its internal guidelines.
Unioto High School Principal Jim Osborne said he couldn’t talk about specifics, but he said that he had spoken with Collins about concerns she had.
“I’m sorry she feels that way (about our discussion). I feel our conversations were pretty productive,” Osborne said.
What prompted the fight
Collins’ concerns have been aired by Columbus media outlets, but those reports have failed to include additional information about the investigation itself.
According to the initial report obtained Thursday by the Gazette, the two boys were on their way to a third-period class when they “bumped shoulders.” The 15-year-old suspect told deputies he has a mental illness, that he “just zoned out,” and didn’t know why he punched Collins’ son, according to the report.
Collins’ son sustained a black eye, a knot behind his ear, a chipped tooth and a possible concussion, Collins said.
While Collins told deputies she thought the fight was motivated by her son’s sexuality, the report indicates Osborne told the deputy he talked to the teacher and students in the classroom and no one reported the student saying anything about Collins’ son’s sexuality.
When a cell phone video of the fight showed up on Facebook, Collins reported it. The video, allegedly taken by the aggressor’s cousin, shows he waited for Collins’ son and then struck him multiple times. She also reported a comment the boy made on her son’s Facebook photo two days before the attack. She said the comment made a derogatory reference to her son’s sexuality.
According to Collins, the student was given a three-day suspension for the fight. While Osborne declined to confirm the suspension due to confidentiality issues, he said the discipline in the situation was meted out days before he became aware of the video, which contradicted his investigation and appears to reveal premeditation.
“We’re continuing to look at options,” Osborne said.
While the school has surveillance cameras, they are only located in the hallways and not the classroom where the fight occurred. Since the fight happened during a class change, the teacher was monitoring the hallway outside the room as they are required to do during class changes, Osborne said.
While the sheriff’s office continues to investigate the motive, Ross County Prosecutor Matt Schmidt said his office is evaluating whether to file an assault or felonious assault charge.
“What people are failing to understand is there isn’t an Ohio law to enhance it (if the assault was motivated by the victim’s sexuality),” Schmidt said.
There is a federal hate crime law, he added, but the federal district attorney would have to file the charge, and Collins could approach him about it. He also said he has not heard from Collins or her son, but certainly is willing to listen to them if they want to talk with him. Schmidt anticipates filing the charge from his office today.
Collins said she wants to see the school enforce zero tolerance for all bullying and implement stricter consequences.
“To me, it’s not only the kids doing it. The teachers aren’t stepping in,” Collins said. “If it has to be everyone walks a single line like preschool, then have it.”
A 2007 state law requires districts to have a districtwide policy that prohibits harassment, intimidation or bullying. The policy must include numerous aspects, including a requirement of staff to report incidents and parents or guardians of any student involved in the incident be contacted.
The law also requires the policy to include a procedure to investigate incidents and a strategy for protecting the victim from additional harassment.
The law does not include verbiage about sexuality, but a pending bill (House Bill 208) would amend the law to prohibit bullying “based on any actual or perceived trait or characteristic of a student.” A definition of “trait or characteristic” is included in the proposed bill and includes sexual orientation and gender identity.
Unioto Superintendent Dwight Garrett said Thursday that the district’s legal counsel advised him not to speak about the specifics of the fight. He did say he had not heard from Collins about any bullying concerns until after Oct. 17, but she had spoken to Osborne before.
“We have one goal and that’s to educate every student. A lot of these things that are going on happen before or after school and on social media, then they bring it to school,” Garrett said, adding school officials do not have jurisdiction over what happens on social media sites.
He said the district does have the required policy and adheres to it. The high school had an assembly on cyberbullying three days after the fight that Osborne and Garrett said had already been scheduled before the fight.
Staff is educated annually about reporting bullying, and the high school has at least one education assembly on bullying a year, Osborne said. While there have been reports of bullying before relating to sexuality, Osborne said he doesn’t get them often and has not had an assault on any other student who is out about his or her homosexuality.

“(Bullying) is an ever-ongoing battle in these schools today. Every situation is different,” Osborne said.
When Osborne receives a report of bullying, it is first investigated for validity since sometimes he gets anonymous reports of bogus complaints as a joke.
Once a report is determined to be valid, if it is the first occurrence, Osborne said they handle it as an educational opportunity. They talk about bullying, why they should not behave that way and that there will be disciplinary consequences, which are outlined in the code of conduct, if the behavior continues, he said.
“We’re trying to teach these kids diversity and social tolerance, a lot of things that aren’t just academic,” Osborne said.
Collins intends to continue pushing the issue. Osborne said Thursday he is supportive of the mother standing up for her son.
Collins said she has contacted Citizens Against Bigotry and Prejudice for assistance. According its Facebook site, the group, located near Youngstown, is a grass-roots effort begun in May “to add exposure to those who are teaching hate, and promoting hate amongst the LGBTQ community.”
The Chillicothe Gazette also received a call Thursday afternoon from Richard Walsh, who works with the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, that GLSEN is planning to offer support to Collins and her son.
In a statement on the incident released late Thursday, GLSEN said that according to its 2009 National School Climate Survey, one in four LGBT students in Ohio had experienced some sort of physical assault at school within the past year because of their sexual orientation.
“It is extremely frustrating for us at GLSEN to watch a student get bullied when there are tools and resources that are proven to reduce and prevent similar incidents from taking place in a classroom or hallway,” said GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard. “School districts with comprehensive anti-bullying policies inclusive of sexual orientation and gender identity are effective at curbing anti-LGBT bullying and harassment. It is time for the Union-Scioto school district and every school in Ohio to protect students from the kind of torment that everyone has witnessed on video.”
Walsh said Equality Ohio is evaluating the story and discussing potentially organizing a town hall meeting in response.
The issue also had a residual impact on Chillicothe High School, where officials starting receiving calls after another media outlet reported the location as “a Chillicothe high school” and not specifying the fight happened at Unioto. The calls prompted Superintendent Jon Saxton to release a public statement.
“We believe that this is an unfortunate incident for any school, student, or parent to experience. We regret that such incidents do occur in schools, but want to clarify that the location of this incident was not on a Chillicothe School District building,” Saxton wrote.
from The Chillicothe Gazette

ROME, GEORGIA – In a move Shorter University President Donald Dowless called an “affirmation of our Christ-centered mission” the university has drafted a personal lifestyle statement that all faculty and staff will be required to sign.
In the statement, the university commits to only hiring, “Bible- believing Christians, who are dedicated to integrating biblical
faith in their classes and who are in agreement with the University Statement of Faith.”
The statement of faith is a two-page document that covers in brief details the college’s stance on everything from the Bible being the word of God to the belief the Bible is the supreme authority for believers.
The personal lifestyle statement requires that personnel agree to four principles: be loyal to the mission of Shorter University, do not engage in the use and sale of illegal drugs, do not view premarital sex, adultery and homosexuality “as acceptable” and refrain from the use of alcohol in the presence of students and in public.
The documents were Shorter approved by the board of trustees last week.
Dowless was unavailable for comment Tuesday and all questions were referred to the school’s public relations department.
Dawn Tolbert, spokeswoman for the school, said it has been the university’s policy since 2008 to hire Christians only, and that policy is part of the school’s acceptance into the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities.
The third statement on the CCCU application reads:
“Member campuses have a continuing institutional policy and practice, effective throughout the time they are members, to hire as full time faculty members and administrators (non-hourly staff) only persons who profess faith in Jesus Christ.”
Tolbert said the statement shouldn’t come as a shock to faculty or staff.
“This is something that is discussed during the interview process. It is something that will be part of the hiring process going forward,” Tolbert said.
She also emphasized that the agreement applies to faculty and staff, not students.
Nelson Price, chairman of Shorter’s board of trustees, said the document is a necessity.
“Some of the faculty members had been asking what is our commitment and what is our policy regarding some of these issues and we wanted to help it be a little more definitive for them,” Price said in a phone interview Tuesday.
However, Price was iffy as to whether or not the lifestyle statement is a condition of employment.
“Dr. Dowless might be able to answer that more definitively than I, but it is my understanding, that it is. Yes,” Price said.
Price declined to address what might happen if a staff or faculty member is homosexual or if they are living with someone of the opposite sex.
“That’s a hypothetical situation, and I’d rather wait and face it if we have to,” Price said.
As to whether or not a person of another faith would be able to continue working at the university, Price said, “if they sign this statement, very definitely.”
from The Rome News Tribune

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Zachary, David Furnish & Elton John

NEW YORK – Elton John says politics have divided the United States, but at his foundation’s annual benefit, he singled out one politician as an example for others to follow.
The legendary British singer hailed New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo at Wednesday night’s 10th-annual Enduring Vision gala for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
John thanked Cuomo for “taking a stand in New York and making the dream of marriage equality a reality in the state.” The governor was seated in the audience.
In July, New York became the sixth state to recognize same-sex nuptials.
The benefit raised $2 million for John’s foundation.
Alec Baldwin, Jon Bon Jovi and Sarah Ferguson were among the celebrities in attendance. Smokey Robinson provided the evening’s entertainment. Anderson Cooper served as the master of ceremonies.
from The Associated Press

American Catholics have by and large remained loyal to the core teachings and sacraments of their faith, but increasingly tune out the hierarchy on issues of sexual morality, according to a new study.
The sweeping survey shows that over the last quarter-century, U.S. Catholics have become increasingly likely to say that individuals, not church leaders, have the final say on abortion, homosexuality, and divorce and remarriage.
That trend holds true across generational and ideological divides, and even applies to weekly Mass attenders, according to the survey, which has been conducted every six years since 1987.
“It’s the core creedal sacramental issues that really matter to American Catholics, more than the external trappings of church authority,” said Michele Dillon, a sociologist at the University of New Hampshire and a co-author of the report, in releasing the report at the National Press Club.
At the same time, the authors note, Catholic loyalty and identity remain remarkably strong, even as 83 percent of Catholics say the clergy sexual abuse scandal has hurt the bishops’ moral and political credibility.
“By and large, Catholics like being Catholic,” said co-author Mary Gautier of Georgetown University’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.
The report identified two-thirds of U.S. Catholics as “moderately committed,” a group that inched up in size as the share of “highly committed” has shrunk from 27 percent in 1987 to 19 percent this year.
More than half (56 percent) say they would “never leave” the Catholic Church, and one in three say it is unlikely they would leave. Three-quarters of respondents said “being Catholic is a very important part of who I am.”
Across the board, Catholics tend to agree on four key markers — the resurrection of Jesus (73 percent), helping the poor (67 percent), devotion to the Virgin Mary (64 percent), and the centrality of the sacraments (63 percent) — as core to their Catholicism.
Opposition to abortion (40 percent) and to same-sex marriage (35 percent), and the authority of the Vatican (30 percent) and support for a celibate, all-male clergy (21 percent) were further down the list.
The issue of homosexuality showed one of the largest gaps between the pulpit and the pews. The portion of Catholics who say church leaders have “the final say” on homosexuality has plunged by half, from 32 percent to 16 percent, over the past 25 years, while those who say individuals make the final call has shot up from 39 percent to 57 percent.
Dillon noted that other issues have remained relatively stable, which leads her to conclude that Catholics are taking their cues from the larger culture, much like they did on birth control.
“They’ve made up their own minds on that issue and I think they see same-sex marriage in the same way,” she said. “It’s reflective of the culture but also indicative of Catholic autonomy.”
The survey also confirms that American Catholicism is also increasingly Latino, with about a third of Catholics in the United States identifying as Hispanic — a figure that has tripled in size in the past 25 years.
Even as Catholic loyalty persists, weekly Mass attendance continued to decline, from 44 percent to 31 percent. Those who go less than once a month grew, from 26 percent to 47 percent.
“Monthly Mass has become the new weekly,” Dillon said. “Catholics are still remaining in touch with the sacraments and the Mass even though they’re not saying they need to go because it’s an externally imposed mandate from the hierarchy.”
Ironically, while the bishops may not appreciate the growing distance between the pulpit and the pew, that gap may have helped shield American Catholicism from some of the fallout from the abuse scandal.
Roughly one in three Catholics give the bishops good-to-excellent marks in handling the crisis, with everyone else giving them poor-to-fair marks. Those numbers are only slightly better for weekly Mass-goers.
The loosening ties to the authority of the hierarchy may also parallel a diminishing commitment to the poor and to parish life.
In the 2011 survey, 60 percent of Catholics said you could be a good Catholic without donating time or money to help the poor, up from 44 percent in 2005. Similarly, three-quarters (74 percent) said you could be a good Catholic without donating time or money to a parish, up from 58 percent six years earlier.
Even among the “highly committed” Catholics, the importance of helping the poor fell from 39 percent to 30 percent in the past six years, which co-author William D’Antonio of Catholic University attributed to a “recession that they weren’t confronting in 2005.”
The survey also shows U.S. Catholics to be as discerning about their political leaders as they are about their bishops.
Some 57 percent of Catholics say they identify to some degree as Democrats, compared to 40 percent for the GOP. In recent elections Catholic voters have alternately backed George W. Bush and Barack Obama, confirming them as a large and crucial swing vote.
The new survey indicates that Catholics in the pews will continue to make up their own mind in the ballot box, as well as the bedroom.
Views on abortion and care for the poor continue to be the chief markers dividing Catholic Democrats and Catholic Republicans; nearly half (48 percent) of Republicans said the church’s teaching against abortion was very important, compared to just 35 percent of Democrats.
Catholic Democrats, on the other hand, were more likely than Republicans to say helping the poor was a religious priority, by a 72-61 percent margin.
The online survey of 1,400 adult Catholics (with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points) was conducted by D’Antonio, Gautier and Dillon in cooperation with the National Catholic Reporter, an independent newsweekly.
from The Washington Post