News Round-Up: May 14, 2019

Dan Tai

Some news items you might have missed:

• Instagram: Dan Tai shields his eyes from the sun (...or is he just flexing for us?...) #InstaHunk

• NY Times: Donald Trump Jr. and the Republican-controlled Senate Intelligence Committee reached a deal on Tuesday for the president’s eldest son to sit for a private interview with senators in the coming weeks.

• Daily Telegraph: Former Newcastle Jets player, Andy Brennan, becomes the first Australian male soccer player to come out as gay.

• JoeMyGod: Televangelist Pat Robertson says God will destroy America if The Equality Act passes. Just like when she was going to wipe us out after marriage equality and Gay Days at Disney.

• Bloomberg: Trump Tower, the 36-year-old Manhattan residence, is now considered one of the least desirable luxury buildings in New York City. Over the past two years, sales of condo units in the building have taken losses of up to 20 percent.

• New digital series Model Boy explores "the lives of the wide-eyed young men lured into New York’s notoriously fickle high fashion modeling world."

Check out the first episode below.

Podcast: Pete Buttigieg, Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee, Digital Series 'After Forever' Gets Emmy Noms

In this week's podcast:

• Openly gay presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg surges in a new Iowa poll

• Alabama lawmakers are trying to eliminate marriage licenses entirely because they don’t want LGBT couples to have them

• A Missouri couple were turned away by a homophobic dance instructor

• Tennessee teens actually found acceptance and support as they prepared to attend prom together

• Digital series 'After Forever' gets a LOT of Daytime Emmy nominations

All that and more on this episode of The Randy Report.

Gus Kenworthy Helps College Student Be 'Fearless' In Coming Out

Gus Kenworthy, Ashley Graham help John to come out to his parents

Ellen DeGeneres has launched a new web series titled, Fearless, hosted by entrepreneur and body positive activist Ashley Graham.

The digital series, hosted on EllenTube, focuses on helping people struggling with their own confidence issues to rally the courage to rise above, take the next step and become unapologetically fearless.

In this episode, Ashley helps 20-year-old college student John come out to his parents.

John admits he’s come out to his friends but the idea of telling his parents he’s gay has him “freaked out.”

He says that he first became aware of being attracted to boys in 7th grade but it wasn’t until after he graduated high school and a friend asked him point blank if he was gay.

Gus Kenworthy on coming out

Ashley brings in out Olympian Gus Kenworthy to help John get up the nerve to make the call to his parents.

Kenworthy famously came out on the cover of ESPN Magazine back in 2015. Since then, he’s become one of the leading voices for LGBTQ representation and authenticity.

Gus shares that coming out for him, while scary and nerve-wracking (he didn’t sleep the night before), was ultimately a very positive experience.

Ashley asks if Gus’s friends wanted to talk about the gay thing after he came out and Gus laughs saying, “There’s a thing that straight people are going to do to you; they’re like, ‘Oh my god, you’re gay? You should meet my friend Jason, he’s gay.’”

And with that, they send John off to make THE call to his parents.

The reaction? Watch the video below to find out. Plus, there’s a surprise twist!

At the end of the short video, Gus has these words for those facing their own coming out:

“For anyone who’s watching that’s in the closet and struggling with their identity, their sexuality, I just want to let you know that you are valid, you are seen, you are heard, you are loved. And it can be really scary thinking about taking that step and revealing who you are and being so transparent with the world. But you’re going to be so much happier for it, and you living your life authentically and unapologetically is going to make it that much easier for other people to do the same.”

Follow the digital series Fearless here with new episodes every Wednesday.

Past episodes include Laverne Cox meeting a transgender man who’s never met another trans person before, and Ashley giving a teacher a lesson on body confidence.

Web Series: "jaded"

From Executive Producers JD Scalzo and Brian Emerick comes the original web series jaded.

We had $9k, 6 days, shot 5 eps, and had 1 amazing cast and crew.


Via press release:

jaded takes a look into the contemporary gay dating world particular to San Francisco, through the eyes of a man lost inside the hookup culture, while on a relentless pursuit for a way out.

He asks all the questions, he tries all the things, he falls in love in all the wrong places.

Exploring a variety of complicated relationships, through a multi-diverse array of friends and lovers, we watch him play both the victim and the culprit, traversing a world full of contradictions, over-the-top self expression, casual drug use, and the age-old idea of “free love” with all the consequences that follow.

In a place seemingly without any rules, how do you know which game to play when you don’t really want to play one to begin with?

'50/20' - "An Interracial, Age Challenged, Sexually Fluid Web Series"

Christopher Long and Christopher Nester in "50/20"

The new digital offering “50/20” bills itself as “an interracial, age challenged, sexually fluid web series.”

In the new series, written by Christopher Long and Evan Wynkoop, John (Christopher Nester) and Chris (Christopher Long) meet by chance on a baseball field and an accidental conversation becomes a romantic moment.

Or does it?

Chris is an African-American man in his 50s with a great job, great apartment, great friends, but not-so-great love life. Two years after the death of his longtime lover, he’s been on a lot of bad dates.

John is a good-looking guy in his 20s trying to find a career. A college graduate, he’s in that New York City “table-waiting, bartending, personal training” mode.

Neither of the two were looking for anything when they met, but the conversation leads to John asking for Chris’s phone number.

Plus, according to the digital series’ official website, Chris has never dated a white person and John has never dated anyone who wasn’t white.

Did I mention that Chris is gay and John is straight?

It’ll be interesting to see where this goes.

Check out episode one, “Chance Meeting,” below.

Web Series: 'West 40s' Episode 1

As regular readers of The Randy Report know I have a famously short attention span.

While I may love the ride of an awesome movie, sometimes the 'commitment' of sitting down for two hours to watch something can feel like I'm trapped.

And so you'll understand my appreciation for web series/digital series. These bite-size morsels of entertainment perfectly suit my inability to concentrate for a long time.

Check out the first episode of the new web series, West 40s.

Here's the official description: A Midtown, midlife comedy about 5 gay friends stumbling through their 40s in Hell's Kitchen NYC. In the Episode 1, a 40th birthday party for Luis (the "baby" of the group who's also a baby daddy) goes hilariously awry, and the gang ends up in places they never expected.

Creators Mark Sam Rosenthal and Brian Sloan said, “In their 30s, they’d meet strangers on the Hell’s Kitchen sidewalk and have sex in less time than it took to climb the four flights up to their apartments. But now past 40 they’re all wondering what they want for the long haul – and questioning whether they can still make it up those stairs!”

The series stars Dalton Blaine, Dan Domingues, Jeff Hiller, Matthew Montelongo, John-Andrew Morrison, and Rosenthal.

Watch the first episode below.

New Web Series "West 40s"

The cast of new series 'West 40s'

A new web series, West 40s, plans to explore the lives of five gay men who live in New York City's Hells Kitchen as they begin to approach middle age.

Creators Mark Sam Rosenthal and Brian Sloan describe the new series thusly: “In their 30s, they’d meet strangers on the Hell’s Kitchen sidewalk and have sex in less time than it took to climb the four flights up to their apartments. But now past 40 they’re all wondering what they want for the long haul – and questioning whether they can still make it up those stairs!”

The show stars Dalton Blaine, Dan Domingues, Jeff Hiller, Matthew Montelongo, John-Andrew Morrison, and Rosenthal.

The first full episode will be available in mid-July but you can check out the short teaser below.

New Web Series 'Fathers' Imagines Who Would We Be If AIDS Never Happened?

In 'Fathers' AIDS activist Vito Russo
becomes president instead of dying of AIDS

In his latest project, filmmaker Leo Herrera posits, “If AIDS never happened, who would we be?”

The new web series Fathers imagines in fictional documentary-style an LGBTQ utopia called ‘Stonewall Nation,’ a collection of queer communes in a parallel universe where the AIDS crisis never happened.

The official website for the series describes the sci-fi “documentary” as “Cruising meets Black Mirror meets Beyonce’s Lemonade.”

In the alternate timeline, communities called ‘Stonewall, Oregon’ and ‘Stonewall, Nevada’ exist peacefully as LGBTQ folks openly thrive.

The Fathers Project imagines AIDS never existed.

Everyone shown here represents someone we lost.

Instead of the LGBTQ community being decimated by disease and seeing the nascent gay rights movement stymied by rising anti-LGBTQ animus in the 1980s, Herrera envisions gays running for president, unconstrained by discrimination and disease, living openly across the country.

The 1980s were a golden age for the gay population.

It was a decade defined by our dominance of the arts, victories in politics

and groundbreaking developments in healthcare.

Relying on LGBTQ historians for accuracy, the characters/people featured in Fathers are actual gay leaders of the past as well as survivors, friends, and family members.

The pilot episode (below) is just the beginning as Herrera plans future installments to explore “the election and presidency of gay president Vito Russo (the real AIDS activist who was killed by the disease in 1990), and will be a direct reflection on the political climate today. They will also deal with the plight of gay seniors and the sexuality of modern queer culture.”

The name ‘Stonewall Nation’ comes from an actual group of queer separatists who hoped to establish their own city in Alpine, California, in 1970. Without proper resources, the plan was never implemented.

You can help fund the project here, and check out the first episode below:

Trailer: "After Forever"

Award-winning actor Kevin Spirtas teases "AFTER FOREVER - a series coming April 2018" and I'm totally intrigued.

The series stars Spirtas, Mitchell Anderson and featuring a cast that includes Cady Huffman, Jim Newman, Anita Gillette, Colleen Zenk and the oh-so-talented Jamison Stern.

The project was written by Spirtas and Michael Slade.

And that's about the only info I have besides the trailer below.

I'm betting this is going to be fab.

Watch the trailer below and stay tuned.

UPDATED: Ian Parks From "Where The Bears Are"

UPDATE - Since this podcast aired, the cast of Where The Bears Are not only completed their Kickstarter campaign but exceeded the goal by over $30,000!

Just goes to show how popular this fun web-series remains.

Listen to my chat with WTBA star Ian Parks below.

***************************************

Since 2012, the creative team of Rick Copp, Joe Dietl and Ben Zook has made “Where the Bears Are” the comedy/mystery web series online accumulating over 40 million views since it’s premiere and winning awards like “BEST GAY WEB SERIES” award from AfterElton.com and Queerty.

"Where The Bears Are" follows the exploits of 4 bear roommates sharing a house in the hills of Silverlake. It is often described as "The Golden Girls" meets "Murder She Wrote" with big, hairy, gay men.

The show has a worldwide fan base and the creators/stars have been flown to Europe, Australia, and Mexico due to the show's immense popularity!

Today I’m chatting with the oh-so-handsome Ian Parks who plays “Hot Toddy” on the series.

Ian is here to give us an update to what to expect in the upcoming season 7 as well as share why the crowdfunding campaign is so important to the series.

Hit the play button below to listen.

Ian Parks

Web Series: "The Journey Of Being Likable"

Funnyman Michael Henry has created/written/produced a new web series titled, The Journey of Being Likable.

"This is the show for people that have ever felt out of place, misunderstood, or less than," says Henry.

"For gay people who feel underrepresented and for people who are trying to navigate where they belong in the landscape of their own community."

Watch the trailer and first episode below.

Web Series: "Where The Bears Are" Season 6 Premiere

The first episode of Where The Bears Are Season 6 is available!

I've loved this web series since its first season back in 2012.

Where The Bears Are follows the exploits of 3 bear roommates sharing a house in the hills of Silverlake. It is "The Golden Girls" meets "Murder She Wrote" with big, hairy, gay men. Lots of over the top fun.

The official description for this episode:

In the sixth season opener, Reggie exploits his harrowing confrontation with Jeremy Richards in Mexico for the benefit of his TV show’s ratings, a nasty guest star on Law & Order: Male Rape Unit tortures Nelson with a series of mean tweets, and Wood lands an audition for a major comeback role in a porn film. Meanwhile at the International Security Agency, Todd finds himself pitted against an old nemesis (E. Levi Allen) for a big promotion.

More info at http://wherethebearsare.tv

Web Series: "Daddyhunt The Serial" Season 2

As announced last week, dating app Daddyhunt has released a second season of it's adorable web series - "Daddyhunt the Serial."

The series gives a light-hearted, flirty view into intergenerational dating. Which is a fancy way to frame older and younger guys exploring their attraction to each other.

Cute banter, lots of smiles, and a pre-coital conversation about "old school/new school" dating practices along the way.

Starring Jim Newman, BJ Gruber, David M. Farrington, Michael Snipe Jr & Alan Kelly and Soundtrack by Shirley House.

Watch the four new episodes below. Check out the first season here.

Out Series: "Feral" on Dekkoo.com

New series set to air on LGBT streaming site Dekkoo.com - "Feral."

Via press release:

Like HBO’s "Looking" or "Girls," but set in Memphis, Tennessee. That’s how creator Morgan Jon Fox characterizes "Feral," a Dekkoo.com original TV series that debuts October 6 exclusively on the subscription streaming service dedicated to gay men.

In "Feral," Fox (who also serves as the series writer and director), weaves a tale of survival as a group of 20-somethings learn about love, loss and friendship while living in the vibrant, artistic queer community of Memphis.

The storyline revolves around the lives of Billy and Daniel, two best friends sharing a comfortably broken in bungalow in the diverse neighborhood of Midtown. It begins when the two are forced to kick out their third roommate, after discovering his heroin addiction.

Trailer: "Where The Bears Are" Season 5

Get ready for the fur to fly again as everyone's favorite mystery web series, Where The Bears Are, drops this trailer from the upcoming Season 5.

How could you not love a show that describes itself as "a furry gay mash-up of Murder, She Wrote and The Golden Girls?"

From the producers:

Season 5 will thrust our hairy heroes into yet another thrilling mystery surrounding the honeymoon of everyone’s favorite bear couple, Nelson and Todd!

At the same time, Reggie’s true crime TV show is sinking in the ratings and his personal life is in shambles. But a sexy new romance enters his life causing more complications than ever!

Meanwhile, Wood continues to build his swimwear line called “Sporting Wood” with sidekick George Ridgemont but the business relationship begins to sour as boundaries are crossed and jealously arises.

At the same time, Det. Winters and Martinez, now back together again, try desperately to get away and relax together and rekindle the flame but find themselves pulled in once again by our gang of crime-solving bear roomies.

All while Nelson and Todd’s dream honeymoon goes helplessly and shockingly awry!

Season 5 will feature the usual parade of hot, sexy, hairy men that fans adore, the hilarious comedy everyone expects from the show, and a nail-biting climax which has made the show a worldwide hit!

Web Series: "Anne & Jake" Starring Matt Dallas and Victoria Bullock

I'm a big fan of web series (short attention span and all that), and I've been a fan of Matt Dallas, from ABC Family’s Kyle XY.

So, how could I pass up the chance to introduce you to this new web series, "Anne & Jake" starring Dallas and Victoria Bullock.

Quirky, funny, sweet, nerdy, time travel - how could I not like?

A press release describes the show as "Jane Austen meets Back to the Future:"

The story unfolds in modern day Los Angeles, where a socially inept but brilliant young scientist (Dallas) invents a time machine that catapults his life into a journey beyond time and all reason.

He is brought together with Anne (Bullock), a headstrong and curious British woman whose upcoming forced marriage has her hating her life in London…in 1814.

The seven-episode comedic series reveals Anne and Jake’s unique romance, as Jake deals with introducing Anne to the modern world and figuring out how he created time travel in the first place.

“I hope people take away from the series that it’s okay if you don’t fit in and everyone finds a place,” says writer/producer/actor Victoria Bullock. “The crux of the story is about ‘belonging,’ for both of them.”

“Anybody who has ever felt like they wanted something different than what was expected of them is really going to love this show,” adds Dallas.

Trailer: Eastsiders Season 2

Web series Eastsiders returns for Season 2 beginning September 15.

The dark comedy explores the aftermath of infidelity for a young gay couple in Los Angeles. Think of it as "Friends" only more gay, and much cooler.

You can watch the first two episodes of Season 1 for free here, and all of Season 1 for free if you have an Amazon Prime account :)

Web Series: WHERE THE BEARS ARE Premieres Season 4 Opener

One of my favorite web series is back today!

Episode One of WHERE THE BEARS ARE Season 4 is available now!

Clip description:

In the fourth season opener, the Bears throw a wedding shower in their backyard to celebrate Nelson and Todd’s upcoming nuptials, but things go south fast when Nelson’s mother Doris starts taking potshots at Todd, Nelson invites Todd’s estranged brother Jimmy without telling him, and a spiteful party crasher makes an insulting toast that threatens to ruin the entire event.

WHERE THE BEARS ARE is a web series following the exploits of 3 bear roommates sharing a house in the hills of Silverlake. It is "The Golden Girls" meets "Murder She Wrote" with big, hairy, gay men.

Trailer: WHERE THE BEARS ARE - Season 4

WHERE THE BEARS ARE is a web series following the exploits of 3 bear roommates sharing a house in the hills of Silverlake.

Described as "The Golden Girls" meets "Murder She Wrote" starring big, hairy, gay men.

Season 4 premieres August 24th, 2015 with 18 episodes! New episodes posted every Monday and Thursday.

It Takeis Two Episode 2: "Seriously Part 2?!"

Episode 2 Seriously Part 2: Frustrated after learning that his husband George was responsible for a "mean meme" circulating on the Internet, Brad takes matters into his own hands and visits Google Headquarters, searching for the head of the company to have him take the meme down.

But the intelligence Brad encounters surprises him with its response.