Pride & Opinions

You read the headline right.  Movie superstar heartthrob and Angelina Jolie baby daddy Brad Pitt is not only easy on the eyes and a pretty darned good actor, he also has a special place in his heart for the homos and the lesbos.

According to the Associated Press, The masculine half of Brangelina who is currently starring in the film Burn After Reading, has donated an impressive $100,000 to support the right of gays and lesbians to marry.  Pitt donated to fight Proposition 8, which is an initiative in California to overturn the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same sex marriage in the state by a vote on the November ballot.

Brad spoke out as well, putting his mouth where his money is, saying that no one should be able to deny someone else the right to live their life as they choose, so long as it doesn’t harm anyone else. "…because discrimination has no place in America, my vote will be for equality and against Proposition 8"

The couple is well known for being outspoken on a variety of issues and on behalf of many causes.  Just a few days prior, Brad and Angelina jointly donated two million dollars to help in the fight against HIV / AIDS and tuberculosis in Ethiopia. 

For their seemingly endless efforts to help others in all corners of the world - including the gay and lesbian community - Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie receive the coveted Pride and Opinions Halo Award.

Actor Eric McCormack who played Will on the popular NBC television series Will & Grace is a big believer in giving back.

According to a statement released recently, McCormack put his prized Porsche - the one given to him while he starred in the hit sitcom - up for auction.  True to fashion, Eric did all of this for one fantastic cause.  According to People Magazine, the silver Porsche was auctioned to benefit a meal delivering charity that serves people with AIDS and other similarly debilitating illnesses. 

The auction of the silver 1999 Porsche Boxster that had a starting bid of $23,100 and ended at $24,600 – will benefit Project Angel Food, a meal-delivery charity serving people with AIDS and other debilitating illnesses.  Eric McCormack even filled the glove box with Will & Grace DVDs and promised to write a personalized greeting to the winning bidder.

In case you were wondering, he’s not gay… he just played one on TV.  He is however, a staunch supporter of causes near and dear to the hearts of the glbt community.

In case you wanted to see the auction page itself at Ebay, click here to have a look.  My personal favorite line from the description was:

Like Will, the car has been pampered, looks fabulous for its age, and swears it never had any work done.

Indeed, Eric looks great and having done something so selfless, I can’t help but to believe that he must feel great too.

For this celebrity auction, Eric McCormack wins a Pride and Opinions Halo Award.

Gay businessman Ben Elliott - who left the Atlanta area immediately after the controversial closing of popular gay bar Hoedown’s last year - was arrested Wednesday on federal charges of wire fraud and money laundering.

Shortly after taking control of the bar when his family became the majority stockholder, Elliott drew the ire of gay patrons who loved the country themed establishment when he replaced it with drag shows and theme nights.

The Southern Voice reported that Bill Elliott was arrested by the Franklin County Tennessee Sheriff’s Department before being transferred to Chattanooga and into the custody of federal authorities. 

Southern Voice reported last summer that Elliott faced two federal civil lawsuits and a federal investigation centered on allegations that he used a direct mail business to make multiple unauthorized withdrawals, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars, from the bank accounts of car dealerships that had been his clients. A third civil lawsuit, from a company Elliott used to do direct mail work, claimed Elliott owed more than $1 million in unpaid bills.

The 21 counts he has been charged with total some $30 million dollars, but law enforcement officials decline to comment on the case at this time.

In the interest of fairness, I feel obligated to tell my dear readers that Elliot t was very outspoken about these charges, claiming that he was entitled to the money and that the auto dealerships were victimizing him.

Poor guy.  I hope he finds himself a nice warm cell mate named Bubba to keep him warm at night.  I mean…the guy is sorta cute after all. And criminals need love, too.

source:  Southern Voice (www.sovo.com)

I was thumbing through the ads in the latest issue of OUT Magazine this afternoon and just after wiping away the drool after seeing the new David Beckham ad for Emporio Armani when I came across a Kenneth Cole ad featuring well-tattooed and geek chic punk evangelist Jay Bakker - son of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker.

"We All Walk in Different Shoes" the ad touts, and the company could have found no better poster child for that ad campaign than Bakker, who is the founder and pastor of Revolution Church, a congregation that does not discriminate against anyone, including gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender individuals.

I remember watching what I believe to be the last interview of Tammy Faye before her death, by Larry King on his popular CNN show "Larry King Live".  During the interview her son Jay would often be called upon to step in and answer a question when she was unable to do so. 

One particular question that stuck in my mind was about why Tammy Faye "found it in her heart" to accept the gay community when her contemporaries would not.  The question and answer, along with some special reflections by Jay Bakker are included in this YouTube video:

For his unwavering support of the gay, lesbian, bi and trans communities, and for preaching a sermon of acceptance and unconditional love for all people, Jay Bakker gets the first-ever Pride and Opinions Halo Award.  Would that more people could follow in his admittedly untraditional footsteps.

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