My Weekend Crush

I think we all deserve to watch “Killing Eve” star Jodie Comer and “Derry Girls” star Nicola Coughlan read each other love letters as Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf. This year has been a lot for everyone, and we still have almost half of it left. But romance, romance has no timeframe. It has no time period. It has no time limit. The project was for Amnesty UK as a celebration of Pride month. But it can be enjoyed at any time. In fact, I think I will again and highly recommend you do as well. I mean, two actresses who play queer female characters reading the real letter of two actual queer literary giants to each other? Yeah, we deserve this.

So here is Jodie as Vita reading a love letter to Virginia.

And here is Nicola reading Virginia's love letter response to Vita.

Swoon away, ladies. You’ve earned this. Happy safe, healthy and righteous weekend, all.

Frankly My Dear, She Does Give a Damn

My forever vibe is Olivia de Havilland cursing her way through a blooper reel. pic.twitter.com/8P5ApTAQy4

— Caitlin Rose (@TheCaitlinRose) July 26, 2020

A lioness of the silver screen passed away this past week. At 104, Olivia de Havilland lived one hell of a life by anyone's standards. And she did it her way, living her the last six decades of her life in Paris and drinking champagne every day. Sure, we know her as the two-time Oscar winner and last living star of "Gone with the Wind." But she was so much more. She took on the Hollywood system during a time when the studios essentially owned their stars. So in 1943 when she sued Warner Bros. after it attempted to extend her seven-year contract, her court victory paved the way for today's stars to free themselves of the system. So, as I was saying, quite a legend and a pioneer who lived life on her terms. And, you know, was known to swear a time or two.

WayHaught Wednesday

Have you had time to collectively process the return of “Wynonna Earp?” Well gals and guys and thems and theirs, saddle up, because the good times in Purgatory are back. I say good times because we’re all currently living in hell, so Purgatory seems like a nice step up. I mean, what I wouldn’t give to be given a big (metaphorical) gun to wipe out the world’s problems. The third season of the show premiered more than two years ago. But here we are, battle weary but victorious, able to enjoy the fruits of our hard-fought fight. You did this, fans. And, what did you think? Totally worth the wait, right?

Viking Funerals & Other Summer Fun

Well, this looks, interesting. But not in the way you normally pause and say...interesting. But truly interesting. I love Jenny Slate, even though her work is almost always tinged in a melancholy that aches so softy you don’t realize you’re sad until much later. But, maybe a good sad? Also there’s a red-haired Gillian Anderson and vikings and a large barn. So, you know, why not? I’ll take a trip to Norway to watch someone paint a barn. Though, honestly, I’d take a trip anywhere - that is if we could. Gosh, when will we again? See? Melancholy.

Music Monday: For Elijah

They say music soothes the savage beast. The savage beast of American policing, which has never dealt with its long-standing systematic racism, could do well to stop and listen. Recently violin protests were held across the country recently to honor Elijah McClain, a young Black man who was known to play his violin at the local animal shelter for the stray cats and dogs. The 23-year-old died last summer after police put him in a chokehold and subsequently injected him with ketamine while he was on his way home from picking up iced tea from the store for his brother. His crime? Wearing a face mask and looking “sketchy.” He was unarmed. They said he resisted. I’d like to see the venn diagram of cops who don’t wear masks in areas where they are mandated by law, and cops who say someone would be alive if they’d just complied with the law. I’d bet it’s a damn solid circle.

The officers were cleared at the time, but the Aurora Police Department in Colorado is facing renewed scrutiny in light of the historic Black Lives Matter protests. It should be noted that that is the very same police department that entirely peacefully apprehended and arrested James Holmes, a convicted mass murderer who killed 12 people and injured 70 others in the 2012 attack on an Aurora movie theater. Despite being decked out in full tactical gear with heavy weaponry on him, Holmes was arrested without a scratch. Did I mention that he is white?

Naturally, in response to this the Aurora Police Department did a lot of soul searching and made concrete changes? Ha! Kidding! They brought out officers in full riot gear to break up a peaceful violin protest in the city and violently beat, pepper sprayed and arrested lawful protestors instead. So, you know, lessons learned.



The arch of the moral universe is long, and we’re doing everything we can to bend it toward justice. But we are all impatient, and rightfully so, for change. May we actually learn from these troubled and troubling times. May no young person who leaves the house for a mundane or even extraordinary task never come home again simply because of the color of his/her/their skin and the overzealous and racist use of force by the very people meant to protect all of us equally. All lives can’t matter until Black Lives Matter. Lives like Elijah McClain and George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and sadly too many others to list. Be soothed by this music. Then fight like a beast for what is right. Happy Monday, kittens.

My Weekend Crush

Boy, do the Republican Men of America have no idea how to to deal with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. A strong, smart, passion, uncowed woman who runs circles around then in intellect, relatability and empathy. So this week when Florida Man and somehow elected GOP Rep. Red Yoho called AOC a “fucking bitch” on the steps of the Capitol steps in front of reporters, he thought he’d scored such an epic burn. And then the poor dumb mysoginistic bastard issued a non-apology apology on the House floor where he said, “I cannot apologize for my passion or for loving my God, my family, or my country.”He also used his wife and daughters as shields, because no man with a wife or daughters has ever demeaned women before. Cleary.

And so this was AOC’s response. Every woman in America and the world knows her words to be true. Every woman in America and the world has experienced misogynistic hate from men. As she says, this is not new and that is the problem. But the more women who stand up both for themselves and other women, and call out men for their actions and others for their inaction, the more we tackle the misogyny that remains very much a part of our culture - from Washington D.C. to across this country and around the damn globe. Happy safe, healthy and righteous weekend, all.

Gender Fuck Thursday: Cher Side Story

Earlier this month a tweet about a long-ago TV special where Cher played every role in “West Side Story” went viral. And I thought, sure, how crazy can it really be? Oh, kittens. So, so crazy. The world is a lot right now, too much really. So please spend 12 minutes and change of your time watching, in slack-jawed wonder, the spectacle of Cher – the one and only Cher – singing basically all the songs in “West Side Story” while playing basically all the character, all at once. And there’s nothing basic about that. Drag King Cher in particular is a sight to behold, all four of them. So, please turn your brain off and enjoy the next dozen minutes for the truly ridiculous gender fuck and mind fuck that is Cher playing all of “West Side Story.” Plus, it’s Cher. Even when it’s crazy, it’s amazing.

Guard Up

Can we talk, I mean really talk, about how great “The Old Guard” is? I watched it the first weekend it came out and have watched it again and let me tell you, it only gets better. It only gets fiercer. It only makes you love movies even more. And Charlize Theron and her labrys and alternative lifestyle haircut, my goddesses, it only gets HOTTER.



Charlize has become my favorite action star by far in recent years. From “Mad Max: Fury Road” to “Atomic Blonde” now to “The Old Guard” her action work stands head, shoulders and immaculately chiseled cheekbones above anyone else working right now. Yes, better than all the boys. And, it doesn’t hurt that her action films have also had at very least subtext and other times explicitly queer vein running thought them. I mean, no one said Furiosa was gay, but come on. And then in “Atomic Blonde,” 100%.

Now with “The Old Guard,” well, I’m not sure how else you read Andy and Quynh’s relationship through the millennia as anything but a grand love affair. Plus, again, have I mentioned Andy’s hair and Andy’s tank tops and Andy’s freaking labrys? I mean, a labrys. HELLO.



Andy is Andromache of Scythia, who appears in Greek mythology as a princess and wife of the Trojan prince Hector. But mythology also paints her – quite literally – as an Amazon warrior who fought Hercules and whose name – quite literally, again – means “fighter of men.”

So, yeah, an Amazonian warrior who has lived for 6,000 years, had a faithful female companion for most of those years and fights with a labrys. And I repeat, COME ON.

I cannot empathize enough how great this movie is. And the movie also has an extraordinarily romantic gay male couple in Joe and Nicky, a worthy new addition in Nile (the wonderful Kiki Layne, who we’d better be seeing a lot more of soon), and some of the best up-close action sequences I’ve seen in forever. I mean, people drool all over the operatic violence of “John Wick,” but this is better, smoother, more effortless. They’re proof practice makes perfect, and then some.

“The Old Guard” delivers everything you want from your escapist entertainment in these times. Stellar action. Powerful story. Terrific acting. Righteous intentions. Director Gina Prince-Bythewood proves once again that when you hire a talented, diverse cast and give them quality material with impeccable directing, the result is something you’ll want to watch again and again. And, if you watched it already, you’ll be just as excited as I am that more is likely coming. In fact, I demand it. And if they won’t listen, there’s always Andy and her labrys.

Tank Top Batwoman

By now you have probably heard that Ruby Rose will be replaced as Batwoman by Javicia Leslie. The out bisexual actress will be the first Black woman to portray the superhero. And that, in and of itself, is pretty darn exciting.

I’d been a tad perplexed by the show’s powers that be choosing to replace instead of just recast the departed Ruby Rose and her character Kate Kane. It’s definitely not unprecedented to switch Darrins/Beckys mid-show. And Kate Kane is so identified with the original Batwoman of comics lore it seemed…odd? I meant the whole thing with Ruby leaving so abruptly was odd. And while I think she did fine in the role, it cannot be said that she is one of the great actresses of our time. Though, goodness, was she easy to look at. But to just reboot the Batwoman character entirely with an entirely new character playing her? I had my doubts.

But the news instead is truly great. The more people who are allowed to finally see themselves in the stories we tell always the better. Javicia will play a brand new character, Ryan Wilder, who will slide (or tug, I dunno, that things seems like it might need some baby powder to get on) into the Batwoman suit instead. Her past TV credits include BET’s “The Family Business” and CBS’s “God Friended Me.”

Her Batwoman character Ryan is described as:

“likable, messy, a little goofy and untamed. She’s also nothing like Kate Kane, the woman who wore the Batsuit before her. With no one in her life to keep her on track, Ryan spent years as a drug-runner, dodging the GCPD and masking her pain with bad habits. Today Ryan lives in her van with her plant. A girl who would steal milk for an alley cat and could also kill you with her bare hands, Ryan is the most dangerous type of fighter: highly skilled and wildly undisciplined. An out lesbian. Athletic. Raw. Passionate. Fallible. And very much not your stereotypical All-American hero.”

Granted some of this description is begging for the eye-roll emoji. The first Black Batwoman will be an “untamed” “former “drug-runner” who isn’t your “stereotypical All-American hero” and also steals milk from alley cats? Um, OK. Sure. But, I’ve been engaged enough in the show and its championing of a lesbian champion for the masses that I will definitely give it a shot. And, well, Javicia does look good in tank tops. And it is Tuesday.



p.s. My only other request, dear hair and makeup gods, please let her keep that glorious hair instead of that awful red wig. It would be a crime not to, and she is a crime fighter, sooooo.

Music Monday: Love From Naya Edition

Six years ago Naya Rivera directed a music video about immigration in America. And despite her tragic loss, it’s an inspiring reminder that what makes America great has always been its rich and diverse people. The American Experiment continues to be about creating a place for everyone. Yet we have never, not once, truly lived up to that ideal. Still we can never stop trying. Thanks for the reminder, Naya. Happy Monday, kittens.

My Weekend Crush

This week kind of sucked. Life has been throwing a lot of spinning plates at us here at Snarker Central. But, it’s also a week where the first The Chicks music in 14 years dropped. So, I guess it wasn’t all bad. May next week be better, kinder, safer, smarter. Enjoy some well-earned rest. Dance in your kitchen. Hug your wife, girlfriend, spouse, partner, good doggo, sweet kitty and/or who or whatever is helping you get through this endless pandemic and, you know, everything else. Or just finally get some much-needed sleep. Whatever it takes. But, be warned, whatever you do don’t fuck with The Chicks. Cause they’ll write a damn catchy damning song about you. And, well, we’ll enjoy it but you might not. Happy safe, healthy and righteous weekend, all.

Wear a Tina Mask

What’s up, nerds? The first “30 Rock” episode since January 2013 will air tonight. Am I excited? Please, even after 11 years my Fake TV Wife still very much makes me want to go to there. Tina and Alec and Jane and Tracy and Kenneth the Page, oh my! Interestingly, the special looks like they used real cameras, and real locations-ish, to shoot unlike the rest of the Very Special Coronavirus Episodes we’ve seen so far which have looked like super-sized Zoom meetings with only marginally better lighting. What will happen? Who knows! But I’m sure excited to sit in peace and eat a sandwich while watching this. Also, if someone could send me one of those Tina screaming face masks, I’d be very much obliged.

Summer Girls

Gosh, ‘tis truly the season of lesbian period pieces with heavy literary bents. After “Wild Nights With Emily” and “Vita & Virginia” and “Tell It To the Bees,” and – of course – “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” we now have “Summerland.” The British drama is set during the London Blitz of World War II. Gemma Arterton plays a writer who reluctantly takes on a young charge to do her part for the war effort and all. And as they get to know each other she reveals she was in love once, with a woman who looks remarkably like and in fact is Gugu Mbatha-Raw.



Talk about your actresses from lesbian roles colliding in new lesbian roles. Gemma was of course just in “Vita & Virginia” and Gugu will always be the “San Junipero” of our hearts. I have no idea, ultimately, where there love story will go. But if they don’t get to grow old together, which it seems to be hinted at here, may we have enough glorious flashbacks of vintage gay love to at least make it worth the heartbreak. And if that also involves old-timey swimsuits, so be it.

For All The Gay Sharks

So I wrote a little something about Naya Rivera’s enduring legacy for The Hollywood Reporter today. This one goes out to all of the #gaysharks and every fan who boarded the S.S. Brittana. Her tragic death was confirmed yesterday, and the sadness set in all over again. As Santana Lopez, Naya touched so many lives. And this moment, when she is outed before she is ready and then performs what I believe the single best mashup ever done on “Glee,” is powerful beyond words. Cory and Naya are forever intertwined because of it, and now for such unspeakably somber reasons as well. But take heart that Naya will be inspiring young and not-so-young queer women and fans forever. The woman may be gone, and we mourn her so, but make no mistake she will continue to change the world.

Read my THR guest column here: How Naya Rivera Became an Icon for the LGBTQ Community

Music Monday: Vintage T&S Edition

Remember when Tegan & Sara were on the original “The L Word” and Dana was tripping balls and Shane was Shane and everything was beautiful and nothing hurt? Yeah, me too. Vaguely. Happy Monday, kittens.

p.s. Remember when the Indigo Girls were on “Ellen” for the famous “Puppy Episode?” For every generation, there is a lesbian band that slays on a lesbian show, apparently.

My Weekend Crush

I was expecting “Wild Nights With Emily” to be gay. And it was, it was super, super gay. But I guess what I wasn’t quite expecting is how convincingly gay the movie is – and not in the “actors acting gay” sense (though Molly Shannon et al are very, very good), but the “Oh, my God, Emily Dickinson really was gay and history/humans have framed her in the most conveniently convincing yet non-threatening way possible to maximize profit and appeal”-sense. I know, whew, all that and it was funny, too!

“Wild Nights With Emily” may be the favorite lesbian period piece I’ve watched during these coronavirus self-quarantine/never-ending pandemic times. (The others being “Vita & Virginia” and “Tell It to the Bees.”) What those films had in beautiful polish, “Wild Nights With Emily” makes up for in exuberant strangeness. I’ve always loved the oddball everything of Madeleine Olnek’s work. Like if you tell me you laughed all the way through “Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same” I know we can be friends because we both wallow in the same kind of weird. Now, finally, after two years of writing about it and waiting, her newest movie is finally available to steam on Hulu.

What Olnek’s film does is completely reframe Emily, taken from extensive scholastic research into her actual work and letters to her longtime “gal pal”/sister-in-law Susan Dickinson. It’s fascinating how invested some are in keeping Emily the lonely spinster reclusive who hated fun, while her personal letters show an intelligent, passionate and decisive woman with so much of herself to give. It made me want to go out and read more Emily Dickinson, which truly is a great idea anytime.

Who gets to write our history, it always matters. And more times than not, the person granted that privilege has an agenda other than the truth in mind. It’s the reason we still have monuments to traitors who tried to tear apart the Union standing across these so-called United States. And why so many history books taught us that racism basically ended after slavery was abolished, but OK it super-duper really ended after the Civil Rights Movement, we swear!

While time may have tried to write off Emily Dickinson as just a woman defined by her loneliness, it seems the truth of her has kept burning through the ages and now onto our screens. Wild nights, indeed. Can you posthumously send toaster ovens? Welcome, Emily. We knew we always liked that lady. And, as history will tell, the feeling was mutual.

Forever Naya

Oh, Naya. I truly don’t know what to say at the news of her probable drowning yesterday after a day boating with her 4-year-old son. It’s so unspeakably sad. As of this moment, they have transitioned from a rescue to a recovery mission. We can continue to hope, but the truth is we have likely lost someone very special.

It’s not hyperbole to say Naya helped to change the world as Santana Lopez. She definitely saved lives. While all the articles I’ve read about her tragic incident so far have made mention of her role on “Glee,” most fail to mention the importance of her character to LGBTQ youth and those not-so young across the globe.

Sure, Kurt Hummel was the immediate gay breakout star. But Santana’s journey reflected that of so many queer women, especially young women. Her love for Brittany, her realization of her sexuality, her struggle to coming out (well, outing), her happily ever after.

I have been involved in a few fandoms in my day, but the Brittana fandom remains extraordinary because it’s one of the first massive, mainstream shipping fandoms just for lesbian, bisexual and queer women where we also actually saw them realized on screen. (Yes, yes – of course Willow and Tara remain an O.G., don’t worry.)

And, what made it even more cherished is that fans essentially willed it into existence. What started as a throwaway line ended up with a wedding ceremony. The lesbian blogging community demanded Brittana happen, and it did. But that wouldn’t have happened without the support of the actresses themselves – Naya and Heather.

I had the incredibly good fortune to meet Naya, albeit briefly, at the GLAAD Media Awards in 2011. This was when Brittana was in full frenzy. She was so gracious and lovely. And, well, we all know Naya has always been a knockout.

Through it all, Naya played Santana with sass and vulnerability – a difficult combination under any circumstances, but she had to do it all while singing and dancing up an absolute storm. And her voice, well, it still cuts powerfully through space and time. Just thinking about her makes me want to rewatch all of her “Glee” performances. “Rumor Has It/Someone Like You,” “Me Against the Music,” “Valerie,” “Songbird.” Oh, God, “Songbird.”

The last thing she posted was photo of her with her young son titled, “Just the two of us.” May the world wrap him in love and peace. May her memory remind us that one person can still make a difference and touch lives they’ll never know. Life continues to be so very unfair and so terribly cruel. On days like today, it sure is hard to keep believing.



ETA: Naya's body was recovered Monday, July 13. Seven years to the day that her co-star Cory Monteith died from an accidental drug overdose. May her family and the young son she saved as her last act on this Earth find peace. Thank you, Naya. Rest in power.

It's Earping Time

Yes, yes, I know you’ve already watched it. Like you weren’t going to watch it again, anyway. The first trailer for the long-time-coming fourth season of “Wynonna Earp” has been released, and it’s what the kids of definitely not today called a real humdinger. I’m not sure there’s a show on TV that so seamlessly provides exceptional fans service while simultaneously serving up such good, fun stories. No wonder Earpers everywhere dropped everything to fight for Wynonna. And look what happens when we win? Sure, it took two years. But July 26 will be here sooner than you know it. And, goodness, do we have some demons to fight – in Purgatory and everywhere else.

Tank Top Tuesday: Old Guard Edition

“The Old Guard” certainly has an intriguing premise. A team of Ancients who cannot die, fighting the good/bad fight through the centuries and now being chased by what appears to be a pasty tech bros because it’s always a pasty tech bros. I have no idea whether this movie will be any good, but I already know it has Charlize Theron in a tank top sporting an alternative lifestyle haircut and kicking ass. So how bad could it be? Also it appears at least two of the immortals are gay and in love with each other, which is nice, right? Sorry, my romance heart needed a moment. Now, back to the regularly scheduled ass kicking. See you Friday, old and new guard.

Music Monday: The Schuyler Sisters Edition

Yes, like everyone else I spent last weekend watching “Hamilton” on Disney+. Now that’s now you truly celebrate America’s birthday, by reframing and correcting history. Goodness knows, she needs it. And, since we are talking about the power of reframing incorrect and undiscovered history, how about those Schuyler Sisters? Honestly, I could have watched a whole musical just about Angelica, Eliza and, yes, even Peggy. I mean, I had no idea about Eliza’s orphanage, Graham Windham, was still around and helping the children of New York City 214 years later. Like I was saying, they deserve their own damn musical. But for now, please enjoy Renee Elise Goldsberry, Phillipa Soo and Jasmine Cephas Jones get their their Angelica, Eliza and Peggy on in better days at the White House. Sigh, I sure miss those days. And a president who, you know, read things and cared about people.

My Weekend (Fourth of July) Crush

I can’t think of anything more All-American this Fourth of July weekend than tearing down a monument to a man who committed treason by leading the Confederate Army in an attempt to destroy the United States of America. The Robert. E. Lee Monument in Richmond Virginia was commissioned in 1876, close to a dozen years after the Civil War ended. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam ordered its removal this month. But a court injunction was filed because losers can never let go of losing causes. But, while we wait, the site has become an incredible art piece about protest, resistance, equality, revolution and what we value as a nation. Images of George Floyd, Harriet Tubman, and Frederick Douglass – among others – have all been projected onto the monument to human enslavement and suffering. May it, and all the systematic institutions and policies which keep us from being truly equal and enjoying the full freedoms this country promises, come down soon. Happy safe, healthy and righteous Fourth of July weekend, all.

Center Stage

As we keep our Pride extra week rolling, how about enjoying the trailer for “Stage Mother.” The movie seems like a but if a camp throwback – like, when’s the last time you remember a movie revolving around acceptance of a dead gay son? (Answer: “Heathers”?) But it could still be quite fun. Think as if an Americanized “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” and “Kinky Boots” had a baby but brought it up with more Baptist church choir overtones and Lucy Liu as an added bonus. (Though, gotta admit, blonde Lucy isn’t my favorite.) As a NorCal girl, I get a kick out of seeing the Castro. And, well, who doesn’t like a good diva? I only wish Adrian Grenier wasn’t in the movie, because I only see him as the true villain of “The Devil Wears Prada.” Bad boyfriends, man. They’re continually the worst.

Happiest (Movie) Season

You know what, fuck it, we’re taking the first week of July too because we didn’t get to have our parades and we’re worth it. And you definitely deserve to see Kristen “Like So Gay, Dude” Stewart and Mackenzie “San Junipero” Davis with director Clea “But I’m a Cheerleader” DuVall from their holiday themed lesbian holiday lesbian holidy rom-com “Happiest Season.” Because, kittens, it’s like a rainbow explosion of joys, quite literally. It’s almost like Pride Month threw up all over them, but in a good way.

The plot, about how a young woman (K-Stew) who plans to propose to her girlfriend (Davis) at her girlfriend family’s annual Thanksgiving party only to find out she isn’t out to her conservative parents (played by Mary Steenburgen and Victor Garber), is certainly intriguing. And K-Stew is probably the highest-profile out actress to tackle an out queer role. The cast is rounded out (see what I did there?) by Alison Brie (“Community”), Aubrey Plaza (“Parks & Rec”), Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”) and Ana Gasteyer (please, you know who Ana Gasteyer is). As excited as I am for this film, I gotta say that’s a very white principal cast. Though I do think it has some more supporting POC actors.

But, still, any mainstreaming of queer identities and love is always welcome. And, well, who can resist a well-made lesbian rom-com? I mean, we’ve all suffered through enough bad ones. Like, I watched “Bar Girls” and briefly reconsidered my sexual orientation like every other lesbian who had the misfortune of seeing it. Plus we’re lucky this film – which started shooting in January – was able to wrap before the global pandemic and, you know, everything. So we’ll be able to see it in some form or another this November.

Now all that is left is to go find your rainbow stencils, grab a rainbow flag, make a “Love Is Love” sign and let’s do this thing.

p.s. Spoiler Alert: Something about this picture tells me those parents come around in the end. I mean, they practically look like they’ve started their own PLAG chapter.