Angus Wilson

Known as: English writer.

Known for:
- His novels Hemlock and After, Anglo-Saxon Attitudes, The Middle Age of Mrs Eliot and The Old Men at the Zoo.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry

Ebony Whitaker

Known as: American hate crime victim.

Known for:
- Murdered by an unknown assailant in Memphis, TN; found dead on July 1, 2008.

Know more:
- The LGBT Hate Crimes Project page

John Wieners

Known as: American writer.

Known for:
- Beat generation poet (The Hotel Wentley Poems, Asylum Poems, Nerves).

Know more:
- Wikipedia page

Tony Ward

Known as: American model and actor.

Known for:
- Calvin Klein underwear model; Madonna videos and Sex book; lead role in Hustler White.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page

Mikko Vesanen

Known as: Finnish interior decorator and reality TV personality.

Known for:
- Interior design expert on Sillä Silmällä, Finland's version of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Know more:
- Official site
- Internet Movie Database page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Queer Eye

Venus

Known as: American singer; a.k.a. Venus Grandell.

Known for:
- Founder of the glam rock band All the Pretty Horses; subject of the documentary Venus of Mars.

Know more:
- Official site
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official MySpace page

Dispatch from The QuOD: Remembering Stonewall

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, the event described as "the defining event that marked the start of the gay rights movement in the United States and around the world".

You can read all about it here, or, for something visual, watch this fab Schoolhouse Rock-style video starring the one and only Varla Jean Merman.

Paul Vogt

Known as: American actor and comedian.

Known for:
- His Mrs. Garrett (of Facts of Life fame) impersonation on The Rerun Show, MADtv and The Big Gay Sketch Show.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page
- Official MySpace page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Hairspray
- Spotlight On: Disney Animated Movies
- Spotlight On: The Big Gay Sketch Show

Christine Vachon

Known as: American producer.

Known for:
- Her many acclaimed independent films, including Poison, Swoon, Go Fish, Boys Don't Cry and Hedwig and the Angry Inch.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry
- Official Facebook page
- Official Twitter page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Emmy Awards 2011

Justin Utley

Known as: American actor, singer, songwriter and musician.

Known for:
- His album Runaway; lead role in the musical Our Country.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page

Tom of Finland

Known as: Finnish artist; née Touko Laaksonen.

Known for:
- His pioneering homoerotic art, filled with his iconic, hyper-stylized depictions of masculinity.

Know more:
- Official site (NSFW)
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry
- Official Facebook page
- Official Twitter page

Stephen Tennant

Known as: English writer and aristocrat.

Known for:
- Said to have "spent most of his life in bed".

Know more:
- Wikipedia page

Violet Trefusis

Known as: English writer and socialite.

Known for:
- Her love affair with Vita Sackville-West, fictionalized in Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page

Tristan Taormino

Known as: American writer, sex educator and pornographic director and actress.

Known for:
- Author of The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women.

Know more:
- Official site (NSFW)
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Shortbus

Shop for Tristan Taormino movies and more at TLA.

Joe Solmonese

Known as: American activist.

Known for:
- President of the Human Rights Campaign.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2009
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2010

Adam Shankman

Known as: American director, producer, choreographer and reality TV personality.

Known for:
- His films Bringing Down the House, The Pacifier and Hairspray; judge on So You Think You Can Dance.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Hairspray
- Spotlight On: The 2008 GLAAD Media Awards
- Spotlight On: Emmy Awards 2010
- Spotlight On: Glee - Season 2

David Ogden Stiers

Known as: American actor.

Known for:
- Played Major Charles Emerson Winchester III on M*A*S*H; prolific voice actor for animated films and TV.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Frasier
- Spotlight On: Disney Animated Movies

Emonie Spaulding

Known as: American hate crime victim.

Known for:
- Murdered in Washington, DC in August 2003.

Know more:
- The LGBT Hate Crimes Project page

Horacio Silva

Known as: Uruguayan journalist.

Known for:
- Fashion News/Features Director of The New York Times Style Magazine.

Know more:
- Official blog
- Official Facebook page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2009

Breck Stewart

Known as: Canadian pornographic actor and singer.

Known for:
- Porn star turned electronic dance music recording artist.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter page
- Official YouTube channel

Shop for Breck Stewart movies and more at TLA.

Sean Sasser

Known as: American activist and reality TV personality.

Known for:
- Married fellow AIDS activist Pedro Zamora on The Real World: San Francisco.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Official Facebook page

Related posts on The QuOD:

- Spotlight On: The 2009 GLAAD Media Awards

Mark Ravenhill

Known as: English writer and actor.

Known for:
- His plays Shopping and F*cking, Some Explicit Polaroids, Mother Clap's Molly House and Product.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page

Lou Reed

Known as: American singer, songwriter and musician.

Known for:
- Member of the influential rock band The Velvet Underground as well as a successful solo recording artist.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter page
- Official YouTube channel

Terence Rattigan

Known as: English writer.

Known for:
- His stage plays and screenplays, including The Winslow Boy, The Browning Version and Separate Tables.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page

Craig Rodwell

Known as: American activist and businessman.

Known for:
- Founder of the Oscar Wilde Memorial Bookstore, the first store devoted to gay authors; organizer of the first gay pride parade.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page

Dispatch from The QuOD: For the Dads

Happy Father's Day!

Spotlight On: Pick Up the Mic

Pick Up the Mic, Alex Hinton's 2006 documentary on homo-hop, makes its DVD debutthis Tuesday.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Movie Dearest review
- Official MySpace page
- Official YouTube channel

Cast:
Aggracyst
Cazwell
Johnny Dangerous
Deadlee
Dutchboy
Tori Fixx
God-des & She
Maurice Jamal


JenRo
Juba Kalamka
Katastrophe
Miss Money
QBoy
JB Rap
Scream Club
Shante "Paradigm" Smalls
soce, the elemental wizard
ButtaFly Soul
Marcus René Van
Tim'm T. West
Matt Wobensmith

Click here to watch the trailer for Pick Up the Mic.

Spotlight On: is an occasional feature here on The QuOD that highlights various pop culture touchstones involving a number of GLBT people of note.

Scott Rudin

Known as: American producer.

Known for:
- Prolific producer for Hollywood and Broadway; won Academy Award for No Country for Old Men.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page
- Movie Dearest Out in Film profile

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2009
- Spotlight On: The Tony Awards 2009
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2010
- Spotlight On: The Tony Awards 2010
- Spotlight On: Oscar Nominees 2010
- Spotlight On: The Tony Awards 2011

Philippe I, Duke of Orléans

Known as: French prince.

Known for:
- Younger brother of King Louis XIV; founded the modern Royal House of Orléans.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry

Nick Partridge

Known as: English activist.

Known for:
- Chief executive of the Terrence Higgins Trust, a charity that campaigns on various issues related to HIV/AIDS.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page

Owen Pallett

Known as: Canadian singer, songwriter and musician.

Known for:
- His experimental music project Final Fantasy.

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: The Out 100 2010

Barbara Payton

Known as: American actress.

Known for:
- Her performance in the film noir Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page

Sinéad O'Connor

Known as: Irish singer and songwriter.

Known for:
- Her Grammy Award-winning, controversial recording career, including her #1 hit "Nothing Compares 2 U".

Know more:
- Official site
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page

Tom Orr

Known as: American cabaret performer, actor, lyricist and pornographic actor (under the name Tom Lazzari).

Known for:
- His campy stage revues, including Dirty Little Showtunes and I Feel a Thong Coming On.

Know more:
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Milk Movies

Shop for Tom Lazzari movies and more at TLA.

Katja Nyberg

Known as: Finnish handball player.

Known for:
- Member of the Danish women's handball club FC Midtjylland and the Norwegian national team.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Official Facebook page

Gary Nixon

Known as: American activist.

Known for:
- Co-founder (with husband Mel White) of the GLBT civil rights organization Soulforce.

Know more:
- Official Soulforce profile

Jean Marais

Known as: French actor.

Known for:
- His performances in such films as La Belle et la Bête, Orphée and the Fantômas trilogy.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry

Sean Mathias

Known as: Welsh director, writer and actor.

Known for:
- His many acclaimed stage productions, as well as the film version of Bent.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page

Ona Munson

Known as: American actress.

Known for:
- Her performance of Belle Watling in Gone With the Wind.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Internet Broadway Database page

Logan McCree

Known as: German pornographic actor.

Known for:
- His performances as a Raging Stallion Studios exclusive; his extensive body tattoos.

Know more:
- Official site (NSFW)
- Internet Movie Database page
- Gay Porn Stars profile (NSFW)
- Official MySpace page

Shop for Logan McCree movies and more at TLA.

Neil Meron

Known as: American producer.

Known for:
- His musical productions (with business partner Craig Zadan) for film (Chicago, Hairspray) and television (Gypsy, Annie).

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry
- Official Facebook page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Hairspray
- Spotlight On: The Tony Awards 2011

Robert Laughlin

Known as: American reality TV personality.

Known for:
- The fashion and beauty expert on Queer Eye for the Straight Girl.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page for Queer Eye for the Straight Girl
- Internet Movie Database page

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: Another Gay Movies
- Spotlight On: Queer Eye

Adam Lambert

Known as: American singer and reality TV personality.

Known for:
- Runner-up on the eighth season of American Idol.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page
- Official Facebook page
- Official MySpace page
- Official Twitter

Related posts on The QuOD:
- Spotlight On: The Out 100 2009
- Spotlight On: The 2009 GLAAD Media Awards
- Spotlight On: The Out Power 50 2010

Friedrich Alfred Krupp

Known as: German businessman.

Known for:
- Heir to the Krupp family steel manufacturing company who committed suicide following a sex scandal.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- GLBTQ Encyclopedia entry

Spotlight On: Queer Eye

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy(2003-2007; renamed Queer Eye in its third season)

Known as: American reality series.

Known for:
- Landmark, Emmy Award-winning "make-over" reality program that spawned several international versions (see below).

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page

Cast ("The Fab Five"):
Ted Allen, food and wine connoisseur
Kyan Douglas, grooming expert
Thom Filicia, interior designer
Carson Kressley, fashion expert
Jai Rodriguez, culture expert

Additional Cast:
Blair Boone, guest culture expert
Charles Daboub Jr., design expert (pilot only)
James Hannaham, culture expert (pilot only)
Sam Spector, grooming expert (pilot only)

Creators/Crew:
Andy Cohen, executive producer
David Collins, creator and producer
Stephen Kijak, director
Michael Williams, producer

Soundtrack:
Barry Harris
Elton John
Casey Spooner


Queer Eye for the Straight Guy UK (United Kingdom, 2004):

Cast:
Dane Bailey, interior decorator
Julian Bennett, fashion expert
Tristan Eves, grooming expert
Jason Gardiner, culture expert
Christopher Peyton, food and wine connoisseur

De fantastiske 5 - I den gode smags tjeneste (Denmark, 2004-2006):

Cast:
Tor Andersen, fashion expert
Thomas Bickham
René Fris, grooming expert
Jesper Gadegaard, interior decorator
Michael Holm, fashion expert
Bill Holmberg, culture expert
Morten Skærved, food and wine connoisseur

El equipo G (Spain, 2004):

Cast:
Gonzalo García, interior decorator
Pablo Iglesias, grooming expert
Frank Martin, food and wine connoisseur
Víctor Massán, culture expert
Erik Putzbach, fashion expert


Queer Eye for the Straight Girl (2005)

Known as: American reality series.

Known for:
- Short-lived spin-off of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.

Know more:
- Wikipedia page
- Internet Movie Database page

Cast ("The Gal Pals"):
Honey Labrador, lifestyle expert
Robert Laughlin, fashion expert
Damon Pease, interior decorator
Danny Teeson, lifestyle expert

Sillä Silmällä (Finland, 2005-2006):

Cast:
Gekko, grooming expert
Mikael Hytönen, culture expert
Tommy Kilponen, style expert
Pekka Nikumatti, food and wine connoisseur
Mikko Vesanen, interior decorator


Aussie Queer Eye for the Straight Guy (Australia, 2005):

Cast:
Ryan Andrijich, food and wine connoisseur
Will Fennell, grooming expert
Ty Henschke, fashion expert
Liston Williams, culture expert
Brendan Wong, interior decorator

International versions of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy also aired in France (Queer, Cinq Experts dans le Vent), Germany (Schwul macht cool), Italy (I Fantastici Cinque) and Portugal (Esquadrão G).

Spotlight On: is an occasional feature here on The QuOD that highlights various pop culture touchstones involving a number of GLBT people of note.