The Only Boy on Paradise Island (Ep. 167 - Wonder Woman)

This Week's Guest: Richard Andreoli

This week's guest grew up idolizing comic book heroes, which presented a problem as he entered adulthood: how could he possibly measure up to the flying, crime-fighting, invisible-jet-flying role models of his youth? Richard Andreoli's mission in life became seeking out the opportunities for heroics in everyday life. In other words -- not expecting to become a superhero, but finding pride in being a normalhero.

By the way, if you're heading to DragCon in LA next month, I hope you'll join me for two panels! On Saturday, I'll be hosting a breakneck game of Dungeons and Dragons played by BenDeLaCreme, Erika Klash, Kitty Powers, and Fraya Love. And on Sunday, I'll be hosting a fun friendly chat about tabletop gaming, featuring a panel of queer and ally gamers sharing recommendations for finding games and people to play with. It's going to be a blast -- hope to see you there.

And no matter where you are in the world, I hope you'll join us for the next Sewers of Paris live chat -- it's on Saturday, May 5, at 2pm Pacific. We want to hear about the book and movies and songs and shows you're obsessed with right now. There's a link at the top of the SewersOfParis twitter feed -- see you Saturday!

Huge thanks to everyone who makes The Sewers of Paris possible with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the Show on Patreon." Or you can support The Sewers of Paris for free by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice -- that really helps people find the show.

This Week's Recommendation: The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin

Thanks again to Richard for joining me. Head over to BattleAtTheComicExpo.com to check out his book, coming out later this month. 

For this week's recommendation, take a look at a documentary about another gay author: it's called The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin, and it is an utter delight. You probably recognize Armistead's name as the author of the Tales of the City novels, but the documentary pulls back the curtain on the life of the man whose writing turned him into an icon.

It's a perfect primer not just on what his books are, but on why they matter and to whom they mattered most. Starting in the 1970s, his stories of singles mingling in San Francisco were only supposed to be a fun weekly newspaper column. But as time went on and his subject matter got queerer, his columns became a lifeline for a community that still faced daily struggles to survive.

Looking back, nearly a half century later, it's hard to image what that world could have been like, when queer culture was taboo even in San Francisco. So much of that history was lost to the epidemic, to bigotry, and to the fear -- completely reasonable -- that documenting LGBTQ lives would expose them to even greater harm. 

If you're of a certain age, you can rely on your memory to keep those distant voices alive. But for the rest of us, those records of the time -- whether written down or shared face to face -- are a vital link to those who built the world we enjoy today.

Stuff We Talked About

Becoming Real (Ep. 166 - The Velveteen Rabbit)

This Week's Guest: Wyatt Fenner

My guest this week is actor Wyatt Fenner, who you've seen on Veronica Mars, Bones, and the movie Take the Yuletide Gay. New Yorkers, you can see him right now in the show Transparent Falsehood at Theater 511 on West 54th Street. As an actor, Wyatt's an expert at inhabiting personas and hiding himself behind someone else. But an accidental outing and an attack that could have killed him helped him realize just who it was he was hiding.

By the way, if you're heading to DragCon in LA next month, I hope you'll join me for two panels! On Saturday, I'll be hosting a fun friendly chat about tabletop gaming, featuring a panel of queer and ally gamers sharing recommendations for finding games and people to play with. And on Sunday, I'll be hosting a breakneck game of Dungeons and Dragons played by BenDeLaCreme, Erika Klash, Kitty Powers, and Fraya Love. It's going to be a blast -- hope to see you there.

And no matter where you are in the world, I hope you'll join us for the next Sewers of Paris live chat -- it's on Saturday, April 28, at 2pm Pacific with special guest Ray Miller. We want to hear about the book and movies and songs and shows you're obsessed with right now.

Huge thanks to everyone who makes The Sewers of Paris possible with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the Show on Patreon." Or you can support The Sewers of Paris for free by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice -- that really helps people find the show.

This Week's Recommendation: The Christmas Toy

We started our conversation this week with The Velveteen Rabbit, and for my recommendation this week, check out a similar project: a mid-80s TV movie called The Christmas Toy, one of the darkest projects produced by The Jim Henson Company.

The story is strangely close to that of Toy Story: children's toys come alive when their owners are away, and the comfortable affection of humans is challenged by the arrival of a new toy that doesn't realize it's a toy. But the stakes are far higher in The Christmas Toy: if one of the toys is caught in a place its owner didn't leave it, the toy becomes frozen and lifeless forever.

Like I said -- it's dark. As with The Velveteen Rabbit, there's a deep melancholy pervading the story -- Rugby the Tiger lives in fear that he'll lose the love of his owner, and the image of lifeless frozen toys absolutely terrified me as a kid.

But the movie's ultimately uplifting, with the toys discovering how important it is to keep the memories of their lost comrades alive. There's a lovely moment near the end where the toys acknowledge their love for each other, which is even more powerful than the love of the humans who will never know the truth of the toys' lives. 

Their performance as objects is what gives the toys purpose. But their honesty with each other gives them life.

Vampire Drag Queens (Ep. 165 - Marilyn Manson)

This Week's Guest: Evan J. Peterson

What's the difference between confidence and arrogance? My guest this week is Evan J. Peterson, author of the memoir The PrEP Diaries. For years, he trained himself to be aggressive, aloof, above it all, as a way to pre-empt criticism. That meant erecting masks and disguises, from gothic costumes to club-kid confusion. But what was missing behind his ostentatious displays for others was confidence in himself -- something Evan's still reaching for as he journeys through recovery, faiths, and sexual exploration.

Thanks to everyone who supports The Sewers of Paris with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the show on Patreon" to join the folks who make bonus episodes like this possible. Or if you can't pledge, you can still help out by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice.

You can also follow @sewersofparis on Twitter and Facebook -- I post clips of stuff we talk about and chat with listeners about the entertainment that you love. And join us for the next Sewers of Paris livestream on Saturday, April 28 at 2pm Pacific! We've been doing those livestreams twice monthly with special guests, and it's such a fun chance to hear about the movies and shows and books and music that you're obsessed with right now. 

This Week's Recommendation: Velvet Goldmine

My recommendation this week spans three different eras: made in the sexually adventurous late 90s, it's set in a bruised version of the 1980s, with flashbacks to a libidinous 70s. It's the Todd Haynes film Velvet Goldmine, which tells the story of a journalist seeking the truth about a vanished glam rock star.

The references to Citizen Kane are explicit and intentional, and there's a touch of Rashomon, Almost Famous, and Merrily We Roll Along but with an soundtrack that is absolutely thrilling. The reporter, played by a boyish Christian Bale, is on a mission to re-construct the life of a fictional but clearly Bowie-analogous idol played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers. That mission brings him into contact with Ewan McGregor as a sort of 70s Kurt Cobain, Eddie Izzard as a swaggering manager, and a miasma of his own personal nostalgia for long-lost teenage rebellion.

There's also some pretty tasty gay sex.

It's not much of a spoiler to say that the more your learn about your idols, the greater the chance that you'll find they're not who you thought they were. But in his excavation of another man's life, the reporter of Velvet Goldmine finds something else he was looking for -- keys to his own life, and love, and attraction. The Charles Foster Kane of Velvet Goldmine -- or the Moby Dick, if you want to think of him that way -- isn't as important as the meaning he gave his fans.

Velvet Goldmine was initially meant to be much more directly about David Bowie, but Bowie objected and the resulting changes gave the film a freedom to fabricate and collage a story with biographical snippets of Jobriath and Iggy Pop and Jean Genet and Oscar Wilde. But the resulting work is only a distant relative of those creators. As much as the characters of the film find their own meaning outside of the artist, the film finds its own meaning outside of its influences.
 

Stuff We Talked About

I Don't Have Any Shame in my Game (Ep. 164 - Aydian Dowling)

Special Guest: Aydian Dowling

Hello, and welcome to a bonus episode of The Sewers of Paris! Thanks to the support of everyone on Patreon, I'm able to bring you extra episodes with guests beyond just gay men. This month, we're going beyond the Sewers with a very special guest: Aydian Dowling, the first trans man to appear on the cover of Men's Health.

You might know him as the physically fit model who appeared on a special cover of Men's Health a few years ago. Aydian Dowling's made a habit of breaking barriers, refusing to back down, standing up and being seen. But he wasn't always the beaming, confident model on the cover of magazines -- there were dark periods that at times he couldn't see any way to survive. In those times, he found the inspiration to go on in some unlikely places: a soap opera he wasn't supposed to see, movies he wasn't supposed to have, and a pride parade that changed his life.

Thanks to everyone who supports The Sewers of Paris with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the show on Patreon" to join the folks who make bonus episodes like this possible. Or if you can't pledge, you can still help out by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice.

You can also follow @sewersofparis on Twitter and Facebook -- I post clips of stuff we talk about and chat with listeners about the entertainment that you love. And join us for the next Sewers of Paris livestream on Saturday, April 28 at 2pm Pacific! We've been doing those livestreams twice monthly with special guests, and it's such a fun chance to hear about the movies and shows and books and music that you're obsessed with right now. 

Recommendation: Hairspray

Thanks again to Aydian for joining me. Those TV shows that he mentioned aren't always the BEST sources of representation -- Maury and soap operas can sometimes be pretty exploitative. But even at their worst, those daytime TV shows can still be a source of power for folks who are searching for any sign that they're not alone.

For my recommendation this week, check out two movies, both with the same title: Hairspray. First the 1988 version with queer icons Divine and Ricki Lake; then the 2007 one with noted heterosexuals Zac Efron and John Travolta. Both films are not without their problems -- the first can be a little slow in parts, the second not quite as daring as its predecessor. But together they make for a lovely experience, centered on the life-changing power of a daytime TV show.

The 1988 Hairspray was directed by John Waters, and though it's definitely startling and weird, it has much more of a moral center than his previous work. John's often commented on how shocked he was to have accidentally made a family film. 

In both films, a young woman longs to see herself on television -- she knows she's good enough to belong -- but a cold indifferent world isn't ready to accept people who look a little different from what they're used to. Ultimately of course she prevails, transforming the face of American television and proving that it's intolerance that's truly unfit for broadcast.

Stuff we Talked About

The Wrong Kind of Gay (Ep. 163 - Jem and the Holograms)

This Week's Guest: Drew Mackie

My guest this week is Drew Mackie. You might know him from the podcasts Gayest Episode Ever, or Singing Mountain, or We Are Not Young Anymore. The point is that he does a lot of podcasts, generally about the art & entertainment that makes the world a more joyful place. It's a long way from where he started his career, as a hard journalist covering a quadruple murder in his college town. For years, he did the serious work that he thought was expected of him, even though it made him miserable, until he finally gave himself permission to walk away from his job and pursue his passion.

By the way, the next Sewers of Paris livestream is coming up this weekend! Join us on Saturday, April 14th for another live chat with me and other Sewers listeners. The theme this time is animation. Can't wait to geek out with you about Steven Universe, Korra, and Bugs Bunny's drag career. Head over to the @SewersOfParis twitter feed -- there's a pinned tweet with a link to the livestream. We go live Saturday, April 14, at 2pm pacific.

Thanks to everyone who makes The Sewers of Paris possible with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. There are special rewards for patrons like early ad-free access to content, shoutouts in videos, and a copy of my book mailed to you with some cute Sewers of Paris buttons. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the Show on Patreon." Or if you can't pledge, you can still help out by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice.

This Week's Recommendation: Kidd Video

Thanks again to Drew for joining me. I try not to be too obnoxiously self-indulgent with my 80s nostalgia -- that's what Ready Player One is for -- but our conversation this week reminded me of one of my favorite stupid 80s opening theme songs. So my recommendation this week is to head over to YouTube and watch the opening theme of the show Kidd Video -- that's Kidd with who Ds.

Kidd Video is my favorite kind of show, in that its premise is extremely stupid and requires a song to explain what you're about to see, like Mr. Edd, and Gilligan's Island, and My Mother the Car. And yet somehow, even though the opening theme is an ambitious minute and a half, it barely manages to set up the premise and literally concludes with a character breaking out of song to shrug, "I'll explain later."

In terms of camp value, this minute and a half is beyond measure. It features loopy high school band archetypes -- the hot one, the nerd, the 80s hipster -- lyrics like "high tech just turns me on," and multiple smoldering gazes into the camera through a mirror. That would be enough to make for a goofy after-school premise. But then an evil corporate record executive transports the teens to a cartoon world where a magic fairy with leg warmers rescues them through the power of sneezes that confer super strength. I am not making this up.

The show itself is of course terrible. But the 90s seconds of disbelief that you will experience while watching that opening -- ahhh, priceless.

Stuff We Talked About

Zombies, Witches, and Talking Dolls (Ep. 162 - Passions)

This Week's Guest: Ira Madison

Why is villainy so much fun? Whether it's cackling Emperor Palpatine or Joan Collins smirking smugly on Dynasty, bad guys invariably seem to be having such a good time ... and it can be hard to resist wanting to join them. My guest this week is Ira Madison, culture writer for The Daily Beast and co-host of the Keep It podcast. As a kid, he was quick to notice that the most fun part of his favorite soap operas were the over-the-top scene-chewing scoundrels. And during his time as a playwright in New York, he strove to give audiences experiences that were just as entertaining. Now, as a culture critic, he's approaching storytelling from the other side: searching for the most entertaining aspects of other creators' work.

By the way, the next Sewers of Paris livestream is coming up! Join us on Saturday, April 14th for another live chat with me and other Sewers listeners. The theme this time is animation. Can't wait to geek out with you about Steven Universe, Korra, and Bugs Bunny's drag career. We go live Saturday, April 14, at 2pm pacific.

Thanks to everyone who makes The Sewers of Paris possible with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. There are special rewards for patrons like early ad-free access to content, shoutouts in videos, and a copy of my book mailed to you with some cute Sewers of Paris buttons. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the Show on Patreon." Or if you can't pledge, you can still help out by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice.

This Week's Recommendation: Theresa Chases Gwen

Thanks again to Ira for joining me and for pointing me in the direction of some deliciously dumb soap opera scenes. My recommendation this week is brief -- just thirty seconds. It's a clip from an episode of passions that you can find by searching YouTube for "Theresa Chases Gwen."

The clips takes place at a particularly tangled moment in a ridiculous plot, and for some reason the show decided that what was needed was for a character to suddenly and breathlessly recap the entire plot of the story arc, while in the middle of a chase scene, in one take and in under twenty seconds.

The result is a hilarious tongue-twister monologue of schemes and double-crosses, so ludicrous in its delivery that ... well, here, I'll just play the whole thing for you. 

I mean come ON. This poor actress, having to fit an entire scene's worth of words into a single breath and while sprinting across a set -- it's just a masterpiece of clowning. The intensity of the music, the desperation of her voice, the dire circumstances (which, even after watching the clip over a dozen times, I still cannot comprehend) are all so perfectly serious and perfectly stupid. 

Stuff We Talked About

Fences
By August Wilson

Evil Glamour (Ep. 161 - Anime & Maleficent)

This Week's Guest: Justin Saint

Is there some secret to turning pain into art? My guest this week is Justin Saint, whose artistic expression takes the form of makeup and cosplay. Justin's chosen medium involves costumes and disguises, but behind those beautiful facades are some struggles that are still pretty tender: periods of homelessness, his father setting his creative works on fire, and a relationship that nearly drove him past a point of no return. Now he's back on his feet and leading a community of like-minded creatives, charting a course by channeling his past experiences into artistic expression with his body a canvass.

Big thanks to everyone who helps keep the show independent and add free. If you're enjoying The Sewers of Paris, you can help keep the show going. Click "support the show on Patreon" to pledge a dollar or more a month.

And I hope you'll join us this Saturday, March 31, for a Dungeons & Dragons livestream! We're reuniting Bryan Safi (of the podcast Throwing Shade), Carlos Maza from Vox.com, Anthony Oliveira (aka Meakoopa, and also of the brand new podcast The Devil's Party), and LGBT film scholar Bryan Wuest, for an all-new D&D adventure played live. It starts at 1pm this Saturday, the 31st. Head over to Twitch to set a reminder for when we go live.

And speaking of D&D, we're in the last few days of our crowdfunding for Queens of Adventure, a new podcast featuring drag queens on an epic role-playing adventure. Thanks to folks like you, the first season of the podcast is fully funded and now we're reaching for stretch goals that include livestreams with the queens and a fully illustrated adventure that you can download and play. Head over to QueensOfAdventure.com to join us in bringing the show to life -- crowdfunding ends this Saturday, March 31, so if you've been waiting to join the campaign, it's now or never.

This Week's Recommendation: The Legend of Korra

For my recommendation this week, check out a show that Justin mentioned in passing: The Legend of Korra. It is a gorgeous, smart, and very fun show -- and don't let the fact that it aired on Nickelodeon fool you into thinking that it's just for kids, though they'd like it too. 

The show is set in a sort of magical version of the 1920s, where new technology like rattling cars and silent films exists side-by-side with ancient supernatural creatures and powers. Korra is a teenager with the power to manipulate the elements, and along with her friends she fights to protect the downtrodden and vulnerable in a bustling and often dangerous metropolis. As with any teen, she has her share of romances, some that feel a little predictable and others that might sneak up on you -- as they seem to sneak up on her.

Since it premiered, fans did their usual thing of imagining various romantic pairings. And marvelously, the series culminates in a connection between characters that validates those fan theories. After the series finale aired, showrunner Michael Dante DiMartino confirmed (on Tumblr, appropriately) that the romance was, in fact, real. It was an incredible gesture, given that the show aired on a children's TV network. It confirmed the existence of relationships that would have been considered completely taboo just a few years ago -- and in fact, in many contexts, still are -- and it was a revolutionary moment in television.

But that's not the only reason to watch, of course. It's a gorgeous show with wonderful characters and exciting adventures and inspiring ideas. The fact that it has a moment of powerful validation just adds to the appeal.

Stuff We Talked About

Return To Oz
Starring Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh
Dragon Ball Z: Season 1 [Blu-ray]
Starring Sean Schemmel, Christopher R. Sabat
Maleficent
Starring Angelina Jolie, Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton

People Who Have Real Magic (Ep. 160 - Dune)

This Week's Guest: Ryan Kendall

We often talk on this show about escape, and it’s usually with the assumption that having an escape is a good thing. But there can be consequences to leaving the world you've always known behind -- even when that world is actively causing you harm. My guest this week is Ryan Kendall, whose parents subjected him to devastating homophobia, and dangerous "ex-gay" abuse. After Ryan legally emancipated himself from his parents, what followed was a period of homelessness and addiction that took years for him to overcome. 

I first met Ryan after he testified in the trial to overturn Proposition 8. As a witness, Ryan was called to provide evidence that sexual orientation isn’t something you can deliberately change. And as you’ll hear, he was able to provide particularly vivid testimony to that effect.

We recorded this week's episode during a thunderstorm in Colorado, so you'll hear some noise of rain in the background and a few rolls of thunder that were oddly perfect additions to Ryan's story. 

And I hope you'll join me for two exciting livestreams coming up. One is a Sewers of Paris livestream on March 25, and the other is a Dungeons and Dragons livestream on March 31.

That Sewers Of Paris livestream is happening this Sunday, March 25th, at 2pm pacific. It has been such a delight to chat with Sewers of Paris listeners about your favorite media and what you're watching and reading and listening to right now. I hope you’ll join us this Sunday, the 25th — you can find a link to the livestream in the show notes (it's at  https://youtu.be/Xp5u9rMSvW4 ) and on the @Sewersofparis twitter feed. 

The Dungeons & Dragons livestream is the following Saturday, March 31. I'll be joined by comedian Bryan Safi, writer Anthony Oliveira, critic Carlos Maza, and LGBT film scholar Bryan Wuest -- we’ll be playing an all new D&D adventure at 1pm pacific — head over to twitch.tv/prettyprettypixel to join us for that at 1pm on March 31st.

And we’re in the home stretch on the crowdfunding for our brand new upcoming podcast, Queens of Adventure, starring four drag queens playing an ongoing game of Dungeons and Dragons. Thanks to backers we’ve fully funded the first season of the show, and now we’re reaching for stretch goals, including livestream with the queens. Head over the QueensOfAdventure.com to help bring that show to life.

This Week's Recommendation: But I'm a Cheerleader

Thanks again to Ryan for joining me. For my recommendation this week, check out a movie he mentioned in passing — But I’m a Cheerleader. Just to prepare you, it is a movie that telegraphs intensely that it is a product of the late 90s. And as a low-budget indie film, it has a somewhat hand-made feel. But oh boy, it has a lot of feelings about queer love.

The story of the film is simple enough: a teenage girl exhibits signs of lesbianism, like a predilection for Georgia O’Keeffe paintings, and so her parents send her to an ex-gay camp. In the film, the camp is sort of John-Waters-lite — it’s over-the-top and, well, campy. The authorities are themselves living in a bonkers delusion that sexuality can be manipulated, and in a particularly arresting bit of casting, one of the most strident ex-gay characters is played by RuPaul.

Naturally, the young queers learn to break free from rigid gender stereotypes and accept themselves for who they are. The conclusion of the film is pleasant, not particularly surprising, but gentle and sweet and optimistic. Which is something queer people really needed around the time this movie came out.

But I’m a Cheerleader is a strange artifact from a very particular time. Watching it now feels like an outright fantasy, but when it came out, less then 20 years ago, it was common — even expected — that queer people would be subjected to treatments not too dissimilar from those in the film. At the time, ex-gay camps were just a fact of life.

But over the last two decades, we’ve experienced a sort of emperor’s-new-clothes when it comes to praying away the gay. Thanks to movies like But I’m a Cheerleader, and to real-life survivors like Ryan sharing their ordeals, gradually mainstream culture has come around to recognize just how ridiculous the practice is. 

Of course, for many people, ex-gay abuse is still a fact of life. But hopefully not for much longer, with more and more states banning the practice. Those legal reforms simply wouldn’t be possible without the voices that got the ball rolling and kept up the momentum. And a look at how much things have changed in the last 20 years is a reminder of how fortunate we are today.

Stuff We Talked About

Dune
By Frank Herbert
Hellstrom's Hive
By Frank Herbert

The Monster I Have to Beat (Ep. 159 - JP Brammer)

This Week's Guest: JP Brammer

How do you forgive someone who won't, or can't, apologize? My guest this week is JP Brammer, who dispenses advice in the column Hola Papi on Grindr's news site Into. JP's made a name for himself by providing thoughtful insights into living your best gay life, but his understanding of life and love didn't just spring into existence fully formed. It's the product of some pain, some forgiveness, and a college club that he really hoped would present more opportunities for making out.

Thanks to everyone who makes The Sewers of Paris possible with a pledge of a dollar or more a month on Patreon. There are special rewards for patrons like early ad-free access to content, shoutouts in videos, and a copy of my book mailed to you with some cute Sewers of Paris buttons. If you're enjoying the show, click "Support the Show on Patreon." Or if you can't pledge, you can still help out by leaving a review on your podcast platform of choice.

And! If you're in San Francisco, I'll be in town to host a live show featuring drag queens playing Dungeons and Dragons. It's on March 20th at Oasis and features Erika Klash from Dragula; Kitty Powers, of the games Matchmaker and Lovelife; San Francisco stars Pollo Del Mar and KaiKai Bee Michaels; and past Sewers guest Pup Amp, the scantily clad co-host of the YouTube series Watt's the Safeword. Tickets are now on sale -- head over to DungeonDrag.com for the link. And if you're not in San Francisco, please pass the word along to anyone who you think might enjoy the show.

Also: I'm about to launch a brand new podcast featuring drag queens playing D&D! It's called Queens of Adventure, and we're crowdfunding throughout the month of March to pay for performers, music, art, and equipment. Visit QueensOfAdventure.com to join us in bringing this new podcast to life.

This Week's Recommendation: I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew

And for my recommendation this week, pick up the Dr. Seuss book I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew. It's a quick read, of course, and it's about a young person -- or cat, or dog? Or whatever Dr. Seuss creatures are -- who's beset by troubles and does everything he can to escape from them.

On his way to a promised paradise called Solla Sollew, he endures bad weather, illness, war, cancelled bus routes. Nothing goes his way and the closer he gets to his destination the rougher life becomes. But he'd determined to make it because, he's convinced that all of his troubles will be over if he can just get far enough away from them.

And maybe that would work, if only Solla Sollew was a bit more accessible. Turns out there's no such thing as a place that's trouble-free, no matter how far you travel. And that leaves our hero with a choice -- keep running from his troubles, or turn back and deal with them... knowing now that troubles never really go away. But you can become trouble for them.

Stuff We Talked About

Like Getting Struck by Lightning (Ep. 158 - The Twist Queer Film Festival)

Special Guests! Jay Bell, Grant Davis, Carlos Pedraza, Joe Appelbaum, and Stu Maddox

Welcome to a special bonus episode of The Sewers of Paris! On most episodes, I talk to a guest about the entertainment that changed their life. But tonight I'm speaking to five guests who create entertainment that they hope will change the lives of others.

I recorded these interviews at Twist, Seattle's LGBT film festival. You'll hear from folks involved in two projects that screened at the festival: the first is Something Like Summer, a romance based on the novel by Jay Bell; and the second is Queer Ghost Hunters, a docu-series about a group of investigators who believe in life and love after death. 

We talk about the books, movies, shows, and songs that touched their lives and inspired them to become creators. A huge thanks to the folks at Twist for helping to arrange these conversations. And thanks to everyone who backs The Sewers of Paris on Patreon, making it possible for me to produce bonus episodes of the show. If you're enjoying The Sewers of Paris, you help keep it going by clicking "support the show on Patreon" to pledge as little as a dollar a month. Or more, more is good too.

And! If you enjoyed my bonus episodes where I have guests playing Dungeons and Dragons, check out our live show where drag queens play D&D onstage for a live audience. The show's coming to Oasis in San Francisco on March 20th, featuring Erika Klash from Dragula; Kitty Powers, of the games Matchmaker and Lovelife; and San Francisco stars Pollo Del Mar and KaiKai Bee Michaels. Tickets are now on sale! And if you're not in San Francisco, I hope you'll pass the word along to anyone who you think might enjoy the show.

Also: I'm about to launch a brand new podcast featuring drag queens playing D&D! It's called Queens of Adventure, and we're crowdfunding throughout the month of March to pay for performers, music, art, and equipment. We just hit our first funding goal, and now we're heading towards a stretch goal of doing livestreams with the queens -- Visit QueensOfAdventure.com to join us in bringing this new podcast to life.

Recommendation: Put the Camera on Me

Thanks again to Twist for helping to arrange these interviews, and a huge thanks to Jay Bell, Grant Davis, Carlos Pedraza, Joe Appelbaum, and Stu Maddox for chatting with me about the entertainment that inspired them.

For this week's recommendation, take a look at the 2003 documentary Put the Camera on Me by Darren Stein and Adam Shell. You might know Darren for his narrative films like Jawbreaker and GBF. But Put the Camera on Me is comprised primarily of archival home videos made by him and a group of other kids in the late 80s.

You can see from the videos that even as a kid, Darren was a bit of an Ed Wood, in that he assembled a group of friends and somehow persuaded them to enact his own internal conflict. Stein was clearly had some things to say about homosexuality, and was unprepared to say them himself and so he planted his messages in extremely campy video art projects. 

The highlight of his oevre is the short "Gay as a Whistle," a three-ish minute story in which a pre-adolescent boy whispers to the camera about having the power to turn other boys gay. It contains lines of dialogue like "there's that gay guy, shouldn't we beat him up?" and speculation that gay people could end the world. 

Those archival shots cut to contemporary interviews in which Stein's friends reflect on just what the hell they thought was going on, and how there's still some lingering awkwardness amongst them. The more you see of Darren's early video work, the clearer the portrait of the artist becomes: a gay kid struggling to express something in a language he hasn't quite learned how to speak.

Stuff We Talked About