Timmy - Shimmy - Coco - Pop

I'm human and I'm gay, so I love a little gossip. Now, I'm not talking about what is usually printed as "gossip" nowadays in the tabloids. I couldn't care less what blonde bimbo #213 is doing with himbo actor#156. That's nothing, amateur hour.

No, I like my gossip dirty, the kind that the rags would never dare put in print for fear of legal repercussions. I'm talking about the stuff that you only hear about when everyone involved is long dead and buried. Kenneth Anger's Hollywood Babylon- now that's gossip worth reading and savoring.

So I love a good "blind item". Names aren't named, so the writer can actually say, for example, that this Hollywood starlet is a big pothead or that "Prima Donna bitch" actor has a thing for the lads. Trying to figure out who it is, well, that's half the fun.

Naturally, the internet is rife with gossip sites and blogs (even some that are not run by obnoxious disgraces to their community), and probably the juiciest one out there is "Crazy Days and Nights". Written by an "Entertainment Lawyer" (so you know he has great access to all the dirt), "CDAN" is currently running a doozey of a "long blind item" that has his readers scrambling to decipher all the hints and clues to a story that, if true, could be the most shocking secret in Hollywood history.

It is a story filled with deception, sex, intrigue, heartbreak, skin conditions and the Academy Awards. If it were a movie, audiences and critics alike would scoff at the implausibility of it all. And yet, that is what makes it so fascinating.

"Timmy" was an aspiring actor in the studio years that never quite broke out of bit parts and the chorus line. He was also a homosexual, a fact that was always unspoken in those days. Circumstances led him to an unbelievable attempt at stardom: "Timmy" became "Shimmy" - an actress.

"Shimmy" worked her way up to lead roles, where she met a closeted A-lister that would become "Timmy's" secret love for many years. Around this time, "Shimmy was cast in the role of a lifetime, a role that lead not only to critical acclaim and the "very big award" (an Oscar?), but also to the ultimate demise of "Shimmy".

You'll have to read the whole "BI" to get all the details, but suffice to say, this is one hell of a story, even if it is all fiction or just the latest in a long line of outrageous celebrity rumors or Hollywood urban legends.

Obsessive "CDAN" fans (some of who have even created their own line of t-shirts touting their picks!) have investigated the pasts and filmographies of dozens of award-winning actresses, from Shirley Booth, Sandy Dennis, Marie Dressler, Judy Holiday, Josephine Hull, Mercedes McCambridge, Hattie McDaniel, Mary Pickford and Luise Rainer (all of whom have been directly discounted by the author) to Fay Bainter, Janet Gaynor, Anne Revere, Margaret Rutherford, Gale Sondergaard, Jo Van Fleet, Shelley Winters (!), Teresa Wright and Alice Brady, who has emerged the "favorite" at last call.

Yep, in his latest update, "Ent Lawyer" has promised the big reveal, with a complete explanation of all the who's, what's and why's, this Wednesday.

In the end, I can only imagine what all these actresses up in "movie heaven' must be thinking about all this. Perhaps they are printing up their own t-shirts: "I'm NOT Timmy".

Links via BlindItems.typepad.com, Amazon.com, UrbanDictionary.com, Wikipedia.org, CrazyDaysAndNights.net, Nerve.com, JoBlo.com, SpreadShirt.net and Imdb.com.

Potent Quotables: Jack Twist on Commitment Issues

That exchange is from, of course, Brokeback Mountain, spoken by Heath Ledger as Ennis Del Mar and Jake Gyllenhaal as Jack Twist. (Click on picture to enlarge.)

And if that landmark film is something you yourself can't quit, then you too may be a "Brokie".

Click here to purchase Brokeback Mountainon DVD from Amazon.com.
Links via Imdb.com and SFBayTimes.com.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Bathhouse

Broadway is having a gay ol' time with the return of an old favorite in this week's round up of all things From Screen to Stage:

- The revival of Terrence McNally's door-slamming sex farce The Ritz, set in a New York bathhouse circa the 1970's, starts previews today. Actually, it was supposed to start yesterday, but a last-minute cast change pushed back the opening. (No, don't worry, it wasn't Ryan Idol.)

The new production stars Kevin Chamberlin, Rosie Perez (in the role made famous -- and Tony winning -- by Rita Moreno) and our favorite Playbill columnist, Seth Rudetsky. In his latest column, Seth recounts the horrors of tech week ... and having to pee next to a porn star.

- If you didn't get enough of Cheyenne Jackson in this week's "Out in Film", then get thee to YouTube, where you can see him and a very Aussie-fied Kerry Butler in their performance of "Suddenly" from Xanadu, as seen this week on The View.

- Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 29: That's the day Legally Blonde - The Musical will debut on MTV. To tide you over until then, QueerSighted chats with Elle's nemesis, a former Miss America (seriously), actress Kate Shindle.

- Have you ever dreamed of owning the complete score of Annie, a.k.a. "The Red Album"? How about hearing any of the infamous Annie 2: Miss Hannigan's Revenge? Well, your show tune wishes will finally be answered with the upcoming "30th Anniversary Cast Recording" -- and then some. Several Annie alumni returned for the event, including original orphan Andrea McArdle and movie Hannigan Carol Burnett. The sun truly will come out tomorrow.

- In other anniversary news, West Side Story is nearing its 50th. To celebrate the occasion, the Library of Congress will open a new exhibit displaying rare photos, set designs and other items exploring the "Birth of a Classic".

Also in honor of the landmark musical's golden anniversary, a new tribute CD has been released, featuring such stars as Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews and Kristin Chenoweth singing such classics as "Tonight" and "I Feel Pretty". Click here to purchase A Place for Us: A Tribute to 50 Years of West Side Storyfrom Amazon.com.

- In more news on the classics, South Pacific will get its first Broadway revival ever, and they've already found their Nellie and Emile. Meanwhile, don't hold your breath for that starry revival of Guys and Dolls, and Lou Diamond Phillips is the new King Arthur in Camelot on tour. Yes, I said Lou Diamond Phillips.

- Also making its first return to Broadway: Les Liaisons Dangereuses, told and retold many times on film, most famously as Dangerous Liaisons and Cruel Intentions.

- Sweeney Todd: The Movie will spawn Sweeney Todd: The Soundtrack and Sweeney Todd: The Companion Book.(You can pre-order the book from Amazon.com by clicking the link.)

- The Grinch will get some new songs for Christmas this year.

- And finally, in this week's Hairspray news: Jim J. Bullock will replace Jerry Mathers as Wilbur Turnblad. In other words, Monroe Ficus is taking over where Beaver Cleaver left off. And with Paul Vogt as Edna, who knows where Tracy came from ...

Links via Playbill.com, Broadway.com, YouTube.com and QueerSighted.com.

Boxing Leonidas

For all you parents out there wondering where to find school supplies for your little Spartan warrior, leather clad dominatrix or zombie killer, then EntertainmentEarth.com has the lunch boxes for you.

The way-cool toy company has these kick ass metal lunch boxes based on the R-rated slaughterfests 300, Sin City and Grindhouse, complete with matching thermoses!

I especially like the 300 one, with the oh-so-appropriate-for-a-lunch-box-if-not-the-schoolyard tagline "Tonight, we dine in Hell!" emblazoned on it for all the kiddies and uptight PTA-ers to see.

Hey, if anything, they're better then some of the lame-ass ones we had as kids. Bobby Sherman? The Flying Nun? The Osmonds???

Click here to purchase from Entertainment Earth: the Sin City Lunch Box, Grindhouse Double Feature Lunch Box or the 300 Lunch Box
Link via RetroCrush.buzznet.com.

Out in Film: Cheyenne Jackson

Unless you follow the New York theater scene, you may not know Cheyenne Jackson, but you should. As you can see by his picture, the 6'3" actor is incredibly handsome, but he is also incredibly talented. And although his film work has been minimal so far, it is only a matter of time until he is as big a star in Hollywood as he is on Broadway.

Jackson (who was named "Cheyenne" after his father's favorite TV western) made his debut on the Great White Way in 2002 (just six weeks after arriving in the Big Apple) in the Tony Award-winning stage version of the movie musical Thoroughly Modern Millie. He later starred as Radames in Disney's Aida and originated the role of Matthew in Altar Boyz prior to that hit show's Off Broadway premiere. He had to give up that part though when he was cast in the "Elvis" role in All Shook Up, the popular Presley-inspired jukebox musical.

Jackson's film debut was in the short film Curiosity (which can be viewed in its entirety here), while his first feature was the controversial 9/11 drama United 93, where he played real-life gay hero Mark Bingham. He will next appear onscreen in the horror film Hysteria, due next year.

Presently, Jackson is wowing audiences in a pair of roller skates and short shorts in the unexpected Broadway hit Xanadu, and he was just cast in the upcoming Lifetime television series Family Practice.

To learn more about Cheyenne, visit his official website, and if you haven't seen Jackson perform, be sure to check out this duet with Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez, where they deliver an awesome rendition of the "Elephant Love Medley" from Moulin Rouge!

See more pictures of Cheyenne Jackson in The Back Room (NSFW).

Attention All Hairhoppers! November 20 is D-Day!

D-day as in DVD day!

Hairspray, this summer's smash musical hit, is hitting DVD November 20 in a big way with four different versions: a single-disc version, a two-disc "Shake & Shimmy" edition in both standard DVD and Blu-ray, plus a special goodies-packed gift set. (An HD-DVD will be released sometime next year.)

The "Shake & Shimmy" edition will come with one of those funky covers that changes pictures when you tilt it (like the Transamerica DVD), in this case from the teens to the adults, as pictured above.

I hardly ever listen to audio commentaries or watch deleted scenes unless I have to, but in this case, I can't wait to devour everything they give me. In addition to that, the two-discer will include a "making of" doc, featurettes on all the dancing, a sing along option (oh yeah) and, most intriguingly, an all new musical number called "I Can Wait". I have no clue what this song is, but personally, I can't wait to hear it.

The two-disc version is included in the deluxe gift pack, which comes in a mini-metal locker (in either "Link Lime" or "Penny Pink"! Cute! But where's the Tracy Turquoise or Edna Eggplant?) that you can decorate with the stickers and photos included, plus a nifty Hairspray tote bag (Big Edie will like that).

And if that isn't enough Hairspray for you for one day, a special two-disc deluxe edition of the now Certified Gold soundtrack will also be released on November 20th! This limited run CD will include "karaoke versions of Hairspray hits, non-soundtrack songs, never-before-heard outtakes, demo recordings, trading cards and more in a special gift set package!"

So start saving your allowance, Hairhoppers! The DVDs and new CD are not yet available for pre-order on Amazon.com yet, but I'll post the links when they are.

And don't forget to vote for your favorite Hairspray song in the MD Poll! You can find it in the sidebar at right, below my profile.

Links via HairsprayMovie.com.

Film Art: An Introduction

Not exactly poster art, this new section will feature film subjects as depicted via various forms of art, from paintings to drawings to sculptures and more.

The above image is of Pan from, of course, Pan's Labyrinth, Guillermo del Toro's haunting adult fairy tale.

Click here to purchase Pan's Labyrinthon DVD from Amazon.com.
Link via Imbd.com.