Christmastime Is Here

By Frank Anthony Polito

Though I can't say I'm feeling it -- at least not just yet. Sure, there's an abundance of sweets all around, and I think I've gained back the 5 pounds I lost last month when Craig was away for work, and I was too busy writing to take time to stop and eat. To help get myself more into the Holiday Spirit, I've taken to listening to my favorite tunes via Spotify.

This morning I came across the original Merry Christmas from Sesame Street, circa 1976, maybe? Growing up, I was a big SS fan -- long before Elmo came along and took over the block. I actually had this album on vinyl and would listen over and over this time of year on my Fisher-Price portable suitcase-style record player.

A few years back my brother surprised me with a CD version, but sadly I discovered it's been updated to include Elmo on almost every song. And I don't believe the "Gift of the Magi" track starring Bert and Ernie, narrated by Mr. Hooper (God rest his sweet soul), is included on the update. But now you can listen to the real-deal right HERE.

Another one of my favorite holiday "specials" had to be Christmas Eve on Sesame Street which you can watch below... Happy Holidays!

G's Anatomy

By Frank Anthony Polito

Wanted to give a shout out to my fellow Carnegie Mellon alum, and pal, Gaius Charles, who recently joined the cast of one of my favorite TV Shows, Grey's Anatomy.  Because I'm not a regular reader of HuffPost and all the other major TV-related blogs, I guess I missed out on the announcement back in mid-July. But I was super-excited to see Gaius' smiling face at Seattle Grace this season.

Some of you might recognize Gaius from his stint as "Smash" on Friday Night Lights. I had the pleasure of befriending Gaius during my first year at CMU when I stage-managed my buddy Collin's terrific play Judas Jones, which starred Gaius as a Jesus-like high school basketball player.

Gaius later originated the role of Ian Brown in my one-act play Blue Tuesday, the precursor to my full-length, award-winning Another Day on Willow St. Sadly, this was back before everyone turned camera crazy with their smartphones, and I don't have any pictures from either of these productions :-(

So happy for all of Gaius' success... No one deserves it more.

Gaius sits down w/ fellow CMU alum Ashley Nicole

  

Weekend Update

By Frank Anthony Polito

Once again, I've fallen behind in blogging. Had a busy weekend, with two different pals in town, my best friend since 7th grade, Grat -- whom many of you will know as "Brad Dayton" from Band Fags! and Drama Queers! (note: Grat has requested that I go on the record and state that he has NEVER performed in drag at Gigi's or any other Detroit bar), and my friend Devon, a fellow playwright whom (yes, I said whom!) I met in 2005 at Voice and Vision, who lives in Richmond, VA.

I enjoyed two lovely dinners with Grat, his partner Michael, and their friends, who were in town to celebrate Michael's birthday. Devon and I kept it pretty low-key. Grabbed burgers and beer at my neighborhood Irish Pub, Molly Bloom's (dang it, I should have taken pics!) and then sat around my place listening to some tunes by our mutual favorite band, Carbon Leaf.

CL, as we like to call the boys, are a local Richmond act who Devon has the actual pleasure of knowing, and we both have crushes on the lead singer, Barry Privett. I came to know CL back in 2002 while I was down in Washington, DC working at the Shakespeare Theatre, and when I met Devon and learned she was from Richmond, one of the first things I asked her was: "Do you know Carbon Leaf?"

Barry, Carter, Terry, Jordan, Scott

Admittedly, I've been a bad fan and haven't picked up any of new CL music since round about 2010. So Devon played me some of the newer stuff, reminding me why I first got into them. At first listen, they reminded me of an old favorite band from Canada, Spirit of the West, as both bands have roots in the "Celtic Rock" genre. Check out Carbon Leaf online HERE. And Spirit of the West HERE.

Everything Old is New Again

By Frank Anthony Polito

Today’s post is two-fold… I’ve been meaning to write about my “new” favorite TV show – which I’ve made mention of on Facebook, but not yet here in the Blogosphere… It’s called thirtysomething. Perhaps some of you have heard of it? As per Wikipedia: “Thirtysomething (usually styled thirtysomething) is an American television drama about a group of baby boomers in their late thirties.”

The show, from the creators of another fave, My So-Called Life, ran from 1987-1991. Back then, I was far too young to have any interest in a show about a bunch of “old” folks. These people were in their 30s – my parents’ age at the time, which looking back seems totally impossible because Michael and Hope Steadman (Ken Olin and Mel Harris – two actors I’ve not ever seen in anything else) were just having their first baby, and I was already almost an adult.

Since joining Netflix, I kept saying, “I have to watch thirtysomething.” So about a month or so ago, when Craig started up with his annual Auto Show-ing, I added season 1 to my queue, and just finished the finale the other night.

There’s no denying it’s a good show. The writing and acting are both stellar. Though truthfully, I feel sorry for these characters. Most of them, I get the impression, are around age 34. Babies, I say… All of them! And here they are worrying about all sorts of things that most of my friends, a good decade older, are only starting to worry about now. Perhaps an updated version called fortysomething is called for?

But what really excites me about this show is… The Steadman’s house!

Since MSCL, I have been obsessed with the Arts & Crafts/Craftsman style home. Near where I grew up, back in Detroit, there are a few different neighborhoods that feature this 1920s type of house – with the large, covered front porch, interior woodwork, window seats, French doors, and “built-ins” galore… Come the day I should ever be fortunate to own my own home, this is the kind of property I will be desperately searching for.

Which brings to me point number two of this post… Sorry so long!

I recently befriended one of my book readers via  Facebook. His name is Ed, and he and his partner, Roger, live in the most gorgeous Craftsman home, located in the Detroit neighborhood of Islandview – which I’d never heard of until now. And… Ed and Roger’s place is currently featured in American Bungalow Magazine. See below for some awesome photos! I am sooo jealous ;-)

Vacation Detroit?

By Frank Anthony Polito

NOT IF YOU'RE LGBT!

Just came across this "news item" via Twitter, via HuffPost Detroit: 

Gay Travel 2013: 8 Destinations For LGBT Travelers To Visit Or Avoid

The article, an endorsement for a new LGBT travel agency, says that LGBT peeps should avoid Detroit as their holiday travel destination as it's the "most dangerous U.S. city to visit for gay travelers." But then it does NOT tell us why!

The D at twilight

As an (out and) proud ex-Detroiter, I had to chime-in in the comments section, agreeing with another poster who pointed out: "The Detroit Institute of Arts is one of the best art museums in the country. Festivals along the riverfront, excellent breweries downtown, the symphony, the opera, Fox Theatre, Tigers, Lions, Red Wings, the auto show, Museum of Contemporary Art, the African-American History Museum, nearby Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, Motown Museum, Children's Museum, Pewabic Pottery, Detroit Science Center, the best coney dogs on the planet, Wayne State University to name a few. Unfortunately the gay bars are scattered all over. Gigi's is a great drag bar but in a bad part of town."

I then went on to explain how when we Detroiters say "Detroit" we are usually referring to the entire Metro Detroit area, where there are some of the nicest and wealthiest neighborhoods in the country. Truth be told, Detroit wouldn't be my first choice for a vacation "hot spot" -- though most of those places on the above list I have NEVER even been, and I look forward to seeing when/if I ever get to spend more than a week in the Motor City visiting family.

But I have been to many a gay bar in many a "bad" neighborhood (Gold Coast, anyone?), and the worst thing that's ever happened -- back in the '90s when I was still in college -- was someone drove by and yelled "faggots!" at me and my friends as we were crossing the street from the security-guarded parking lot.

Read the full "article" HERE.