Real World: AIDS

Next Wednesday (April 1st) MTV is airing Pedro.

If you are a proud, card carrying member of The Real World generation, you’ll know what this means.

If you aren’t, here’s a wake-up call. Pedro Zamora was a cast member on the very first season of MTV’s ground-breaking reality show, The Real World: San Francisco. It is responsible for all the annoyingly fabulous reality television spamming our airwaves these days. Pedro also happened to be gay. He also happened to be out. He also happened to be HIV positive.

In 1994, this was unheard of. There was no one proclaiming “I’M A BIG GAY HOMO WHO HAS AIDS. LOOK AT ME. I’M ALSO A PERSON.” Pedro did that, and this movie tells his story: How he decided to audition to be on The Real World, what happened after, and his life of activism.

I’m really excited for this to come on the air. I’m probably going to need Katie D. to TiVo it. Tune in on Wednesday, April 1st at 8pm EST on MTV to watch. His story needs to be told and you need to hear it.

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

(S)He's Just Not That Into You.

So the gay is blogging about a movie called He’s Just Not That Into You. Yeah, I know why. Thanks. But no really. It was so good. I really, really enjoyed it. And EVERYONE was in this movie. EVERYONE. Who put this cast together? The star power is insane. I never thought I'd see the day where Jennifer Aniston and Jennifer Connelly were on screen together. Glorious.

But my gay observatory skills came in handy because the gays were everywhere in this movie! Almost every scene had some rainbow action in it. Mary’s (Drew Barrymore) office had a gay mug that was specifically in shots, not to mention the gay men, and the publication she worked for/advertised for was targeted at gay Baltimore. In the coffee shop scene, QUEER BALTIMORE screamed at you from the back of the newspaper. But my point here is subtle highlights of rainbows.

They continue into Anna’s (Scarlett Johansson) room when a terrible thing happens, there is a ribbon on her bureau. I know I’m being nit picky here, but it proves a great point. That if you subtlety integrate gay life in day-to-day society, it becomes unnoticed and the “othering” quality that the gay community endures compared to the majority slowly diminishes.

Because in He’s Just Not That Into You, yes the gays were there for humor, but also as a viable real estate market. And in hetero terms, especially today, if you are proven economically viable, you are validated in society. Tap into the gay money, tap into economic stability. Those gay men need to make money to keep up the lifestyle they are reputed to live. Hello. That makes sense.

And, in the audience, I’m sure no one else noticed these things and that’s good because even though it isn’t in the forefront, at least it’s there and is being washed over the masses. The more it washes, the more normal it becomes, the less people are creeped out by the gays. PEOPLE ARE PEOPLE, PEOPLE.

And my gay observatory skills noticed something else:

I couldn't find the picture I wanted, so you will just have to go see the movie to see The Red Slip. You won't regret it, I promise.


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