Ted Johnson

Why Los Angeles Deserves Major Credit for the National Gay Marriage Movement

When it comes to life-impacting stuff -- civil rights, political movements, or education reform, for example -- Los Angeles too often gets overlooked by snobby journalists and intellectual types in New York City and Washington D.C. Let's just admit it: They don't take L.A. seriously and they hate ... More >>

Queer Town: Olson/Boies Appeal to the Heart, Then the Brain

The first day of the federal trial to overturn Proposition 8 started in San Francisco yesterday, with attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies, who want to end the gay marriage ban in California, first pulling on the heartstrings and then following it up with expert testimony to appeal to the brain.Ameri ... More >>

Queer Town: Big Media Wants Full Access to Prop. 8 Trial

We're almost finished with 2009 and 2010 is already shaping up to be a very interesting year -- at least for gay and lesbian folks.Patrick Range McDonaldProposition 8 protestors in West Hollywood in October, 2008.​Queer Town sounded the alarm a few weeks ago about the need to allow TV cameras insi ... More >>

The Secret Lives of Queer Leading Men

How Howard Bragman, Hollywood’s coming-out guru, helps gay actors tell the truth

Queer Town: Proposition 8 Trial Set for January, Gay Groups Told to Butt Out

While gay rights groups in California continue to clash over which year to push forward with a pro-gay marriage ballot measure (check out this Queerty post), Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker announced during a San Francisco hearing yesterday that a federal Proposition 8 lawsuit will go to tri ... More >>

Todd Holland's Advice to Play it Straight

Gay Director Apologizes and Debates Ensue

Queer Town: Obama Still Avoids Prop. 8 at Beverly Hills Fundraiser

At a star-studded fundraiser at the Beverly Hilton last night, President Barack Obama still avoided talking about the California Supreme Court's ruling on Proposition 8 and full marriage equality. According to Variety's Managing Editor Ted Johnson, Obama made a brief remark about gay rights when he ... More >>

LA Weekly has huge L.A. Press Club finalist showing against L.A. Times

I haven't had time to count, but it's a huge year for LA Weekly in earning just-announced "finalist" nods from the Los Angeles Press Club's annual competition, The Southern California Journalism Awards. In many categories of the competition, we are vastly surpassing the Los Angeles Times. Our great ... More >>

Gavin Newsom Makes Play for L.A. Cash

Over the past couple of weeks, the L.A. press has been making big, and predictable, noise thatSan Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has been treading on L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's supposed turf--both politicians will probably run for governor in 2010--and attemptin ... More >>

Is Google Joining AT&T to Shut Up the Little Guy?

We're fascinated to see a Variety journalist pick up on our last week's cover story, "Shutting Up the Little Guy," as a cautionary tale about not just what AT&T, Fabian Nunez and the Los Angeles City Council are doing to decimate local public access TV, but what might happen if net neutrality -- ... More >>

Queer Town: Prop. 8 Outs Hollywood

With the passage of Proposition 8, according to the Los Angeles Times, Hollywood has been suddenly compelled to do some soul searching, with entertainment big shots coming under fire for contributing to the "Yes on 8" campaign. A-list gays have also been dragged into the controversy as they decide w ... More >>

Queer Town: A-List Hollywood Raises Money for No on 8

Last night, billionaire Ron Burkle, best friend of former President Bill Clinton, opened up the wrought iron gates at his landmark Beverly Hills estate, Green Acres, to raise money for the No on 8 campaign, which wants to defeat the ballot measure, Proposition 8, that would ban same sex marriage in ... More >>

Queer Town: Brad Pitt Challenges Hollywood on Prop. 8 Fight

This morning, Queer Town reported that wealthy folks in Los Angeles County weren't donating as much as they could to fight Proposition 8. Karen Ocamb, news editor of In and Frontiers magazines, also wrote a top notch story about A-list gays missing from action. But now actor Brad Pitt may have chan ... More >>

Queer Town: Power to the Sissies

Queer Town: Good Craziness in West Hollywood

At West Hollywood Park, across the street from the Pacific Design Center, Mayor Jeff Prang stood underneath the shade of a palm tree in a navy blue suit with a gold-and-blue striped tie. He had been talking to journalists from all over the world and needed to take a breather before the press confere ... More >>