"You know what interested Brian about politics? Brian was obsessed with whether Mitt Romney wore the Mormon underwear."—An unnamed source at NBC talks about Brian Williams' diverse interests, or lack thereof. He'll have lots of time to investigate Mormon underwear, since we hear NBC will not be bringing him back to the anchor desk.
I could have been rear-ended by John Stamos. There's an opening ( so to speak ) I never thought I'd utter. At roughly 7:45 p.m. on June 12, the Beverly Hills Police Department received calls about a reckless driver. Shortly thereafter, Stamos was pulled over at the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Beverly Drive—just a hop, skip and a jump from Billy Masters International! Alas, I was at the Filth2Go Beach House in Fort Lauderdale, so I missed all the drama. The cops ascertained that Stamos needed medical assistance, so he was rushed to a hospital where he was treated and also issued a citation for suspicion of DUI. He'll get his day in court Sept. 11.
We hear that Caitlyn Jenner has been approached about being a judge for the Miss USA Pageant, which takes place July 12. Note that this is not Miss America; Miss USA is the one owned by Donald Trump where, I believe, you can't compete unless you've had a minimum of three plastic-surgery procedures and at least two things implanted ( and I think we all know what those two things should be ). It should also be mentioned that Miss USA allows transgender contestants. It's really quite a good fit—especially since Jenner watched that very pageant when trying to come up with a female name.
It's been reported that Jenner's net worth has gone up exponentially since going public as Caitlyn. The going rate for a Caitlyn appearance is more than $100K—whereas Bruce only got about $20K. That said, Jenner waived any fee this past week for the two hours spent at the Los Angeles LGBT Center touring the facility and speaking with transgender youth—although I hasten to add that this visit was filmed for her reality show. In addition to the show and personal appearances, Jenner has also been asked to appear on the second season of the Amazon hit Transparent. Creator Jill Soloway explained the people behind the show aren't sure exactly how to work Caitlyn into the show: "I don't know if she'd want to act, but we definitely want to incorporate the fact that she came out into this season."
Laverne Cox has gotten used to making history. She was the first transgender person to pose for the cover of Time, to get an Emmy nomination, and to appear nude in Allure magazine. Now she has something else to add to that list—she'll be the first transgender person to be immortalized as a wax figure in Madame Tussauds. Her doppelganger will be housed in the location at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco.
Adam Lambert has revealed that he was offered the lead role in Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Broadway, but turned it down. He said, "I'm flattered they asked me, but it's not what I want to do right now. It's an amazing role. Maybe one day. The thing about it is I don't want to get in drag for eight shows a week." When asked if he'd be interested in starring in the show, Nick Jonas also demurred, saying, "I would love to do that, but ... I don't think I'd like to come into a show—like replace somebody—because I've done that a few times." Jonas hopes to originate a role or, even better, write a Broadway musical or play.
Jonas continues to put himself out there for his gay fans. The sexy singer heard that Iggy Azalea had pulled out of headlining Pittsburgh Pride this past weekend. He called up the organization and offered to fill in. "When I heard about the difficult position Pittsburgh Pride was in just days before their event, I knew I had to find a way to help. I'm excited to do what I can to support the LGBT community in Pittsburgh." He just got hotter to me.
You would think the Tony Awards would be the big theater news from last week. But the awards were trumped the following day by the one-night-only benefit performance of Bombshell—the musical at the heart of the series Smash.
Most of the cast were on hand to reprise their roles—including the dueling Marilyn Monroes of Megan Hilty and Katherine McPhee, in addition to Christian Borle, Will Chase, Debra Messing, Brian d'Arcy James and Jeremy Jordan. The show sold out in less than an hour and raised more than $800K for the Actors Fund. The entire evening was rapturously received. ( You can see some videos on BillyMasters.com . ) So, where does it go from here? The producers point out that while they have a great score, the book was never fully written. Still, it could have legs. Composer Marc Shaiman said, "I would love to do this at the Hollywood Bowl. ... Marilyn comes home."
In other Hollywood fairytales, let's move to Michael Egan's suit against Bryan Singer, Garth Ancier and other industry bigwigs. When last we left this tawdry tale ( or tail ), his story of being plied with alcohol and drugs and being taken advantage of while underage was unraveling. Now, Egan's former attorneys have publicly apologized to the accused. Lead attorney Jeff Herman told Ancier, "Based on what I know now, I believe that I participated in making what I now know to be untrue and provably false allegations against you. I deeply regret the pain, suffering and damage the lawsuits and publicity have caused you, and your family, friends and colleagues." It was revealed that the attorneys would make a "significant financial payment" to Ancier.
That leads right into our "Ask Billy" question. Karl in Chicago writes, "I read that LeBron flashed his penis on live TV. What happened? Do you have the footage?"
During game four between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors, ABC's cameras happened to be in the right place at the right time. While LeBron James and his teammates were in a huddle, he pulled down the front of his shorts to "adjust" himself. You can check it out at BillyMasters.com .
When we're providing instant replay from the NBA Finals, we've definitely come to the end of yet another column. Before we wrap up, I'd like to acknowledge the passing of porn star Cole Tucker. While the term "legend" is tossed around haphazardly these days, Tucker certainly qualified for the unique niche he created in the world of gay porn. You can learn about all kinds of legends at www.BillyMasters.com, the site that can fill any niche. If you've got a question for me, send it along to Billy@BillyMasters.com, and I promise to get back to you before I try some of Stamos' Greek yogurt! Until next time, remember, one man's filth is another man's bible.
