THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson and the original cast of 2005's off-Broadway and Broadway hit The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee reunited July 6 for a one-night production to honor stage manager Andrea "Spook" Testani Gordon, who died of cancer in November, according to Page Six. Ferguson reportedly got choked up after the show; Andrea's husband, John, thanked everyone for the benefit, which raised money for the Actors Fund's Phyllis Newman Women's Health Initiative. The performance was updated to include references to current topics such as marriage equality.

Million Dollar Listing: New York's Fredrik Eklund is penning a guide to fatherhood, according to Page Six. Eklund, who's expecting a baby girl via surrogate next spring with artist husband Derek Kaplan, is writing The Daddy Project. The tome would be Eklund's second, following The Sell. Eklund's client list includes Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael Strahan and Jennifer Lopez.

Ryan Reynolds has said he supports same-sex marriage because he is "not a monster," Gay Star News reported. The Self/less actor was asked on HuffPost Live his thoughts on the Americans who said they would move to Canada after the US Supreme Court legalized gay marriage in all 50 states—even though same-sex marriage has been legal across the border for a decade. When asked if he opposed marriage equality, Reynolds responded, "God, no! I'm not a monster! I think it's fantastic."

Jackie Fox's bombshell claim that she was brutally raped in 1975 by the Runaways' manager, Kim Fowley, while bandmates Joan Jett, Cherie Currie and a host of other people watched was met with immediate denials by both Jett—who said she "was not aware of this incident"—and Currie, according to a Newser item. Currie wrote, "I have been accused of a crime. Of looking into the dead yet pleading eyes of a girl, unable to move while she was brutally raped and doing nothing. I have never been one to deny my mistakes in life and I wouldn't start now." Fox has since responded, "Most have apologized to me for their inaction that night—apologies that have been unnecessary, though welcome," US Weekly reported.

Rosie Perez will not return as co-host of The View next season, TheWrap noted. She will tape her last episode on Aug. 6—the season 18 finale. Perez and fellow co-host Nicole Wallace have been considered likely candidates to exit The View as producers ponder another reboot of its lineup. The two women were new additions to the show's roster, alongside Rosie O'Donnell, last fall following the departures of Sherri Shepherd, Jenny McCarthy and co-creator Barbara Walters. Comedian Michelle Collins is slated to join as a co-host.

After calling it quits on a contentious second go-round on The View and a contentious breakup with her wife, television hostess Rosie O'Donnell is also splitting with a prime piece of New Jersey real estate, Page Six reported. O'Donnell's rustic mansion in the upscale community of Saddle River is now on the market for $6.98 million. The TV personality bought the six-bedroom home in October 2013 for $6.4 million.

George Michael and boyfriend Fadi Fawaz made a rare outing together in Switzerland recently, The Daily Mail noted. While Michael has been keeping an extremely low profile in recent times, he followed up his trip out with Fawaz with three tweets denying claims in a newspaper that he was addicted to crack cocaine. ( Jackie Georgiou, wife of the singer's cousin Andros, told The Sun she is "petrified" Michael will die after claiming his alleged binges on crack, cocaine, alcohol and marijuana left him a drug-addled wreck. ) Michael also tweeted support for singer Sam Smith after Smith says he listens to Michael's music.

Lifetime's Emmy-nominated Project Runway ( #ProjectRunway ) returns with 16 new hopefuls on Aug. 6, a press release stated. Judges Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia and Zac Posen, as well as mentor Tim Gunn, will return. Guest judges will include Bella Thorne, singer/songwriter Ciara, actress Ashley Tisdale, singer and America's Got Talent judge Mel B, and actress Tracee Ellis Ross ( Black-ish ), among others. The winner of Project Runway will receive $100,000 to launch his or her business, and a Celebrity Cruises modern luxury vacation for two to almost anywhere in the world.

An anonymous donor has offered a $1-million reward for credible information leading to the pair of Judy Garland's sequined, ruby red slippers stolen from a museum in her Minnesota hometown, Time reported. The late actress wore the slippers in The Wizard of Oz. Three other pairs still exist, including one on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. John Kelsch—executive director of the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota—has said the donor is from Arizona, and is a huge fan of Garland and the 1939 movie.

Ellen Page is attached to star in Lioness, an indie drama, The Hollywood Reporter noted. Lioness tells the true story of Lance Corporal Leslie Martz, a U.S. Marine who was stationed in Haditha, Iraq. While in Iraq, Martz hid the fact that was she was a lesbian in the military; on top of that, she found herself torn between the desire to prove herself to her superiors and the allegiance she developed toward the women and children whose strength and courage she grew to admire.

Speaking of Page, she's also attached to host an LGBT travel show, Gaycation, on Vice, according to CJR.org . In an obscenity-laced presentation featuring Oscar-nominated filmmaker and Vice creative director Spike Jonze, Vice co-founder Shane Smith unveiled a host of new lifestyle shows starring a who's who of tastemakers for millennials—and Page's show is part of that line-up. The shows are expected to air on Vice's new cable channel on A&E Networks.

It's safe to say singer Morrissey is not fond of the current music scene, according to The UK Metro. While speaking to Rolling Stone magazine, the Smiths vocalist lamented on the state of music these days, and said he thinks it's a shame that nobody is organically discovered any more. He added, "Thus, we are force-fed such as Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith, which at least means that things can't possibly get any worse."

This might not be a good week for Sam Smith, in terms of the feelings of other musicians. Years & Years singer Olly Alexander has criticized openly gay singers who sing about gender-neutral love interests instead of men, PinkNews reported. Sam Smith has previously explained he only sings about gender-neutral "lovers" in songs to ensure they are universal and "apply to everyone"—despite straight singers facing no problems singing about opposite-sex love interests. Alexander told Digital Spy, "It is kind of sad to me that we don't have gay pop stars singing about men using a male pronoun, but that could change hopefully."

Transgender icon Holly Woodlawn is fighting for her life at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, The Hollywood Reporter noted. Doctors there have found lesions on her liver and brain, but have not yet determined the cause—and Woodlawn is reportedly too weak for a biopsy. A crowdfunding effort, mounted by longtime friend and collaborator Penny Arcade, has raised more than $37,000 in just four days—funds meant to grant Woodlawn's wish to spend her final days in her West Hollywood home.

Fuller House actress Candace Cameron Bure defended the bakery that refused to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple when she was on The View, stating that the owners' stance was not an act of discrimination, TheWrap reported. However, The View co-host Raven-Symoné started the conversation by defining it as just that. Cameron Bure added, "It's about constitutional rights. It's about First Amendment rights. We do have the right to still choose who we associate with."

YouTube star Shane Dawson has come out as bisexual, in a 15-minute video posted to his channel, Time.com reported. Dawson, 26, whose real name is Shane Lee Yaw, is known by his 6.7 million subscribers for his comedies, parodies and sketches that he has been uploading to YouTube since 2008. In the video, which has so far gained more than 1 million hits, Dawson says he had been confused about his sexuality all his life, but especially in the past year.

Chicago-bred songwriter turned artist/producer Freckles "The Writer" could be R&B's first lesbian star, LA Weekly reported. Having worked as a writer with mentors R. Kelly and Babyface, Tanya "Freckles" White has been preparing for this moment most of her music career. "Even though I'm an androgynous gay woman, my music isn't gay—it's just good music," said Freckles.

Madonna is set to embark on her international tour, The Rebel Heart Tour, starting in Montreal on Sept. 9, Forbes noted. The tour is in support of Rebel Heart, her 13th studio album, which she released in March. If history is any indication, Madonna's upcoming tour will not disappoint in the box office. According to the Billboard Boxscore, Madonna's MDNA tour in 2012 was a substantial success, grossing $305 million and dispensing 2.2 million tickets to 88 shows, making it the highest-grossing tour of the year.

Straight ally Joe Santagato took to YouTube to share his opinions on the legalization of gay marriage in all fifty states, according to NewNowNext.com . In part, he says, "People who are so against [same-sex marriage] go out of their way to be against it. They like, use their vacation days to take off of work so they can stand on the side of some f*cking highway with a sign that says, 'God hates fags'—like that's going to do anything."

Oscar nominee Omar Sharif, who starred in the films Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago, died in Cairo at 83 of a heart attack, ABC News reported. Sharif, born Michel Demitri Chalhoub in Alexandria, Egypt, had also been living with Alzheimer's, which was revealed earlier this year. Sharif was also a world-class bridge player and for years wrote a syndicated column about the game. Among those surviving him is GLAAD's Omar Sharif Jr., the actor's grandson.

Miss Oklahoma Olivia Jordan was crowned the 2015 winner of the Miss USA pageant, TheWrap reported. The pageant broadcast went off on the Reelz network without a hitch despite having been embroiled in controversy created by pageant co-owner and presidential hopeful Donald Trump's controversial remarks about Mexican immigrants. NBC and Spanish-language broadcaster Univision dropped the pageant in June following comments made by Trump at a campaign event in which he referred to undocumented immigrants as "rapists."

The Tony-winning musical Spring Awakening—a coming-of-age story by Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik that sent shockwaves through Broadway in 2006—has booked Broadway's Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Playbill noted. The staging is based on the Deaf West Theatre production that will be performed simultaneously in American Sign Language and spoken English by a cast of 27. Ken Davenport, Cody Lassen, Hunter Arnold and Deaf West Theatre will produce the revival as a limited engagement ( set in 19th-century Germany ), which will begin performances Sept. 8, open Sept. 27 and continue through Jan. 9, 2016.

DIRECTV is presenting "Outfest Online," which gives nationwide access to

official selections from the Outfest Los Angeles LGBT Film Festival, according to a press release. The festival runs through July 19. Interested persons can download the app or visit OutfestOnline.com .

Without breaking character during a performance of Shows for Days, Broadway actress Patti LuPone grabbed a phone away from someone in the audience who was texting on her cellphone, The Kansas City Star noted. LuPone's co-star, Michael Urie, said a woman in the second row was texting during the entire show in which LuPone plays the diva of a local community theater. "We work hard on stage to create a world that is being totally destroyed by a few, rude, self-absorbed and inconsiderate audience members who are controlled by their phones," LuPone said in a statement.

Out actor Matt Bomer ( Magic Mike XXL ) said that he almost played Superman on the big screen, CinemaBlend noted. Talking to the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Bomer revealed that when he was 23 he was part of a big, open audition for a Brett Ratner-directed adaptation of Superman. Bomer added, "Brett chose me for the project and then it all fell apart. It was a very lengthy process to get the role ... and then it slowly fell apart."

Former Food Network show host Paula Deen posted a photo on Twitter that included herself dressed up as Lucille Ball in the 1950s sitcom I Love Lucy—and her son Bobby in brownface makeup as Ricky Ricardo, TheWrap noted. The caption mocked Ricky's Cuban accent, reading: "Lucyyyyyyy! You got a lot of esplainin' to do!" Two years ago, the Food Network cut ties with the Paula's Best Dishes and Paula's Home Cooking host for her use of the N-word. She later started a cooking show on the Internet. Deen has fired her social-media manager after this latest situation.

Beyonce, Pearl Jam and Coldplay will perform at the 2015 Global Citizen Festival in New York's Central Park in September, the Associated Press reported. They will join Ed Sheeran at the Sept. 26 event on the Great Lawn. The fourth annual concert will air on MSNBC and stream on iHeartRadio and Tidal. Past performers include Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Alicia Keys, Foo Fighters and Carrie Underwood.

French designer Christian Audigier—best known for his creations at Ed Hardy and Von Dutch—died in Los Angeles after a battle with cancer; he was 57, TheWrap noted. Audigier was popular with young Hollywood stars such as Paris Hilton, Ashton Kutcher, Kim Kardashian, Lindsey Lohan, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and reality couple Jon and Kate Gosselin in the mid-2000s. Often mocked by fashion elite for his logo-heavy, rhinestone-crusted designs and bright trucker hats, Audigier had an estimated net worth of $250 million, and sold Ed Hardy in 2011 for $62 million.

With Amy—the documentary looking at her life and untimely death, having scored the biggest ever opening for a British doc at the U.K. box office recently—Amy Winehouse has stormed back into the British music charts, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Back to Black, Winehouse's Grammy-winning second album, recently re-entered the charts at number 22. Frank, her 2003 debut and the record that first pushed her into the public eye, re-entered the album charts in the 50th spot.

The 1984 Summer Olympic torch that Caitlyn Jenner carried through Lake Tahoe, Nevada, when she was known as Bruce Jenner is being auctioned off, Page Six has noted. The 24-inch torch, which has a brass finish and leather handle, is being offered by Heritage Auctions at its Platinum Night Sports Auction in Chicago on July 30. Insiders say it could fetch as much as $20,000. It's the first major piece of Jenner memorabilia to go to auction since the winner of the 1976 Olympic decathlon gold medal became Caitlyn Jenner.

Pop star Taylor Swift has hit a major music milestone, CBS News noted, citing Billboard. The Grammy winner's album 1989 has sold more than 5 million copies in the United States. The album reached the milestone during the week ending July 5—its 36th week on the charts, making it the fastest-selling album in more than a decade. It's Swift's third album to sell more than 5 million copies, joining 2008's Fearless and her 2006 self-titled debut.

Giuliana Rancic is stepping down from the anchor post at E! News, but will stay on at the network in other roles, Variety noted. She will continue at Fashion Police and Live From the Red Carpet. No reason was given for the departure. Maria Menounos will fill Rancic's E! News slot.

Roger Rees—a Tony-winning character actor perhaps best known for playing Kirstie Alley's snooty British suitor on the sitcom Cheers—died in New York City at age 71, TheWrap noted. The Welsh-born Broadway veteran ( who won the Tony in 1982 for his role in Royal Shakespeare Company's The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby ) had been co-starring with Chita Rivera in the Kander/Ebb musical The Visit on Broadway until withdrawing in late May due to illness.

RuPaul's Drag Race alum Pearl has released her own unisex fragrance, Flazéda, according to a press release. It's named after the word she coined in "Drag Race" to broadly describe anything positive. A native of St. Petersburg, Florida, Pearl got her start in Chicago's drag scene. The scent is available for pre-order at Xyrena.com/Pearl; the 1.7 oz. bottle of extrait de parfum ( no water added ) retails for $124.

Singer and former Nickelodeon star Ariana Grande has issued an apology after generating controversy with comments made at a donut shop, TheWrap reported. In the past few days, a video of Grande appearing to say "I hate Americans" and "I hate America" have generated headlines and anger on the internet; however, Grande reasserted her patriotism with a statement declaring, "I am EXTREMELY proud to be an American and I've always made it clear that I love my county." She went on to cite her advocacy for healthy eating and her frustration over the country's child-obesity rate.

During the show's Comic Con panel in San Diego, Teen Wolf series creator Jeff Davis announced that MTV has renewed the show for a sixth season, Deadline reported. Loosley based on the 1985 film starring Michael J. Fox but considerably darker, the LGBT-inclusive Teen Wolf debuted on MTV in 2011 and, since then, has been a ratings success for the network.

Film review and news site The Dissolve is dissolving, The Hollywood Reporter noted. The site, owned by Pitchfork, was simply unable to make enough money to keep the doors open. The Dissolve was launched in 2013.

Legendary band Duran Duran has announced that, due to popular demand, it will move the U.S. release date of their 14th studio album, Paper Gods, up from Sept. 18 to Sept. 11, according to a press release. Singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor recorded Paper Gods in London with producers Nile Rodgers, Mark Ronson, Josh Blair and Mr. Hudson. Duran Duran will also perform a series of summer festivals, as well as a run of shows in the United States in September and October, followed by a UK arena tour that kicks off in late November.