Saturday, January 22, 2011

Darren Criss, Chris Colfer And The 'Entertainment Weekly' Gay Issues: 1995, 2011

Here are the pics of Glee's cute as all hell "Teenage Dream" crooner Darren Criss and Golden Globe-winner Chris Colfer from inside their Entertainment Weekly cover story. I just got the issue in the mail yesterday—with the 'Gay Teens On TV' special report—and it got me thinking about EW's 'The Gay '90s' feature, which was the cover story in the September 8, 1995 issue.

I had a subscription to the mag the whole time I was in college back then, and for whatever reason, I grabbed that issue and a couple others when I was back in Pennsylvania in February last year.

Here's an interesting bit—if only for the quaintness of it all—from the "What's Out Now" music section in the 1995 article:
"Just three years ago, even a self-proclaimed drag queen like Boy George felt it threatening to identify himself as anything more than 'bisexual.' Yet in the mid-'90s, Erasure and the Pet Shop Boys—both featuring gay vocalists—have won over as many fans for their dance beats as for their gay-themed lyrics, and despite Michael Stipe's ambiguous sexual stance, R.E.M. has seen no drop-off in its arena drawing power. Kurt Cobain moved rock a step forward by proclaiming in the liner notes to Nirvana's Incesticide that he didn't want homophobes buying the group's albums, and country golden boy Garth Brooks' album The Chase included 'We Shall Be Free' in support of gay rights. Small wonder that it's hip to have a band member announce an alternative lifestyle (including players in the Breeders, Sugar, Luscious Jackson, Kitchens Of Distinction and Faith No More)."
The moral of the story? The Breeders = good, good times.