#american supermodel born 1979

[latestnews69]

Quannah ChasingHorse: The Indigenous American supermodel on bringing change

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[lboogie1906]

LaWanda Page born Alberta Peal (October 19, 1920 – September 14, 2002) was an actress, comedian, and dancer whose career spanned six decades. Crowned “The Queen of Comedy” or “The Black Queen of Comedy”, she melded blue humor, signifyin’, and observational comedy to joke about sexuality, race relations, African-American culture, and religion. She released five solo albums, including the 1977 gold-selling Watch It, Sucker! She collaborated on two albums with the comedy group Skillet, Leroy & Co. She is known for portraying “Aunt” Esther Anderson in Sanford and Son (1972-77). She reprised this role in Sanford Arms (1976–77) and Sanford (1980–81). She co-starred in the 1979 Detective School. She advocated for fair pay and equal opportunities for African American performers.

She was born in Cleveland. She was the older sister of Lynn Hamilton, this is not the Lynn Hamilton who co-starred with her on Sanford and Son.

She appeared in an episode of The Love Boat. She appeared on several episodes of The Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts and over the next two decades guest-starred in episodes of other popular television shows, including Amen, Martin, 227, Family Matters, and Diff’rent Strokes. She appeared on Circus of the Stars as a fire eater. She appeared in a series of comical Church’s Chicken commercials featuring the catchphrase “Gotta love it!”

She appeared on several tracks of the debut album by RuPaul titled Supermodel of the World released in 1993, most notably the hit song “Supermodel (You Better Work)”. She appeared in several music videos from the album.

Among her movie credits are Zapped, Good-bye, Cruel World, Mausoleum, My Blue Heaven, Shakes the Clown, CB4, Friday, and Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood.

She was married and widowed three times. She married her first husband at the age of 14, and before he died when she was 19 they had a daughter. Her third husband died when she was in her thirties. She was affiliated with the Landmark Community Church during her first years in Los Angeles. She became an evangelist in the Holiness Church. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[brn1029]

On this date in history….of The music we play….

April 24th

2016 - Billy Paul

American soul singer Billy Paul died at his home in the Blackwood section of Gloucester Township, New Jersey, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 81. He was best known for his 1972 hit 'Me and Mrs Jones', which won a Grammy award and reached No.1 in the US.David Bowie married Somali born supermodel and actress Iman in Switzerland. Iman first got married at the age of eighteen to a young Somali man, in 1977, she married American basketball player Spencer Haywood.

1979 - Ray Charles

Ray Charles' 'Georgia On My Mind' was proclaimed the state song of Georgia. The music to the song was written in 1930 by Hoagy Carmichael who also recorded a version of the song in New York in the same year. Ray Charles, a native of Georgia, recorded it in 1960 on the album The Genius Hits the Road.

1976 - Paul McCartney

Paul and Linda McCartney spent the evening with John Lennon at his New York Dakota apartment and watched Saturday Night Live on TV. Producer of the show Lorne Michaels made an offer on air asking The Beatles to turn up and play three songs live. Lennon and McCartney thought about taking a cab to the studio, but decided they were too tired. This was the last time Lennon and McCartney were together.

1975 - Peter Ham

Peter Ham, British singer, songwriter with Badfinger committed suicide by hanging himself in the garage of his Surrey home, aged 27. Ham co-wrote 'Without You', with band mate Tom Evans (who also later committed suicide). The song won an Ivor Novello award for Song Of The Year in 1973, and was a hit for Harry Nilsson and Mariah Carey. Ham was a founder member of The Iveys, who became Badfinger, were signed to the Beatles' Apple label, their first hit 'Come And Get It' was written by Paul McCartney.

1972 - John Lennon

John Lennon's controversial single, 'Woman Is the N****r of the World' was released in the US. The song peaked at No.57, despite virtually every radio station in the country refusing to play it. Yoko Ono said the phrase during a magazine interview in 1967 and Lennon later explained that he was making a point that women deserved higher status in society.

1970 - Elton John

Elton John released his fourth single 'Border Song' the first single from his 1970 album Elton John. The appearance of 'Border Song on the Canadian charts was Elton John's first chart appearance in any country and was also John's first song to chart in the United States, peaking at No.92.

1968 - David Bowie

The Beatles new company, Apple Records turned down the offer to sign new artist David Bowie. (Apple later signed Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger and Billy Preston).

1968 - Louis Armstrong

Louis Armstrong was at No.1 in the UK with the single 'What A Wonderful World / Cabaret.' At 69 years of age, it made Armstrong the oldest act ever to score a UK No.1.

1965 - Wayne Fontana

Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders went to No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Game Of Love', a No.2 hit in the UK. Wayne took his name from DJ Fontana the Elvis Presley drummer. Eric Stewart guitarist in the Mindbenders went on join Hotlegs and 10CC.

1959 - Buddy Holly

Buddy Holly was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with the Paul Anka song 'It Doesn't Matter Anymore.' A No.1 hit six weeks after Holly's death.

1955 - Perez Prado

Perez Prado was at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White'. Known as the 'King of the Mambo' the instrumental was the theme from the film 'Underwater' where Jane Russell can be seen dancing to 'Cherry Pink'.

[zakifashionunit4]

Donyale Luna:

Donyale Luna (born 1945 died 1979) is considered to be the first black supermodel. In 1966, she became the first African-American model to appear on the cover of a Vogue magazine

Donyale Luna (real name, Peggy Ann Freeman), was discovered in her hometown of Detroit Michigan by David McCabe at age 14. This was just prior to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the landmark legislation that outlawed discrimination in the United States on the bases of race, religion, gender or national origin. However, the fashion industry was very slow to adopt inclusivity, and for years featured only Caucasian models in print and on the catwalk. Luna broke this barrier, not just because of her stunning looks, but because of her “bite and personality” according to the then-editor for British Vogue.

Luna was revolutionary for the fashion industry and her impact is still felt today, she’s pathed a way for racial diversity within fashion and the catwalk and became a trailblazer in this industry

unfortunately luna had a tragic death due to a heroin overdose. the stress of the industry and time period due to having such high expectations and being diverse got to her and she had an accidental overdose at the age of 32. she is still seen as one of if not the most impactful models within the industry

[blackkudos]

Iman

Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid (Somali: Imaan Maxamed Cabdimajiid, Arabic: ايمان محمد عبد المجيد‎; born 25 July 1955), professionally known as Iman ("faith" in Arabic), is a Somali-American fashion model, actress and entrepreneur. A pioneer in the field of ethnic cosmetics, she is also noted for her charitable work. She is married to David Bowie.

Early life and education

Iman was born in Mogadishu, Trust Territory of Somaliland. She is the daughter of Marian and Mohamed Abdulmajid. Her father was a diplomat and a former Somali ambassador to Saudi Arabia, and her mother was a gynecologist. She has four siblings: two brothers, Elias and Feisal, and two younger sisters, Idil and Nadia.

For her education, Iman attended high school in Egypt and later lived in Kenya, where she studied political science at the University of Nairobi.

Iman is Muslim, and fluent in five languages: Somali, Arabic, Italian, French and English.

Career

Modeling

While still at university, Iman was discovered by American photographer Peter Beard, and subsequently moved to the United States to begin a modeling career. Her first modeling assignment was for Vogue a year later in 1976. She soon landed some of the most prestigious magazine covers, establishing herself as a supermodel.

With her long neck, tall stature, slender figure, fine features, copper-toned skin, and exotic accent, Iman was an instant success in the fashion world, though she herself insists that her looks are merely or typically Somali. She became a muse for many prominent designers, including Halston, Gianni Versace, Calvin Klein, Issey Miyake and Donna Karan. A favorite of Yves Saint-Laurent, he once described her as his "dream woman".

During her 14 years as a high fashion model, Iman also worked with many notable photographers, including Helmut Newton, Richard Avedon, Irving Penn and Annie Leibovitz.

Iman credits the nurturing she received from various designers with having given her the confidence to succeed in an era when individuality was valued and model-muses were often an integral part of the creative process.

She is signed to TESS Management in London.

BusinessIman Cosmetics

After almost two decades of modeling, Iman started her own cosmetics firm in 1994, focusing on difficult-to-find shades for women. Based on her years of experience mixing her own formulations for make-up artists to use on her, she had a personal hand in the final product and also acted as the commercial face of the company.

As of 2010, Iman Cosmetics is a $25-million-a-year business. It is centered on $14.99 foundations in 4 formulations and 14 shades, and is among the top-selling foundation brands on Walgreens' website.

In spring 2012, Iman signed fellow Somali designers Ayaan and Idyl Mohallim, founders of the Mataano fashion company, as brand ambassadors for her cosmetics line.

Global Chic

Due to her marketability and high profile, Iman was approached in 2007 by the CEO of the Home Shopping Network (HSN) to create a clothing design line. Inspired by her childhood in Egypt and modeling time with Halston, Iman's first collection introduced embroidered, one-size-fits-all caftans. Today, her Global Chic collection is one of four best-selling items among more than 200 fashion and jewelry brands on HSN, having evolved into a line of affordable accessories.

CinemaTelevision

Iman twice appeared in Miami Vice, playing Dakota in Back in the World (1985) and Lois Blyth in Love At First Sight (1988). Also in 1988, she appeared as Marie Babineaux on an episode of In the Heat of the Night.

In the mid-2000s, Iman spent two years as the host of Bravo TV's fashion-themed show, Project Runway Canada. In November 2010, she along with friend and colleague, designer Isaac Mizrahi, also began hosting the second season of The Fashion Show, a series Bravo started to replace its former hit Project Runway that now moved to the Lifetime network.

Film

An occasional actress, Iman first featured in the 1979 British film The Human Factor, and appeared in the 1985 Oscar-winning film Out of Africa alongside Robert Redford and Meryl Streep. She then portrayed Nina Beka in the 1987 thriller No Way Out with Kevin Costner, Hedy in the Michael Caine comedy Surrender the same year, and later played a shapeshifting alien named Martia in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). Iman also dabbled in some comedic roles, appearing in The Linguini Incident in 1991 opposite her husband David Bowie, as well as the 1994 comedy/romance film Exit to Eden.

Video games

Iman makes a cameo alongside her husband David Bowie in the 1999 Windows 9x and Dreamcast 3D adventure game, Omikron: The Nomad Soul, developed by the video game company Quantic Dream. She appears as one of the numerous Omikronian citizens the player can "reincarnate" into.

Philanthropy

In addition to running her global beauty company, Iman is also actively involved in a number of charitable endeavors. She is currently a spokesperson for the Keep a Child Alive program, and works closely with, among others, the Children's Defense Fund. She also serves as an Ambassador for Save the Children, and has been active in raising awareness of their relief services in the greater East Africa region. Additionally, Iman works with the Enough Project to end the global trade in conflict minerals, having played a key part in the public campaign against blood diamonds through her termination of her contract with the diamonds conglomerate De Beers over a conflict of ethics.

Awards

Over the course of her long modelling and philanthropic career, Iman has received many awards. On 7 June 2010, she received aFashion Icon lifetime achievement award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), a special prize reserved for "an individual whose signature style has had a profound influence on fashion". Iman selected her friend, actress and former model Isabella Rossellini, to present the award. Wearing a gown designed by Giambattista Valli with four giant diamond bracelets on each arm, Iman thanked her parents "for giving me a neck longer than any other girl on any go-see anywhere in the world".

Personal life

Iman first got married at the age of eighteen to a young Somali man with whom she had fallen in love. The marriage ended a few years later when she moved to the United States to pursue a modeling career. In 1977, she married American basketball player Spencer Haywood. Their daughter, Zulekha Haywood, was born in 1978. The two divorced in February 1987. On 24 April 1992, Iman married British rock musician David Bowie in a private ceremony in Lausanne. The wedding was later solemnized on 6 June in Florence. They have one daughter, Alexandria Zahra Jones, born 15 August 2000. Iman is also stepmother to Bowie's son from a previous marriage, Duncan Jones. Both children bear Bowie's legal surname. Iman and her family reside primarily in Manhattan and London.

http://wikipedia.thetimetube.com/?q=Iman+%28model%29&lang=en

[wp-yahoo-style-1042-yahoopa-blog]

See the evolution of summer's sexiest shorts from the 1940s to the 2000s

Few clothing items usher in summer quite like a perfectly worn-in, frayed, and ripped pair of denim shorts. Some call them jorts (aka jean shorts), while others might prefer “cutoffs.” They’re a 21st century festival staple and a street-style favorite, with price tags that span the gamut from a couple bucks for some vintage Levi’s dug up in a thrift store, to roughly  $1K for this Valentino pair, embroidered with butterflies.

But, before there were jorts, there were jeans. It’s nearly impossible to imagine a world or closet without denim, yet the durable, universally beloved garment only dates back to late 19th century, when Levi Strauss (along with a tailor, Jacob Davis) invented “waist overalls” in 1873, named for where the style starts on the body, compared to the full-body overalls of the past.

From left to right: Students at Los Angeles City College in 1958, Karen Erickson, 19; John Zinda, 20; Annette Schiff, 19; Biggio Pennino, 21; and Al Ponce, 19, look on as Jerry Brooks, 18 (second from left), reads a campus order instructing students not to wear shorts. (Photo by USC Libraries/Corbis via Getty Images)

Shorts have been around since the early 20th century, remaining taboo through the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s, for both men and women. There were even dress codes against, and fines for, wearing shorts, in certain cities throughout midcentury America.

Though it’s unclear when in the 20th century, exactly, the denim cutoff was born, denim itself was invented in the 1700s in Nîmes, France, and was initially touted as being completely tear-resistant. (The word “denim” actually refers to the birthplace of the sturdy fabric: it’s derived from serge de Nîmes in French, which translates as serge (a sturdy fabric) from Nîmes.

Punk rock singer and poet Patti Smith poses for a studio portrait. (Photo by Lynn Goldsmith/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images)

Long before jorts was a word — a dictionary-official one, even, but more on that later — the shorts style picked up popularity in the 1970s. The edgy twist on a beloved American staple was particularly big during the decade famous for punk and rock musicians. There’s a subtle but powerful symbolism in literally ripping apart a material that, while invented across the pond in France, had become strongly associated with American workmanship.

In the latter part of the decade, Patti Smith, a denim devotee in general, often donned pairs of roughly chopped and cuffed jean shorts, topped with oversized tweed mens’ blazers, loose T-shirts, or baggy button-downs. Smith often sported her cutoffs with black tights underneath, and wore them in a slew of situations, often photographed with her partner Robert Mapplethorpe, as well as onstage while performing.

Debbie Harry of Blondie on the beach at Coney Island (Photo by Roberta Bayley/Redferns)

Another musical icon to memorably rock the rebellious style was Debbie Harry: The Blondie frontwoman donned a very short, very ripped pair of cutoffs while cavorting on the beach in Coney Island, Brooklyn, in a series of shots from 1977 by rock photographer Roberta Bayley.

Daisy Duke, played by Catherine Bach in “The Dukes of Hazzard.” (Photo: Everett Collection)

The garment was most powerfully immortalized by actress Catherine Bach in the TV series The Dukes of Hazzard, which aired from 1979 to 1985. Bach’s character, Daisy Duke, frequently flaunted her gams in extra-short cutoffs to help her get out of perilous situations that she and her two brothers found themselves in. The hot-weather answer to denim wearing become synonymous with a stereotypical, Southern flirtatious sex appeal, thanks to the show, and bequeathed them an enduring nickname: The shorts  are (still!) often called “Daisy Dukes.”

However, despite their breezy, bare-legged appearance, the cutoffs featured on The Dukes of Hazzard weren’t exactly styled in the most beach-friendly manner. The show’s network, CBS, deemed the minuscule shorts inappropriate for TV, and Bach had to wear flesh-hued tights under her cutoffs in every scene.  

Behind the scenes on “Stunt Women”: Cindy Crawford in 1992 (Photo: Shutterstock)

Cutoffs got the Vogue treatment in the early 1990s. Supermodel Cindy Crawford wore a pair as part of a photoshoot on a Malibu beach in 1992, Herb Ritts shot Cindy Crawford for the November issue of Vogue, cavorting on the beach in Malibu with her husband at the time, Richard Gere, her supermodel physique displayed nicely in a pair of frayed Levi shorts. Before cutoffs made a Vogue cameo, their full-length predecessors were notably featured on the fashion bible’s cover four years before, when the magazine’s then newly minted editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, featured a pair of blues on her very first cover, in 1988. 

A big part of the charm of cutoffs is how democratizing and DIY-friendly they are; crafted for a couple bucks, or free, even, using any old pair of jeans and a sharp pair of scissors. The advent and popularity of the premium denim market in the late ‘90s and early aughts ushered in previously unheard-of triple-digit prices for the wardrobe workhouse, from brands like Frankie B, Seven for All Mankind, Paper Denim & Cloth, and True Religion. Shorts versions of pricy premium denim also took off, whether intentionally sold with abbreviated hemlines or in DIY form.

A model on the runway at the Spring/Summer 2000 Chloé ready-to-wear collection designed by Stella McCartney, wearing white tube top with smocking at top edge, fringed hot pants, high-heel sandals with white and gold ankle bands, and carrying a straw bag with cat-face design. (Photo: Getty Images)

But the humble cutoff has also gotten more upscale runway treatments: In 1999, for one of Stella McCartney’s final collections as creative director of Chloé, she showed ultrashort white shorts with a low rise (as was the preferred, hipbone-exposing silhouette of the era) and extra-distressed hems.

Then, the shorts reconnected with their musician-vetted roots in a new way, thanks to their growing ubiquity with festival fashion. Specifically, with one increasingly popular festival: Coachella. The annual three-day blowout in the desert of Indio, Calif., which began in 1999, is where many a trend has hit critical mass in the 21st century, particularly in the past five to 10 years, be it jorts, flower crowns, or chokers.

Jessica Simpson in the film version of “The Dukes of Hazzard.” (Photo: Everett Collection)

In 2005, Jessica Simpson introduced Daisy Duke (both the character and her signature shorts) to a younger generation with the film version of The Dukes of Hazzard. Unlike the O.G. Daisy Duke, Simpson didn’t wear tights under her cutoffs. Plus, the entire ensemble (both the shorts’ length and fit, and the snugness and cleavage-baring factor of her tops) were sexed up in the modernized, silver-screen take on the campy TV series.

Kendall Jenner in 2016, wearing a fringe jacket, jean shorts, and velvet boots. (Photo: Getty Images)

In 2015, the term “jorts” became a legitimate, official noun: the term, a portmanteau of “jeans” and “shorts,” was added to the Oxford dictionary that year, along with other modern vernacular, like selfie, twerk, and guac.

In the past decade, denim cutoffs have yet again cropped up on runways, in their fanciest, priciest form fathomable. During designer Hedi Slimane’s stint as creative director at Saint Laurent from 2012 to 2016, one of the (many) sweeping tweaks  he made to the venerable French fashion house was peppering his collections with supershort hemlines and punky vibes, sometimes translating to cutoff shorts (and even cutoff denim overalls, like this spring 2016 Saint Laurent look).

Alexander Wang Spring-Summer Collection 2016 at New York Fashion Week (Photo: Getty Images)

Alexander Wang trotted out some artfully beat-up, ultrashort pairs in his fall 2016 collection, too. 2016 also marked the year supermodels Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid added jorts to their model-off-duty street style.

Gigi Hadid in 2016 wearing jean shorts, a T-shirt, and navy coat. (Photo: Getty Images)

Beyoncé wears the Saint Laurent sparkle boots alongside Jay-Z. (Photo: Instagram)

The most epic jorts moment in recent memory came courtesy of the one and only Beyoncé, at what’s become the most important modern natural habitat for the garment: Coachella. While headlining the festival in April 2018, Queen Bey slayed in her first of five outfit changes throughout her set: a heavily shredded, customized pair of Levi’s High-Rise shorts, paired with a bejeweled yellow satin hoodie, flesh-toned fishnets, and iridescent sequined boots. The superstar had another memorable cutoffs getup a couple months earlier, in December 2017, thanks to a pair of black cutoffs paired with glittery Saint Laurent knee-high boots.

Beyoncé at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April in Indio, Calif. (Photo: Getty Images)

These days, denim cutoffs are less associated with their late 20th century connotations of Daisy Duke and punky DGAF rock legend style, and more with celebrity street style (and, of course, festival garb).

A plethora of stars regularly don cutoffs, both off-duty and, occasionally, on the red carpet. To wit: famous fans of jorts include Kate Moss, Taylor Swift, Kim Kardashian, Victoria Beckham, Gigi Hadid, Rihanna (in another epic Coachella getup, pairing jorts with a Gucci bejeweled bodysuit and matching balaclava), and longtime cutoffs connoisseur, Chloë Sevigny.

So, just like the enduring, universal appeal of jeans — despite changing silhouettes, rises, and inseam lengths that cycle in and out of trendiness over the years — denim cutoffs are the indispensable warm-weather counterpart.

Rihanna wears a Gucci sparkle bodysuit and balaclava with her jorts at Coachella. (Photo: Instagram)

The appeal varies widely: For some, there’s a sort of Southern sexpot vibe, thanks to the surprisingly sartorially memorable television character, Daisy Duke, while others might associate with it a punk-rock insouciance, à la Patti Smith. Or, perhaps, a carefully curated but “carefree” quintessential Coachella look.

Expect this wardrobe staple to stick around for many more decades, sure to be championed by a new generation of style icons, across music genres and various creative fields, personal style preferences, and price points. In other words, love them or loathe them, in all likelihood, jorts are here to stay.

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[acsversace-news]

For months during the filming of American Crime Story, Ricky Martin found himself back in the closet—this time playing Antonio D’Amico, the longtime lover of the late Gianni Versace. In the pilot episode of the FX series, a detective with the Miami Police Department interrogates D’Amico after the designer is murdered. Unsure what D’Amico means when he refers to Versace as his “partner,” he questions the nature of their relationship, invoking the young men D’Amico would procure for him, some of them duly compensated, and asking, “Did he pay you?”

“To love him?” responds D’Amico, still covered in the blood of his boyfriend of 15 years, though he seems more wounded by the detective’s callous assertion—the idea that two men could ever be in a committed relationship is completely foreign to him. Yet the moment illustrates one of the overarching themes of the second installment of American Crime Story, based on Maureen Orth’s 1999 book Vulgar Favors, and adapted by British author Tom Rob Smith. Just as The People v. OJ Simpson before it offered an all-too-timely commentary on racism, The Assassination of Gianni Versace promises to tackle issues like homophobia, gun violence, and the dark allure of fame.

“I believe that the story of injustice this series will bring to the table will spark a lot of conversations about things that we, as the LGBTQ community, were dealing with in the ’90s, and that we’re still dealing with,” says Martin, though he shies away from revealing too many details about The Assassination. “At this point in our lives, there shouldn’t be stigmas over the things that we are going to be talking about.”

The show, another jewel in showrunner and creator Ryan Murphy’s television crown, will examine the lives of two gay men and their radically different paths: Gianni Versace (played by Édgar Ramirez)—the Italian designer who injected the world of fashion with a wild dose of ostentation, sensuality, and celebrity glamour—and Andrew Cunanan (Glee's Darren Criss), the 27-year-old Versace fanboy who left a trail of death and devastation in his quest for fame, ultimately finding it, and landing on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list, by murdering the man he so idolized.

Cunanan was born in National City, Calif., on August 31, 1969, to a mostly absent, class-conscious Filipino-American father and a deeply religious Italian-American mother. He was a brilliant child with a reported IQ of 147. Growing up in a strict Catholic household, he struggled with his sexuality from a young age, so that later in life he was open to some, but closeted to others. He also had a reputation for being a pathological liar. After dropping out of the University of California, San Diego, he tried his hand at hustling, drug dealing, and petty robbery—anything to avoid a traditional nine-to-five. He charmed his way into a meeting with Versace on the evening of October 21, 1990, in San Francisco. Versace had designed the costumes for Richard Strauss’s opera Capriccio and was in town for the premiere. It was a brief encounter—Orth dedicates just three pages to it in Vulgar Favors—but for Cunanan, it was significant. Versace was the only celebrity he claimed to know with whom he had any ties, no matter how tenuous. According to Orth, when the FBI asked Philip Merrill, a friend of Cunanan’s, where the wanted murderer would go and whom he would try to contact, Merrill said: Florida and Versace.

By the time Cunanan gunned down the 50-year-old designer on the steps of his palatial estate, Casa Casuarina at 1116 Ocean Drive in South Beach, Miami, on the morning of July 15, 1997, he had already killed four men, including Jeff Trail, a 28-year-old Navy veteran, and David Madson, a 33-year-old architect, three months earlier in Minneapolis—both men were gay and at least one of them, Madson, was a former lover. But the nation didn’t take any real notice until Cunanan had traversed thousands of miles over several months. By then, Versace was dead.

“The whole city of Miami was in shock and never recovered,” says Martin, who was living in Miami but touring Europe at the time of Versace’s death. “Obviously what was happening in fashion was massive, but there was also what was happening in the film industry, with all these great actors moving to Miami because it was the Riviera of the United States. After Versace’s death, everything stuck because everybody was afraid. It has taken many, many, many years for Miami to return to where it was and maybe it will never be the same.”

On July 7, eight days before Versace’s murder, Cunanan visited the Cash on the Beach pawn shop to sell a gold coin he had stolen from his third victim, Lee Miglin, a 72-year-old married real estate developer he had killed and tortured on May 4 in Chicago, which eventually led to the FBI adding Cunanan to its infamous fugitives list. As required by the pawn shop, the serial killer had signed his name—his real name—and had even given the address where he was staying. Vivian Olivia, the owner of Cash on the Beach, turned over the identifying paperwork to the Miami Police the following day, yet no action was taken. Meanwhile, the red pickup truck of William Reese, the 45-year-old caretaker Cunanan had murdered in Pennsville, N.J., just days after Miglin, sat in a parking garage for weeks. The FBI, insistent that Cunanan’s sexual orientation was irrelevant to their investigation, refused to distribute Most Wanted posters of Cunanan or to work with local gay organizations and publications.

“For a number of reasons, the authorities at the time never considered Cunanan to be a public threat because he was only killing homosexuals,” says Ramirez, the Venezuelan actor whose startling resemblance to the late designer helped secure him the title role in ACS. “The word assassination has a political and a social overtone because Versace was targeted. In a way, this was a tragedy that could have been prevented. Basically, homophobia killed Gianni Versace.”

Giovanni Maria Versace was born in Reggio Calabria, Italy, on December 2, 1946. The region’s Hellenic heritage—it had been part of Magna Graecia (Latin for “Great Greece”), the coastal areas of Southern Italy populated by Greek settlers—had a lasting influence on Versace and his work, most notably in the Medusa head and Greek keys of the label’s logo. His mother ran a dressmaking business, so fashion was a part of young Gianni’s DNA. He briefly went to work for his mother after graduating high school but fled the nest for Milan in 1972, bringing his formidable talents to the Italian ateliers Genny, Complice, and Callaghan. With his older brother Santo and younger sister Donatella, he launched his own company, and in 1978 debuted his first collection.

Throughout the ’80s and ’90s, Versace elevated sexy to an art form. As the adage, at times attributed to Anna Wintour, goes: Armani dressed the wife and Versace dressed the mistress. His looks were brash, bold, and sometimes delightfully tacky, rendered in luminescent metallics, sadomasochistic rubbers, and industrialized plastics that pushed the boundaries of fashion and “good taste.”  More than any other designer, before him or since, Versace permeated then all but defined the zeitgeist: from Elizabeth Hurley’s iconic safety-pin black dress (recently reappropriated by Lady Gaga), to Elizabeth Berkley’s doe-eyed infatuation with “Versayce” in 1995’s Showgirls, to rap group Migos’s 2013 breakthrough hit “Versace.”

Versace’s South Beach mansion was a monument to his grandeur, outfitted in Grecian opulence. Built in 1930 by trust-fund playboy and retired architect Alden Freeman, Casa Casuarina is now a hotel and popular tourist destination. Versace was enamored by the house’s Kneeling Aphrodite statue and bought the property for $2.95 million and the old Art Deco Hotel Revere next door for $3.7 million, which he promptly demolished, angering the Miami Design Preservation League—the neighborhood had been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1979. Versace invested an additional $32 million in renovations to realize his palace, decorating every inch with his exacting eye. In the opening minutes of The Assassination, Ramirez, in a resplendent pink robe, greets his army of servants with a measure of benevolence and unquestioned authority. The effect is that of an emperor surveying his mighty kingdom. From there, the series plays up the Greek-like tragedy of Versace’s life and death.

“His life was fated in a way,” says Ramirez. “There is something very classic about this real-life story that was captured by Tom: the characters, the archetypes, their relationships. You have Gianni as an emperor, and then you have his prince, Antonio, and you have his sister, Donatella, who is the empress-to-be. Sometimes there were scenes that really felt like we were doing theater, like Macbeth or Madea.”

Versace used his majestic property to entertain, and occasionally shelter, his circle of VIPs. In awe of the power of celebrity, he cultivated a loyal, glitzy following that included Princess Diana, Elton John, Madonna, Cher, and the supermodels he regularly employed, and in whose rise he was instrumental: Naomi, Cindy, Linda, Claudia. These famous clients and friends populated his front rows, appeared in his ad campaigns, and frequented his homes around the world. And his ambition wasn’t limited to the runway—Versace expanded his empire, designing costumes for operas, films, ballets, and concert tours.

“We basically live in the world that he created,” Ramirez says. “Before Gianni, glamour and sensuality were on two separate planes. Somehow he glamorized sexuality. He had a rock ’n’ roll approach to couture, and he essentially laid the ground for celebrity culture. From then on, for better and for worse, we’ve had this obsession with it. The sociopath who killed him was seduced by fame and by luxury.”

Versace was also one of the few openly gay celebrities of his day, having been with D’Amico, a former model, since 1982. Though, according to Martin, there was a limit to their openness.

“For many months in this series, I kind of went back into the closet,” the 46-year-old says. “They were not completely out. The fear of being seen holding hands in the streets is not an issue for me anymore, but I relived all of that, and it kinda set me back and gave me a lot of discomfort. But I was playing a part, and I used it. I used that anger and I used that frustration.”

The Assassination of Gianni Versace is the gayest thing FX or Ryan Murphy has ever done. And for anyone who’s seen Popular, or Glee, or the last few seasons of Nip/Tuck, or the musical number in American Horror Story: Asylum, that’s saying a lot. But it’s also a profound statement. Murphy, an openly gay showrunner and one of the most powerful and successful visionaries in Hollywood, has produced a series about an openly gay fashion designer (who was killed by a gay serial killer), featuring an openly gay pop star playing his boyfriend. Martin, who came out publicly in 2010, hadn’t even considered this level of out-and-proudness, but he’s acutely aware of how the show’s themes resonate in today’s terrifying political climate.

Ricky Martin has been in the public eye for the majority of his life—first in the popular boy band Menudo, which he parlayed into a successful music career in Latin America and a featured role on the long-running soap opera General Hospital. But it was a 1999 Grammy performance of “The Cup of Life,” the official song of the previous year’s World Cup, and the subsequent release of his U.S. breakthrough single, “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” that skyrocketed him to superstardom and ushered in the so-called “Latin explosion.”

With increased exposure, however, came increased scrutiny, and for years rumors regarding his sexual orientation persisted. Male pop stars have rarely been allowed to be openly gay, and those that were, like Elton John and George Michael, waited until relatively late in their careers to come out. For Martin, consequently, The Assassination of Gianni Versace offered a unique and personal challenge because, to paraphrase executive producer Brad Simpson, it’s about the politics of being out in the ’90s. Today, Martin is much more comfortable in his own skin. Not only is he in love (he’s been in a relationship with Syrian-Swedish painter Jwan Yosef since 2015), but he’s a father of two—and adamant that his family be an inspiration for other nontraditional families.

“A lot of people tell me, ‘Well, your kids are on the covers of magazines and blah, blah, blah,’ and I'm like, ‘Yes because I want to normalize this,’ ” he says. “I want people to look at me and see a family and say, ‘There’s nothing wrong with that.’ It's part of my mission. It’s part of my kids’ mission as well. My kids ask me about having two daddies and I tell them we are a part of a modern family. This is a beautiful sense of freedom.”

By taking on the role of Antonio D’Amico, the singer-actor had to conjure those years of hiding who he was, but in doing so he knew he was paying tribute to the love that Versace and D’Amico shared. Martin’s first day on set and his very first scene were also his most dramatic. “They didn't even let me warm up—I went straight into the murder,” he says. “I went straight into the moment where I find the body on the steps of the villa outside. It was a really long day. I was locked in this room for many hours just to be there in the moment when I looked out the window and saw Édgar’s feet. I went crazy and said, ‘Let’s shoot now! Please let’s shoot now!’ ”

After seeing production shots of Martin cradling a bloody Ramirez, D’Amico derided the tableau as “ridiculous” and a product of the “director’s poetic license.” In an interview with The Guardian last July, he also contradicted Martin’s assertion that he and Versace ever had to conceal their love. Martin then reached out to the 59-year-old D’Amico, whom he says was “incredibly generous” and “really honest.”

“The first thing I said to him was, ‘Antonio, I just want you to know that we all are working on this story with the utmost respect to what Gianni Versace represents to the world, and then we go to love,” says Martin. “ ‘My role here is for people to understand you, and see what the love you guys had was made of.’ They were together for 15 years. It’s a lifetime. And like Antonio says, there was no end to this love. There is no end to this love.”

“There are two love stories,” Ramirez adds. “One with Antonio, Ricky’s character, and the other with Penélope Cruz’s character, Donatella. Gianni was very devoted to both of them. Ricky and I wanted to be respectful of their relationship and open about how supportive they were of each other. According to everyone I talked to, Gianni was very protective of Antonio, and Antonio was very protective of Gianni.”

There is, however, no love lost between D’Amico and Donatella Versace. The two always had a contentious relationship. In his will, Versace provided D’Amico with a $30,000-a-month lifetime allowance and the right to live in any of the late designer’s homes, but because of a feud with the Versace family, D’Amico received a portion of what he was owed.

Family was of the utmost importance to Gianni Versace, but his own didn’t want to be involved in the show’s production. Ramirez, no stranger to playing biographical characters—he earned an Emmy nomination in 2011 for his portrayal of Venezuelan revolutionary Ilich Ramírez Sánchez in Carlos—approached the series with immense compassion, but out of respect (and for legal reasons) he chose not to approach the designer’s surviving family members.

“Whatever hesitations or reservations they have about the series, I understand,” Ramirez says of the Versace family. “This is a tragedy. It should have never happened. We want to enforce our own empathy. I hope that in the end they will be satisfied.”

What is a historical or cultural moment for the rest of the world is a story of intense personal tragedy for the family and former partner of Gianni Versace, so a production of this scale and caliber—this isn’t, after all, the Gina Gershon Lifetime movie House of Versace—is bound to reopen old wounds and draw renewed scrutiny. And yet: That’s fame. One’s life—and death—are no longer one’s own. But what made The People v. OJ Simpson so successful was how it took a tragedy and articulated its significance to the world we live in: a world with a 24/7 news cycle, a world of continued racial animus, a world of keeping up with the Kardashians.

While LGBTQ people have more rights and freedoms than in any other time in U.S. history, the rapid progress of marginalized communities over the previous years has revealed the cracks in this country—ugly truths barely hidden just below the surface have been exposed. This America abets white supremacists, bolsters an accused pedophile who believes homosexuality should be illegal, and neglects the victims of a mishandled natural disaster because they’re not quite “American” enough.

“We've been taking four airplanes with 150,000 pounds’ worth of basic necessities,” Martin says of the relief effort in Puerto Rico, of which he’s been a part. “It’s been very difficult because four million US citizens are still without power or clean drinking water. My family is there and luckily, I can bring them out to take a break, but there's a very intense passion about where we come from, and they don't want to leave.”

And, of course, it’s impossible to deny that if homophobia killed Gianni Versace, so did a gun. On June 12, 2016, Omar Mateen opened fire at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fl., killing 49 people and wounding 58 others. The overwhelming majority of his victims were queer people of color in what was, until 15 months later, the deadliest mass shooting on American soil. “I want to be very respectful about this because I am not American,” Ramirez begins, cautiously. “But I have a very hard time reconciling how easy it is to gain access to guns here. And I come from one of the most violent countries in the world.”

Though mass shootings remain a uniquely American phenomenon, the conversations around gun control and mental illness have ultimately gone nowhere. For 35 years, the United States has rarely gone a year without a mass shooting. In 1997, the year of Andrew Cunanan’s murderous spree, more than 32,000 people were killed by guns. That number has remained stable, so that on any given day, 93 people are shot to death.

After Versace was killed, speculation ran wild regarding Cunanan’s motive. Some claimed an HIV-positive diagnosis triggered his murderous streak, but an autopsy debunked that theory, itself a form of homophobia. In 1997, homosexuality and AIDS were still inextricably bound so that a gay serial killer was automatically linked to the disease—as if Gregg Araki’s The Living End had come to life. But whereas that 1992 film glamorized its killers, the Andrew Cunanan in The Assassination of Gianni Versace is a pitiable figure—a lost soul grasping at a fantasy embodied by his final and most famous victim. Cunanan, too, was a victim—of homophobia, both internalized and externalized; of his own desires; of his upbringing; of the world in which he lived. Through his detestable actions, he finally got what he wanted: It’s now impossible to discuss the legacy of fashion’s one-time emperor without also remembering the man who cut his life short that July morning.

[rachelelspeth]

Today’s Inspiration: Donyale Luna In 1966 Luna was the first Black model on the cover of British Vogue. Then editor, Beatrix Miller, said she picked Luna for her “bite and personality...her look was otherworldly. Luna was the first African American supermodel. Born in 1945, in Detroit, her parent’s marriage was bad, dad was a violent alcoholic. In 1964 photographer David McCabe saw Luna in Detroit; 'She was so tall and so slender...had the most incredible bone structure.” (This was the year of the Civil Rights Act.) McCabe asked Luna to call him if she ever came to NYC, and when she did, he introduced her to Avedon, then a staff photographer for Harper’s Bazaar (“I said you’ve got to see this girl. She’s just unbelievable.”). A caption from Avedon’s 6-page feature of Luna in 1965: “As worn by Donyale Luna with all the grace and strength of a Masai warrior.” Later that year, a sketch of Luna was on the cover. Hearst, the owner of HB did not approve, advertisers pulled their support, southern readers canceled subscriptions. Her career stalled, Avadon said this was due to 'racial prejudice and the economics of the fashion business'; 3 months later Luna’s mother killed her father in self-defense. Luna moved to London, found more success, photographer David Bailey said “Europeans didn’t have that kind of racial phobia that Americans had.” She gained “superstar status” in Europe; “Back in Detroit I wasn’t considered beautiful or anything, but here I’m different.” She was friends with rock stars, worked with Klein, Newton, and Warhol; Dali called her “the reincarnation of Nefertiti'. In 1969 she played Oenothera in Fellini’s Satyricon. Luna was muse to Rabanne & Gernreich. Luna began to use drugs and alcohol to excess (Klaus Kinski broke up with her over this). Her work suffered; she wouldn’t show up for jobs, 'She didn't have a hard time, she made it hard for herself.' In 1975 she posed for Playboy, married the photographer and in 1977 they had a daughter. Luna died in 1979, at 33, of a drug overdose (in Italy), leaving her (then estranged) husband to raise their daughter. “She didn’t have the time on Earth to have a legacy.” https://www.instagram.com/p/B79UL0Lg9dK/?igshid=m5aucj36t1wh

[uppatree]

Her Story: Donyale Luna

Her Story: Donyale Luna

Georgia as Donyale Luna

Donyale Luna (1945-1979) is considered to be the first black supermodel. In 1966, she became the first African-American model to appear on the cover of a Vogue magazine, shot by photographer David Bailey. 

Donyale Luna (born Peggy Ann Freeman), was discovered in her hometown of Detroit by David McCabe at age 14. This was just prior to the passing of the Civil Rights Act…

[rodgersodimba]

Daniel Henney Married or dating a Girlfriend?

Daniel Phillip Henney was also called Jeom Deok-su and he was born on 28th November, the year 1979. Daniel Henney is a Korean-American actor as well as a model by profession. His father by the name Phillip, is American-born, of Irish and English descent. The biological mother to Daniel Henney is called Christine and she was born in South Korea. She was later on adopted as a child by a white American couple. medianet_width = "600"; medianet_height = "250"; medianet_crid = "442568836"; medianet_versionId = "3111299"; Daniel Henney is more than just a pretty face but also hot and humble and this has attracted every viewer towards him.

Daniel Henney in My Father movie scene According to reports in the year 2016, Daniel Henney is totally single and he is currently in no confirmed relationship. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || ).push({}); This means that no girl has snatched him up yet Daniel Henney wanted to focus on his career and therefore he had no time for dating a girl and getting into a relationship.           View this post on Instagram                   Off to Korea...wish I could hide this little one in my suitcase. So hard to leave her. And yes...I'll be in Korea when my Korean episode of #CMBB airs Wednesday...go figure:). #mango A post shared by Daniel Henney (다니엘 헤니) (@danielhenney) on Mar 25, 2017 at 5:08pm PDT The Instagram account of Daniel Henney shows that he is totally engaged with his pet dog. A rumour had started circulating in the year 2015 that Daniel Henney was dating with girlfriend by the name Maggie Q who is an American actress as well as a model.

Daniel Henney with rumored girlfriend Maggie Q Daniel has always been very much secretive and he has not spoken anything about his link with Maggie, neither Daniel nor Maggie has ever spoken anything about their relationship. This couple however, denied their relationship but soon after, they showed it by themselves when they were spotted out spending the vacations together. Bu later on after staying in some months of relation the couple split off.

Daniel Henney with rumored girlfriend Maggie Q

Daniel Henney was also in a relationship with Jung Ryeo-won, an actress of Korean-Australian decent. Their relationship did not work out and so they got separated. He was also at some point in time pointed to be dating Gwyneth Paltrow who is an American actress, singer, comedienne as well as a food writer. Daniel Henney was several times linked with various ladies. It was also rumored through various media channels that Henney was linked to Xun Zhou, who is a Chinese singer and actress followed by South Korean actress and singer Sooyoung, with an American songwriter, fashion designer, and actress Jessica Jung, and with Lee Na Young, a South Korean actress.

Daniel Henney Jung Ryeo-won In the year 2015, there were a lot of reports that Daniel Henney had got engaged with one of his girlfriends but later on his fans confirmed that he did not want to get married yet.

Daniel Henney Gwyneth Paltrow

Short bio of Daniel Henney

Daniel was already a popular supermodel before making his acting debut in 2005. He Started modeling in 2001 and has worked in Italy, France, Paris, London, New York & Hong Kong. He appeared as an actor in a number of drama serials such as Big Hero, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and The Last Stand. Daniel Henney also appeared in a decent drama “Spring Waltz” in the year 2006 and also made his movie debut “Seducing Mr. Perfect” but the movie, not that quite successful; His second movie by the name “My Father” in the year 2007 did much better though. At the start, he appeared as a supporting actor where his performance and look was tremendously admired by everyone. He studied at Carson City-Crystal in High School and attended Alma College where he joined on a basketball scholarship. He started his career in South Korea as he wanted to track down his mother’s biological family. Trending. Cheap Celebrities Who Are Terrible Tippers Rich Celebrities Who Live Humble Lives Celebrities Who Are Incredibly Generous Tippers. No 8 might surprise you. Best Animal Shows that You will Love. Celebrities Who Drive Most Expensive Cars In The World Read the full article

[beautifuldefined-blog1]

Rachael Leigh Cook Profession: Actress, Supermodel Feature Dancer: No Ethnicity: Caucasian Country of Origin: United States Province / State: MN - Minnesota Place of Birth: Minneapolis Date of Birth: October 4, 1979 (37 years old) Astrological Sign: Libra (Sep 23 - Oct 22) Aliases: Rachel Leigh-Cook Eye Color: Brown Hair Color: Brown Height: 157 cm - 5 feet and 2 inches Weight: 45 kg - 99 lbs Measurements: 34B-26-34 Fake boobs: No Career Status: Unknown Career Start And End unknown - unknown Shoe Size: 8 (U.S. & Canada Women Size) ? Tattoos: None Piercings: None Fan Club Address: Rachael Leigh Cook James/Levy/Jacobson Management, Inc. 3500 West Olive Avenue Suite 1470 Burbank, CA 91505 Extra text: Rachael Leigh Cook (born October 4, 1979) is an American actress, best known for her role in the hit romantic comedy She's All That and her "Your Brain on Drugs" PSA.

[lboogie1906]

Donyale Luna (Peggy Ann Foreman, August 31, 1945 – May 17, 1979) was a model and actress. Generally cited as “the first Back supermodel ”, she was the first African American model to appear on the cover of the British edition of Vogue.

Although the first African American cover model, she was not the first African American model as she was preceded by Models (Mannequins) like Aïcha Goblet (Artists model), Adrienne Fidelin (the first African American model in Harpers Bazaar in September 1937), Sarah Harris, Bani Yelverton (first African American model to appear in an American fashion show) and Anthea August (the first African American model in British vogue in 1963) who entered into previously ‘White’ modeling spaces before the 1966 cover. She entered modeling in a period that favored “white-passing models” and has been described as “the first Black Covergirl to change things; to enable more diverse beauty paradigms to break through”. She is known to have been a cover 11 times.

She appeared in several films like the screen tests of Andy Warhol, and had roles in Qui êtes-vous, Polly Maggoo?, and most notably as Enotea in Fellini Satyricon, as well as Skidoo in the role of “’God’s Mistress”.

She was born in Detroit to working-class parents Nathaniel Freeman and Peggy Freeman. She was one of three daughters, Lillian, Peggy-Ann, and Josephine. Her father worked in production at the Ford plant, African-American heritage, and her mother was a secretary for the YWCA, of both African-American and European Heritage. As a child, she would go on trips to local cinemas with her father and in summer swim at the “Kronk Gym” in Detroit.

She attended the Detroit High School of Commerce, where she studied data processing and typing. She attended Cass Technical High School, where she studied journalism, performing arts, and languages and was in the school choir, local community theatre, and the experimental Concept East Theater.

She married Italian photographer Luigi Cazzaniga in California in 1976, they had a daughter. The couple separated and, while still legally married, were estranged at the time of her death. #africanhistory365 #africanexcellence

[naijawapaz1]

Beverly Johnson Married, Husband, Divorce, Children, Net Worth, Wiki-Bio

Beverly Johnson Married, Husband, Divorce, Children, Net Worth, Wiki-Bio

Beverly Johnson Born Name Beverly Johnson Birth Place Buffalo New York Height 5 feet 9 inches Eye Color Brown Zodiac Sign Libra Nationality American Ethnicity African-American Profession supermodel, actress, singer, and businesswoman. Husband Billy Potter (1971-974) Danny Sims (1977-1979) Net Worth $5 million Age 66 years Parents Gloria Johnson From modeling to acting…

[prideguynews]

These days there is a a great deal best acceptance of those in the LGBTQ neighborhood. But there have been many rock icons in the course of the a long time that have assisted pave the way for other users of the gay neighborhood to appear forward and embrace their accurate selves.

That is why we assembled a listing of the best gay icons in all of rock in the course of the ages:

1. Freddie Mercury of Queen

The best frontman with the best voice not just in rock, but arguably in all of music, Freddie Mercury was not pretty publicly open about his sexuality. Nevertheless, he stays a powerful icon in the two the rock neighborhood and the LGBTQ comminity. He handed away on November twenty fourth, 1991 due to issues with AIDS.

2. Rob Halford of Judas Priest

Recognizably 1 of the largest icons in all of weighty steel, Rob Halford came out as gay for the duration of the ’90s. Fearing backlash from the steel neighborhood, which was stigmatized as remaining voilent, anti-social and unaccepting, Halford acquired nothing but praise and guidance.

3. Joan Jett of The Runaways

Commencing out in the all-female rock ensemble The Runaways in the ’70s, Joan Jett later embarked on a solo profession as Joan Jett and The Blackhearts in 1979. While Jett has not verified nor denied rumors that she is a lesbian or bisexual, she only informed men and women to believe what they want about her. Runaways guitarist Lita Ford however admitted that the briefly still left the band due to the amount of money of “lesbianism” remaining expressed by her bandmates.

4. David Bowie

Known for his androgynous change-moi Ziggy Stardust, David Bowie grew to become a symbol for the gay neighborhood for the duration of the ’70s just after he unveiled that he was bisexual. Afterwards admitting that he was a lot more of a closeted heterosexual, he married supermodel Iman in 1992. Bowie handed away on January tenth, 2016 from liver cancer.

5. Elton John

Probably 1 of the most popular gay artists in the globe, Elton John has been open about his sexuality because the ’70s and married his spouse David Furnish in 1993. He has ongoing to tour to this working day and announced a a few-12 months farewell tour in January 2018.

6. Pete Townshend of The Who

In an old Rolling Stone interview, The Who guitarist Pete Townshend implied that he was gay, but maintains the stance that his responses were being taken out of context. His track “Rough Boys” has lengthy been praised as a “coming out” track, even while Townshend has been married or involved with females for his whole adult everyday living. He later describes himself as “in all probability bisexual” in his 2012 memoir Who I Am.

  seven. Janis Joplin

As 1 of the strongest female voices in all of rock and roll, Janis Joplin’s shut mate Myra Friedman unveiled in her biography that Joplin was bisexual. Professing Joplin had various male and female companions, she was considerably less open about the females, yet not secretive about them possibly.  

8. Dave Davies of The Kinks

In the mid-1960’s, British rockers The Kinks were being pushing out hits like “You Genuinely Bought Me” and “All Working day and All of the Night time.” Direct guitarist Dave Davies was also a massive participant in the sexual revolution of the time, having relations with the two adult males and females, which he reveals in his 1996 memoir Kink.

nine. Roddy Bottum of Religion No Extra

Keyboardist for Religion No Extra, Bottum came out as homosexual in 1993. He even wrote the track “Be Intense” about doing oral sexual intercourse on a person, exclusively just to embarass the band’s straight guide singer Mike Patton.

10. Chuck Panozzo of Styx

Longtime bassist of Styx Chuck Panozzo unveiled at a Human Rights Marketing campaign dinner in 2001 that he was guy and had been dwelling with HIV. Panozzo reveals in his autobiography The Grand Illusion: Appreciate, Lies and My Everyday living with Styx that he had struggled with his sexuality for many years and hid it from his bandmates and supporters. He stated that by coming out, he would later inspire other closeted men and women to appear out with out any fear.

eleven. Adam Lambert

Mounting to fame just after coming in second in season 8 of American Idol, Adam Lambert went general public with his sexuality shortly just after the competitors was around. He has because toured the globe fronting with his preferred band of all time, Queen.

12. Laura Jane Grace of Towards Me!

Laura Jane Grace, trans frontwoman of the punk rock outfit Towards Me!, came out publicly about remaining trans in May 2012 shortly just after conference a transgender admirer.

13. Lou Reed of Velvet Underground

Lou Reed has been pretty open discussing his bisexuality and is credited for remaining the first rock artist to create tracks about transgender females. Reed later married his spouse Laurie Anderson for 21 a long time right before he handed away of liver illness in 2013 at the age of seventy one.

14. Billie Joe Armstrong of Environmentally friendly Working day

Environmentally friendly Working day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong came out as bisexual in 1995, believing that all men and women are born bisexual and social toboos power them to stay heterosexual.

The post 14 of The Greatest Gay Icons In Rock appeared first on PrideGuy - Gay News, LGBT News, Politics & Entertainment.

[preppyboy4ever]

On this day in 1948, Naomi Ruth Sims, the first African American supermodel, was born in Oxford, Mississippi but raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Sims’ early attempts to get modeling work through established agencies were frustrated by racial prejudice, with some telling her that her skin was too dark. Her first break came in August, 1967 when she was photographed for the cover of the New York Times’ fashion supplement. Her next breakthrough was when she was selected for a national television campaign for AT&T. After that, she went on to achieve worldwide recognition, appearing as the first Black model on the cover of Ladies’ Home Journal in 1968 and on the cover of Life Magazine in 1969. Sims retired from modeling in 1973 and started her own business which expanded into a multi-million dollar beauty empire. She also authored several books on modeling, health and beauty, including “All About Health and Beauty for the Black Woman” (1976), “How to Be a Top Model” (1979), and “All About Success for the Black Woman” (1982). Sims died August 1, 2009. #WomensHistoryMonth (at Humble, Texas)

[blackkudos]

Jordan Peele

Jordan Haworth Peele (born February 21, 1979) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and director.

Peele rose to fame starring in the Comedy Central sketch series Key & Peele and for five seasons as a cast member on Mad TV. In 2014, he had a recurring role in the first season of the FX anthology series Fargo, based on the 1996 film of the same name.

Peele had a career breakthrough in 2017 with his solo directorial debut, the horror film Get Out, which earned critical acclaim and was a box office success. He received numerous accolades, including Academy Award nominations for Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Original Screenplay, becoming just the third person (after Warren Beatty and James L. Brooks) to receive the three nominations for a debut film, and the first black person to receive them for any one film. He also earned the Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award at the 2017 Gotham Independent Film Awards and nominations for a DGA Award and BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay.

Early life and education

Peele was born in New York City, and raised by his single mother, Lucinda Williams, on Manhattan's Upper West Side. His mother is white and his father is black. He attended the Calhoun School in Manhattan and went on to Sarah Lawrence College before dropping out after two years to form a comedy duo with his college roommate and future Key & Peele comedy writer Rebecca Drysdale.

Career

2000s: Early beginnings and Mad TV

Peele regularly performed at Boom Chicago in Amsterdam and The Second City in Chicago. He and Nicole Parker were well known for their musical duets at Boom Chicago. He portrayed a popular character called "Danish Supermodel Ute" during his time at Boom Chicago and hosted MTV's Comedy Weekend in 2002.

In 2003, Peele joined the cast of Mad TV for its ninth season. Around the time Keegan-Michael Key joined the cast as a featured performer, it was assumed that Key would be chosen over Peele. The two of them ultimately were cast together after showing great comedic chemistry. Peele performed celebrity impersonations, which included favorites Caroll Spinney (as the voice of Big Bird from Sesame Street), Ja Rule, James Brown, Flavor Flav, Justin Guarini, Montel Williams, Morgan Freeman and Forest Whitaker. Peele was absent from the first four episodes of his second season on Mad TV. He made a cameo in "Weird Al" Yankovic's video "White & Nerdy" with Mad TV co-star Keegan-Michael Key.

Peele was nominated for a 2008 Emmy Award for his song "Sad Fitty Cent", a music video parody about 50 Cent lamenting over his rivalry with Kanye West. The lyrics were, according to the music video, written by Peele, and he was involved in arranging its music. In 2009 he appeared in Little Fockers.

Peele appeared in a viral video titled "Hillary vs Obama" (which was shown as a Mad TV sketch) where he and a Hillary Clinton supporter (played by short-term cast member Lisa Donovan) argue over whether Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama would make a better president, only to get upstaged by a Rudy Giuliani supporter (played by Donovan's brother, Ben). Peele auditioned to be a castmember for Saturday Night Live when SNL producers were looking for someone to play Barack Obama (around the time when SNL and Mad TV — and other scripted shows — were put on hiatus due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike). Peele remained at Mad TV and the role went to Fred Armisen until September 2012, when Jay Pharoah took over the role.

After five seasons on Mad TV, Peele left the cast at the end of the 13th season.

2010–2016: Further success with Key & Peele

In 2010, Peele co-starred in the FOX comedy pilot The Station, and appeared with a recurring role in the Adult Swim series Childrens Hospital. He had a supporting role in the David Wain-directed comedy Wanderlust, which was released in 2012.

Peele and his former Mad TV castmate and friend Keegan-Michael Key starred in their own Comedy Central sketch series Key & Peele, from 2012 to 2015. The series was a success with viewers, and spawned several skits and videos that went viral online.

In 2014, Peele played an FBI Agent in the first season of the FX anthology series Fargo, based on the 1996 film of the same name.

In 2016, Peele starred in, and produced, with Key, their first feature film Keanu. The film received generally favorable reviews from critics.

2017–present: Career breakthrough with Get Out

In February 2017, Peele's first film as solo director, Get Out, was released to critical acclaim, eventually scoring a 99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film received particular praise for Peele's screenplay and direction, as well as Kaluuya's performance, and was chosen by the National Board of Review, the American Film Institute, and Time magazine as one of the top 10 films of the year. The Atlantic called the film "a masterpiece."

Get Out proved to be extremely popular with movie audiences, and it eventually became one of the most profitable films of all time, and grossed over $250 million on a budget of $4.5 million. For his work on the film, Peele received significant attention, as well as numerous accolades, including the Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award at the 2017 Gotham Independent Film Awards.

The film also received four nominations at the 90th Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay nominations for Peele, as well as a Best Actor nomination for the film's star Daniel Kaluuya.

Future projects

Peele will produce the HBO series Lovecraft Country written by Underground co-creator Misha Green, which will be shown through the lens of supernatural horror.

Influences

In February 2017, Peele curated the Brooklyn Academy of Music film series "The Art of the Social Thriller", comprising 12 films that inspired the making of Get Out, including the horror films Rosemary's Baby, Night of the Living Dead, The Shining, Candyman, The People Under the Stairs and Scream, the thrillers The Silence of the Lambs, Funny Games, Misery, and Rear Window, the comedy-thriller The 'Burbs, and the 1967 racial comedy-drama Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.

As a comedian, Peele counts among his influences In Living Color, Richard Pryor and Dave Chappelle.

Personal life

Peele began dating Chelsea Peretti in 2013. They became engaged in November 2015, and, in April 2016, Peretti announced that she and Peele had eloped at an unspecified date.

On July 1, 2017, Peretti gave birth to their son, Beaumont Gino Peele.

Wikipedia