#vip barbara and bill

[man-peach-reborn]

[isqbelevans]

[gay-for-paulson]

“Well, No One Told Me About Her...”-- Vikki Hiller x Original Character

~~Hello there! Long time no see! So, I wrote this fic about the great Vikki Hiller a few months ago and forgot to post it! Vikki is my babe, she’s a star, I love her to pieces. And we all know what a power lesbian she is. I actually plan on writing a sequel to this story, so keep your eyes open!!

Enjoy, lovelies! <3

P.S. Shout out to @grilledcheeseandguavajelly for reading through this for me a bajillion times, for always being there to boost my confidence in my writing, and for consistently reminding me to actually post my stories ;)

Warnings: Gay Panic™ lol but for real, I don’t think anything in this warrants a warning, but let me know if you feel otherwise!

Word Count: 7,327

“Well, what a surprise! Catcher’s late, once again!” Vikki announced, tossing her gloves onto the table next to her chardonnay.

Barbara jumped in, “I wonder what it could be this time. I mean, how many stray poodles could that man possibly need to help in three days?”

“Now, now. I-I’m sure he just got held up in traffic, I mean you know what the bridge is like at this time of night,” Peter said, wiping his sweaty palms on his trousers.

“Peter, he doesn’t need to cross the bridge to get to this restaurant.” Vikki pulled a compact mirror from her her purse and reapplied her lipstick.

“Well, still,” Peter muttered softly, “The bridge can get very busy…”

The maitre’d walked over to their table with a telephone in hand, “Excuse me, Miss Novak?”

“Oh, look! Right on time!” Barbara exclaimed, as Peter let out a sigh of exasperation and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Oh no, no!” Vikki interrupted, slamming her compact shut and reaching for the telephone, “I’ll talk to him this time. I refuse to let this man make a fool out of you or me any longer!”

Vikki picked up the receiver and sat back in her seat, “This is Vikki Hiller.”

Catcher Block’s voice came through the telephone over the slow swinging of a jazzy tune, “Ah! Miss Hiller! Listen, the darnedest thing happened to me today-“

“Let me guess,” Vikki crossed her legs curtly and twisted the telephone cord around her index finger, “You needed to help a blind orphan read a book? Youuuu ran into a group of homeless nuns? Oh, I know! You singlehandedly saved a group of school children from a burning building, what a hero!”

“Your words, Miss Hiller, not mine.”

“Mr. Block, let’s cut to the chase. What is your location?”

“Well, now, why would you want to know a silly thing like that?” Catcher laughed.

“Because, I am running out of patience. Miss Novak and myself have been floundering about, waiting for you to show up for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the past three days. Now, I can’t speak for Miss Novak, but I, personally, am getting awfully cross.”

“And I’ll bet you look adorable when you’re cross.“

“I want an address.”

Catcher sighed, “1552 Park Street.”

“1552 Park Street,” Vicki repeated. Peters’ eyes widened as she continued, “I’ll be there in 20 minutes.” 

Vikki hung up the telephone and stood up, pulling her gloves back on, “Barbara, you enjoy your dinner, I’m going uptown to meet with the rat.”

“Oh, Vikki, you really don’t have to go to all this trouble.”

“Nonsense!” Vikki pulled on her large coat, “You’re my client and you’re my friend. I promised you a meeting with Catcher Block, so a meeting with Catcher Block is what you’ll get!"

Peter stood up from his seat, haphazardly gathering his things, “Uh-uhhm, perhaps- perhaps I should join you!”

“Peter MacMannus, you sit!”

Peter sat, and Vikki grabbed her purse and stormed out of the restaurant.

                                                     ~~~~~~~~

Vikki’s cab turned the corner onto Park Street and she was brimming with rage, just waiting to give this Catcher Block a piece of her mind. 

The cab driver pulled up in front of her destination, “That’ll be $3.25.”

She pulled a five dollar bill out of her purse and handed it to the driver, “Keep the change.” 

She got out of the cab and looked up at the blinking neon sign on the brick-front building that read, ‘Sunset Lounge’. She believed she’d overheard some of the other editors talking about this place over coffee during their morning meetings. It wasn’t until Vikki made her way closer to the entrance and noticed some smaller posters that read, ‘DANCING’, ‘GENTLEMEN’S ENTERTAINMENT’, ‘BEAUTIFUL GIRLS’, and ‘TOPLESS HOSTESSES’, that she realized what lurked inside. 

“Of course Catcher Block would be wasting my time in a place like this,” she shook her head, “He’s just like every other man.”

Vikki hiked her purse up over her shoulder, puffed up her hair, and marched inside without giving it a second thought.

The door closed behind her and the hallway inside was dark and seedy, the sound of muffled jazz music coming from somewhere she couldn’t see. She walked slowly, trying her best not to touch anything and eventually she came across a pair of glass doors that opened up into a fabulously decorated room, the music now swelling all around her. 

Vikki inhaled and took in her surroundings- half naked ladies dancing to a choreographed number on a large ornate stage, topless hostesses serving guests at the bar, a VIP lounge filled with all kinds of people. 

Well, this place sure is a gas.

She lit herself a cigarette and scanned the room for Catcher, but when she couldn’t find him, she took to moving about the room. She inched her way through the bustling crowd of tipsy older gentlemen and topless ladies holding trays of drinks, when she was dumped out right by the stage. She looked up and watched the girls dancing around in their teeny, tiny, shiny skirts and their knee high boots. Some girls wore bustiers, others simply wore tassels on their nipples, and Vikki found herself wondering whether or not those things were comfortable.

She realized she had been staring a little too long, but one of the ladies had caught her eye. All of the girls had their hair pulled back into ponytails, except for this one. Her long, dark red, wavy hair was bouncing around as she kicked her long legs high into the air, and-

“Oh!” A large man bumped into her, causing her to drop her cigarette onto the ground.

Her last cigarette.

She exhaled angrily, and shouted in the direction of the man, “Well, thank you very much!”

“Cigarettes?”

Vikki turned around and was met with a topless women holding a tray full of different brands of condoms, cigarettes, and tiny bottles of liquor.

“Oh. Umm,” she murmured as she scanned the tray, just trying to keep her eyes on the tray and the items on top of the tray. The tray. She found her brand, plucked a pack from the bunch, and tipped the hostess, trying incredibly hard not to make eye contact with her breasts. 

She didn’t want to be rude.

She pulled a cigarette out of the new pack, lit it, and searched the room once more for Mr. Block. Vikki took a long drag and exhaled a colossal cloud of smoke, “That man had better hope that I don’t find him, because when I do, the next exposé he writes will be about his own funeral.”

She caught a glimpse of the ropes leading to the VIP lounge and figured that he must be hiding there, pompous as he was. So she elbowed her way through the crowd, her cigarette locked between her knuckles. Once she made it to the red velvet ropes, she was confronted by an unenthusiastic bouncer of sorts.

“Name.”

She took a step back, brushed her hands down her dress, and cleared her throat, “Vikki Hiller.”

“Not on the list.”

Vikki’s eyes dropped down to the piece of paper in the man’s hand and then shot back up to meet his eyes, “You didn’t even look at the list.”

“You’re not on the list.”

“Well, how could you possibly know that if you didn’t take the time to check?” Vikki crossed her arms, and took a quick puff of her cigarette.

“You’re a woman.”

“And?”

“Miss, the VIP lounge is for private dances from our female dancers.”

Vikki straightened up and adjusted her coat, “You don’t know what I’m into.”

“Look, lady, you’re not on the list, so why don’t you go back to your book club or whatever and let me do my job, alright?”

“No, you look, buddy!” She pointed her index finger into his chest. “I am trying to find Catcher Block so that I can wring his sorry little neck! Now, is he on the list?”

The man sighed and looked through the names on his form, “I’m sorry, miss, there’s no one on the list with that name,” he turned the sheet around, “Look for yourself.”

Vikki scanned the names on the list and, sure enough, Catcher’s name was nowhere to be found. The crowd erupted into an uproarious round of applause as the stage dancers finished their number. She dragged on her cigarette once more, and blew the smoke up toward the ceiling, eyeing the man, “Well, thank you,” she said sarcastically, “for all of your help.”

She turned on her heels and trudged through the crowd in the opposite direction. This time, when she made her way out of the crowd, she found herself by the bar, and if she was being completely honest, a comfortable seat and a stiff drink sounded amazing right about now.

She dropped herself onto a stool, tossed her purse onto the bar, and asked for a gin and tonic.

While she waited, Vikki spun her seat around so that she was facing the crowd. She started to wonder whether Catcher was really here or if he had just sent her to this place to drive her crazy. She definitely wouldn’t put it past him. 

That man. Some nerve he has.

She caught sight of some of the dancers coming from backstage. Some were still in costume but the rest were dressed in regular clothes, so Vikki figured they must have finished their sets for the night. And still, some of the girls were only wearing those tiny skirts and those nipple tassels. Now, Vikki was definitely one to risk comfort for a stylish outfit, but if that were her, she knew she would be just freezing! She wondered if those girls were cold, too. And then there were the ones on the floor that were straight up topless. She really respected those girls. She typically had a good amount of confidence in herself and her body, but if she had to have it on full display like that, at work no less… she simply wouldn’t be able to do it. 

Wow, she thought, these girls must be so confident in themselves. So tough. She crossed her legs, and took a drag on her cigarette.  Ugh. The men they probably have to deal with night after night. No, thank you.

“Your gin and tonic, miss.”

Vikki spun back around to face the bar. She thanked the waitress, and took a sip of her drink, thankful that it helped to melt away at least some of the tension of the night. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed another woman take the seat next to hers and overheard her order a dry martini.

“Rough night?” The lady asked, leaning her elbow on the bar.

Vikki took another sip of her drink, stamped her cigarette out in the crystal ashtray on the bar, and said, “As rough as one night can get, I think.”

The waitress placed the girl’s martini on the bar, and the girl put the olive between her teeth and pulled it off of the toothpick, “Care to talk about it?”

Vikki thought for a moment. Part of her felt uncomfortable, and a little guilty, unloading her problems onto a complete stranger, but the exhaustion of the night was taking over and she desperately needed some advice. She sighed, “I’m having trouble with a certain… gentleman. If one can even call him a gentleman, that is.” She rubbed at her forehead in an attempt to dissipate her headache, “He told me to meet him here, and-“

“Here??”

“Yes.”

The girl played with the toothpick, stuck it between her teeth, “Well, you’re right, he doesn’t sound like much of a gentleman to me.”

Vikki nodded in agreement, took a large sip of her drink, and tilted her head back. She closed her eyes and allowed the warmth of intoxication to spread throughout her body.

“I mean, he could have at least taken you to the Russian Tea Room or something, but hey, what do I know?” The woman laughed.

Her eyes still closed, Vikki actually started to laugh a little bit, too. “No, no. This wasn’t supposed to be a date or anything of that nature.”

“So, you two aren’t…?”

“Heavens, no!”

“Well, thank goodness for that! I was beginning to worry about the future of mankind for a moment, there!”

“Oh, goodness,” Vikki laughed, “No, he’s a writer, and for Know magazine of all things, so that should already tell you how pompous he is. You see, I’m a senior editor at Banner House, and this man has swindled my client out of a meeting for the past three days. I finally got so fed up that I demanded to know his whereabouts, so that I could give him a piece of my mind in person, and he gave me this address. I’ve been looking for him all night, and either he’s reeeeeally good at hiding,” she finished off her drink,” or he stood me up.”

“That sounds just awful!”

Vikki ordered a second gin and tonic, “Or he simply lied to me, which is also an incredibly real possibility, given his plethora of alibis over the past three days.”

“Well, I’ll tell you what, he sounds like a proper jackass.”

Vikki looked over at the woman, “He is a proper jackass! I’m Vikki Hiller,” she stretched her hand out, “Thank you for listening to me ramble on about my problems, I’m sure this is very uninteresting to you,” she laughed. 

The woman shook Vikki’s hand, “No, not at all, I’m… really enjoying getting to know you, Vikki Hiller.”

“May I ask your name?” 

“Cashmere.”

Vikki hesitated for a moment, “Huh, that’s… different!”

The woman laughed, “Don’t worry, that’s not my real name. Cashmere is just my stage name.”

“Oh my goodness!” Vikki put a hand over her heart, and laughed. “Not that Cashmere isn’t a pretty name!”

The waitress set Vikki’s second gin and tonic on the bar.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. Some of these men can get pretty sleazy, so I like to protect my identity. My real name is Quinn.”

“Mmmm,” Vikki sipped her drink, “Well, if it means anything at all, I think Quinn is a lot prettier than Cashmere,” she smiled.

“Why, thank you, that’s very sweet of you.”

“Stage name… Oh, wait! Aren’t you one of the dancers I saw on stage earlier?”

“That I am, Miss Vikki!”

“I knew your face looked familiar! Your hair was down while you were onstage,” Vikki remarked on Quinn’s hair, now pulled back in a low bun.

“Oh, you’re right,” Quinn reached back and pulled her hair out of it’s bun, letting it fall down past her shoulders, “Some of the other girls can’t dance with their hair down, they say it get’s into their eyes, or it makes them sweaty, blah blah blah…” she laughed and shook her head, letting her hair bounce around, “I think it’s fun!”

Vikki became so distracted by Quinn’s hair, that she almost forgot to speak, “Uhm, well,” she cleared her throat, “You have really gorgeous hair, I must say.”

“Thank you!” Quinn sipped her martini, “I also wasn’t wearing this jacket on stage.”

She flashed it open for a brief moment and Vikki saw that she was one of the dancers wearing the tassels on her nipples, and her eyes went wide for a second before she forced herself to reign it in, “Oh!”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I wasn’t even thinking!”

“Oh, no! It’s not that, it’s just… aren’t you cold? When you’re walking around in just… those?” Vikki leaned in and asked.

Quinn laughed, “It can get a little chilly, yes! But when you’re dancing, it just feels so… freeing. And comfortable!”

“Wow. I don’t think I would ever have the confidence to pull those off,” Vikki crossed her legs.

“Oh, come on! You would look great, I’m sure of it!”

Vikki laughed, and covered her now reddening face. She was enjoying this conversation so much, she almost forgot why she had originally come here. That is until she noticed Catcher Block out of the corner of her eye. He was leaning against a wall, talking to another gentleman and drinking a scotch.

“Oh, lord.” Vikki drawled. 

“What is it?”

“Don’t look, but that’s the man I’ve been trying to find all night,” she said in a hushed tone, as if Catcher would be able to hear her from across the room.

Quinn looked anyway.

“I said don’t look!” Vikki laughed, “Oh, see? There. He saw you.” Vikki pulled her compact out of her purse, and reapplied her lipstick. “Well, this should be a fun conversation, that is if he doesn’t try to run away again. Is he still looking over here?”

Quinn checked, “Mhm.”

Vikki snapped her compact shut and put it back in her purse.

“You wanna give him a show?”

“What?” Vikki glanced over at her.

“Y’know… A little something to really get his attention.”

“What do you m-“ 

Vikki was cut off as Quinn reached over, hands on her cheeks, and planted a giant kiss right smack on her red lips. She was so taken by surprise, that her hands shot back and her fingers splayed open, and she practically froze right there on the spot.

Quinn pulled back and noticed Vikki’s stiff demeanor, “Ah gee, I’m so sorry… was that too much of a show?”

Vikki closed her eyes, her eyebrows raised, “Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Uhhumm, it was- Oh, god he’s coming over here.”

Quinn turned to look, and then turned back to Vikki, “Hey. You’ve got this.”

“Yes. I do.”

“Don’t let him take you for a ride again.”

“No,” Vikki downed her whole gin and tonic.

“You’re the senior editor!”

“I am!” She lit another cigarette.

“Go get ‘em, Vikki Hiller.”

Vikki stood up, took a long, deep drag on her cigarette, blew the smoke out in front of her, and brushed her hands over her dress, making sure it was perfect. She puffed up her hair, and rolled her neck. 

As she walked over to Catcher, she took notice of the smug look on his face hidden underneath the thin layer of charm, and she was ready to blow her top.

“Catcher Block.”

“Ah, you must be Miss Hiller! You sound as angry as you did on the phone earlier.”

“Mmmm, yes, earlier, you mean three hours ago?? Where have you been?”

“Well, you see, I was a little busy, Miss Hiller, I-”

“Busy! Ha! Peter, Miss Novak, and I were all busy, too. Busy waiting for you! Busy sitting around when we could have been working. Or having social lives! But no, we were all busy waiting for the phone to ring so that you could tell us whatever harebrained alibi you had come up with that day!”

“Oh, have you not heard my brilliant story about how I had to help an elderly woman with a broken leg cross a busy street?”

“Why, no. I must have missed that one while I was arguing with bouncers, getting knocked over by men twice my size, and trekking around this seedy joint looking for an arrogant, self-indulgent lunatic.” Vikki’s pokes into Catcher’s chest with her index finger. “But don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll catch the next one.”

Catcher started chuckling to himself.

“I’m sorry. Do you think this is funny?”

“Oh, no no. I don’t think this is funny.”

Vikki was losing her patience, “Just what are you laughing at?”

“Well, pardon me if I’m wrong, Miss Hiller, but it sure looked like you were having a good time over at the bar…”

“At the b-“ Vikki stopped in her tracks, almost forgetting the out-of-the-blue kiss that Quinn had planted on her a few moments ago.

“There it is, yes! The kiss! The one deployed in order to 'get my attention’.” Catcher made air quotes with his fingers. “The one that you definitely ‘didn’t enjoy’.”

Vikki thought for a moment. Had Quinn kissed her with intention? And not because Catch was watching? No, no. No, that’s ridiculous. Quinn had to be straight. Vikki wouldn’t necessarily label her as a ‘girly girl’, but she was still pretty feminine. And pretty. She couldn’t be a…homosexual. A lesbian. Weren’t all lesbians supposed to be butch and masculine? Yes, right, and they wear suits, not… tassels… on their nipples…

Vikki shook the thoughts from her head, “Oh, what do you know?”

Catcher let out one more snide chuckle as he eyed Vikki and leaned in close to her ear, “I know an excited woman when I see one…”

Vikki stood stark still and stared straight ahead.

“…And you were one excited woman.”

Catcher stood back up, and Vikki took a long drag on her cigarette and blew the smoke across his face, sarcastically, if that was possible. He patted her on the shoulder, “You think about that one a little bit longer. I’ll meet you and Barbara at the Waldorf Astoria tomorrow for breakfast…” he eyed her once more, “Or maybe lunch, perhaps?”

He walked away and Vikki stood alone, cigarette in hand, lost in her thoughts for a moment or two before eventually shuffling back over to her seat at the bar.

“Hey!” Quinn said, “I ordered you another gin and tonic.”

Vikki eyed the drink and considered downing it all in one gulp, but she wanted to hang on to whatever sobriety she had left.

“Do you have everything sorted out now?”

Vikki pulled her focus from the glass and simply gazed at Quinn for a moment, biting her lip. And then she stopped thinking. No more thinking. No thoughts. She leaned over and grabbed Quinn by her jacket lapels and kissed her, right there. And for longer than she had anticipated.

She sat back down onto her seat and exhaled, before wiping at the corner of her mouth with the tip of her ring finger, “Yes. Yes, I think I do.”

Quinn settled back into her own seat, dazed, “Well. That certainly was…” she trailed off, “What was that all about?”

Vikki tried to put on an air of confidence, however her vulnerability was seeping through slowly.

“You kissed me.” 

Quinn looked down at her drink, “I did.” She lightly slid her finger around the rim of the glass. “I apologize if I put you in an uncomfortable position.”

“No, no, it’s- you didn’t. In fact, I think you might have done just the opposite.”

“…The opposite?”

“Quinn, I think you may have… opened me up to a part of myself that I didn’t even know existed.”

Quinn looked more than relieved to hear Vikki say these things, yet it seemed she was still having trouble looking Vikki in the eye. She exhaled, “I’m just glad you’re not upset.”

“I am not upset. I… I don’t really have the words to describe what I’m feeling, but,” she paused, and shook her head, “I really like you, Quinn.”

Quinn looked up, her eyebrows raised. She smiled, “I really like you, too, Vikki Hiller.”

Vikki smiled back and took a sip of her drink. “I must say, this certainly does explain the things I was feeling when I saw you up on that stage,” she laughed, swirling the liquid around in her glass.

“Oh, really?”

“Mhm.”

Vikki caught Quinn staring at her out of the corner of her eye. She slid her now reddening face into her hands, “Stop that!”

“Stop what?”

“Looking at me like that,” Vikki laughed.

“I can’t help it,” Quinn sipped her drink, “Y’know, I saw you, too, when I was up on stage.”

Vikki peeked her head out from behind the palms of her hands, “You did?”

“I did. The look on your face was… pure wonder. I almost messed up the whole routine because I couldn’t take my eyes off of you,” she chuckled.

Vikki gazed at Quinn.

“And then this big lug bumped into you and made you drop the cigarette you were holding, and the vexation that washed across your face was absolutely priceless, I just knew I had to talk to you.”

“Oh goodness,” Vikki cackled, “did I really look that angry?”

“Yes, but it’s alright because then you bought another pack,” Quinn laughed right along, “Once you pulled out a new one and lit it, all I saw in your eyes was confidence. Strength. Determination.”

“Well…” Vikki grew quiet, “that’s very sweet of you to say.”

“I mean it! You, Vikki Hiller, are a force to be reckoned with.”

Vikki blushed, and took another sip of her drink, and another drag on her cigarette before stamping it out. The two girls sat in comfortable silence for a moment or two, until Vikki turned back to Quinn.

“Y’know,” she said, “I really enjoyed kissing you.”

“I enjoyed kissing you, as well.”

“I think… I think, I’d like to do it again.”

“Really?”

“Mhm.”

“Well, then what are we waiting for?”

“Well, I certainly don’t want to do it more in public! I might be a force to be reckoned with, but I am more reserved about things like this.”

“I’m not talking about here, silly!”

Quinn pulled some cash out of her jacket pocket and left a tip on the bar. Vikki followed suit, pulling a neatly folded ten dollar bill from her purse and placing it on top of her glass. Quinn grabbed her hand and pulled her through the buzzing crowd.

“Wait, where are we going?” Vikki shouted above the music.

“Backstage!”

The music swelled as they made their way closer and closer to the stage in order to reach the door. The girls ducked and weaved themselves around groups of people large and small. Dancing, drinking, networking, and definitely not moving out of the way. Vikki wasn’t afraid to use her elbows, but she made sure to keep a tight grip on Quinn’s hand, afraid of losing her in this mass of people.

After what felt like an eternity of “Hey, watch it!”’s and “S’cuse you, sweetheart!”’s, the two ladies made it to the door and pushed their way through, finally managing to escape the commotion.

Quinn exhaled, triumphantly, “Okay. Made it.”

“Well, wait, aren’t there still going to be people back there?”

“There shouldn’t be, it’s pretty late.” Quinn led Vikki down the long hallway. “Besides, I’m taking you to the dressing room. There might be some dancers lingering around in there, but I assure you they’ll be very cool about it when I ask them to leave.”

“How do you know that?”

“Honestly? Most of the dancers here are queer, and the ones who aren’t are incredibly supportive. They’re like my sisters.”

“Well, that’s really sweet.”

“And plus, they use the dressing room for this kind of thing all the time.”

“Less sweet,” Vikki joked. “It’s interesting that all of these queer women work at a gentleman’s lounge.”

“Well, now, there are a couple of reasons for that. For one thing, this place pays very well,” Quinn laughed, “And the men who come into this place might be scum bags, but at least if we’re dancing for them no one really suspects anything about us.”

“Wow…”

“And we all get to be together! I’ve known some of these women for years from other jobs, gay bars around town, things like that. Y’know, there is a bar downtown that I’d love to bring you to sometime,” Quinn winked.

Vikki tried to hide the blush spreading across her cheeks.

The two approached a large blue door with ‘Lounge Dancers’ printed on it, “Here, we are!”

Quinn opened the door to a room filled with flashy costumes and feather boas, bright lights around mirrors and posters of famous female performers plastered all over the brick walls.

There were three girls chatting on the sofa, when one of them looked over and said, “Oh hey, Quinn! Would you please tell Ginger that we do seven high kicks in this dance and not eight. She keeps messin’ up the timing,” the girl laughed.

“Listen, Kit, when we learned that dance, I swear on my life it was eight counts and eight kicks!”

“Oh yeah,” the third girl spoke up, “and the rest of us just happen to be messing it up at the exact same time in the exact same way.”

Quinn laughed, and closed the door behind Vikki, “Ginger, it’s seven kicks.”

“Told ya.” 

Ginger rolled her eyes, and Kit asked, “Who’s the tall dame ya got there, Quinn?”

“Ladies, this is Vikki. Vikki, this is Kit, Ginger, and Pamela.”

“Well, hello there, Vikki,” Pamela purred, and Kit smacked her on the shoulder.

“Soooooo, Vikki and I were hoping to use this room for a little while, if you girls don’t mind…”

Kit stood up from the sofa, “Say no more, we were just about to head out anyway.”

The other girls arose and collected their things, making for the door. Ginger said, “We’re all gonna grab a few drinks at Lottie’s if you wanna meet us there. Vikki can come, too!”

“We’ll see. If I don’t catch up, you ladies have a great time!”

“Goodnight, Quinn!” The girls hollered. 

“Goodnight, Vikki,” Pamela winked from the doorway.

Kit tugged on Pamela’s ear, “Whatsa matter with you?”

Quinn closed the door, laughing.

“Your friends seem like a real blast,” Vikki chuckled, placing her purse on top of one of the vanities, and tossing her coat onto the sofa.

“Yeah, they’re definitely an interesting pack of gals,” Quinn placed her hands on Vikki’s waist, pulling her close, “but, um… I don’t wanna talk about them anymore.”

Vikki’s voice hushed, and she glanced down at Quinn’s lips and back up to her eyes, “What do you want to talk about?”

Quinn was now an inch or two from Vikki’s face, and getting closer by the second. She brushed her bottom lip against Vikki’s, and said softly, “I don’t want to talk.”

A fire lit behind Vikki’s eyes and she closed the space between them with a passionate kiss. She threw her arms around Quinn’s neck and pulled her as close as she possibly could. She doesn’t remember ever kissing a man this intensely, or feeling anywhere near the amount of things she’s feeling right now. Sparks. Fireworks.

The two parted, breathing heavily. Quinn looked up at Vikki, “Are you sure this is what you want?”

“Yes.”

“This isn’t just something you’re experimenting with right now that you’re going to regret tomorrow, is it?”

“Quinn, just shut up and kiss me, goddamnit,” Vikki said, breathlessly, and Quinn did just that.

Vikki let her hands wander for the first time. They were exploring so many new places. Touching so many new things. Her hands were laced through Quinn’s hair, tugging, pulling. She’d never experienced anything more sensational than running her hands through the long, luscious hair of a woman. She grabbed Quinn’s ass. Every man she’d ever been with in the past had a backside so flat, you had to use a telescope to find it. Her hand lightly brushed against Quinn’s breast. Men sure as hell didn’t have those.

She slid one of her hands underneath Quinn’s jacket, embracing the bare skin of her stomach, hips, and back as she pulled her even closer, wanting to experience all of her.

Quinn started kissing down Vikki’s neck, “I wanna wrinkle that perfect dress of yours.”

“Yeah?”

“Mmmm.”

“I want you to take it off.”

Quinn looked up at Vikki for a brief moment, and kissed her hard. Rough. She reached around to unzip the dress and Vikki let it fall to the ground as she kicked her shoes off. She was now standing in the dressing room of a gentleman’s lounge wearing nothing but her bra and underwear. Which were matching, of course. 

“Wow,” Quinn breathed, “Red lace. You didn’t peg me as the red lace type.” She winked.

“Oh, didn’t I?”

“No. But, my god, am I glad to be proven wrong.”

“Well, if things keep going the way they’re going, you might be able to see me in nothing at all,” Vikki leaned in and kissed Quinn slowly, with purpose. She slid Quinn’s jacket off until it fell to the floor next to her dress. She traced her hands down the other woman’s bare, freckled arms, causing her to shiver. Quinn took off her boots and her skirt, until she was just as bare as Vikki.

Quinn quickly flipped the switch and pushed Vikki up against the door, Vikki gasping as her bare skin met the cold metal. Quinn kissed down Vikki’s neck once more, her hands running over her smooth skin, cupping her breasts, as Vikki’s eyes drifted shut. Quinn reached up and removed Vikki’s hair from its ‘do, and it fell down into a mass of dark waves that now sat just below her shoulders.

“God, you’re gorgeous.”

Quinn kissed down Vikki’s stomach and Vikki leaned her body against the door, her arms stretching up and over her head, as something inside of her pulsed, ached.

“Quinn,” Vikki breathed.

Quinn looked up and into the big, dark eyes gazing down at her. Vikki simply stared, her chest heaving. She didn’t know how to ask, but it turns out she didn’t have to say anything.

Quinn stood up, making understanding eye contact with Vikki, and she leaned in and kissed her softly, her hands on her hips. But her hands slowly moved, now teasing at the hem of Vikki’s underwear. Both of their eyes closed, Quinn broke the kiss and waited a beat, as she leaned her forehead up against Vikki’s. She felt Vikki nod, and she slid her hand down, between her legs.

Vikki exhaled at the touch, at the long-awaited release of tension, while Quinn moved her fingers rhythmically, quickly realizing just how turned on Vikki actually was.

“Oh my god, Quinn,” Vikki hummed.

Quinn kissed along her jawline, down her neck, across her collarbone.

Vicki whispered, “Can I tell you something?”

“Of course you can.”

Vikki bit her lip, “I’ve never… you know… with a man before.”

“You’ve never…”

“…Orgasmed. No. Only by myself, never with another person.”

“Oh, honey,” Quinn kissed Vikki, “I can promise you won’t be saying that after tonight.”

She began moving her fingers expertly once more and Vikki moaned and threw her head back. Quinn was slow and fast. She was rough and soft. She was so many things all at once and Vikki almost didn’t know how to process it. Sometimes her brain would take a brief second to remind her of exactly what she was doing. Something she’d never thought in her entire life she would be doing. But then Quinn would bite her ear, or leave a mark on her neck, and Vikki would tell her brain to zip it, because she was having the time of her life.

“Oh. Quinn. Fuck.”

“That’s it,” Quinn said softly. She could feel Vikki tensing up beneath her. “C’mon, Vikki Hiller. Senior editor at Banner House. Tall, gorgeous, force to be reckoned with.”

Vikki moaned, biting her lip, almost in an effort to stifle it. She was nervous. Once she did this, it would mean that she really… did this. And she was anything but prepared for what she was about to feel.

Vikki had her arms wrapped around Quinn, and she leaned her head on the other woman’s shoulder, “Quinnnn, ohhh. Oh, god!”

Quinn felt Vikki clench up around her fingers and she held her as her body rattled and jolted against her own.

Vikki held on to Quinn as tightly as she could, afraid she was going to fall to the ground because her legs just about gave out. Her vision blurred for a moment and she shook from shivers of aftershock. 

“That was…” she breathed, “I can’t…”

Quinn kissed her nose.

Vikki exhaled, smiling, “That was cute…” her smile turned devious, “but I’m no princess, honey.” She pushed Quinn over toward and onto the sofa and straddled her. She leaned down and whispered into her ear, “It’s your turn.”

Vikki moved Quinn’s long hair out of the way and kissed down her neck, leaving little bites and marks, trying to mimic what had been done to her. She felt like she should be more nervous, but she just… wasn’t. She had never made love quite like this with a man. Vikki liked it a bit rougher than the average person, but any time she was with a man, it was about as bland as an unsalted cracker. Now, she realized she was able to really let her true colors shine.

“Jesus, Vikki…” Quinn moaned.

Vikki kissed down Quinn’s chest, stopping at her breasts. She looked up at Quinn, “I wanna take these off.” She flicked one of the tassels covering Quinn’s nipples, and pulled it off. And then the other one. She massaged Quinn’s bare breast and then moved her hand down her stomach, resting her hand right above where Quinn wanted it to be… needed it to be.

She teased Quinn by rubbing overtop her underwear, just light enough to make her squirm.

“Vikki, please. Please…”

Vikki kissed Quinn’s breast and sucked on her nipple, making Quinn moan much louder than she expected her to.

“God,” Vikki said, “You think I’m gorgeous? You should see yourself.”

“Shut up,” Quinn breathed, giggling softly.

Vikki quit teasing and shoved her hand beneath the waistband of Quinn’s underwear and moved her fingers like she would on herself. Slow circles. She could feel Quinn’s arousal, she could feel her chest heaving, could hear her whimpering and whining. She wanted more. She wanted to unravel this woman. She’d never wanted anything like she wanted this.

She sped up and Quinn gasped, clutching the cushion beneath her with a white knuckled fist. Vikki took that as a wonderful sign and kept speeding up, changing rhythms, soft, hard, light, rough. 

“Vikki… aahhhh, my god. Please, Vikki.”

Vikki decided to try something that she had done on herself a few times, and she moved her fingers down and pushed two of them inside of Quinn, thrusting hard, still working her clit with her thumb. 

Quinn moaned, almost screaming, “Oh, god! Ah-Oh my god! Ohhhhh…”

Quinn’s back arched off the couch and she shook, her legs wrapped around Vikki’s body, squeezing her tight. She covered her face with her hands, muffled moans escaping.

“Vikki…” Quinn said, breathlessly, “Jesus Christ… You are very, very good at that.”

“Why, thank you.”

“You’re sure you’ve never done it with a woman before?” Quinn joked.

“Mmmmm, I’m fairly certain,” Vikki blushed, and adjusted her bra strap.

She got up off of the sofa and sauntered over toward the vanities.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“Getting a cigarette,” she shuffled through her purse and she could feel Quinn’s eyes on her. She popped her hip out to the side and heard a small “Mmm…” from across the room. She just adored teasing this woman.

Vikki placed a cigarette between her lips and and lit it. She took a puff and let out a deep exhale, looking into one of the mirrors and playing with her now tangled hair.

“That was just the best time I’ve ever had. I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like that, Quinn, I mean it.”

“I hope you don’t think we’re finished…”

Vikki held her cigarette between her fingers, and glanced back over at Quinn, “…Really?”

“Come here.”

Vikki smiled a devilish smile, stamped her cigarette out in the ashtray on the vanity, and sauntered back over to the sofa, kneeling in front of Quinn. The other woman sat up and unclasped Vikki’s bra in one swift motion. She tossed it over with the other clothes on the floor, and said, “Lie back.

Vikki, impressed, raised her eyebrows and did as she was told. Quinn leaned over her and began pulling down her underwear. She spread Vikki’s legs apart and kissed her way up her thighs. The kisses didn’t last long though, as she made her way all the way up, and immediately licked from her entrance to her clit, making sure to linger there a little bit longer.

Vikki hummed in approval, letting out soft moans of pleasure. No man had ever done this for her. Missionary, yes. Most of time, actually. But this? This was definitely a first, and she was so far over the moon, she was dancing with the stars. This exact moment could last forever, if she had anything to say about it. 

Quinn used her tongue in ways Vikki certainly never imagined one could. She went a little lighter for a moment and Vikki’s hips jerked reflexively, as she ached for as much contact, as much pressure as she could get.

Quinn dug her nails into Vikki’s slender thighs and scraped just a little bit, causing Vikki to gasp, and tense up. She reached up and massaged Vikki’s breast with her free hand, pinching at her nipple, effectively undoing the woman. Vikki was already incredibly turned on, so it didn’t take any time at all.

“Quinn, fuck. You’re gonna kill me.”

Quinn sped up, she could feel how close Vikki was to breaking.

“Oh, fuck, oh my- Oh my god… Quinn, fuck. Fuck.”

Quinn felt Vikki squeeze her thighs around her. Vikki felt as though she was about to explode, her body quivering, almost unable handle the intensity of what she was feeling. Quinn dipped her tongue inside and that was it. Vikki was gone.

She screamed out Quinn’s name, her hands gripping the other woman’s hair as though it were the only thing tethering her to the earth. She jolted, surged, feeling like her body was struck by 1000 volts. By lightning. 

Quinn kept going until Vikki made her stop, and then she crawled up the length of the sofa to lay next to her. She held Vikki as she came down and kissed her, softly. An intimate kiss that lovers share. She brushed the hair out of Vikki’s face and cupped her cheek, and the two just lay there in the silence for a few moments. Soft breaths, the only sounds to be heard. 

“You certainly are no princess,” Quinn whispered.

Vikki chuckled, softly, “You’re damn right.”

“Hey, the night’s still young. We can still meet the other girls at Lottie’s, if you’re in the mood.”

“That sounds like a gas, it really does, but… maybe we could just stay here for a while?”

“Maybe we could… go back to my place instead..?”

“I would love that.” Vikki smiled, her tongue between her teeth.

Quinn smiled back and then remembered, “Oh wait, don’t you have that breakfast meeting tomorrow morning?”

Vikki thought about it for a moment, “Mmmm. You know what? I think tomorrow morning I have to bring food to the homeless shelter, and help a child get their cat out of a tree.”

Quinn laughed.

“Well, darn, I guess I’ll just have to phone them and tell them I can’t make it.”

Vikki leaned over and kissed Quinn, then rested her head on her chest. She let her eyes close as Quinn played with her hair, and she melted into the other woman completely. 

She lay there, breathing softly, thankful that Quinn had kissed her earlier. Thankful that she decided to take the leap and kiss her back. Hell, she was even thankful to Catcher Block! If he hadn’t put her through the mess that he did, she probably wouldn’t be here right now, completely comfortable with herself for the first time in a long time. 

Quinn hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her head, and Vikki found herself looking forward to the rest of the night. Looking forward to tomorrow. Looking forward to forever, wherever it took her.

[anastasiaskarsgard]

TO THE ANON THAT ASKED FOR A SMUTTY CHEATER BILL STORY HERE YA GO. I INITIALLY DELETED THE REQUEST BECAUSE I DONT CONDONE CHEATING BUT THEN I THOUGHT, ITS FAN FICTION. NO ONE TAKES IT SERIOUSLY AND IVE GOTTEN A FEW REQUESTS FOR THIS SO HERE YA GO.

Here’s part 1: https://anastasiaskarsgard.tumblr.com/post/188138288236/this-is-a-really-involved-request-so-im-breaking

And here is PART 2

Warning!!! Smut 18+ mature content.

As we pulled into the parking lot, everything hit me at once. I had literally witnessed my dog get murdered, the man I thought was perfect was Satan himself, I have no belongings, I don’t know anyone but Randi here. But then I remembered all the good like I was free, I’m not dead, I have the best friend in the whole world, I already found a job and got paid a lot for basically getting to be near the hottest guy ever and there’s photographic evidence, and literally the world is my oyster. I even get to go to Canada! Hayden Christensen lives there! I look over at Randi and can’t help but laugh when I see her sassy face. She is not a fan of feeling sorry for yourself. “Sorry, I’ll stop. They’re happy tears! I swear! I’m so happy I have you, and we’re going on this adventure. I’m just grateful.”

“Wow. Don’t cry Bitch. You’ll fuck up your make up.” my best friend joked.

I chuckled, and gave her a hug, then stood straight out of the car and let her lead the way to see if everyone had gotten a table together in Mortons.

We found everyone taking their seats. I took the closest open seat next to the photographer and Randi sat between Andy and Bill across from us. I didn’t want to look at Bill and have Randi give me shit, so I read the entire menu like 3 times to avoid looking up. We all ordered, and then Andy had the idea for everyone to introduce themselves:

“Ok since everyone is from all over the place, let’s do a fun little ice breaker. I’ll start. My name is Andy, I’m from the beautiful country of Argentina and I’m a Director as I’m sure you all know, let’s be more original, I know! Name your fear! I’m afraid of drowning.”

“My name is Randi, I’m from Kalamazoo Michigan, I’m an artist and I’m afraid of flying.”

“Ok hi everybody! I’m Bill, I’m from Stockholm Sweden, I’m a human and I’m afraid of being alone.”

I giggled like an idiot, froze and looked over at Randi, who was smiling at me, shaking her head. Dammit.

“My name is Barbara and I’m Andy’s sister, and I am afraid of creepy crawly things.”

“I’m Maria from Brazil, I am photographer and I fear bad lighting and flaky models. Thank goodness for Liv appearing like magic and save the day.” She smiled at me warmly and squeezed my hand.

I felt everyone’s eyes on me, and could feel my heart pounding in my chest. I couldn't bear to look at Bill or Randi, so I stared down in my lap and could feel my face heating up. “I’m Liv from Las Vegas, I guess I’m a model for now and I’m afraid of being a failure, velociraptors, roller coasters, centipedes and public speaking.” I chuckled uncomfortably. I ramble when I’m nervous.

“I’m afraid of velociraptors as well,” Bill laughed. “Jurassic Park ruined me as a child.”

Everyone laughed heartily at Bill’s expense but I felt appreciative of him making my ridiculous fear seem more credible and drawing attention away from my obvious nervousness. I snuck a peek at him and he winked at me playfully.

I didn't know what to think of this beautiful man. My initial reaction to him had been negative. He seemed like every other snobby Hollywood type, complete with crazy girl problems, but as the day progressed, he surprised me over and over with how genuine he seemed to be.

As lunch went on, Randi and Maria were talking technical terms, so Bill and I looked at each other and just smiled and shrugged our shoulders. It wasn't like we were being ignored, just everyone except us was wrapped up in their own conversations. I was content with that too, but then an ice cube flew into my cleavage.

My eyes shot open and I observed a very amused Bill trying to contain his laughter but not doing a very good job.

”I promise I’m not an asshole. I have just been trying to get your attention since we got here. So how long you been in LA?” He asked me like i was the most interesting thing he’d ever encountered.

”What time is it? Less than 24 hours.”

His eyes went wide and he choked on his drink a bit, then began to laugh at himself . ”wow, and you already booked a major job? Who is your agent? Are you an actress or just gorgeous... I mean a model.”

”you are super smooth Bill. I’m kidding! Don’t pout you’ll get wrinkles.” I had to give him some shit. “I don’t have an agent because I don’t have any interest in fame at all.”

He looked impressed by that for some reason. ”so what brought you here?”

”Randi is my best friend, and I needed a change of scenery.” I said making sure to avoid eye contact. I knew I was just being paranoid, but I felt like he could look into my soul, with the intensity he was looking at me with. I’m a terrible liar, so I’m convinced if I look at him, he’ll see I’m not being honest. I didn't want to mention the literal hell id escaped to be here.

I could still feel his gaze on me, and I caught Andy looking between us with an unreadable expression. He's a director so he probably can read people really well.

Shit. I’m probably just being my normal neurotic psycho self. No one probably gives two shits about me, and this is all in my head. These people are famous and successful. I’m just another one of the millions of girls that they encounter in LA.

Maria tapped my shoulder. “Hi honey, can you switch seats with your friend? I want to show some my work?”

I smiled and agreed, but the butterflies in my stomach were going crazy as I took my seat by Bill. He was texting so I got my phone out to play a game or two. Suddenly I felt Bill’s leg press up against mine. I looked over at him, but he just continued with his phone, but was clearly smirking. Just then The food arrived and I was famished, so all other thoughts were abandoned.

“Wow! You eat real food!” Andy exclaimed.

“Oh it’s not fair! Liv has always eaten whatever she wants and doesn’t gain a pound.” Randi whined.

I blushed feeling all the attention on myself again. I wanted to fade into my surroundings like a chameleon. “I like to eat.”

I looked at Bill and he was off his phone but I could tell he was watching me as he ate.

“What?” I asked finally, when he didn’t stop looking at me.

“You’re very interesting.” He said.

“How?” I scoffed.

“Well for starters you’re drop dead gorgeous but you don’t like being the center of attention. Am I right?”

“I wouldn’t go with drop dead gorgeous, maybe conventionally attractive. There’s not really anything wrong with me, but there’s nothing to write home to your mother about either.”

He chuckled. “See? There you go again. You’re humble and funny too.”

I could feel my face burning so I excused myself to go use the restroom, but Bill said he’d show me where it was since he needed to smoke and make some calls.

I was fully aware where it was, but agreed and figured I’d let him show me. He turned before we reached the bathroom and he opened a door that appeared to almost blend in to the wall, revealing a very plush, luxurious bathroom with a large vanity.

“Oh my gosh is this like the Secret VIP potty?” I asked. I had always heard about secret lounges and VIP cool stuff so I was ecstatic to actually see one. I probably seemed like such a dork but I didn’t care.

“Something like that.” He said following me inside and locking the door behind him. I turned around to tell him there only appeared to be one toilet, when he took a couple steps and closed the distance between us and kissed me, pinning me against the wall.

He pulled back and looked down into my eyes, “I’ve wanted to do this since I saw you.” He said deepening the kiss again.

I stepped aside to move out from under him and caught my breath. “Your girlfriend though!”

“It’s over with her. It’s been stale a long time” He said as he wrapped his arm around my waist. “Don’t worry, I'm sick of her. I much rather have you. Do you have a boyfriend?” He pulled me against him again and my God the man was so good looking.

“Nope. I’d have kicked you if I did, I’m not a cheater.” I couldn’t believe his lips were on me. I tried to think and get ahold of myself and be rational, but as he kissed down my neck and groped my breasts, it was getting hard to remember why this wasn’t the best idea ever.

“. Listen, you’re very attractive Bill. Like best looking guy I’ve ever seen attractive, and I’m flattered, but we should get back. They’re gonna wonder.”

“This dress is killing me though, and youre so so beautiful.” He groaned lustilly, as he slowly slid my dress’ strap down, continuing his way down, kissing down my throat to my chest. He exposes my breast and looks up to make sure I wasn’t going to object, but when I just bit my lip, he placed his mouth on my nipple, suckling at my breast. He releases it with a popping sound, and slips a hand under my skirt, rubbing me through my panties, as he sucksin a breath through his teeth, before going for my other breast. This motherfucker is gonna kill me. How can one man be so hot and what did I do in a past life to deserve this shit? Seriously universe? How do I carry on knowing his tongue was on my nipple?

He hiked my skirt up to brush his fingertips across my folds. He bit my bottom lip and then pulled his hand out from under my skirt, and sensually tasted his fingers before leading me to the large round cushioned ottoman at the vanity, trying to get me to sit.

“What are you up to? You’re - this is so bad.” I tell him as he pushes me down lightly as he kisses me passionatly.

He looked deep in my eyes. “Please let me taste you and make you feel good. I don’t expect anything from you and I don’t do this type of thing ever, but I’ve honestly never wanted to see what someone tastes like more in my life.”

FUCK. Who in the hell could say no to that?

All I could do is nod, too shocked to fully comprehend that this was really happening.

He got on his knees in front of me and I couldn’t help but admire his gorgeous features. As crazy as it sounds, he had the most beautiful bone structure; severe and angular, yet it was offset by his big green eyes with their long sweeping lashes, luscious plump full lips, and adorable perfect little child-like nose. His hair was silky and thick and he smelled like mint and soap.

I watched as he pulled my underwear off and placed them in his pocket, before leaning me back with one hand, as the other lifted my dress. He bit my inner thigh gently, but still sent a thrill up my spine causing me to visibly shudder.

“I haven’t even started yet,” he smirked up at me cockily, before pressing his mouth to my sex before I had time to reply. I’d had my pussy eaten before, but nothing like this. There was no sign of nervousness or insecurity that some men display when they go down there. Like you can tell they’re not sure what the fuck to do, but Bill was sure of himself and seemed to genuinely love doing it. He was so enthusiastic and it felt so amazing. I never had done something like this in my life, and wouldn’t even kiss on a first date, yet here I am. I was scandalized and aroused, and so close to an orgasm it was shocking.

“You gonna cum for me baby?. I love how you look right now.... Cum on my face.... please?” He pleaded and pushed another finger inside of me. I couldn’t look at him. It was all too much.

I let out a moan as he moved his fingers and tongue in such a combined effort, that I reached out and gripped his hair, pressing his face against me as my release crashed down on me, violently shaking me, and making everything go white, as it wound down. It was seriously one of the most intense orgasms I’ve ever had, and it took me longer than a polite amount of time to realize I was still holding his face, and immediately released him”I’m so sorry, I didn't realize I- .”

“Sshhh.” He said chuckling and came up and kissed me deeply. “Can you taste yourself on me?”

I nodded shyly, looking away to break eye contact. He was so intense and I wasn’t sure what he would want me to do to return the favor.

He put his finger under my chin and pulled my face back over to look in his eyes. “You’re beautiful.”

I looked back at him, waiting to see what he did next. I was surprised he wasn't taking his pants off, but was too shy to try and take them off myself. I really wanted to though, and that surprised me. I wanted him to fuck me and wasn’t going to think about it, just do it. Like Nike.

He stood up and helped me to my feet, and helped smooth my dress out. He pulled me into another kiss and I could feel how excited he was.

“Let me make you feel nice now.” I mentally scolded myself for saying something so not sexy but just looked up at him with my best doe eyed look.

“You’re so cute. Don’t worry about me, just yet. I don’t want a quickie in a bathroom with you, I want like a bed and many. many. hours. I want to impress you.”

“I’m fucking impressed Bill.”

He chuckled and bit his lip, and you could see the wheels turning. “I really want to fuck you but I also don’t wanna be too long and full disclosure, Andy threatened serious bodily harm not to touch you. Said you’re a heartbreaking man eater.”

“Randi advised me to avoid you because you’re a foreign actor that’s too good looking for his own good. You’re obviously a monster.”

We both got a good laugh out of that.

“What’s your phone number?” He asked taking out his phone.

“I don’t currently have one. I need to get one. I lost mine yesterday.”

He looked at me incredulously. “If you don’t want to give me your number it’s ok.”

“No. Take Randi’s number, that’s the phone I was using earlier anyways, that way you can call, cuz I don’t have a pen or anything.”

“How about your email, and then you can send me your number when you get it. Randi might catch on if I call her phone.”

“You’re so smart! You’ll see me in a week on your new movie too.”

“Really? That’s the best news I got all day but if you think I’m waiting a week to be inside you, you’re insane. Now go, just say I went to smoke and make calls if they ask where I am. I’ll give it a couple minutes.”

I gave him my email and walked out the door to go try and act like the hottest fucking thing to ever happen in my life, didn’t just go down. When I turned the corner, I nearly threw up and cane to a screeching halt. I met eyes with the estranged exgirlfriend. I didn’t wanna seem weird so I smiled and sat down to finish my meal, since turning around and running the other direction might bad. I mean as far as I was concerned he was single, so I had no reason to feel guilty of anything. And I didn’t plan on admitting that happened to anyone, so not telling her was totally fine. She tapped on my arm and I cautiously turned to her.

“Did you see Bill by chance?” She asked politely.

“He said he was smoking and making some important calls when he left the table earlier.”

She laughed a little and rolled her eyes, “that man and his cigarettes! I blame Hemlock Grove for turning him into a chainsmoker. He’s probably smoked two or three in a row.”

“All this talk about smoking makes me want one, I’ll go find him. Excuse me ladies.” Andy said, as he quickly walked towards the exit to find Bill.

“He’s probably going to warn Bill that I’m here. We got in a fight earlier and he can be such a brat. Watch when he comes back, he’ll pretend like nothing happened.”

Maybe she didn’t realize he really was done with her. She had a funny accent so I assumed she’s Swedish too. He was probably her only friend out here so I couldn’t help but pity her.

“Between silent treatments and smoking, Bill would be dead by morning.” Randi said with a mischievous wink.

“Oh if you could see his hissy fits, they’re the worst!” She enthused. “Anything in his hands he’ll throw and if it’s something like a sandwich or drinks and won’t hurt you, he’ll throw it on you. But then if I try and ignore him, he’ll lay on me like a big dead weight until I speak.” His girlfriend said, laughing hysterically. Everyone joined in telling stories of past boyfriends that were grown men, having varying degrees of tantrums, but I just sat silently. My ex story wasn’t funny.

Andy and Bill came back and I could feel an anxiety attack creeping up on me.

I looked up and Bill was staring at me and I looked to Randi and she had a puzzled look on her face. In an effort to not give anything away to her, my eyes shot back up to Bill.

Bill looked furious. He seethed animosity and I just looked down at my plate to avoid that glare. I wasn't sure if I was the cause or she was, but I desperately wanted to run out of the place screaming and looked at Randi again pleading with my eyes to go. She seemed to catch on and I tried to keep it together.

His ex got up and rushed over to him. Just as I looked up, she planted a soft kiss on his cheek. My eyes narrowed involuntarily as he glanced over at me, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. His girlfriend grabbed his face and kissed him right on the lips.

I felt like I was going to throw up. Tears threatened to spill but I held them back as I stared at my lap. I kept seeing Bill’s eyes as he looked up at me from between my legs. Flashes of him pinning me to the wall, or oh my fucking god! My underwear are in his pocket!

My pussy is on his face too and he just kissed her.

He seemed so genuine, but he was an actor, what did I expect. Faking Feelings and emotions was how he paid the bills. I couldn’t believe how stupid and guillable I was! He probably got off on this shit. Poor woman. I was exaggerating when I’d said he was a monster but goddammit I was right!!!

”Ok thank you for inviting us and I can't wait to see whoever is going to join us in Toronto, but Liv and I must be off for an important appointment and then packing.” Randi said her goodbyes as I walked around the table and stood beside her, keeping my back to Bill.

”Bye everybody. I had fun” I said Sweetly and then I turned on my heel and walked past Bill without a glance.

”See you two in Toronto.” Bill called after us, and even though I refused to look at him, I could feel his eyes burning into my back as we walked away.

[forthosebefore]

Juneteenth Candlelight Vigil honors Sugar Land 95 By Kristi Nix, Staff writer, The Houston Chronicle

A crowd of more than 100 people gathered for a Juneteenth candlelight vigil to honor the Sugar Land 95 at Mayfield Park on Tuesday, June 18. Holding electric candles, participants clapped and sang songs celebrating freedom.

“As a people of all creeds and colors, if we can step into the realm of love we can move forward, as we should,” Cynthia Ginyard, chair of the Fort Bend County Democrats, said during the candlelight ceremony.

Prior to the candlelight vigil, guests socialized and enjoyed a BBQ luncheon at the American Legion Hall catered by Dixie’s BBQ from Missouri City. Reginald Moore, founder and president of the Convict Leasing and Labor Project (CLLP) served as master of ceremonies for “The Journey to Freedom and Salute to the Sugar Land 95” presentation, which featured a plethora of VIP guest speakers including State Representative Ron Reynolds, city manager for the City of Sugar Land Doug Brinkley, CLLP Board Member Barbara Crump Jones, Pastor Bobby Hamilton from Friendship Community Baptist Church, Melissa Waddy-Thibodeaux, Harold Williams, Trooper Robert Coleman from the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston and Fort Bend County Precinct 4 Commissioner Ken DeMerchant.

“The great news is we’re not at the finish line yet, but we’re progressing every day,” DeMerchant said. “We just had Governor Greg Abbott sign a bill that allows Fort Bend County to operate a cemetery. That was a huge step in this undertaking.”

DeMerchant said he and other members of the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court met with Judge KP George recently for a workshop to discuss a proposed facility bond to go before voters for approval next November. The list of proposed projects includes an interment center, education center and Memorial Park to be created at the site where the bodies of the Sugar Land 95 were discovered in Sugar Land.

“This is going to turn something that was a dark moment in our history into something positive, a learning experience.” Demarchant said and urged guests to support the not-yet-finalized facility bond. “People are going to know what it took to get here for Sugar Land. It was on the backs of ‘slavery by another name’. People need to know that.”

Talk from the Elder Harold Williams, a lifelong resident of Sugar Land of 80 years was introduced as speaker for a “Talk from the Elder” presentation.

Williams was the fourth child from a family of fourteen children. He told guests that his father was a farmer who raised his family on a salary of 50 cents a day.

“To all of you here, I had the opportunity to be told ‘You can’t sit here. You can prepare the food and feed the people, but you have to eat in the back or outside.’ I know what went on here in Sugar Land and around Sugar Land,” he said. “Today the question is still in my heart: why? What did my parents, my forebearers, do to make you have so much hate against us because of the color of our skin? I don’t know. But, I want to know.”

Williams said years ago he worked in a farm across from the Sugar Land prison system and the prison cemetery.

“I can’t tell you more about the prison system that has been written up. We saw them carrying the bodies to the cemetery,” he said. “We saw the dogs pull the prisoners from the edge of the Brazos River. The men hit them on the head and put them in the back of a wagon. It was really bad. You’re going to have to tell your offspring what happened. There’s no reason to keep them in the dark,” he said.

Williams told the crowd that there were many more prisoners buried under the homes in the New Territory neighborhoods that remain undiscovered.

Discovery of the Sugar Land 95 In February 2018, construction crews working for Fort Bend ISD uncovered human remains in 95 unmarked graves. The bodies are believed to be African American prisoners forced into backbreaking work on sugar plantations in a post-civil war system known as convict leasing, a system called by most historians as “slavery by another name”.

Many Sugar Land neighborhoods were built over sugar plantations which were later consolidated into the Imperial Sugar company in the early 1900s. Business owners of the sugar industry rented black prisoners from state prison officials to continue the lost profits of free labor after the end of slavery. Historians say post civil-war laws in the south targeted African Americans for petty crimes such as jaywalking and enslaved them with harsh sentences. These prisoners were rented to private business owners and forced to work in nightmarish conditions that led to the deaths of an untold number of prisoners.

After the bodies were discover, Fort Bend ISD officials proposed moving the bodies about half a mile away to the Old Imperial Farm cemetery, a small plot where the remains of inmates and guards who died at a local prison between 1912 and 1942 are buried. However, Reginald Moore and other community activists fought the district and a court battle ensued, with district officials alleging it would cost $18 million to change their building plans.

But, district officials met with Commissioner DeMerchant, County Judge KP George and other elected officials shortly after Martin Luther King Jr. Day and agreed to a new plan for a cemetery to be owned by Fort Bend County located where the bodies were found. County to operate the cemetery.

Read more about the initial discovery here

Source: The Houston Chronicle

[lagilliland]

press release - RiffTrax Live:2019

Fans of mystery science theater should enjoy this live-via-satellite series.

A Trio of Super Cheesy B-Movies to Be Grilled on Big Screens Nationwide with ‘RiffTrax Live: 2019’ Series 

DENVER – March 25, 2018 –RiffTrax’s Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy, and Bill Corbett (of Mystery Science Theater 3000® fame) are back in cinemas to celebrate the 10th anniversary of RiffTrax Live with three all-new riffs on what are sure to be fan favorites with “RiffTrax Live: 2019.” Join Mike, Kevin and Bill as they take on B-movie classics: the guy-in-a-rubber-suit creature feature “Octaman,” the Casper Van Dienspace odyssey “Star Raiders,” and new HD transfer of the MST3K favorite “Giant Spider Invasion.” 

Since first partnering in 2009 with “RiffTrax Live: Plan 9 from Outer Space” the RiffTrax and Fathom Events partnership has resulted in the screening of 29 unique titles, over 49 play dates, in an average of 616 movie theaters per title, with more than 1 million tickets sold for a total gross box revenue of $13.8 million (not including the 2019 events). 

Tickets for the three “RiffTrax Live: 2019” titles can be purchased at www.FathomEvents.com and participating theater box offices. For a complete list of theater locations, visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change). 

“RiffTrax Live: Octaman”Thursday, April 18, 2019 at 8 p.m. EST/ 7 p.m. CST/ 7 p.m. MST/8 p.m. PST (live)Wednesday, April 24, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. local time (rebroadcast) 

Deep in the Mexican jungle, a legendary creature lurks in a radioactive swamp. Is it a man? Is it an octopus? No, it’s OCTAMAN! Okay, it’s a man in an octopus suit, but he’s really angry and decides to go on a light killing spree. 

A scientific expedition sets out to study this atomic mutant and stop it before it kills again. They’re not very good at it, since Octaman kills quite a lot — probably because THE DUMB SCIENTISTS KEEP STEALING ITS BABIES! It seems there’s no stopping the monster until it develops a crush on the plucky lady scientist Susan Lowry (Pier Angeli) and does what all mutant sea creatures like to do - it knocks her out and carries her away. Will the rest of the team be able to rescue Susan before Octaman picks them all off one by one? Looks pretty doubtful! 

Directed by the writer of “Creature From the Black Lagoon,” and featuring costumes and effects by a young Rick Baker, Octaman is a wonderfully awful rubber monster B-movie. Join Bill, Mike and Kevin live as they risk life and limb to deliver the laughs from the clutches of Octaman! 

“RiffTrax Live: Star Raiders”

Thursday, June 6, 2019 at 8 p.m. EST/ 7 p.m. CST/ 7 p.m. MST/8 p.m. PST (live)

Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. local time (rebroadcast) 

It’s the year 2762. The galaxy is plagued with warring factions using hokey special effects to destroy each other. Out of this chaos a hero rises: the dashing, exquisitely bearded Captain Saber Raine (Casper Van Dien). Saber and his elite squad of commandos (other actors) embark on a dangerous quest to save the Prince and Princess of an unnamed planet from the clutches of the Evil Overlord Sinjin - an overlord so evil HIS VERY SKULL IS FILLED WITH CHERRY JELL-O. 

Can our heroes fend off Sinjin’s army of mutant androids and rescue the Prince and Princess? Probably! After all it’s Space Opera, but you never know! Join Mike, Kevin and Bill for an unforgettable Sword-And-Laser Swashbuckling-ly fun time, beamed to theaters nationwide! 

“RiffTrax Live: Giant Spider Invasion”

Thursday, August 15, 2019 at 8 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. CT/ 7 p.m. MT/8 p.m. PT (live)

Tuesday, August 20, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. local time (rebroadcast) 

The “Giant Spider Invasion,” one of the most popular MST3K movies ever, is coming to a theater near you along with the mighty men of RiffTrax! 

There’s a monster in Wisconsin, and it’s going to slowly, VERY slowly, strike TERROR INTO YOUR HEART! Sure, your grandma could outrun it, but TERROR is more fun! When a fiery meteor lands in the woods, strange things begin to happen in this small Wisconsin town — even weirder than usual, and that’s a pretty high bar! 

While the townspeople are picked off by spiders of varying sizes, two esteemed scientists ramble around the countryside in a late model sedan, where they find friendship, romance and a big mechanical spider built on a Volkswagen Beetle chassis! 

Starring Alan Hale Jr, the (Skipper from Gilligan’s Island), Barbara Hale (Perry Mason, and no relation to the Skipper) and Robert Easton, who’s been in more movies than a No Smoking disclaimer, Bill Rebane’s “The Giant Spider Invasion” explodes across the screen in a pristine new digital transfer. Join Bill, Mike and Kevin as they serve up the cheesiest cheese America’s Dairyland has to offer, LIVE in movie theaters nationwide. 

RiffTrax Live, a theatrical comedy experience, is best enjoyed with friends, and so RiffTraxians, MSTies, and comedy fans will meet up in theaters to enjoy the show, live on the big screen. Mike, Kevin, and Bill perform their ultra-funny commentary ("riffing") in front of a live audience, with the resulting hilarity beamed via satellite to cinemas across the nation.

“Fathom is proud to be celebrating a funny and fruitful decade with the RiffTrax crew,” Fathom Events CEO Ray Nutt said. “We look forward to continuing our partnership and bringing their unique and hilarious events to fans across the nation.

About Fathom Events

Fathom Events is the leading event cinema distributor with theater locations in all top 100 DMAs® (Designated Market Areas) and ranks as one of the largest overall theater content distributors. Owned by AMC Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: AMC); Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK); and Regal, a subsidiary of the Cineworld Group (LSE: CINE.L), Fathom Events offers a variety of unique entertainment events in movie theaters such as live performances of the Metropolitan Opera, top Broadway stage productions, major sporting events, epic concerts, the yearlong TCM Big Screen Classics series, inspirational events and popular anime franchises. Fathom Events takes audiences behind the scenes for unique extras including audience Q&As, backstage footage and interviews with cast and crew, creating the ultimate VIP experience. Fathom Events’ live Digital Broadcast Network (“DBN”) is the largest cinema broadcast network in North America, bringing live and pre-recorded events to 975 locations and 1,578 screens in 181 DMAs. The company also provides corporations a compelling national footprint for hosting employee meetings, customer rewards events and new product launches. For more information, visit www.FathomEvents.com. 

About RiffTrax

RiffTrax is an entertainment company featuring the stars of the Emmy-nominated, Peabody Award-winning show “Mystery Science Theater 3000.” Comedians Michael J. Nelson, Kevin Murphy (Tom Servo) and Bill Corbett (Crow T. Robot), bring their funny running MST3K-type commentary to movies of all kind. From riffs on the biggest Hollywood blockbusters to the worst B-movies, RiffTrax has a library of over 500 titles available at RiffTrax.com and on digital platforms everywhere. RiffTrax has also produced five prime time television specials for the National Geographic Channel. RiffTrax releases a newly riffed movie, short film or TV program each week, and performs the RiffTrax Live comedy series four times a year where a movie is riffed live and simulcast into over 700 theaters across North America. Our brand-new RiffTrax app on iOS and Android magically syncs our Riffs to the biggest blockbuster movies like Star Wars, Twilight and Harry Potter. RiffTrax was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in San Diego, CA. To find out more about RiffTrax, visit www.rifftrax.com/aboutus.

[wiremagazinegoingout]

WIRE MAGAZINE GOING OUT CALENDAR OF EVENTS SEPTEMBER 27 OCTOBER 3

NIGHTLIFE AND ENTERTAINMENT

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. Get ready for Throwback Thursday #TBT with $3 local craft beers and $7 Sailor Jerrys. It’s a throwback music video hits party #70’s #80’s #90’s. For additional info, visit gaythering.com. 1409 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach

MIAMI BEACH CINEMATHEQUE: At 7 p.m., Miami premiere engagement of the new restoration! Wanda by Barbara Loden. 1130 Washington Ave., Miami Beach

PALACE: Cafe con Leche Thursdays hosted by Missy Meyakie and Josefina La Mujer De Los Globos. For more information or to make a reservation, call 305.587.3588 or visit palacesouthbeach.com. “Every Queen Needs A Palace.” 1052 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach

TWIST: Sabroso Thursdays! 10 p.m. - 5 a.m. 2-4-1 drinks until 3 a.m. on everything. Music by DJ Adora & DJ Mika. Stiff drinks and beautiful dancers. “Never a cover… Always a groove.” 1057 Washington Ave., Miami Beach

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Every Thursday enjoy $3 hummus & pita, $3 amaretto sours & $3 PABST beer. 1429 Washington Ave., Miami Beach

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 28

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. $3 Bud Lights & $7 Jack. Then join Bears & Hares at 10 p.m. The animal house is open, welcoming bears & hares… and all other creatures. “On Fridays we wear flannel.”

MIAMI BEACH CINEMATHEQUE: At 7 p.m., Miami premiere engagement! Support The Girls by Andrew Bujalski. Repeats at 8:45 p.m.

PALACE: Fresh Face Fridays - Not your regular lunch. Hosted by Tiffany Fantasia. “Every Queen Needs A Palace.”

SCORE: Fusion Fridays hosted by Athena Dion. Enjoy music by DJ Gavin T & DJ Dias. Marco Perez and his sexy go-go dancers. Open bar 11-11:30 p.m. 1437 Washington Ave., Miami Beach

THE MANOR: Bubble Gum Fridays: A Royal Affair. Music in the Ballroom with DJ JPS. Ultra Lounge with DJ Miik. $150 VIP room bottle special. No cover before midnight FL Residents 21+. After midnight, members $7, non-members $10; $12 all night for under 21. For info, visit themanorcomplex.com. 2345 Wilton Drive, Wilton Manors

TWIST: Always Packed Fridays with DJ Bill Hallquist. 2-4-1 Happy Hour, 1-9 p.m. on everything. “Never a cover… Always a groove.”

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Enjoy Fridaze at Vibes with $5 vodka cocktails. Open till 4:30 a.m.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Inner Space Yoga with Joseph 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. All levels. Work your spiritual and physical fitness with this energetic flow sequence. Donation based classes. Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. Enjoy $3 Stellas & $7 Titos.

MIAMI BEACH CINEMATHEQUE: At 7 p.m., Miami premiere engagement! Support The Girls by Andrew Bujalski. Repeats at 8:45 p.m.

PALACE: Enjoy Saturday Brunch Extravaganza hosted by Noel Leon, 11:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. Then at 5 p.m., join in for a Sunset T-Dance hosted by Tiffany Fantasia. “Every Queen Needs A Palace.”

SCORE: Two parties under one roof. Level 1: Club Boi Miami in association with Score present Sexxy Saturdays featuring the music of great DJs, plus sexy go-go’s. Level 2: RAW with music by Leo Blanco and Alex Ramos. Entrance through the back alley. Backroom cruising area and erotic dancers. Advance tickets available at seetickets.us.

THE MANOR: DJ Kidd Madonny. No cover before midnight, for FL Residents 21+. After midnight, members $7, non-members $10; $12 all night for under 21. $3 well drinks 11 p.m. - midnight. $150 VIP room bottle special all night.

TWIST: Muscle Boy Saturdays with DJ Mika. 10 p.m. - 5 a.m. 2-4-1 Happy Hour 1-9 p.m. on everything. “Never a cover… Always a groove.”

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Join in for Shirts off Saturdays at Vibes with $5 vodka specials & $2 shots.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 30

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 2-8 p.m with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. Enjoy Sunday Funday bar games with $3 PBRs & $7 Absolut flavors all night.

MIAMI BEACH CINEMATHEQUE: At 7 p.m., Miami premiere engagement! Support The Girls by Andrew Bujalski. Repeats at 8:45 p.m.

PALACE: Join in for the most iconic brunch experience in South Beach, Brunchic. “Every Queen Needs A Palace.”

TWIST: 2-4-1 Happy Hour 1-9 p.m. on everything. Steamy Sundays in the Garden Bar. Pussila’s Underwear Contest: winner gets $100 bar tab. Music by DJ Paulie. “Never a cover… Always a groove.”

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Enjoy SunDaze at Vibes with $5 tequila sunrises & $5 tequila sunsets. Open till 3 a.m.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 1

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. At 8 p.m., join in for Karaoke Mondays hosted by Tiffany Fantasia with $3 Coronas & $7 Milagros.

PALACE: Missy Meyakie Lepaige hosts Mondays Are A Drag with beer and burger specials.

TWIST: Happy Hour 1-9 p.m. on everything. At night, VJ Nathan presents: Pop! Mondays. Sounds by DJ Riptide. “Never a cover… Always a groove."

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Every Monday, enjoy $6 margaritas at Vibes. Open till 3 a.m.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. Then join in for Tight Ass Two’s Days with 2-4-1 well drinks all night. Enjoy $7 Alexander Beaverhausens. Inner Space Yoga with Paul 7-8 p.m. All levels. Work your spiritual and physical fitness with this energetic flow sequence. Donation based classes. 2-4-1 sauna happy hour 5-11 p.m.

PALACE: Tacos & Tequila Tuesdays with Noel Leon with half off tacos and tequila specials. "Every Queen Needs A Palace.”

SCORE: Join Planeta Macho, the hottest Latin party in Miami Beach 10:30 p.m. - 5 a.m. Now hosted by Pussila every Tuesday. Enjoy music by DJ Juan Carlos and Marco Perez and his go-go hunks. Door by Ladonna Sucia. Open bar 11-11:30 p.m. $5 Modelo Especial & $100 Absolut bottles.

TWIST: 2-4-1 Happy Hour 1-9 p.m. on everything. Globoy Tuesdays with beats by DJ Carlos G. $5 Fireball shots. “Never a cover… Always a groove.”

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Every Monday, enjoy $7 Long Islands at Vibes.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3

HÔTEL GAYTHERING: Hoppy Hour 5-8 p.m. with $3 beers, $1 off well, $2 off call & $3 off premium drinks. Gaymer night starting at 6 p.m. is Smash the Slumlords. Hosting Just Dance, Super Smash Bros. and retro games. Dance with your friends and help a worthy cause with your donations to play. Trivia night starts at 8 p.m. Winner gets $50 off their bar tab for the night. $3 PBRs & $7 Absolut all night.

MIAMI BEACH CINEMATHEQUE: At 7 p.m., Miami premiere engagement! Support The Girls by Andrew Bujalski. Repeats at 8:45 p.m.

PALACE: Way Back Wednesday hosted by Tiffany Fantasia with shows from 7-11:30 p.m. “Every Queen Needs A Palace.”

TWIST: Getting Fresh with TP Lords, featuring Josefina La Globos and sounds by DJ Sushiman. Showtime 1 a.m. “Never a cover… Always a groove.”

VIBES KITCHEN + BAR: Every Wednesday, enjoy $5 whiskey cocktails & $5 white wines. Open till 3 a.m.

ARTS & CULTURE:

OUTSHINE FILM FESTIVAL: Get your tickets to the OUTshine Film Festival taking place in Fort Lauderdale this October 18 through 28. Enjoy OUTrageous, OUTspoken, and OUTstanding films that offer historical and contemporary perspectives on the LGBTQ experience. To purchase tickets and to view the full film program, visit outshinefilm.com.

This was originally published in Wire Magazine Issue 39.2018

[alansaristar1]

Bringing interviews to life

ID:118821

Date: May 10, 2021

Barbara Walters

Bio:

An American broadcaster and writer, She was born on September 25, 1929, who presented many morning television programs, provided news on television, and worked as an assistant broadcaster in several programs, the most famous of which was World News, which was broadcast on ABC News.

She continued to present the news program that was on MBC News for 10 years and was the first broadcaster to work as a guest participant in the evening news, and she has the largest role in the News 20/20 program, as she worked as an assistant broadcaster for 25 years.

Style of interviewing:

The memorable and distinctive interviews that Barbara gave were: Barbara Walters' interview with Michael Jackson, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, Nancy Reagan, and finally Bashar Al-Assad. There is more, but these were the best interviews.

Barbara is distinguished for being the fastest in the precedence of interviews with different and important personalities, and she was the event of the hour at the time because she was taking advantage of the exclusive events to conduct interviews.

Barbara always asks questions in sensitive places to reveal the truth from her owner, and she is bold, so the proposition, but she has her own style that makes the guest speak.

What distinguished Barbara was the choice of characters, and it was always the previous time for them to choose an exclusive character that people care about greatly.

Type of questions:

She uses the direct and frank approach, and this thing the audience loves, as it loves to know the facts, and most of the curiosity has a side and Barbara always be the solution.

And also it is directed to sensitive places such as what is related to people, events or situations and that its personality is a leader. The interviewers see that they can respond in a strong, spontaneous and fast manner, and that they control all the atmosphere of the interview.

Interview atmosphere:

There is no fixed atmosphere for the interview, as the topics differ and the guests viewed them. Some of them were comfortable, frank and spontaneous, like Michael Jackson, but heads of state such as Bashar Al-Assad were not comfortable because the questions were difficult and sensitive.

Larry King

Bio:

Larry King is a broadcaster born in November 1933, who started his career in CNN, which increased his popularity in America fantastically and the world because of his interviews with American presidents such as John Kennedy and George Bush.

King continued his career in CNN by presenting the Larry King Live program for 25 years, where he interviewed VIPs with presidential candidates, celebrities and athletes, which distinguishes his conversations are direct in asking questions and letting the guest speak fluently and comfort him without interruption and listen to them well.

He retired in 2010 after a long career in which he was able to record more than 6000 episodes of his program, but surprisingly, he returned in 2012 to present Larry King Now and appear on the Aura channel three times a week.

Style of interviewing:

The distinguished interviews conducted by Larry King that remained for the long term were: his interview with Donald Trump and his wife, with OJ Simpson, and with the Libyan President Gaddafi, Dan Bilzerian, and finally Russell Peters, there is more, but these are the best interviews.

Larry King interviews are distinguished by being directed to different classes of celebrities, and his style depends on the direct orientation of the questions he poses and is very frank, and he is a good listener because he gives the space to his guests to speak fluently, which distinguishes him from his interview is that it has a kind of comedy and has a style, so the proposal is directed to clearly detail the thing.

Type of questions:

Larry King relies on direct questions, no matter how strong or sensitive, and most of the time he addresses something that happened in a guest's life or situation and has a clever way to get the answers out of the guest frankly and directly.

Interview atmosphere:

Larry King's comedic style and spontaneity make the guest feel comfortable and the answers are in a friendly manner and this is what makes the atmosphere calm and not charged with anger or screaming and has the advantage of fully listening to the guest and this is what makes the answers come out comfortably from the guest.

Comparing:

- Barbara Walters and Larry King have similar ways of taking answers from the guest due to their speaking methods

- Being comfortable is a lot with everyone but Walters is serious and King has a good sense of humor and comedy.

- King's interviews are more lively and youthful, but Walters tends to do something straightforward, which is a faster and shorter method, which makes some comfortable and others not.

- King gives the guest more freedom of expression, since the comic character is often the guest's favorite, and Walters tends to limit things to the frame of the question itself only

- The type of questions is spontaneous, avoiding King, but the opposite with Walters, as she studies the character and prepares more in terms of questions.

#3114fall21 #squjour #jourapplication21

[theexchangeafrica1234]

Monica Lewinsky Net Worth | American creator | Public speaker |

Who is Monica Lewinsky & What is her Net Worth?

Monica Lewinsky is an American creator, public speaker, and against harassing activist who has total assets of $1.5 million. Lewinsky first accomplished status in the wake of having an illegitimate romance with President Bill Clinton while filling in as a White House assistant during the 1990s. The humiliation brought about Clinton’s accusation, and Monica turned into a worldwide VIP.

Initiating with the personal Lives of Monica Lewinsky. Monica has said that she experienced a post-terrible pressure issue after the anger and that sewing helped her to adapt to the undesirable media consideration. That interest drove her to make The Real Monica, Inc. in 1999 and plan cart that was sold in stores, for example, Fred Segal and Henri Bendel.

Since the abuse, Lewinsky has lived in New York City, London, Portland, and Los Angeles and generally avoided the spotlight from 2005 until 2014, when she formed an exposition, “Disgrace and Survival” for “Vanity Fair” and turned into a constant supporter of the magazine’s website. Monica Lewinsky Net Worth is $1.5 Million approximately.

Lewinsky, who has said that she was “the principal individual to have their standing destroyed overall through the Internet,” has been filling in as an enemy of cyberbullying protestors since 2014, and she is an obvious defender of the #MeToo development. She helped with writer Andrew Morton to distribute the book “Monica’s Story” in 1999, and her book advance was $500,000.

Early Life

Coming to the Early Life and Education of Monica Lewinsky, so hereby Monica Lewinsky was considered as Monica Camille Lewinsky on July 23, 1973, in San Francisco, California. She experienced childhood in a Jewish family unit in Los Angeles with mother Marcia (a creator), father Bernard (an oncologist), and sibling Michael. Monica’s folks split up in 1987, and the two of them remarried after their offensive separation.

Lewinsky went to Sinai Temple’s school, Sinai Akiba Academy, just as the John Thomas Dye School, Beverly Hills High School, and Bel Air Prep, graduating in 1991. She at that point enlisted at Santa Monica College and worked in the Beverly Hills High School show office before moving to Portland’s Lewis and Clark College, where she acquired a brain science certificate in 1995. In July 1995, Monica began filling in as an outstanding White House assistant in Chief of Staff Leon Panetta’s office, and in December of that year, she obtained a satisfactory situation in the White House Office of Legislative Affairs.

After 10 years, she returned to class and considered social brain science at the London School of Economics, graduating with a graduate degree in 2006.

Official Scandal of Lewinsky. She has said that between November 1995 and March 1997, she had nine sexual experiences with Clinton however that those experiences prohibited communication. Monica was moved to the Pentagon in April 1996 because her bosses thought she was investing a lot of her energy around the president. She trusted in partner Linda Tripp, acknowledging that she had a relationship with the president, and in September 1997, Tripp started furtively recording her telephone discussions with Lewinsky.

Monica remained at the Pentagon until December 1997, and the next month, she denied a relationship with Clinton in a declared statement submitted in the Paula Jones case. She attempted to convince Linda to lie after swearing to tell the truth, yet Tripp gave her tapes to Kenneth Starr, who charged in as free advice during Clinton’s administration and was examining the Clintons’ Whitewater land considerations.

Clinton rejected that he had sexual relations with Monica having sworn to tell the truth and in a January 1998 question and answer session, yet after Starr picked up ownership of the blue dress, the president changed his tune and admitted that he had “a relationship with Miss Lewinsky that was not proper.” Lewinsky and Clinton both declared before a foreign jury, and the Office of the Independent Adviser allowed Monica conditional security.

Talking about the Profession of Monica Lewinsky. In March 1999, Monica was met by Barbara Walters on “20/20,” carrying a crowd of people of 70 million watchers; as of this composition, it is as yet the second most-watched meet in TV history (behind Oprah Winfrey’s 1993 meeting with Michael Jackson), and the global preferences acquired Lewinsky $1 million. Monica’s visitor highlighted on “Saturday Night Live” on May 8, 1999, showing up in two representations. In January 2000, she began doing ads for Jenny Craig, Inc.; the eating routine organization went into a 1 million dollar support management Lewinsky that necessary her to lose in any event 40 pounds in six months.

[vagabondretired]

VIPs from around the world bade Barbara Bush a fond farewell during her funeral Saturday in Houston. Former presidents and kin Poppy Bush and The Decider Bush were joined by Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. (Jimmy Carter was out of the country solving world problems, and Donald Trump was---not kidding---golfing.) There was a brief moment of panic halfway through when this guy wandered in… He was lured away when a quick-thinking usher asked if he’d like to go short-sheet the beds at a local nursing home.

[isqbelevans]

not the single strawberry and tiny pancakes

📸 @/samreich

[themasterplanner]

These Foolish Things, Remind Me of You

***

In which Edward visits a strip club to forget his troubles, but his troubles haven’t forgotten him.

Based on events in Gotham s03ep15.

Content warnings: explicit, strippers/strip clubs, lap dance, hallucination!Oswald, drugs, masturbation, quasi-necrophilia, alternate history, tripping balls while draining them

Obligatory notice that this is unofficial, fan-made fiction for a franchise owned by DC and Warner Brothers, and created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. The song which lends its name is performed by Bryan Ferry.

Special thanks to @millicentcordelia for beta reading and the title suggestion; and to @mrgoldsdearie for the advice and resources.

***

“Oh, will you never let me be?

Oh, will you never set me free?

The ties that bound us

Are still around us

There’s no escape that I can see

And still those little things remain

That bring me happiness or pain…”

Edward Nygma sighed, shifting uncomfortably in his seat and bouncing one long leg. Watching the dancers in their sequins and feathers parade across the stage did nothing to improve his mood, but leaving now would be an insult to the increasingly volatile Queen of Gotham, with likely fatal results.

Two days earlier, an “invitation” had been extended to meet Barbara at The Sirens. The invitation was, needless to say, polite but mandatory.

“I held up my end of the bargain,” he’d said. “I thought we made it clear that after Penguin was out, we’d go our separate ways.”

“Oh, this has nothing to do with business.” Barbara shot an apologetic look towards her lover. “Well, actually, Tabby and I thought you could use some R&R.”

“… What?”

Tabitha, by contrast, was as blunt as ever. “You’re bringing the mood down, Nygma.”

“So,” Barbara chirped, “we know just the place to bring back your joie de vivre! What with the tragic loss of your librarian and all.”

The establishment had been most welcoming to the honored guest of Misses Kean and Galavan, drinks were plentiful and on the house, the seats were the most well placed to enjoy an unobstructed view of the stage, and yet Edward felt nothing at all. He was numb, crashing hard on the frankly excessive amounts of speed he’d been taking just to keep up with the unending daily duties of running a city the size of Gotham – the legal side of it, anyway. He reached for the inside pocket of his shimmering emerald jacket with shaking fingers, and furtively pulled out an elegant gold pillbox. He didn’t even bother swallowing the pills with water – just broke the capsule with his teeth, crunching the contents briefly before swallowing. He knew his neurotransmitters were adapting to the drugs; it took an increasingly higher dosage just to be effective. Just to be able to see –

“Well, this place has certainly gone downhill.” The voice was unmistakable – as was the smell of salt water.

“Now is not the time to be funny, Oswald,” Edward gritted out as the apparition of his friend nonchalantly picked seaweed off his water-logged suit. He stole a sideways glance, but Barbara and Tabitha were too preoccupied in their own conversation, and Butch too preoccupied with ogling the dancers, to notice him. “And you’re dripping all over the floor.”

Oswald wrinkled his nose. “This carpet is unbelievably tacky anyway, my dripping would no doubt improve it. So, for what reason am I here this time?”

“Because I’m stuck here in a strip club with that dolt, Gilzean. Figured you would at least be better company.”

Oswald rolled his eyes. “Can’t say I can properly appreciate the entertainment. For all your vaunted powers of observation, you seemed to have missed the part where I was gay.”

“Well, you didn’t exactly shout it from the rooftops.”

“I would have thought my confession of love would have made that obvious.”

“The one you made to save your own skin, just before I shot you? Spare me.”

Edward didn’t want to think about that. He tried to slap himself awake and regain control, but the drug that surged in his bloodstream had a mind of its own, a mind with an agenda that lined up perfectly with all of Edward’s repressed insecurities and desires.

Oswald seemed undeterred. “You of all people should know that the thing with hallucinations is that they only reflect what you’re trying your hardest not to see.”

“Oh crud.”

What he saw next almost made him wish for the drowned corpse. Oswald had replaced the lead dancer on the stage, wearing nothing but a purple top hat, a matching bow tie, and a purple-sequined pair of hot pants that hugged his perfectly round bottom with much enthusiasm.

“Do you like it?” He twirled around the pole, casually striking a pose that showed off his lithe body perfectly.

Had Oswald always been this gorgeous?

“No. Stop this ridiculousness!”

Oswald only gave him a sly smirk. “That would be more convincing, if I technically wasn’t dead, for one, and two, a hallucination generated from your own subconscious mind.”

He knew where this particular vision had come from. Oswald had told him about this part of his past, this secret that only one other knew. He’d once worked in a club like this to support his mother. He was quite the little con artist; he’d target certain “VIP” patrons, all fluttering long lashes and big blue eyes, pouty lips dripping honeyed words and poisoned flattery until they were completely wrapped around his finger, and they’d give him anything he wanted. His last sucker had been one of Fish Mooney’s underbosses. She didn’t take too kindly to one of her top lieutenants being blackmailed, but she’d offered him a job and a promise to teach him a thing or two… and the rest, as they say, was history. Why had he allowed those two to bring him here?

Edward would never admit it, but while he had eaten little and slept less, and clearly looked it, this Oswald looked like he was in the best physical shape of his life. His petite body was tight and lean, unmarred by the countless beatings and bullets he’d suffered in his rise to the top of Gotham’s crime operations. Magnificent. Ay, every inch a king.

“I didn’t bring you here to see you dance. And I certainly didn’t bring you here so you could try to … serenade me again.”

Oswald wrapped his legs around the pole and arched his back, and spun his body around it with a grace that Edward would never have thought possible from him. “What did you bring me here for, then? To reassure your troubled conscience? To soothe your ruffled feathers?”

The hallucination slid down from the pole and strutted over to Edward’s seat. “To tell you I forgive you for shooting me in the stomach, taking my empire, and desecrating my father’s remains?” Even his voice was a sultry croon, making the accusations sound like an erotic invitation. He wiggled his narrow hips, circling the chair while making sure to stay just inches out of reach, taunting Edward, tempting him to try to touch that lovely soft porcelain skin, those broad shoulders and incredible legs. His thighs looked thick and powerful, the quadriceps swollen enough to lend them bold curves, and his gluteal muscles looked full and hard and awfully inviting in those tight shorts.

When Edward could bear no more, Oswald straddled him and draped a pale arm over Ed’s shoulder – he couldn’t help but notice the obvious muscular definition there from having to support his bodyweight on the chromed pole of the stage. He crossed his legs, hoping no one would take note of his current… impropriety.

Oswald leaned in so his face was two inches away from Edward’s, his porcelain complexion flushed a delicate pink, long dark lashes fluttering against freckled cheeks, a wicked smile on his lips.

“Did you want me to whisper sweet nothings in your ear?”

Edward gulped, his mouth dry. His heart was pounding in his chest. Sweat beaded on his forehead. “Hardly.”

“Or, since you’re so bent on me being your teacher, I can show you exactly how I parted so many of Gotham’s elite from their hard-earned money. How I convinced them to give me their deepest and darkest secrets to sell.”

Edward knew this wasn’t real, that the real Oswald Cobblepot was at the bottom of Gotham Bay – but oh, how this felt real. The feel of Oswald’s hands on his chest, his hot breath in his ear. Delicate white fingers brushing through his hair, the smell of cologne and sweat and pheromones.

His bright blue-green eyes, carefully lined with kohl, almost seemed to glow with a malign intensity as he ground his hips against Edward’s – slowly, as if they were underwater. The sequins on his shorts caught the light as his hips swayed and rolled in time with the music, adding to the hypnotizing effect. Oswald’s lips were so pouty and soft, parted wantonly as he threw his head back, exposing his long white neck. Edward’s mind was, more than ever, a roiling storm of conflicting thoughts pounding through his brain. His eyes went fuzzy, unfocused. He needed to break the spell the drugs had on him, fast.

“Enough of this!” Edward commanded. This wasn’t Oswald; this was a grotesque parody of his friend, as repellent in its own way as the pitiful creature who had once shown up at his doorstep covered in feathers and preaching the virtues of kindness. Oswald would have never been this smouldering, this blatantly sexual; Oswald had been so shy, so gentle and patient with him. He remembered how his friend’s voice would go soft around him, how his face would light up when he entered the room, the open embraces and soft kisses pressed against his shoulder. This Oswald was almost… predatory.

The hallucination stopped his grinding and blinked, as if in surprise. “You don’t want this?”

“I told you, I don’t want you,” Edward growled.  “I never wanted you.”

Oswald pointedly lowered his gaze and raised a ruthlessly shaped eyebrow. “I don’t think certain parts of you are in agreement with that.”

Edward’s face flushed red, his heart hammering against his ribcage. True enough, he was rock hard, the evidence of his arousal plain to see in those tight green trousers. Already, small drops of lubrication stained the gaudy fabric from the inside.

“Go on,” Oswald said. “Take care of it. You know you want to.”

Glassy-eyed and breathing heavily, Edward shamelessly started to palm himself over his clothing, biting his lips to stifle any noise. The drugs had removed all sense of inhibition.

“Look at you, touching yourself in the middle of a strip club, to a dead man at that,” Oswald hissed. “Have you no shame?”

By now, Edward was too lost in his drug-fueled fantasy to care whether he did or not. Not even bothering to be discreet, he reached inside his waistband to pump himself faster. His breathing quickened through gritted teeth, his skin feeling tight and hot. “Says the man wearing sequin booty shorts.”

“You’re a sick man, Edward,” the hallucination sneered. “But the Penguin saw who you really were underneath, didn’t he, Edward? He was the only one in your pitiful existence who ever looked past the jittery nerd and saw what was beneath. He knew you, Edward, and he loved what he knew.”

Edward groaned, squeezing his eyes shut and bucking his hips as he imagined shutting Oswald’s smart mouth up by filling it with his cock. His body flooded with warmth, his fair skin flushing pink as his heart raced well beyond an unhealthy range.

“If it wasn’t for Penguin, you’d still be rotting away in Arkham. It was the Penguin who plucked you out of the gutter and gave you a position befitting your abilities, and you threw it all away. Like everything else in your life. Even Kristen.”

With a strangled cry, Edward came, not even noticing the looks of disgust on the faces of Barbara, Tabitha, and the others. The last thing he heard was his dead friend’s mocking laughter, and then he passed out, eyes rolling into the back of his head.

***

When Edward woke up, alone, the next morning with the worst hangover of his life and a pair of ruined pants, and completely unable to look Barbara and Tabitha in the eye, he swore for the thousandth time he’d throw out the pills. He couldn’t go on like this. He needed a proper guide on this crazy journey of his. Sooner rather than later.

[thewebofslime]

Closing arguments began Monday at Brooklyn federal court in the sex trafficking trial of NXIVM cult leader Keith Raniere, who stands accused of violating young illegal immigrant girls from Mexico and imprisoning them on threat of deportation by the cult. Human experiments and Satanism-inspired rituals took place at the cult, according to the mountains of evidence exposed by this historic trial of the new century. “The defendant tapped into a never-ending flow of women and money,” the prosecution said of Raniere Monday, calling him a “crime boss with no limits and no checks on his power.” Evidence shows how the NXIVM sex cult illegally raised money for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, how it counted Clinton friend Richard Mays and Kirsten Gillibrand’s stepmother as active members and Gillibrand’s father as an employee, and how the cult’s “ally” Chuck Schumer was compromised by virtue of the cult possessing his financial records. Raniere Made Child Porn Featuring Mexican Child Sex Slave Latest: Remember, Fox's Washington Head of Government Relations Is A Former Joe Biden Staffer FBI special agent Meagan Rees presented more than twelve images of child pornography allegedly produced by NXIVM cult leader Keith Raniere in Raniere’s trial Thursday at Brooklyn federal court. Raniere stands accused of sex trafficking during his tenure atop the elite upstate New York sex cult, where he was branding female sex slaves. NXIVM Imported Illegal Immigrants and Gave Them Fake ID’s To Break Immigration Law A former NXIVM sex cult slave named “Daniela” testified in the trial of Raniere, noting that she joined the cult at age 16 in 2002. The alleged visa and immigration fraud involved in Daniela’s years with the cult underscores the extent to which NXIVM had deep connections to powerful people in Mexico, including Emiliano Salinas, the son of a former Mexican president. Robert Gavin of the Albany Times-Union reported: The witness then described how she was given a fake ID by the sex cult and had a traumatizing experience with Raniere, alongside her sister, noting, “I stayed there crying. That was Christmas,” according to Gavin. The witness also knew that Raniere was involved in a sexual relationship with her sister, who was under the age of 18. Raniere Wanted Human Branding Rituals To Be Satanic, Like Human Sacrifice The NXIVM sex cult’s leader Keith Raniere, now on trial in Brooklyn for sex trafficking and racketeering, aimed for his branding of female sex slaves to be “like a sacrifice,” referring to the practice of human sacrifice, which is practiced in Satanic rituals. “Do you think the person who’s being branded should be held to the table, almost like a sacrifice?” Raniere said to his onetime co-conspirator Allison Mack in a 2017 conversation that was captured on audiotape. “That’s a feeling of submission…It probably should be a more vulnerable position. Laying on the back, legs spread straight, held to the table. Hands above the head, probably held, almost like sacrificial.” NXIVM Had The Financial Records of ‘Ally’ Chuck Schumer, and Hillary Clinton’s Emails NXIVM sex cult’s deep oppposition research files on its political enemies including Roger Stone came up at trial. Documents from the archives are shedding light on how the sex cult stored data on top politicians including Chuck Schumer — whom the cult viewed as a “friendly” ally according to ex-employee Frank Parlato — and Hillary Clinton. The Albany Times-Union noted in 2015: “A former close confidant of Keith Raniere, founder of the NXIVM corporation, claims top officials in the secretive organization used a Canadian investigative firm or other means to sift the financial records of six federal judges and U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., according to court records. The former NXIVM insider, Kristin M. Keeffe, said that Seagramsheiress Clare W. Bronfman, who oversees NXIVM’s operations, ordered the financial probes at the direction of Raniere, 55. The six judges whose financial records Keeffe alleges were analyzed have all presided over cases involving NXIVM or its perceived adversaries and critics…The allegations by Keeffe, 45, are outlined in emails attributed to her that were filed recently in Albany County Court…Keeffe broke away from NXIVM in February 2014 and is in hiding, according to correspondence and conversations attributed to her in court records filed in Albany County…” So the NXIVM cult had information on Schumer. The Times-Union reported in 2015: Clare W. Bronfman, an heiress of the Seagram Company business empire, allegedly implanted a “key logger” virus on the computer of her late father, Edgar M. Bronfman Sr., so officials with the NXIVM corporation could secretly monitor his emails, including his exchanges with world leaders and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, according to court records. The extraordinary allegations are attributed to Kristen M. Keeffe, who was part of the inner circle that ran NXIVM, a “human development” organization that has been described by one expert as an “extreme cult.” The accusations by Keeffe are contained in a transcript of a telephone conversation that took place last March between Keeffe and Barbara J. Bouchey, a former NXIVM executive board member who is facing computer trespassing charges in Albany that accuse her and three others of improperly accessing the corporation’s website.’” Times-Union passage ends A former NXIVM member testified in the trial of cult leader Keith Raniere that the sex cult illegally raised money for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign. Big League Politics first reported this bombshell information, which is now confirmed by a witness under oath. The New York Post reports: “Bronfman funneled thousands of dollars into Clinton’s campaign coffers — far in excess of legal limits to contributions — to “curry favor” with the powerhouse political family, according to Mark Vicente, a documentary filmmaker and former member of the Nxivm group that is accused of keeping women as sex slaves. “Clare Bronfman approached other people and said she would like to make a campaign contribution but she couldn’t make it above a certain amount,” Vicente testified in Brooklyn federal court Monday. “I wrote a check. She paid me back.” New York Post passage ends NXIVM whistleblower Frank Parlato appeared exclusively on The Campaign Show with Patrick Howley on Patriots Soapbox (Sunday nights, 6-PM Eastern) to discuss Keith Raniere’s trial prior to the trial kicking off. Parlato made it clear that Hillary Clinton was happy to accept the money from the NXIVM cult. (COURT DOCS Confirm Prosecutors Attempting To Introduce Clinton Evidence). Parlato described how NXIVM imported teenage girls from Mexico, how the cult viewed Chuck Schumer as a “friendly” Democrat ally, and many other bombshells. WATCH. Kirsten Gillibrand’s Family Is Deeply Involved In NXIVM I reported: Democrat senator and presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand’s family ties to the NXIVM sex cult are coming to light, raising serious questions about her relationship with the cult that she once denied knowing about. Gillibrand’s father and stepmother, who are second cousins, were both heavily involved in the cult in the period shortly before they got married, according to eyewitness accounts from ex-NXIVM employees who spoke on the record to Big League Politics, and according to court documents proving that Gillibrand’s father Doug Rutnik was employed by NXIVM. Gillibrand’s father served as a broker between NXIVM cult leader Keith Raniere — whose initials were branded on his female sex slaves — and the then-New York attorney general to resolve Raniere’s financial problems with the state, according to ex-employee whistleblower Joseph O’Hara, whose revelations are printed below. Gillibrand’s stepmother Gwenn Belcourt got “hooked” on the cult as did Bill Clinton’s close friend Richard Mays, according to the whistleblower. Nancy Salzman, the NXIVM president, acted as a personal “guru” for Gillibrand’s stepmother. Ex-cult employee Frank Parlato — who exposed the fact that Raniere was branding women — is working with Big League Politics to uncover the deep longstanding links between Gillibrand, the Clintons, and NXIVM. “The very first time I ever met Gillibrand she was at an event for Hillary Clinton in the Hall of Springs in the State Park. This was in 2006. I was at a table with a Russian friend and Mike Roohan and his wife. I was on the Democratic committee at the time and was given two comp tickets. Gillibrand came up to me introduced herself and said she was running against John Sweeney. This was before all the stories of his drunken behavior came out. He was still congressman kickass at that time. I promised my support and wished her well. i than commented to Mike that with her baby voice and demeanor that she was a lightweight. Boy was I wrong. But the kicker was when the mixing was over and Clinton went to speak. Gillibrand sat with one of the front tables. Yeah the three front VIP tables were all brought by NXIVM and she was sitting with Nancy Salzman. You can quote me on that,” said witness John Tighe in a statement provided to Big League Politics. Nancy Salzman has pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy while her daughter Lauren Salzman admitted to enslaving a woman, stating in court, “I knowingly and intentionally harbored Jane Doe 4, a woman whose identity is known to me, in a room in the home in the Northern District of New York” and “threatened to deport Jane Doe 4 back to Mexico if she did not complete labor requested by myself and others.” JOSEPH O’HARA TELLS BIG LEAGUE POLITICS HIS NXIVM STORY Joseph O’Hara was living in Saratoga Springs at the time, and a woman he met socially called him up out of the blue and asked for him to meet with the leaders of NXIVM. “I agreed to meet with them. We met the very next day. We had coffee and that’s when I was introduced to Nancy Salzman, the president of NXIVM, and she described to me the various problems they were having,” O’Hara said, referring to lawsuits, public relations issues, and governmental issues stemming from trying to get a building permit for a NXIVM center. “I said give me a day or two,” O’Hara said. “After I thought about it, I wrote back to them and said I don’t think there’s anything I can do personally but I can play centerfielder and pull in people you need. I think you need a bigger law firm on this. Yes I can get you a PR firm that can come in and help you. That’s what I proposed to them, that I would be a middle man.” “They hired me in October of 2003 and I worked for them for 15 months. At the end of 2004 a variety of issues had come up and I resigned.” O’Hara, whose official title was “consultant,” said he “met primarily with Keith” Raniere and with bookeeper Cathy Russell and legal liaison Kristin Keefe. O’Hara remembers Raniere vividly. “I thought he was a little strange. He was an odd fellow. Before I met him I had been told a lot about him. I guess when I met him I was a little underwhelmed,” O’Hara said, referring to a tall tale about how Raniere supposedly tied a record in the hundred-yard dash. Raniere held volleyball games with the women in his cult, but O’Hara did not attend. Kirsten Gillibrand’s Father Doug Rutnik Acted As A Broker Between NXIVM and the then-New York Attorney General “I had known Doug Rutnik for a number of years. He was one of the people I thought of immediately for a couple of the problems that he (Raniere) had,” O’Hara said, including the fact that Raniere agreed to pay a certain amount of money to New York State stemming from the bankruptcy of his previous venture Consumer’s Buyline. “Keith never made the payments. I think it was around 45 or 50 thousand dollars.” “I contacted Doug, and explained to him the situation. Doug could be the broker between Keith and the attorney general” O’Hara said. “Doug and I, Nancy and Keith had lunch at a little club. Keith came in and looked like a young middle-aged business exec. Doug said let’s check this out a little further,” O’Hara remembers. NXIVM was trying to get a license for a school. The meeting occurred at the Fort Orange Club in Albany in 2004, according to O’Hara. O’Hara hired a third party attorney in Albany to take a 5-day executive course at NXIVM, and the attorney expressed concerns about the group potentially not paying taxes and “living off the grid.” Doug Rutnik’s Second Cousin, Gillibrand’s Future Stepmother, Got Very Involved “Doug said I know somebody else I could send in. It’s his cousin Gwenn Belcourt. She comes back with rave reviews and Doug gets hired. Keith comes up with the money and pays off the attorney general.” Thus, Gillibrand’s father acted as the broker between NXIVM and the then-New York attorney general after Gillibrand’s future stepmother Gwenn Belcourt gave NXIVM her full seal of approval. “Doug was the one, I don’t know who he talked to, but he was the one who got the okay for…NXIVM sent Doug the check, and it was expressly to resolve the issue over Consumers Buyline. And then the issue went away.” “Gwenn and I met. Doug said let’s have Gwenn go in and take a week-long course. She went in and she wrote up a report and was extremely positive. No issues with the schooling. No issues with the curriculum” at the NXIVM Center, O’Hara recalled. “He told me this is my second cousin Gwenn. She was engaged at the time. She was a lawyer, someone Doug trusted.” “Things were happening, one right after the other. Gwenn comes in, she writes the report, and Doug is doing work for them.” “Meanwhile Gwenn does her thing and she starts taking more classes on her own. We paid for the one class she took…at some point Doug says, this is getting a little weird with Gwenn. He said she broke off her engagement because Nancy told her she needed to re-think her life. Nancy Salzman became Gwenn’s personal guru. She wanted to bring Gwenn in as full-time in-house counsel.” “I know that she was taking a lot of classes at NXIVM,” O’Hara said of Gwenn Belcourt. “NXIVM initiates a lawsuit against me and Doug, and Gwenn is still involved in NXIVM at that point. Doug goes in like a rescue mission. He finally convinces her what’s going on there and she leaves NXIVM. The next thing I know all of a sudden he said Gwenn and I are dating now. Shortly after that they’re engaged.” “For several years, I saw them after they were married,” O’Hara said, noting that the couple was no longer in the cult. Clinton Friend Richard Mays and Gillibrand’s Stepmother Gwenn Belcourt Both Got “Hooked” on the Cult “I had done work down in Arkansas, I had met Richard (Mays) down there. He had great connections with Governor Clinton. His lieutenant governor Tucker became governor. I was trying to get in to make a presentation to the governor. Richard got me the meeting. He got me the meeting with Jim Guy Tucker,” O’Hara said. “One of the other problems Keith had, he had an unpaid bill in Arkansas and he wanted to get an exoneration in Arkansas so he brought Richard Mays in and he got involved. Richard Mays started taking classes and got his daughter taking classes” at NXIVM. “There were people who got hooked on it. Richard Mays was one. Gwenn Belcourt was another,” O’Hara said. “I Had Created This Monster” O’Hara said that he uncovered Raniere evading taxes and illegally obtaining private investigator information on his enemies, which led him to quit. NXIVM then waged lawfare against him. “They destroyed me. I had created this monster. They didn’t know how to get political consultants. They didn’t know how to hire former senator D’Amato, they didn’t know how to hire Richard Mays out of Arkansas, best friends with the Clintons. They had all these people now in their arsenal and they destroyed me in short order,” O’Hara said. Raniere once admitted in a videotape pulled from the Internet, “I am just a demon.” PROOF RUTNIK WORKED FOR NXIVM Former NXIVM employee Frank Parlato provided Big League Politics with copies of the court documents in NXIM’s suit against Rutnik, which prove Rutnik’s employment by the group. (READ THE FULL DOCUMENTS HERE). “I worked as the publicist,” Frank Parlato told Big League Politics. “We ran into a major disagreement and we split. At the time I worked for them I thought they were a little peculiar but it wasn’t until the end that I realized they were a downright evil group.” “There are women on the record who are now adults who have accused Raniere of statutory rape and there are some very suspicious incidents where Mexican girls came under the perimeters of Raniere’s control and left under suspicious circumstances. They came from Chihuahua Mexico. I reported this to the authorities,” Parlato said. “Her father Doug Rutnik came to work as a consultant for NXIVM…he was fired, they sued him, and he had to pay them $100,000,” Parlato said, referring Gillibrand’s father. Parlato is the NXIVM whistleblower who blew the lid off the case, including the revelation that NXIVM leader Keith Raniere’s cult was branding women with his initials. “Her father’s wife, her stepmother, was also a member of NXIVM…Doug got her into the cult, Gillibrand’s father got Gillibrand’s future stepmother into the cult. Doug left the cult because he was sued. Clare Bronfman after her father was sued donated money to Gillibrand. Gillibrand accepted it.” “One is inclined to call her a liar,” Parlato says of Gillibrand. Anti-Human Trafficking Citizens Point To The Bronfman Family’s Land Deals Peter D’Abrosca reported for Big League Politics in June 2018: Land owned by CEMEX, a multinational building materials company headquartered in Mexico, is at the center of a controversy in Tuscon, AZ, where citizens say that they have uncovered a sex-trafficking bunker which local authorities have refused to examine. Big League Politics reported on the grisly scene, with photos from the alleged sex-trafficking site. After alerting local and federal law enforcement about the situation and receiving no help, Veterans on Patrol rallied local volunteers together to physically dig up the site. VOP has amassed a groundswell of support, and has vowed to keep the uncooperative law enforcement entities out of the site while they conduct a private investigation. They are hopeful to bring cadaver dogs on site to search the area. The local news media has stopped reporting on the group’s activities. The situation came to a head Sunday afternoon when, according to the group, they dug up a bloody knife, female underwear, and the plane ticket of a potentially missing girl from Seattle. The group is trying to contact the girl’s family for verification. They filmed the finding live on Facebook, and shortly thereafter, the police showed up and arrested two members of the group for trespassing. The Rothschild connection to CEMEX is clear. Bronfman E.L. Rothschild L.P., a wealth management firm for high net value clients, owns a substantial share of the concrete giant: The CEO of Bronfman E.L. Rothschild is Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations: The Mayor of Tuscon is named Jonathan Rothschild, but it is unconfirmed whether he is related to the dynastic family. The Chairman of the Board of Bronfman E.L. Rothschild is Matthew Bronfman, one of the heirs to the Seagram’s Liquor fortune: Bronfman’s sister, Clare Bronfman is the Operations Director of the Clinton-connected NXIVM sex cult. His other sister, Sara Bronfman, is a Clinton Global Initiative member.

[fountaintheatre]

Jane Anderson reads message from Co-Artistic Director Stephen Sachs

The beautiful hilltop home of playwright/screenwriter Jane Anderson and author/producer Tess Ayers was the lovely location on April 14 of a special gathering of VIP donors and Fountain Friends supporting our Southern California Premiere of Daniel’s Husband. The funny and poignant new play by Michael McKeever on gay marriage is currently playing at the Fountain Theatre to rave reviews, heralded as Critic’s Choice in the Los Angeles Times.

After enjoying wine and hors d’oeuvres prepared by Alligator Pear Catering, the group assembled to hear director Simon Levy speak about his vision for the play.

“There is a commitment to tell these stories on our Fountain stage,” said Jane Anderson, reading a letter from  Co-Artistic Director Stephen Sachs, who was in New York that evening. “Stories of struggle in the gay community as they fight for the most fundamental of all human rights: to be who we are and love whom we choose. In these dark, hateful times, Daniel’s Husband invigorates us with this one simple truth: love is worth fighting for.”

Cast members from Daniel’s Husband then read selections from the play.

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The entertaining event, hosted by Jane Anderson and Tess Ayers, was a delightful success.  Attending were Oscar Arslanian, Bill Brochtrup, Diana Buckhantz, Denis Cagna, Carrie Chassin, Deborah Culver, Tim Cummings, Ken Debie, Jose Fernando, Richard Gallegos, Jackie Goldberg, Barbara Goodhill, Ron Guzman, Jochen Haber, Karen Kondazian, Simon Levy, Ed Martin, Carlos Medina, Jenny O’Hara, Nick Ullett, Don and Suzanne Zachary, Jason and Allison Zelin. 

Info on Daniel’s Husband

Slideshow: Fountain Friends gather at Hollywood Hills home to celebrate ‘Daniel’s Husband’ The beautiful hilltop home of playwright/screenwriter Jane Anderson and author/producer Tess Ayers was the lovely location on April 14 of a special gathering of VIP donors and Fountain Friends supporting our Southern California Premiere of…

[maxwellyjordan]

A “view” from the courtroom: Counting to five

Today is the oral argument in one of the term’s biggest cases, Department of Commerce v. New York, about the Trump administration’s efforts to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. It is also a rare day for afternoon arguments, and rarer still because there will be two of those.

Solicitor General Noel G. Francisco at lectern (Art Lien)

When the court squeezed the census case into its already announced April calendar, it made the wise decision to push the two cases that were originally set for this morning into the afternoon. Thus, after the 80-minute argument this morning, everyone gets a nice break before the court returns for Mitchell v. Wisconsin, about whether a state law authorizing a blood draw from an unconscious motorist requires a warrant; and Rehaif v. United States, about a “knowingly” provision of a federal firearm statute.

In honor of the census question, I have undertaken to conduct an “actual enumeration” of the population of the courtroom this morning. It’s not a simple task, because I am the only enumerator and I don’t have the benefit of distributing any census forms. In fact, I have to do the best I can from my seat in the press section. Just as with the actual count, there are comings and goings that complicate the task.

Let’s start with the bar section. My rough count is that 70 seats are filled, almost all those available, and that includes the four advocates who will argue the census case and their associates at the counsel tables. A few stragglers will be shown to seats in the bar section after the arguments begin, so I’ll set the total at 76.

Next up is the VIP section, which has three rows of benches and one row of cushy chairs to the right of the bar section (looking at the bench). Joanna Breyer, the wife of Justice Stephen Breyer, and Ashley Kavanaugh, the wife of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, are among the 18 people I count in that section.

There are a number of court personnel, including the marshal, the clerk, marshal’s aides, at least a couple of employees who make sure the sound and recording system are running smoothly, and a few others. These number about 12 people. There are an ample number of Supreme Court police officers, but for reasons of security I won’t specify how many.

Big cases like this one also draw a number of the justices’ law clerks. Because I can’t see how many are filling their alcoves on the south side of the courtroom, I’ll impute that there are at least 12 of them here this morning. The others are all back in chambers working on opinion drafts and planning the end-of-year skit, I’ll presume.

Then there is the public section of the courtroom, which includes numerous long benches, some side chairs and three alcoves filled with smaller chairs. My count is that some 200 people are in the public gallery.

Normally a case like this might draw several members of Congress and officials from the administration. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, whose actions pushing for the addition of the citizenship question are at the center of the case, is evidently not here. Later today, he will tweet a shoutout to a Census Bureau report of an increase in new residential sales for March.

However, John Gore, the principal deputy assistant attorney general, who figures prominently in the so-called administrative record of the case, is here.

Congress is in recess this week, which may account for the lack of spectators wearing House member pins. But Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., is here, and she will join New York state Attorney General Letitia James at the press microphones on the court’s plaza after the argument.

At 10 a.m., the census count in the courtroom increases by nine, as the justices take the bench.

I have saved my enumeration of the press section for last, because the court has indicated the possibility of opinions today. On such days, even when a big case is being argued, several reporters will remain in the press room to learn which opinion or opinions are being released. If it is something big, they may elect to skip the argument altogether. That won’t be necessary today, though, because Chief Justice John Roberts has just opinion to announce.

“In case 18-459, Emulex Corporation versus Varjabedian, the writ of certiorari is dismissed as improvidently granted,” Roberts says. He then turns to Clerk of the Court Scott Harris for routine bar admissions. Some seven or eight reporters who were downstairs quickly make their way up to the courtroom, and most roll their eyes as they take their seats. It’s a blessing that reporters don’t have to write about a big opinion on such a busy day for arguments. But it seems that a DIG like this one could have been announced on a different day.

(Perhaps, though, a more substantive opinion got pulled at the last minute. Later Tuesday, the court announces the possibility of opinions of Wednesday, which had not been announced as a possible opinion day after last Thursday’s conference.)

So with the press section now full, I count 70 reporters present. And the result of the enumeration of the entire courtroom is 397 people, with no inquiry as to whether they are U.S. citizens or not. This does not include the groups of a dozen or so spectators who shuffle in and out throughout the argument as part of the three-minute rotating line. I fully acknowledge the possibility, even the likelihood, of an undercount.

As to the argument itself, Amy Howe has the main account (and on such a tight deadline between the morning and afternoon arguments!).

The court’s liberal bloc will spar repeatedly with U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco over the commerce secretary’s push for the citizenship question.

Justice Elena Kagan, a former solicitor general herself, tells Francisco that “your briefs are extremely well done. … But a lot of your arguments just do not appear in the secretary’s decision memo. And the fact that SG lawyers can come up with 60 pages of explanation for a decision, that’s all post hoc rationalization.”

A short time later, Francisco says, “Your honor, I’m tempted to pocket the compliment and sit down, but I won’t do that.”

Two of the court’s conservatives, Kavanaugh and Justice Neil Gorsuch, ask about the long history of some use of a citizenship question, which was first asked on the 1820 census, as well as practices in other countries.

“What do we do with the history and the fact that this question” was on the main census form for “a long time,” Gorsuch asks.

Kavanaugh says, “The United Nations recommends that countries ask a citizenship question on the census. And a number of other countries do it. Spain, Germany, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Mexico ask a citizenship question.”

Francisco makes the same point about the UN in his brief, which is more respect than the international organization usually gets from U.S. conservatives.

The three advocates who argue on behalf of the challengers—New York state Solicitor General Barbara Underwood (a former acting U.S. solicitor general under President Bill Clinton), Dale Ho of the American Civil Liberties Union, and Douglas Letter, representing the U.S. House of Representatives as an amicus, do so ably, but it is uncertain they make much headway with the court’s conservatives.

The most explosive exchange comes toward the end of argument, as Francisco takes to the lectern for his rebuttal.

He suggests that challengers’ positions on standing are “effectively empowering any group in the country to knock off any question on the census if they simply get together and boycott it.”

When Justice Sonia Sotomayor seeks to question him on this, he keeps speaking, as he did with some of her other questions earlier in the argument.

The chief justice, who has been perceived as annoyed by Sotomayor’s frequent questions during a lawyer’s rebuttal time, feels compelled to cut off Francisco by saying, “Justice Sotomayor.”

“Are you suggesting that Hispanics are boycotting the census,” she asks. “Are you suggesting they don’t have, whether it is rational or not, that they don’t have a legitimate fear?”

Not at all, Francisco says. It’s just that the challengers’ view could lead to groups feeling empowered to “knock off any question of the census that they found particularly objectionable.”

“Mr. Chief Justice, unless the court has further questions,” Francisco says.

“We’re all done,” Roberts says breezily before adding the more traditional, “The case is submitted.”

The post A “view” from the courtroom: Counting to five appeared first on SCOTUSblog.

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From left, President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, former President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton listen during a State Funeral at the National Cathedral, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington, for former President George H.W. Bush.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)

The flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush is carried by a military honor guard past former President George W. Bush and wife Laura Bush, President Donald Trump, first lady Melania Trump, former President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President Jimmy Carter, and Rosalynn Carter during a State Funeral at the National Cathedral, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

The flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush is carried by a military honor guard during a State Funeral at the National Cathedral, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)

President Donald Trump shakes hands with former President Barack Obama during a State Funeral service for former President George H.W. Bush at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Visitors pay their respects at the flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush, as he lies in state in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) AP RADIO Update hourly Ad

The hearse carrying the flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush passes by the White House from the Capitol, heading to a State Funeral at the National Cathedral, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington. AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin).

From right, former President George W. Bush, second from right, former first lady Laura Bush, Neil Bush, Sharon Bush, Bobby Koch, Doro Koch, Jeb Bush and Columba Bush, stand just prior to the flag-draped casket of former President George H.W. Bush being carried by a joint services military honor guard from the U.S. Capitol, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)

Map shows funeral procession route through Washington for President George H.W. Bush; 2c x 4 inches; with all related stories.

A final salute is rendered by the honor guard standing watch over the flag-draped casket of the late president, George H.W. Bush, as the public viewing comes to an end at the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at the state funeral of former President George H.W. Bush at the Washington National Cathedral (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

WASHINGTON — George H. W. Bush was celebrated with high praise and loving humor Wednesday as the nation bade farewell to the man who was America’s 41st president and the last to fight for the U.S. in wartime. Three former presidents looked on at Washington National Cathedral and a fourth — George W. Bush — eulogized his dad.

The congregation, filled with foreign leaders and diplomats, Americans of high office and others touched by Bush’s life, rose for the arrival of the casket, accompanied by clergy of faiths from around the world. In their row together, President Donald Trump and former Presidents Barack Obama, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton stood with their spouses and all placed their hands over their hearts.

Bush was “the last great-soldier statesman,” historian Jon Meacham said in his eulogy, “our shield” in dangerous times. On a light note, he added that Bush, campaigning in a crowd in a department store, once shook hands with a mannequin. Rather than flushing in embarrassment, he simply cracked, “Never know. Gotta ask.”

Meacham also praised Bush’s call to volunteerism — his “1,000 points of light” — placing it alongside Abraham Lincoln’s call to honor “the better angels of our nature” in the American rhetorical canon. Meacham called those lines “companion verses in America’s national hymn.”

Trump had mocked “1,000 points of light” last summer at a rally, saying “What the hell is that? Has anyone ever figured that one out? And it was put out by a Republican, wasn’t it?”

The national funeral service capped three days of remembrance in Washington before Bush’s remains return to Texas on Wednesday for burial Thursday.

A military band played “Hail to the Chief” as Bush’s casket was carried down the steps of the U.S. Capitol, where he had lain in state. Family members looked on as servicemen fired off a cannon salute.

His hearse was then driven in a motorcade to the cathedral ceremony, slowing in front of the White House. Bush’s route was lined with people much of the way, bundled in winter hats and taking photos.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at the state funeral of former President George H.W. Bush at the Washington National Cathedral (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Waiting for his arrival inside, Trump shook hands with Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, who greeted him by saying “Good morning.” Trump did not shake hands with Bill and Hillary Clinton, who looked straight ahead.

Bill Clinton and Mrs. Obama smiled and chatted as music played. Carter was seated silently next to Hillary Clinton in the cavernous cathedral. Obama cracked up laughing at someone’s quip. Vice President Mike Pence shook Carter’s hand.

Trump tweeted Wednesday that the day marked “a celebration for a great man who has led a long and distinguished life.” Trump and his wife took their seats after the others, briefly greeting the Obamas seated next to them.

Also expected in the invitation-only crowd: Mike Lovejoy, a Kennebunkport electrician and fix-it man who has worked at Bush’s Maine summer estate since 1990 and says he was shocked and heartened to be asked to come.

On Tuesday, soldiers, citizens in wheelchairs and long lines of others on foot wound through the Capitol Rotunda to view Bush’s casket and honor a president whose legacy included World War military service and a landmark law affirming the rights of the disabled. Former Sen. Bob Dole, a compatriot in war, peace and political struggle, steadied himself out of his wheelchair and saluted his old friend and one-time rival.

After the national funeral service at the cathedral, Bush’s remains will be returned to Houston to lie in repose at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church before burial Thursday at his family plot on the presidential library grounds at Texas A&M University in College Station. His final resting place will be alongside Barbara Bush, his wife of 73 years who died in April, and Robin Bush, the daughter they lost to leukemia in 1953 at age 3.

Trump ordered the federal government closed Wednesday for a national day of mourning. Flags on public buildings are flying at half-staff for 30 days.

As at notable moments in his life, Bush brought together Republicans and Democrats in his death, and not only the VIPs.

Members of the public who never voted for the man waited in the same long lines as the rest, attesting that Bush possessed the dignity and grace that deserved to be remembered by their presence on a cold overcast day in the capital.

“I’m just here to pay my respects,” said Jane Hernandez, a retired physician in the heavily Democratic city and suburbs. “I wasn’t the biggest fan of his presidency, but all in all he was a good, sincere guy doing a really hard job as best he could.”

Bush’s service dog, Sully, was taken to the viewing, too — his main service these last months since Barbara Bush’s death in April being to rest his head on her husband’s lap. Service dogs are trained to do that.

The CIA also honored Bush, the only spy chief to become president, as three agency directors past and present joined the public in the viewing.

In the midst of the period of mourning, first lady Melania Trump gave Laura Bush, one of her predecessors, a tour of holiday decorations at the White House, a “sweet visit during this somber week,” as Mrs. Bush’s Instagram account put it. And the Trumps visited members of the Bush family at the Blair House presidential guesthouse, where they are staying. Former President George W. Bush and his wife greeted the Trumps outside before everyone went in for the private, 20-minute visit.

Although Trump will attend Bush’s service, he is not among the eulogists. They are, in addition to Bush’s eldest son, Alan Simpson, the former senator and acerbic wit from Wyoming; Brian Mulroney, the former Canadian prime minister who also gave a eulogy for Ronald Reagan; and presidential historian Jon Meacham.

Map shows funeral procession route through Washington for President George H.W. Bush; 2c x 4 inches; with all related stories.

People lined up before dawn to pay respects to the 41st president, a son and father of privilege now celebrated by everyday citizens for his common courtesies and depth of experience.

“He was so qualified, and I think he was just a decent man,” said Sharon Terry, touring Washington with friends from an Indianapolis garden club. Said her friend Sue Miller, also in line for the viewing: “I actually think I underestimated him when he was in office. My opinion of him went up seeing how he conducted himself as a statesman afterward.”

Fred Curry, one of the few African-Americans in line, is a registered Democrat from Hyattsville, Maryland, who voted for Bush in 1988, the election won by the one-term president. “Honestly I just liked him,” he said. “He seemed like a sincere and decent man and you couldn’t argue with his qualifications.”

Inside the Capitol, Sully, the 2-year-old Labrador retriever assigned to Bush, sat by the casket in the company of people who came to commemorate Bush’s signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the 1990 law that, among its many provisions, required businesses that prohibit pets to give access to service dogs.

“After Mrs. Bush’s death, general companionship was a big part of Sully’s job,” John Miller, president and CEO of America’s VetDogs, said in a phone interview. “One of the things that I think was important to the president was the rest command, where Sully would rest his head on the president’s lap.”

The law was just one point of intersection for Bush and Dole, now 95, who was one of its leading advocates in the Senate.

They were fellow World War II veterans, Republican Party leaders, fierce rivals for the 1988 Republican presidential nomination won by Bush (“Stop lying about my record,” Dole snapped at Bush) and skilled negotiators. Dole, an Army veteran hit by German machine gunfire in Italy, has gone through life with a disabled right arm. Bush, a Navy pilot, survived a bail-out from his stricken aircraft over the Pacific and an earlier crash landing.

On Tuesday, Dole was helped out of his wheelchair by an aide, slowly steadied himself and saluted Bush with his left hand, his chin quivering.

Dignitaries had come forward on Monday, too, to honor the Texan whose service to his country extended three quarters of a century, from World War II through his final years as an advocate for volunteerism and relief for people displaced by natural disaster. Bush, 94, died Friday.

Trump’s relationship with the Bush family has been tense. The current president mocked the elder Bush for his “thousand points of light” call to volunteerism, challenged his son’s legacy as president and trounced “low-energy” Jeb Bush in the Republican presidential primaries en route to office. The late President Bush called Trump a “blowhard.”

Those insults have been set aside, but the list of funeral service speakers marked the first time since Lyndon Johnson’s death in 1973 that a sitting president was not tapped to eulogize a late president. (Clinton did so for Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush eulogized Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford.)

Bush’s death reduces membership in the ex-presidents’ club to four: Jimmy Carter, Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

By CALVIN WOODWARD, LAURIE KELLMAN and ASHRAF KHALIL – Dec 5.2018 -12:28 PM EDT ___

Associated Press writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

Bush Celebrated With Praise And Humor At Cathedral Farewell WASHINGTON — George H. W. Bush was celebrated with high praise and loving humor Wednesday as the nation bade farewell to the man who was America’s 41st president and the last to fight for the U.S.