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QW: Send savory bits of information to Byron
Beck at bbeck@
wweek.com at least 10 days prior to publication.
.Queer
As Folk
The
kinky stuff beams over the airwaves at 10 pm Sundays on
the Showtime network.
Rose
City Gay Freedom Band
Check
out this tuneful group at its fall concert called "'Tis
the Season
For Music."
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Showtime's brand-new series Queer As Folk shows that
television has come a long way since the days of All in
the Family, Three's Company and Sanford & Son.
Each one of these boob tube classics (like QAF) had
their origins in the bosom of Britannia. And (like QAF)
each one of them was snatched by the good ol' U.S. of A. and,
following a crude makeover, broadcast to the delight of American
audiences.
But I don't think many Americans, gay or otherwise, will
be laughing much at the latest retooled import from the
land of Benny Hill. You see, something got lost in the translation
of this Channel 4 export to cable's naughtiest network.
Like its heart.
The original QAF is an unabashed portrayal of the
underbelly of gay Limey life, and the American version still
zooms in on the daily homo-antics of three archetypal gay
boys. But, rather than place these meat puppets in a specific
gay ghetto (like Manchester), director Russell Mulcahy (Highlander,
Highlander II) has decided to plop his gay playthings
down in Pittsburgh, but it looks more like a Hollywood hybrid
of Castro and Christopher streets (All gay men! All the
time!).
And yes, like its overseas counterpart, QAF still
stuffs its crotch with all sorts of sordid visuals. In the
first episode, viewers get treated to the lovely sights
of man-on-man rump-humping, rimming and assorted fellatio
cocktails--and that's just in the opening sequence. But
all these sexy images have about as much appeal as an Herbal
Essence shampoo commercial.
And the acting--it's downright nasty. And I don't mean
that in a good way. Gale Harold, who plays sex-on-the-brain
Brian, is best known for stage work. He sucks--again, not
in a good way. Hal Sparks, who plays the always-put-upon,
undersexed Michael, is best known for his hosting duties
on E!'s Talk Soup. He really sucks. And Randy
Harrison, who plays the way-gay underage boy-toy Justin,
is going to be known best for this show, in which he spends
a good portion of his time sucking or getting sucked off.
The saving Gracies of this show, though, are two familiar
faces: Sharon Gless and Portland's own Peter Paige. Gless,
whom you might remember as Christine Cagney on Cagney
& Lacey, is completely unrecognizable in her role
as every gay man's nightmare: a doting mother who would
rather be a teenage fag-hag. Paige plays an over-the-top
nelly named Emmett. He shines in a role that forces him
to address what it's like to be a queen amongst so many
commoners.
But two SweetTarts in a bowl of Jawbreakers does not make
a candy dish. After a few viewings of this sucker, you might
agree.
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