OUTTAKE VOICES™ (Interviews)

Jeffrey Sanker, the premier producer of gay party extravaganzas, talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ about his event the White Party 3D Experience that takes place April 6th through the 9th in Palm Springs, California. This year’s headliner is Gammy Winning Superstar Mary J. Blige. White Party Palm Springs is the largest gay dance music festival in North America. This year White Party Palm Springs expands into a whole new dimension as music-lovers, party-goers, DJs and performers from every corner of the globe converge for the ultimate Spring escape set against sun-drenched mountain vistas and spectacular desert skies. Building on his reputation for the best cutting-edge and breakthrough talent that has included performances from Lady Gaga, Ke$ha and Jennifer Lopez, White Party founder and producer Sanker has set his sights on raising the bar even higher. “White Party 2012 is going to be a 3D experience,” said Sanker. “Bigger and bolder LED and visual displays and immense stage and platform structures designed to stretch the limits of your imagination, the only lenses needed are your shades.”

When asked what his personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Sanker stated, “As a gay man I believe in civil rights for everybody. It’s kind of a hot topic right now and I personally support HRC (the Human Rights Campaign) in every way I can. You know financially, physically, I attend their dinners and all their functions. I go to all the Prop 8 rallies and gather signatures and sign petitions myself.” Jeffrey lives in California so when asked what his reaction was to the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit finding Prop 8 unconstitutional, he added, “Well I’m so happy they found it unconstitutional because it is. I think the struggle for equal rights for all of us in our community has gone on for so long, for over fifty years. I was excited to finally see this opinion to be stated so eloquently. I was really very pleased.”

Jeffrey Sanker is the founder of LA-based White Party Entertainment, Inc. Sanker's passion for parties began during the early eighties in New York City. Working at such legendary locations as Studio 54, Palladium and Private Eyes, he fine-tuned his skills as a promoter and special event producer. He has also hosted parties for numerous celebrities over the years. After moving to Los Angeles in 1987 his innovative technique of using landmark venues for trend-setting themed events was credited for breathing new life into the LA scene. Since then he has worked with all of the hottest and trendiest venues and nightclubs in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Miami.

For More Info Tix & Hotels: jeffreysanker.com

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Celebrities on the Red Carpet at the 23rd GLAAD MEDIA Awards in NYC talk with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson, host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. John Stamos and Broadway Legend Bernadette Peters presented the Vito Russo Award to the producing team of Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Chicago, Hairspray, Smash). Craig and Neil talked with us on the Red Carpet about LGBTQ teen bullying and the new film they’re producing about Constance McMillen for LIFETIME TV. Constance McMillen was the young teenager who ignited such national controversy in 2010 when she was banned from bringing a female date to her prom in Mississippi’s Itawamba County School District. The incident brought such national attention as she appeared on network talk shows including Ellen DeGeneres and met with President Obama to tell her story.

In his acceptance speech Zadan stated, "I want to thank GLAAD for selecting us to be honored, and for their extraordinary work every single day. When we did THE REAGANS movie, we had death threats for telling the truth about that President's outright refusal to acknowledge the growing AIDS crisis in America. We would not have survived that ordeal, I must point out, without the help of GLAAD. They got us through the political firestorm leveled against us by the Republican National Committee. So we got to see first hand what GLAAD's capable of accomplishing when they mobilize the troops, and thank God for them." Zadan finished his acceptance by thanking his late friend and GLAAD's founder, Vito Russo, "Some people become your heroes and they don't even know it. Vito Russo was mine. And the lucky thing for me was I got to tell him while he was here”.

We also talked about crucial LGBT issues facing our community with emphasis on LGBTQ teen bullying with celebrities including: fashion guru Carson Kressley, fierce gay allies Broadway stars Bernadette Peters and actress Megan Hilty, GLAAD Board of Directors co-chair Sheri Fults, GLAAD Acting President Mike Thompson, the fabulous transgender actress Laverne Cox, Robin Skye whose play SOUTHERN COMFORT won for Outstanding New York Theatre Off-Off Broadway, Zach Wahls who appeared in a GLAAD Media Award-nominated episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show and received a standing ovation as he spoke to the crowd about the impact of his 2011 speech to the Iowa senate in which he spoke about his lesbian moms. Then we chatted with NY INK’s ROBEAR, figure skater Johnny Weir and his new husband Victor Voronov, actress Kim Wayans talked about her role playing the mother on PARIAH which won the award for Outstanding Film- Limited Release, CHOPPED host Ted Allen shared his spin on LGBT issues and we concluded with Jay Manuel sharing his advice for LGBTQ teens faced with the bully epidemic. The 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards were hosted by GLEE stars Naya Rivera and Corey Monteith and sponsored by Ketel One and Wells Fargo at Marriott Marquis Theater on March 24, 2012 in New York City. Additional awards will be presented in Los Angeles on April 21st at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites and in San Francisco on June 2nd at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis. For More Info & List of Winners & More Info: glaad.org

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Jim Morrison who hosts the new 30 minute political analysis series FOR & AGAINST on here! TV talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson, host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. FOR & AGAINST offers viewers the chance to explore news and headlines through a uniquely LGBT lens. Each episode features Morrison digging deeper into the issues to focus on how everything from campaign finance to current and future White House policy effects our LGBT people. Additionally, Morrison sits down with top policymakers and pundits spanning the political landscape and challenges them on the issues that influence LGBT voters. We talked to Morrison about FOR & AGAINST and his spin on our LGBT community’s concerns in this Presidential election year. When asked what’s his impression of the anti-gay GOP candidates running for President, Morrison stated, “Oh God, I mean the answer to that question is implicit in the question. I mean it’s disappointing, really disappointing. This is not a winning issue for them. I think they’re using the 2004 playbook and the 2008 playbook where they could turn out people who were against marriage equality but the polls are showing that is not the case. So I think it’s just like this war on women. It’s like they put their eggs in one basket and that’s just not going to do it. They’re going to be shocked when I think they’re going to lose significantly by concentrating on these issues. But even more frustrating is when you look at the LGBT Republican groups. Now I have no problem with if you want to be fiscally conservative, I get that. That’s part of the American discussion. We have different views, that’s how we get good policy. But to suggest that you can be for any of these candidates, whether it’s Mitt Romney or even Ron Paul, without examining fundamentally what their positions are on our very identities bothers me. There’s a lot of people who say that Ron Paul is in favor of marriage equality but the fact is he’s not. He hides behind these states rights issues and then he goes and supports DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act), which clearly is against us.” Morrison is a liberal-leaning pundit not afraid to challenge convention. He is a graduate of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service and holds a law degree from Columbia University with an emphasis on Constitutional Law and Civil Rights. Jim ran for the New Jersey State Senate and successfully litigated the first sexual orientation discrimination case against a high school student. Additionally, he was a finalist on the first season of the reality series THE MOLE and was subsequently, the first openly gay man to be placed on People magazine’s “Most Eligible Bachelor” list. For More Info: heretv.com/forandagainst

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Dr. Robin Gans who founded GIRL BAR in Los Angeles with Sandy Sachs in 1990 talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. GIRL BAR is the largest dance and entertainment group for lesbians in the United States. After moving to LA from New York in the late 80’s, Sachs and Gans recognized the need for an upscale nightclub catering to the lesbian community. “We wanted to do something to help make the lesbian community more visible and create a place for women to come together,” said GIRL BAR co-founder, Sandy Sachs. “GIRL BAR is a place where our patrons can come and feel safe, feel comfortable and most of all feel empowered,” adds Robin. Now the duo is producing GIRL BAR DINAH SHORE WEEKEND LAS VEGAS April 27th to 29th with Linda Fusco and Michele Agnew of TRUCK STOP GIRLZ. We talked about the move to Las Vegas and Robin’s spin on crucial issues facing our LGBT community. When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Dr. Gans stated, “Well first of all I’m a licensed clinical psychologist in the State of California and certainly I know what it’s like to be coming out. Actually when I was in college and having those feelings when I was in high school, I went to private school back east, so one of the things that I always wanted to do was work with the gay community to help fellow gays and lesbians to not only come out but to have clearly a much better understanding of themselves and a much more integrated self. So I have several patients that are within the gay and lesbian community and I’ve worked with couples. When I was training I worked with the LA Gay and Lesbian Center for a year and I worked with troubled teens. I actually did an internship with them for a year, some who were definitely gay at the ages of fifteen and sixteen. Certainly I feel a commitment within my community and I feel a personal commitment in general just being involved with HRC and with any fundraiser, and anything that really contributes to awareness and obviously political rights in the LGBTQ community. But personally I would say absolutely working as a therapist. I do my best to help raise awareness and help people lead more integrated and happier lives.” Since last year, GIRL BAR and FUSE EVENTS have been working exclusively with Caesars Entertainment to create the ultimate women’s weekend experience featuring all the best that Caesars Entertainment properties have to offer. Official events and hotels for the Dinah Shore Weekend in Las Vegas will be situated within walking distance, across a variety of Caesars-owned properties, including Planet Hollywood and Flamingo hotels. “Our sophisticated ladies wanted ‘bigger, better and more’ in a city that never sleeps with the finest in entertainment and accommodations, with non-stop flights both domestically and internationally,” said Girl Bar producers Sandy Sachs and Dr. Robin Gans; adding, “We listened and Caesars Entertainment delivered, recognizing our global potential and wooing us with full sponsorship and a 24/7 package of perks, food, beverages and entertainment where there are no last calls!” Info For Info: dinahshoreweekend.com

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Deborah Salem Smith, Playwright-in-Residence at Trinity Repertory Company in Providence Rhode Island talks about her new play LOVE ALONE with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. The play takes on medical malpractice, gay marriage and LGBTQ family rights. The play is about after a routine medical procedure goes tragically wrong, a lawsuit ensues and the lives of both the patient's family and the doctor charged with her care are transformed. This is a lovingly drawn portrait of how we grieve and how we heal. LOVE ALONE will have its World Premiere at Trinity Rep March 16th and runs through May 27th. When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Deborah stated. “I’ve been with my partner for a long time and we have two young children together. So it’s really important to me when I realized that I had not been writing plays with gay characters in them, which is really bizarre and embarrassing. So it was important to me to put a gay family in the center of the story. The character Helen who has lost her partner of twenty years, her grief is grief we can all, regardless of sexuality can recognize and empathize with. This is the story of two women who are deeply in love and the unexpected death of one of them in minor surgery is a huge emotional tragedy for her partner, for the couple’s daughter and I think to some degree, which I think is important, for the audience to experience that too. And to let go of distinguishing gay-straight and just be reminded that a devoted couple regardless of any of these labels you want to put on it, is a relationship that we all recognize and empathize with.” LOVE ALONE received an Edgerton Foundation New American Play Award to support its premiere at Trinity Repertory Company and also was recognized with an Honorable Mention by the Jane Chambers Playwriting Award. Deborah Salem Smith’s previous honors include an Emerging American Artist Fulbright for playwriting in Dublin, Ireland, where she worked with the Abbey Theatre, Ireland's national theater, and served as a Visiting Academic at the Trinity College School of Drama. Her work has been recognized by a National Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities, a MacDowell Fellowship, a Colby Fellowship, a Major Hopwood Award, as well as writing and visual arts prizes from the University of Michigan and Princeton University. LOVE ALONE runs from March 16th through May 27th at the Trinity Rep in Providence, Rhode Island. For More Info & Tix: trinityrep.com

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Fred Karger, the first openly gay Presidential Candidate from a major political party in American history talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. He was on the GOP ballot in New Hampshire and Michigan and has received confirmation that his name will appear on the ballot in California, New York, Maryland, North Carolina and Puerto Rico. Fred Karger was the first to announce his candidacy for the Republican nomination for President of the United States on March 23, 2011. Throughout his career, Karger has worked on nine presidential campaigns and served as a senior consultant on campaigns for Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and Gerald Ford. He retired after 27 years and has since become an activist for gay rights, including his organization Californians Against Hate (now Rights Equal Rights) to investigate the LDS Church and the National Organization for Marriage in their campaigns against marriage equality in California and Maine. When asked what his personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Karger stated, “Well, as someone who struggled so much as an adolescent and through my teen years, someone who went to psychiatrists when I was in college to try and switch because it was the early seventies, it sounded viable; you thought there were options. Fortunately the three different ones that I went to, which was a trial to see which one I would go to, I asked all three about switching, fortunately each said, ‘Sorry, we can’t do that. We can work with you but it’s impossible.’ So I’m glad I had some very good help and advise back then when I was twenty-one. Actually I met somebody named Dan Brewster when I was twenty-one and he was just this great role model and I realized that it was okay to be gay. You could be like Dan Brewster. There wasn’t even a word ‘gay’ back then, it kind of evolved like everything else. I had to struggle and live a double life. I didn’t tell my parents until I was forty-one, or my sibling. I really didn’t come out publicly or professionally until I was fifty-six years old. And while I had a healthy gay life it was very limited and it was a terrible existence to have that double life. So now I’m into my sixties and have absolutely no hang-ups obviously as running for President. I really want to let that message resonate throughout the country and as it happens through all the international coverage I’ve gotten, through the world. If you happen to be gay or lesbian or bisexual or transgender or queer, you can do anything you want to do. You can even run for President of The United States.” Fred Karger is one of the bravest gay activists that our LGBT community has. His mere visibility in the most homophobic race for President this country has ever seen will be something to watch and take note of. Karger says he’ll stick around until August for the Republican Convention in Tampa that takes place August 27th through August 30th 2012. For More Info: fredkarger.com

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Sara Benincasa, award-winning comedian/writer talks to Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ about her new must-read book AGORAFABULOUS! Dispatches from My Bedroom based on her acclaimed one-woman show. The book chronicles her journey through a panic disorder that developed into agoraphobia by the age of 21. Her fears were so severe she was afraid to leave her own bedroom and sank into a suicidal depression. With the help of her friends and family she was able to work through the darkest time of her life and find light and laughter at the end of the tunnel. Sara is very outspoken on LGBT issues and is a fierce gay ally. Born and raised in New Jersey we thought we’d get her spin on Governor Chris Christie vetoing gay marriage in her home state and other issues facing our LGBT community. When asked what her personal commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Benincasa stated, “I would say that it’s pretty huge. I would consider myself an ally more than anything else. I mean I’m a woman, I have dated women but I certainly wouldn’t identify as lesbian. I use to identify as bisexual but then I thought about it, well bisexual sounds like fifty-fifty and I’m not fifty-fifty so maybe I shouldn’t use that term. So I would just say that I am certainly an active ally.” Sara Benincasa’s outspoken, sexually-charged comedy has won praise from the Chicago Tribune, CNN, The Guardian, The New York Times, and has earned her an ECNY (Emerging Comedian of New York) Award and a Webby nomination. Currently Sara is traveling throughout America on the AGORAFABULOUS! Book Reading Show. Her upcoming schedule is as follows: Saturday March 3rd at 4P at Bookhampton, East Hampton, NY, Thursday March 8th at 7P Barnes and Noble, Houston, Texas. Sara will be appearing on Friday March 9th at the South by Southwest Music and Media Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas. She will be speaking on the South by Southwest Panel: Political Humor 2.0: Teh Internetz R Leaking. After that she’s off to Portland, Oregon on Monday March 19th at 7:30P at Powell's Books and completes her book tour on Tuesday Mar 20th at 7:30P at Tattered Cover in Denver, Colorado. AGORAFABULOUS! Dispatches from My Bedroom is available on William Morrow a division of HarperCollins Publishers. For More Info: sarabenincasa.com

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Ned Flaherty, Project Manager Election 2012 for the national LGBT organization Marriage Equality USA talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. We talked to Ned about the map he has created revealing the encouraging news that 42% of Americans now live in the 21 states that offer some form of legal recognition at the state level for same-gender relationships. The map illustrates the states offering partial equality as well as itemizing the 30 states where various bans on marriage by law, by constitution, or both law and constitution that remain in effect. Ned Flaherty lives in Massachusetts where gay marriage is celebrating its eighth anniversary in May. When asked what his reaction has been to the recent momentum of gay marriage passing in Washington state, Prop 8 being found unconstitutional in California by the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and the possibility of marriage equality passing in New Jersey and Maryland, Flaherty stated, “I expect that every state that passes marriage equality in any significant way is going to have the same experience we’ve had for the last eight years in Massachusetts and that is first of all none of the dire consequences threatened by the religious evangelicals or the rightwing Republicans have ever occurred here. The second thing is a couple of dramatic improvements. One is there’s more business revenue and more tax revenue into the state government simply as the result of the additional marriage business going on here. And the third thing is Massachusetts has one of the lowest divorce rates now in the nation. The nation hasn’t had such a divorce rate as low as Massachusetts for decades. So I think that among those states you mentioned and the others that you didn’t mention, as they all move closer towards marriage equality, they’re going to find more business, more government tax revenue and none of the frightening harms that the equality opponents always talk about.” As Project Manager Election 2012 Flaherty has also created the Election 2012 Project at Marriage Equality USA to show twelve major ways in which LGBT people still are not equal citizens, to expand the national dialogue and to provide usable data to candidates, journalists and voters. Since the project began some presidential candidates have gradually increased their overall support for LGBT equality. For More Info & View Map & Chart: marriageequality.org

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Ted Olson and David Boies and the American Foundation for Equal Rights held an audio press conference two hours after Prop 8 was found unconstitutional by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson Host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ participated in this historic discussion with members of the press, AFER Board President Chad Griffin and lead co-counsel Ted Olson and David Boies. In an opinion authored by Judge Stephen Reinhardt, the Ninth Circuit concluded that Proposition 8 violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, “Proposition 8 serves no purpose and has no effect, other than to lessen the status and human dignity of gays and lesbians in California and to officially reclassify their relationships and families as inferior to those of opposite-sex couples. The Constitution simply does not allow for laws of this sort,” Judge Reinhardt wrote. In his opening remarks about this enormous victory for our LGBT community Ted Olson stated, “When we started this trial the very first words that we spoke when the trial began in San Francisco was that this case is about marriage and equality. It’s about the right to marry and this decision today affirms the importance in American society of the right to marry. The very proponents who opposed us in this case talked about how important marriage was. The difference is that they wanted to keep it for themselves. They wanted to deny this relationship, this institution, this building block of our society, the most fundamental right according to the Supreme Court that we have in America. They wanted to deny that right to a large segment of our society because they felt that those persons were unequal or undeserving and should be treated differently under the California Constitution. This case was about marriage and it’s also about freedom and decency. How we are going to treat our fellow citizens, our brothers and sisters, our cousins and our neighbors. Are we going to treat them with the same dignity that we ourselves enjoy in this country? The District Court earlier and the Ninth Circuit today ringingly reaffirmed the right to equality, the fundamental right to marriage and the fact that it cannot be denied to citizens on the basis of their sexual orientation or the basis of sex. This is a very significant milepost on the way to equality in this country. We’re not there yet. One of these days soon I suspect, I feel strongly that we will be. So this is a very important decision and it was 80 pages of tightly reasoned, very thoughtfully articulated Supreme Court analysis, so we are one major step forward and we’re very grateful to the Ninth Court for upholding the right of the citizens in California.” For More Info: afer.org Interview w/ Dustin Lance Black & His Play '8'

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Sherry Vine, International Drag Superstar whose new variety show SHE’S LIVING FOR THIS premiere’s on the gay television network here! February 24th talks with Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™. The Boston LGBT Film Festival is presenting the New England Premiere of SHE’S LIVING FOR THIS on Thursday February 9th at Canary Square in JP. Sherry Vine is attending and will be available for a Q & A after the screening. SHE’S LIVING FOR THIS is a unique modern update of the classic TV variety show standard set by the likes of Carol Burnett and Sonny & Cher. This fabulous fun-filled half hour is packed with some of the edgiest queer comics and entertainers on the scene and is bursting at the sequined seams with comedy sketches, special guests and musical numbers. Confirmed guests for the first three shows of the six-episode first season include Tony-nominated performance artist Justin Vivian Bond, drag diva Peppermint, and cabaret singer and New York City legend Joey Arias. We talked about the new show and Sherry’s spin on crucial issues facing our LGBT community. When asked what her commitment is to LGBT civil rights, Vine stated, “I believe that I have a daily commitment to LGBT rights. First of all just by being openly gay and second of all performing in drag. I think a lot of people don’t realize that drag is a political act in itself because of what you have to go through just the minute you walk out the door. I mean people for some reason see it as an open invitation to be very hostile and abusive or weird. Not always, people can be very cool and funny and nice but it’s dangerous, especially for people who don’t live in a big city. Taxi’s will just fly right by you. You know I vote, I do a lot of benefits for different organizations, so I just try to be as involved as I can.” The Boston LGBT Film Festival will be hosting the New England Premiere of SHE'S LIVING FOR THIS on Thursday February 9th from 9P-10P at Canary Square 435 South Huntington Ave, Jamaica Plain, MA. Please join us for the sneak preview of the show, enjoy stationary bar appetizers provided by Canary Square 9-10P with a special menu insert during dinner, a cash bar with smart cocktails, make new friends and support the Boston LGBT Film Festival. Sherry Vine is attending the screening and will be available for a Q & A after the screening. SHE’S LIVING FOR THIS premiere’s on the gay network here! February 24th. For More Info: bostonlgbtfilmfest.org & heretv/SHE’S LIVING FOR THIS

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