Here are some past shows we’re especially proud of that continue to inspire us. We’ll change these up add new ones occasionally, so check back from time to time. Enjoy!
Judy Shepard – The Meaning of Matthew (Nov. 2009)
Gay college student Matthew Shepard’s brutal murder in Wyoming in 1998 shocked our nation. How does a mother deal with her son’s violent death? Judy Shepard became an advocate for gay rights and violence prevention. Hear her story in this 2009 interview, shortly after publishing her book, The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed. (First aired November 12, 2009)
Del Martin + Phyllis Lyon: Love & Politics (Oct. 2008)
Lesbian political pioneers Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin were together 55 years before the California Supreme Court said they could legally wed. They did – just two months before Del passed away. In their own words and voices, Del & Phyllis share their love story, their politics, and what life was like for same-sex couples in the 1950s. The core of this 2-part series is from a kitchen conversation in their home in 2006, with additional material from Del Martin’s San Francisco City Hall memorial service on Oct. 1, 2008, in the midst of the Proposition 8 battle over civil marriage rights. (This series broadcast Oct. 2008; core interviews first aired Feb. 2006)
Trevor Hailey – Cruisin’ the Castro (Oct. 2004)
How did the Castro become a “gay Mecca”? Where was the first gay bar with huge windows putting patrons in full view of a public street? Why was Harvey Milk “our Martin Luther King”? Hear it from folksy historian Trevor Hailey on this exclusive audio tour for Out in the Bay listeners.
Note: This is from the very first episode of Out in the Bay! It aired October 7, 2004. Trevor Hailey, the founder of “Cruisin’ the Castro” walking tours, died in 2007. Kathy Amendola took over the tours; you can reach her at (415) 255-1821 or find more info at http://www.cruisinthecastro.com.
Ang Lee: Gay cowboys and sheep on Brokeback Mountain (Dec. 2005)
In a one-on-one interview just before the release of his groundbreaking film about two young cowboys who fall in love, Taiwanese-born director Ang Lee speaks softly and earnestly about his hopes and fears for Brokeback Mountain. Hear why Lee made the sheep sensuous and the men’s love-making violent, and why their story compelled him to make this movie. (“Maybe I’m gay,” Lee later told Out in the Bay in a 2009 exclusive … but that’s another story!) (First broadcast Dec. 8, 2005)
A chat with Charo! (Aug. 2005)
No, she’s not gay, but why would I pass up a chance to interview one of the world’s best-ever – and certainly flashiest — flamenco guitarists? “If it weren’t for gays, there would be no imagination in this country,” says the Spanish-born bombshell (yes, she’s still a beauteous ball of energy, even at …. well, whatever age she is). And, akin to coming out of the closet, Charo has emerged as the talented artist she is to shatter her “cuchi-cuchi girl” image of the past. (First broadcast Aug. 4, 2005).
Liberace! and his Crystal Closet (April 2009)
Grab a glass of champers, sit back, close your eyes and let the sounds and story of one of the world’s most fabulous entertainers ever wash over you! Liberace, the highest-paid classical pianist ever, was so big that Barbra Streisand opened for him. He wasn’t “out” – the concept hardly existed then – and his family denied he was gay, even after his death from AIDS in 1987. (First aired April 23, 2009)
