Homophilia

Once in a very rare while, we are forced to stop the podcast presses and slide in a breaking news update. America, this is one of those whiles: trailers for AND JUST LIKE THAT and Pedro Almodovar’s gay western STRANGE WAY OF LIFE have dropped, and we could not let this episode drop without our thoughts. Plus: Dave’s take on the Pedro Pascal Esquire cover, Matt and his girlfriends’ manatee madness in Miami, and a full recap of Miami Beach Pride. Bienvenido a this episode.

It IS hot in here, because this week, we are visited by Zach Zimmerman: comedian, humorist and author of the hilarious memoir Is It Hot In Here (Or Am I Suffering For All Eternity For The Sins I Committed On Earth). We talk about his evangelical upbringing, his reality-star-in-waiting mother, Christian music concerts, secular music awakenings, summer stock three-ways, sex pamphlets, and The Price Is Right.  (Also: the devil will reach you through the music of The Beach Boys, so be on alert for that.)

Comedian and co-host of the brilliant podcast Straightiolab Sam Taggart comes through to talk about his new live show Club Comic, PLUS: sad girl music, snobbery, straight culture, and sex journals.  Listen to Sam's podcast, StraightioLab from iHeartMedia and Will Ferrell’s Big Money Players Network, every Tuesday: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-straightiolab-97815943/ 

We’re ramping up for Miami Beach Pride with Advocate Grand Marshal Jazzmun and social psychologist Dr. Erica Jayne Friedman. We’re talking Whitney Houston, the ballroom scene, Miami clubs, and self-care in the face of so many bills attacking Florida’s trans community. To catch Erica’s panel on April 12th, Jazzmun at all the Pride events, and hang with Dave and Matt, go to www.miamibeachpride.com. 

Legendary legend Fenton Bailey joins us to talk about his new book Screen Age: How TV Changed Our Reality, From Tammy Faye to RuPaul’s Drag Race. Plus: the Succession-esque drama of the Redstone family book Unscripted, the joys of bold wallpaper, the personal breakthrough of playing Titania in a high school production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the camp of Batman, the excess of the ‘80s, the shocking truth of his morning ritual, the lucky break of meeting a business partner in film school, the significance of David Bowie and T Rex, the reality of Las Vegas as a city in drag, and the challenge of producing RuPaul’s Drag Race in these stupid times.  

The host of NPR’s All Things Considered and author of the new memoir, The Best Strangers In The World Ari Shapiro joins us to talk about The Last of Us, his early choice for music of the summer Nakhane, coming out at 16, Wilson Phillips, U2, Phil Collins, the long history of anti-drag laws, a meet-cute at Little Shop of Horrors, parkour, Pink Martini, designated worriers, and so much more. 

Model, celebrity chef, and author of the upcoming cookbook DID YOU EAT YET Ronnie Woo joins us to talk Julianne Moore, disciplined indulgence, greens that aren’t boring, the life of a private chef, a connection on Connexxion, a kitchen mishap out of a romcom, the dating life of a model, and the risks of a white carpet for a dog owner.

Ally for the ages Colin Campbell is here to talk about the tragedies that inspired Grief: A One-Man Shitshow and the new book Finding The Words. Also: Wednesday, high school drama club, Cyndi Lauper and the Grateful Dead, director-on-director action, his late daughter and son as lesbian warrior and ally, and espadrilles.

Homophilia homofavorite Drew Droege comes back to talk about the return of his top-notch podcast Minor Revelations (which you should support via this IndieGogo (https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/drew-droege-s-minor-revelations#/). Also: The Last of Us, Hitchcock’s Rope, Lifetime’s Rodeo Drive, Museum of Home Video, the unique beauty of SNL’s terrible sixth season, bad news at El Compadre, subconscious shame, fun flings, meeting people in real life, morning radio, and the secrets of a proper glow-up.

Legendary playwright/screenwriter of queer classic Beautiful Thing (and writer for Coronation Street, if you please) Jonathan Harvey joins Matt and Dave to talk about his youth as a "little camp queen,” The Sound of Music on the big screen, borrowing records from the Liverpool Record Library and twirling in the window, the UK’s Eurovision dominance in the ‘70s, the significance of Mama Cass, being outed by his trashcan, finding love on Twitter, his hit sitcom Gimme Gimme Gimme (available on YouTube and not to be missed), working with Kathy Burke and Olivia Colman, and his upcoming Eurovision-themed musical A Thong For Europe, opening in Liverpool this spring.