Thank goodness for sensible daughters of conservative politicians: first Dick Cheney’s lesbian daughter Mary and, more recently, the vocally pro-gay Meghan McCain. It just goes to show that political ideologies are not genetic.

Last week, Meghan joined the ladies of The View to discuss her book, and, most importantly, her continued support for the gay community. The daughter of Arizona Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain, notorious for her staunchly opposite beliefs to her father, shared her previous involvement with the NOH8 Campaign and her thoughts on “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.”

She spoke about gay rights as a “civil rights issue” rather than a party politics one, and asserted that “as long as there are people that are considered unequal in this country, I think that’s completely un-American.” The appreciative applause and cheers echoed the sentiment that gay rights have nothing to do with political beliefs. … continue reading

I have to confess, right up front, that I haven’t given Cougar Town much of a chance.

Don’t get me wrong; I love Courtney Cox. And thanks to spending all those years with her as Monica Gellar, I feel like we’re, well, friends. But the episode of Cougar Town I watched was a little creepy.

But something must be going right with the show because it has already been renewed for a second season. And Friday, Ausiello reported that none other than Sheryl Crow is headed to Cougar Town for a multi-episode arc. … continue reading

It's Tuesday and we've got enough great new music to get you through a couple of weeks (which is great because next week is looking like a sorry excuse). I love weeks when the music gods give us something to satiate every musical appetite, and this week happens to be one of those.

k.d. lang — Recollection (Nonesuch Records)

The out singer is giving us a two-disc set of her alt-country crooning. Tony Bennett has called her “The best singer of her generation” and she’s got 22 songs (most remastered, but there are a few new ones) to prove him right. … continue reading

Oh what a tangled web we weave when you hire a prostitute to seduce our husband and then get seduced by said prostitute instead — I think. The first U.S. trailer for Chloe has been released and if there was any doubt that Julianne Moore and Amanda Seyfried share something more than a business transaction, this should effectively squash it.

While the international trailer showed more skin, the American trailer gives us a better sense of the story with its twists, turns and lovers scorned.

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Tasha Williams is sticking with what she knows best: law enforcement.

While Rose Rollins’ character on The L Word may have been all about combat in the U.S. Army — and a short stint as a department store rental cop — Rollins certainly seems to be typecasting herself.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rollins has been cast to play a weapons/tactical specialist in NBC pilot Chase. … continue reading

Forget college basketball; March is all about Portia de Rossi.

The actress and (I'm pretty sure this goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway because it still makes me warm and fuzzy inside) wife of Ellen DeGeneres will be honored with the Human Rights Campaign's Visibility Award for her increasing outspokenness for equal rights. More and more, she is speaking her mind (and ours), like when she put The View's Elisabeth Hasselbeck in her place on the subject of gay marriage.

Clearly, the public has taken notice. In addition to the HRC honor, de Rossi is also the March cover girl of The Advocate. The accompanying interview, titled "The Great de Rossi," features a typically candid de Rossi, discussing everything from starting out in Hollywood, being "half of the most famous gay couple in the world," and officially announcing her upcoming memoir (which I told you about in June, when rumors first began.) … continue reading

Good morning! Are you buried under snow like I am?

Life Blood is a new horror film starring Sophie Monk and Anya Lahiri where they play lesbian vampire assassins. Yep, more lesbian vampires. You can watch it on cable now on Video on Demand. What? You mean it won't be in theaters? Movies like this are best watched alone in the privacy of your own home, away from loved ones asking, "Seriously?"

The Bad Girls Club just keeps getting better. And by better, I mean more and more ridiculously awful. There's a threesome going on in the hot tub, and bisexual Flo is the least interested in taking part.

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Today: Rachel looks at voter literacy tests and Tea Party challengers to Ron Paul.

A Look Under the Hood

Rachel started us off with a more in-depth look at why Tom Tancredo’s call for a return to voter literacy tests was so vile. Sure, his remarks are shiver-inducing the first time you hear them, but Rachel took the time to really drive the creepy home.

As Rachel noted, the round of applause for voting restrictions was even more disturbing. A gut-level wave of approval for the sentiment “people who aren’t like me shouldn’t get to vote” was not what I wanted to see on television in 2010.

But then I didn’t want to see waves of people getting on television for super-fertility in 2009, so I guess that’s one area in which I’m definitely not getting a vote. Maybe the Tea Party Nation will be happy with that? … continue reading

Remember way back in July when we learned the original Misery Chick was finally, finally coming to DVD in 2010? Well, stop standing on my neck in anticipation, because the long-awaited Daria DVD now has a slightly more specific release date: Spring 2010. UPDATE: The official release date of May 11, 2010 was announced today! (Hat tip, Megan!)

Still too vague, but at least not winter 2010, am I right? The MTV animated-series ran from 1997-2002 and followed the sick, sad world of green-blazered, bespectacled teenage misanthrope Daria Morgendorffer and her best friend Jane Lane. MTV has released a teaser trailer to remind us all why Daria will forever be the queen of the dead pan.

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Reality shows generally are not my thing, but this one, I can’t resist. Who Do You Think You Are?, which premieres March 5 on NBC, follows seven celebrities as they find their genealogical roots. Sarah Jessica Parker, Susan Sarandon, Spike Lee, Matthew Broderick, Brooke Shields, Emmitt Smith and Lisa Kudrow are all involved and Kudrow is also executive producer.

The series, which is an American adaptation of an award-winning BBC series that has aired since 2004, takes the stars on a quest to uncover their family trees. Granted, the idea of watching people research their family history sounds like a sure cure for insomnia. But the trailer is irresistible.

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Once upon a time, there was an emperor who had no clothes. Well, no clothes save for a white physician's coat with a bottle of Jack in one pocket, and some mints in the other. One day, a handsome prince with twinkly eyes came to town in search of a razor and some shaving cream. He never did find that razor, but after a few years of living under the rule of the pompous, pontifical emperor, the prince overthrew the blowhard and ascended to a corner office. Some villagers rejoiced, while others worried they would soon be exiled with nothing more than their stethoscopes and slips of pink.

Changes abound across the land. Teddy, still stinging from Owen choosing Cristina's snark over her Iraq vet benefits, she replaces her rival with Dr. Vanessa Williams. Oh, honey. No. We know Cristina Yang, and you sir, are no Cristina Yang. Meanwhile, Arizona tells Alex that pediatrics is his true calling and drags him off to the lollipop ward, where it's "hard core" and smells like Fruit Roll-Ups. … continue reading

Lacey and Jessica lead fit lives and, in this episode, they tackle what it takes to stay positive about your body and your partner.

For more on Lacey and Jessica, visit their blog, follow them on Twitter (@laceystonefit and @jessicaclark) and friend them on Facebook (Jessica Clark and Lacey Stone Fitness). You can also visit sarathefilm.com to find out about Jessica's new role in the short film. Check back every Monday for a new episode.

Network TV's arbitrary Winter Hiatus is in effect for many of our favorite shows, but it's still a big week for lesbian visibility. Ellen DeGeneres is making her long-awaited debut on American Idol; Heroes is airing its season (and perhaps series) finale; Rosie O.'s family special is repeating on HBO; Carol Leifer is stopping by The Wanda Sykes Show; and the Winter Olympics kick off in Vancouver. When? You ask. Where? Keep reading!

Monday

24 (Fox, 9:00) — President Taylor (played by out actress Cherry Jones) runs up against staunch opposition at the United Nations when she presents her peacekeeping plan. MacGruber is undercover this week. … continue reading

Drag contestants on Logo’s reality competition series RuPaul’s Drag Race may emulate female archetypes and icons, but if you want to know what girls are really made of, ask Drag Race guest judge (in tonight's episode) Dita Von Teese.

The international burlesque star and longtime supporter of LGBT rights will be guest-judging the wigs, the walk and the "where'd-he-put-it?" on tonight's show. Von Teese knows that sometimes, the sexiest thing you can do is leave a little to the imagination. Or, in the case of those photos with Playmate Alley Baggett, not.

AfterEllen.com: What do you think makes a good drag queen versus a great drag queen?
Dita Von Teese: Well, I think that attention to detail is one of the things that make a great drag queen… The queens that have a very good understanding of what’s currently chic and can pull off a fierce look always impress me.

I also think that star quality and charisma are very, very important. I also love queens that are very masculine when the drag is off. My drag pals have to be gentlemanly when they’re out of drag with me.

AE: How are drag performers and burlesque performers similar? How are the different?
DVT: Oh, a lot I think! I definitely have my own “drag,” and transformation and illusion are key elements of my own shows. … continue reading

Apparently, men don’t like their wives. Or their girlfriends. Or even possibly their children. At least, that’s what I learned last night while watching the Super Bowl — or, as it was called in my house, the Misogyny Bowl.

Considered advertising’s biggest night, the event is seen as a showcase for the newest and most creative new marketing campaigns. Instead it was a barrage of ads that made men feel like less than men for doing things like getting married, listening to their wives and shopping with their girlfriends. Gosh, and just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Think I’m just being an overly sensitive, feminist, bleeding-heart, queer liberal? Well, yes, I am. But I’m not exaggerating on the unmistakably women unfriendly tone of last night’s ads. Take this Dodge Charger commercial. Apparently, big dumb cars are now men’s reward for caring about their partners’ opinions and acting like a grown up. … continue reading

I hope you all had a great weekend and not too many party snacks.

Good news, La Roux fans: Elly Jackson recently told the press that she doesn't want a label, but she finds both women and men sexy. "I can appreciate other women. Beyonce is beautiful. But I find men or women sexy. The Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal is hot and I've always fancied James Dean — but weirdly, I want to look like the people I fancy. I don't have a sexuality. I don't feel like I'm female or male. I don't belong to the gay or straight society, if there is such a thing. I feel like I'm capable of falling in love with other people. I'm not saying I'm bisexual, I'm just sexual!" Fine with me, Elly. Call me if Beyonce isn't available.

In other awesome news, Julie Benz has been asked to stay on Wisteria Lane longer than her original three episode arc. So we officially have another reoccurring lesbian character on network television? Just how long is "undetermined," but I still want to give Marc Cherry a hug — especially after reading Dana Delany telling EW.com that she does "more than just kiss" Julie. "We're taking things to the next level," she said. "I get to do it. I'm very honored." I am honored to be able to watch this relationship unfold. Also, it's about time. … continue reading

Today: Rachel, live from New Orleans, looks at the rebuilding effort and has a terrific Cocktail Meauxment.

Here We Geaux!

Friday night brought the week’s high spirits to a head as Rachel did the show from The Big Easy.

Rachel took a look at how long the Saints have been waiting to get to the Super Bowl, a heartwarming segment for everyone but Cubs fans, who laughed bitterly and cracked another Old Style to try to dull the pain.

Super Hereaux

Rachel continued making her case for getting interested in this year's Super Bowl whether or not you’re a fan of football. She took a moment to give a rundown of a few of the players who are doing some terrific charitable and advocacy work and then welcomed friend of the show and friend of New Orleans Melissa Harris-Lacewell. … continue reading

Blogging the 15th Annual Xena Convention -- to see all Xena Con posts, click here.

It's cold and raining in Los Angeles, which means it must be time for the 15th Annual Xena Convention. And it also means that the airport shuttle and LAX Marriott are pretty much wall-to-wall lesbians. Gotta love our tribe.

The convention starts right around noon, with Xena: Warrior Princess writer Katherine Fugate, who is also the creator of Army Wives and writer of Valentine's Day. And later this afternoon will be Xena herself, Lucy Lawless, along with Renee O'Connor (Gabrielle). (Renee will also appear on Sunday.)

I'll be liveblogging from the convention floor, and AfterEllen.com's KT Jorgensen, who has photographed the convention for the last three years, will be behind her cameras (yes, she has three) all weekend. AfterEllen.com also did exclusive interviews with Lucy and Renee, and we'll be bringing those to you this weekend as well.

Just a word on how this works: I'll be adding to the posts from the top down this year, so the new stuff is always on the top. If you want to read it in chronological order, start at the bottom.

We'll have one post -- this one -- for the convention coverage. Just hit refresh from time to time to see the new information at the top. You can also follow #xwp on Twitter for update alerts. 

-----------updates below--------------------- … continue reading

On the way back to class, Sumika accidentally falls on top of Azusa and Ushio gets the wrong idea.

Check back for new episodes every Saturday. … continue reading

Who says the gays don’t like football? In America, the biggest sports event of the year is upon us. That’s right — it’s Super Bowl weekend. While men in tight pants hitting each other has its own appeal (especially for our brothers over at AfterElton.com), we think the game could benefit from, well, lesbians. So, without further ado, we bring you the inaugural AfterEllen.com Lesbo Bowl.

What’s a Lesbo Bowl, you ask? Well, it’s only the most lesbian (and bisexual, inclusiveness rocks) football game of all time. We pit our favorite TV lesbians against each other for a hard-nosed gridiron smackdown. Two teams enter, one team leaves the champion of the lesbians. So without further ado I (with major assists from Heather Hogan on graphics and TheLinster on snark) bring you the Lesbo Bowl. Now the only question remains: Are you ready for some football?

Team AlphaBettes

Bette Porter (Captain), Tina Kennard, Shane McCutcheon, Angela Montenegro, Xena, Gabrielle, Lover Cindi, Kennedy, Ellen Morgan, Tasha Williams, Alice Pieszecki … continue reading

Every week on The Real World: DC, a couple of the cast members fight. This week Ashley and Andrew get into the ring.

… continue reading

With The Runaways biopic due in theaters next month, it seemed like progress was being made in how (or if) female musicians are portrayed on film. But a new HBO pilot staring Zooey Deschanel has slapped as all back to "reality": women should be throwing their underwear onto stages, not performing on them.

As exciting as it is that Zooey will star in a potentially new series on a channel where some nudity is allowed, it's sad that it's based on groupies and not empowered, independent, pioneering female musicians, like Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, Lita Ford and Sandy West. Or, you know, Zooey herself, being that she's one half of the musical duo She & Him.

While she was great as a music lover in Almost Famous (one of the only women in the movie not playing a groupie), you'd think the folks behind the new pilot would want to make better use of her talents. … continue reading

Since last week, our brothers at AfterElton.com have been following CBS and the Case of the Thwarted ManCrunch.

If you're new to the story, here's the mini-cap: ManCrunch, a gay dating site, created a Super Bowl ad showing two football fans locked in a campy embrace after their hands met in a chip bowl. At first, CBS' Standards and Practices rejected the commercial on the grounds that they don't air advocacy ads during the Super Bowl. Critics were quick to point out that the network happily accepted an anti-abortion commercial narrated by Tim Tebow and paid for by Focus on the Family, home of notorious homophobe James Dobson. At that point, CBS changed their song and said they were unable to verify ManCrunch's funds, even though AfterElton.com editor in chief Michael Jensen checked with the company to see that they were in order. Now there is even speculation that CBS helped Focus on the Family create their anti-abortion commercial.

We've been scratching our heads all week, trying to figure out what kind of regulations are enforced over at CBS' Standards and Practices. Well, today we finally got our hands on some top secret storyboards that various companies used to pitch their Super Bowl commercials — and they still have the network's notes attached. … continue reading

It’s Mrs. Nice vs. Mr. Nasty. It’s the forces of good vs. the forces of evil. It’s a really good haircut vs. a really terrible one. (Seriously, why is Simon’s head square?) Fox has released the first clip of Ellen DeGeneres in action with her fellow American Idol judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi and host Ryan Seacrest.

Ellen does nothing to dispel her reputation as “The Nice One” in the short preview, as contestants gush about her and she gushes back.

After a slew of guest judges who sat in to varying degrees of success (More Kristin Chenoweth! Less Avril Lavigne!), it will be nice to have a stable and completely sane judge at the table for a change. Plus, it’ll be nice to have someone finally represent for the lesbians. (No offense, Adam Lambert and Clay Aiken — we love at least one of you.) … continue reading

Maybe you're young enough to be distracted by a completely starkers Kathryn Prescott, in which case I forgive you for not remembering that every Temper Trap song is basically about losing the love of your life, then re-finding her, in a way that is infinitely deeper and more satisfying than you ever imagined. Let's go ahead and assume that "Love Lost" will play over Naomily's inevitable reunion, because I refuse to contemplate a future in which that is not a reality. In any case, "Sweet Disposition" is only the beginning of this episode's deliciously perfect soundtrack.

Emily is munching a Garibaldi biscuit and walking naked around Naomi's living room, caressing her childhood photos in that way people do when they are smitten beyond all sense. The postman spots her and she drops to the floor before sheepishly throwing on a coat and going outside to sign for a package. It's a gift — the raddest pair of safety goggles you've ever seen, and Naomi starts crying when she gives them to Emily (in case you needed further proof that she's a lesbian).

Naomi: I saw these a while ago, and — I love you.

Emily: Yeah, I know.

Naomi: [Crying harder on account of her Secrets] Don't forget it, though.

Emily shakes her head like nothing in the world could make her forget how desperately Naomi is in love with her. She asks how she looks. Answer: So cute I am ordering some of those goggles just to wear around my house. … continue reading