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Cate Blanchett: “Coolest Straight Person” of 2007

Covers of The Advocate are a tricky business. When I first came out in the late 1980s, the covers always featured men in kind of porn-y poses. The Advocate began featuring women sporadically in the early ’90s and eventually moved to a sort of equal balance in recent years. Still, with the exception of 2005, most women featured on the cover of The Advocate are straight — or at least ostensibly straight. (This year, there hasn’t been an out lesbian on the cover since February.)

When I got my most recent Advocate in the mail, however, I was not unhappy with the straight woman featured on the cover.

It seems that The Advocate has declared Cate Blanchett

(also known as No. 48 on the AfterEllen.com Hot 100 list) the Coolest Straight [Person] of 2007. And I’m not going to argue with that. (AfterElton.com gave a sneak peak of this cover a while back.)

Except for Todd Haynes’ gushing (“She’s just so cool she calls ‘straight’ completely into question … and you can quote me on that.”) about Blanchett’s gender-bending turn in I’m Not There, it’s not really clear why she warrants specific consideration by The Advocate.

It’s a little bit like Jennifer Aniston‘s GLAAD Vanguard Award —she’s certainly friendly and definitely not an enemy, but did she actually do anything? (And I’m sure for some lesbians, Blanchett’s turn as the ephebophilic object of a deranged lesbian’s desires in Notes on a Scandal does not warrant her winning GLBT accolades.)

But I find Blanchett to be both lovely and one of the best actresses working today. Hence, I’m happy to see her coolth lauded. And she was certainly gracious and pleased to be recognized:

“I heard I was going to be the coolest straight person. How kind! There’s a lot of us to choose from.”

For the record, Blanchett was not the only woman recognized. Elizabeth Edwards was dubbed “Cool Politico” for being so cool about same-sex marriage.

And Arianna Huffington

was dubbed the “Cool Pundit” for her site, HuffingtonPost.com, as well as general progressive punditry.

When I lived in California, Huffington was still a conservative married to a closeted man, so I’ve had a hard time seeing her differently. But it’s good that others don’t view her quite so myopically, as she’s apparently done a great deal of good.

And, of course, a bunch of boys were recognized: Phillipe Cousteau (grandson of Jacques and “Cool Environmentalist”), Aaron Toleos (“Cool Gay Rights Activist”), Frank Rich (“Cool Columnist”) and Common (“Cool Rapper”).

Now that we know who The Advocate picked, who would you pick as the Coolest Straight Person of 2007?

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