Is there such a thing as entertainment gaydar? Recently I came across an old friend on Facebook, whom I hadn’t seen in over a decade. Over the years, I’d wondered if perhaps she was gay — and once she had added me as a friend, I'll admit that I clicked over to her profile, curious to see if there would be anything about her sexual orientation there. While there wasn’t anything explicitly stated, I did see with interest that she listed The L Word as one of her favorite shows, and Brokeback Mountain and Chasing Amy as two of her favorite movies.

Now, entertainment gaydar, like any other gaydar, is based on stereotypes — and thus is bound to be somewhat unreliable. After all, there are plenty of straight people who like both The L Word and Brokeback Mountain. (And, actually, I think disliking Chasing Amy is probably a clearer sign of being a lesbian than liking it.) Nevertheless, this whole episode got me thinking about what a person’s tastes in entertainment may or may not say about her sexual orientation. And, using the popular AfterEllen.com forum thread "I’m so gay/I’m so not gay" as an inspiration, I decided to see how my tastes would stack up in the “stereotypically lesbianish” department.

To start off with the “I’m so not gay” category (hey, I may as well get the bit that will make me unpopular out of the way first):

1. I'll admit it — I don’t totally get the Tina Fey thing.

The fact that scribegrrrl, Dorothy Snarker, and Sarah Warn are all fans is enough to convince me that I must be missing something here — and who knows, maybe one day I will see the light. But I’ve seen 30 Rock, and the thing that amused me most about it was Alec Baldwin. (Who, whatever else he may or may not be, is definitively not lesbianish.)

2. I don’t watch The L Word.

The women on The L Word may be gay, but I’ve discovered that that, in and of itself, isn’t enough to make me identify with or deeply care about them. A little good writing goes an awfully long way.

3. I think Desert Hearts is a snooze-fest. … continue reading

Ahhh, lesbian hair. That much-maligned subject of punch lines everywhere. Historically, gay women’s hairstyles haven’t always had the best reputation. And I’m not even going to mention the dreaded M-word. While I have no problem with business in the front, party in the back when it comes to your personal life, I refuse to accept it on your head. But I believe we’ve turned a corner here in the hair club for women. Why else would so many stars be rocking the lesbian hair of late?

I’m not just talking seventh-grade-gym-teacher hair either. I speak of all the chic, often cropped cuts the ladies of TV and film have been sporting everywhere. It’s gotten to the point that even seemingly straight stars have started suffering from lesbian twin syndrome. I’m dying for Women’s Murder Club and Bionic Woman to do a crossover episode so these two can scream: “Lesbian Twins activate! Form of — haircut!”

So with that, let’s examine, and of course rate, the trend of lesbian locks. … continue reading

Last night's episode of Law and Order: Special Victims Unit was not as bad as I expected. It contained a number of features that could have made it bad — a special guest star, a disabled child, a terrorism subplot — but I managed to watch the whole thing without uttering, “I hate this show.”

And that's the main thing that makes me sad about SVU: It's best assessed these days in degrees of bad.

I take no pleasure in derogating the only network show I watch religiously. (Mariska Hargitay is just too lovely to abandon.) But the show tries my patience. A lot. Although I was initially reluctant to watch “the rape show,” I eventually got into it and have remained faithful. But the show seems to have forsaken its loyal viewers.

Here's why the show makes me sad.

5. There are too many special guest stars.

Special guest stars are an indication of jumping the shark, and SVU is definitely guilty of abusing this practice. Almost every episode features one. (Last night's was Aidan Quinn. Last week it was Melissa Joan Hart.) Sometimes they're good. Cynthia Nixon did a creditable job a few weeks ago. (Here's a clip.) But there are just too many of them. Did we really need Bob Saget, or Jerry Lewis as Munch's homeless uncle? … continue reading

Alyssa Milano blogs about baseball.

Margaret Cho vlogs her Sensuous Woman tour and photo blogs getting tattoos.

Pamela Anderson uses her blog to assure us that she's a good mom.

Those are just three of the big-name bloggers on Celebrity Cowboy's list, "66 Celebrities that Blog." Why would people who hire publicists to manage their messages take up blogging? Well, let's see. … continue reading

As a person who gorges herself daily on a smorgasbord of pop culture (thank heavens for gossip antacids, they’re a real lifesaver), it’s the rare day that something slips past my plate. So imagine my surprise when I read, belatedly, that Alicia Witt was joining Law & Order: Criminal Intent. How could I have missed that tasty morsel?

You remember Alicia Witt, right? She was the acerbic, red-haired daughter of flighty, drama-queen Cybill on the mid-'90s sitcom by the same name. No, not ringing any bells? Cybill wore a silk bathrobe a lot. Still no? Fine. But if you do remember the show you, like me, are probably wishing The L Word had asked Alicia to join the cast instead of Cybill Shepherd. (Before you judge, it’s not the age thing. It’s the over-the-top, scenery-chewing thing. OK, sure, the red hair helps.) … continue reading

In Sunday's New York Times, an article titled "In the Prime of Their Time" focused on older actresses on TV. Here are the (kind of silly) opening lines:

"Botox and plastic surgery allow actress to look younger. Television is permitting them to act their age. Older stars who once had to resign themselves to playing frustrated spinsters or docile moms are suddenly flaunting their ripened sex appeal on television. It's not 'The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone' anymore. This season marks the summer of hot cougar love."

Let's all take a moment to roll our eyes at the "cougar" thing. OK, done? Anyway, the first name mentioned in the article is, of course, Kyra Sedgwick's — The Closer starts its third season today (TNT, 9/8c). But Sedgwick's character, Deputy Police Chief Brenda Johnson, is dating someone age-appropriate, so the rest of the article focuses on some saucier pairings.

Too bad this photo of Holly Hunter and Laura San Giacomo doesn't actually depict a couple. They're just co-stars, in Saving Grace, which premieres July 18 on TNT. Hunter plays a cynical cop with a touched-by-an-angel-ish shot at redemption.

… continue reading

So I was cruising the photos of the beautiful and bizarre at Cannes again (FYI, Sharon Stone: immortal glamour goddess from the front, still above average yet mortal 49-year-old from the back), when I stumbled across this vision of perfection: Catherine Deneuve and her daughter Chiara Mastroianni.

Yowza. With a little research (thank you, Google), I learned that Chiara is the daughter of Deneuve and Marcello Mastroianni and an actress in her own right. OK, fine, her credits include roles in movies like Hillbilly Chainsaw Massacre and characters described as “S&M Girl #1,” but we can’t all be Catherine Deneuve. Still, she was at Cannes with her mother promoting their parts in the animated feature Persepolis, so good for her. … continue reading