More than 1,500 New Yorkers gathered today in Manhattan to mourn the death of a 32 year-old gay man, who was shot down on Friday just blocks away from the historic Stonewall Inn in an apparent act of anti-gay bias.
The Stars Come Out for GLAAD & SAG's Out in Hollywood Panel
Thursday, October 8, 2009 - 7:49pm by Jonathan Rosales, GLAAD's Entertainment Media Manager
Last night in Los Angeles, a packed house turned out to celebrate National Coming Out Month as GLAAD partnered with the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to present Out in Hollywood III: The Rise of the LGBT Actor, a panel featuring notable out actors,
producers, directors and casting directors discussing their experiences being openly LGBT in the industry.
Doria Biddle, co-host of The Frank DeCaro Show on Sirius/XM Radio, moderated the event which included Emmy-winning director Paris Barclay, casting directors Tammara Billik and Dan Shaner, and Academy Award-winning producer Dan Jinks. The LGBT actors on the panel were: Bryan Batt (Mad Men), Candis Cayne (Dirty Sexy Money), Wilson Cruz (He's Just Not That Into You), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family), Michelle Paradise (Exes and Ohs), and Jonathan Slavin (Better Off Ted). Also speaking at the event were GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios, SAG Interim National Executive Director David White, SAG Secretary-Treasurer Amy Aquino, and SAG LGBT Committee Chairman Jason Stuart.
Stayed tuned as we'll be posting video soon. In the meantime, check out the photos and quotes below:
"Until everyone is free, the experiment of America is not succeeding. We all
want opportunity." ~ Bryan Batt
From left: Jonathan Slavin, Wilson Cruz, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Bryan Batt
"There's a movement going on and I can't separate my personal from my work.
To give in to bigoted ideals is not fair to me...If you're not ready to be out, then you're not helpful to the cause and you're not doing me any favors" ~ Wilson Cruz
From left: Dan Shaner, Tammara Billik, Jonathan Slavin, Wilson Cruz, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Doria Biddle, Candis Cayne, and Paris Barclay
"They created a quantum shift in the world." ~ Tammara Billik on the impact of
actors who were publicly outed, like Neil Patrick Harris and T.R. Knight.
From left: Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Bryan Batt, Candis Cayne, Michelle Paradise, Dan Jinks, Paris Barclay, and Doria Biddle
"As a community, we're always concerned when things are bad. We should also
write in when things are good." ~ Paris Barclay, on using our voice to advocate
for the out images we support.