Every week, The GLAAD Wrap brings you LGBT-related entertainment news highlights, fresh stuff to watch out for, and fun diversions to help you kick off the weekend.
1) On the heels of newly announced wins and nominations for LGBT-inclusive films at the Gotham and Spirit Awards, the National Board of Review has released its own list of winners. Once again, Beginners was recognized in several categories, including being named one of the year’s top ten independent films and a best supporting actor recognition for Christopher Plummer. Additionally, J. Edgar and The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo were named two of the top ten films of the year. Rooney Mara received a breakthrough performance award for her role as the bisexual investigator Lizbeth Salander in the latter film, and Pariah received a National Board of Review Freedom of Expression recognition.
2) We don’t know of any new LGBT-inclusive films opening this weekend, but anyone interested in J. Edgar-era LGBT history might want to check out this trailer for the upcoming documentary, Lavender Scare. The film recounts the fallout following a 1953 Presidential decree ordering the firing of every gay man and woman working for the US government. Visit the film's website for more info and watch the trailer below.
3) Following the recent introduction of gay teen superhero Bunker in the pages of DC’s newly relaunched Teen Titans comic book, Marvel Comics has revealed that it too will add a new gay teen superhero to its character roster when Striker comes on in the next issue of Avengers Academy. Focusing on a group of troubled, young heroes-in-training, Avengers Academy writer Christos Gage introduced Striker in the first issue as an aggressive young man who it turns out was “working very hard to hide who he really was.” Striker now joins other young, gay and lesbian Marvel heroes who are currently members of the Young Avengers, the Runaways, New Mutants, and the X-Men Academy. Like the recent abundance of LGBT characters on teen-oriented television shows, this is definitely a trend worth celebrating.
4) This week’s Kickstarter campaign is a little different than the usual independent features looking for help. Transgender standup comedian Ian Harvie has performed as an opening act for Margaret Cho for years, but now he’s stepping into the spotlight on his own for a standup special he’s hoping to record during a hometown show in Portland, Maine. Combining several years’ worth of standup material, the special will feature “Ian’s observations about gender-specific societal codes, privilege, [and] coming out twice,” among other things. You can watch his Kickstarter video below and visit his project's page here for more info.
