Susan Morabito with galpal Liz Liguori (left) at the Sea Tea where she valiently fought the rolling waves. (Photo: John Polly)
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By Rachel Kramer Bussel
Friday, September 12, 2003
IT’S BEEN A VERY BUSY MONTH for Hustle and Bussel, including a quickie
trip to LA to give straight guys “lesbian sex tips” for an upcoming
episode of the “Berman & Berman Show” (keep your eyes peeled
on the Discovery Health Channel for more information), plus lots of unexpectedly
fun opportunities.
Case in point — the “Ivy Mixer.” Ever since I met my girlfriend,
I’ve been hearing about these gay Ivy League mixers where smart gay Ivy
grads meet up to drink and meet up. There’s supposed to be lots of eye
candy and interesting mingling, but I was a bit nervous considering that I
went to a public, non-Ivy League school.
Lo and behold, the mixer I attended at Chelsea’s Open was lots of fun,
mellow and there was none of the dreaded “You went where?” attitude.
It was especially delightful because I learned there about Q2, the new queer
reading series at Bowery Poetry Club being run by two of our city’s most
talented poets, Regie Cabico and Cheryl Boyce Taylor.
The reading was full of local gliterati, and featured readers such as Cheryl
Clarke, Gerry Gomez Perlberg, T’ai Freedom Ford, Luis Cartagena, G. Winston
James, Jayme Del Rosario and Marty McConnell, who were all amazing. But it
was the incomparable Regie who almost made me cry with a story integrating
a breakup, Sept. 11th and his childhood.
Of course, Regie also made me laugh hysterically with his ideas for a gay
sex reality show, the titles of which I think are too dirty for the Blade to
print. Suffice it to say a fun time was had by all — get your ass to
the next one on Sept. 30.
I also got to meet my very first Playboy Playmate (who just happens to be
a lesbian), Stephanie Adams, at her book party at Suede. This stunning, statuesque
descendant of two Presidents is also quite the prolific writer, penning several
astrology books for lesbians and straights, with several more on the way dealing
with everything from love to death.
This very perceptive woman breaks the mold in more ways than one, and is incredibly
sweet and sincere. Though the party was sparsely populated, mostly with Playboy
employees, it gave Adams a chance to personally greet her guests and explain
her philosophies about life and love. Who’d have thought: A smart, pretty,
black lesbian who knows what she’s about, in Playboy? Good for her!
Whether you’re into kink or not, you have to hand it to photographer
Barbara Nitke. Not only was she part of a lawsuit suing John Ashcroft to protect
herself from future obscenity lawsuits and overturn certain provisions of the
Communications Decency Act, but she also released a stunning photographic work
in her new coffee table book “Kiss of Fire: A Romantic View of Sadomasochism,” which
actually provides exactly that.
Her black and white portraits of couples in the scene lovingly capture the
true intimacy of these relationships, gay, straight, or more complicated than
that. Catch Nitke at BDSM store Purple Passion on the Sept. 17th.
And because it always helps me to get through a long week to have things to
look forward to, these are some hot things on the horizon: Scotty the Blue
Bunny (for $1!) at the Marquee on Friday and Saturday; TheGothamist.com (What?
You DON’T read Gothamist?)/601am.com Happy Hour on the 18th at Remote
Lounge, sure to be full of fun pop culture nerds; and the opening of the new
Toys in Babeland store in SoHo on the 20th.
The Big Quiz Thing on Sept. 22 will feature a special round of trivia all
about sex and porn (if I don’t win that one I’ll be very upset!)
hosted by Porno Jim at the Slipper Room. And cartoonist Erika Lopez has a play
at WOW Café Theatre whose title alone should be enough to entice you: “Nothing
Left But the Smell — A Republican on Welfare.” See erikalopez.com
for info.
Until then, I’ll be representing my love of gossip by wearing my new
Page Six Six Six T-shirt (as seen on Britney) while hitting the town.
Rachel Kramer Bussel can be reached at blade@rachelkramerbussel.com
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