Gayjoy Digest #4

Good morning and welcome to another edition of the Gayjoy Digest. 

We’re here with your weekly dose of queer news + events, plus a new community spotlight section we’re pretty excited about. Keep scrolling for all of it. 

And just as a reminder: we’d appreciate it if you’d take a sec to add this email to your favorites (and mark it as “not spam”) to make sure this email continues to hit your inbox. 

Demi Moore and her 9-year(!?) relationship

Last week, fashion stylist Masha Mandzuka made a sweet birthday post for her girlfriend of 9 years, Demi Moore. 

Rumors of their relationship first swirled in December 2018, when The Daily Mail published photos of the two women in LA, calling Masha “Demi Moore’s secret girlfriend.” The piece went on to claim that they’d been dating for over two years, and that Demi was “like a second mom” to Masha’s then-two-year-old daughter. 

The Daily Mail was apparently underestimating the length of their relationship by about four years, but we respect a low-key celesbian couple. And this feels like a big win for all of the queer fans of Charlie’s Angels (2003). 

And Just Like That, SATC might be a little gay

And Just Like That (the Sex and City reboot) premieres in less than a month, and fans are speculating that a lesbian storyline might be on the horizon for Miranda. This feels like a plausible theory solely from the fact that Cynthia Nixon is queer and has been married to a woman since 2012. 

Fortunately, the new teaser trailer came with some evidence to back that theory up. Joining the cast is nonbinary, bisexual actor Sara Ramirez, who is best known for their role as Dr. Callie Torres in Grey’s Anatomy—the longest-running queer series regular in TV history. And in the trailer, they’re seen with Cynthia in what we can maaaaybe assume is a gay bar, based on the person in the background with green hair and a partially shaved head. 

The original SATC was notoriously not great to its few queer characters (remember when Carrie once called bisexuality “just a layover on the way to Gaytown”??), but we’re cautiously optimistic with both Cynthia and Sara on board. 

Meanwhile, Kim Cattrall is joining the new Queer As Folk reboot, where her character has been described as “a martini-soaked, high society southern debutant with trailer park roots.” Sure! 

Kristen Stewart wants to hunt ghosts

Earlier this week, The New Yorker published a lengthy profile of K. Stew on the heels of the Spencer premiere. Buried within the 6,000+ words on her impressive acting career (and how good she looks in a t-shirt and jeans) is one innocuous line hinting at an upcoming project: a ghost-hunting reality show. 

Stewart describes the show, which she’s developing with an unnamed friend, as “a paranormal romp in a queer space,” with elevated aesthetics. We have no idea what this means, but it all seems very fun. She then goes on to explain that “Gay people love pretty things,” which is absolutely correct. 

It sounds like Stewart and her friend are in the early stages of development, but they’ve already got a pitch deck. Fingers crossed that there’s a network willing to give the people (lesbians) what they want. 

Jennifer Coolidge knows we’re obsessed with her

The trailer for Netflix’s first gay Christmas movie, Single All the Way, just dropped. It basically looks like a gay version of literally any Hallmark movie, with one exception: it stars Jennifer Coolidge . 

Towards the end of the trailer, she gives a not-at-all-subtle wink towards her adoring queer fanbase, saying “The gays just know how to do stuff. And for some reason, they’re always obsessed with me.” 

For this reason, and this reason alone, we may consider giving it a watch. 

Queer briefs 

• A Buzzfeed writer recently brought our attention to the fact that all the male stars in Mean Girls have come out as gay since the film was released. Sadly, Janis Ian is still stra****. 

• Kim Petras just made history by becoming the first out trans artist to perform at the MTV Europe Music Awards. The event was held in Budapest, in a move to “stand in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community” following the passage of restrictive, homophobic legislation in Hungary. 

• The U.S. Navy named a ship after Harvey Milk (the late gay rights and anti-war activist) Milk was forced to resign from the services due to his sexuality in the 1950s

Community spotlight: Sam Schles!

Tell us about yourself: I'm a TV Development Executive who's worked on amazing queer-centric content like Broad City and The Other Two. I'm super passionate about elevating LGBTQ+ and Female-identifying talent and helping them shape their stories to bring it to the screen. In my personal life, you can find me buying more houseplants and books than I know what to do with, and hitting up new restaurants and bars with friends.

Some questions for Sam: 

1. How many of your exes do you talk to? Lol all of them

2. First crush, real or imagined? Jennifer Garner in Alias (I definitely didn't know it was a crush, but I knew I was DRAWN to her)

3. What are you building/making? I just moved to LA to start a new job so I'm re-building/remaking everything!! My DM's are open to new LA friends and interior design tips!

4. What’s the dream? To be surrounded by supportive, funny, smart, creative friends and loved ones.

5. What is something gay that everyone should be doing/reading/using/watching? Shamelessly plugging two things I produced: The Other Two on HBO Max, and the upcoming original movie The Bitch Who Stole Christmas—it's a RuPaul's Drag Race Christmas movie premiering on VH1 Dec. 2nd. Get your parent's or ex-gf's cable password and watch!!

6. Are your dms open!? @sam_schles

Queer happenings in NYC

Nov (multiple dates): Brooklyn Queer Run Club

Nov 18: T is for Trash zine launch party @ Quimby’s Bookstore (7-9pm) 

Dec 2: Holy Rollers *new quarterly queer dance party* @ Black Flamingo

Dec 4/5: Positive Perinatal class prepares queer families for birth. Prices are sliding scale and it's all virtual. Classes are 10 -2 pm each day. 

Nov 19: Queer Play by Queer Social - NYC's Largest LGBTQ Game night

Nov 19: Yalla! Party @deependnyc (10pm-late) Yalla! is a community & Arts collective centering BLCK & BRWN Fems, SWANA Lesbians, Queers, Trans, NB & QBIPoC friends

Nov 19: Gay Asstrology Sagittarius Pop Up Party @Oracle Tavern (9pm-2am)

Nov 20: Lexie Peter's 90s and early 2000s night @Rebel Bk

Nov 20: Adair Presents Ladies First w/ artist Quiana Parks @Basquiats Bottle (11pm-4am)

Nov 21: Lesbiqueer 3-Course Queersgiving Meal

Dec 2: Dyke Beer presents Dyke Dungeons & Dragons

Dec 17: The Sappho Society Presents an Evening of Merrymaking and Yuletide Gay

Email us anything you'd like shared with our community! From events to personals. Or are you single and looking for love? Looking for a queer co-founder - anything goes here.

Written by Becca Stickler with Kira Deshler & Nicole Ripka