"Paparazzi" Party Highlights O'Neal Appeal

After the Christmas/New Year's partying is done, and you've had a full week to recover, you can come out to the first mega-fabulous party of 2010, Paparazzi: The Dwight Allen O'Neal Birthday Experience, at NYC's swank and fashionable Madame X Lounge in Mahattean's NoHo section. The over-the-top gathering headlines actor, model, producer, and Christopher Street TV series creator Dwight Allen O'Neal, who's celebrating his 26th birthday with a talk-of-the-town bash. To chase away the January chill, fashionistas Nico and Adrian will be premiering their new underwear collection during Paparazzi, and the guest list for this event reads like a who's who of the gay entertainment community!



There will be a customary gala Red Carpet, sponsored by The FUTURE, a multimedia experience for and about the LGBT community of color. This star-studded prelude will be hosted by pop-culture blogger Skorpion, who always dishes the latest from the celebrity universe. The evening's music will be powered by Likwuid (Queen Of The Queendom) Stylez and DJ Raydar Ellis of the hip-hop sensation Rebel Starr. Lynne Rene of Royalty Media Group, one of the many Paparazzi sponsors, has announced in a Press Release yesterday, that "this event will be the buzz of Page Six!"

The festivities begin at 7 PM in the unforgettable Madame X Lounge, 94 W. Houston Street, NYC, on Saturday, January 9th. It will be covered by plenty of media including BBOP of the World Pridecast, who will be covering Paparazzi LIVE! Don't miss your chance to hobnob with the "socialites, superstars, galebrities, and who's who", just one week from this Saturday! Take a A,B,C,D,E or F train to west 4th, or 1 train to Houston Street. Your "Inner tabloid" wants to go. Really, it does.

Come To The LIVE Doo-Dirty Show Broadcast Benefitting C2EA, Dec.19!

New York City's incomparable Billie's Black Restaurant is hosting a live benefit broadcast of DJ Baker's Da Doo-Dirty Show to support the Campaign To End AIDS. This star-studded event is sure to chase away winter's chill as I join DJ and a veritable who's who gathering of luminaries from the LGBT community. The Campaign To End AIDS is working hard every day to prevent the preventable and bring the modern-day plague of HIV/AIDS to a close forever. As the Centers For Disease Control (CDC) reports, the epidemic is devastating minorities--gay, straight, male and female alike--at a rate previously unknown in the modern world. The crisis is worsening, and the time to act is now. You can purchase your tickets to this fabulous event here, and make a difference in a struggle that affects us all. See you there on December 19th. Billie's Black is located at 271 W.119th Street, take a B or C train to 116th Street. The shows begin at 7 and 9 PM.

Nathan, Delvon And DJ Critique The OMA's!

The 2009 Out Music Awards were a blast, but true to form, DJ Baker's Da Doo-Dirty Show was ready with a critique of the evening's goings-on. There was drama, variety, and tea to be dished, and I sat down with DJ Baker and fellow author Delvon Johnson to critique the night when the LGBT stars came out to shine. Here's a special video presentation of Da Doo-Dirty Show. Enjoy!

Da Doo-Dirty Show Critiques 2009 Out Music Awards (I) from Nathan James on Vimeo.

Da Doo-Dirty Show Critiques 2009 Out Music Awards (II) from Nathan James on Vimeo.

Da Doo-Dirty Show Critiques 2009 Out Music Awards (III) from Nathan James on Vimeo.

An Evening With Nathan James

Nathan James Live At GMHC from Nathan James on Vimeo.

Reading from my novel The Devil's Details (Worldwide Publications, 2009) and engaging the audience in a lively discussion on its merits and the book's relevance to the issues facing the LGBT community today. I had a blast, and the GMHC staff worked hard to make An Evening With Nathan James a great success!

TONIGHT: The Out Music Awards!

Tonight, the LGBT Recording Academy hosts the annual Out Music Awards, honoring achievements by gay and lesbian entertainers and musicians over the past year. Held at NYC's legendary Webster Hall and hosted by Rodney Chester ("Alex" of Noah's Arc fame) and political humorist Kate Clinton. Out Music Executive director Diedra Meredith (Deepa Soul) says, "It is my hope to create an equivalent presence in the music industry for these amazing artists and performers through the OUTMusic Awards. I've been waiting all my life for this moment to arrive!" With LGBT cable network LOGO set to televise the gala ceremony, and a star-studded ensemble of awardees and presenters, the Out Music awards is one of gay New York's not-to-be-missed events. Kicking everything off, super-hot Shirts And Skins star DeMarco Majors and comedienne Julie Goldman are hosting the Pre-Show festivities. Look for a whole galaxy of stars tonight, including Kevin Aviance, R & B singer Nhojj, unforgettable rapper Baron, the incomparable San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus (the oldest and largest in the world), and perennial LGBT favorite Deborah Harry.



Among the many notable presenters are Da Doo-Dirty Show host DJ Baker, actor, singer, and Christopher Street TV creator Dwight O'Neal, World Pridecast host BBOP, performance artist Lee Soulja, and accomplished comedian and actor Reginald L. Barnes.



The OMA's are the way we in the LGBT community recognize the works of our own great musicians, singers, and entertainers. Nothing else in today's entertainment industry is quite like it, and its organizers deserve every praise for pulling this together each year. Following decades of persecution in which LGBT artists could perform publicly but express their sexuality only in private, the day is now here when our stars can not only be out and proud, but our appreciation of their music can be properly shown to the world. In the long history of the gay-rights struggle, these artists have given our journey a soundtrack, and tonight, we can thank them for setting our lives to harmony and rhythm.



Webster Hall is located at 125 E. 11th Street in Manhattan, and can be reached by taking a 4,5,6,L,N,Q,R, or W train to Union Square. The festivities begin with the Red Carpet at 5 PM, a Pre-show at 7, and the Awards at 8. An Afterparty will be held at the RF Lounge, in the Village at 531 Hudson Street, immediately following the show. Tickets may be purchased at the Webster Hall Box Office. See you there!

The MTA's Electric Christmas Train

Every year in December, MTA New York City Transit, the agency which operates NYC's buses and subways, brings out their own electric train set for the holidays. It's the special Holiday Nostalgia Train, of fully restored subway cars from the 1930s, when the city-owned IND system began running. The old cars hearken back to another era, with their wicker seats, open ceiling fans, and incandescent lighting. It was a time before high-tech, when everything was done manually. Subway operation was a much more rugged business then. No automated train announcements, software, or computer-controlled navigation. These cars ran in the NYC subway until the 1970s, and were the last Pre-WWII trains purchased by the city.



These were the original subway cars which inspired legendary composer Billy Strayhorn to write jazz great Duke Ellington's theme song, Take The 'A' Train. Their usual assignment in those early years was on the famous train of that name, and they spent decades on that route and service. The Holiday Train will run every Sunday this month along the "V" Line (The Sixth Avenue local), between Second avenue in Manhattan and Queens Plaza. The schedule is as follows:

Departs Second Avenue at: 10:00 AM, 11:30 AM, 1:00 PM, 2:30 PM and 4:00 PM
Departs Queens Plaza at: 10:45 AM, 12:15 PM, 1:45 PM, 3:15 PM and 4:45 PM

So come on out and catch the Train To Chrismas Past! You might even meet me along the way.