Twin Cities Pride Sues Star Tribune

Twin Cities Pride filed a lawsuit against the Star Tribune for refusing to run an ad of two men kissing, then refusing to run a replacement ad back in 2004.

And of course, this is Pride Week.

Previously: Twin Cities Pride Festival vs. Star Tribune

LivingOut Files for Bankruptcy

The woman behind GLBT rag, LivingOut, and GLBT community business directory, The Source, has filed for bankruptcy. Former employee, David, has the scoop:

"Deftly tearing into the rice-paper-coated-with-glue-like seam, I finally managed to liberate the document, therein: a letter saying that Donna Marie Gimbut -my former boss- was declaring bankruptcy and I, as a creditor, was being informed of a hearing at 10am on December 13th, 2005. This will be a meeting of creditors and I am glad to see that Donna, herself, will be there for the fun and games.

It is interesting to note that Donna has apparently declared bankruptcy on all her companies: 3 Dollar Bill, Inc., LivingOUT Media Group Inc., LivingOUT, Prizma Enterprises Inc., and Eye-Dentity Graphic Design Inc.."

The CityPages Blotter also has more information on Gimbut's financial problems:

"The bankruptcy filing, dated October 12th, shows the depths of Gimbut's financial difficulties. According to the court document, she has debts of $342,065 and assets of just $80,367. Among the debts owed are $12,159 to ECM Publishers, of Coon Rapids, $230 to The Minnesota Daily, and $402 to a local Merry Maids franchise. Her largest outstanding bill: $130,000, owed to Moore North American, of San Diego.

Gimbut lists three automobiles as personal property--a 2003 BMW, a 2002 Isuzu Trooper, and a 2002 BMW--but the latter two vehicles have been repossessed. Gimbut's current income is claimed to be just $3,094.

In addition, Gimbut and her businesses have now been sued five times since June in Hennepin County District Court. Two plaintiffs, both former employees, have received default judgments totaling $5,202.50. The other three cases, involving either aggrieved advertisers or former employees, are still pending.

Given Gimbut's perilous financial condition it seems unlikely that any of these folks will ever see a dime. "

For more on the LivingOut saga:

The State of the Queer Press in the Twin Cities
Remember LivingOut?
Saying Goodbye to LivingOut
CityPages on LivingOut
More LivingOut News: Nashville and Chicago
Department of Justice Investigating Three Dollar Bill, Inc.

Department of Justice Investigating Three Dollar Bill, Inc.

This afternoon I received a comment from an "Investigator Olson" who says: "If anybody knows where Ms. Gimbut or Ms. Barry might be please call (866)886-8153 ext 103. There is a $500 finders fee available please call for details."

Ms. Gimbut and Ms. Barry are the former owners of Three Dollar Bill which published LivingOut Newspaper and The Source directory in several cities, and was based in Minneapolis. After June 1st, the company and the publications have disappeared leaving employees unpaid and advertisers without the ads they purchased.

I called the number, and it goes to the Western Regional Office of Special Investigations a unit of the US Department of Justice. So, it seems legit and it seems that Three Dollar Bill is in serious trouble. There are a lot of people who worked hard to bring alternative GLBT media to the Twin Cities, and they deserve to be paid for their hard work. If you know of the whereabouts of these two, you not only get $500 for finding them, you will also help former employees get their paychecks.

Here's the history of the LivingOut saga:

The State of the Queer Press in the Twin Cities

Remember LivingOut?

Saying Goodbye to LivingOut

CityPages on LivingOut

More LivingOut News: Nashville and Chicago

Andy's Fab 50 Choice Awards: Part 1 of 5

Lavender is doing their Fab 50, and I'm doing mine. As a commenter pointed out, it doesn't really matter what the Lavender readers choose, because advertisers need to get paid. Well, I don't have advertisers, so these picks are legit. And I totally welcome anyone's favorites as well. Actually, after I get through my 50, I'll do a post tallying any favorites that anyone wants to send me, either via email or in the comments.

FAB Twin Cities Restaurant: Red Dragon for the drinks.

FAB St. Paul GLBT Bar:The Townhouse has dollar beers on Wednesdays, and that pretty much kicks ass. Also, it has the widest diversity of people of any gay bar in the Twin Cities.

FAB Sunday Brunch: Does an omlette and a bloody mary at the Uptown Bar and Grill count as brunch?

FAB Place to Meet Men: Craigslist?

FAB Casual Dining: Little Tijuana Restaurant. Open super late (3am), lots of punks, and really good food.

FAB Place to Meet Women: The American Sports Bar on Wednesdays.

FAB Fine Dining:AZIA

FAB Sexiest Wait Staff:Jetset

FAB Coffee Shop: Spyhouse. It's close to home, has wifi, and sometimes there's gays. Vera's Cafe is a close second.

FAB Male Bartender: Nate at the 19 Bar. He knew my love of Blue Moon and helped get it on tap for only $2.50 a mug!

Lavender's Fab 50 Reader's Choice Awards

Lavender's got a reader's poll to see what the top 50 fabulous GLBT communtiy things are. I'm going to list mine here, all this week, just to see how my tastes line up with the typical Lavender reader, and to highlight the people, places, and things that I think are important.

Also, there is a category for Fab GLBT Website. Wouldn't it be funny if a certain Lavender-bashing blog got into Lavender's Fab 50? (Hint, hint).

More LivingOut News: Nashville and Chicago

The tales continue nationwide as Minneapolis-based, Three Dollar Bill's publications The Source and LivingOut are nowhere to found, and advertisers and former employees are pissed. Apparently, local GLBT fashion/personal ad magazine, Lavender, has been calling around the country trying to check out what happened to the competition.

From Nashville:

"A few weeks ago, CSFP publisher Tim Toonen received an e-mail from someone with Lavender Magazine & PowerPages Directory, LGBT publications that, like Three Dollar Bill headquarters, are located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This individual asked about the activities of The Source in Nashville, indicating that their efforts to contact Three Dollar Bill were unsuccessful, including the fact that when calling the Minneapolis office, the message received was that the mail box was full."

Also in Nashville, Three Dollar Bill continued to sell advertising right up until the publication disappeared:

"Several of last year’s Nashville The Source advertisers were contacted in June and July about advertising in the next edition of The Source . Well-respected advertisers in the GLBT community, such as OutLoud! and Bart Durham, are not planning to risk any money on The Source this year. “We weren’t interested, of course,” says Joe Brant, with OutLoud! Department Store. (The phone number for the sales representative who contacted Brant now forwards to the same voicemail box which has been full for several weeks.)" [Link]

The last issue of LivingOut in Minneapolis was June 1, 2005, and according to their publisher that was the last time anyone has heard from Donna Gimbut.

In Chicago, it seems that advertising was sold, but nothing was ever distributed:

"After being approached by sales people from The Source , she bought a $500 ad in July of 2004. “They asked for the money upfront,” Hundt recalls. There were several errors on the proof The Source sent her, but when she tried to fax them the corrections, the fax number was not working. Their Chicago phone number had been disconnected. Hundt has since contacted the Better Business Bureau, the Chicago Attorney General, and the Minneapolis Attorney General, but she still has not heard from The Source or seen one copy of the directory distributed in Chicago."

I think that Three Dollar Bill is screwed.

Here's the history of the LivingOut saga:

The State of the Queer Press in the Twin Cities

Remember LivingOut?

Saying Goodbye to LivingOut

CityPages on LivingOut

CityPages on LivingOut

When it comes to community gossip, you know that this site will have the goods weeks before the alternative papers! And fortunately, CityPages has picked up on the story of LivingOut Media Group, Three Dollar Bill, and Donna Gimbut, owner of both. They've used their investigative powers to uncover even more questionable business practices by the company.

While I had a lot of comments from former staff who are still waiting to get paid for their work, CityPages looks into the businesses that bought advertizing space, but never got what they paid for. Some have even filed complaints with the Minnesota Attorney General's Office.

It would be interesting to hear what is happening in the other cities where LivingOut and The Source were operating...

Saying Goodbye to LivingOut

Last week, I posted some information on the demise of LivingOut, Minnesota's only GLBT alternative to Lavender Magazine. Many of you commented on your experiences working for LivingOut, and it seems that the publication is indeed gone.

David Rust, who wrote the publications first headline about gay marriage in Massachusettes clears up a few things about LivingOut:

"Of the things I've read in the comments section of this page, I can say that a lot of it isn't true. There was no racism at 3 Dollar Bill and many folk -gay, straight, black, white, hispanic, etc.- were hired, promoted, and kept on-staff during the year I worked for them. Distribution could have been better, but I saw the 30,000 copies of each issue we had printed during the Summer months of 2004 as I was also a distributer at that time."

He added that payment for services still have not been received, and contact with the company has been non-existant.

He also shares with us his last column, "A Geek's Eye On...Identity: Time to Hang up the Cape and Tights" which I've added in the extended entry.

A Geek's Eye On ... Identity
Time to Hang up the Cape and Tights
by David J Rust

Doctor Ray Palmer, physicist, acquired a piece of a white dwarf star and was able to engineer it into a device that allowed him to shrink to almost any size. Donning a blue costume and the sobriquet "the Atom," he went into the world to fight crime and become a hero beloved by comic book fans everywhere.

The Atom joined the Justice League, battled such foes as Jason Woodrue: the Floronic Man, Chronos, and the humorously costumed "Calculator" while standing aside better known and more powerful heroes such as Superman and Wonder Woman. Even Aquaman was more powerful, being strong enough to withstand the pressures found at the bottom of the Marianas Trench and punch-out a full-grown blue whale! Heck, all the Atom could do was get short.

He had his trials and victories, spent some time as a miniature John Carter in the rainforests, but never lost his edge...

...Until his secret identity was betrayed by the one person he thought he could trust: his wife.

True, the happy couple's divorce was amicable but you don't marry a size-changing super-hero without, apparently, losing a few marbles in the process. In a mad bid to win him back, she concocted a scheme to put a fellow super-hero spouse in peril to attract Dr. Palmer's attentions once more. Sadly, she went too far and ended up accidentally killing her target. The ensuing nightmare that cost Elongated Man (aka "Ralph Dibney") his beloved Sue was called "Identity Crisis" and really dissected the concept of why many choose to keep their true selves a secret.

Most do it to protect their family and friends from retribution but how many have ever considered that one of their loved ones could become a threat?

It’s a position that GLBT folk know pretty well.

The average lesbian doesn't don a skin-tight costume to punish evildoers nor does Joe Gay put on a voluminous pink cape and beat up the Joker: living life can be challenging enough when accused of being a blight on society and a danger to children. Hence, although they may not wear spandex (aside from the occasional drag queen), GLBT folk may adopt secret identities for reasons that could have saved the Atom quite a bit of stress and trouble. If he’d kept his secret life hidden from "the little woman" she might never have lost her mind and killed someone.

Then again, more and more heroes are coming out of the phone booth these days.

Captain America is now known to the world as Steve Rogers while Reed Richards, his wife Sue, and the rest of the Fantastic Four have never hidden who they are!

Writers in comic books are starting to find that there’s more to having a secret identity than first met the eye. This humble tradition, going back to the heroic Scarlet Pimpernel (and probably earlier), has always been a foil for the hero. Knowing that their personal actions, vigilante or endorsed, could lead to personal punishment provides constant pressure.

A super-hero may be incredibly powerful but any ability to deliver justice must come from circumventing conventional authorities. In other words, "Reagan's Raiders" - the comic book that chronicled the adventures of a super-powered Ronald Reagan and his cabinet - was never a real super-hero: he wasn't anti-establishment or outside of the loop (without his wife's astrologer, that is.)

Oddly enough, the X-Men - hated and reviled for being "not human" - hide their identities but are still known to be mutants. It's the super-hero equivalent of having everyone in the Pride parade wearing masks.

"Well, they must be Queer; they’re marching!"

"Yeah, but who are those strange, pink-masked men?"

How, in a world full of super-heroes, the X-Men got to be known as mutants and not just a cavalcade of people bitten by various radioactive insects, is hard to say. These days, they go around proudly proclaiming it.

And, masked or not, it's a sound idea.

Super-heroes save people all the time, whether through the street justice of Green Arrow (who took on a gay bashing in an early issue) or the web-slinging, quip-throwing Spider-Man. But perhaps their most impressive act of selfless altruism has come in the form of taking off their masks and letting people know who they are.

It's something for the closeted GLBT community, and all who hide their real selves, to consider.

Air America MN: Gay or No Gay on Air

There's some controversy brewing as to whether the owner of AM 950 Air America Minnesota has a policy banning the discussion of gay marriage, abortion, and gun control.

The controversy began when Nick Coleman, Star Tribune columnist and talk show host on 950, went on hiatus at the end of July and then submitted his resignation on August 8. Part of his reason for leaving involved the dismissal of a board operator, and most suprisingly, a company policy that prohibits on-air discussion of gay marriage, abortion, and gun control. From Centrisity that has been digging deep into AM 950:

"6. Certain Subjects Prohibited

JR Broadcasting will not permit discussion of the issues of gun control, abortion, or gay marriage. It is the policy of JR Broadcasting that discussion around these issues tend to be more sensationalistic than substantial. In order to provide for reasoned, substantial discussion of other issues, JR Broadcasting prohibits discussion of gun control, abortion, or gay marriage. Exceptions to this policy can be obtained prior to broadcast by request in writing to the station Manager."

According to Janet Robert, AM 950 Station Manager, the original policy was just a draft and the final policy is this one [via Lloydletta]

"Because certain hot button social issues such as gun control, abortion, or gay marriage tend to arouse strong emotions among our listening audience, JR Broadcasting wishes to be respectful in discussing these issues. It is the position of JR Broadcasting that persons often hold positions on these issues as deeply held moral beliefs that therefore deserve respect, and focus on these issues can undermine the very opportunities we seek to advance.

In the event a host should ever wish to discuss these issues on the air, JR Broadcasting requests that the host notify the station manager prior to airing the discussion."

This is indeed a better policy, however the credibility of the station further suffers when we understand who Janet Roberts is [via Strib]:

"Robert ran for Congress in 2002 as a Democrat but did not embrace the party's liberal positions on abortion and gun issues."

We don't yet know where Roberts stands on gay rights, but Air America will need to do some serious damage control. I don't recall much discussion, if any, on the proposed amendment to end domestic partnerships and ban civil unions and same-sex marriage in Minnesota during the past session.

**********

Update: If you are here from RadioEqualizer, please keep in mind that I, and probably the rest my readership do support Air America. They do a hell of a lot better job with the news than that fat-ass drug addict Rush guy. But we also expect progressive radio to be accountable to it's audience.

Update 2: I moved this to the bottom so it won't distract from the real story, and to add to my Rush-bashing. Orcinus gives us a look at how Rush deals with the opposition: deport them.

Remember LivingOut?

Earlier this year, GLBT Minnesotans had 2 choices for their community paper: Lavender Magazine and LivingOut. Now, it seems we're left with one.

LivingOut has virtually disappeared, with the last issue being dated the beginning of June. Also gone are The Source, a GLBT directory published by the parent company Three Dollar Bill. Websites for LivingOut, the Source, and Three Dollar Bill have been unavailable for weeks.

Last fall in Nashville, many businesses complained that The Source came out 2 months later than the advertising contract agreement, and circulation numbers appeared to be inflated. [Church Street Freedom Press]

Also last year from Out In Nashville:

"Upon a similar situation in Minneapolis, relations became so poisonous between Gimbut and segments of the GLBT community that former employees and others began circulating letters regarding her business practices."

Apparently, the main concern was that The Source's circulation was extremely low.

"Though the Nashville office is not closed, it remains unpopulated and the local phone number has been forwarded to Minneapolis offices. It would appear the future for "The Source" locally is a dubious one.

Government records with the state of Tennessee show that no company has registered to do business in Tennessee in either The Source's name or Three Dollar Bill, Inc., nor has the company filed to pay its share of the state's sales and use tax, a tax imposed on all corporations doing business in Tennessee based on gross sales. The Davidson County Clerk's office doesn't have a record of a business license by Three Dollar Bill, Inc., or a record of any taxes being paid by the company on local sales."

Circulation problems, alleged tax evasion, and, um, where is the newspaper in Minneapolis? Have advertisers been paid?

A conversation with a former employee of Three Dollar Bill this weekend revealed that the company had been struggling since last fall, and that it is currently out of business. I sent email to several accounts, and each was returned as delivery failed.

So we're left with one GLBT publication, the same one that cannot be bothered to ask the mayor of Minnesota's Capitol City where he stands on GLBT issues. Let's hope Lavender Magazine's new managing editor, that magazine's third this year alone, can get the magazine back on track.

Lavender Mag Takes Heat For Softball Kelly Interview

Letters to the editor question Lavender on the recent interview with St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly:

"Why Kelly?

Why was Mayor Randy Kelly of St Paul on the cover of your latest issue [Lavender, July 22]?

The interview with Kelley did not include one question related to GLBT issues.

This is quite a shortcoming for a publication that bills itself as “Minnesota’s GLBT magazine.”

It would have been informative to hear Kelly’s current positions on GLBT rights, given that he supported and campaigned in 2004 for George W. Bush, whose administration is fighting to roll back GLBT rights.

Instead, the whole interview was just a puff piece, with softball questions giving Kelly an uncritical forum in an election year.

Shame on you.

Dave Harvey

Ditto

When a politician like Randy Kelly is featured on the cover of Lavender [July 22], I think I detect some blatant vote pandering.

Yet nowhere does Heidi Fellner ask Kelly why he supported the homophobic George W. Bush in the last election.

Or what he has done to make St. Paul a welcoming city for GLBT folk.

Or why GLBT people should support his mayoral campaign.

Or even his feelings on the GLBT citizens of St. Paul.

Instead, Kelly was allowed to prattle on about his accomplishments, and thus gain huge exposure to a large voting bloc.

So, what was the point?

If you’re writing for a GLBT magazine, shouldn’t there be at least one question slanted toward your target audience?

Dennis Carey"

Stonewall DFL Criticizes Lavender-Kelly Interview

From the Minneapolis Issues List:

"Dear Editor,

It is with dismay that I read your latest issue and the cover story about Mayor Randy Kelly. As the leader of Minnesota's oldest GLBT political organization, I found the entire article to be filled with fluff and lacking substance. If Lavender's objective was to use this as an opportunity to educate the voting members of our community, it was an truly an opportunity lost.

Mayor Kelly is not a true friend to the GLBT community. When he was in the MN legislature, he voted in support of retaining the state's sodomy laws. When he ran for Mayor in 2001, he snubbed both Lavender and OutFront MN by ignoring candidate questionnaires on the advice of Norm Coleman. In 2004, he supported one of the most anti-GLBT Presidents in US history by endorsing George W. Bush. In this year's election, as a 'Democrat', he declined to participate in the screening and endorsement process organized by Stonewall DFL.

Only Chris Coleman has major party endorsement in the St. Paul Mayor's race. He is the only candidate to participate in 2005 Twin Cities Pride in addition to participating in every Pride festival when he was a member of Saint Paul's City Council. Chris has been questioned by representatives from our community on issues including GLBT homeless youth, HIV/AIDS education and prevention, same sex marriage rights, the epidemic of PNP drugs in our community and equal opportunity for GLBT small businesses. His responses to each are both progressive and visionary.

We encourage members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities to look beyond the fluff and ask the tough questions in St. Paul's Mayoral race. There is a reason why Chris Coleman is the endorsed candidate of Stonewall DFL and the MN DFL party - substance.

Sincerely,

Paul R. Skrbec
Chair, Stonewall DFL"

Besides Kelly and Coleman, Elizabeth Dickinson is running for St. Paul Mayor. You can read about her campaign here.

Lavender Magazine and Randy Kelly: No Gay?

The most recent issue of Lavender Magazine, 'Minnesota's GLBT Magazine', has a lengthy interview with incumbent St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly. Mayor Kelly made national headlines last year when he endorsed the re-election of President Bush.

Interviewer, Heidi Fellner managed to ask many important questions of Randy Kelly, but not a single one about his views on same-sex marriage, or GLBT rights, or anything even resembling queer. What is the point in printing an interview in "Minnesota's GLBT Magazine" without asking anything GLBT? We already have CityPages, the Pulse, the Star-Tribune, the Pioneer Press, Skyway News, etc. to ask the questions Heidi asked...we look to the queer press to ask the queer questions, and to get the GLBT angle from a politician.

What is going on with this magazine?!

UPDATE: From Norwegianity: "You have to wonder how a Mayor who vetoed the St. Paul City Council’s resolution to oppose the removal of sexual orientation protection in state law back in 2003 is suddenly the cover story fluff piece in the biggest GLBT magazine in town."

And also an Eva Young post from way back: "Well heck, there were two metro area DFL legislators who voted to retain the sodomy law the last time the topic came up -- former Sen. and current St Paul Mayor, Randy Kelly and Sen. Dave Johnson of Bloomington."

It is truly disturbing that "Minnesota's GLBT Magazine" would have a cover story about someone who's support of the GLBT community is questionable. Maybe that's why there weren't any GLBT questions? Hmm? Hmm?

City Pages Best of the (Queer) Twin Cities 2005

The City Pages Best of the Twin Cities is out! And I'd like to highlight the queer establishments that top the list:

Best Queer Coffee Shop: Wilde Roast Cafe.

Best Adult Video Store: Smitten Kitten

Best Gay Bar: 19 Bar
Reader's Choice: Gay 90s

I wrote about the 19 Bar last year, and I've changed my mind significantly since then. The 19 is the definitive neighborhood gay bar, and I'm there at least once a week for a pitcher with friends and some Erotic Photo Hunt, pool, or darts. Of course, the Gay 90s is the popular choice among queer and straight folks who don't mind rude security, dank decor, and throngs male and female Paris Hilton wannabes. It's also the only 'gay' bar in the Twin Cities that charges a cover before midnight.

Best Lesbian Bar: Twilight
Reader's Choice: Townhouse

This is a tough one, and later in the week I'll be posting a lengthy writing on the queer women's scene in the Twin Cities. Twilight is fun, and ironically not a bar at all. The Townhouse is THE queer place to be on Wednesday nights with $1 domestic beer and well drinks with a $3 cover. Wednesdays at the Townhouse really does have the best mix of queer folks in the city.

Best Place to Meet Single Men (Gay): Vera's Cafe

Best Place to Meet Single Women (Lesbian): Lynx Games

Best Bookstore (Independent): Query Booksellers
Reader's Choice: Bound to be Read

Almost everything I read has HTML tags around it, so as far as bookstores go, I'll leave it to paper readers. But I have had personal and professional dealings with Lyle from Query, and he's got to be one of the most helpful and knowledgeable book-people ever. And it really is a cute, cute place. Oooh, and they have the best cards for any occasion.