A Liberal Gay channel? We already have one
July 10, 2003
BY PHIL ROSENTHAL TELEVISION CRITIC
HOLLYWOOD--Just because Viacom is shelving its concept for an all-gay
network doesn't mean cable television is hurting for shows dealing with
interior design, fashion, makeovers, cooking, shopping and gardening, to say
nothing of all those infomercials promising the secrets of rock-hard abs.
Clearly, cable networks have identified a fabulous target audience well
worth wooing.
Gay is the new black.
NBC-owned Bravo this month, in a two-week span, will introduce both "Queer
Eye for the Straight Guy," a makeover series, and "Boy Meets Boy," an outre
dating series in which a man tries to find the man of his dreams, which may
or may not be telling us something about the network.
"Does this mean that Bravo is becoming a gay network? Absolutely not," Bravo
president Jeff Gaspin told critics Tuesday, reading a spiel from a
TelePrompTer. "Not that there's anything wrong with that."
Perhaps he protests too much. Not that anyone is looking to out any networks
here, but just as surely as musicals are making a comeback, there are those
who will suggest Bravo is poking its head out of the closet for a gander and
a ratings goose.
"People can write that if they want," Gaspin said when asked later. "I don't
agree with it, and I would look at independent filmmaking. There's a
subculture of gay filmmaking within independent films. That subculture does
not define all of independent films."
So adding "Boy Meets Boy" and "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" to a Bravo
schedule already stocked with the ever-flamboyant Cirque du Soleil, reruns
of "Antiques Roadshow" and "Fame," repeats of Matt Lauer's infomercial with
Madonna and, next week, both "The Gay Weddings Marathon" and a showing of
NBC's "Cher: The Farewell Tour" is just misleading then, huh? Pardon moi.
"Bravo is left-wing," Gaspin said. "I don't think Bravo is a direct hit to
the mainstream. There are so many general-interest channels out there. If
you want to stand out, if you want to be a little different, you actually
have to do something a little different."
Gaspin said he believes that both "Queer Eye," which debuts Tuesday, and
"Boy Meets Boy," which debuts July 29, "have the opportunity to break some
stereotypes and to promote some very positive aspects."
"Boy Meets Boy" has some straight men in the dating pool competing for the
affections of a gay man because there's a cash prize dangled before
them--sort of the way certain channels are courting gay viewers, one might
say.
As for "Queer," it's not clear which stereotypes will be broken in a show in
which five gay experts spiff up a hetero's wardrobe, hair, home, cuisine and
social skills.
"There are negative stereotypes and there are positive stereotypes," Gaspin
said. "I'd like to think 'Queer Eye' focuses a bit more on the positive
stereotypes. I don't know that we're looking to break down stereotypes as
much as we're looking to show that gay people and straight people can
actually work together quite nicely. We aren't doing the show to break down
stereotypes. If it does that as an aside, that's terrific."
When it was pointed out that it looked as though every gay stereotype was
represented among the five "Queer" specialists, Carson Kressley, who's the
group's "fashion savant," corrected the critic.
"Well, not every one, 'cause we don't have a florist," Kressley said. "Ted
[Allen, the Chicago writer who's the group's food and wine expert] has a
great line for this, too: If someone says we look great or we have great
hair or we're really good dancers, we're all for it. You know? Bring it on!"
Gaspin, standing off to the side, smiled. "I would be lying if I told you my
goal is to break down barriers," he said. "My goal is to create compelling
television that would get people talking about the channel."
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
