YOUR FAVORITE LOGO TV SHOWS ARE ON PARAMOUNT+

Colton Haynes Is Thor, Ricky Martin Gets A Star: BRIEFS

Plus Marco Roboto is no moderate.

Birthday shoutouts! Jim Verraros (above) is 33, Seth Green is 42, Mary Steenburgen is 63, John Williams is 84, Joshua Morrow is 42, and Nick Nolte is 75.

ICYMI

Steve Grand wins "Best Dressed" for the Super Bowl.


Twitter trolls complain Super Bowl halftime show was "promoting homosexuality."


Gamer proposes to his boyfriend with a little help from Legend Of Zelda.


Sarah Michelle Gellar in talks to appear in Cruel Intentions TV show.


Super Bowl 50's hot daddy ref was the real winner.


IN OTHER NEWS

CBS has confirmed that this will be the final season of The Good Wife, but haven't ruled out a spinoff with some of the characters. I think it should be Christine Baranski, Alan Cumming, and how about that cute lawyer who we thought might be gay?


After just a few episodes, Syfy has renewed The Magicians and The Expanse for second seasons. I haven't had a chance to see either yet. What's your verdict on both shows? Has the gay magician had much to do yet?


Here's the latest teaser for X-Men: Apocalypse, and we finally have a good look at Psyclocke, with whom i'm the most intrigued.


How Marco Rubio crusades against gays and women while still being labeled "moderate."


Colton is Thor. I am NOT going to make any "How Thor is he?" jokes.


Ricky Martin gets a star on the Puerto Rico Walk Of Fame.


And here's The Weekly ShoutOUT™. Each week we're going to focus on one out athlete/performer and feature a daily pic and career timeline. We'll be showcasing the big names, but also the lesser-known gay and bisexual celebs who deserve more recognition.

This week our 152nd ShoutOUT™ is to ... Jim J. Bullock

60-year-old Jim (or Jm as he sometimes is credited) first became a star with his scene-stealing, memorable turn as Monroe Ficus, sometimes foil and always source of exasperation for Ted Knight on Too Close For Comfort.

Introduced a few episodes into the series run in 1980, Monroe was supposed to be a one-episode character, but made such an impact he was brought back as a regular and appeared in 119 episodes (including the 1985 revamped version of the show, re-titled The Ted Knight Show.)

Here's Jim reuniting with co-stars Deborah Van Valkenburgh and Lydia Cornell, discussing coming out and their memories of Ted.


Three years ago I presented my personal favorite Briefs list, The 100 Greatest Lost Hits of The 80's, and because if there's one thing Hollywood has taught us, it's that sequels and reboots and remakes are ALWAYS better then the original, we're going to the well again with The 100 Greatest Lost Hits of The 80's Part 2: The Even More Forgotten

We'll be spotlighting 100 more of the greatest minor hits of the decade, the songs you don’t hear on any 80’s nostalgia show. Songs that missed the top ten, or top twenty … or top forty. Hopefully these forgotten gems may ring a long dormant bell, or for younger readers, provide a pop music history lesson.

At #11 is "Solid Rock" by Goanna

Long before Midnight Oil's classic "Beds Are Burning," Australian rock group Goanna (led by Shane Howard) had a huge hit down under with this protest song.

"The inspiration came on a ten-day camping trip to Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) during 1980 where he had a "spiritual awakening" which brought "the fire in the belly" to the surface over injustices to Australia's indigenous peoples."

It hit #2 in Australia, but in the U.S. could climb no higher than #71 in July 1983.


Congrats to stormymac, who guessed that Friday's Pixuzzle™ © ® was Days Of Our Lives.

Here's today's Pixuzzle™ © ®. Since it's a new year, let's switch things up again. Here is a scene from a FAMOUS TV SHOW. Can you name it?


And today's Briefs are brought to you by ... Chris Noffke


And now something special in the Briefs. I'm happy to present a new undertaking by reader Lion King. Because our comments system is notoriously unreliable, his new list will appear at the end of the Briefs. Take it away LK!

Starting tomorrow, a new list of mine will begin: it will concern the complicated interrelation between Pop Music and the Gay Experience. It is a difficult and daunting task and I attacked it with the enthusiasm of an amateur. If you come across opinions that you disagree with - and you will - all I ask of you is to disagree with kindness. I'll be happy to discuss any and every comment you make.

Since the list will be pre-prepared, my first thought was to copy/paste it in the comments' section. Yet the system considers me to be a terrible spammer and will not allow me to post this way. Thankfully, my patron saint Snicks stepped in and offered to print the daily entries in the main section of the Briefs. This way you'll get to listen to the songs without having to be linked to YouTube. Thanks and thanks again Snicks!

The format of the list will be the following: one day will be dedicated to a gay themed song by a (presumably) straight act, one day will present a (preferably) gay themed song by a gay act, while the rest of the time we will be dealing in greater depth with an influential gay entertainer or icon. Be warned though: this format will often be disregarded when circumstances (or my inspiration) dictate otherwise.

Questionable points in my methodology:

1. Distinguishing gay-themed songs: many of them are pretty straightforward, but there many (especially the older ones), where the gay content is implied or hinted at. To modern audiences, the connection may appear tenuous, but older gay people are aware that at the time those hinted breadcrumbs formed a secret trail that only we could follow. So, any song that was identified as such by even a minority of gay people at the time, has a place in this list.

2. Characterizing an act as LGBTQI: coming out was rare in the 20th Century and practically non-existent before the 70s. So, I based the inclusion on historical information (when it existed) or, in some cases, in the prevalent opinion. It's risky, I know, but it can't be helped. On the other hand, the acts that are included in the straight category are not necessarily straight. They are characterized thus, because I didn't find info suggesting that they are LGBTQI. If any one of them was your former lover, please do tell.

3. Facing the fact that a major gay artist or icon has not necessarily recorded gay themed songs: sometimes the choice of songs is obvious, but in many cases it isn't. I may be occasionally asking for your help in pointing out which songs by a certain artist are most appropriate for inclusion. I know that there are many of you out there much more knowledgeable than I am.

Initially the list, while not chronological, will focus on 20th Century music, for two reasons: 1. I'm more familiar with the era and 2. The current acts are well covered by Snicks and the other good writers of NNN. Their time will eventually come and when it does, your help will be most appreciated. My knowledge may not be sufficient enough to do the current acts full justice - and we have to give everybody their fair share.

A note on the language that I use: I'm in love with the English language, in all of its incarnations throughout history, but I'm no expert. This informs my style: I use words and expressions that belong in different periods and different social situations. It's an acquired taste and I hope that you don't hate it too much. Good Snicks has offered to do the editing, so it won't be a complete mess.

I will start the list with David Bowie. I always intended him to be the first, more so now. His presentation will probably take more than 3 days because there's a lot to say and he's worth every word. He will be bookended by acts that are in some way connected to him, so his first day will be the day after tomorrow, to coincide with the first month anniversary of his passing.

Tomorrow: an urban legend concerning a megagroup, that was confirmed by the Internet.

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