Birthday shoutouts! Sheamus (above) is 38, Ariel Winter is 18, Will Poulter is 23, Elijah Wood is 35, Sarah McLachlan is 48, Nick Carter is 36, Joey Fatone is 39, and Barbi Benton is 68.

ICYMI

Matthew Mitcham announces retirement from diving.

Boy George and Carson Kressley will bring the gay to upcoming season of Celebrity Apprentice.

Monument honoring drag icon Divine gets the support of Baltimore mayor

Japanese kiss wrestling is the sport every country needs

Naked man plays ping pong with his penis.

IN OTHER NEWS

Jussie Smollett talks to Out about being part of an acting family, coming out, the last hectic year, and labels.

“I am a gay man with an extremely open heart,” he says, easy and assured until he’s asked to elaborate on what that means to him. “God, I’ve never had to talk about this, so I’m trying to find the words. If I had to label myself, I would label myself as a gay man. With that said, I believe that love is the only thing that matters, and I would hope that anybody would leave themselves open — not to gender, but to love. I would hope that people would not close themselves off from what could be if, lo and behold, you meet somebody that just sweeps you off your feet, and you just can’t do anything about it. If we truly believe that we are born this way, then why do we try to stifle the way we were born? If I fall in love down the road with a woman, I’m going to love that woman.”

“I’m sure that those words will be misconstrued,” he says, because if there’s one thing he’s learned this year, it’s how easily that can happen. “But this is a conversation that deserves to be had, because we don’t all understand each other. You’re not going to tell me that loving someone is wrong. That does not mean that heterosexuality is not very real. It does not mean that bisexuality is not very real. It does not mean that homosexuality is not very real. They are all very real. But what I’m saying is, I am a gay man. I am a gay man. I am a gay man. I don’t know how many times I have to say that.”

Susan Sarandon is a Bernie fan, and has quite a few things to say about Hillary, including:

'It's one thing to be for gay rights and gay marriage once everybody else is for it. That's not difficult,' Sarandon stated.

Hawaii introduces bill to ban conversion therapy.

That horrible Harlem hate church is up for public auction over unpaid bills.

"A state judge ordered Atlah Worldwide Church to be sold at a public foreclosure auction after failing to pay creditors more than $1.02 million, court records show."

Ricky being all DILF

Out singer/actor Troye Sivan appeared on Ellen's birthday show today and performed "Youth"

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 150th ShoutOUT™ is to ... Jon Polito

Jon isn't all about cop and gangster drama. He's had the opportunity to show his comedic chops numerous times. Most recently, he's made a couple of appearances on Modern Family as Jay's longtime rival. Here's a compilation of some of his comedic moments.

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 #18 is "Encore" by Cheryl Lynn

Long before Star Search, there was The Gong Show, in which amateur talent would risk humiliation to perform in front of Rip Taylor and Joanne Worley. By far the most successful contestant was the fabulous Cheryl Lynn (TRIVIA: She would lose in her episode to a singing juggler).

Even though she lost, she was immediately sought out by record companies, and in 1978 released her debut single, the iconic "Got To Be Real," which she took to #12. She would follow that up with another classic dance hit, "Starlove" (#62) in 1979, and in 1981 hit #70 with "Shake It Up Tonight."

She would only hit the Hot 100 once more, with "Encore," the first single from her album Preppie, which hit #69 in March 1984. Oh, how we rollerskated to it.

As for the video ... I can't even ...

No, seriously, I can't even with the video. I just can't (although I do have to give major props to the woman in blue having the seizures).

Congrats to stormymac, who guessed that yesterday's Pixuzzle™ © ® was Reba.

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 ... Bruno Endler