So, living with HIV is still quite a shocker, it appears. Whether true or rumored, whether "HIV Positive" is voluntarily displayed as an act of activism or the status is maliciously spread on the internet, the label still packs quite a punch. And I have to wonder why....
Dixie Carter’s death leaves historic AIDS legacy.
In 1987, when nurses would still flip coins to see which would enter the room of an AIDS patient and politicians debated sending those with HIV to an isolated island, something truly remarkable happened. And the passing Friday of the great Dixie Carter, 70, is a fine...
Smokin’ Kraken: Why gay men love monsters.
Long before the Big Moment in the shamelessly delightful "Clash of the Titans" remake, somewhere between the Winnebago-sized scorpions and the fatal gaze of a slithering Medusa, it occurred to me that I've been squealing with delight at monsters longer than, well,...
Win a car, bed a star in “a place like this…”
When I was nineteen years old, I vacationed to Los Angeles and won a car on "The Price is Right." And so begins my first book, "A Place Like This," about my years in 1980's Los Angeles. The book has been on my mind lately because of my work preparing a new one. Since...
Anita came out to play last night…
Sometimes the old girl busts out of her shell (how she breathes stuffed in a gym bag in the back of the closet I'll never know) and takes the stage. She got her chance last night, when my drag alter ego brought some laughs to a group of friends in recovery with her...
Anita Mann performs “Funkytown” with the Armorettes
Back in 1997, while performing with The Armorettes (who still have a weekly show raising money for people with HIV/AIDS in Atlanta), I created the first of Anita Mann's signature act with this, a fun house freak-out of a number, "Funkytown" (also featuring the great...
Video promo for “Night of the Living Dead” on stage
My brother, Dick King, directed a stage production of "Night of the Living Dead" and asked me to re-create scenes from the movie on video, using the stage actors. What zombie horror movie fan could refuse? This project was a blast. Dick and I also did a television...
Talking zombies on the morning news
Since helping re-create scenes from "Night of the Living Dead" is too much fun to pass up, I visited Shreveport, Louisiana to help my brother Dick mount a production of the zombie classic. Here, I'm interviewed on the morning news while Dick clowns around as the late,...
Anita Mann as “Miss Pink Cloud”
My drag queen alter ego first appeared while in recovery at this event, which raised funds for Hotlanta Roundup, an annual gathering of gay and lesbian folks in recovery from drugs and alcohol. Here, Anita vies for the title "Miss Pink Cloud," and later in the evening...
Anita Mann’s infamous TV Set Number
Set to Nancy Lamott's "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," my drag queen alter ego battles herself locked in a TV set in this, her finest hour on stage. This performance was taped at a fund raiser for gay and lesbians in recovery from drugs an alcohol, since Anita (and I)...
