Cinema Diverse To Screen Madcap Comedy, THE RITZ, On Thursday, September 3rd.

Cinema Diverse - the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival • Palm Springs To Screen Madcap Comedy, THE RITZ, On Thursday, September 3rd.

Actress KAYE BALLARD to host VIP Reception.

On Thursday, September 3rd, Cinema Diverse, the Gay and Lesbian Film Festival • Palm Springs, will launch its new September Screening Series with a revival screening of the madcap comedy, THE RITZ. Local favorite Actress Kaye Ballard, who starred in the film, is scheduled to host a VIP Reception in advance of the screening, and provide an introduction the film, along with some great quips and anecdotes. “You know it was the first time a woman used the “F” word in a major motion picture,” Ballard laughs, “And of course I was the one who said it.”

Tony Award Winner Terrence McNally (LOVE! VALOUR! COMPASSION!, MASTER CLASS) adapted his Broadway hit farce, THE RITZ, to spicy screen life with many of the show's zany original cast members: Jack Weston, Jerry Stiller, Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham (AMADEUS) as a screaming queen to end all screaming queens, a young and buff Treat Williams, and the legendary Rita Moreno (WEST SIDE STORY). Moreno, who will be appearing live at the Palm Springs Art Museum's Annenberg Theater this coming November, reprised her Tony Award winning performance in the movie version of THE RITZ as the clueless Googie Gomez, a supremely aggressive but hopelessly untalented Latina who sees her potential stardom rising out of the attention she receives by performing in a New York City gay bathhouse called THE RITZ!

Acclaimed director Richard Lester (A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, PETULIA) directed the film version of THE RITZ, and served up an exercise in manic mayhem based on the story of a Cleveland sanitation company owner who is "married to the mob,”and inadvertently crosses his gangster brother-in-law. To avoid his brother-in-law’s hitmen, he “hides” in the "safest place in the world" - a gay bathhouse. So turn up the steam heat, break out the bath towels, check into THE RITZ and get ready for a true laugh riot!

For tickets and information about the screening of THE RITZ,
and the Special VIP Reception with KAYE BALLARD, visit www.cinemadiverse.org.

Tickets are available for purchase at the Camelot Theatres Box Office, 2300 E. Baristo Road, Palm Springs, CA, 92262, or by calling 760-325-6565.

News from the Triangle Inn Palm Springs

Are you ready for LABOR DAY?

We still have a couple of rooms left for our annual Holiday Celebration,
and we’re planning a North Carolina Style Pulled Pork Barbecue
on Sunday, September 6th.

If you haven’t made plans yet, why not join us!

Give us a call at 800-732-7555,

or email us at triangleinnps@earthlink.net

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Speaking of visiting Palm Springs,
ten airlines already offer year-round service to the Palm Springs International Airport from the following cities:
Bellingham, WA; Calgary, AB; Dallas/Fort Worth, TX;
Denver, CO; Edmonton, AB; Las Vegas, NV; Los Angeles, CA;
Minneapolis / St. Paul, MN; O'Hare / Chicago, IL; Phoenix, AZ;
Portland, OR; Sacramento, CA;
Salt Lake City, UT; San Francisco, CA;
Seattle, WA and Vancouver, BC.

AND, starting this year,
we’ll also have additional flights
and/or extended service to and from:
Seattle/Tacoma service (Alaska Airlines) - Daily, starting Aug. 23;
Chicago service (American Airlines) - Daily, starting Aug. 25;
a 3rd Dallas/Ft. Worth (American Airlines) flight, starting Aug. 25;
Increased San Francisco service (United Airlines), starting Sep. 2;
Calgary, Alberta Canada service (WestJet), starting Sep. 8;
Increased Bellingham service (Allegiant), starting Sep. 22
and Phoenix – More Jets (US Airways) NOW!

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September Events:

Cinema Diverse September Screening Series



THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3
THE RITZ
6pm - 7pm VIP Reception with KAYE BALLARD
7:30pm SCREENING


THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10
WAITING FOR GUFFMAN
7:30pm SCREENING

WAITING FOR GUFFMAN (Christopher Guest, 1997, USA, 84 Minutes)

"A madcap gem. As touching as it is hilarious." -- Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly



THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17
BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS
7:30pm SCREENING & DOLLY PARTON LOOK-ALIKE CONTEST
9pm After Party

THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS (Collin Higgins, 1982, USA, 114 Minutes)

Texas has a whorehouse in it?

Cinema Diverse: The 2009 Gay and Lesbian Film Festival • Palm Springs

2009 Film Festival Schedule

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24

6:00pm THE NAKED CIVIL SERVANT (78 Minutes)
THE NAKED CIVIL SERVANT (Jack Gold, 1975, UK, 78 Minutes)

"Never keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level. It's cheaper" -- Quentin Crisp

THE NAKED CIVIL SERVANT created a furor in 1975 when it premiered on PBS in North America with both viewers and sponsors threatening to yank their support. It was a film ahead of its time about a man even more ahead of his time. Despite the uproar, the film remained on the air and garnered strong critical acclaim, Emmy Award nominations and a Best Actor British Television Academy Award for John Hurt's extraordinary performance.


7:20pm -- 10-15 Minute Intermission


7:30pm AN ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK (74 Minutes)
AN ENGLISHMAN IN NEW YORK, DIRECTOR: Richard Laxton

Outspoken, outlandish and utterly unwilling to conform, legendary Quentin Crisp’s tale is the tale of homosexuality in the 20th century. Commonly accepted as the first “out” man in Britain, Crisp’s 1968 biography inspired the 1975 award-winning TV film The Naked Civil Servant, starring John Hurt. But when it comes to the flamboyant performer and king of social commentary, one film could never have been sufficient.
An Englishman in New York (starring Hurt in a reprisal of the role) chronicles the latter third of the icon’s life. Where The Naked Civil Servant was about Quentin’s going against the heterosexual grain in the UK, Englishman is the converse, a moving tale about a man who still refuses to follow the rules, even within the budding gay culture of the 1970s and ’80s in New York.

8:50pm Exit Theatre
9:00pm After Party

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25


1:30PM PATRIK, AGE 1.5
PATRIK, AGE 1.5 (Sweden, 2008, 100 minutes, Dir. Ella Lemhagen) Delightful comedy of errors about two gay dads whose dream of starting a family turns into a nightmare when a mistake is made and their adoption of a cute little "baby boy" arrives in the form of an embittered homophobic 15-year-old juvenile delinquent named Patrik.


4:30PM GIVE ME YOUR HAND
GIVE ME YOUR HAND (France, 2009, 80 Minutes, Dir. Pascal-Alex Vincent) Startlingly original, sexy and often times obscure tale of twin brothers (Alexandre Carril and Victor Carril) who experience a severe onslaught of sibling rivalry and the emergence of their repressed sexual egos while on the road from France to Spain to attend their mother's funeral.


7:30PM PORNOGRAPHY: A THRILLER
PORNOGRAPHY: A THRILLER (USA, 2009, 113 Minutes, Dir. David Kittredge) Trippy, psychological creep-show about a gay porn star who mysteriously vanished after deciding to leave the business at the height of his fame in 1995 and a young New York writer who becomes obsessed with investigating the circumstances of the model's strange disappearance some 14 years later.


SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26


9:30AM OUT OF THE BLUE
OUT OF THE BLUE (France, 2007, 95 Minutes, Dir. Alain Tasma) Endearing, beautifully acted, DESERT HEARTS inspired tale of a middle-aged mother and wife (the lovely Mireille Perrier) who leaves her husband only to find an unrealized inner life when she encounters a beautiful, independent, free spirit dancer named Claude (Rachida Brakni).


1:30PM A PLACE TO LIVE: THE STORY OF TRIANGLE SQUARE (Centerpiece Documentary Film)
A PLACE TO LIVE: THE STORY OF TRIANGLE SQUARE (USA, 2008, 84 Minutes, Dir. Carolyn Coal) -- DOCUMENTARY CENTERPIECE FILM Outrageously entertaining, inspiring and highly moving documentary which chronicles the journey of seven brave individuals as they attempt to secure a home in Triangle Square, Hollywood, the nation's first affordable housing project for LGBT seniors. "Best Documentary Award Winner" at Los Angeles's OUTFEST.


4:30PM RIVERS WASH OVER ME (Centerpiece Dramatic Film)
RIVERS WASH OVER ME (USA, 2009, 89 Minutes, Dir. John G. Young) -- DRAMATIC CENTERPIECE FILM Emotionally rigorous, brave account of an intelligent 15-year-old who is forced to relocate from New York City to live with his extended family in rural North Carolina where he chooses to continue to live an open life in a community where sexual, racial and class conflicts rage.


7:30PM LUCKY BASTARD
LUCKY BASTARD (USA, 2009, 95 Minutes, Dir. Everett Lewis) Dark, highly provocative noir tale of a young architect whose carefully designed life spirals out of control after he is picked up by a gorgeous hustler. This twisted, complex, highly sexual come-on of a film is the latest creation from Sundance Prize winning director Everett Lewis (NATURAL HISTORY OF PARKING LOTS, SKIN AND BONE, LUSTER.)

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27


1:30PM DROOL
DROOL (USA, 2009, 86 Minutes, Dir. Nancy Kissam) A deadpan Southern family gets a radical makeover when a colorful, free-spirit, Kathy K. Cosmetics saleswoman enters their gothic world to liberate some, inspire others and teach all the glories of purple eye shadow. Gorgeous Laura Harring (David Lynch’s MULHOLLAND DRIVE) and sexy Jill Marie Jones (TV’s "Girlfriends") star.

4:30PM THE BUTCH FACTOR
THE BUTCH FACTOR (USA, 2009, 88 Minutes, Dir. Christopher Hines) -- SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PREMIERE! Fast paced and revealing documentary which investigates the complex and intertwining nature of masculinity and homosexuality from the point of view a cross-section of jocks, queens, clones, Bears and gym rats who open up a healthy (and hot) discussion of what it means to be gay and a man.


7:30PM HOLLYWOOD, JE T'AIME
HOLLYWOOD, JE T'AIME (USA, 2009, 95 Minutes, Dir. Jason Bushman) CLOSING NIGHT PRESENTATION Delightful, charming and hugely entertaining laugh riot about a romantic Frenchman who, when burned by love, escapes the gorgeous black and white reality of his cherished Paris for the strange neon glare of the City of Angeles. A sweet, surprising, fish-out-of-water story that ultimately becomes one of the funniest satires of the absurdities of the low-level Hollywood showbiz world ever! Adorable Eric Debets and handsome gay icon Chad Lowe (SAVE ME, 2008 Cinema Diverse Closing Night Film) star. From the makers of KISSING JESSICA STEIN.

Recently, Stephen and I were invited to participate in www.142days.com - a website and a project designed to give faces to the fight for marriage equality in California. As you know, for 142 days in 2008, gay men and lesbians were allowed to marry in California. That right was granted by the California Supreme Court, effective June 16th, 2008. In November of the same year, gay men and lesbians lost the right to marry after a highly contested and bitter campaign (Prop 8).

We consider ourselves fortunate to have been married during the time the State of California recognized gay marriages, and fortunate that (at least for now), our marriage continues to be valid and legal. But we are sad for the many other couples who were not able to get married duing those 142 days, and now cannot enjoy the same legal status we enjoy.

That's ultimately why we decided to join the 142 days project. The photo at left is from our photo shoot with Bela Dornan, the photographer who created the site. You can find out more about www.142days.com at the website, and more about the photographer at www.sdfaceplace.com

We hope you'll join us in our request for fair and equal rights for all, both at the State level, and at the Federal level. It's time for prejudice and discrimination based on sexual orientation to become a thing of the past, and for equal rights to be granted to all couples wishing to be married.