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Pittsburgh Pirates Owner comes out..on his own terms
22 September 2012
He may not be the first (Chicago Cubs co-owner Laura Ricketts shares that distinction) but in his own way, he may have been the hardest. Pittsburgh fans have long agonize over the Pirates - the last 20 years have not been kind. For owner Kevin McClatchy, the dream of leading a professional sports team would not deter him. At the age of 33, in the deep winter of 1996, he became the youngest owner in major league baseball. But more importantly, he became the public face of the Pirates.
Whether it was the local sports bar, local TV or a community gathering - McClatchy worked passionately to get a city to feel good all over again about their hometown baseball team. And even though he left the Pirates in 2007 - he was never far from the fans hearts. So when he decided at the age of 49 to come out to the public - to expose the secret he had been hiding all his life - the weight on his shoulders must have been unbearable. And he remains, according to his partner, very guarded.
He told the New York Times: "Tens of thousands of people have played either professional minor league baseball or major league baseball. Not one has come out and said that they're gay while they're playing." And as we know today, not one active player in football basketball or hockey has either. The silence is defining. McClatchy's coming out is all the more important to the sport - as people must continue to see that your sexual orientation does not matter when it comes to watching, enjoying or even running a major national sports organization.
"McClatchy whose interview with The Times was his first public acknowledgement of his sexual orientation, could do considerable good," says New York Times Reporter Frank Bruni. Baseball fans know him well, he has been an informal advisor to the mayor of Sacramento (they want their own baseball franchise) and he is chairman of more than two dozen newspapers (hello, Miami Herald).
McClatchy's personal life suffered while he remained in the closet. Relationships few and far between. "I think I was more paranoid, for sure, about people," he told the New York Times, "And suspicious, definitely. And angry." His partner Jack Basilone of the last 4 years has had to deal with McClatchy's personal journey. But that journey, alas, has made a turn - for the better for himself and for the sport (in my humble opinion).
It's hard to come out. It took me many many years to do what McClatchy just did in his life. Is it worth it...yes....is it stressful....yes...but its what the sports community needs. Way to go McClatchy for coming out.
Thomas M. Garnet, Staff Writer/Executive Producer
CCE Sports Network
Welcome Gay Bowl XII
22 September 2012
Every year, the team at the National Gay Flag Football League put on the nation's biggest flag football tournament. This year proved no different. In a record year for the NGFFL, more than 40 teams with as many as 600 players descended on the Mile High City for Gay Bowl XII. Participating in this year's events will be form NCAA athletes, former NFL players and the first ever women's division.
Working alongside the Denver Gay and Lesbian Flag Football League (who have been around since 2008) the DGLFFL along with the official national governing body have produced an event that builds meaningful connections within the Denver community, boost community esteem and changes the stereotypes and misperceptions about what it means to be a gay athlete.
Congratulations to the NGFFL for your tremendous growth and success throughout the years and congratulations on your biggest effort to date. We couldn't make it out there this year but we are so looking forward to meeting with, watching and who knows maybe showcasing some of the great action on the field.
Here is the score updates as of 9/22/2012 at 5:30pm EST. Championship and brackets announced as well:
Thomas M. Garnet, Staff Writer/Executive Producer
CCE Sports Network
www.ccesportsnetwork.com
GLTA welcomes the Philadelphia Open
12 June 2012
The city of Philadelphia has always been known as a city of firsts. They had the first daily newspaper, the first stock exchange and the "First Bank of the United States" calls Philadelphia home within the Independence National Historical Park.
Philadelphia celebrates another first on July 20 through July 22 when it will host its first sanction Gay and Lesbian Tennis Alliance (GLTA) event, "The Philadelphia Open" at the Arthur Ashe Youth Tennis & Education Center.
The Philadelphia Liberty Tennis Association is looking forward to hosting athletes from around the world in a world class indoor/outdoor facility. The city boasts a vibrant gayborhood of more than 20 bars and restaurants and the city's tourism outreach campaign, "Get your history straight and your nightlife gay" is designed to bring more LGBT visitors to Philly.
Registration is still currently open according to their website. Click here to head to their registration page. Host hotel is "The Sonesta," formerly the Crowne Plaza, and you can make reservations after June 15th. For general tournament information, email Matt Green at: mgreen@umasd.org. For registration, please contact Brian C. Neff at philadelphiaopen@gmail.com.
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Executive Producer
CCE Sports Network
Italian Footballer hopes no "queers" on national team
12 June 2012
Football in Europe (soccer to us Americans) has long been touted as a very unfriendly place for gay athletes. To date, no one on a national level has come out as an out, proud and active player.
If Italian footballer Antonio Cassano is any indication, we can still see why. Cassano, a Series A player for Milan and a striker for the national team, caused quite a stir in Krakow after being asked about gay players on the Italian team in advance of the Euro 2012.
The Guardian UK reports: "When asked about media reports that there were two metrosexual players and two homosexual players in the Italy squad, the Milan forward said..'What's a metrosexual?' before adding: 'Queers in the national team? That's their business. But I hope not.' "
Earlier this year Cassano's Italy team-mate Antonio Di Natale said that it would difficult for any player to come. The national team coach, Cesare Prandelli, has gone on record as being supportive of gay footballers.
And this is yet another reason why (as a side note) we are dedicated to creating our own gay sports network - an athlete is an athlete - so why should people care if they are gay??
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Executive Producer
CCE Sports Network
United States Gay Open Tournament
6 June 2012
Memorial Day Weekend means many things to many people. For some, it is a time of reflection and appreciation of the sacrifices made by others. For others, it is a time to escape to a warm beach somewhere and unwind and relax. But for many gay and lesbian tennis players from far and wide, Memorial Day Weekend has come to mean tennis. A weekend of fabulous tennis. For thirty-two years, San Francisco's Gay & Lesbian Tennis Federation has hosted the United States Gay Open to record attendance. Known as the USGO, this tennis tournament is one of the oldest and most prestigious gay and lesbian sporting events in the world. The event attracts hundreds of tennis players from across the United States, and from countries around the world. These players come to play and watch great tennis, make new friends and enjoy all that the San Francisco Bay area has to offer.
As in recent years, this year's tournament was held at Taube Tennis Stadium on the campus of Standford University. Most tennis fans know that the Taube is home of the professional women's Bank of the West Tennis Tournament. Serena, Kim, Venus and Victoria have all shined in their professional careers here. Tournament Director Alex Lin notes that the USGO is North America's largest LGBT tennis tournament and is a GLTA-sanctioned event. The tournament was held over the Memorial Day Weekend (May 25 through May 28) and produced the following winners:
Men's Open Singles Champion - Toby Hayes
Men's Open Doubles Champion - Darryl Hubbard and Dat Mac
Men's "A" Singles Champion - Michael Burnstein
Men's "A" Doubles Champion - Steve Dejong and Pete Dinh
Women's "A" Singles Champion - Martha Ehrenfeld
Women's "A" Doubles Champion - Jojo Donetti and Marissa Myers
Men's "B" Singles Champion - Rob Beuther
Men's "B" Doubles Champion - Michael Ahrens and John Tran
Men's 40+ "B" Singles Champion - Wing Yu
Women's "B" Singles Champion - Cami Gill
Women's "B" Doubles Champion - Alanna Debra Coopersmith and Tina Lagdamen
Men's "C" Singles Champion - Christian Kuster
Men's "C" Doubles Champion - Ramsey Fong and Michael Sengmanivong
Men's 40+ "C" Singles Champion - Michael D'Elia
Men's "D" Singles Champion - Richard Chen
Men's "D" Doubles Champion - Richard Chen and Dennis Mcglothin
World Team Tennis - Team Katniss
Congratulations to all of the players who participated in the Memorial Day weekend event. Kudos to the hard work of the tournament staff. Alex Lin (Tournament Director, Steven Nugent (Co-Director - Registration and Scheduling), Craig Sabol (Co-Director - Events), Santi Soumpholphakdy (Co-Director - Public Relations) and Marissa Myers (World Team Tennis Coordinator).
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Executive Producer
CCE Sports Network
CCE Sports Network is making history
6 June 2012
Ask yourself, what is the best way to break down a stereotype or alter perceptions? And if that stereotype was broken, what was the most effective way to change that perception?
Since 2001, my partner Adrian and I have worked with our friends and our community to quietly put a positive and informative face on the gay and lesbian community. But we realized this year that one aspect of our community is often forgotten or ignored - THE GAY ATHLETE. Often marginalized, hardly covered in the mainstream press and quickly forgotten in the LGBT press, the hard word, talent and skill of the gay athlete is often painted in stereotypes or worse yet - simply never acknowledged. Today's technology and the worldwide web provides an excellent way to change that attitude and we have decided to embark on a new vision for 2012. A vision that no one else in the country has undertaken.
WHAT DO WE WANT TO DO? Every month, there are dozens of LGBT sporting events occurring across the country hosted by hundreds of organizations, associations and team clubs. Our goal is to film LIVE every month, at least one major gay and lesbian sporting event. This will be a TV style multi-camera filming and broadcasting event with play by play analysis, video stories of the athletes, highlights of team successes and the positive impact LGBT sports have on the local community.
OUR VISION begins with the tennis community. On May 19th and 20th, we filmed the Sunshine Cup Team Tennis Event at the Crandon Park Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, Florida. This was a 2-day team tennis event featuring competition by 4 regional Florida tennis teams. We've sinced learned that there are more than 60 pro-level LGBT tennis tournaments across the United States and 5 continents with hundreds of regional matches, ladder games and team events. Building out a LIVE online live tennis network seemed like an obvious choice. The CCE Sports Network will begin its live video streaming initiative with one of the most passionate sports fanbase - the tennis fan. Our long term goal is to build out the tennis matches and then be able to move on to a variety of other LGBT sporting events including basketball, hockey, swimming, flag football and rowing.
WHY DO WE WANT TO DO IT? In order to break the myth of the gay athlete (or the notion that there is no such thing as a gay athlete), we have to show the world the athleticism, the talent and the skill these players bring to the field week in and week out. By providing professional filming and broadcasting of LGBT sporting events all over the country, we can begin to show the world the enormous sports community that exists with gay and lesbian athletes.
HOW ARE WE DOING IT? We want to create a 4 to 6 man "mobile production team" that can travel, film, produce, edit and stream LIVE any LGBT sporting event across the country. Using computer based software equipment, our current production team is capable of broadcasting a 3-camera video shoot in standard definition. Our goal is to move from a software environment to a hardware environment capable of using 4 or more cameras across several game events all streaming to the most popular web streaming services out there (including our website).
HOW CAN YOU HELP? In order to pull off a vision this big, we need help. We have started a Kickstarter fundraising campaign designed to help us raise funds to begin the CCE Sports Network. This will allow us to have the seed funding necessary to make equipment upgrades, have a road-ready production team and a travel budget that will allow us to hit our goal of starting with 1 major LGBT sporting event a month. Eventually, we would like to be able to provide weekly filming of sporting events that would satisfy any sports hungry fan - but from the LGBT perspective. It's never been done before and we want to be the first. IF YOU WANT TO HELP MAKE HISTORY, CLICK HERE to go to our Kickstarter fundraising page where you can pledge your support and be apart of web history. "The Kickstarter campaign is important," says CCE Sports Network Creative Consultant and Owner Adrian Uribazo, "because it will give us the funding to allow us to approach this project with excellent professional tools at a fraction of the cost of the TV networks & sports studios. Our $20,000 fundraising goal will position us to produce content that will rival the big networks. Sponsors, advertisers and supporters in the future will help build out the network to help us cover as many LGBT sporting events as possible."
We are passionate about the CCE Sports Network and we hope you will join us, support us and contribute what you can - together we will make history for the LGBT community and provide another positive aspect of this vast and diverse community.
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Producer
CCE Sports Network
Beautiful Weekend for Tennis in Miami - Sunshine Cup 2012
6 June 2012
The rain held out long enough all day for the 5th Annual Sunshine Cup to take place at beautiful Crandon Park Tennis Center in Key Biscayne, Florida. 4 regional Florida teams made the trip down to Miami to battle it out for this year's Cup. Returning champions South Florida Tennis Club led by Mike Gula and Travis Bailey battled against the Miami Mavericks Tennis Club (host of the event), Advantage Tampa and the Orange Blossom Tennis Association. The team event was spread across 14 courts and involved more than 60 players with singles being played on Saturday and doubles being played on Sunday.
It was a fantastic day for tennis with overcast skies most of the day to keep the Miami heat and humidity away and the CCE Sports Network was on hand to provide the first ever live broadcast of the event. Team Captain & event co-organizer Joseph Mooradian along with event co-organizer Greg Loyd hosted a very tight-runned competition among the "B" level athletes that was well organized and supported by all of the team players. The level of competition was consistently high with some great matches being held on Court 1 - site of the CCE Sports Network cameras. Congratulations to all those who participated - it was a fantastic event that more people of the South Florida gay and lesbian community should see. Here are the tournament score breakdowns:
Saturday Singles Competition (Team Wins): Orlando (8), Miami (16), Tampa (26) and Ft. Lauderdale (31).
Sunday Doubles Competition (Team Wins): Miami (6), Orlando (7), Ft. Lauderdale (14) and Tampa (15).
Total Team Wins: Orlando (15), Miami (22), Tampa (41) and Ft. Lauderdale (45).
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Sports Producer
CCE Sports Network
The Green Lantern is Gay??
1 June 2012
The comic book world continues its very slow but progressive stance of including LGBT characters within its ranks. DC Comics has officially revealed that the Green Lantern is gay and has a very heart warming and charming relationship with a character named Sam. The gay relationship will be revealed in the second issue of a new Green Lantern series called Earth Two. Earth Two is illustrated by Nicola Scott and written by James Robinson.
Writer Robinson told the Rolling Stone that the DC did not hesitate when he announced he wanted to make the Green Lantern gay. "The new versions of these characters in Earth Two have all been aged down considerably (since the 1940's version), to the point that Scott's gay superhero son Obsidian had to be sacrificed. [..I was inspired..] to write Scott himself as a gay character to make up for that loss. The logical leap was, 'Oh, why don't we make Alan Scott gay?' "
If you recall, X-Men's Northstar for Marvel Comics had a high profile gay wedding and now Green Lantern. Way to go comic world, here's hoping for more...
Here's a preview from the issue, due out June 6.
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Staff Writer
Click Click Expose (Gay Entertainment Media)
"The Outs" - another great LGBT web series annouces episode 3
1 June 2012
If you look really hard, you can find some great gay web series. If you remember our blog from the past, you remember we loved the "Duder" web series - it was funny, smart and witty and lasted for 3 seasons.
Well we have discovered another great web series that we think you will love. "The Outs." Focusing on former boyfriends Jack and Mitch, they navigate their separate yet still tangled worlds. The web series is one part comedy, one part depressing (the good kind) and all parts gay.
The Outs used a successful Kickstarter campaign to get their initial funding for the first 3 episodes. They hope to finish out the web series with another Kickstarter campaign this month.
Check out the Episode 3 Preview by clicking here.
To see all of their episodes, visit their website at: www.theouts.tv.
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Staff Writer
Click Click Expose (Gay Entertainment Media)
Arson Destroys Women's HIV Organization in New Orleans
1 June 2012
In the wee hours of today, Deon Haywood, Executive Director of Women With a Vision in New Orleans, received a call from the building landlord stating that a fire had destroyed most of their offices. "Women With A Vision" is an organization that provides HIV prevention and advocacy on behalf of poor and low-income women in New Orleans.
Further evidence of the fire investigation tentatively shows that the attack on the center was done intentionally. The worst damage is reported to have occurred in the community organizing and outreach offices where education resources and office equipment were all destroyed. Haywood told the press, "we lost everything."
Women With A Vision just came off celebrating a major political win with a victory in a lawsuit against the State of Louisiana on behalf of people convicted of prostitution.
Haywood told the press that for those people who work with the poor, low-income women, sex workers and LGBT people, the attack on the center is "an attack on all of us."
Source: Thomas M. Garnet, Staff Writer
Click Click Expose (Gay Entertainment Media)
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