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[from Spangle]George Takei was gathered around the copier one morning decades ago, chatting with Walter Koenig (he of the thick, sorta-Eastern European-accented Mr. Chekov), when Koenig started making head gestures, urging him to turn around. Puzzled, he followed his co-star’s lead, pivoting around to discover the production’s extras, fully costumed and standing around before the next take.

“And one was stunningly gorgeous, in a tight Star Trek shirt that clung to his pectorals,” Takei says. “… And that’s when I knew Walter ‘knew’ and was helping me out.”

Supportive co-stars have marked Takei’s career (Koenig and good friend Nichelle Nichols — Uhura — stood up for him at his wedding), but in the late-‘50s and ‘60s, being out wasn’t an option.

“When I was starting out as a professional actor, you’d go to an interview and there were a dozen other people who physically qualified for the part: They’re all Asian,” the 72-year-old actor says. “But when you have everything equal … they find reasons to reject you. Too tall, too short, too fat, too skinny, too young, too old. And you want to get the part, and you don’t want to have another ‘too this’ or ‘too that.’ So you hid that you’re gay. You essentially live a double life.”

He took female friends to parties and premieres. But with a regular gig on a TV series — Star Trek — he found himself working daily with the same people, whom he was getting to know and become comfortable around.

“You bring your boyfriend, but you just introduce him as your friend,” Takei explains. “But the week after, you bring him again. And Hollywood people are sophisticated, so they get it. [They say:] ‘Oh George! I get it!’”

[from Xtra.ca]Just one day after participating in the Outgames human rights conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, a group of Chinese lesbian activists got the news that the magazine they publish had been raided and all of the copies had been confiscated by the Beijing police.

According to Eva, a bisexual activist from Beijing, queer people in China always find a way to circumvent government censors — even if it means exposing them to police raids or condemnation from other authority figures. She said that this most recent obstacle would not deter activists from spreading the word about queer human rights — even if it means converting the magazine to an online format using foreign servers.

Speaking at an activist gathering in Copenhagen, Eva, Tatou and Gogo (all pseudonyms) spoke about the burgeoning queer women's movement in Beijing and the challenges associated with publishing an underground magazine in a country where such activities are closely monitored and censored.

Gathering in one of Copenhagen's oldest squats called "The People's House" last Thursday, the three women were taking part in a free human rights gathering following the main Outgames human rights conference.

The alternative gathering was organized by Danish queer activists, to protest against the fact that the main conference cost hundreds of dollars and was largely inaccessible to the local community. It also gave international delegates a chance to engage more deeply with local activists, mapping out strategies for how they might show solidarity across international borders.

Eva, Tatou and Gogo spoke about Les Plus Magazine — a politics and sexuality journal that they have been publishing since 2005. The magazine — unlike officially sanctioned media — contains graphic descriptions of queer sexuality paired with provocative photos and political analysis.

Until last week, their primary method of distribution was through the Beijing LGBT Centre. Since the majority of the copies have now been seized, the women will have to figure out how to continue publication under more intense scrutiny.

But Chinese queers are used to getting creative.

"We cannot just parade on the streets and ask for our rights," said Eva.

According to Eva, the gay, lesbian and transgender rights movement in China is still in its early stages and must use innovative strategies to get their message across.

Speaking over snacks and coffee prepared by local volunteers, Eva described the development of the first wave of open gay activism in China. From her description, the community really started to develop in the late 1990s, with a small profusion of dating websites, largely featuring same-sex personal ads.

Worapoj Petchkoom, a popular Thai boxer and the national team flag holder at the Beijing Olympics, may miss out on the medals in London, after appearing in his underwear in a photoshoot for gay magazine, Stage.

Officials from the Amateur Boxing Association of Thailand (ABAT) have warned Petchkoom that he may serve a one year ban from boxing, after concerns were raised that his actions were inappropriate.

General Thaweep Jantharoj, the President of the ABAT, said: "We will question him. After we listen to him, we will mete out punishment," reports Inside the Games.

Petchkoom claims that he did not realise that he was posing for a gay magazine and denies being homosexual.

Petchkoom, 28, told the Joh Jai TV programme: "I thought it was an honour to be invited to grace the cover of a magazine on its third anniversary.

"I became sceptical when I was told to wear just underpants.

"They said everything was going to be okay because it would show my abdomen muscles."

See more pics here!

[from Northwest Asian Weekly] Jason Lee, 24, will openly tell you that he’s gay. You may have met him while he was tanning at Madison Beach. He’s not afraid to tell you that his boyfriend’s name is Adyceum Carri and that he loves going to Neighbours, a gay club on Capitol Hill.

However, his mom doesn’t know that he’s gay. Neither does anyone else in his family besides his closest cousin. Lee said it is uncommon to be gay in Taiwan. He says his mom constantly asks him if he has a girlfriend in the United States.

“I feel my mother will cut my [financial] support,” Lee said, adding that he would not be able to study accounting at Seattle University if his mother disowned him and refused to pay his tuition.

Lee’s fear is well-founded. As a volunteer for the Mpowerment Project, a west coast support program for gay and bisexual men, he has seen the kinds of things that can happen to teens and young adults when they come out to their families.

“They would get kicked out of their homes,” Lee said. “Because they’re young, they can’t always make enough money to support themselves. They end up having to offer sex for money.”

Paul Nguyen, 18, says that core Asian values can stifle a gay man’s ability to live happily.

Instead of knitting families together, Confucian values, which heavily stress patriarchy, tear families apart.

“You’re expected to live at home, go to school, get married, have kids, and have your parents live in your house,” Nguyen said. “Because I’m gay, I can’t follow that. It’s not the same. I won’t have those kids. I won’t have that wife.”

Fear of failing is prevalent in Asian culture. Nguyen said that when he was young, his parents made sure that he did everything correctly, without making mistakes.

Read more by clicking below ...

He recalled when his parents bought a 100-year-old piano when his older sister, Patricia, started learning to play the piano. Nguyen was 7 years old. He broke a piano key one day while playing the instrument.

“Instead of hiring someone, my dad decided to fix it himself,” Nguyen said. “He made me sit down and watch him. He cursed and yelled at me. When he couldn’t fix it, he came over to me and kicked me in the head.”

The experience, Nguyen said, made him feel that he would suffer if he didn’t do everything correctly. Being gay is no exception.

“I thought if my parents ever found out [I was gay], I would get disowned,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen’s parents did find out that he was gay. While in juvenile detention, Nguyen often invited another male to come visit him. He came clean when his parents noticed and asked him if he was gay.

“My mom started crying,” Nguyen said. “I started crying. My dad looked a little sad, and I could tell he was disappointed in me.”

Disappointment, said Jeremy, is the last thing he wants to bring to his parents. The 21-year-old requested his last name not be released, as his family does not know he is gay.

Jeremy said individuality is suppressed in Asian culture. People are expected to thrive in groups, so any deviation from established norms is considered taboo — including being gay.

According to Derick Medina, 28, parents who emigrated from an Asian country have a tougher time accepting homosexuality because their lifestyles there are very conservative. Ever-present, ever-watching governments also condemn homosexuality.

Jeremy said that all hell broke loose when his aunt found his e-mail on a website for gay, Asian men.

“My mom was crying, and she blamed herself for not having paid more attention to me and knowing the friends I hung out with,” he said. “She asked me if I was ‘normal.’”

Jeremy hasn’t completely come out to his parents because he doesn’t want the relationship he has with them to vanish.
“

They are the people I love,” he said. “[But] they will abandon you, have bad thoughts about you, and say things against you [if they know you’re gay]. Losing them is the worst part that I can think of because you’ve shared so much with them.”

Instead of facing consequences, gay men would hide their sexual orientation from their families, Medina said.

“You can have a loving family and be very open to them. But even then, you can hide your darkest secrets from them. Being gay is often that secret.”

Taiwan's military has launched a probe into an obscene video involving two male sergeants while on duty, in a scandal that has sparked public outrage.

A cable news channel last week aired a video showing the soldiers, who were clad in camouflage uniforms, apparently engaged in oral sex while around 40 other servicemen looked on and laughed.

An initial investigation showed that the sex scandal happened three years ago as a group of sergeants of a reserve brigade were taking a training course, Taipei's Apple Daily reported.

It cited Reserve Command sources as saying that an initial investigation showed that 32 people may be investigated, although all but one have retired from the army.

The defence ministry last week apologised for the scandal that has tarnished the military's image.

The footage drew heated criticism of the ministry from both the ruling and opposition parties, with some lawmakers threatening to cut the defence budget.

"It is intolerable that military discipline has deteriorated to such an extent. The defence ministry does not deserve a single penny for its budget," opposition lawmaker Yeh Yi-jin told reporters.

"It is unbelievable that such behaviour is going on in the military," said lawmaker Chiu Yi of the ruling Kuomintang. "Shame on them."

The video is the latest in a series of scandals to have hit the island's military.

A recent crackdown has led to the investigation of 114 generals for alleged corruption or bribing their way to their rank.

The probe, one of the biggest in the history of the island's armed forces, was launched in April after a retired lieutenant general was indicted on charges of bribery, blackmail and leaking secrets.

Singaporeans from all walks of life, young and old, straight and gay, turned out for the first public showing of support for its lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens at Hong Lim Park.

Sorry for the delay in sharing this. East May is just getting up and running again with a brand new look!

From left to right: #9 Lam Kin Bong, #10 Ng Wan Fu, #11 Kwok Tin Jun, #12 Lui Ting Fung

From left to right: #5 Tin Hok Wai, #6 Cheng Chi Yeung, #7 Hui Ka Kit, #8 Kim Li Wai Kin

From left to right: #1 Chan Wai Hung, #2 Kwok Hung Ming, #3 Chan Chi Yan, #4 Cheng Chi Kin

Check out a couple more pics by clicking the button below.

The Edison Chen photo scandal involved the illegal distribution over the Internet of intimate and private photographs of Hong Kong actor Edison Chen with various women, including actresses Gillian Chung, Bobo Chan, and Cecilia Cheung. The scandal shook the Hong Kong entertainment industry in early 2008 and received high profile media attention locally and around the world. Many local newspapers headlined the story consecutively during the first fortnight of February 2008, relegating coverage of the 2008 Chinese winter storms to secondary prominence during Chinese New Year.

The Hong Kong police enlisted the assistance of Interpol to stem the spread of the photographs. Ten people were arrested in connection with the distribution of the photographs. A computer technician was convicted of three counts of obtaining access to a computer with dishonest intent, and received a custodial sentence of eight and a half months.

The police crackdown raised questions over violations of the privacy and free speech rights of Internet users.[5] The manner in which actors, their management, and the police handled the situation, in turn, made those arrested into heroes for some Internet users.

Chen admitted being the author and copyright owner of most of the photographs, and stated that the private photographs had been stolen and published illegally without his consent. He made a public apology, especially to the women involved, and also announced that he would "step away indefinitely" from the Hong Kong entertainment industry.

Rachel Maddow interviews Lt. Dan Choi about being kicked out of the Army for being gay.

Unzipped announced that Brandon Lee was considering a return to the adult biz and we're hoping they're right!

Brandon Lee—one of the adult industry's few Asian superstars—just might be ready for his next close-up. The former Rascal Video exclusive recently posted some flattering new profile pictures on his Facebook page that show him to be looking better than ever. We contacted Lee to ask him what his secret was. Turns out it's running—lots and lots of running. "My 30th birthday was approaching and I was pretty upset that I had a 34" waist," says the chef and airplane pilot, revealing that he'd ballooned up to 200 pounds following a nasty break-up and a period of unemployment. "I told myself that I wanted to have at least have a 30-inch waist by the time I hit 30. I started running every morning and every night. I over did it and ended up with a 28" instead. Yeah, I'm not complaining."

Lee's always been cute, but now he looks positively fuckable. We asked him about the chances of him making a return to the jizz biz, and to our delight, he was surprisingly receptive. "I'd love to!" he said. "I've been thinking about it for quite some time and I'm in the best shape I've ever been in. I just don't know if any studio wants me."

Please, Brandon? Pretty please with sugar (or you!) on top?

After rumors regarding an actor at TVB who sexually harassed actresses subsided, recently tabloids have alleged that former Mr. Hong Kong contestants were offered vast sums of money in exchange for time spent with rich ladies.

Rumored to be one of the “gigolos,” Mr. Hong Kong 2005 contestant, Byron Pang Koon Kei, recently filmed a nude scene in a gay movie. Byron was also linked previously in a gay relationship with Bowie Lam.

However, as one of the alleged “gigolos,” Byron has no wealth. In his new movie, 《安 非 他 命 》, Pang has to jump nude from a building. Aside from the presence of the cast and crew, there were numerous photographers present who took photos of the nude Byron.

Byron denied that he was one of the Mr. Hong Kong contestants who sold himself to rich ladies. “Do you think a gigolo has to risk his life” [by filming such dangerous scenes in the movie]?

Byron and Matthew Ko both participated in the 2005 Mr. Hong Kong competition. While fingers have pointed to Byron as being a gigolo, Matthew said, “When I was competing in the Mr. Hong Kong competition, people have said it was like a ‘duck’ (gigolo) competition…. I want to know what my market price is.”

Covered with silver body paint and tattoos, the martial-arts skilled Byron lost ten pounds for the role. What was his nude scene about? “My character over dosed on drugs and fantasized about being a bird. Thus he jumped off the roof top of a building.” Byron broke his thumb in an earlier car-racing scene. In the roof top jumping scene, it took five takes before the Director, Wan Cheung, was satisfied.

On March 13, 2009, Director Wan Cheung took Bryon and Osman from EO2 to promote Taiwanese film, 《永 久 居 留 》at one of Taiwan’s top gay bars, Funky. When Byron left, he gave out white roses to all the men present and was unafraid of rampant gay rumors. Furthermore, Byron shot an all nude pictorial to promote the film earlier.

When Bowie Lam’s mother passed away in 2008, Byron attended the funeral. Byron burned incense papers for Bowie’s mother and assisted with the funeral arrangements. When reporters showed Bowie photos of Byron filming nude in his latest movie, Bowie said, “I have not been in contact with Byron for a long time. I will not respond to any questions regarding him.”

Bryon said that TVB tried to contact him two months ago. “TVB asked me to discuss further collaborations with them. I said I was busy filming a movie. TVB asked many questions [about what I was doing, afraid of the implications this would bring to the company].”

When asked if Director Wan Cheung was providing financially for Byron, he said, “If that were true, then I would not endanger Bryon’s safety by placing him in dangerous filming situations. I would ask him to go out on a date and dinner instead!”

When tabloids revealed that former Mr. Hong Kong contestant(s) were selling themselves to rich ladies, it has become the hot topic of Hong Kong socialites. Bok Wan Kam commented, “I have not heard about Mr. Hong Kong contestants acting as gigolos. But ten years ago, there were several supporting actors who were dating wealthy socialites. However, I don’t know the identities of those men. Rich ladies also date fitness trainers and dance instructors, as they often have physical contact in their classes.”

Chan Sai Kit said, “Everyone is guessing who the Mr. Hong Kong gigolo is. Usually wealthy socialites prefer actors who are not well known, which would attract less media attention. Usually they would meet at a public function and then go on private dates afterwards.”

Chiu Kam Hing [formerly dated ATV and TVB actor Yan Chi Keung]: “Aside from many Mr. Hong Kong contestants wanting to get to know me, I also wish to do the same. It would be more convenient to get to know them better, since I often invite them to my functions. However, I have not heard about any gigolo incidents.”

Reporters showed nude photos of Byron Pang to TVB executive, Stephen Chan. Stephen requested reporters to put the photos away. “I will not respond nor will I see the photos/movie. Bryon is no longer part of TVB. Whatever projects he pursues is his business.”