Doyle Seeks Domestic Partner Protections In Proposed Budget
Right Wing Hints At Court Challenge
Madison - In addition to proposing a first-ever 5% general revenue spending cut and $1.4 billion in tax increases in his biennial budget address February 17 Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle also laid out an economic stimulus plan that set as a top priority the creation of domestic partner protections for the state’s unmarried couples, including gay and lesbian partnerships.
  “If we want our economy to flourish - if we want to help attract and retain talented workers - it is also time to make sure our state takes some basic steps toward fairness and decency,” Doyle said in prefacing his domestic partner proposal.
  Doyle sought to both provide access to partner benefits and secure partner protections. “First, we can make sure that domestic partners who work for the state have access to benefits,” the governor said. “We can also make sure that a committed couple has visitation rights at a hospital, and the right to take the appropriate leave if one has a serious illness.”
  Doyle then directly addressed the issue of same-sex partners. “This isn’t an issue of being gay or straight - we are not judging people’s lives here,” he said. “But I don’t want the state to stand in the way of someone being able to care for their long-term partner. And I don’t want the state to be less competitive at our university and other institutions because we don’t treat people fairly.”
  Doyle has been a longtime supporter of domestic partner benefits for University of Wisconsin employees and tried to include them in his initial 2007 budget proposal. The benefits were one of the first items removed by the Joint Finance Committee that year. Doyle later removed them from his second “compromise” budget proposal after the then Republican-controlled Assembly and Democratic-controlled Senate remained deadlocked over his original  bill.
  The state’s LGBT equal rights organization, Fair Wisconsin, was ecstatic over the governor’s plan. “Fair Wisconsin applauds Governor. Jim Doyle for including limited domestic partnership protections for the state’s same-sex couples in his biennial budget proposal,” the group said in a press release. “The proposed domestic partnerships will grant basic protections to same-sex couples in caring, committed relationships, including hospital visitation and the ability to take Family Medical Leave to care for a sick partner.”
  “This is an important step toward ensuring that someone in a committed relationship is able to care for his or her partner,” Fair’s Executive Director Glenn Carlson said.  “No one should ever have to worry about being blocked at their partner’s hospital room door, or have to make the heartbreaking decision to quit their job in order to care for a seriously ill partner.  This isn’t about being gay or straight-it’s about being decent.”
  “We commend Governor Doyle for his leadership on this issue,” Carlson continued.  “We look forward to working with legislators to make sure that this fair-minded budget is passed quickly.”
  Fair Wisconsin’s support for the Governor’s proposal was joined by many LGBT social service organizations throughout the state, including the Milwaukee LGBT Center, Madison’s OutReach, LaCrosse’s LGBT Resource Center for the Seven Rivers Region, and Kenosha’s LGBT Center of SE Wisconsin. Advocacy groups such as Milwaukee’s Center Advocates, Madison’s Gay Straight Alliance for Safe Schools, SAGE/Milwaukee, Diverse and Resilient, and the Cream City Foundation’s Gay Neighbor Project also supported Doyle.
  According to a poll conducted in January 2009 by the research firm of Greenberg Quinlan and Rosner, about 75% of likely Wisconsin voters support some form of legal recognition for gay and lesbian couples.
  “People in Wisconsin are fair and decent and are ready to provide critical protections to committed couples,” Fair Wisconsin Legislative Director Katie Belanger noted.  “We shouldn’t stand in the way of someone being able to care for their long-term partner.”
  UW-Madison Chancellor Carolyn “Biddy” Martin also praised Doyle for his domestic partnership initiatives. “We are... also heartened by the governor’s reintroduction of domestic partner benefits in this budget proposal,” Martin said in a prepared statement. “The ability to offer these benefits will allow us to improve our competitiveness for faculty and staff.”
  Doyle’s budget proposal includes a mechanism to determine domestic partners. To be eligible for a domestic partnership, two individuals must be of the same sex, both be at least 18 years old, share a common residence, not be nearer of kin than second cousins, and neither party can be married or in another domestic partnership with anyone else.  Domestic partnerships will be administered at the county level, and couples must sign a legal declaration of their commitment.
  Doyle’s domestic partner initiatives did not come as a complete surprise, however. Suggestions of a domestic partner “registry” surfaced in a story in the Wisconsin State Journal the weekend before Doyle’s address. Right-wing reaction bubbled up almost immediately, with Milwaukee conservative talk show host Charlie Sykes prompted to utter “WTF” in his online blog. Sykes attempted to contrast Doyle’s resistance to a federal mandate to expand Wisconsin’s sex offender registry with his support for domestic partnerships.
  The expected formal opposition to Doyle’s domestic partner initiatives from fundamentalist religious political action groups appeared the day after the governor’s address. Wisconsin Family Council (WFC) President Julaine Appling characterized the proposal as “an ill-advised path for our state.” In its previous incarnation as the Family Research Institute, the WFC spearheaded the successful 2006 vote on the so-called Marriage Protection Amendment to the Wisconsin state constitution.
  Appling signaled a possible court challenge by her group may occur if the to the partner protections remain in place in the budget finally approved by the legislature. “It appears that (Doyle’s) intent is to approximate marriage, to test what ‘identical to or substantially similar to’ means in the constitutional amendment,” Appling claimed. However, Appling failed to expound on how the 43 basic protections in the Doyle proposal would be “identical or substantially similar” to the 1158 federal and more than 230 marital benefits and protections offered by a marriage license in Wisconsin.
  Fair Wisconsin has created a web page on its Internet site with information about Wisconsin’s proposed domestic partnerships at: www.fairwisconsin.com.
  The Doyle budget also included another proposal that would also impact many gay and lesbian citizens, regardless of their relationship status: a statewide smoking ban that would go into effect 60 days after the budget takes effect. The ban as currently proposed would include bars and taverns. Statistics have shown that Wisconsin’s gay men and women smoke at rates more than double their straight counterparts.
  “This budget finally puts in place a statewide smoking ban,” Doyle said in the budget speech. “Our neighbors have done it; half of the country has done it. We can do this now, and make Wisconsin’s workplaces smoke-free.”
  Doyle also proposed adding an additional seventy-five cents in taxes to each pack of cigarettes sold in the state.

State News:

Lambda Legal & ARCW Lawsuit: HIV+ Woman Denied Surgery
Milwaukee - Lambda Legal and the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin (ARCW) filed a federal lawsuit February 12 in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin on behalf of Melody Rose, a 35-year-old Wisconsin woman who was denied surgery to remove her gallbladder because she has HIV.
  “Discrimination in healthcare remains a major problem for people living with HIV,” ARCW Legal Services Program Director Peter Kimball said. “In violation of both federal and Wisconsin law, Dr. Steven Cahee refused to provide needed medical treatment to our client, Melody Rose.”
  Lambda Legal and ARCW represent Melody Rose who experienced health problems with her gallbladder while incarcerated at Taycheedah Correctional Institution in Fond du Lac. Ultimately, her physician referred her to Dr. Steven Cahee at the Fond du Lac Regional Hospital to have her gall bladder removed.
  However, Dr. Cahee refused to perform the surgery after learning Ms. Rose is HIV-positive. Some time thereafter, a surgeon at a different medical facility removed Ms. Rose’s gallbladder in a laprascopic procedure, which is considered routine surgery.
  “Dr. Cahee’s actions fly in the face of ethical behavior for a medical professional,” Scott Schoettes said. “Long ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established that using universal precautions - which are required in all sorts of medical situations, including surgeries - makes it extremely unlikely for the virus to be transmitted in this setting.” Schoettes is a staff Attorney with Lambda Legal’s HIV Project.
  The complaint filed alleged that the defendants - Steven M. Cahee, M.D., Agnesian HealthCare, Inc., and Fond du Lac Regional Clinic, S.C. - violated four different state and federal laws. The complaint alleged that the defendants violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and its state law counterpart, which both prohibit disability discrimination by places of public accommodation (including healthcare providers); the Rehabilitation Act, which  requires recipients of federal financial assistance not to discriminate against people with disabilities; and a Wisconsin law addressing HIV discrimination specifically, which forbids healthcare providers from denying services to people (or humiliating and degrading them) based solely on their HIV status.
  The case is Rose v. Cahee, et al. Schoettes is handling the case for Lambda Legal. He is joined by co-counsel Kimball of ARCW.

What A Deal: 23 Actual Jail Days For Former GOP Chair
Green Bay - The former head of the Brown County Republican Party was sentenced February 13 to a likely 23 actual days in jail and two years’ probation for a series of events involving a 16 year-old boy.
  Fleischman apologized for his actions at his sentencing. “I’m very sorry for what I’ve done,” he said. “It was unbecoming of a professional. My actions were not appropriate for someone of my stature. I should have called the police when those boys entered my house uninvited.”
  Circuit Court Judge Donald Zuidmulder alluded to the former GOP chair’s problems during sentencing process. “You and I both know there are issues you need to deal with or you wouldn’t be sitting here today,” Zuidmulder said. “You created the situation which placed you exactly where you sit today.”
  Zuidmulder’s 30 day jail sentence allowed Fleischman both work-release privileges and “good time” accrual. Fleischman will serve 23 days if he follows jail rules during the average 14-15 hours a day he actually will be physically behind bars.
 Fleischman was initially charged with child enticement, exposing himself to a child and contributing to the delinquency of a child. According to the criminal complaint, Green Bay police went to Fleischman’s home on November 19, 2006, looking for two runaways from Ethan House, a nearby juvenile facility. They found a boy hiding in a closet wearing only underwear and a T-shirt, the complaint said.
  The boy later told authorities Fleischman also took him to a hotel in Appleton and to a cabin near Florence. The boy said Fleischman provided him with beer and marijuana, the complaint said. The boy also revealed that when he would go to bed, Fleischman would fondle him. Also, on one occasion he awoke to find Fleischman at the foot of his bed masturbating.
  As a result of the plea deal made in January with the district attorney’s office, helmed by fellow Republican John P. Zakowski,  Fleischman had pleaded no contest to four misdemeanor charges. Fleischman was then convicted of two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and two counts of encouraging juvenile supervision violations.  By avoiding prosecution on felony child enticement charges, Fleischman was also able to retain his insurance sales license and avoid any prison time.

Stonewall 40 Project Seeks To Document Gay History Statewide
Milwaukee - The LGBT History Project has announced the start of its Wisconsin Stonewall 40 Project. In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots on June 28, 1969 - generally acknowledged to be the beginning of the modern gay civil rights movement in the U.S. -  the History Project plans to present information about what gay and lesbian life was like in Wisconsin at and just after the time of Stonewall.
  According to the Project’s co-director Don Schwamb, the Stonewall 40 Project has three components. First, articles outlining known gay life in Wisconsin cities between 1965 and 1975 will be published in Quest magazine. Each article will list the known gay bars and groups in a different community or area of the state.
 Second, Stonewall 40 is issuing an appeal for additional information about Wisconsin LGBT life. “We are asking people to provide photos, recollections, or general information about LGBT life in Wisconsin in the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s,” Schwamb said.
 Third, Stonewall 40 will present a special display at PrideFest in Milwaukee in June 14-16. “We will also work with other Pride celebrations throughout the state to make those materials available for display at those celebrations and other locations as appropriate,” Schwamb said, noting that a task force in northeast Wisconsin is currently developing a gay history timeline of the area dating back to the 1950’s for presentation at Pride Alive in July.
  To participate in the Stonewall 40 Project, contact Schwamb by email at: webmaster@mkelgbthist.org. For additional information visit the Wisconsin LGBT History Project website at: www.wisconsingayhistory.org.

Lesbian Sweeties’ Smooch Leads To Diner Dismissal
Omro - A peck on the cheek can lead to a whole peck of trouble if the kisser and kissed are the same sex. That’s what Oshkosh lesbian couple Danielle Domingos and Stephanie Jones found out when their entrance way smooch got them the heave-ho at a diner in the tiny hamlet of Omro. Now they want to make a federal case out of the ejection.
  “We were holding hands while walking inside,” Jones told WGBA-TV in a report aired February 10. “(Danielle) gave me a kiss on the cheek.  Then a lady screamed, ‘we don’t want your kind here.’”
  “It was a simple kiss,” Domingos added. “It’s not like I was grabbing her and making out. I was just showing affection.”
  However that kiss was too much for Omro Family Restaurant owner Nadila Abdiu. “They were kissing each other and making out,” Abdiu claimed. “That was just inappropriate behavior. That will not be allowed in a family restaurant, no matter who it is.”
  After brief probe of the incident, Omro Police Chief James Reed concurred with the investigating officers that there was no way to resolve the wildly conflicting testimony from the three women. Reed also said that “there is no ordinance in Omro saying discriminating against same sex couples is illegal.”
  According to the police department website, “The mission of the Omro Police Department is to enhance the quality of life in our city by working in partnership with our community and in accordance with constitutional rights to enforce the laws, preserve  peace, reduce fear, and provide for a safe environment.” Apparently that does not include Wisconsin state statutes prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation in public accommodations such as family restaurants.
  Domingos and Jones reported that they have filed complaint papers with the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. That also stated that they plan to sue the restaurant owner.

Milwaukee Pride Parade Sets Its Sights On Rights
Milwaukee - “Your Rights, Our Rights, Human Rights” will be the incorporating slogan for a “theme free” Milwaukee Pride Parade on Sunday, June 14. The parade committee announced the slogan as part of a series of changes to the 2009 event recently.
  Despite the lack of theme, the parade committee hopes that each entry will incorporate the slogan into their display.  Organizers feel that the decision will “open up the designs and allow our entrants to be more creative with their entries the parade,” according to parade coordinator Brent Holmes. “Try to include (the 2009 slogan) in your float to really make a statement,” he said.
  The Pride Parade continues its search for a 2009 grand marshal. Suggestions for possible marshals may be made at the parade  website. The committee requests a limit of one nomination per person.
  The parade committee is also looking for volunteers. Those are interested in volunteering are asked to complete the application form on the Pride Parade website, contact Brent by email at: paradecoordinator@prideparademke.org or call him at: 414-607-3793 between 11 AM - 9 PM weekdays. Parade volunteers will receive a free admission to PrideFest.
  The parade committee also will offer incentives as prizes for category winners in this year’s parade. The winner of each category - floats, decorated vehicles, marching units, along with the winner of the spirit award - will gain free entry in the 2010 Milwaukee Pride Parade. Second and third place winners will receive 50% and 25% respective discounts on their 2010 entry fees.
  To volunteer, suggest a grand marshal or for more information about the 2009 event, visit the Pride Parade website at: www.prideparademke.com

Wisconsin Rainbow Families Help Organize PrideFest Children’s Area
Milwaukee - With just under four months of PrideFest planning to go, Brendan Barrett of Wisconsin Rainbow Families (WRF) is already off and running.
  The newly appointed Family/Children’s Area director and his team of volunteers from WRF are excited by what they can bring to the children attending the 2009 PrideFest event June 12-14.
  Barrett, a lifelong Wisconsin resident and UW- Whitewater graduate, lives with his partner and their five year-old twin daughters in Waukesha. He has worked for the last eighteen years as a Store Manager for Wal-Mart, and is the Special Events Coordinator for Wisconsin Rainbow Families, a volunteer organization dedicated to supporting LGBT families and friends located throughout the state of Wisconsin.
  “I have been a part of the planning committee of Wisconsin Rainbow Families for the last two years,” Barrett said, “Everyone is excited for this year’s PrideFest.”
  Wisconsin Rainbow Families offers a central place to communicate, make friends, discover, educate and organize. Events for all ages are planned throughout the year, and the website contains a forum where LGBT parents can discuss activities, offer support, and find answers to their questions regarding raising children in an LGBT family.
  For more information, please visit www.wirainbowfamilies.com.

OutReach Seeks Women’s Community Health Promoter
Madison - OutReach is now seeking a woman interested in volunteering as a Health Promoter for her community as part of the three-year statewide smoking cessation program Rm2breathe (“Room To Breathe”) starting in early March. The Health Promoter will deliver targeted health messages about the risks of tobacco use, provide facts about stop smoking, support individuals who have decided to stop smoking, and promote and refer individuals ready to quit to services provided by the Rm2breathe program and its partner agencies.
The position would entail 4-6 hours of work a month - basically just talking about smoking cessation resources (with no hard sell) to smokers in her social network and recording the contact -  using just initials, time, place, the resources mentioned. The program will provide the information packet on resources. Promoters are asked to secure at least 3-4 contacts a month in terms of conversation. Compensation is a $40 dollar stipend paid monthly.
  The Health Promoter will participate in a structured training designed to increase their knowledge of tobacco use disparities within the Wisconsin LGBT community, the biology of smoking, local smoking cessation resources, motivational interviewing, and effective outreach strategies. Nonsmokers or former tobacco users interested in serving as a Health Promoter, are asked to contact Harry by phone at: 608-255-8582 or by email at: harrys@lgbtoutreach.org.
  Rm2breathe is a Wisconsin statewide program that was created with the purpose of changing attitudes about tobacco use among minority social networks, with the goal to reduce actual tobacco use within those networks.

Fox Cities Diversity Conference Set For March 7
Appleton - A planned diversity conference March 7 hopes to enhance multicultural learning, eliminate the achievement gap, foster social justice, activism and promote multicultural education. The day-long conference sponsored by the Fox Cities Rotary Multicultural Center, “Diversity: What is Your Comfort Level?” will be held at Appleton North High School, 5000 N. Ballard Road. Registration will open at 7 AM with the conference beginning at 8.
  “This conference is intended to help community members begin or continue the transformative journey from tolerance to acceptance,” conference co-chair Bola Delano-Oriaran said. “Anyone who attends will be exposed to personal and professional enrichment sessions that focus on moving individuals beyond their comfort level.” Delano-Oriaran is an assistant professor of teacher education at St. Norbert College in De Pere.
  Scheduled keynote presenters are Paul Gorski, assistant professor at New Century College, George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, speaking on “Eliminating the Achievement (Opportunity) Gap through Multicultural Education: Shifts of Consciousness and Practice,” and Lee Mun Wah, founder of StirFry Seminars & Consulting, Berkeley, CA, talking about “Walking Across the Classroom.”
  “The keynote speakers are widely nationally recognized by schools, communities and corporations for their work on diversity,” Delano-Oriaran said. She expects up to 300 people to attend the event.
  Other conference sessions include presentations about disparities in poverty and race, educating homeless children, exploring the issues LGBT students face in schools, societal trends affecting education, mental health issues in the classroom and community and disproportionate percentages of minorities in special education.
  “We are excited that one of the sessions is a community dialogue on unity within diversity in the local area,” Delano-Oriaran said. “This session features a panel of individuals, who will share strategies for a more inclusive community with hopes for change through collaboration.”
  The conference is supported with funding from the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, United Way Fox Cities and ThedaCare.
  Registration and more information is available at www.badgerbaymanagement.com/2009diversityconference.php. For additional information, call the multicultural center office at 920-560-5628.

Features:

Milwaukee - Critically-acclaimed gay jazz singer, interior designer and Cream City native Andrew Suvalsky  is coming home - and what a homecoming it will be! Suvalsky will be performing in the city for the very first time ever. Andy, as he likes to be called, will headline “Hot Jazz for Cool Nights” with his swinging quartet, a benefit for the Milwaukee Jewish Day School on March 7 at the Hotel Intercontinental.
  Winner of the 2007 Back Stage Bistro Awards for Jazz Vocalist, Suvalsky released his second CD, “A World That Swings,” last October. It was immediately tabbed one of the best albums of 2008 by St. Louis jazz station KDHX 88.1 FM. Bottom Line magazine echoed the praise, calling the baker’s dozen set “an all out jazz-fest and one of the sexiest jazz albums to date,” while Edge International hailed the singer as “good news for jazz fans who are looking for an up-and-coming star to latch onto.”
  Andrew is also a respected New York interior designer who has been featured in The New York Times, profiled on HGTV and highlighted on several high-profile blogs in the design world. He recently was chosen as one of “10 Under 40” Top New Designers by New York Spaces magazine.
  Though the March 7 concert will be his first ever in his jazz persona, Suvalsky has performed publicly in Milwaukee before. In 1977 and 1979, Andrew starred in the Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s production of “A Christmas Carol.”
  Quest’s Mike Fitzpatrick caught up with Andy by phone last week as he was heading up to the Massachusetts Berkshires for a celebratory weekend of skiing - not for his jazz or design kudos though - as he just turned 40. They discussed the new album, his design work, the upcoming concert and what its like to be tabbed as the “gay Michael Bublé.”

Quest: Tell me a little bit the upcoming benefit.

Andrew: The benefit is for the Milwaukee Jewish Day School. My two nephews and my niece all go to that school. They have a fundraiser every year with different sorts of entertainment. For this year’s event, they decided to ask me to be the entertainment. It was something I was really interested in because I really wanted to do a concert in Milwaukee and I wanted to help an organization that is really near and dear to my heart.

Quest: The concert is open to the general public, with tickets available at the door and in advance?

Andrew: That’s correct, and I hope people will come out.

Quest: Speaking of out, you are “out” as an openly gay singer, aren’t you?

Quest: So let’s talk a bit about being what some people might consider being the “gay Michael Bublé?”

Andrew: That’s fine, it’s not a bad judgment. Although I have to remind myself that I’m speaking to an editor of a gay magazine - so the gay aspect is relevant. I’m out for sure - there’s no question about it: you’ll find it in print, you can glean it from my bio and things like that. But its funny to hear it spoken out loud with “gay” as the first adjective. My feeling on names and labels is that I don’t mind it as long as they’re truthful, and if they speak to people who might be paying attention. I like the fact that it might be relevant to somebody and I’ll happily say so. If that’s one way for people getting to know me as an artist, then I’m al for it.

Quest: I’m not saying it as an appellation, as this limits who you are, but as an instant “high concept,” in the world where you have only six words or less to describe yourself, or people will be off to the next shiny thing.

Andrew: It is about speaking to your audience, knowing which six words will get their attention!

Quest: I want to talk about your new album, “A World That Sings.” I have been listening to it almost non-stop since I got it from (Quest publisher) Mark (Mariucci). It also prompted me to check out your first album “Vintage Pop And Jazz Sides.” On the first CD you did a read of the song “Do You Want to Dance” that is very reminiscent of Bette Midler’s version of the song. Is she a source of inspiration?

Andrew: Absolutely! Let me give you a little background. I just turned 40 yesterday - so you can do the math. I was a young kid in the early 70’s and had three older sisters. My oldest sister was very much into music. She was my immediate conduit to the music that was on the radio. That particular album “The Divine Miss M” was played a ton in my house. That particular song was really one of the very first that I really remember. I used to sing along with it. It was kind of in my consciousness. I’ve always loved it and loved that version of it. So when I covered it on the first album it was a bit on a homage to a muse.

Quest: The first album had a bit of a split personality - it was very pop and very jazz. But this new album, my goodness! First of all you doing a song from one of my favorites Mel Tormé, but your rendition of Carol King’s “I Feel the Earth Move” - It’s an amazingly wonderful reinvention of that song.

Andrew: Thank you. That’s a great song to reference as it is sort of the essence of what I do. I have a great affection for a lot of classic pop music. But my natural tendency is to do it more jazzy, taking the traditional jazz sensibility of playfulness and scatting, movement around lyrics and rhythm but still use it to apply to a pop song. That one is the real gist of what I like to do.

Quest: The version of “Night and Day” you did is so totally “not” the Frank Sinatra arrangement.

Andrew: Well you know, that’s probably a good thing. I love his style of music but I don’t like to sing the way he does. Sometimes I really like to speed things up or than again really slow things down. I felt that we were really “in the pocket” at the tempo we did it. We included the first verse, the beginning portion that isn’t often used, though I think Frank did.

Quest: Well Frank's reading is very much about longing. He keys in on the word “longing.” In a lot of ways you key in on the word “beat.” You’re excited. Frank’s version has a sense of ennui and melancholy - they’ve broken up, they can’t get over this, he’s obsessing over it. Your version is like “I am just so into this person!”

Andrew: Thank you. It’s good to hear somebody else’s interpretation. Your take on my take is I guess really correct.  I hadn’t thought of both sides of the equation as far as falling for somebody or losing somebody, but I think I was probably more excited over meeting and being with them then falling for them. I guess that is what comes through in that song.

Quest: Another pop classic on the album, the Beatles tune that was also done by Sergio Mendes. It was interesting to hear your read on “Fool On The Hill.” It was a little closer to the Fab Four’s version of it, but you mellowed it out and slowed it down even more.

Andrew: I appreciate you mentioning Sergio Mendes because that is the version that I remember. I actually have that one on my iPod. The Sergio Mendes version is done in ¾ time. He does it like a fast waltz, which is not how it’s written. That always really confused me until I picked up the music and relearned it as John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote it.
  The Sergio Mendes version is what made me love the song. But my desire to do it and the way it came out was closer to the original way it was done. But I though the tune just naturally evolved into a nice, slow jazz ballad.

Andrew: I find that music so sexy. It’s got a great vibe. Before you even think of the lyrics, you get into the rhythm of those songs. I have a great affection for the 60’s kind of Brazilian jazz vibe. That’s where my love of those songs start.

Quest: And the arrangements are just really fun! I just loved the whole album. I hope people can read the enthusiasm I’m obviously throwing into the interview then say “I really need to go out and buy this!”

Andrew: From your mouth to God’s ears. I hope so too. But it’s fun to reach new audiences, new markets. I’m so appreciative when people like yourself take an interest, because that’s how it happens. It really does.

Quest: Now you’re originally from Milwaukee, right? And you moved out to New York when?

Andrew: Yes, born and raised in Milwaukee. In late ‘98 - ten years ago.

Quest: And you’ve also made a name for yourself  as something else. I understand that you’re quite the interior decorator. Can you talk about it?

Andrew: I’d be happy to. I’m an artist first, so they’re both different creative pursuits I guess they come to me naturally, but I really work very hard at, both the music and the design. The design is more of an offshoot of what I studied in college - architecture. I’ve always had a real passion for architecture, but like on the residential scale. I didn’t know I would become an interior designer, but when I moved to New York I needed a job. I needed a job that called upon my creative skill set. So, long story short, I fell into a really good job with a really, really good firm.
  I had just started as an assistant there to the owner. I thought it would be like a half-step of a job that got me to New York and I’d figure my way after that. But it think that it was really meant to be because it was a really good environment for me to learn the industry and the whole craft. I worked on some exciting projects.
  After some time I took on some of my own projects. I like to live well too! So I didn’t take the run of being a really starving artist. So while pursuing my career in music I was building my career as an interior designer. About five years ago I started my own firm which has done well. Obviously the economy has put a crimp in everybody’s style. But overall, its been a pretty good run. I’ve had some amazing project. Thankfully, happily, it got coverage too. So that work has really grown a lot.

Quest: Well I’d look at it like this: someone who has a jazz sensibility being an interior designer - I think I’d end up with a house that truly pops!

Andrew: That’s sort of my thing! I don’t see them very differently. I can express an idea that I have how a lifestyle can be through either music or design. Inside of me, its the same place. They take very different forms one they come out of me, obviously. But they’re coming from the same viewpoint which is kind of how fun and flashy a lifestyle can be.

Quest: Anything else you’d like to say to our readers at this point?

Andrew: I would love to meet some of them in person if they would join me at the show on the 7th. It’s a benefit for the Milwaukee Jewish Day School, but we put this thing together because I really want this to be my homecoming concert. I wanted an opportunity to play in a forum where - if people are interested in my music or interested in me - that they could still come and do that. This is not a private event. Though while the proceeds do benefit the school - that can’t be bad - but I want it to be a homecoming convert and see a lot of familiar faces in the seats.

Andrew Suvalsky’s “Hot Jazz for Cool Nights” benefit concert will begin at 8:45 PM at the Hotel Intercontinental, 139 East Kilbourn Avenue. Tickets are $36 each and may be reserved by calling 414-964-1499.
  The beneficiary of the concert, the Milwaukee Jewish Day School, provides outstanding academics in a nurturing, pluralistic Jewish environment. Their dedicated teachers are committed to the educational success and social, intellectual, and emotional growth of each child. From Junior Kindergarten through 8th grade, MJDS students receive an education that is enhanced with the rich traditions of the Jewish heritage. They focus on learning a second language, working cooperatively, strengthening Jewish identity and developing critical thinking skills.
  Andrew’s new album “A World That Swings” (LML Music) is available at iTunes, Amazon.com or directly from the label at: www.LMLmusic.com. It is also available at discerning retail music outlets. Look for it in the Jazz and Vocal sections.

To inaugurate this series of articles about gay life in Wisconsin 40 years ago, we start with the far southeastern corner of the state. The earliest readily-accessible documentation of gay bars in the Racine/ Kenosha area, as in all of Wisconsin, is with the listings in national gay men’s travel guides, most of which began to be issued each year starting around 1964. (The first Wisconsin based gay or lesbian publication did not begin publishing until 1971. That publication, GPU News, never in its 10 year history ever printed a “directory” of gay bars in the state. The first local LGBT publication with any kind of directory did not appear until 1975.
  The earliest national gay guide we have access to indicates that, in 1964, the area had just one place where gay men were known to hang out: Chick’s Bar, 505 58th St., Kenosha (1964-68).  This bar was not a gay businesses; as in many cases, especially in smaller cities -and especially before Stonewall - a bar, restaurant, etc. would simply be a hangout for gay men, not primarily gay in clientele. Before the time of the national travel guides, gay hangouts would be known only by word of mouth, and not advertised locally for obvious reasons. And in fact, this listing- starting in the International Guild Guide of 1965 - is specifically marked as AYOR, or “At Your Own Risk.”
  At the time of Stonewall in 1969, no other bars were listed as being gay hangouts in the area. But Stonewall seems to have been a turning point for the area: it appears that either late in 1969 or sometime in 1970, three new businesses opened: Lydia’s Tavern, 10936 Sheridan Rd., Kenosha  (1970-72, in 1972 moving to 901 S. Memorial Drive, Racine); JoDee’s, 2139 Racine Street, Racine (1970, and still open) and the Kenosha Steam Baths, 3504 60th St., Kenosha (1970, still open; not exclusively gay but widely known)
  Strangely, the 1970’s were the high point for the Racine/ Kenosha area as far as the number of gay and lesbian bars open in the area. Four other bars opened in the area in the mid-late 1970s: Larry & Ev’s, 22nd and Mead, Racine (1973-74); The Shack, 10936 Sheridan Rd., Kenosha (1973-85); Gus’, 2201 Mead St., Racine (1976) and Larry & Dave’s Shack II, 2201 Mead St., Racine (1977-78).

  Aside from JoDee’s, which is still open, some of you may recognize one other name above: The Shack. After 12 years in its location south of Kenosha, near the Illinois border (which previously had been Lydia’s Tavern), the owner moved the business west and renamed it: Club 94. Club 94, which later relocated north and became Club 94 North, has since changed hands once again and is now known as Club ICON. So Club ICON’s roots actually go back to The Shack which opened in 1973.
  After the high point in the 1970s (and aside from the Shack-Club 94-Club ICON legacy), only a handful of other bars have opened in the two city area in the part 28 years: Our Place, What About Me, and Clubhouse Filling Station. The combination of two mainstay bars - JoDees and Club 94/Club ICON - and the ready proximity to both Milwaukee and Chicago bars, are the likely reasons for this lack of bar-opening activity in the area.

  Future articles in this series, appearing about once a month, will focus on Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay, the Fox Valley, and other areas of the state. We welcome photographs and personal recollections about any bars, businesses, or groups known to exist anywhere in the state before 1975.
  We need and welcome your support! Contact the project at: webmaster@mkelgbthist.org.  There are many more memories and recollections out there than are presently documented: please help us to preserve our history! See the website www.wisconsingayhistory.org for more information and to explore our history.

Boulevard Theatre Shares Soccer Moms’ Naughty Secrets
Milwaukee - The Boulevard Ensemble Studio Theatre continues its 23rd season with the Milwaukee premiere of playwright Kathleen Clark’s delightful and naughty comedy “secrets of A Soccer Mom” which opened Wednesday, February 25 and will run through Sunday, March 29.
  Guest Director Ruth Boulet makes her Boulevard directing debut with the Milwaukee premiere of Clark’s saucy comedy which  showcases the comedic talents of three wonderful Milwaukee artists: Marion Araujo, Brooke Wegner, and Kathleen Williams.
The three women take the field in a mothers vs. sons soccer game, intending to let their children win. But as they play, the competition ignites a fierce desire to recapture their youthful good humor, independence and sexiness. The resulting 90 minutes scores with both humor and poignancy.
  The New York Times raved: “Let’s hear it for Soccer Moms, a diverting comedy with a slick style and attention, holding crisp dialogue.’’
  “Secrets of A Soccer Mom” will run through March 29 at the Boulevard Theatre, 2252 South Kinnickinnic Ave., with varying performance dates each weekend. Curtain time is 8 PM for evening performances and 2:30 PM for Sunday matinees. For specific show dates, reservations and group rates call: 414-744.-5757 or email Artistic Director Mark Bucher at: mbucher@juno.com.

Kinsey Sicks Coming To UW-Green Bay
Green Bay - America’s favorite dragapella beautyshop quartet is coming to UW-Green Bay on Wednesday, March 11. Combining their award winning a cappella singing, sharp satire and over-the-top drag, The Kinsey Sicks have been a gay American phenomenon for nearly 15 years. In 2001, the girls produced and starred in their critically acclaimed Off-Broadway hit, “Dragcapella!”
  Kinsey Sicks will perform at 8 PM in the Phoenix Rooms at the University Center. The show will be open to the public.

Pride Alive Spring Fling Fundraiser Set
Appleton - The NEWPride/Pride Alive Committee will sponsor the first-ever “Pride Alive Spring Fling” - a formal LGBT prom event - at Adagio Dance Club, 1004 S Olde Oneida St. #116, here on Saturday, April 11. Presented by Adagio’s Terry Irwin and Brian Hartinger, this black-tie optional soirée will feature complimentary cocktails, hors d’oeuvres provided by Angelinas Restaurant of Green Bay and free ballroom dance instruction.
  In addition to Adagio Dance Club and Angelinas, cosponsors include Rascals Bar & Grill, Men’s Wearhouse and the Wreath Factory. All proceeds from the evening will benefit Pride Alive 2009. The week-long schedule of events will culminate in the day-long Pride Alive festival on July 11.
  Tickets are $50 per person. Due to space limitations the event will be open to 80 individuals only. To reserve a spot on the guest list, please email the committee at: info@newpride.org, call Andrew DeBaker at 920-471-3260, or purchase tickets at Rascal’s, 702 E. Wisconsin Ave. in Appleton. The NEWPride Committee looks forward to sharing an elegant evening of fine food, dancing and intriguing company with all of you.