National Ledger, Posted: 2/1/2010, 11:17 AM
VH1 has announced it has set in motion development for three new reality TV series offerings for the network. According to a release the three will have a variety for viewers, one deals with celebrity crime, while another show covers dating and yet another is a transformation show. "Transform Me" features three transgender female friends giving women a style makeover while helping them overcome some emotional road bumps. Each half-hour episode follows the makeover of one woman who has found herself in a style nightmare. The subjects expect to be made over in typical reality show fashion, but are in for a surprise when a team of three transgender women arrive to give them an expert transformation. The new eight-episode 30-minute series is set to premiere March 15. The ultra glamorous makeover team, led by Laverne Cox (VH1's "I Want to Work for Diddy") with Jamie Clayton and Nina Poon, travel across the country answering style-911 calls in their deluxe fashion ambulance, saving women from their clothing faux pas.

Reuters-U.K., Posted: 1/5/2010, 5:42 AM
Johnson & Johnson heiress Casey Johnson, the girlfriend of bisexual reality TV starlet Tila Tequila died at her home in Los Angeles, the police said on Monday. She was 30.  “Our officers conducted a preliminary investigation which appears to be an apparent natural death,” said Los Angeles Police Department Officer Sara Faden. “There was no evidence of any foul play and the case is now being handled by the coroner’s, pending a toxicology report.” The great-great granddaughter of Johnson & Johnson co-founder Robert Wood Johnson suffered from diabetes. The socialite was credited as a co-writer of her parents’ 1992 book “Managing Your Child’s Diabetes.” Her father, Robert “Woody” Johnson, owns the New York Jets football team. Johnson moved in the same social circles as lifelong family friend Paris Hilton, and had her fair share of moments in the tabloid spotlight, including an arrest for alleged theft last November. She adopted a daughter from Kazakhstan, and wrote Twitter messages referring to Tila Tequila as her fiancée. She said they planned to buy a house together in January. Tila Tequila took to Twitter to eulogize her girlfriend, saying: “I love u so so much and we will Marry when I see U in Heaven my Wifey.”

Reuters-U.S., Posted: 6/10/2009, 7:33 AM
"American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert has told Rolling Stone magazine he is gay, answering a question that followed the singer for months since he gained millions of fans on the No. 1 U.S. TV talent show. "I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay," Lambert told the music magazine in excerpts from an interview that were released on Tuesday. "I'm proud of my sexuality," he said. "I embrace it. It's just another part of me."
The issue with Lambert on the cover hits newsstands this Friday, with the full interview inside. During his "American Idol" run Lambert was known for his falsetto singing, outlandish costumes, eyeliner and fingernail polish. He was nicknamed "Glambert" and Entertainment Weekly magazine called him "the most exciting 'American Idol' contestant in years." When he lost in May's finale to the more buttoned-down Kris Allen, some fan websites and the media buzzed with speculation that being gay cost him votes from viewers who pick a winner.

People, Posted: 6/9/2009, 9:21 AM
Although he's encouraged people to keep speculating about his sexuality, Adam Lambert now says, "all your questions will be answered" in an upcoming issue of Rolling Stone. "Finally," he said at the 11th Annual Young Hollywood Awards Sunday in Santa Monica, where he was named artist of the year. "Once and for all" he'll speak directly about the topic. But the winner of American Idol, Kris Allen, 23, is already speaking out in support of his good friend and runner-up, praising Lambert for his openness. "I think he's happier that he can be himself and it's nice," Allen says of Lambert, 27, stepping out with his friend Drake LaBry. "Adam is who he is and he's not afraid. I support him in whatever he does." Allen, back in Los Angeles Sunday to sing the national anthem at game 2 of the Lakers-Magic NBA championship series, says that he has met LaBry, and, "he's a really nice guy." Allen calls Lambert and LaBry's friendship a "cool combination," because they're so different. "Drake's from Louisiana and Adam is from L.A.," he says. "But they click well and they're really nice together."

Posted: 6/2/2009, 12:48 AM
"American Idol" runner-up Adam Lambert, who has been coyly noncommittal about his sexuality since becoming a sensation on the TV talent show, will come out in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in next month's edition. Lambert has cheerfully ducked questions about his sexual preference, despite photos posted on the Web showing him kissing men, dressing in drag and otherwise acting like a British comedian. The New York Post, quoting a "well-placed" source at Rolling Stone, said Lambert will put the speculation to rest in his cover-story interview. As recently as this week, Lambert told people to "keep speculating" when asked about his sexual orientation. Rolling Stone would not comment on the Post story. The claim comes a day after "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi taped an interview on TV's "The View" in which she says she thought questions about Lambert's sexuality had already been answered.

People, Posted: 5/31/2009, 7:29 AM
Adam Lambert says role models come in a variety of different forms – even in eye makeup, fingernail polish and tight pants. "It's a really, really cool thing," the American Idol runner-up says, "to be able to show people that you can be yourself, and you should be proud of yourself, and you should own who you are and what you're about, and never make apologies for it." So to those who speculate about his sexuality, he has a message. "Calm down," he says, and "keep speculating." Lambert, 27, who finished second to Kris Allen in the show that ended May 20, says his comfort with himself can serve as an example. "It feels really amazing to be able to try and pass that on to kids and young adults who don't have a role model like that," he says. "It feels great because I never had a role model like that."

Posted: 3/25/2009, 3:09 AM
About 400 attended Sunday night’s screening of Pedro, the new MTV film about Miami AIDS activist Pedro Zamora, who died just after appearing on the network’s reality program, The Real World, in 1994. The screening was sponsored by the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival. If you missed the movie Sunday night: Pedro will be simulcast at 8 p.m. April 1 on MTV, MTV TR3S, mtvU and LOGO with an introduction by former President Bill Clinton. It will be released June 9 on DVD.

Edge Boston, Posted: 1/20/2009, 7:59 AM
Academics are divided on the question of whether or not so-called "New Media" like Reality TV and the Internet are a help or a hindrance when it comes to full social and legal equality for America’s GLBT citizens. Part of the divergence in opinion are differing views of what constitutes gay culture, versus that of the "hetero-normative." A Jan. 14 article at Campus Report Online.net details that two conflicting points of view were aired on the subject at the recent annual convention of the Modern Language Association. Kent State University Ph.D. candidate Robin Bellinson offered the view that while so-called "Reality TV" might be fostering acceptance in America of GLBT people, that might come at the expense of the GLBT community losing its unique cultural characteristics, rather than acting to alter "the cultural and economic landscape of the reality it purports to represent," in Bellinson’s words.

Chicago Tribune, Posted: 1/8/2009, 1:19 PM
MTV’s “Real World” returns Wednesday for its 21st (!) season, and it’s still managing to have a “first.” Katelynn, a 24-year-old from West Palm Beach, Fla., is the first transgender roomie on the show. If that doesn’t get you to tune into "Real World: Brooklyn" beginning at 9 p.m. Wednesday, then you really are burned out by confessional reality TV. MTV will air 13 one-hour episodes this season, as well as present The Real World Dailies that will show uncensored and unedited clips from the filming of the season.

TV Guide Online, Posted: 11/19/2008, 5:54 PM
The first transgendered contestant on America's Next Top Model will undergo surgery soon to become physically female, with the help of the show's host, Tyra Banks. In an episode of The Tyra Banks Show that aired Tuesday, Banks surprised 22-year-old Isis King with Dr. Marci Bowers, who offered to evaluate Isis and perform the surgery.  "This is not happening," Isis said, adding that she felt "like I'm about to wake up." Bowers, who has undergone the procedure herself and is the star of a new reality series, Sex Change Hospital on We tv, told TVGuide.com the surgery will take place early next year. The season finale of Top Model airs Wednesday. Isis, who was born Darrell Walls and has described herself as "a woman born physically male," was the fifth contestant to be sent home from the show.