Philip and I spent a couple of hours in the house he's renovating (for a couple of friends of his who will resell it) trying to figure out the best way to reconfigure the rooms. It's not as simple as it sounds... but after much debate we decided to make the first two rooms into one "great room" which is a living room / kitchen combo... an old brick fireplace will stand in the middle but the walls will be removed... it'll be an impressive space to enter from the street. The other four rooms in the house will just be generic rooms. Whoever buys the house can decide to do with them what they want... but they'll have to navigate this place "shotgun" style, because this old house has no halls. If Philip would've made a hall, he would've destroyed a beautiful room. So... it's always a trade off, but I think that this is the best way. There will also be a washroom / half-bath and a full bath hanging off the very back of the house. And he's gonna build a raised wooden deck over the entire small back-yard... which is practically unusable the way it is... but a deck will work. And the side yard is big enough for parking a car... It's really gonna be a cute place once it's done. I'm excited for Philip!

Philip and I met Allan and his dad Gary at Canal Place Cinema where we saw GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS again! We wanted to invite them Friday when we first saw it, but we had heard that it was so offensive that we weren't sure if Gary would like it. But it's not offensive if you have a decent sense of humor... and Gary did like it... so did Allan. It's really kewl to see a friend up on screen. If you just started reading this diary today you may not know that one of the stars of GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS is a close friend of mine since college. He is credited as Jeffery Roberson, but many people know him as the drag opera persona he has cultivated since the late 80's... Varla Jean Merman.

I think Jeff did a wonderful job in the movie... but I must also give kudos to Clinton Leupp! I first met Clinton in NYC many years ago as his drag character Coco Peru, through Varla... they did a few performances together... but then I saw a one-man-show called READINGS FROM THE BOOK OF CLINTON that Clinton did as himself, as a man, the first time I saw him out of drag. It was brilliant... very moving. Many of you may know him as the drag queen in the movie TRICK who talks about getting cum in your eye "it buuuuuuuuuuuuuurns"! I think Clinton was the best part of GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS... not only was his part well-written, but he did some amazingly subtle things that moved me. I believe Clinton as a woman... that's how good he is.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Varla's part in the movie, too. I just don't think Varla's part had as much meat as the other two lead roles. But Varla did a most amazing job with what she was given... and in many instances, stole the show.

Now as for Jack Plotnick... Many of you may remember him as the reporter in GODS AND MONSTERS or, more recently, the male secretary in DOWN WITH LOVE. He's great. My favorite thing I've ever seen him in is actually a Coke commercial that is made to look like a silent movie... and he's a football fan trying to sneak into a game... it's so cute. But anyway, I think that Jack did a good job in the movie... his character had the most bitchy lines to say... but much of the time I think his delivery wasn't effective. It's like he didn't have the same level of "screen presence" as Varla and Coco did... But I don't even think it was his fault so much as the editing... it's one of the pitfalls of doing low-budget projects. But he had a few brilliant moments...

All in all... I strongly suggest this film to people who like sarcastic, sick comedies. If you're expecting sophistication, you will not care for it... but if you can imagine an NC-17 rated GOLDEN GIRLS done with drag queens... that's what it is! Go see it... and put it on your netlfix.com waiting list!