DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
"A podcast about making things up and making things happen." L.A.-based writer-performer Dennis Hensley believes that art and creativity make the world go around and make life worth living. Each week, he interviews a different creative person each about what they do, why they do it, and how they manage the ups and downs of a creative life. Some guests are famous, some are less so...all are what Dennis describes as "beautiful strugglers." Past guests have included authors, actors, photographers, musicians, screenwriters, acrobats and one visual artist who makes cartoons centered around dead houseflies.
info_outline
Singer Jim Verraros ("Take My Bow"): "I Just Got Tired Of People Telling Me I Needed To Be Something Other Than Who I Was"
09/28/2023
Singer Jim Verraros ("Take My Bow"): "I Just Got Tired Of People Telling Me I Needed To Be Something Other Than Who I Was"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by singer and American Idol alum Jim Verraros on the day he releases his first new music in 12 years, a dance-pop single called "Take My Bow." Jim talks about what inspired him to step in front of the microphone again, how putting out music is different now than it was in the mid-2000s and why he loves a good double entendre. He also talks about his life post-Idol, being the first Idol finalist to come out, landing a record deal and and appearing in films like Eating Out and making the decision to leave LA and the business and return to Chicago. He talks about getting married and divorced and remarried, meeting his current husband Sean on Tinder and taking Sean to Vegas for his birthday to Kelly Clarkson perform. Jim also reveals that he hooked up with another contestant on the Idol tour bus, insists that Brian Dunkleman was way cooler than Ryan Seacrest and agrees with Dennis that Paula Abdul is a national treasure. Other topics include: how having deaf parents made him grow up fast, getting fan letters from prison inmates, getting slagged off in Simon Cowell's book, giving up gymnastics as a teen because he was getting bullied, getting married in Playa Del Carmen, the moment he realized Idol was a phenomenon and why he decided to pose in a jockstrap on Twitter.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/28143794
info_outline
Mortified LA Host & Story Producer Leonard Hyman: "I Am SomebodyThat Wallows"
09/19/2023
Mortified LA Host & Story Producer Leonard Hyman: "I Am SomebodyThat Wallows"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Leonard Hyman, the emcee and a story producer for the L.A. stage show Mortified. Mortified is a long running stage show where performers get on the mic and share things they created as kids or teens, like diary entries, poems, home videos, things that were never intended to be shared with a roomful of stranger. Leonard recalls how he first learned about the show then went on to perform on it multiple times. He also talks about how he's kept a diary for most of his life and how he read one passage of it as part of his wedding vows--he reads that part for us, too, on the podcast! Other topics include: the fulfillment he gets with helping nervous performers craft their pieces, working a day job as a government auditor while doing Mortified on the side, the Tony-winner that may or may not have hit on him as a college student and the power of Mortified's credo: "We are freaks and we are fragile but we all survived." www.getmortified.com
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/28075320
info_outline
Filmmaker Sav Rodgers (Chasing Chasing Amy): "Every Day Is A School Day"
09/14/2023
Filmmaker Sav Rodgers (Chasing Chasing Amy): "Every Day Is A School Day"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmaker Sav Rodgers to discuss his documentary Chasing Chasing Amy, a coming-of-age story set again the backdrop of Kevin Smith's controversial 1993 film Chasing Amy, which is about a lesbian (Joey Lauren Adams) who falls in love with a straight guy (Ben Affleck). Sav recalls how the documentary sprung from a Ted Talk he gave called "The Rom-Com That Saved My Life," which was about how his adolescent viewings of Chasing Amy made him feel less alone at a time when he was being bullied for his queerness and battled thoughts of suicide. He also recalls what it was like to interview Kevin Smith and Joey Lauren Adams, whose brutal honesty in discussing all the dark stuff around the film--Harvey Weinstein was a producer-- was not was Sav was expecting to get from her at all. Other topics include: the awesomeness of his wife Riley, passing as a cis-straight couple when they go out together even though he's trans and Riley identifies as a lesbian, the parallels between the themes of Chasing Amy and his own life and marriage and the day from the shoot that he'll always remember. www.chasingamydoc.com
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/28008120
info_outline
Filmmakers Tom Gustafson & Cory Krueckeberg (Glitter and Doom): "The Stems Have Been Delivered"
09/05/2023
Filmmakers Tom Gustafson & Cory Krueckeberg (Glitter and Doom): "The Stems Have Been Delivered"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Tom Gustafson & Cory Krueckeberg, the men behind the new gay movie-musical, Glitter and Doom. Tom directs, Cory writes and edits and they produce together. The film is a loosely autobiographical love story between two young men, a broody down-on-his luck musician named Doom (Alan Cammish) and a sunny aspiring circus performer named Glitter (Alex Diaz) In the interview, Cory recalls how he wrote the script on his own and then presented it to Tom on their 20th anniversary as a couple. Tom talks about the decision to shoot in Mexico City and recalls the international casting process, the duo's commitment to casting two openly queer leads and reveals that there were a few straight actors who claimed to be gay in the hopes it would get them cast. The pair also describe their interactions with the Indigo Girls who lent 25 songs to the film and also appear in it. Other topics include: shooting a sex scene in a tent, casting bad-ass women like Tig Notaro, Missi Pyle and Kate Pierson from the B-52s in supporting roles and the time a festival rejected the movie because the programmer felt that it "appropriated lesbian culture."
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27948048
info_outline
Author Manuel Betancourt (The Male Gazed): I Just Love a Big Dumb Hunk
09/01/2023
Author Manuel Betancourt (The Male Gazed): I Just Love a Big Dumb Hunk
Dennis is joined via Zoom by author Manuel Betancourt to discuss his new book The Male Gazed: . In the book, which he describes as a memoir in essays about masculinity and desire, Manuel writes about such subjects as Ricky Martin's thirst traps on Instagram, Mario Lopez's wrestling singlets on Saved By The Bell, Antonio Banderas's tighty-whities in Law of Desire and why flamboyant Puerto Rican TV astrologer Walter Mercado used to make him squirm. Manuel also talks about getting rejected by a number of publishers and nearly giving up before his eventual publisher called to say they were interested. He also discusses watching American TV when he was growing up in Columbia, writing a thesis on queer fandom for his doctorate and whether straight actors should play gay characters. Other topics include: the difference between a hunk and heartthrob, his childhood obsession with Maleficent, the joy of wearing crop tops, the power of "phantom nostalgia," Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall and why we'd both let Jonathan Groff spit on us whenever he wants.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27878658
info_outline
The MisMatch Game: Here Comes The Pride Edition excerpts
08/22/2023
The MisMatch Game: Here Comes The Pride Edition excerpts
To promote this Saturday's Hot August Night Edition of The MisMatch Game, here are some clips from June's two Pride-themed shows. The panelists are Dante as Christopher Lloyd, Danny Casillas as Reba Areba, Richard Halpern as Austin Powers, Tom Lenk as M3GAN and Zooey Deschanel, Felix Pire as The Mad Hatter, Rebekah Kochan as Jennifer Coolidge, Jackie Clarke as Ginni Thomas, James Adomian as Elon Musk, Nadya Ginsburg as Cher, Lory Tatoulian as Queen Camilla & Marc Samuel as Morgan Freeman. The questions take on such subjects as Rihanna's missing toe ring, Dorothy's stolen ruby slippers and what happened when homophobic televangelist Pat Robertson arrived at the pearly gates. Tickets for Saturday's MisMatch Game:
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27814107
info_outline
Actor-Writer-Director Craig Chester (Adam & Steve): "How Does Loni Anderson Live?"
08/17/2023
Actor-Writer-Director Craig Chester (Adam & Steve): "How Does Loni Anderson Live?"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by actor-writer-director Craig Chester to discuss the upcoming 18th Anniversary screening of his gay rom-com Adam and Steve, which is happening on August 31st at the Mary Pickford Theater in Palm Springs. Craig shares memories of making the movie, including how he had to take over as director just a few weeks before filming, how he burst into tears after shooting the film's big, show-stopping western-themed dance number and what it was like to work with Malcolm Gets, Parker Posey and Chris Kattan. He also talks about his career as a TV writer, working on the series True Blood--where an episode he wrote pissed off both Ted Cruz and Sarah Palin--and he also shares his thoughts on the current writers strike. Dennis and Craig also share memories of working together on Logo's The Big Gay Sketch Show in 2009. Craig also opens up about his journey to sobriety last year after losing virtually everything to crystal meth addiction. Other topics include: the power of dream boarding, the wisdom of Wilson Phillips, living in a 55+ community in Palm Springs, oversharing on Facebook, how getting Monkey Pox saved his life, getting help when he really needed it from folks like Stephen King, Jackie Beat, Illeana Douglas and Kate McKinnon, what it was like to be a 90's indie darling in films like Swoon, Grief and Frisk, and how he sometimes feels like a gay Forrest Gump.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27768102
info_outline
Author JD Doyle (1981): "I Wanted to See Gay America"
08/10/2023
Author JD Doyle (1981): "I Wanted to See Gay America"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by historian JD Doyle to discuss his new book, "1981: My Gay American Road Trip, A Slice Of Our Pre-AIDS Culture." The book is comprised mostly of diary entries JD kept during a road trip he took in 1981 that spanned 24 states,180 gay bars and lots of hot hookups. In the interview, JD discusses how his father encouraged him to take the trip after he got laid off of his chemical engineering job, the '77 Skylark he took the journey in by himself with no air conditioning, using his background in gay media to network and how the entire experience changed him. He also talks about the matter-of-fact way gay men would hook up back then, his attraction to clones and how you could send a message that you were DTF by unbuttoning the bottom button of your Levis 501s. He also talks about his work as a historian and the founder of the Queer Music Heritage radio show, which is how Dennis first met JD in 2000. Other topics include: how the specter of AIDS hangs over the book, staying at the Coral Sands hotel in LA, encountering icons like Vito Russo, Armistead Maupin, Liza Minelli and Sylvester while on his journey, falling in love with and in Houston, Texas and his obsession with sassy T-shirts. www.jddoylearchives.org
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27689967
info_outline
Writer-Performer Alex Alexander (Perception vs. Reality 101): "I Will Not Be Ignored, Los Angeles"
08/03/2023
Writer-Performer Alex Alexander (Perception vs. Reality 101): "I Will Not Be Ignored, Los Angeles"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by writer-performer Alex Alexander whose show Perception vs. Reality 101 returns to Los Angeles on August 12th. The show is about how sometimes the stories we tell ourselves about our lives and our pasts aren't actually true. Alex talks about getting inspiration for the show from her high school yearbooks, why she changed her name from Debra to Alex, getting caught up the Fatal Attraction backlash after changing her name to Alex and what her Southern Christian family thought when she decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in entertainment. She also talks about how her 17-year marriage ended when her husband came out as gay and then later transitioned and how they both managed to navigate those changes and remain best friends. Other topics include: Alex's book The Line At Which I Stopped Reading The Online Dating Profile, dating montages in movies, her first impression of L.A., the worst costume she had to wear for work, working in the art department at Movieline magazine where Dennis got his start as a writer and the importance of setting boundaries.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27621684
info_outline
Filmmakers Andy & Danny Vallentine (The Mattachine Family): "Each Day is Vallentine's Day"
07/25/2023
Filmmakers Andy & Danny Vallentine (The Mattachine Family): "Each Day is Vallentine's Day"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Andy & Danny Vallentine, the husband-and-husband team behind the new movie The Mattachine Family, which is about a gay male couple in L.A. and their multiple attempts to becoming fathers. Screenwriter Danny talks about getting inspiration for the script from his and Andy's real life journey. Andy talks about working with the stellar cast, which includes Nico Tortorella (Younger), Juan Pablo di Pace (Fuller House) and Emily Hampshire (Schitt's Creek). The pair also talk about getting Zach Braff to sign on as Executive Producer, the day on set they'll never forget, why there's no blatant homophobia in their film and how they both turn to art when they need answers to life's big questions. Other topics include: what it's like to be named Vallentine, the shirtless kissing on MTV's Undressed, meeting each other in the Michigan State marching band, the timeless rumpled sex appeal of Billy Crystal in When Harry Met Sally and what it was like to become fathers in real life just one month after wrapping their film.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27558795
info_outline
Filmmaker Corey Sherman (Big Boys): "I Wanted Him To Be Big Guy Who Likes Big Guys"
07/18/2023
Filmmaker Corey Sherman (Big Boys): "I Wanted Him To Be Big Guy Who Likes Big Guys"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Corey Sherman the writer-director of the film Big Boys, a delightful coming of age movie about a 14 year-old boy named Jamie who goes on a camping trip with his older female cousin and becomes infatuated with her hot bear of a boyfriend. Corey talks about where the idea for the story originated, exploring the theme of coming out to yourself long before you come out to anyone else and why unrequited crushes can be as formative and life-changing as full-blown relationships. Corey also talks about discovering and working with his lead actor Isaac Krasner who gives a breakout performance as Jamie, bumbling and hilarious one moment, articulate and heroic the next. Other topics include: why camping is fun, why he makes movies, the filmmakers who inspired him and the moment around the campfire involving a game of Taboo and a dance break that he'll never forget.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27495753
info_outline
Documentarian Marc Saltarelli & Gay Icon Bruce Vilanch (Studio One Forever): "Think Mark Zuckerberg With An Afro and a Large Penis"
07/14/2023
Documentarian Marc Saltarelli & Gay Icon Bruce Vilanch (Studio One Forever): "Think Mark Zuckerberg With An Afro and a Large Penis"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Marc Saltarelli, the director of the new documentary Studio One Forever, about the legendary Weho disco Studio One. Dennis is also joined by writer-performer Bruce Vilanch, who appears in the film and was a regular at the club back in the day. The pair discuss the colorful and sometimes controversial history of the club, the club's treacherous back stairs, and how Studio One is often thought of as a rip-off of Studio 54 but it's actually the other way around. They also talk about the club's founder Scott Forbes whose vision didn't always include people who didn't look like him, like women and people of color. They also talk about the early AIDS benefits that happened in the Backlot cabaret space. One of these was headlined by Joan Rivers and caused such controversy at the time that her family received death threats. But the show went on! Other topics include: the treasure trove of Studio One photos that was discovered in a most unlikely place, the courage it took gay men of the era to line up on Robertson Boulevard to get in and the songs that always remind Bruce and Marc of Studio One. https://www.facebook.com/studiooneforever/
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27468381
info_outline
The Disappointments Creator & Star Rich Burns: "It's The Creative Highlight Of My Life"
07/11/2023
The Disappointments Creator & Star Rich Burns: "It's The Creative Highlight Of My Life"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Rich Burns, the creator & star of the webseries The Disappointments, which is about three gay men in their late 50's who are dealing with the fact that their lives are not what they dreamed they would be, not even close. Rich talks about where the idea for the series first came from, the fun of writing Hollywood asshole characters, what fans can expect in Season 2 and how he came to act in the project after never having acting before in his life. Rich also talks about the thrill of winning a Humanitas Prize for the series, the importance of fitness in his--and his character Ray's--life and that time he scoped out actor Trevor LaPaglia at the bar that he worked at in Weho before offering him the role of his younger love interest. Other topics include: talking vintage cars with Jay Leno at Marix Tex Mex, creating fake vomit and fake cocaine for the shoot, Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now, how going gray changed the kind of attention he got from men, dreamboards, his most surprising fans and why there's no shame in cater-waitering. https://www.youtube.com/@thedisappointmentsseries
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27431106
info_outline
The DNR Studios Summer Fling Crossover featuring You Don't Know My Life!
06/29/2023
The DNR Studios Summer Fling Crossover featuring You Don't Know My Life!
DNR STUDIOS hosts Romaine Patterson, Joselyn Contin, Derek Hartley, Ajay Sousa & Jonathan Valdez join host Dennis Hensley to play a special Summer Edition of You Don't Know My Life! Listen and laugh as the hosts serve up surprising and occasionally scandalous answers to the following questions: FIREWORKS STORY. GO. CONCERT STORY. GO and YOU FIND AN OLD PHOTO IN A DRAWER WITH THE WORDS "SUMMER LOVIN'" WRITTEN ON IT. WHAT'S THE PHOTO OF? The answers involve lesbian love, a male stripper coincidence, a Taylor Swift meet-and-greet, a need to pee really bad and much, much more. To book a YKDML Virtual Game for your crew, visit www.YouDontKnowMyLife.com or buy the boxed game on Amazon.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27318834
info_outline
Novelist Jude Hopkins (Babe In The Woods): “I Kept Thinking About The Dangling Modifier & The Comma Splice That I Missed”
06/22/2023
Novelist Jude Hopkins (Babe In The Woods): “I Kept Thinking About The Dangling Modifier & The Comma Splice That I Missed”
Dennis connects via telephone with his longtime friend Jude Hopkins to discuss her new novel Babe In the Woods. Here’s the official blurb: After living in Los Angeles, Hadley Todd returns to her hometown in rural New York to write and be near her father. Hadley hopes to channel her recent L.A. heartbreak into a play about the last moment of a woman's innocence. But she seeks inspiration. Enter Trey Harding, a young, handsome reporter who is the perfect spark to fire up her imagination. In the interview, Jude talks about how the novel began as a riff on Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With The Wind, why she decided to make her heroine Hadley more complicated than most rom-com heroines, and why she decided to not aim for the HEA or “happily ever after” market. Jude also talks about never giving up on her dream of having a novel published and wonders why so many people do give up on their dreams. Jude and Dennis also reminisce about times they spent together in LA; recording song parodies, going to game show tapings, trying and failing to see David Cassidy perform at the Ambassador Hotel and crafting outgoing messages for Dennis’s answering machine. Other topics include: why Jude’s glad her parents ignored her growing up, when she fell in love with literature, why she loves teaching, being disillusioned by Alex Trebek, meeting Tina Turner and Paul and Linda McCartney when she worked at Capital Records and that glorious moment when she first held her finished novel in her hands.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27209049
info_outline
Divercitours Founder & Tour Guide Saul Franco: “You Are Living An Adventure Every Day In Mexico City”
06/15/2023
Divercitours Founder & Tour Guide Saul Franco: “You Are Living An Adventure Every Day In Mexico City”
Dennis is joined via Zoom from Mexico City by Saul Franco, the founder of Divercitours, an LGBT tour company based in Mexico City. Dennis took a one-on-one walking tour with Saul back in May of the city center and it was the highlight of his time in Mexico CIty. In the interview, Saul talks about how he came up with the idea of starting a tour company, learning things he never knew about his city during his research and his mission of leading his tours as if he were not just a knowledgable guide, but a friend who's just showing you around the city he loves. Dennis also asks Saul about things that came up on the tour, like the iconic waitress uniforms at Sanborns, why people in Mexico City stress out about earthquakes when September rolls around, what the new pink seats mean on buses and subways and why locals rarely wear wear shorts or skirts in public. Other topics include: how Salma Hayek inspired him, how the James Bond movie Spectre inspired the city to mount a Day of the Dead parade like the one in the movie, the difference between "cheap" food and "affordable" food, the real life gay scandal behind the recent Netflix film Dance of the 41, the ‘gay’ Zapata painting by queer artist Fabian Chairez that caused a major scandal at the Fine Arts Palace just a few years ago, the city’s Frida Kahlo fixation, accessible politicians and why his favorite part of his tours is the hug.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27143313
info_outline
Playwright Eric Anderson (Back Porch): “I Wanted To Write Something Affirmative”
06/08/2023
Playwright Eric Anderson (Back Porch): “I Wanted To Write Something Affirmative”
Dennis shuts down Zoom for a change and ventures out into the world to meet playwright Eric Anderson in the lobby of his Burbank hotel. Eric and his husband flew in from Hawaii for the world premier of Eric’s play Back Porch. Back Porch is a gay twist on the American classic Picnic by the playwright William Inge, who was highly acclaimed and also very closeted. Eric talks about the real-life experience that inspired the play, which is that when he was 4 years-old, the film Picnic shot near his small Kansas town and Eric and his family got to be extras. Even though he was just a boy, he remembers it vividly. He also talks about the gay love story at the heart of his play, between Gary, an 18 year-old college-bound local, and Bill, William Holden’s handsome stunt double on the film, and why it was important to him to write a gay romance where homophobia doesn’t drive the entire plot. Other topics include: the arts scene in Hawaii, why drifters are awesome, the thrill of seeing his play finally produced after being delayed for three years because of the pandemic, the playwriting teacher that changes his life, small town busy-bodies and the movie he’s seen more than any other (Hint: It’s not Picnic).
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/27054861
info_outline
Filmmaker & Author Sam Irvin (I Was A Teenage Monster Hunter): “All I Want To Do Is Be On A Set Saying Action & Cut”
06/01/2023
Filmmaker & Author Sam Irvin (I Was A Teenage Monster Hunter): “All I Want To Do Is Be On A Set Saying Action & Cut”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmaker Sam Irvin. Sam is the author of the memoir I Was a Teenage Monster Hunter, which is about his childhood obsession with horror movies and the interviews he conducted with horror personalities for his fanzine Bizarre. Sam talks about his Cinema Paradiso-esque childhood; working at his family-owned movie theater, having to change the marquee when he was afraid of heights, getting to take home the posters after a film’s run and cleaning up vomit after screenings of The Exorcist. He also talks about his creative and personal relationship with Cassandra Peterson AKA Elvira Mistress of the Dark. He recalls how he got the job directing Elvira’s Haunted Hills, bonding over sad Joni Mitchell music and how just this year, he and Cassandra took a tour group of 30 Elvira super fans to visit the Haunted Hills locations in Romania and Transylvania. Sam also talks about being more in demand as a director at 67 than ever before. He’s directed seven Hallmark and Lifetime films in the past 12 months, including this month’s Love In Zion National: A National Park Romance and the holiday film Check Inn to Christmas. Other topics include: cold-calling his way into becoming Brian DePalma’s assistant, Ian McKellan’s naked prank on the set of Gods and Monsters, directing three seasons of the gay vampire series Dante’s Cove and getting to visit the set of the James Bond film The Man With the Golden Gun when he was 18 and hearing sex stories from a drunk Herve Villechaize in the back of a Rolls Royce afterwards.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26990475
info_outline
“Naked Boys Singing” Creator Robert Schrock: “You Gotta Make Friends With The Pole”
05/25/2023
“Naked Boys Singing” Creator Robert Schrock: “You Gotta Make Friends With The Pole”
Dennis is joined via Zoom from Puerta Vallarta, Mexico by writer-director-producer Robert Schrock to talk about Naked Boys Singing, the hit musical review he conceived, directed and co-wrote that is celebrating it’s 25th anniversary this year. Robert talks about how he got the original idea, what it was like to cast the show, how soon it would get the cast naked during the rehearsal process and why it was important to feature songs that dealt with serious topics like AIDS and romantic longing in addition to the light-hearted ditties. He also talks about how the show nearly got shut down in Provincetown, Minneapolis and Atlanta and actually did get shut down in Puerto Rico. He also recalls his own naked stint onstage, performing in the New York sensation The Dirtiest Show In Town. Other topics include: the pros and cons of bachelorette party audiences, moving to Mexico after Trump got elected, the onstage beam that had to be incorporated into every show at the Celebration Theater, meeting the original Stonewall protestor Christina Hayworth, taking tap class from Tommy Tune and the Australian Prince Albert that nearly stole the whole show.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26931201
info_outline
The Bottoming Process playwright Nicholas Pilapil & Stars George Salazar & Rick Cosnett: “I Wanted To Write Me As Katherine Heigl”
05/18/2023
The Bottoming Process playwright Nicholas Pilapil & Stars George Salazar & Rick Cosnett: “I Wanted To Write Me As Katherine Heigl”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by three of the talents behind the new play The Bottoming Process: playwright Nicholas Pilapil and actors George Salazar and Rick Cosnett. The play, which runs through June 12th at the Renberg Theater in Hollywood is a romantic comedy about two writers in different stages of their careers who fall in love and grapple with issues of race, sex and power. Nicholas talks about what inspired him to write the play, where the title comes from, how living all your life in LA effects how you feel about your dreams and how his mother dragging him to see Rent at the Pantages when he was in high school changed his life forever. George talks about the thrill of playing a lead character who is lot like him, performing love and sex scenes on stage, what it was like to play George Conway (Kellyanne Conway’s husband) in Ryan Murphy’s Impeachment and why he’s ready and willing to star in George Santos: The Musical. Rick talks about what drew him to the play, growing up on a farm in Zimbabwe, co-starring in The Flash, which is airing its series finale this month, playing twins in a TV movie and appearing opposite Joel Edgerton in the new Paul Schrader film Master Gardener. Other topics include: Be More Chill Tony night trauma made worse by James Corden, what it’s like to play a Tiny Desk Concert at the NPR offices, Rick’s playing the Succession theme song on the piano, the wit and wisdom of Anne Hathaway and why they do theater. https://culturalarts.lalgbtcenter.org/the-bottoming-process/
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26858316
info_outline
Director-Choreographer-Actor Vincent Paterson (co-author of Icons & Instincts): Part 2 “Getting a Bad Review From the Pope Made My Day”
05/11/2023
Director-Choreographer-Actor Vincent Paterson (co-author of Icons & Instincts): Part 2 “Getting a Bad Review From the Pope Made My Day”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Vincent Paterson, director, choreographer, dancer, actor and now co-author of a book about his life and career entitled Icons & Instincts: Choreographing and Directing Entertainment's Biggest Stars. Part One of their conversation, featuring lots of stories about his work with Michael Jackson, was the last episode. This is Part 2 where Vince talks a lot about his yours working with Madonna; first on the Pepsi commercial that got banned, then on the “Express Yourself” video, the Blonde Ambition tour, the iconic Marie Antionette “Vogue” performance at the MTV Awards, the “Sooner or Later” Marilyn Monroe homage at the Oscars and the film Evita. Vince recalls getting the Blonde Ambition gig late, after another choreographer had been fired, and having to come up with the whole 18-song show in 21 days. He’d put a song on before he went to bed, dream what the number would be and then put it on the dancers and Madonna the next day. He also talks about getting a bad review from the Pope, refusing to appear on camera for Truth or Dare, creating tango magic in Argentina for Evita and what it was like when his two iconic collaborators Michael Jackson and Madonna would talk to him about each other. Other topics include: getting humiliated, then fired, then rehired by Shirley MacLaine, working with Bjork and Lars Von Trier on Dancer in the Dark, directing the musical Cabaret in Berlin where its set, being blacklisted by Hal Prince, working with Mike Nichols and Robin Williams on The Birdcage and the power of putting inspirational pictures on your refrigerator. http://www.vincentpaterson.com
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26815104
info_outline
Director-Choreographer-Actor Vincent Paterson (co-author of Icons & Instincts): “I Was Always The White Boy That The Black Girls Wanted to Dance With”
05/04/2023
Director-Choreographer-Actor Vincent Paterson (co-author of Icons & Instincts): “I Was Always The White Boy That The Black Girls Wanted to Dance With”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Vincent Paterson, director, choreographer, dancer, actor and now co-author of a book about his life and career entitled Icons & Instincts: Choreographing and Directing Entertainment's Biggest Stars. Dennis had so many questions for Vincent about working with icons like Michael Jackson, Madonna, Shirley MacLaine and the Mandrell SIsters that the interview lasted for over two hours. So ithis one's going to be a two-parter. In this episode, Part 1, Vincent talks about what inspired him to write the book, growing up with an alcoholic father in a small town in Pennsylvania and falling in love with dance in his mid 20’s. He also discusses the tragic murder of his first lover in Tucson, AZ, the psychic interventions that helped him move out to LA and his earliest dance jobs working with stars like Olivia Newton-John in the "Totally Hot" video. He also talks about his long creative relationship with Michael Jackson, working first as a dancer in the “Beat It” and “Thriller” videos then choreographing Michael’s epic “Smooth Criminal” video, which features that gravity-defying lean move that Dennis had several questions about. Other topics include: why choreographers need and deserve a union, saving pieces of floor from the "Thriller Room" the late great Debbie Reynolds Dance Studio in North Hollywood, what it was like to be part of the L.A. dance community during the AIDS crisis, talking about sex and masturbation with Michael Jackson, hanging out with Bubbles the Chimp and what Vincent thinks about when he hears a Michael Jackson song today. We get deep into Madonna and much more in Part 2. http://www.vincentpaterson.com
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26725425
info_outline
Singer Matt Zarley (creator & star of 11 O’Clock Number): “Sometimes You Just Need a Yes”
04/27/2023
Singer Matt Zarley (creator & star of 11 O’Clock Number): “Sometimes You Just Need a Yes”
Dennis visits the L.A. home of his friend Matt Zarley for Listening Party of the songs from Matt’s newest project 11 O’Clock Number, a musical video project about a man who harnesses the power of musical theater songs to help him cope with lost love, losing his mother and the stresses of the pandemic. Matt talks about where the idea originated from, how working on the project helped keep him sane during the COVID lockdown and how he approached the vocals as if he was, in his words, “never going to sing again.” Matt also discusses why he chose each of the 12 tracks: “Never Enough” from The Greatest Showman, “Still Hurting” from The Last Five Years, “With You” from Ghost, “I’m Not That Girl” from Wicked, “I’d Give My Life For You” and “I Still Believe” from Miss Saigon, “Take Me Or Leave Me” from Rent, “He Used To Be Mine” from Waitress, “The Human Heart” from Once On This Island, “Anything But Lonely” from Aspects of Love, “I’m Here” from The Color Purple and “What I Did For Love” from A Chorus Line. Other topics include: Broadway curtain calls, stage door memories, baring almost all in Broadway Bares, the show that got away, his decades long friendship with Billy Porter and why he loves to sing. www.mattzarley.com
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26644488
info_outline
Filmmaker-Actor Todd Flaherty (“Chrissy Judy”): “You Have To Feed The Hungry Ghost”
04/20/2023
Filmmaker-Actor Todd Flaherty (“Chrissy Judy”): “You Have To Feed The Hungry Ghost”
Dennis is joined via Zoom from Provincetown, Massachusetts by Todd Flaherty, the writer-director-producer-editor and star of the new film Chrissy Judy. The film is about two struggling drag performers in New York City whose ride-or-die friendship is tested when one of them moves to Philadelphia to be with his boyfriend. Todd talks about why he wanted to explore the theme of gay friendships, having virtually no experience in drag before making the movie, what it’s like to direct yourself in sex scenes and how his making the film grew out of the frustration he was feeling as an actor in New York. He also talks about how he made such a visually-striking, self-assured film with only himself and two other crew members; his brother Brendan as cinematographer and his sister-in-law on sound. Other topics include: his favorite film festival memories, why he chose to make his character Judy a occasionally irritating hot mess rather than a likable every gay, the entrepreneurial hustle of being a filmmaker, living in Provincetown year round, going to a taping of Saturday Night Live, appearing with Marisa Tomei and Bill Irwin in the upcoming film Best Place and P-town fox that was so desperate to be in show business that he crashed the set. Instagram: @toddflaherty
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26574141
info_outline
Author Sam Staggs (Did You Sleep With The Models?): “I Looked Up And There Was Al Parker…”
04/13/2023
Author Sam Staggs (Did You Sleep With The Models?): “I Looked Up And There Was Al Parker…”
Dennis is joined by author Sam Staggs whose Substack newsletter “Did You Sleep With The Models?” documents the five years he spent as Editor-In-Chief of the gay magazines Mandate, Playguy and Honcho in the early 1980’s. Sam talks about how the project began as a book that he wrote during the pandemic and then evolved into a Substack newsletter with photographs and illustrations pulled straight from the magazines. He also discusses what it was like to oversee three gay porn magazines just as AIDS was starting to ravage the community. Sam also discusses two of his Hollywood-related books; All About All About Eve and Finding Zsa Zsa: The Gabors Behind The Legend. Other topics include: the many upsides of publishing on Substack, his friendship with film critic Pauline Kael, interacting with gay porn icons like Al Parker, Casey Donovan and Kristen Bjorn, the dishy lunch he once had with actress Joan Fontaine, the rumor that Nancy Reagan gave good head and the gay agent who passed on representing Did You Sleep With the Models? because he thought it should be primarily focused on AIDS.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26515635
info_outline
Filmmaker Gregg Araki (“The Doom Generation”): “It’s The Brattiest Kid That Conquered The World”
04/06/2023
Filmmaker Gregg Araki (“The Doom Generation”): “It’s The Brattiest Kid That Conquered The World”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmaker Gregg Araki (The Living End, Nowhere, Mysterious Skin) to discuss the re-release and restoration of his mid-1990s cult classic The Doom Generation, which stars Rose McGowan, James Duval and Johnathan Schaech. Gregg talks about what it’s been like to revisit the film, what makes each of his three leads perfect for their roles, how the film got the subtitle “A Heterosexual Movie,” and how and why he cast people like Christopher Knight from The Brady Bunch, Lauren Tewes from The Love Boat and Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss in cameo roles. Gregg also talks about the darker themes of the movie and how young people today seem ever more doomed than they did in the 90’s, how he approaches sex scenes, watching the movie again with an audience at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and whatever happened to the kick-ass belt buckle Jonathan Schaech wore in the movie. Other topics include: his recent forays into television with his series Now Apocalypse and short-term directing gigs on shows like American Gigolo and Dahmer, why he called his production company Desperate Pictures, the upside of film school, his punk rock roots and that time a fan told him that watching The Doom Generation actually made him gay.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26445465
info_outline
Singer-Songwriter Brandon Stansell: “There’s No Feeling Like Finishing a Song”
03/30/2023
Singer-Songwriter Brandon Stansell: “There’s No Feeling Like Finishing a Song”
Dennis is joined via Zoom by singer-songwriter Brandon Stansell to talk about his latest album This Must Be the Place, his upcoming show at Hotel Café in Los Angeles on April 6 and shares the stories behind his songs “Pick Up Where We Left Off,” “Good At the Time” and “Did You Settle Down Too Soon.” He also talks about the reaction to his 2020 documentary Three Cords and a Lie, about the strained relationship he’s had with his family and hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee since he came out in his early 20’s. He also recalls being a dancer on Taylor Swift’s Fearless tour around the same time he came out, his favorite T Swift tune and the sweet note Taylor wrote to him. Other topics include: why he loves CrossFit, having lunch with Trisha Yearwood and Garth Brooks at their compound, why Amy Grant is everything, why he loves Los Angeles, working at Opryland from age 6 to 12, saying hell no to conversion therapy and that time Halle Berry came to one of his shows. @brandonstansell on Instagram https://www.brandonstansell.com/
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26363319
info_outline
Entrepreneur Wendy Miller (Ask Your Gay BFF Oracle Cards): "I Peed Next To Della Reese!"
03/23/2023
Entrepreneur Wendy Miller (Ask Your Gay BFF Oracle Cards): "I Peed Next To Della Reese!"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Wendy Miller, the entrepreneur behind the new Ask Your Gay BFF Oracle Cards, a deck of cards that, in Wendy’s words, “force people to get real about what they want out of life.” Wendy talks about where the idea to create the cards came from, starting her company Card To Believe, plying her gay male friends with alcohol to get their sassy retorts and finding the perfect black velvet bags to package them in. She also talks about the “woo-woo” aspects of the cards and how she’s always been an extremely intuitive person. She even recalls that one time she had a nightmare involving the vibrator in her nightstand and how the very next day, the nightmare came true! Wendy can’t vouch for any “magical” quality that the cards may or may not have, but she believes that the cards’ true power is that they get people to get very specific in the way they ask for what they want out of life. Other topics include: making her worst show biz mistake ever while working on the Oprah show, winning an Emmy for writing on The Wayne Brady Show and wanting to take her trophy to White Castle, her obsession with Christmas, writing fan letters to Betty White and Ann-Margaret and getting responses back from both and how she turned her wedding into a game show.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26290653
info_outline
Playwright Steve Silverman ("Happy Birthday McKenna"): "I Want To Make People Uncomfortable"
03/16/2023
Playwright Steve Silverman ("Happy Birthday McKenna"): "I Want To Make People Uncomfortable"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by playwright and director Steve Silverman, whose dark comedy Happy Birthday McKenna is currently running at the Hudson Backstage Theater in Hollywood. Steve talks about the fateful trip to a Chicago cemetery that inspired the play, mounting a show in LA when you live in Santa Barbara, rotating in different actors and the bratty 3 year-old who is the McKenna in question. He also talks about his career working in promotion for TV networks and directing stars like Cloris Leachman and Mindy Kaling. Other topics include: the Spielberg movie that rocked his world, how he learned the facts of life, what keeps him going, why The Wizard of Oz is so perfect and the one time he cried while recording his podcast World Gone Good.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26234919
info_outline
Filmmaker Robert Chandler ("Dirty Sexy Comics"): "I've Never Held One Myself"
03/09/2023
Filmmaker Robert Chandler ("Dirty Sexy Comics"): "I've Never Held One Myself"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by L.A.-based filmmaker Robert Chandler to discuss his new documentary Dirty Sexy Comics, which is about the world of gay, male, erotic comics. Robert talks about how he got the idea to do the film, balancing this passion project with a day job in corporate entertainment, being starstruck while interviewing the artists he’s admired for years and how many of those artists destroyed their work when they were starting out rather than risk being exposed as gay. Robert also recalls his first comics crush, Reed Richards in The Fantastic Four, the days he spent perusing the aisles of A Different Light gay bookstore, and what it’s like to visit the Tom of Finland House in Los Angeles. Other topics include: being drawn by one of the artists he interviewed,. Getting Pansy Division to let him use their music for the film, what a Tijuana Bible is and the politics of dick size in comics.
/episode/index/show/dennishensley/id/26149722