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.
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L.A. Theater Director Bart DeLorenzo ("Design for Living"): "Bob Fosse Taught Me To Snap My Fingers"
07/25/2024
L.A. Theater Director Bart DeLorenzo ("Design for Living"): "Bob Fosse Taught Me To Snap My Fingers"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by L.A. theater director Bart DeLorenzo to talk about his newest production, Noel Coward's Design for Living at the Odyssey Theatre, as well as his career in general. Bart talks about why the 90 year-old play--about three young, struggling artists who can't seem to live without each other--seems so resonant in this moment. He also talks about his directing process, how he reads a play over and over and over again before he starts putting it on his feet and how he believes there are always two plays going on in any given production; the play on stage and the story that's unfolding in the audience. Other topics include: his memories of seeing plays as a child, what he's observed about Gen Z as a faculty member at the California Institute of the Arts, working with Joan Rivers on her autobiographical play A Piece of Work, looking for actors who make his "heart leap" during the casting process, why he loves Los Angeles how he reacts to people whp say theater in LA sucks, and how "nothing good can ever come from reading reviews." https://www.bartdelorenzo.com/
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Conversion filmmaker Zach Meiners and featured subject Elena Joy Thurston: "Using My Voice Helps Me To Heal"
07/18/2024
Conversion filmmaker Zach Meiners and featured subject Elena Joy Thurston: "Using My Voice Helps Me To Heal"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Zach Meiners and Elena Joy Thurston, two of the three conversion therapy survivors profiled in the new documentary Conversion, which was also directed by Meiners. (The third survivor profiled is Dustin Rayburn AKA Dusty Ray Bottoms from RuPaul's Drag Race). Zach talks about what inspired him to make the film, why he used detailed miniatures to tell the story visually and how when he was struggling with his sexuality, he always felt like "the worst person in every room." Elena talks about her background as a devout Mormon wife and mother who found herself overwhelming drawn to a woman in her life. She also talks about the social fallout in her Mormon community when she decided to finally live her truth and how, just a few years later, her current family situation is "wildly wonderful" in a way she never expected. Zach and Elena also talk about how conversion therapy is actually an industry that constantly needs to be fed and how the recent laws that have been passed are important but that they've barely put a dent in the problem. Other topics include: American Idol alum David Archuleta's recent coming out, how conversion therapy can often lead to self harm, the surprising amount of queer activism at Brigham Young University and the pair's hopes that the film can be a catalyst for change. www.conversionmovie.com
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Chronicles of a Wandering Saint filmmaker Tomás Gómez Bustillo: "Making Fun Sh#t With My Friends"
07/05/2024
Chronicles of a Wandering Saint filmmaker Tomás Gómez Bustillo: "Making Fun Sh#t With My Friends"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Argentine-born filmmaker Tomás Gómez Bustillo to talk about his delightful, three-time Indie Spirit Award-nominated film Chronicles of a Wandering Saint, which was first mentioned on this podcast earlier this year when Drew Droege raved about it during our year-end movie wrap-up. The movie is about an elderly woman in a small rural town in Argentina named Rita (Wild Tales Monica Villas) who is so competitive with the other ladies from her church that she fakes a miracle to try and improve her status. Tomás talks about how the film was partly inspired by the time he spent as a young Catholic missionary in towns just like Rita's. He also talks--cryptically--about the giant swerve the movie takes halfway through and how many people he shared the script with told him he could never pull it off. He also recalls getting rejected by Sundance and another major festival and actually having a ritual where he let it go. He burned a piece of paper with the film's name on it, thanked the film for all it had brought to his life and accepted that it wasn't going to be a festival movie...and then days later, he got accepted by South By Southwest, where the film was a breakout hit. Other topics include: graduating college with a degree in Political Science in Argentina and then leaving that path behind to study film at AFI in Los Angeles, his love for magical realism, how his pursuit of music led to him discovering filmmaking, why The Lion King f-ed him up as a kid and the movie costume he wish he owned so he could wear it around the house. www.chroniclesofawanderingsaint.com
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Playwright Miranda Rose Hall & Executive Director Armando Huipe (The Sandwich Ministry): "I Write About The Questions That Keep Me Up At Night"
07/02/2024
Playwright Miranda Rose Hall & Executive Director Armando Huipe (The Sandwich Ministry): "I Write About The Questions That Keep Me Up At Night"
Dennis connects via Zoom with two of the people behind the play The Sandwich Ministry; playwright Miranda Rose Hall and Armando Huipe, who is the Executive Director of the Skylight Theatre Company in Los Angeles where the show is running through July 7, 2024. The play is one of the best things Dennis has seen on stage in years. The story concerns three women, two of whom are queer, who gather in a church basement to make sandwiches for people in need after a once-in-lifetime storm hits their community. Miranda talks about what inspired her to write the play, her own background growing up in an LGBT-friendly Presbyterian Church in Baltimore and her goal of examining how to live in a time of chronic emergency. Armando recalls reading the play for the first time during a massive rainstorm in LA and being moved to tears by it. He also explains how the sandwiches being made by the actors on stage are actually packed up after the show and given to local organizations to help feed people in need. Other topics include: the recent Tony Awards, the doubts and fears that come with choosing to pursue an artistic life, the challenges of getting folks back to the theater after the pandemic, the importance of third spaces in people's lives and what kind of sandwich is the most delicious. www.skylighttheater.org
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Author Alonso Duralde (Hollywood Pride): "Take The Gays Away And None Of This Happens"
06/27/2024
Author Alonso Duralde (Hollywood Pride): "Take The Gays Away And None Of This Happens"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by film critic Alonso Duralde to discuss his new coffee table book Hollywood Pride: A Celebration of LGBTQ+ Representation and Perseverance In Film. It's a beautifully written and designed book about at the history of queer people in the movies, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. Alonso talks about the artists and films that weren't on his radar before he began his research and shares insights about some of the films in the book like including Prick Up Your Ears, Philadelphia, Brokeback Mountain, Parting Glances, Longtime Companion and Making Love. He also talks about what it's like to be the busiest gay in film criticism with five regular podcasts--Linoleum Knife (with his husband, film critic Dave White), Breakfast All Day, Maximum Film, Deck the Hallmark and the just-launched The Film Library. Other topics include: the gay cinematographer that shot Rocky, why queer millennials love The Mummy, how he cries more watching movies than he does in real life, his seeming unflappability, the 2016 surprise party for Dennis that Alonso attended, getting recognized on the street and the movie that made him cry so hard he had to go to the lobby to pull himself together. Following the interview with Alonso, there's also a short interview with comedian Jim David who appears in the new Netflix documentary Outstanding.
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Actor-Singer Activist Bryan Terrell Clark (Diarra From Detroit): "Joy Can Be Resistance"
06/20/2024
Actor-Singer Activist Bryan Terrell Clark (Diarra From Detroit): "Joy Can Be Resistance"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by actor Bryan Terrell Clark who plays a gay teacher "Mr. Tea" on the BET+ mystery-comedy series Diarra From Detroit. Bryan talks about how he knew the show's creator and star Diarra Kilpatrick for years before working with her and how thrilled he was to learn she was writing the role of Mr. Tea with him in mind. He also talks about how he sees Mr. Tea as the Bea Arthur-esque truthteller of the ensemble and how gratifying it is to play the type of gay character he would have liked to seen when he was growing up. He also talks about growing up in Baltimore with a pastor for mother and a drug dealer and addict for a father and how both of those experiences shaped the man he is today. He also shares the incredible story of how he came to believe in God after his father failed to pick him up from middle school leaving him feeling totally abandoned and alone as night fell and how he found salvation in the most unlikely of places. Other topics include: the profound connection he felt to Marvin Gaye when the played the singer in Motown: The Musical on Broadway, what it was like to deliver George Washington's farewell address in Hamilton on stage at the same time that President Obama was giving his own farewell address in Washington, the idea that "being gay is not romantic," which is a line Mr. Tea says in Diarra From Detroit, slaying on the red carpet with help from his costume designer husband, how he sees expressing black and queer joy as a kind of resistance and what Gay Pride means to him. (www.bryanterrellclark.com)
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Trumpery playwright Christian McLaughlin: "It’s All Gonna End Because of a Desk"
06/13/2024
Trumpery playwright Christian McLaughlin: "It’s All Gonna End Because of a Desk"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Christian McLaughin, author of the novels Glamourpuss and Sex Toys of the Gods, to talk about his newest project; the play Trumpery, which is having its world premier at the LA Fringe Festival through June 28th. Here's the shows not-so-implausible premise: Ex-President Trump (Austin Walker) is running from the law on a yacht with his wife Melania (Lauren Howard Hayes), daughter Tiffani (John Cantwell AKA Love Connie) daughter Ivanka (Tatjana Vujovic), son-in-law Jared Kushner (Felix Pire) and a mysterious stowaway (Natalie Whittle) and mayhem ensues. Christian talks about having the inspiration for the play way back in 2016, experiencing a breakthrough on the storyline while playing peek-a-boo with his cats on his birthday, why he simply had to include Tiffani's real vanity pop single "Like a Bird," and the kismet of having the show debut between the real Trump's conviction and sentencing. Christian also talks about his early days in LA, his career as a television writer on shows like Married With Children, Desperate Housewives and the 2001 MTV soap Spydergames, which he created. Other topics include: his life-long love of movie posters and the online store he started to sell them (www.westgategallery.com), revising his debut novel Glamourpuss for Kindle for its 25th anniversary, being college roommates with filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, the night comedian Geri Jewell came to see herself parodied in Christian's stage spoof The Phacts of Life, reenacting scenes from Search for Tomorrow as a child, how his parents are both awesome LGBT allies, and feeling more inspired and prolific than he has in his entire career. ()
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Lost Spaces podcast host K Anderson: "I Keep Getting Asked If I’m A Therapist"
06/06/2024
Lost Spaces podcast host K Anderson: "I Keep Getting Asked If I’m A Therapist"
Dennis is joined via Zoom from London by K Anderson, host of the podcast Lost Spaces. On its surface, the show is about lost queer spaces like bars and bookstores, but on a deeper level it about queer people discovering who they really are, often on a dance floor. K talks about how he first got the idea for the podcast, how doing it has changed his life, the workload of doing a podcast and why so many gay bars have shame-based names like Alibis and Incognito. He also talks about his own lost space, a gay bar in Adelaide, Australia called Mars Bar, where he had many adventures as a young man coming out. Other topics include: the bliss of making out in a nightclub, paying too much to see Diana Ross in concert, the Kylie mega-mix that he used to hate but now he's sort of come around on Kylie, small town gay bars, composing his own theme music and the thrill of getting sticky trousers on a dance floor.
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Author Carl Siciliano (Making Room) Part 2: "What Do We Owe The People Who Love Us?"
05/30/2024
Author Carl Siciliano (Making Room) Part 2: "What Do We Owe The People Who Love Us?"
Dennis is joined by author Carl Siciliano for Part 2 of their conversation about Carl's new book Marking Room and his decades-long career, fighting to protect the lives of LGBTQ youth in New York City. Carl talks about the most difficult part of writing the book; reliving the murder of his young friend Ali Forney. He also talks about the big themes he wrestles with in Making Room, specifically humans seeming need to humiliate each other and Americans need to believe that they're always the good guys. Carl also talks about lighter subjects, like the Thanksgiving weekend in 2016 when both Madonna and Lady Gaga wanted to make top secret visits to the Ali Forney Center. Other topics include: how his looks effected his work, seeing his own family background in the stories of young people who'd been kicked out of their homes, the human cost of the gentrification of Times Square, why the monks cried when he left the monastery he spent time in as a young man.
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Author Carl Siciliano (Making Room) Part 1: "I Could See That They Were Beloved"
05/23/2024
Author Carl Siciliano (Making Room) Part 1: "I Could See That They Were Beloved"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by author Carl Siciliano to discuss his new book Making Room: Three Decades of Fighting for Beds, Belonging and a Safe Space for LGBT Youth, which documents his founding of the Ali Forney Center in New York City in 2002 as well his many years at the Times Square youth center Safe Space before that. It was at Safe Space in 1994 that Carl met Ali Forney, a non-binary black young person who had been living on the street since they were 12. The pair developed a unique bond and when Ali was senselessly murdered by a gun shot to the temple, one of the ways Carl dealt with his grief is to start a new youth center specifically for queer youth and to name it after Ali. Carl talks about the capacity for love and unshakeable faith in God that made Ali so unique and recalls how he used Ali's memorial to get more media attention to the plight of the citiy's homeless queer youth. Other topics include: the day Tyra Banks showed up to walk the runway with Ali, dealing with unsympathetic and bullying politicians like Mayor Bloomberg and Mayor Cuomo, a moment of grace he experienced on a train back from Coney Island with several of his kids, how he ended up with a parrot that says "Sit your butt down" and his complicated journey with Catholicism. He also shares a story about Bea Arthur from The Golden Girls that's guaranteed to make you love her more than you already do. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/720043/making-room-by-carl-siciliano/
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Production Whisperer & Host of the When Is Now Podcast Capella Fahoome: "People Make Me Happy"
05/16/2024
Production Whisperer & Host of the When Is Now Podcast Capella Fahoome: "People Make Me Happy"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Capella Fahoome, a film producer who also works as what she calls a "Production Whisperer," which is a consultant who helps sets run more smoothly. Capella talks about how she first got into film, the rookie mistakes she made when she was first starting out and the difference between being a Set Whisperer and a Set Wolf. Dennis also talks to Capella about a Masters Program she completed that Dennis has been interested in; the Masters of Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. Other topics include: working as a producer on films like Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey and I'm Fine (Thanks for Asking), dealing with rejection, why she loves Gen Z and the mistake she came very close to making as a producer that could have landed in her a Florida jail. www.capellafahoome.com
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Photographer & Director Mike Ruiz: "All I Did Was Fantasize About Being at Studio 54"
05/09/2024
Photographer & Director Mike Ruiz: "All I Did Was Fantasize About Being at Studio 54"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by photographer and director Mike Ruiz to discuss his latest project, Vanessa Williams new music video "Legs," his long friendship with Williams and how he relates to the song's theme of being fabulous at any age. Meanwhile, Dennis recalls how he once asked Vanessa Williams to dance at a Halloween party in 1986 and she said no, she was taking a break. Mike also talks about how he first fell in love with photography in his late 20's after working for years as a model. Then he recalls shooting with such A listers as Prince, Dolly Parton, Betty White, Jennifer Lopez, Katy Perry and most recently, Jack Reacher hunk Alan Ritchson. Other topics include: being obsessed with his dad's body-building mags when he was a kid, the perils of trying to forge friendships with celebrities, appearing on RuPaul's Drag Race, America's Next Top Model and The A List, treating his body like an art form through body building, the charity work for animals and the LGBT community, being repeatedly sexually harassed as a model, his childhood obsessions with Studio 54 and Patrick Duffy in The Man From Atlantis and why he loves to say, "Yaaassss" during his photoshoots. www.mikeruiz.com
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Actors Kevin Daniels and Logan Arditty ("Monsters of the American Cinema"): "I Will Never Be Scared of a Script Again"
05/02/2024
Actors Kevin Daniels and Logan Arditty ("Monsters of the American Cinema"): "I Will Never Be Scared of a Script Again"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Kevin Daniels and Logan Arditty, who co-star in the play Monsters of the American Cinema, which is produced by the Rogue Machine theater company and showing at the Matrix Theatre in Hollywood through May 19th. Dennis caught the play and was struck at the connection between the intergenerational pair who are the only actors in the cast. Here's the play's synopsis: "When his husband dies, Remy Washington (Daniels), a Black man, finds himself both the owner of a drive-in movie theater and a caregiver to his late husband’s straight, white teenage son, Pup (Arditty). Their relationship fractures when Remy discovers Pup and his friends have been bullying a gay teen at his school." In the interview, Kevin and Logan talk about what drew them to the piece, the special bond they've developed on stage and off, how they memorized all those lines and the thrill they get when they can hear audience members cry and occasionally scream. Other topics include: the moments they they wanted to act, managing the ups and downs of a creative career, their favorite scary movies (Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp), Kevin's stint playing Magic Johnson in the Broadway play Magic/Bird and his new film Not Another Church Movie, Logan's upcoming films Trust In Love and Stay Out, the magic of live theater and how cool it is to be on a billboard on Melrose Avenue with your very first play. www.roguemachinetheatre.org
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DENNIS ANYONE 10th ANNIVERSARY INTERVIEW PART 2
04/25/2024
DENNIS ANYONE 10th ANNIVERSARY INTERVIEW PART 2
For the 10th Anniversary of Dennis Anyone, Dennis flips the script and gets interviewed by one of his past guests, filmmaker and longtime Dennis Anyone listener Robert Chandler. This is Part 2 of their interview, in which Dennis recalls some of his most memorable interviews with folks like Leslie Jordan, Kate Flannery, Mitchell Anderson and Dick DeBartolo from Match Game and Mad Magazine fame. They also discuss the guests Dennis would love to get on the show like author and birdwatcher Christian Cooper and American Idol alum David Archuleta. Other topics include: the CD of music Dennis made in the 1990s, a summer trip to rehab, the world's loneliest voicemail inbox, turning 60 and the Xanadu luncheon to end all Xanadu luncheons.
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DENNIS ANYONE 10th ANNIVERSARY INTERVIEW PART 1
04/18/2024
DENNIS ANYONE 10th ANNIVERSARY INTERVIEW PART 1
For the 10th Anniversary of Dennis Anyone, Dennis flips the script and gets interviewed by one of his past guests, filmmaker and longtime Dennis Anyone listener Robert Chandler. Dennis recalls the beginning of Dennis Anyone, his first guests, why he does it and how it feels to have done 410 episodes. He also talks about why he likes interviewing people, how he sees interviewing as an art form and how he feels about it the way Katy Perry feels about singing "Firework." Other topics include: Dennis's early Bravo-lebrity moment as a Main Gay on the first season of Kathy Griffin: My Life on The D List, the Fashion Police writers strike of 2013 and how it changed him, the glory days of national magazines and local gay rags, Dennis's thoughts on straight actors playing gay roles, what makes a great Dennis Anyone guest and why it's cool to be kind.
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I Think I Do FIlmmaker Brian Sloan: "Hey, Do You Know Somebody Named Elaine Stritch?"
04/11/2024
I Think I Do FIlmmaker Brian Sloan: "Hey, Do You Know Somebody Named Elaine Stritch?"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmaker Brian Sloan whose 1997 gay rom-com I Think I Do is coming to streaming this month in a newly restored version. It's also being celebrated at a Newfest screening and cast reunion on April 15th at the BAM Rose Cinemas in New York City. Brian talks about what originally inspired him to write the movie, the thrill of arriving at set on Day 1 and seeing all those trucks and how hard it was to cast the movie because no agents or managers wanted their clients to play gay characters. He also shares memories of working with cast members Tuc Watkins, Guillermo Diaz, Christian Maelen and the late Alexis Arquette. Other topics include: why he chose to feature multiple Partridge Family songs on the film's soundtrack, seeing the movie Porky's behind his parents' back, playing hardball with Elaine Stritch, wanting to be blond Chris Partridge and the thrill of meeting multiple married gay couples who say that going to see I Think I Do together was their first date.
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Transition fiImmakers Jordan Bryon and Monica Villamizar: "Surely I Could Have Found A Nicer Bra To Burn"
04/04/2024
Transition fiImmakers Jordan Bryon and Monica Villamizar: "Surely I Could Have Found A Nicer Bra To Burn"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmakers Monica Villamizar and Jordan Bryon to talk about their new documentary Transition, which Jordan is also the main subject of. Here's the film's synopsis: Australian journalist Jordan Bryon gains incredible access to a Taliban unit during the fall of Afghanistan. The countryʼs transition coincides with his own physical transformation as a trans man. While he and his local videographer, Teddy, embed with the Taliban, Jordan conceals his physiology and is accepted as a man. However, if the Taliban were to find out, he and Teddy would likely be in grave danger. The film follows Jordanʼs journey, as he paradoxically gains more freedom as he transitions, while deftly chronicling the increasing oppression of women as the Taliban transitions to power. Jordan talks about why he felt more at home embedded with a Taliban unit than he does at a queer bar in Sydney, how he met his girlfriend Kiana who also appears in the film and why his mom is so cool. Monica talks about what drew her to the story, the frustration of not being able to shoot in certain places because she's a woman and how she'll never forget how shocked she was to learn that many of the young Talibs she met had no idea who Osama Bin Laden even was. Other topics include: bra burning rituals, what things are like in Afghanistan now, nerve-wracking airport checkpoints and the surprising reactions they've gotten so far from the movie.
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A LOVE LETTER TO XANADU with Alonso Duralde and Dave White from the Linoleum Knife film review podcast
03/28/2024
A LOVE LETTER TO XANADU with Alonso Duralde and Dave White from the Linoleum Knife film review podcast
This is a special crossover episode with the film podcast Linoleum Knife Presents More Linoleum Knife hosting by husbands and film critics Dave White and Alonso Duralde who Dennis has been friends with since the 1990s. They invited Dennis on to talk about one of his favorite movies ever, Xanadu starring Olivia Newton-John, Gene Kelly and Michael Beck. Dennis shares a slew of memories related to the film, like when he watched it in his hometown of Holbrook, AZ and the power went out during the screening, that time he got to be a paid to dance in front of the screen while the movie was playing and the chilling encounter he once had on stage with an actress from Xanadu: The Musical that haunts him to this day. Other topics include: the Outfest sing-along Xanadu screening where Dennis saved the day, Michael Beck's short shorts, the roller disco trend and Cher's role in it and that time Dennis got to meet ONJ and kind of choked.
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Author Abdi Nazemian Part 2 ("Only This Beautiful Moment"): "My Books Aren't About The Fact That They've Been Banned. My Books Are About What They're About"
03/21/2024
Author Abdi Nazemian Part 2 ("Only This Beautiful Moment"): "My Books Aren't About The Fact That They've Been Banned. My Books Are About What They're About"
Part 2 of Dennis's conversation with author Abdi Nazemian focuses on his latest book Only This Beautiful Moment, which recently won the Stonewall Award from Young Adult Literature. Abdi talks about drawing inspiration for the multigenerational story from his own family, how he was able to write scenes set in Iran despite having left there when he was a child and the longing he feels for the country and it's people. He also talks about what it feels like to have his two most recent books banned in many schools, how that affects his bottom line and how he learned the hard way not to engage with online trolls. Other topics include: being an Associate Producer on the film Call Me By Your Name, going back to school to get his MBA, the power of telling the truth instead of chasing what you think the market wants, why young people give him hope, the perils of social media and why he chose to set a scene in the men's room of the late great Silver Lake piano bar The Other Side. https://www.abdinazemian.com
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Author Abdi Nazemian ("Like A Love Story"): "The Opposite of Shame Is Madonna"
03/14/2024
Author Abdi Nazemian ("Like A Love Story"): "The Opposite of Shame Is Madonna"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by author Abdi Nazemian (Only This Beautiful Moment) to discuss his previous book Like A Love Story, which is about three high schoolers in the late 1980's who are obsessed with Madonna. Dennis first met Abdi at a queer writers mixer and commented on Abdi's Madonna T-shirt. They discovered they were both big fans of Madge so it made sense to talk for the podcast after they had both seen Madonna's current Celebration Tour. Abdi and Dennis compare notes about the tour and share the moments they found most inspiring and moving. Abdi also talks about how his Madonna obsession inspired the plot of Life a Love Story and how the book ended up being a breakthrough success for him after publishing several other books. Other topics include: Abdi's obsession with old Hollywood, how he got his entire boarding school into Mommie Dearest, what the label "Young Adult Novel" actually means, the time he almost met Madonna as a kid in France, where he was when he heard she'd been hospitalized and the question he'd really like to ask Madonna about the spoken-word section of "Vogue."
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ACMT WORKSHOP REUNION w/ Kristin Dahl, Sherri Fleming, Karole Forman, Dennis Osborne and Jon Thomas
03/07/2024
ACMT WORKSHOP REUNION w/ Kristin Dahl, Sherri Fleming, Karole Forman, Dennis Osborne and Jon Thomas
In this special episode of Dennis Anyone, Dennis is joined by five friends he's known since 1986 when he moved from Arizona to Los Angeles to take part in a 12-week long performing workshop put on by American Center for Musical Theater at held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in downtown Los Angeles. This reunion meal happened in 2017 and was held at the Moorpark, CA home of Kristin Dahl and her husband Eric and the other attendees are Sherri Fleming, Karole Forman, Dennis Osborne and Jon Thomas. The group talks about what that intensive workshop meant for them in their lives and share what they remember about that time and each other. Other topics include: bad auditions, dream roles and teachers that hurl insults, play mind games and worse in order to toughen you up for show business.
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TCM Host and Author Dave Karger (50 Oscar Nights): "Oprah Roses Don't Die"
02/29/2024
TCM Host and Author Dave Karger (50 Oscar Nights): "Oprah Roses Don't Die"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by TCM host Dave Karger to discuss his new book, 50 Oscar Nights: Iconic Stars and Filmmakers On Their Career Defining Wins, which features delicious new interviews with icons like Nicole Kidman, Jane Fonda, Martin Scorsese and Mel Brooks as well as lesser-known winners like Precious screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher, documentarian Jessica Yu and sound mixer Kevin O'Connell who was nominated 20 times before finally taking home the gold for Heartbreak Ridge. Dave talks about how some winners revealed to him that they were going through tough times in their personal lives on the same night they were achieving Oscar glory as well as how the win impacted their career. Dave also talks about some of the more dishy stories in the book; like how Joan Crawford tried to horn in on Rita Moreno's Oscar glory, how Marlee Matlin was in Betty Ford for rehab when she got nominated and how John Travolta's "Adela Nazeem" gaffe cause one nominee to hit the flask. Other topics include: how awesome it was to write for Entertainment Weekly in the 1990s, the interview subject that intimidated him, how he made the transition from print journalist to TV host, how being a nice guy has served him well in Hollywood and why he's totally in awe of actors. Dave also plays a lightning round of movie-related questions from the Observation Dec, which produces musings about Porky's, Sixteen Candles, Singing in the Rain and Broadcast News.
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THE YEAR IN MOVIES 2023 Part 2 w/ film critic Glenn Gaylord and actor-writer Drew Droege
02/22/2024
THE YEAR IN MOVIES 2023 Part 2 w/ film critic Glenn Gaylord and actor-writer Drew Droege
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Glenn Gaylord, Senior Film Critic at The Queer Review, and actor-writer-film enthusiast Drew Droege to talk about the movies of last year; their favorites, the moments that have stuck with them and the movies they just weren’t that into. The films discussed include Barbie, Anatomy of a Fall, Dicks: The Musical, A Good Person, Cassandro, Oppenheimer, NYAD, Poor Things, Origin, Passages, The Iron Claw, Past Lives, 80 For Brady, Book Club 2, Rustin, Ferrari, The Teacher’s Lounge, Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret?, Problemista, Kokomo City, You Hurt My Feelings, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt, Monica, Chronicles of a Wandering Saint, Theater Camp, Wonka, The Color Purple, Cocaine Bear, Red, White and Royal Blue, Maestro, Knock at the Cabin and Killers of the Flower Moon. Dennis also talks about getting to attend the world premier of J Lo's visual album This Is Me...Now and getting caught up in the j Lo of it all.
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THE YEAR IN MOVIES 2023 Part 1 w/ film critic Glenn Gaylord and actor-writer-film lover Drew Droege
02/15/2024
THE YEAR IN MOVIES 2023 Part 1 w/ film critic Glenn Gaylord and actor-writer-film lover Drew Droege
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Glenn Gaylord, Senior Film Critic at The Queer Review, and actor-writer-film enthusiast Drew Droege to talk about the movies of last year; their favorites, the moments that have stuck with them and the movies they just weren’t that into. The films discussed include The Zone of Interest, American Fiction, M3GAN, Bottoms, All of Us Strangers, Somewhere In Queens, May December, The Holdovers, Fast X, Fallen Leaves and Monster. They also talk about what a great year it was for cinema generally and Dennis shares a story involving a fan of the short film he made with Glenn Gaylord and Nadya Ginsburg ten years ago called If We Took a Holiday.
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Playwright & Director Luke Yankee ("Marilyn, Mom & Me"): "My Mother Was Famous For Going 'Fire, Ready, Aim'!"
02/08/2024
Playwright & Director Luke Yankee ("Marilyn, Mom & Me"): "My Mother Was Famous For Going 'Fire, Ready, Aim'!"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by playwright and director Luke Yankee whose new play Marilyn, Mom, and Me will have its World Premier on February 16th at the International City Theatre in Long Beach, CA. The play is about Luke's mother, Oscar-winning actress Eileen Heckart and her close friendship Marilyn Monroe while they were shooting the movie Bus Stop together in the mid-1950's and how that relationship affected Luke's own feelings about his mother. Luke recalls that whenever he would mention Marilyn to his mother, she would burst into tears and how that ultimately inspired him to write the play. Luke also talks about the extensive research he did, the Cartier earrings that Marilyn gave to his mother (that eventually were left to Mary Tyler Moore after Heckhart died) and the thrill he got recently when he learned that his mother was indeed at one of the Ella Fitzgerald shows that Marilyn pressured the Mocambo club to host in 1955. Other topics include: Heckart's negative reaction to Luke when he came out and how she eventually came around, what it's like to cast actors to play your mother and yourself, the only Hollywood star who intimidated his mother (hint, it was Bette Davis) and the moment during rehearsal where he got so choked up, he had to step away to collect himself. www.lukeyankee.com
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Author Curtis Chin ("Everything I Learned, I Learned In A Chinese Restaurant"): "I Live My Life As A Chinese Waiter"
02/01/2024
Author Curtis Chin ("Everything I Learned, I Learned In A Chinese Restaurant"): "I Live My Life As A Chinese Waiter"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by author Curtis Chin to discuss his new memoir Everything I Learned, I Learned In A Chinese Restaurant, which is about his upbringing as one of six kids raised by parents who owned a Chinese restaurant in downtown Detroit called Chung's. Curtis talks about what a magical place Chung's was and what it was like to visit it recently when it was sealed up and abandoned. He also recalls how his parents encouraged him to talk to and befriend everyone who came to Chung's and how that openness has helped him in his life. He also talks about his deep love for his hometown of Detroit even though he knew five people who had been murdered by the time he was 18, including Vincent Chin, whose much-publicized case inspired Curtis to become a writer. Curtis also talks about realizing he was gay and enjoying himself with a stolen International Male catalog in the walk-in freezer of Chung's because that was the only place he could be alone. Other topics include: going to Boys State as a teen, being a young Republican like Alex P. Keaton on Family Ties, the movie star who came into Chung's and was a total jerk, why his mother was so pissed at Ronald Reagan, coming out to his parents in a Bob's Big Boy and the stories from readers he's heard on his extensive book tour that move him to tears. www.curtisfromdetroit.com
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Author Tim Murphy ("Speech Team"): "I Don't Even Think I Knew What Mincing Meant"
01/25/2024
Author Tim Murphy ("Speech Team"): "I Don't Even Think I Knew What Mincing Meant"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by novelist Tim Murphy to discuss his latest novel Speech Team, which he describes as a book about "small T trauma." The book is about four friends in their 40's who were on their high school speech team who reunite and decide to confront the teacher who led the group and said some f-ed up things to each of them back in the 80's. Tim talks about how this is his most autobiographical novel yet and how he actually prefers to write about characters who are less close to home. Dennis, who was also on his high school speech team in Arizona, compares notes and memories with Tim about what the experience meant to them and they each recall the different "cuttings" they performed at tournaments. Dennis also asks Tim about his earlier novel, Christadora, and how he was able to write so vividly and accurately about the worlds of addiction, recovery and early AIDS activism. Other topics include: his substack Caftan Chronicles where he does long-form interviews with gay men of a certain age, the Phil Collins song that reminds him of his favorite speech team memory, how he sometimes cried when he writes and the pride he takes in having "stuck with writing all these years out of some base belief that something would come out of it." https://thecaftanchronicles.substack.com/
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""ONLY IN WEHO!" The Creators & Stars of the webseries "OPEN TO IT" play YOU DON'T KNOW MY LIFE!
01/18/2024
""ONLY IN WEHO!" The Creators & Stars of the webseries "OPEN TO IT" play YOU DON'T KNOW MY LIFE!
Dennis is joined joined via Zoom by the Fab Five from the new gay webseries Open To It, which is about a happy Weho couple named Greg and Cam who decide it might be fun and exciting to open things up sexually,...and hijinks ensue. Playing the game with Dennis are writer-director-EP Frank Arthur Smith who plays Greg, EP-director Greg Wolf, EP-director Matt Hartman, actor Tim Wardell who plays Cam and actor Jason Caceres who plays Princeton the irrepressible twink who shakes things up. The questions in play are "What's something you witnessed or experienced where you thought, 'Only in Weho?' and "What's a story from your life that might make a good episode of Open To It?" The answers involve everything from fitting room hookups to dogs on the bed during sex to getting frisky in the bushes by the Abbey. Watch Open To It at OutTV.dom and learn more at www.opentoitseries.com . And to book a virtual game night for your crew hosted by Dennis, visit www.youdontknowmylife.com
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Performer-Writer Adam Sank: "Stop Freakin' Taking My Neosporin"
01/09/2024
Performer-Writer Adam Sank: "Stop Freakin' Taking My Neosporin"
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Adam Sank, the star and writer of the one-man show Adam Sank: Bad Dates, which plays Oscar's in Palm Springs on January 11th and 12th. Adam talks about how the show grew out of his stand up act and evolved into a much richer, more theatrical experience than anything he had done previously. He also talks about people always asking him why he's single at 52 and he's come to not care whether or not he's ever in a romantic relationship again. Other topics include: his best day job working at the New York Times, what it's like the date the hottest guy around, his first gay bar, overcoming tragedy, why good verbal is important in porn, that time he worked the door at an underwear party, his daily Facebook unfriending ritual and why Bad Dates is the most meaningful thing he's ever done on stage. www.adamsank.com
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NEW YEARS IN PALM SPRINGS GAME NIGHT w/ Craig Chester, Jack Kenny, Byron Lane & Terry Ray playing You Don't Know My Life!
01/06/2024
NEW YEARS IN PALM SPRINGS GAME NIGHT w/ Craig Chester, Jack Kenny, Byron Lane & Terry Ray playing You Don't Know My Life!
For his first episode of 2024, Dennis is joined via Zoom by his pals actor-writer Craig Chester (Swoon, Adam & Steve), writer-showrunner Jack Kenny (Warehouse 13, The Book of Daniel), author Byron Lane (Big Gay Wedding, A Star Is Bored) & Terry Ray (actor and co-founder of The Bent Theater Company) for a few rollicking rounds of You Don't Know My Life! Apart from all being brilliantly talented and funny, all four guests currently live in Palm Springs so Dennis came up with special Palm Springs-related questions just for the occasion. The stories and musings that emerge are sexy, sun-soaked and hysterical; from skinny-dipping on New Years Eve to octogenarian orgies to accidentally mistaking Berry Manilow for Rod Stewart at a Mexican restaurant. To book a virtual game night for your crew hosted by Dennis, visit www.youdontknowmylife.com
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