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When so many incredibly powerful gays, especially in Washington, DC, are hiding deeply inside a tomb-like closet? Well, Out Magazine has presumed to do it, naming the supposed “Power 50: The Most Powerful Gay Men and Women in America.” You may be surprised by some on the list, but some of the most interesting,and powerful gay men and women are not on the list because they’re not out. It’s just remarkably ironic that the very people who should be on a list about power are not…because they’re so powerful.

That quandary makes a list like this comparable to a really good souffle–that falls. It had really good potential and has a lot of the right ingredients, but things are just not quite right, or complete, or handled properly, and boom–it becomes a souffle, sort of, but not really.

And gee, I’m not on the list. I may need to take a whole Tylenol PM tonight to get over that.

I betcha there were a bunch of Nervous Nellies (pardon the pun) waiting to see if their names were on that list. And I can tell you, several men and women in the halls of power (like Congress) have breathed a sigh of relief.

In the same issue, Out also has a Michael Musto article assessing the “Glass Closet,” or the celebrities everyone on the coasts knows are gay, but somehow remain semi-closeted (or completely) for everyone else.

It reminds me of one of the better articles from New York Magazine which, in 2001, nicely illustrated the hypocrisy of supposedly ‘out’ celebrities, while challenging the need for a closet at all. From six years ago, and it still reads as completely relevant today.

There’s one graph in that piece which notes something which I’ve known for quite some time courtesy of being on talk radio for almost 15 years now–the regular folks out there in fly-over land are actually pretty darn aware and tolerant of us pesky marginal types make Los Angeles and New York at least moderately interesting. It was true six years ago, and it’s even more so today. here’s that snippet:

Inside Out
The closet has finally outlived its usefulness. So why do gay celebrities insist on staying in? And why do journalists guard the door?

Back in the fifties — when exposing people as homosexual would subject them not only to ostracism but also to violence and even jail — the gay cover-up made sense. But these are vastly different times.

The closet I remember was a dark, lonely place, but the one gay celebrities now occupy is of the giant, walk-in variety, with ample room for friends and lovers, acquaintances, even journalists — as long as we’re discreet. These people enjoy all the benefits of an openly gay life — they go to discos and clubs, take their lovers to public events, contribute to gay charities. They demand complete discretion from the media while displaying none themselves — secure in the knowledge that the media will look the other way. And we do. Journalists play along in the sincere belief that they are protecting gay people, but in doing so they serve the interests of a few individuals at the expense of the larger community….

Maybe it’s time to reexamine the rules. the continuing prohibition on discussing sexual orientation is based on a presumption that while people on the coasts are sophisticated enough to accept gay celebrities, the masses in between are too backward and too bigoted to be let in on the truth. It’s a patronizing notion. If nothing else, the cultural changes of the past few years have proved that Americans are more tolerant than they’re given credit for; Will & Grace, after all, is a hit not only in New York but also in Kansas.

Read both articles, the current Musto piece and this old enough to be pre-9/11 piece. Both are thoughtful looks at a the changing gay scene and America’s relationship with it. It’s also interesting reading if you want to spice up your Easter weekend 😉