May 13th - Dr. Roy Rivera Pride And Physical Therapy, the top Five LGTGIA+ Films, and MAGA Parody Musical

In this episode, we start off with PRIDE 365's Male-Identifying Grand Marshal for 2026, Dr. Roy Rivera. Dr. Roy talks about his career and his journey to fighting for LGBTQIA+ patient treatments. Then Brett Cullum and author R. Lee Ingalls discuss the top five highest-grossing LGBTQIA+ films.  We close out with Jack Wagner, who has written a parody musical about Trump and the MAGA Movement. 

More information about PRIDE Houston can be found here:  

https://pridehouston.org/

Dr. Roy's Elation Therapy can be found here:  

https://elationpt.com

STABLE GENIUS tickets can be found at:  

https://matchouston.org/events/2026/stable-genius

Queer Voices airs in Houston Texas on 90.1FM KPFT and is heard as a podcast here.  Queer Voices hopes to entertain as well as illuminate LGBTQ issues in Houston and beyond.  Check out our socials at:

https://www.facebook.com/QueerVoicesKPFT/ and
https://www.instagram.com/queervoices90.1kpft/

Transcript

Welcome And What’s Ahead

Brett 0:01

You are listening to Queer Voices, a radio show and podcast that has been an outlet of the LGBTQIA Plus community since the 70s. I am Brett Cullum, and in this episode, I get to talk with Dr. Roy Rivera. He has been named Pride 365's male-identifying grand marshal for 2026. Then I bring in my husband, author, R. Lee Ingalls to talk about the five most financially successful LGBTQIA Plus films of all time. And we close out with Jack Wagner and some of his cast of a new MAGA parody musical called Stable Genius, which will be opening soon at the match. Queer Voices starts now. Hi there,

Meet Dr. Roy Rivera Jr.

Brett 0:52

this is Brett Cullum, and today I am with the male identifying Grand Marshal for 2026's Big Pride 365 parade festival event, what have you, before FIFA is Dr. Roy Rivera Jr. He's a physical therapist. He has two PhDs, one in public health and one in physical therapy, which how do you have time for that? And Dr. Roy is a healthcare entrepreneur who he has an LGBTQ-owned business and he integrates inclusive care, workplace equity, and transaffirming health practices. He runs elation physical therapy. So, and he's written a lot about the community and treating them as a clinician and kind of special needs. So thank you so much, Dr. Roy, for coming on Queer Voices.

SPEAKER_02 1:38

No, I'm super excited to be here. Thanks for um inviting me on and I'm ready to get started. Yeah.

Brett 1:44

No, I mean, this is a huge honor. And I mean, I knew you back when you were just kind of like a PT. I mean, we just kind of knew you as then. And then you've done all of this stuff. It's so amazing. It's so impressive. So tell me a little bit about your practice and who you are as a clinician, because I think that really plays into why you've been selected as a Graham Arsenal.

SPEAKER_02 2:03

Yes, 100%. So I own Elation PT and our flagship is in the heights. So that's that's our main location. And I mean, honestly, I started off. I mean, well, I started off with you back in the day. It's been, I I don't even know how long it's been. I can't even I can't even remember. Was it 2006? 20 years?

Brett 2:19

I mean, it's like something crazy. It was like 2006. Yeah, something like that. Yeah, it's it's it baffles me. All I remember is that every woman in our office was madly in love with you. So there you go.

SPEAKER_02 2:32

They were like I still see them and talk to them today, which is kind of funny. I see them online. I feel like we still are in touch. But no, I was at PT. I was just kind of doing my thing. I was, I was, I was in and out of of a bunch of different hospital systems here locally, and I was just looking for the next gig. And it ultimately got to a point where I joined a large hospital here and I signed on with them. And I climbed the ranks, I climbed the ranks, I climbed the ranks, and it got to a point where there were no more ranks to climb. And it was ultimately a turning point when I sat down with one of my supervisors and he told me, look, this is the end game for you. You there's nowhere else for you to climb here in the department. And the catalyst for me actually opening my own practice was he told me, he says, and and I don't think that you can go into admin. I don't, I don't see you in that in that kind of a role. And that lit something under me. And I was like, Well, if I can't climb anymore, then I'm gone. So I cashed in my retirement. I opened up a small practice in the heights, and here

Starting An LGBTQ-Owned PT Business

SPEAKER_02 3:30

we are. So this was 12 years ago, and I've opened multiple practices um around town, and it got to a point where I just I was me and and and I started to see patients who, you know, were part of the LGBTQ community, and they started to come to me, and I just became, you know, that guy. Oh, I'm gonna go see my gay physical therapist. It was hard to come out of the closet though, as as as a business owner, because you know, you you always think, am I gonna lose patients? And are are people gonna be upset with me? Are they gonna look at me funny? Are they gonna look at me weird? And they did. I did lose a lot of clients, and and that's okay. You know, ultimately now I know that they weren't my people, and that's and that's not a bad thing. But yeah, it's been a journey. I've I've I've been, you know, all around town in the medical community, and I ultimately landed in my own space.

Brett 4:18

Well, thankfully, because I think that there was definitely a space for you. I think that it you rose to address this and to address this community. I know that just personally, I did not have a gay doctor until I came to Houston. And it just changed my whole approach to health. They knew more and they tested me for things that I had never been tested for, and they did things and they knew my concerns. So it's so vital sometimes to have that provider that can relate to you.

SPEAKER_02 4:44

Yeah, no, 100%.

Building Trans-Affirming Care Protocols

SPEAKER_02 4:46

And and I'm still learning myself. And I mean, the whole catalyst for us getting into um affirming care was I had a patient once who was in transition. They were F to M. And he told me, Hey, Dr. Royd, I'm having my bottom affirming surgery done. I'm leaving, I'm gonna go have it done. I want to know what I can do after my surgery. After my bottom affirming surgery, what can I lift weights? Can I do housework? Can I do yard work? Like, what can I do? And I was looking at him and I was like, I have no freaking idea what you can do, right? Because we didn't learn it in school, and it's not it's not in the medical literature either. So there's no research on it. So it's it's very limited in that area. And I was like, well, if it doesn't exist, then we're gonna make it. I started to slowly put things together on my own. Now we have our own internal protocols here in the practice that we do with our patients who are in transition. I'm doing a virtual care appointment with somebody later today who's not local on their transition care. So it's it's come a long way. And I'm excited to be a small piece, a very large solution, right, for this problem.

Brett 5:49

So one of the things I think is fascinating is you do physical therapy. And certainly anybody that's transitioning or wants to even look a certain way, physical therapy is something that you can really address and and definitely be a part of that process. And I think that you know people just think, yeah, it is. And you're building it. Yeah. Or or you're you're changing it to affirm who you are. That's great that you can go in and do that. Now, is there any other community involvement that you're with other than the clinician

Boards Service And Community Leadership

Brett 6:18

thing? I mean, are you you're I think you just told me that you joined a board or something or so?

SPEAKER_02 6:22

I was on the board of out for education for a very, very long time. I'm sure you know what out for education is. I was on the board of of of their organization for a long time. And I mean, I live in education. As you already mentioned, you know, I'm not like 20. You do. I love it. I love it. I'm never paying off my student loans ever. I'm gonna die like with like a hundred thousand dollars of debt, and that's okay. But no, so I was a part of out for education for a couple of years, and then I left them. I recently got appointed to the LGBTQ commission by Judge Ling Hidalgo. So I'm very excited. Yeah, I'm very excited to begin that. I'm attending my very first meeting in May this month. So I'm really, really new to that board. So I've just been doing a lot of things around the community in terms of around LGBTQ care and education. And I mean, I champion small businesses as well. So I do a lot of things apart from my general practice in the small business arena. Yeah.

Brett 7:15

Are you part of the chamber?

SPEAKER_02 7:16

I am part of the chamber. I was on the board of the chamber. I just rolled off the board, I forgot about that one. Sorry. I forgot I just rolled off the board. Yeah, I just rolled off the board in the chamber. But no, it's it's been it's been fun. It's been it's been great. I've done a lot of really awesome things with a lot of really cool people, and I'm just excited for the next, for the next chapter. So and now I'm Grand Marshall, so I never thought I never thought this would happen ever. So I'm just like, this is really, really cool. So it's nice to be acknowledged for the work over the years. So yeah.

Brett 7:47

Well, it's it's definitely something well deserved because you've done so much. I mean, obviously, I mean, I'm exhausted just talking about all of this. But I know your your personal life too. You have a very special member of your family. You have a daughter.

SPEAKER_02 8:02

I do have a daughter, yes. She is Yeah, tell me a little bit of her. 17 years old now. She's about to go to college, and it's so funny because everyone says, Enjoy when they're young. Oh, enjoy when they're small. They grow up so fast, and oh, you're gonna miss her so much. I'm like, no, girl, go to college. I'm like, ready. I'm ready for her to get out of the house. I'm ready to, you know, not have her home. I'm ready for her to grow. It's exciting to it's like a little woman in front of me, and she's hungry for the next. Like, I see her. She wants to go to college, she wants to leave the house, and she wants to start doing all these things, and I'm excited for her independence. No, it all goes back to, and I think you know the backstory because you were a part of this whole backstory. So back in the day, it was 2009, the year that it happened. I was placed in a facility to be a PT at a pediatric facility in town, and it's kind of like a nursing home, right? But pediatric patients. So that's the best way to, you know, uh say what it is. So, anyways, I was in this facility as a PT and there was this little girl, and her name at the time was Elizabeth, and they paired me up with Elizabeth. I was her physical therapist, and I worked with her day in, I worked with her day out, and she never had parents, she never had anybody there seeing her or you know, um around her. And I was there every day. I was a constant in her life because I had to see her up to three hours a day, so I spent a lot of time with her. And then it finally came to a point where I was working with her one day, and it was the chaplain who was in the door frame of the room watching us, and I didn't know the chaplain was behind us watching us do our therapy. And the chaplain said, Why don't you take her home? And when she said that, I was like, What? It was like a ton of bricks hit me. I was like, Oh my god. So I talked to my now ex-husband at the time. I talked to him about it, and he's like, Yeah, let's do it. So at nine months, I adopted this little girl that was my patient, and now she's getting ready to go to college. It's insane. It really is. But I mean, I wouldn't have done it any other way.

Brett 10:01

No, it's an amazing story, and it's so sweet.

SPEAKER_07 10:05

Yeah.

Brett 10:05

I mean, I remember her when she was singing like Britney Spears songs with you and things like that. I still do. Well, now she rolls her eyes at me, but I still do. What has she been like? I mean, what is her personality like now that she's a a grown woman? I mean, is she obviously you're saying that she rolls her eyes at Britney?

SPEAKER_02 10:21

Yeah, she's very teenage, you know, very teenage, very like I embarrass her, and like, oh dad, don't say that, or oh dad, I try to be cool. I use all the hip terms. Like, I think my latest term right now is I'm saying no cap. She loses her mind when I say that. She's like, please don't say that. It's one of the it's one of the one of the Gen Z terms. So but yeah, she loses her mind. But no, she's I mean, she's very reserved, she's very quiet, she's nothing like me, like not Britney Spears. Think like Adele. If she's like Adele, I'm like

Pride Plans And Bringing His Parents

SPEAKER_02 10:50

Britney. So, but it's okay because it works. But no, she's she's she's very cool. She wants to be an interior designer. Cool. I know nothing about that life. I don't even know an interior designer, I don't think. So, but I'm supporting her dream, and you know, whatever she wants to do, I'm there for her. And I mean that's what she wants to pursue in college, so we'll see what happens.

Brett 11:09

Well, you know, now I'm questioning your gay card if you don't know any interior designers.

SPEAKER_02 11:13

I don't know, I'm a bad gay. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not the one you come to for like advice on what to wear. Like, no, I'm not, I'm not that gay. You're you're in like athleisure guy. Yes, athleisure, yes. It's so funny though, because ever since I got this Grand Marshall thing, everyone's been asking me, so what are you gonna wear? And I'm like, I don't know yet. I said you just have to wait and see. Probably like a Lululemon track seat or something. I'm like, I gotta I gotta figure something out because yeah, I gotta figure something out. So my parents are gonna come. I'm really excited about that. Yes, I told my mom and dad, and they're excited to come and support. They've never done any sort of like anything adjacent to pride. So it's a big deal. And I told them, I'm like, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, mom and dad. I'm like, I will never like this, this won't happen again. Like, this is not gonna happen again. And I know they've never been to Pride ever. I mean, obviously. So, but yeah, so I'm excited. It's gonna be, it's gonna be a whole, it's gonna be a whole thing.

Brett 12:13

Yeah, and talk about throwing them into it because this is a big pride celebration. Houston's is huge. I know, I know, I know.

SPEAKER_02 12:21

So I'm trying to find a float right now. I'm in float mode. That's what I'm doing. I'm in float mode, but yeah, I'm on a really big shindig. So we'll see what happens.

Brett 12:30

Well, um, were they supportive of you growing up? I mean, did they like when you were coming out? How was

Coming Out Young In Texas

Brett 12:35

that?

SPEAKER_02 12:35

Yeah, coming out, that was a that was a crazy story. I came out very, very young. I was I had just turned 15 when I came out. So I was I was in high school. I was I was a yeah, I was young. I'm an old gay in terms of coming out very, very young. It's actually the opposite of what you would imagine it would be when I came out. Like my mom lost her mind. She lost her mind. She like, she like she lost it. And my dad was the one that actually embraced and supported me. So it was kind of flipped of what I thought was gonna happen. My mom, you know, I mean, we grew up in the valley, so I grew up in McCallan, Texas. It's like 99.99999% Hispanic, and we're all Catholic for the most part. So mom's like, and you go to church and you see a priest and you talk to the nuns and you talk to all the people, church. And I did that for a little bit and I really didn't like it. I mean, I rebelled a lot, and I finally told her, I was like, fine, I'll talk to somebody, but it's gotta be somebody outside of that whole, like, I don't want to be like in the church, like it's gotta be outside of that. It needs to be a psychologist, you know, psychiatrist, and it needs to be a woman. I was like, I don't want to talk to a man about how I'm feeling at all. And she took me to see this psychiatrist, I can't remember her name, but I was maybe 16, and I sat with this woman, I can see her office in my head. I sat with this woman and we talked for like an hour. Like, laughed, we talked, we laughed, we talked, we laughed. At the end of that hour, she gave me her card and she said, I want you to give this card to your mom. She said, Because your mom needs you, not you. And when she said that, I told my mom that my mom, like, she was a different person, like she never brought it up again. She started to slowly embrace and she changed. And now she's like, I don't know, she's like she's amazing. She's good, she's really good. And I have a little brother who's also gay, so I mean, when he finally came out of the closet, it was like it I mean, it was like lights out, like nobody cared. Like it was like whatever. He had the easy part, right? Yeah, the well, I I mean, you would it's funny because he was upset that nobody cared. And I was like, You should be happy that you didn't go through what I went through, and that everybody just like looked the other way, like, okay, what's for dinner? Like, you know what I mean? Like, but yeah, so it's just us two. I told my mom, I'm like, You hit the lottery, like you got the two sons, and we're both gay. I was like, You're never gonna die alone in a nursing home. I'm like, we got to go, it's

Family Updates And An Actor Brother

SPEAKER_02 14:52

good.

Brett 14:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:53

How is your brother doing? I know he like was in movies. Yeah, yeah, he's an actor. He's actually moving back out to Hollywood probably in the next month. So he moved back home. Uh, and by home I mean to Austin. So he uh so he came back to Texas like during the whole pandemic thing because it got really weird over there in LA. So he lived here, he bought a house in Austin, and now that everything's over and he's ready to get back to acting, he's like, All right, I'm going back to LA. He's like moving like next month, so I don't even know if he'll come to Pride, but I mean I'm hoping he will. But yeah, he's in the process of moving back and he's ready to get back into acting and you know, movies and all that fun stuff. But yeah, his biggest movie credit is Fantastic Four. Yes, the newer version. Yeah, he's in that movie, and he's really, really proud of that one. I'm proud of him too, but yeah, he does a ton of commercials. Like you've probably seen him in commercials, like he's done like eight McDonald's commercials, like in English and Spanish. Like he's all over the place with McDonald's, so but yeah, he does a lot of acting, so yeah, that's my bro.

Brett 15:52

This is amazing, and he's so different because I mean you talk about you, who is like eternal student and this clinician, and then we've got this other brother who's doing all this acting stuff, just the art, yeah, he's the art soul. Yeah, he Yeah, that's amazing. And then, of course, he must have passed a little bit to your daughter too, because obviously she's getting down an artistic path as well.

SPEAKER_02 16:12

She is she is she is on the artistic path.

Why Pride Still Matters Now

Brett 16:16

Well, yeah. Well, let's talk a little bit about the community too. I mean, what do you think are the biggest things facing us right now in 2026? Why do you think pride is important to us now?

SPEAKER_02 16:24

Yeah, there are so many things facing us right now. It's ridiculous. And some of it like doesn't even affect like the community like directly. But you know, all I can think about every day is is is the administration that work that we have and and all the rights that are being slowly chipped away. They affect everybody, not only the LGBTQ population, but just everybody that that we interact with, like, I mean, in every aspect of our lives. You know, in the clinic, I see my Medicaid individuals that they're afraid, you know, they're afraid. Am I gonna lose my insurance? What's going on? Can you help me, you know, navigate this? And you know, I do my best to help them, but you know, it affects a lot of people. It's not just the LGBTQ plus population, but in terms of us, you know, it's like a record on repeat. It's the same thing over and over in terms of our rights, in terms of, you know, what we can do, in terms of what bathrooms we can use. It's like it's like a record over and over again. And I don't know when like we're gonna get off this merry-go-round. You get a little bit of hope and then you get slapped down a little bit. You get a little bit of hope and you get slapped down a little bit. But I think that we have to have that hope. If there's no pride, if we're gonna go out, if we don't have a good time, then you just like like no one wants to be like without hope. That's the whole purpose of life, right? Like to look forward to something, like what's next, or what am I gonna do, or what like I'm living for what? So I think that's why pride is important because we have to have that hope of there are going to be better days. It's just a matter of time, and I think we just have to wait it out. So yeah.

Brett 17:57

Well, I'm I'm going on record as saying you are the male identifying grand marshal and stand for hope this year. Because you've certainly given that all of your life. You've given hope to your daughter, you know, you've given hope to the community, you've provided medical services, you've been on boards of you know, really important stuff. So I cannot think of anybody better to honor this year. And of course it's early this year. We got the June 6th, isn't that the date of the parade? June 6th. It's not that far away.

SPEAKER_02 18:24

Yeah, Saturday, June 6th, yes. And I'm surprised because I'm like, okay, so we got the World Cup thing going on, even though I don't know, I've heard a lot of things that they're gonna like oy caught or it's not as big as they think it's gonna be because of all the like international things going on, which I think I don't know. I don't know if that's gonna happen or not. But I'm hoping it's not as hot as it normally is, even though I mean it's gonna be June, obviously. Yes, not late June, so maybe I don't know. I don't know. We'll see. But the weather's been really weird lately. Like I think it's a lot, like it's not as hot as it's supposed to be right now, right? Is that just me or does it I feel like it's not as no, no, no.

Brett 19:02

I I totally feel that. But it's it's interesting. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out. Yeah because we've never had it this early in June. So we'll see. But I always think it's interesting that the weather seems to always cooperate with us, even though it can be hot as blazes. We've never really had to cancel because of severe weather or anything like that. So just fingers crossed, everything goes well. As far as the World Cup, who knows? Yeah, I know. It's just yeah, us. Okay, I'm giving your gay card back now. But they plan these things so far in advance, and it's it's wild. The the city really plans this like almost a year in advance. So Pride 365 work on this like all year round and have to get that. So but I can't wait to see you in your Lululemon outfit on your float. Maybe to be announced, to be announced, to be announced. Yes, we'll see who ends up sponsoring you, who's ends up designing it. But I certainly wish you all the best. I'll see you at all the festivities and things like that, and I'll be cheering for you. And hopefully I can get a seat next to your mom and dad and be like, I know him.

SPEAKER_02 20:00

Amazing, amazing.

Fundraiser Night For Out For Education

SPEAKER_02 20:01

I'd like to say one last thing though. May 30th. It's a week before Prague, right? So May 30th, I'm doing an event at play in Montreux. Oh, cool. Yeah, from uh 5 to 10 p.m. And all the money that we raise in that time, it's just to celebrate me being a male-identifying grand marshal. It's just it's like a Dr. Roy party. I'm I'm excited. I've never done anything like that for myself. But all the money we raise is going to be out for education. Uh, we're gonna give away money so they can go to school so these LGBTQ plus kids can go to college. So that's what we're doing. So I'm gonna put it all over the internet, so I'm sure you'll see it at some point. But yeah, it'll be on my I will definitely plug it as much as I can. So May 30th, play 5 to 10, Dr. Roy Party. Yep, Dr.

Brett 20:44

Roy Parky.

SPEAKER_02 20:44

Yep.

Brett 20:45

All right. Well, thank you so much. It's so awesome to see you here. I mean, who knew 20 something years ago? Supplemental health. Shout out to supplemental health. I think they're still around, actually. They are. They totally are. So yeah, they're still rocking it. But you're rocking it a little bit harder. So there you go.

SPEAKER_02 21:02

Amazing. All right. Well, thank you so much. It was great to be here, and and I'll see you soon, hopefully.

Brett 21:07

Yeah, well, yeah, you will, because it's pride.

SPEAKER_02 21:09

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_05 21:10

All right.

Top LGBTQIA+ Films By Box Office

Brett 21:19

Hi there, I'm Brett Cullum, and I am joined by my husband Arlie Ingalls. Yes, welcome. We were talking about PDA and the uh we mentioned movies kind of change that perspective. It's something that audiences actually see, some different imagery and they get to see, all of that. So you sent me a thing that was on Facebook that ranked the top five LGBTQIA plus movies as far as dollars broad in. Right. Box office.

Lee 21:48

Yes, yeah.

Brett 21:49

Yeah. So we thought we would go through 'em. I threw in a little bit of a a wrench in there because I compared some other sources and came up with an alternative one for the third. Right. So I'll be winging it on those. I don't have notes on that.

Lee 22:02

In that one.

Brett 22:04

Just that one. But anyway, so we're gonna go back in reverse order. So I guess number five for the most profitable, and of course, this is all box office. Right. We're not saying this is these are the best or the most representative. They just made a lot of money. Uh but number five was Brooke Back Mountain from 2005, which, if you remember, starred Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger, who unfortunately is no longer with us. Yes. Michelle Williams, Ann Hathaway. It won an Oscar for Aang Lee. He won Best Director, but the film did not win Best Picture. And that's very unusual for the Academy Awards to give a Best Director and not give it the film. But uh the worldwide gross was $178 million, which is pretty good for a indie film. Um and it's been called one of the most influential LGBTQ films ever made because it really became this cultural moment.

Lee 22:54

I can't don't know that I would say that for our community. I from my perspective, I have always said it felt like a gay movie, a gay romance movie made for straight people. Yeah. It had that sense about it.

Brett 23:06

Well, the two characters were definitely in the closet. And they both get married and they both have these lives, and they're just meeting every summer and take off with each other and have this romance, and it's kind of on the down low. And it's uh it was based on a short story by Annie Pruell. I mean, the the novella is short. I mean, the movie feels longer than the story that they pulled it from. But do you remember going to see it in the theaters? I do. Did you do it?

Lee 23:31

Yes. Yeah, I remember uh going to see it. I thought it was a good movie. I thought that it didn't really truly represent us, and I tried to look at it from a time frame of when it was uh actually supposed to be taking place. And I thought, okay, would that be true? And some of it would be true to that time period. I don't know that all of it would have, um, but some of it certainly. Yeah. And I did like uh all of the lead actors I thought did an excellent job in their roles.

Brett 23:58

Well, it was interesting because uh Heath Ledger fell in love with Michelle Williams on that set, which is kind of weird. He would have thought that maybe uh Jake Gyllenhaal would have had it.

Lee 24:08

Yeah, that would have been that would have been better for us.

Brett 24:11

But I thought the film was taught just amazingly well. Aang Lee, just beautiful photography, and he had just been coming off of a movie, he did the Hulk, and it didn't do very well. So Aang Lee was kind of his artistic redemption to do Brokeback Mountain. And I remember when I saw it very vividly, I went to the River Oaks Theater, which is right around the corner from us now, and I watched it, and there was a guy there, and he just looked like a random cowboy, which is not unusual for Houston, but no, yeah. Uh and after the movie, I saw him in an alley like crying. So I assumed that he was a closeted guy that saw this movie and really it spoke to him. Uh and I thought, well, that's maybe who this movie's for.

Lee 24:53

Somewhat. I would I could see that being being the case for people that are not out or for whatever reason have not been haven't had their coming out event yet. Yes, I could see where that would be the case. But and again, at the time that this was supposed to have taken place, uh, I can see where they would they would not be out about it.

Brett 25:11

Right. Well, and just that type of person, uh a rancher, uh person that is.

Lee 25:17

Although there the rumor is the cowboys that went out to take the cattle across the country that there were a lot of them that were gay. We won't know. We weren't there, but Yeah, we weren't certainly rumored to be true.

Brett 25:28

Now the next one, number four, one of your favorites, I think, on the list. It's the Birdcage from 1996.

Lee 25:34

Yeah, yeah. One of my all-time favorite movies. Yeah. I still rewatch it now. I think it's just hysterical. Yeah. Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, Hank Azaria, all of them did such an amazing job. Diane Wee, surprisingly, even though she played a softer, kind of delicate character, it was still very powerful on how she did it. For Christine uh Berenski, amazing.

Brett 25:54

Yeah. And it was notable. Callista Flockhart. Young Callista Flockhart is in there, and um Gene Hackman was also in there. Yeah. So kind of a strange thing for him.

Lee 26:02

I think they all did an amazing job. I I really enjoyed it. I still enjoy it today.

Brett 26:07

It is a remake of a French movie, La Caja Fall, which was a huge independent film success, and they adapted it for U.S. audiences. And I think by adding Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, all these people, Gene Hackman, I think that that was just like a big box office move to get it up there. And it grossed 185 million worldwide. So, and comedy, obviously. Yeah. So a little bit easier to kind of take.

Lee 26:34

Well, the French one was comedy as well, except when I saw the French one in the theater. I don't know if it's when it first came out or when it was going through the uh US theaters, um, but it was uh subtitled. So and you know how much I like watching subtitled shows.

Brett 26:48

Well, you know, Kaja Fall, the original French film, it had a sequel, which I always wonder why they didn't do The Birdcage 2. Uh, and they developed a musical, obviously, The Kaja Fall, big Jerry Herman musical. It's been many iterations story, and I think it just it is kind of funny to watch it and and a huge drag movie. I mean, definitely Nathan Lane plays a big Starina, the big drag queen.

Lee 27:11

And Hank Azaria, and I knew of him, so I wasn't surprised to see him there, but I was surprised at how well he did with that character.

Brett 27:19

He was uh Agador the servant. That was really funny though. Okay, here's where we had a tie for the third

Vampires Elton And Hollywood Sanitizing

Brett 27:26

spot. The original reel that you sent me included Interview with a vampire, which came out in 1994. It made 224 million dollars, and of course it did, because it starred Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. I mean, what a it's gonna be huge, right? Right. So it was interesting, and I followed this one a lot. I don't know. Were you a big fan of the book at all? Or no?

Lee 27:48

Um no. Well, I mean, the book, yes. I was more fond of the book. I love Anne Rice and her works. However, I I didn't see the read the book before I saw this movie. I saw the movie first. So that was kind of what I was getting set up for, and they were far different, I thought.

Brett 28:03

It's a lot different. And I was very close. My fraternity house, believe it or not, when I went to school, was christened by Anne Rice, which is a weird, bizarre little tidbit of my personal history. And I actually would call Anne Rice's home because she had an answer machine that would give you updates on the production of Interview with a vampire when they were doing it. And one of the things is they almost cast Cher to be the Tom Cruise part because Anne Rice really thought that Hollywood's homophobia would demand that this character, Lestat, have a gender switch. And David Geffen, who was producing the film and he also managed Cher, went to her and said, Hey, would you consider doing this film? And Cher said, No, no, no, this would be wrong and it wouldn't work for the book. So they cast Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. And I'm gonna tell you, I know that they showed this as an LGBTQIA plus film, but there's not really any romance or sex. It is vampirism.

Lee 29:00

Right, right, right. And I think that the before it came out, the promos for it led you to believe that there was gonna be some homoerotic relationship between the the two main characters, Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. So I think that that made it attractive to our community. However, when I went to see it, I thought, well, do they cut it all or what happened? Because it really wasn't there.

Brett 29:22

Well, they had a young Kirsten Dunst was in there, and Tonio Benderas was in there, and Christian Slater took over a role that River Phoenix was supposed to play, but River Phoenix passed away, and Christian Slater stepped in and donated his entire salary from the movie to a nonprofit that River Phoenix was very much attached to. That's nice. Yeah. But I think, and my theory on this movie is that they were going for Hollywood bad boy image. It was Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise, and it was them being brats of Hollywood. And it was more a statement on celebrity transcending mortals, being a little bit bigger than life. And I think it was that. I don't think it was what Anne Rice maybe intended with her romance kind of angle. I think it was more about existing above people and casting these people like Antonio Benderas that are just movie stars. Here is our studio equivalent, big stars of the day, in a vampire movie. And that was what specific. So did you like it? I loved the movie because, again, and with a lot of these, very well filmed. Neil Jordan is an amazing director. And those shots of like the carriages and the stuff in Paris and stuff, I thought were just amazing. I thought Tom Cruise was better than I thought. And of course, Brad Pitt is eye candy. I mean, let's face it. But was it true to the spirit of the book? I think the series that we're watching now in AMC Plus Interview with a vampire is closer.

Lee 30:47

Yeah, yeah. So I I like the series that we watched a lot. And I thought the characters that they cast in there, the actions they cast in them, were very believable and did a good job delivering them. I am not a big fan of Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt. So putting them in those roles had no attraction to me whatsoever. Had they done justice to the role, I'm I'm wondering if I would have liked it, but I just can't couldn't see them in those parts. And even as they were playing them, it just to me was not believable. So no, I did not like uh the movie.

Brett 31:16

Well, I don't think in 1994 they were ready for it. This was as far as they could go in a weird way. I looked up a list and they had Rocket Man, which is the Elton John uh biopic uh starring Taryn Egerton, who famously won the Golden Globe, but did not get nominated for the Oscar for playing Elton John. Uh and that grossed 195 million. Uh and it was musical fantasy telling of Elton John's story. It was interesting. But what did you think? I know we went and saw it together.

Lee 31:47

Yeah, no, I liked the movie. I like movies that tell the story of real people. So yeah, no, I liked it. I thought they did a good job.

Brett 31:54

Well, I'm gonna say something about this one. Elton John was intimately involved with this production, and I think that tripped it up a little bit because I think he did not want to paint himself in certain ways. And I I think that he really took editorial control of the movie, if that makes sense. Yeah. I think that he painted himself as a little bit maybe better, kinder, but kinder, less of a diva than he really is. But Rocket Man, a lot of people love it. I know that um one of my old theater teachers just she raved on and on about it about how you have to go see it, and now it's like, okay, I'll go. And I have to say, it's a fun movie. And if you like the music of Eldon John, which I mean, who does it? I mean, I I grew up with it. Yep, me too. Yeah, so of

Alan Turing And What Biopics Miss

Brett 32:34

course. Okay, so number two was the imitation game from 2014.

Lee 32:40

Yeah, I didn't know about this movie that much. I knew about it and wanted to see it, and it completely fell off the radar screen until it popped up on this list.

Brett 32:48

Yeah, but this is Alan Turing, a biopic of him. And of course, his queerness is central to the story. He famously he is the gentleman who cracked the Enigma Code in World War II and kind of had the allies basically gave them the victory. I mean, without him, but it never happened. And he's considered the father of computers, and it was $233 million worldwide. But when I looked at it, that is more international than it was in the US. I think in the US it was only like 90-something million, and it was like 140 in the worldwide markets.

Lee 33:20

Yeah, I I think it it may be because he's more he's better known worldwide than he is in the US markets. You know, he was given that award posthumously about the time the movie came out. So that may be why.

Brett 33:33

The Queen of England uh basically forgave him of any crimes, the gross indecency that he was charged with. Yeah. Uh I think like elevated him in a title. He was in there. Um Kira Knightley's in there, and I felt like half of the Dalton Abbey cast was in there. Ellen Leach and Matthew Good from that. And then of course we got Charles Dance, who was a big character in Game of Thrones. So it was every English actor that you had come across from other stuff is in there. Yeah. Um and I did like Kiera Knightley, but I felt like they really hammered the relationship between Kiera Knightley and Benedict Cumberbatch a little bit heavy, and they really didn't go into the gay identity of Alan Turing. I mean, they really kind of made that a side.

Lee 34:16

Yeah, just grazes the surface on that. So my only issue with this was I think the buildup to his finding the solution was too long. That was too much of the movie. I think that was certainly a significant event in his life, but I don't think it was all of his life, and they kind of made it look that way. And then after uh the war ended, there was an effort to try and find something to make him guilty of espionage or or being a spire. And all they found was that he was gay. That's what they found. And of course, at the time it was illegal. Uh, they charged him, uh, made him go through a chemical castration, which they touched on that just a bit. They did, you know, they touched on the gay part, but that was that was just it. That was all that they really said about it. And not that that should be at the forefront of the story. That's really not the forefront of of most of our lives, but it is part of it. And to just ignore that um just seemed not writing his story correctly.

Brett 35:12

Some people say that it it plays a little bit loose with history, so there's there's that. Your instinct is probably right there.

Lee 35:19

Which is fine. I'm okay with doing some some level of you know, enhancing it for the delivery method, whatever it is, a movie in this case. Enhance it to make it more entertaining. Okay, but don't change the facts and don't diminish those facts that should be more forward.

Brett 35:33

But I think imitation game, a lot like what you've observed from the other movies, like interview with a vampire, we're gonna count that, Brokeback Mountain. It's almost like these people are the others. And I always felt like Benedict Cumberbatch was portrayed as a other. He made Alan Turing a social misfit and everything, which he was. He probably was, yeah. He totally was, and just that smart, you you almost have to be, but it's just interesting because it it's not as much about the queerness as it is about the othering. And I felt like that was a big thing. And I think that that's what happens with a lot of these is they do that.

Lee 36:05

Yeah, good point.

Brett 36:06

Yeah, rather than facing the queerness, they face the otherness that they're feeling. Yeah.

Freddie Mercury And The Story Left Out

Brett 36:11

And of course, speaking of otherness, yes, the number one LGBTQ plus themed movie was 28 Bohemian Rhapsody, 910 million dollars worldwide, which is huge. It's crazy. Yeah, none of these even come close to that. I mean, that's like three or four of these put together. Uh, and of course, it's a Freddie Mercury biographical picture centered on his life and his career with Queen. So that is the biggest one. And Rami Malik won the Oscar for playing Freddie and for having to wear fake teeth. But again, the band members were very involved in this production. And I feel like that they sanitized some of it. Does that make sense?

Lee 36:53

Yeah. Well, and they might have. Uh and I wouldn't fault them for doing that. They they still there was some drama there where the band didn't really agree with Freddie. And they talked about that, so it that was there in the show.

Brett 37:05

I think one of the things that they famously skipped is there was a point where Queen and Freddie split ways for a little while. Yeah. And it was about the time that Freddie was really getting his identity and feeling like I need to be away, I need to have my own thing. It may have been around the time that he uh actually found out that he was positive. The band didn't know for a while, and that I don't think the band was accepting about his status as they portrayed in the film. In the film, they made it a very easy transition, but there were some fissures, there were some fact fractures there that made them go separate ways over that issue for a little while. And then he came back.

Lee 37:40

Yeah, that could be, and it certainly was part of that period of time what would have happened. Well, and they ended at Live Aid, yes.

Brett 37:48

Which is not where the story ends. I mean, the story obviously goes into the eighties and nineties, and it just I felt like you were missing a good part of the drama. Yeah. Because they really didn't delve into that. It felt like a a queen story to me, rather than maybe a completely Freddie Mercury, even though he was the center of it. True. You know?

Lee 38:08

Yeah, true. I mean, you ask yourself the question, where would Freddie have ended the uh show? And it would that be it? Would that be what he wants people to remember, or was that Queen that said that's what we want you to remember? Um so we're gonna end it here.

Brett 38:22

I think my biggest memory of Freddie Mercury, and when I got a sense that something was maybe going on there was when they released the show must go on and he did it. And you saw the video, and he looked kind of frail, and I just thought, oh, what's he trying to tell us? No. And it it was wild. And they recorded a song called Who Wants to Live Forever. It got very he never publicly admitted it, but he gave us clues. And I thought that was interesting. And I still remember the day that I heard that he passed. I heard uh Axl Rose from Guns N' Roses, and he was being interviewed, and they found out that he had passed, and Axel Rose stopped the interview and said, Hey, let's play a Queen song and tribute to him. And they played Who Wants to Live Forever, which was famously written about his his HIV status. So Yeah. Very emotional. And I would have loved to have seen that kind of thing in this movie. Yeah, yeah, they missed a big part of that. Yeah, it was so emotional and his fight with that and his his determination to just go on, no matter what. I mean, you know, that that was it.

Lee 39:23

You you would have to say that about him for sure. He was very determined, very uh outside the box, kind of a thinker, and demanding that people follow him out there and deliver the music the way that he wanted it done. So and he was very successful.

Brett 39:37

Very well, I mean, I think that that's when you look at Rocket Man, I think Elton John had too much of a hand in that, but I don't think Freddie obviously couldn't have a hand at Bohemian Rhapsody, and I don't think they it's kind of weird. There's a yin and yang of that.

Lee 39:49

So were you surprised by this list? I wasn't totally surprised by it. No. No, I th I was yeah, it made sense.

Brett 39:57

I was surprised there was no Philadelphia. I would have expected that on there. Yeah. Yeah. Um trying to think what else I I'm surprised was not in there. Uh Tuang Fu's not on there. Um, but of course I don't think that that was as big a hit.

Lee 40:08

Oh, no, I would have expected Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, to be on there.

Brett 40:13

I think Priscilla probably has the indie title as being the most successful, but I think it just didn't get the distribution of having a major distributor behind it, like these movies did. We're talking sleek Hollywood films. I mean, when you look at Interview of the Vampire, you don't get more sleek Hollywood than that. And the imitation game, I mean we watched it this weekend, very moving, very powerful, but I was very aware that it felt like a large, glossy Hollywood movie. These aren't other than Brokeback Mountain, I think is the one that feels the most independent. But even that, major director, major stars, backing of focus features. It's there's a studio behind them. They have marketing. Yeah. They have all of these things.

Lee 40:54

So all of them that were done. I think the one that's most relatable to me is the birdcage. I mean, we know those people that were portrayed in that show. Uh, we have been to parties and clubs just like that. So for me, it was m most relatable.

Brett 41:08

You know, I'm trying to look at this list and see which one is my favorite. I think Brookback Mountain might actually be my favorite. Yes. But it's not, I agree with you. I I don't think it was made necessarily for a gay audience. No. But I think what I appreciate about it is I appreciate the performances, I appreciate the craftsmanship of the film. It did become cultural moment. It pierced that veil and made people look at the community through a gentler lens. Does that make sense?

Lee 41:36

Yeah, no, it does. And and you and I look at uh entertainment differently. You look at it from the the nuts and bolts and the craft of of making a movie where I look at it just for entertainment.

Brett 41:47

Well, I think one thing that strikes me is that a lot of these are are biographical pictures, and I think we're gonna see more of that as time goes on. Our stories are gonna be told that way. Yeah. But it's one of those things we're gonna see the remarkable ones. I what about the average one, you know, which I think is more your mission?

Lee 42:01

Yeah, yeah, exactly. That that is my mission. There are remarkable people that live average everyday lives, and those stories should be told as well.

Brett 42:08

Yeah. So I don't want to just see Freddie Mercury and Elton John up there. Or Tom Cruise is a vampire. I know a book that might just be perfect. Yeah, really? What is that?

Stable Genius Musical Sets The Scene

Brett 42:34

Hi there, this is Brett Cullum, and today I am here with Jack Wagner and two members of the cast of Stable Genius. It's uh Byron Franco and Minsuk Kim. They are starring in a political musical comedy. It is running at the match from May 21st through the 31st. It is brought to us by a production company called the Mystic Cat Society, and it is a Trump parody, I am guessing, giving the name and the poster. So tell me what the hell is this thing? Well, let me start out.

SPEAKER_04 43:07

I guess you would say you kind of introduced it correctly. It's a political comedy parody in the broadest sense for making fun of all things Trump and MAGA.

Brett 43:17

You have nothing to work with. You have nothing to work with, do you? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 43:21

And some of the characters uh you you may recognize. We're we're um I'm so glad that uh a few of the cast members here could join because uh the person playing Donald Trump is none other than Byron Frankel. Yeah, so as far as Byron is playing Donald Trump, and Minsk will be playing a role that's gonna be very delicious, Christy Nome. But other characters we have include Marco Rubio, RFK Jr., Pam Bondy, Howard Lutnick. Uh, we even got Tucker Carlson in there with a little back and forth. With Steve Bannon and uh Who Did I Miss? J.D. Vance. That's pretty much the cast of characters. The story is set a year from now, roughly, at Trump's first birthday party, which will be in June of 2027. And that's where we pick up the story in the first act they're getting together for is little birthday get together. And it turns into navigating and projecting what the future of MAGA is going to be and whether Trump's going to leave. If he doesn't, who's going to stay, who's going to get the nomination, and it uh we can give you more details as we go on, but that's that's the setup.

Brett 44:36

Well, what made you want to produce this and possibly be on some strange list somewhere?

SPEAKER_04 44:40

This will be the fourth musical we did. We did one that was just a straight-up show about a fishing legend. But the other three, the first one uh right after COVID was called Covidious, it starred Donald Trump. It had Tucker in it, had some of these same characters. It was a very political show, basically, kind of the pro-vaccine, anti, and all the politics with COVID. The next political one was a show called Gator Conspiracy, in which Marjorie Taylor Green connived her way into becoming the VP with with Trump for the 2024 election, and they won. They have a falling out, and she tries to kill him with an alligator, and it's called Gator Conspiracy. Kind of like water gauge, but with a gator. Yeah. We were kind of in this mode, you know, like a lot of folks probably who are a bit frustrated these days. I'd rather we try not to preach. I mean, to me, the best weapon maybe is humor and satire, and it keeps you from, you know, being too angry all the time. You can have fun, have some laughs, and uh so that's what we try and do in this show.

Brett 45:44

Well, Byron, you are playing the man of the hour, right? Yes, sir. Can you give me a little of them? I mean, I have you practiced this yet?

SPEAKER_05 45:52

Or well, I can tell you it's gonna be uh the best impression of Trump you've ever seen, the best uh musical performance perhaps since Gene Kelly.

Brett 46:02

Thank you. You know that Trump actually did a musical number with Megan Malale of all things for an Emmy Award thing, and they did the theme song to Green Acres. So you can actually watch him sing. It's it's amazing. No way.

SPEAKER_05 46:16

It's actually something um I've been studying. I think that's I think it's the only piece of footage of him singing, maybe. That's right.

Brett 46:22

And rightfully so, given the performance. The key to everything. And Mensuk, you're playing Christy Gnome, right?

SPEAKER_07 46:31

Yes.

Brett 46:31

Which, I mean, Christy's already kind of fallen out of favor, hasn't she?

SPEAKER_08 46:36

Well, she's out at this moment. So we were Jack was a bit worried when she got fired.

Brett 46:42

Yeah. I mean, she could come down and play this now.

SPEAKER_04 46:46

Yeah, we we were pretty worried, and I got talking. One of the other cast members, Justin McMurtry, came up with the idea of kind of alternate reality and just throw in the beginning when we're kind of using the characters, bring her up and mention that she's been reinstated by Trump. You know, so in the in the play, she appears, she's been reinstated, and we just think the audience will go along with that. Oh, for sure. Anything can happen.

Brett 47:11

I mean, come on. Marjorie Taylor Green could still be vice president. We don't know. I mean, it just seems like in this world that we're living in, I just don't know what's going to happen next anyway. It's almost hard to parody this because it almost is its own. It truly is every day. I mean, gosh, it's

How Mystic Cat Society Got Started

Brett 47:28

wild. I mean, so tell me about how did the Mystic Cat Society form? I know that you said it on your site, it says that you're a new theater company. Tell me about what it is, how you operate. Sure.

SPEAKER_04 47:38

Well, we're basically my background is not a theater background. I came into this, I was a writer all my life, started out in TV, and then ended up doing scripts for what you call uh industrial videos kind of things, safety films and that. So I always wrote, but I had a side hustle for like the last 30 years, songwriting, playing little gigs, you know, around town. You know, Taylor Swift never picked up any of the songs. That was it, that was the idea, you know, write the hit song, get someone else to. COVID came along, locked down like everybody else, and it just from just sitting around, I said, Hey, you know, this is such a great story. We're all living this. We have we're waiting in line, everybody's doing this, someone's coughing. There are all these little things happening that just it's like this could really be a good story, and I like to write music, so let's try this. And that's where that's that happened in uh 20 2022. I came in with zero contacts. I was lucky to to meet some people that helped me get a director, a choreographer, cast, and I did everything wrong, but we survived, did the show, and then we needed a name. It's like, okay, if we're gonna keep doing this, and the name just came. We had to have a name. So it developed organically, and then we kept doing musicals. Now we're on the fourth ones.

Brett 48:54

I am so always bummed when I hear about people with these wonderful COVID projects because I think that all I did was binge watch TV and drink a lot of wine. I did not start a theater company.

SPEAKER_07 49:04

Well, I still do that.

Brett 49:07

Uh yeah, maybe. I guess I can't use this as an excuse. Well, you took up golf, Byron? Yeah, kind of some foreshadowing, maybe. Yeah, that's a lot of foreshadowing.

SPEAKER_08 49:15

Oh, wow.

Brett 49:16

It'll definitely help. No, no, no. That's uh I is a set at Mar-a-Lago, I'm guessing.

SPEAKER_04 49:21

We had the main sets are yeah, Mar-a-Lago, we have DC, and then a couple like restaurant things where the various characters are meeting and plotting against each other. A good part of the show, the backstabbing, and really the first half of the show is the competition, the one-up chip, uh we have uh what sex, drugs, a lot of alcohol with Pete Heggseth. We we have a lot of fun with the Pete Heggseth character and his drinking problem, which we take to great extremes. The sexual issues, you might say, or the rumors with uh Chrissy Noam, we just expand on that greatly. And we just have a lot of fun with the sex, drugs, and alcohol. And then you got the backstabbing, blackmail, all that going on.

Satire Risks And Audience Reactions

Brett 50:08

So whether to laugh or cry at this point, because it it almost sounds too close to home. I mean, as far as like what's really happening. What do you think that uh how do you think audiences are gonna react? I mean, obviously, I think you're gonna get friendly fire. I can't imagine my Republican parents coming to this.

SPEAKER_04 50:25

Yeah, Byron, what do you think? How are they gonna react to this?

SPEAKER_05 50:28

I think if you strip away the political connotations, which may be impossible, it's just gonna be a good, fun show. I think Jack is such a talented musician and a genuinely funny writer. And that's the that's the kind of place I'm gonna approach it from at the end of the day, is just just make a show people enjoy. Yeah, the the political connotations are are gonna be a part of it. Uh some people will be offended on both sides. But I think it's offensive stuff that can really push the button and and kind of move discussion forward.

Brett 51:00

Well, Minskuk, how did you get attached to this project? Is this your first time with this company?

SPEAKER_08 51:04

Yeah, it is. And I am so glad I found it because I had so much fun getting ready for the actual audition. I had so much fun, and I was just like, this is gonna be such a fun play. It's gonna be fun to do, it's gonna be fun for people to watch, it's gonna be hilarious. It's just total entertainment, I feel like, on top of you know, all the discussions that it might cause for people. I think it's good. It's a good thing.

Brett 51:29

And are you researching like Byron did? Are you like watching Christy all the time?

SPEAKER_08 51:38

I just watched her and I watched a little bit of the news. This was what right before the audition. So I haven't really seen that much after the audition, but right before the audition, you know, I was like, Okay, she's like this, and oh, I've seen her at the airport, you know, she's always at the video at the airport. I'm like, okay, that's her. Okay, I'll you know try to figure out what she's like, and yeah, it was a it was a blast doing it. The musical part of it is so much fun too.

SPEAKER_04 52:06

Ninsa c she came out of the woodwork. We had a couple of people. This really is a one of the key roles. Uh Christy is in the middle of this sex scandal and some other scandals involving but not really ice. We we don't touch ice. I'm glad we didn't go there because that's too serious. But we do touch the immigration and deportation in a fun way. And uh she came in, she had sent me her stuff, and and I, you know, I was thinking maybe a different role, but she came in and did a little bit on Christie and just got so electric in the audition, we end up saying, Man, she's our Christie.

Brett 52:44

This is just so much fun because it's like just people that are all over the place right now. So it must be really fun to kind of step in, Minsook and Byron, and just kind of play with just the news. I mean, that's your prep right now. It's just watching news conferences and things at the airport. And I mean, that's just wild. So I am so excited about this because it is May 21st through the 31st at the match. Are you what do you know which matchbox you're in? We are in the small one, matchbox one. Well, I'm excited. I already bought my tickets. I saw it and I thought, yes, I want to see this stable genius, the musical for sure. It just sounds like so much fun. Uh, and your company sounds like a lot of fun, and your actors here look like they're so much fun. So I just think it's probably what we need after all. Yeah. By May 21st, I'm like, we got time. Yeah. Oh wow.

SPEAKER_04 53:37

Hopefully, Donald doesn't go, you know. The issue with this, and we worry about it because everything he's so crazy. And and I don't remember know if you remember the first term. He would literally fire in a couple weeks, he would like totally replace his cabinet. And this show said in the future, it was a fair amount of risk. Is he are these characters going to be here? Well, we know one is gone, but we can bring back one, but we really were worried about erratic Trump. But just a little while longer.

Brett 54:06

Just a little bit they could just hold on. But no one has been loyal to this man. That's what I think is so interesting. I mean, no one ever is in the Trump organization for a long time. And I can tell you that even uh when you watched The Apprentice from year to year, you know, the people that were around him changed all the time. You know, originally there was a woman named Carolyn and she disappeared and she even wrote a book and all this other stuff, and she quit, got fired, or whatever. And he does not inspire a lot of loyalty, this one. So I I don't know what that's about, respectfully. Not not a lot of tenure.

SPEAKER_04 54:36

He has his lo the hardcore mega, and I have you mentioned your your parents and I have many relatives in in both my my family. And the only way we make it work anymore is we just when we get together Thanksgiving, we just we don't talk politics, but it's it's it sometimes baffles me how, you know, I I guess you have to give him credit to get such loyalty to his 30% of the country.

Brett 55:01

It's pretty mace. Well, at the end of the day, it is a democracy, and whatever side you landed on, okay. Good luck to you. But uh yeah, no, it's definitely it's so divided. Like holidays are just terrible right now. My family, it's like uh just a fight every time. It's wild. So I may bring them to this. I mean, hey.

SPEAKER_04 55:21

There might be one particular scene where you would say it's a little bit preachy, and that involves RFK with his firing of all the scientists and closing all the M uh RNA research and that, it comes back in in this play in a very, very big way, and that's basically right before we end the play on that right note. But um I forgot what I was gonna say now. Anyway. But do you think a Republican could come to this show and enjoy it? Yeah, I must. Yeah, I I think I think I really do. And the Gator conspiracy, it was in a very similar vein, we're very political, yet we did it in a way where we weren't really bashing anyone. Uh so I think it'll work for for your folks.

Brett 56:06

Parody, it's always a fine line. Uh, and it's always hard. You know, you don't know what when too far is too far, or if it's perfect. And if everybody in the room laughs, you're probably on the right track. So that's what I wish for you guys.

SPEAKER_05 56:20

I think Jack's humor comes from such a good place. It's not a mean-spirited place. Uh it holds up for for everybody.

Brett 56:27

Yeah. And hopefully in a couple of years, we'll have just this will be just a revival or something. And we can do it and laugh about all of it. So and Byron can start working on the next president's impersonation. And then still can pick a cabinet member of the, you know, whoever's new.

SPEAKER_05 56:48

This is all just uh Oh sorry.

Brett 56:52

I was saying, or this is all just a version of cabaret. Oh man. No, Byron, I've been in that show. That show has a revival now for a reason. People are doing it again for a reason, and it's a hit. But uh thank you all for talking to me

Tickets Dates And Final Thoughts

Brett 57:06

about this. I am thrilled to see it being done. I'm thrilled to get uh affiliated with the or introduce to the Mystic Cat Society and Stable Genius at the match, matchbox won, May 21st through the 31st. Tickets available at the match site, pretty much.

SPEAKER_04 57:21

Or our website, Mystic Cat Society.

Brett 57:24

Yes, I forgot. That's Mystic Cat Society.com.org.

SPEAKER_04 57:28

Yeah, yep, yes, that yep.com.

SPEAKER_05 57:30

Yep. Okay. All right. Well, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Appreciate it.

KPFT Outro And Disclaimers

SPEAKER_01 57:43

This has been Queer Voices, heard on KPFT Houston and as a podcast available from several podcasting sources.

Ghost of Glenn 57:53

Some of the material in this program has been edited to improve clarity and runtime. This program does not endorse any political views or animal species. Views, opinions, and endorsements are those of the participants and the organizations they represent. In case of death, please discontinue use and discard remaining products.

SPEAKER_01 58:06

For Queer Voices, I'm Glenn Holt. This is KPFT 90.1 FM Houston, 89.5 FM Galveston, 91.9 FM Huntsville, and worldwide on the internet at KPFT.org.