If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Eden Capwell and Cruz Castillo

Every Tuesday I post five trivia questions relating to television, film or theater, and the first person who sends me the correct answers wins the highly coveted Auntie Mame Award.

Please send your answers for this week's questions to deepdishdrama@aol.com or via a private Facebook message at www.facebook.com/marcharshbarger (DO NOT post your answers on here where everyone can see them or they will be deleted).

This month I'm featuring past and present daytime soap operas. Today's trivia is all about Santa Barbara, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1993:

1) What was the first name of the Lockridge family matriarch?

2) What popular soap actress played Jodie DeWitt Walker from 1992 to 1993?

3) Who killed Eden's brother, Channing Capwell?

4) What was the first name of Eden's sister? And what Golden Globe-nominated actress originally played her?

5) What giant neon letter from a hotel sign fell on and killed Mary Duvall McCormick in 1986?

Last week Johnny Nicoloro answered the following questions correctly about the soap, General Hospital:

1) What fictional city is the show set in? Port Charles

2) What Australian musician played Dr. Noah Drake? And what was the name of his 1981 hit single? Rick Springfield, "Jessie's Girl"

3) What was the first name of Luke and Bobbie's aunt who owned Kelly's Diner for many years? Ruby

4) Who killed Laura's stepfather, Rick Webber, in 2002 by hitting him over the head with a candlestick? Scott Baldwin

5) Who played Jackie Templeton in 1982-83 before she became a movie star? Demi Moore

Dancing with Carol Brady and Margaret Cho

I haven't blogged about ABC's Dancing With the Stars since two years ago when Cloris Leachman was competing. The lady was hilarious on the show - and the only reason I tuned in. Well, now they've come up with an interesting mix of stars for its upcoming new season, including three lovely ladies whom I could easily root for - 76-year-old Florence "Carol Brady" Henderson, comedian Margaret Cho and Dirty Dancing's Jennifer "Baby" Grey. There will also be someone to root against - Sarah Palin's 19-year-old daughter, Bristol, who is as far from being a "star" as you can possibly get. Hopefully America will have enough sense to quickly kick this girl to the curb before Mama shows up to cheer her on. Obviously you can tell that I am not a fan of the Palin family. However, I have been a fan of Ms. Henderson since I was a kid, so it looks like I'll be watching - and reviewing - beginning on Monday, September 20. And I'll continue as long as Florence, Margaret or Jennifer are still dancing.

Other competitors include Audrina Patridge of MTV’s The Hills, singer/actress Brandy, singer Michael Bolton, Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino of MTV’s Jersey Shore (he should bring in an audience of adoring fans), actor David Hasselhoff (Knight Rider, Baywatch), former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner, actor Kyle Massey of the Disney Channel's That's So Raven, and former Los Angeles Laker Rick Fox. Hopefully the show will be as fun to watch as it was during Ms. Leachman's season. I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Dish of the Day #477: Take It Off Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll. Today's Dish is Chase Hostler.

Mad about the Men: Naked in New York

There was a lot going on in last night's quirky but engaging episode of Mad Men, which deservedly received another Emmy for Best Drama Series. Here's my review of "Waldorf Stories", the 45th episode of the drama:

Favorite character: Peggy, of course! She had to put up with that jerk Stan and got to make him feel uncomfortable while sitting around naked. And I'll say it once again - actress Elisabeth Moss better get an Emmy one of these years because she's one of the finest actresses currently on TV.

Favorite new character: Jane Sterling's diminutive cousin, Danny, played by actor Danny Strong, whom I fondly remember as Paris Geller's boyfriend Doyle on Gilmore Girls. I expect we will be seeing more of him now that Don has hired him - and I think he and Peggy would make a good sparring couple.

Why didn't Betty White host the Emmys?

I think hosting the Emmys would have been a much easier gig for Betty than Saturday Night Live (for which she deservedly won an Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series). Oh well.  After a fabulous opening number featuring the kids from Glee, Tina Fey, Jane Lynch, Mad Men's Jon Hamm and, of course, Ms. White, it quickly became obvious that Jimmy Fallon is no Neil Patrick Harris when it comes to hosting an awards show. His comedy material just wasn't very funny. Fortunately, other folks were funny during the telecast to make it an enjoyable evening. Now here are my highlights and lowlights of last night's Emmys:

Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party #6: Who are you inviting?

Last week's Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party received 149 votes, and it's so nice to see the wonderful Ingrid Bergman at the top of the list. I bet she and Jennifer Coolidge would be delightful together as dinner guests. Here are the final results:

Ingrid Bergman 23
Tom Ford 16
Jennifer Coolidge 13
Gene Kelly 13
Chris Pine 13
Charles Busch 11
Barbara Eden 11
Sean Connery 10
Paul Reubens 9
Martha Raye 8
Cameron Mathison 6
Tuesday Weld 5
Isabel Sanford 4
Michael Jackson 2
Michael Jeter 2
Elliott Gould 1
Rick Springfield 1
Blair Underwood 1
Shelley Long 0
Marlee Matlin 0
Emma Samms 0
David Soul 0

And now here are this week's contenders. So which three of these past/present celebrities (whose birthdays are this week) would you invite to your dinner party? You can vote for your favorites below.

Kristian Alfonso
The Days of our Lives actress turns 47 on September 5.

Dish of the Day #476: Take It Off Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Web Series Worth Watching #6: 'Stallions...de Amor' is coming soon

Web Series of the Week: Stallions...de Amor

Below is the official trailer for the new web series, Stallions...de Amor, which will be debuting next month. It looks like it could be a fun telenovela spoof about family, deceit, lust and, of course, murder as matriarch Merlinda Stallion ends up dead. I'm looking forward to this show, which stars Jon Gale as Merlinda's hunky son-in-law, Beau (that's him in the pic).

For more Stallions, go to stallionsdeamor.com or subscribe to its YouTube Channel.

Dish of the Day #475: Vote for your Favorite

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day will be featured, and beginning today you can vote for your favorite Dish this week in the sidebar poll.



Last week's winner was #467 with 29.5% of the 132 votes cast. Coming in second was #466 with 21.2%, followed by #470 (20.5%), #469 (18.2%) and #468 (10.6%).

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DVD Dish: 'Bull Durham', 'The Snoop Sisters' and more Mary & Rhoda

Kevin Costner certainly was a handsome guy back in 1988, wasn't he?  Today I'm dishing about 12 recently released and future DVDs - including the fabulous film, Bull Durham. So if you're looking for something gay or diva-licious or just a favorite classic TV series, check out my recommendations below (click on a title for ordering information).

Groovy Movies on DVD: Bull Durham

Bull Durham made my list earlier this year of The 25 Grooviest Movies of the 1980s. It's my favorite romantic comedy baseball movie with three memorable performances by Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon, who are all perfect in their roles as a veteran minor-league catcher, a cocky young pitcher and the lovely lady whom both guys fall for. And earlier this month the film was finally released on Blu-ray. However, the 2-disc set also contains the 2008 20th Anniversary "Collector's Edition" DVD, which includes audio commentaries by writer/director Ron Shelton (who played minor league baseball himself) and by Costner and Robbins (I loved listening to these two friends discuss the movie). The DVD also has a few featurettes, including the 30-minute Between The Lines: The Making of Bull Durham, which features interviews with Shelton, Costner, Robbins and Sarandon. So if you don't yet own a copy of Bull Durham - and everyone should - I highly recommend that you pick up this DVD/Blu-ray today.

Dish of the Day #474: Kiss and Make Up Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Dish of the Day #473: Kiss and Make Up Week

This week's Dishes are in honor of Kiss and Make Up Day, which is today (August 25).

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Luke and Laura (and Liz)

Every Tuesday I post five trivia questions relating to television, film or theater, and the first person who sends me the correct answers wins the highly coveted Auntie Mame Award.

Please send your answers for this week's questions to deepdishdrama@aol.com or via a private Facebook message at www.facebook.com/marcharshbarger (DO NOT post your answers on here where everyone can see them or they will be deleted).

This month I'm featuring past and present daytime soap operas. Today's trivia is all about General Hospital, which began airing on ABC in 1963:

1) What fictional city is the show set in?

2) What Australian musician played Dr. Noah Drake? And what was the name of his 1981 hit single?

3) What was the first name of Luke and Bobbie's aunt who owned Kelly's Diner for many years?

4) Who killed Laura's stepfather, Rick Webber, in 2002 by hitting him over the head with a candlestick?

5) Who played Jackie Templeton in 1982-83 before she became a movie star?

Last week Matthew Smith answered the following questions correctly about the soap, The Young and the Restless:

1) What fictional town and real state is the show set in? Genoa City, Wisconsin

2) What surgery did Katherine Chancellor - and her portrayer, actress Jeanne Cooper - have on national television in 1984? A facelift

3) Who were the four "Ls" - two sisters and two brothers - who made up a popular love quadrangle from 1977 to 1982? Lorie, Leslie, Lance and Lucas

4) What actor played book editor Jed Andrews from 1974-75? And what hit TV series did he later star on for eight seasons during the 1980s? Tom Selleck, Magnum, P.I.

5) What was Nikki Reed's profession when she first met Victor Newman in 1981? Stripper

Dish of the Day #472: Kiss and Make Up Week

This week's Dishes are in honor of Kiss and Make Up Day on Wednesday (August 25).

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Mad about the Men: Sally Draper Enjoys Being a Girl

Betty Draper Francis finally returned with a vengeance in last night's excellent Mad Men after a two-week absence. I did miss her chilly presence - and she seems to have developed a few more icicles since we last saw her. Now here's my review of "The Chrysanthemum and the Sword", the 44th episode of the drama:

Favorite character: I have to go with 10-year-old Sally Draper, who got a chic new hairdo, revealed a hankering for actor David McCallum, and continues to somehow survive living with her troubled mother, who threatened to cut the girl's fingers off for playing with herself during a slumber party.

Favorite new character: I kind of like Sally's new psychiatrist, Dr. Edna, who obviously can see that the girl's mother needs some therapy herself.

Deeper Dish with John Vincent Mahady

John Vincent Mahady is Chicago's very own "Master Eventor". He has his own baking business, Vincent Van Dough, in which he creates delicious confectionery delights for special events (I love his show tune-inspired "Berry Me A Little", a succulent strawberry muffin cake with either a white chocolate or hot fudge glaze). He also does wedding consulting, serves French food with a flare at Lincoln Park's Mon Ami Gabi restaurant, and has been entertaining audiences with his heartfelt musical performances for over 20 years. This guy certainly knows how to create a special event with either food or song - and his upcoming September 2 - 4 engagement at Davenport's Piano Bar & Cabaret will include both these amazing talents as he'll be singing while his audiences enjoy his signature Vincent Van Dough Dessert Bar. I am delighted to have John Vincent Mahady here on the Dish to discuss his careers and answer a few pop culture questions.

Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party #5: Who are you inviting?

Last week's Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party received 208 votes, and Mae West, Madonna and Shelley Winters were the top three - now that's a dinner party I would want to be invited to. Here are the final results:

Mae West 23
Madonna 20
Shelley Winters 15
Kim Cattrall 14
Valerie Harper 14
Julie Newmar 13
Robert Redford 13
Maureen O'Hara 12
Lesley Ann Warren 12
Sean Penn 9
Barbara Harris 8
Joan Allen 7
Steve Carell 7
Jacqueline Susann 7
Robert De Niro 6
Matthew Perry 6
Amy Adams 5
Peter Gallagher 5
Eydie Gormé 4
Belinda Carlisle 3
Cindy Williams 3
Kyra Sedgwick 2
Kathie Lee Gifford 0

And now here are this week's contenders. So which three of these past/present celebrities (whose birthdays are this week) would you invite to your dinner party? You can vote for your three favorites below - and please feel free to leave a comment to explain your selections.

Ingrid Bergman
The actress would have been 95 on August 29.

Dish of the Day #471: Kiss and Make Up Week

This week's Dishes are in honor of Kiss and Make Up Day on Wednesday (August 25).

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Web Series Worth Watching #5: 'Jack In A Box' debuts a new 'do

Web Series of the Week: Jack In A Box
As I've said before many times, I adore this web series written by and starring the hilarious Michael Cyril Creighton as Jack, a cupcake-loving former theatre box office employee. I'm loving its current second season with an unemployed Jack desperately looking for work, and this week's episode, "The Buzz", has the many women in his life reacting to his new look. It also features the delightful return of Lusia Strus as his agent Gloria and the fabulous Mary Testa as his Hair-singing mother. For more Jack, go to www.jackinaboxsite.com or subscribe to his YouTube Channel.

Soap Dish: The Top 150 Memorable Moments of 'As the World Turns'

Well, I tried to limit it to only 100 moments, but it was impossible to do. So I'm honoring the daytime soap opera, As the World Turns, by featuring 150 of its most memorable moments. With the 54-year-old show set to air its final episode on September 17, I thought it would be fun to revisit the many sordid lives of Oakdale that have been entertaining us since April 2, 1956. Now here are the first 25 historical highlights in chronological order:

Dish of the Day #470: Vote for your Favorite

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day will be featured, and beginning today you can vote for your favorite Dish this week in the sidebar poll.



Last week's winner was #464 with 27.2% of the 180 votes cast. Coming in second was #461 with 25.0%, followed by #462 (18.3%), #465 (17.2%) and #463 (12.2%).

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Happy 2nd Birthday, Deep Dish!

Two years ago today I decided to start a blog in order to promote my two gay novels. I didn't think I would enjoy writing it very much, but I thought I should at least give it a shot. During my first few weeks as a blogger, I wrote about Annie Hall, Lesley Gore and George Clooney as possible candidates to be Obama's Vice President, Bonnie Hunt, TV's Swingtown (I loved that show), Cloris Leachman on Dancing With the Stars, and some Alaskan chick with Tina Fey glasses whom John McCain inflicted upon the world as his VP running mate (I will never forgive him for this). I quickly discovered that I kind of liked blogging - and here I am over 1,500 posts later still going at it. But Deep Dish would not have lasted for so long without the support and feedback of my fabulous readers who always brighten my day with their comments and Facebook messages. As Sandra Bernhard once said, "Without you, I'm nothing" - and it's true. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for joining me on this journey, and I hope you will continue to enjoy the Dish for many moons to come.

And to help me celebrate this special day, here's the wonderful Barbara Cook singing about what goes perfectly with a slice of birthday cake - "Vanilla Ice Cream" (from the 1963 Broadway musical, She Loves Me).

10 Groovy Movies to See This Fall

Since I'm much more of an autumn/holiday season moviegoer than a summer blockbuster kind of guy, I was curious to check out Entertainment Weekly's Fall Movie Preview, which promised me "all the buzz on 98 fall movies". So here is my list of 10 films that caught my eye for various reasons (in order of their release dates):

Dish of the Day #469: Forever in Blue Jeans Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Pride Films and Plays Presents 'The Great Plays of Terrence McNally' and the 'Great Gay Play Contest'

Chicago's Pride Films and Plays is very busy these days. The organization, which is dedicated to comprehending the history of great gay writing and fostering its excellence in new works for the stage and screen, is presenting a reading series of playwright Terrence McNally's work over the next few months as well as sponsoring a new gay play contest.

Here is a schedule of The Great Plays of Terrence McNally that will receive readings:

Some Men (2006)
This Chicago premiere, directed by Andrew Souders, will be presented on Sunday, August 29, at 7 pm at Stage 773 (1225 W. Belmont).

Often funny and touching, the play features a series of interlocking vignettes set between 1922 and 2007 that touch on the important events and themes in gay culture. With scenes about long-term relationships and one-night stands, the Army and AIDS, bathhouses and piano bars, and marriages of all kinds, McNally explores gay life and love against a background of some of the events that shaped the last century.

Lips Together, Teeth Apart (1991)
Directed by Jonathan Verge, this play will be presented on Sunday, September 5, at 6 pm at Mary's Attic (5400 N. Clark Street).

Two straight couples are spending the Fourth of July weekend in a house on Fire Island inherited from a gay brother who has died of AIDS. The complex relationships among the quartet and their attitude towards the gay neighbors partying on either side of them becomes hilariously and painfully clear.

Dish of the Day #468: Forever in Blue Jeans Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Deeper Dish with David Moretti

If there was a law against being too gorgeous, actor David Moretti would be locked up forever with no chance for parole. Hopefully he won't mind me saying that, but come on, look at the guy - he's a dreamboat.

Born in Cranston, Rhode Island, David left behind a Biology major at Boston College to move to Los Angeles, where he interned at NBC for a summer, waited tables, took acting classes and graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in English. After a few small independent film credits and commercials, his big break finally arrived in 2007 with the lead role on here! TV's vampire series, The Lair. In deciding to play the openly gay character, he also made the decision to come out in his professional life. Since then, David has appeared in such films as Murder.com and Playing with Fire, written for Advocate.com and Gay.com, and worked with organizations like The Trevor Project and The Matthew Shepard Foundation. And now he's been cast in the title role of the new romantic comedy, Finding Mr. Wright, which also stars Matthew Montgomery and Eating Out's Rebekah Kochan. I am delighted to have the talented David Moretti here on the Dish to discuss his career and answer a few pop culture questions.

Groovy Comics: HBO's 'True Blood'

First there was the groovy TV show and now comes the comic book. As a fan of the hit HBO vampire drama, True Blood - and an avid collector of comic books back in my youth - I was curious to check out the new comic based on the series that was recently published by IDW Publishing. And based on the first issue, I'm happy to report that Sookie Stackhouse and the rest of the Bon Temps gang have successfully survived their transformation into graphic art with all their twisted storylines and, of course, bloody violence still faithfully intact.

With a story co-plotted by series creator Alan Ball, a script by Mariah Huehner and David Tischman, and impressive art by David Messina, the True Blood comic book reacquaints us with the main characters - Sookie, Bill, Eric, Sam, Tara, Jason and Lafayette - as they all end up trapped by a vengeful spirit at Merlotte's on a dark and stormy night. My only complaints are that the 22 pages go by way too quickly - which is always the case with an addictive story - and Jason Stackhouse remains fully clothed. Since the comic book is "suggested for mature readers", hopefully the handsome hunk will at least remove his shirt in future issues.

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Katherine Chancellor and Jill Fenmore

Every Tuesday I post five trivia questions relating to television or film, and the first person who sends me the correct answers wins the highly coveted Auntie Mame Award.

Please send your answers for this week's questions to deepdishdrama@aol.com or via a private Facebook message at www.facebook.com/marcharshbarger (DO NOT post your answers on here where everyone can see them or they will be deleted).

With daytime soap operas sadly disappearing from network television, I think it's time to feature a few of the best past and present ones. So I'm making this the theme for the month of August. Today's trivia is all about The Young and the Restless, which began airing on CBS in 1973:

1) What fictional town and real state is the show set in?

2) What surgery did Katherine Chancellor - and her portrayer, actress Jeanne Cooper - have on national television in 1984?

3) Who were the four "Ls" - two sisters and two brothers - who made up a popular love quadrangle from 1977 to 1982?

4) What actor played book editor Jed Andrews from 1974-75? And what hit TV series did he later star on for eight seasons during the 1980s?

5) What was Nikki Reed's profession when she first met Victor Newman in 1981?

Last week L.b. Brown answered the following questions correctly about the soap, One Life to Live:

1) What fictional city is the show set in? Llanview

2) What was the name of Viki's first split personality? Niki Smith

3) Who was forced to reveal her secret life as a hooker during Viki's murder trial in 1979? And who was Viki accused of killing? Karen Wolek, Marco Dane

4) What actress played scientist Kate Sanders from 1986-87? And what popular prime time soap opera does she currently star on? Marcia Cross, Desperate Housewives

5) Whom did Dorian marry in 1975? Victor Lord

Dish of the Day #467: Forever in Blue Jeans Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Mad about the Men: Paperweight of Tears

Mad Men was back in business in last night's terrific episode, which featured a few unexpected twists and some really nice moments. And I didn't even miss Betty - but I'm glad to see that she will finally be returning next week. Now here's my review of "The Rejected", the 43rd episode of the drama, which was directed by actor John Slattery (Roger Sterling):

Favorite character: This week the delightful Peggy Olson gets my vote as she had many wonderful scenes while dealing with Pete's impending fatherhood and becoming friends with Joyce, an assistant photo editor at Life magazine.

Favorite new characters: A tie between Joyce Ramsay (Zosia Mamet, who's also in the film, The Kids Are All Right, as the daughter's friend), Peggy's new lesbian pal, and Joyce's writer friend, Abe Drexler (Charlie Hofheimer), who shared a kiss with Peggy while hiding in a closet during a police raid. Abe is a much better match for Ms. Olson than her boring boyfriend Mark.

Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party #4: Who are you inviting?

Last week's Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party received 237 votes, and the hunky Eric Bana barely beat out Julia Child. Alfred Hitchcock and Rose Marie both did well, while Antonio Banderas is far more popular than his wife, Melanie Griffith. Here are the final results:

Eric Bana 29
Julia Child 28
Alfred Hitchcock 19
Ben Affleck 18
Peter Krause 18
Antonio Banderas 17
Rose Marie 17
Steve Martin 13
Susan Saint James 11
Halle Berry 9
Debra Messing 9
Gillian Anderson 8
Mike Douglas 8
Marcia Gay Harden 7
Marion Lorne 7
John Slattery 6
Whitney Houston 4
Melanie Griffith 4
George Hamilton 3
Beverlee McKinsey 2

And now here are this week's contenders. So what three of these past/present celebrities (whose birthdays are this week) would you invite to your dinner party? You can vote for your three favorites below - and please feel free to leave a comment to explain your selections.

Amy Adams
The actress turns 35 on August 20.

Dish of the Day #466: Forever in Blue Jeans Week

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Web Series Worth Watching #4: Tired Old Queen Dishes About 'Peyton Place'

This week Tired Old Queen at the Movies (aka the fabulous Steve Hayes) reviews one of my favorite films of the 1950s - Peyton Place, based on the best-selling 1956 novel by Grace Metalious. For more TOQ, click here to subscribe to his YouTube Channel.

Groovy Music: Live from Chicago, it's Matt Alber & Tom Goss

Two of my favorite groovy gay guys, singer/songwriters Matt Alber and Tom Goss, are both coming to Chicago in the next few weeks to perform - but, unfortunately, not together. First up is Matt, who will be appearing with special guest Jen Porter at The Flesh Hungry Dog Show at Jackhammer (6406 N. Clark St) next Friday, August 20, at 9 pm (doors open at 8). Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at BrownPaperTickets.com.

Dish of the Day #465: Vote for your Favorite

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day will be featured, and beginning today you can vote for your favorite Dish this week in the sidebar poll. Today's Dish is Michael Fitt.



Well, I'm not surprised that the big winner of last week's contest was #459 with 32.4% of the 179 votes cast. Coming in second was #460 with 22.9%, followed by #458 (20.7%), #456 (14.0%) and #457 (10.1%).

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Live from New York, it's Alexandra Billings

The critically acclaimed actress/singer Alexandra Billings will make her debut at New York's prestigious Feinstein's nightclub for two shows only on August 20 and 21. Named the Best Female Cabaret Singer 2009 in LA by Don Grigware of Broadway World, Alex will be performing her award-winning cabaret show, Everybody's Girl, which will include such songs as "Angels, Punks and Raging Queens", "Let The River Run", "I'm Not My Mother" and "The Alone Medley".

I've been familiar with the work of the fabulous Ms. Billings ever since she starred in Charles Busch's play, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom, in Chicago back in 1990. Some of her other theater credits include Gypsy, Hamlet: The Musical, The World Goes 'Round, Applause, and her autobiographical tour de force, Before I Disappear, which has been seen Off-Broadway as well as in Chicago, Boston, Michigan and an eight-week run in LA. She's won a Jeff Award (Chicago's Tony equivalent), five Chicago After Dark Awards, and the New York MAC Hanson Award for Cabaret Artist of the Year in 2004, and she was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 2005.

Annette Bening and Julianne Moore Are All Right (and so is their film)

Before I saw The Kids Are All Right, my favorite film of 2010 so far, I never knew that some lesbians enjoy watching gay male porn. It was a surprise to me because I doubt there are very many homosexual men who would get off on lesbian porn - even if it was Madonna and Lady Gaga. Most of us would probably just prefer to hear them sing and keep their clothes on. So in addition to being highly entertained by the movie, I did learn something.

Dish of the Day #464: Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll. Today's Dish is Cody Cummings.

Deeper Dish with Dylan Vox

According to his website, Dylan Vox "plans on being a star - a big one." And with his good looks, southern charm and talent - not to mention a tireless work ethic - I have no doubt that he will someday achieve this goal. The actor is already well-known for his role as Colin on the popular gay-themed vampire series, The Lair, which has been airing on here! since 2007. He's also appeared on TV's Dante's Cove and in such movies as Homewrecker and Pornography: A Thriller. And his future films to be released include Shut Up and Kiss Me, Titanic II, Megaconda, H1N1: Virus X, The Brides of Sodom, and Super Shark.

Born on Christmas Day in Atlanta, Georgia, Vox was a competitive ice skater before he graduated from law school and moved to Los Angeles to act. He's also starred onstage in the LA premiere of Debbie Does Dallas the Musical and the world premiere of the hip-hopera, City Kid, earning an LA Stage Alliance Ovation Award nomination and a NAACP theatre award nomination. I am so happy that Dylan was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule to be here on the Dish to discuss his career and answer a few pop culture questions.

Dish of the Day #463: Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Remembering Patricia Neal

Actress Patricia Neal died Sunday at age 84 from lung cancer. She starred in many memorable films, including The Fountainhead (1949), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), A Face in the Crowd (1957), The Subject Was Roses (1968) - for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress - and Robert Altman's Cookie's Fortune (1999), which I enjoyed.

However, I will always remember her for three performances - as George Peppard's rich "decorator" in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), as housekeeper Alma Brown in Hud (1963) - for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress - and my personal favorite, as Olivia Walton in the 1971 television movie, The Homecoming: A Christmas Story, which was the series pilot for The Waltons. Although she won a Golden Globe for her performance, Neal was not invited to reprise the role in the TV series because there was concern that her health would not allow her to commit to the grind of a weekly program (she had suffered three strokes while pregnant in 1965). I have a feeling that she would've been just fine.

Below you can watch Ms. Neal in The Homecoming, Hud, and being interviewed about her life and career.

If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Dorian Lord and Viki Lord Banks

Every Tuesday I post five trivia questions relating to television or film, and the first person who sends me the correct answers wins the highly coveted Auntie Mame Award.

Please send your answers for this week's questions to deepdishdrama@aol.com or via a private Facebook message at www.facebook.com/marcharshbarger (DO NOT post your answers on here where everyone can see them or they will be deleted).

With daytime soap operas sadly disappearing from network television, I think it's time to feature a few of the best past and present ones. So I'm making this the theme for the month of August. Today's trivia is all about One Life to Live, which began airing on ABC in 1968:

1) What fictional city is the show set in?

2) What was the name of Viki's first split personality?

3) Who was forced to reveal her secret life as a hooker during Viki's murder trial in 1979? And who was Viki accused of killing?

4) What actress played scientist Kate Sanders from 1986-87? And what popular prime time soap opera does she currently star on?

5) Whom did Dorian marry in 1975?

Last week there was a tie with both Matt Crider and Matthew Smith answering the following questions correctly about the soap, Another World:

1) What fictional town was the show set in? Bay City

2) What actress played manipulative "Aunt Liz" Matthews from 1964-69? And on what 1970s hit sitcom did she achieve her greatest fame as a sexually frustrated landlady? Audra Lindley, Three's Company

3) What actress originally played the scheming Iris? And what was the name of the spin-off series that she starred on - and which began 30 years ago on August 4, 1980? Beverlee McKinsey, Texas

4) What were the names of Rachel's eldest son and her mother? Jamie, Ada

5) One of the show's most popular love triangles featured Rachel, her sister-in-law and a businessman who fathered Rachel's son. What were the first names of Rachel's sister-in-law and their mutual love interest? Alice, Steve

Dish of the Day #462: Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

Every Monday through Friday a new Dish of the Day is featured, and beginning on Friday you can vote for your favorite Dish of the week. If you haven't voted for last week's Dish yet, choose your man in the sidebar poll.

Mad about the Men: Fun (but not) in Acapulco

Last night's episode of Mad Men was an odd mixture that got better as it went along. I've never been a big fan of Don's solo trips out of New York as I always miss the office setting. Fortunately, Mr. Draper returned home to Manhattan instead of ringing in the new year in Acapulco (or Los Angeles), so I ultimately enjoyed the show - even though it was the weakest installment so far this season. Now here's my review of "The Good News", the 42nd episode of the drama:

Favorite character: I'm giving it to Don this week for making me feel sorry for him when he had to say goodbye to his dying friend, Anna, without telling her about her illness.

Most improved characters: It's a tie between Joan's husband, Greg Harris (Sam Page), and the office finance guy, Lane Pryce (Jared Harris). Ever since Greg raped Joan on the office floor, I haven't cared much for him - despite his dreamy looks. However, last night he showed us a charming bedside manner as he stitched up his wife's cut hand. Meanwhile, the stuffy Lane finally let his hair down and became friendly with Don, which was nice to see.

Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party #3: Who are you inviting?

Last week's Celebrity Birthday Dinner Party received 217 votes with our favorite wacky redhead, Lucy, claiming the top spot. President Obama came in second, and I was happy to see the wonderful Myrna Loy receive so many votes. Here are the final results:

Lucille Ball 47 votes
Barack Obama 25
Myrna Loy 21
David Duchovny 16
Michael Urie 15
Andy Warhol 13
Mary-Louise Parker 12
Martha Stewart 12
Tony Bennett 8
Erika Slezak 8
Dustin Hoffman 7
Charlize Theron 6
Maureen McCormick 5
Faith Prince 5
Martin Sheen 5
Connie Stevens 4
Esther Williams 4
Loni Anderson 2
Evangeline Lilly 1
Rachel York 1

And now here are this week's contenders. So what three of these past/present celebrities (whose birthdays are this week) would you invite to your dinner party? You can vote for your three favorites below - and please feel free to leave a comment to explain your selections.

Ben Affleck
The actor turns 38 on August 15.

Coming Soon to Chicago: An Evening with Sutton Foster

Back in April I first reported about the Tony Award-winning actress Sutton Foster coming to Chicago for a series of concert performances to open the new Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place (175 E. Chestnut) September 23 – 26. And now Broadway In Chicago has announced that individual tickets for An Evening with Sutton Foster will go on sale to the general public this Friday, August 13, at 10:00 a.m.

The 2010 Deep Dish Pop Culture Survey

Since I've gained a few new readers since last year's survey, I thought it would be fun to do another one in order to learn what pop culture everyone enjoys. So please take a few minutes to complete the survey below. The deadline is September 1, and I will then post the results. Thanks!