GenEx

The End of an Era

When I heard the news of Gourmet magazine folding a few months back I was very sad. My parents had been subscribers since the 70's and it was always laying around the house, ready to provide inspiration. They had discontinued their subscription a few years back due to editorial changes they felt comprised the magazine's integrity - and I'll admit I followed suit a year later. But I still picked up an issue at the newsstand from time to time; the entertaining section was unrivaled for the quality of food, photography, styling and location. 

Now comes news that Metropolitan Home is closing. Or rather being folded into a far lesser title - in my opinion - Elle Decor. I have subscribed to Met Home for almost 10 years. When I bought my apartment I had torn hundreds of pages from back titles to get design ideas, and the bedside wall-mounted lamps I own were on a 2005 cover. It greatly saddens me to see this title closing, as it was a very focused and pure publication - modern design and architecture in the city and country. 

The end of titles such as these are a great loss. I love magazines and newspapers - the tactile nature of them, the glossy photography, the scale - such experiences cannot be replicated on the internet. I understand ad sales are down, but it is the choice of which titles to close that alarms me. Books like Gourmet and Met Home were targeted to a very specific niche. And all creative product - be it an ad or a magazine or a commercial - has to know its audience to be great. The publishers have chosen to keep titles such as Bon Appetit open - a far more mass-audience title and in my opinion lower quality. 

The problem with trying to appeal to everyone is that you appeal to no one in particular. Look at what has happened to the Gap versus the success of J.Crew. J.Crew has its target right in the crosshairs. And because of this they have a distinct voice that allows them to merchandise and market in a specific visual manner. You either love it or hate it. That kind of boldness and risk taking loses out when the bottom line becomes the only measure of success. 

President & Environmental Menace of the US Chamber of Commerce

I spoke earlier this fall of the US Chamber of Commerce lobbying against climate legislation because it will be "bad for business." An economy based on fossil fuels must be maintained for profits, in their eyes. Positions like that send me through the roof, and now I've got a face to put with a name: Thomas J. Donahue - the asshole in charge.

But there is some good news among the sea of misinformation and self-interest this man represents; the Times ran an article today citing a few large companies that resigned membership due to the Chambers hostile position toward climate legislation. 

"The companies that resigned this fall — Apple, Levi Strauss & Company, Mohawk Paper and the utilities Pacific Gas and Electric, Exelon and PNM Resources — cited the chamber’s climate policy as counterproductive. All said that some form of greenhouse gas regulation or legislation was coming and that they did not want to pay dues to an organization that appeared to be standing in its way."

Bravo to those companies that stuck to their principals. 

The Gym Social

I walked into my gym this evening - the Equinox on 19th street and Broadway - in my typical have-to-go-but-don't-really-want-to haze when I was assaulted by 500 decibels of crashing dance music. Turns out, the gym was having yet another member party. 

In addition to the two equinox that occur each year, the staff feels the need to celebrate the gym's anniversary - which apparently is November 17th. Why all these parties go on is anyone's guess; members at most New York gyms are about as likely to pause in their sweats to drink champagne and eat puff pastry as they are to talk to one another. They are disruptive, not to mention painful to watch.

All of this forced socializing reminds me of the company holiday party. Don't get me wrong, I used to look forward to such parties in the days I worked for privately-held agencies that fostered a sense of pride and purpose. The parties at my first agency Northlich - as well as the ones at Hill Holliday in Boston - were legendary. But the standard holiday extravaganza at one of the mega-global New York agencies is more like a concert at the Garden and about as personal. 

I digress. My point here is if Equinox wants to thank its members for their patronage, $25 off one month's outrageous $170 membership fee would be nice. Or how about a guest pass that our out-of-town friends could use when they visit, instead of making them pay $45. Somehow I think that might be more appreciated than cold hors d'oeuvres next to the leg machine.

The Return of Jake

It's been far too long since my boy Jakey has graced the pages of this blog. But movie season it is and Jake is back on the big screen with Natalie Portman and Tobey McGuire in the film Brothers. Rumor has it Jake bulked up again for this role and with his dazzling beard gets all Brokeback on us again. 

While his brother is off in the military, Jake is back in the US with Tobey's wife (Natalie) and kids. But after the tragic news of his brother's death, grieving leads Natalie and Jake's characters into bed. Until, that is, they discover that Tobey is not dead. Oh, the drama. 

The Earth is Toast

I don't know what it is about epic disaster film that makes me jump out of my seat like a kid, but when I saw the teaser for Roland Emmerich's 2012 this spring I did just that. Emmerich is the same director who brought us Independence Day (aliens destroying the Earth) and The Day After Tomorrow (climate change destroying the Earth). This time, the world simply ends and everything goes to hell. Yes, there is some sort of government conspiracy/cover-up and a massive Noah's Ark the whole planet is racing towards - but that's beside the point. We just want to see shit get blown up. 

Independence Day was my least favorite of the trio. The space ships arriving and torching things was the good part - all the cheesy acting and faux-hero nonsense of Will Smith sucked. In The Day After Tomorrow, we had the double whammy of great disaster effects and my boy Jake running through it all - the snowdrift over the Statue of Liberty nearly sent me over the edge. There was still some bad acting but we forgave. 

In 2012, John Cusack will play the role of the majorly annoying reluctant hero. I wish someone could make one of these films without all the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants wooooo-hooooo I'm flying a plane between two crashing skyscrapers and not scared at all bullshit. I want honest and true terror, but I suppose that's too much to ask. This is serious shit- why characters so often act like they are in a video game is beyond me. 

 Of course, I'll go see the film regardless. California slides into the Pacific - you wouldn't want to miss that.

Sterling Cooper Draper Price

Sunday's 3rd season finale of AMC's Mad Men was nothing short of brilliant. Not that I'd expect anything less from the genius creative team that puts the show together. Now, if only advertising were still this fun.

Every Week All Year

In my mailbox the other day - in one of those fancy Par Avion international mail envelopes - was the BUTT 2010 calandar, chock full of lovely photographs of homosexuals. In their words:

"After twenty-seven issues, a book, a blog and numerous events, BUTT brings out its first ever pin-up calendar. No ordinary monthly calendar, BUTT 2010 is jam-packed with the down-to-earth, international dudes our readers treasure. From almost every corner of the globe, BUTT fans have submitted their most candid and racy photos, which have then been carefully selected and sequenced over 54 weeks. There’s also a handful of bonus portraits by some of the magazine’s marquee contributors like Bruce LaBruce, Alasdair McLellan and Wolfgang Tillmans."

What's not to love.

Defeat in Maine, Victory in Washington

I've stayed blissfully out of the election fray this year, especially after my full on frenzy last year. The bad news this year is Maine. In keeping with that, I'll let Sully do the talking:

"In Washington State, another referendum on gay couples' equality was also a squeaker. But in this one, gay couples won. The state's domestic partnership law grants gay couples all the rights of married couples at a state level. The usual forces tried to reverse it, as they tried in Maine. But in Washington, the gay side won by 51.1 to 48.9 percent. Again, it's such a slender margin, it's stupid to draw any vast conclusions.

But I do want to point out that, from the perspective of just a decade ago, to have an even split on this question in a voter referendum is a huge shift in the culture. In Maine, where the Catholic church did all it could to prevent gays from having civil rights in a very Catholic and rural state, gays do have equality but may now merely be denied the name. The process itself has helped educate and enlighten and deepen the debate about gay people in ways that never happened before the marriage issue came up.

I am heart-broken tonight by Maine, and I'd be lying if I said otherwise.

Somehow losing by this tiny margin is brutalizing. And because this is a vote on my dignity as a human being, it is hard not to take it personally or emotionally. But I also know that the history of civil rights movements has many steps backward as forward, and some of those reversals actually catalyze the convictions that lead to victories. A decade ago, the marriage issue was toxic. Now it divides evenly. Soon, it will win everywhere.

I know for many younger gays and lesbians, this process can seem bewildering and hurtful. But I'm old enough now to be able to look back and see the hill we have climbed in such a short amount of time, and the minds and hearts we have changed. Including our own.

Know hope."

GenEx® Song of the Week

It's hard to get better than Digitalism's remix of Cut Copy's "Going Nowhere."

Download 03 Going Nowhere (Digitalism Remix)

Thriller Provincetown