Leather Elite Presented at Harrah's Casino
by Brad Benedict

It's been a long time since I've seen such a show of brilliance as I observed at Harrah's Casino on Sat., Sept. 2. That brilliance showed through as the leather men and women came forth to compete and support the Lords of Leather in their annual competition for Mr. Louisiana Leather. This year it was for Mr. Louisiana Leather 2001, and the winner was Baton Rougean Todd Cole, sponsored by Hibiscus Bookstore and George's.

The entire program was absolutely astounding, and the unexpected parading of Harrah's costumed maskers in the middle of the show was a crowd-pleaser. Following the National Anthem and the presentation of colors, the show was well on its way to becoming the best ever presented in this series of contests. The program was divided into two sections, and the Master of Ceremonies was Frank Nowicki, with Jay Wolf signing for the hearing impaired. A special juggling act opened the show.

After the introductions of Mr. Louisiana Leather 2000 Chuck Lance and Mike Taylor, Mr. International Leather 2000, the contest started with the first category of leather street wear. The contestants were Mitch Carpenter, Jim Johnson, Todd Cole, Kent Pope, Louis Homsany, and Carl Manuel. Following was the introduction of judges: Dean Ogren, Chuck Lance, Mr. Marcus, Mark Malan, Larry Everett, Mike Taylor, and Jill Carter.

This was followed by entertainment of a fabulous number performed by Jay Cooper and the speech presentations. After intermission, the candidates entered their third and final category of swimwear and jock strap to the delight of the audience. (The interview category was held on Fri.)

A charity offering was then held for the Lords of Leather. The pledge offering request for the National Leather Archives was noticeably out of place since one charity offering had already started, and the two songs offered afterwards for another entertainment segment were nice but gave the only downbeat appearance to an otherwise lively and happy night of revelry and excitement. This was followed by Chuck Lance's final speech, which ended his reign as Mr. Louisiana Leather 2000.

Louis Homsany of Florida was named second runner-up, and Kent Pope of Baton Rouge was announced as the first runner-up. The awarding of the title Mr. Louisiana Leather 2001 went to crowd favorite (and judges' favorite) Todd Cole, a member of the Lords of Leather from Baton Rouge.

The evening ended with a series of picture sessions.

---

Chi Chi LaRue Does Decadence
& the Big Dick Contest
by Brian Sands

The Parade kicked off Decadence weekend with its annual Big Dick contest hosted by the inimitable Chi Chi LaRue and Logan Reed.

As usual, necks craned in the packed house to see the competitors. The contest zipped along as Chi Chi made sure nothing and nobody had time to sag. Logan was the judge and jury wielding his measuring stick (or was it a tape?) with consummate skill.

Afterwards, I had a chance to chat with Chi Chi. She is absolutely adorable, kinda like the big sister you always wished you had. Dressed in a little black ensemble with blonde hair cascading over her shoulders, she defines trashy elegance. Everything comes out of her mouth in such an ever-so-sweet way you almost may not notice that she's talking like a sailor.

"I love coming down for Southern Decadence and the Big Dick Contest," she says. "It's like an all Gay Mardi Gras, fabulous and fun, only better, 'cause Mardi Gras is getting weird for Gays. And there's lots of f**kin' cute boys during Decadence. But hallelujah for naked men of all shapes and sizes.

"Thank God for cities like New Orleans," she continues, "where you can be who you are and do what you want. There's no other city like this not even New York. Just being able to get 18 guys to stick their dicks through a hole is fabulous - it wouldn't happen anywhere else."

Asked what the best thing was that she had put in her mouth so far that day she said it was the popcorn crawfish she had for lunch but of course the night was still young. Actually, Chi Chi claims that her favorite part of Decadence is "to be in drag and then sweat it all off. That's really fun!"

The Los Angeles-based directress and sex entrepreneur just got done shooting Zack Spears' comeback movie, Zack - the Journey Back, for Odyssey video with Logan in it as well. She now also has her own sex site, www.liveandraw.com, which is sometimes interactive.

"We have a boy who just does his thing while someone else types. He gets all kinds of crazy requests, 'Please do one armed push-ups' 'Show me your feet,' but we'll do whatever they ask."

Chi Chi is excited about her Pillage and Plunder cruise coming up in November. "It leaves from Tampa and goes to Key West and then into international waters where we can do a sex orgy show. We'll be doing a movie on the boat which will also be called Pillage and Plunder." I spoke to some guys from Tampa, or Tampons as they call themselves, who've already booked passage on board. They seemed to get moist at the thought of what lay in store for them on the high seas.

Later this year Chi Chi will be going to Costa Rica for the first time as she expands into international territory south of the border. Seems like the trip might be partly personal as well as professional; she practically licked her lips as she cooed, "I love Latin boys."

Getting back to Decadence, Chi Chi offered an interesting observation for the gathering's increasing popularity. "A lot of people will go home and say 'the cocks were 20 inches long and I saw people sucking them in the street.' It gets a lot more embellished than it really is which I love. At the Black Party nothing happens but people talk as though they did it with an anaconda."

This multi-talented drag queen declares that "being able to come here and have all this is great." But if you didn't spot her in the parade, it wasn't because you missed her. I got the feeling that Chi Chi would do just about anything but she says a firm "No" to parades. "I would rather chew glass than go to the parade. I hate sun and I hate parades."

You'd be more likely to see her at Rawhide where she went straight from last year's Big Dick contest and stayed there till 7pm the next day. She seemed most proud and pleased as she told me this. You go, Girl!

Asked for final words of advice, Chi Chi drew on her vast personal experience and proclaimed, "Don't pee in your pantyhose." Wise words from someone who knows.

Oh, yes, the Big Dick contest winners were Allen of San Francisco - "Thickest," Daddy, also of San Francisco - "Best Dressed," Todd from Lansing - "Longest" and the overall winner, Troy from San Diego. Congratulations to all!