Made a New Years resolution to eat healthier in 2020? Most of us start January with good intentions about food, fitness, and finances that fall by the wayside as we yield to temptation. In the words of New Orleans-born entertainer Bianca Del Rio, “not today Satan!” The biggest change one needs to make is to one’s attitude. Once you make the decision to do something, … [Read more...] about New Years: The Daily Beet Proves Healthy Can Be Delicious
Ambush Magazine Volume 38 Issue 01
It’s a Wonderful Life, Historically Speaking
The enduring appeal of Frank Capra’s classic holiday film It’s a Wonderful Life is its premise—that the quality of a person’s life is measured by how it affects others. George Bailey’s guardian angel, Clarence, tells him, ““Dear George, remember no man is a failure who has friends.” By that measure, Charlene Schneider, legendary lesbian bar owner, was amazingly … [Read more...] about It’s a Wonderful Life, Historically Speaking
American Italian Cultural Center
Did you know that according to the 1910 census, 80% of the residents of what we now call the French Quarter were Sicilian immigrants? Or that the lower Quarter was once commonly referred to as Little Palermo? Or that New Orleans has had two Italian-American mayors? Ever wonder why St. Joseph’s Day altars are so popular in New Orleans? The American Italian … [Read more...] about American Italian Cultural Center
Navigating a World, Social, and Spiritual Landscape
It’s 2020 and the Saints are NOT going to the Super Bowl. It is now just past the Feast of the Epiphany and Mardi Gras is upon us. The world, as our news reports show us, seems to be getting more polarized and divided. The social discourse is virulent and getting more so. Apart from the various wars and conflicts we are involved in, whether geopolitical or economic, we also … [Read more...] about Navigating a World, Social, and Spiritual Landscape
Buying Gay: How Physique Entrepreneurs Sparked a Movement
Buying Gay: How Physique Entrepreneurs Sparked a Movement. David K. Johnson. Columbia University Press, 2019. 320 pages. $32.00. Before Grindr and Growler and the internet, before X-Tube and a thousand other porn sites, before Blue Rays and DVDs and VHS tapes, before roadside adult “bookstores” and before magazines like Obsession and Blueboy, there were the … [Read more...] about Buying Gay: How Physique Entrepreneurs Sparked a Movement
Create your Path Through Words to Live By
When I was an undergraduate English major, some friends and I would play a game to help us recall words to broaden our vocabulary. Exciting, right? Ok, I’ll admit I might have been a bit of a nerd, but I loved words, writing and creating poems & stories. While I’ve never really put much stock into New Year’s resolutions, I do enjoy picking a group of words and … [Read more...] about Create your Path Through Words to Live By
A Look at MLK Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day was originally promoted by labor unions and, shortly after the civil rights leader’s death, it was brought to Congress for a vote. President Ronald Reagan signed the ensuing bill and it became law in 1983. Some states, however, refused to recognize the holiday or celebrate it. It was finally acknowledged by all 50 states for the first time in … [Read more...] about A Look at MLK Day
The 2010s: A Decade in Review
If you’re anything like me, it probably seems that the past decade went by fairly quickly. Wasn’t it only yesterday that we were ringing in 2010? (OK, honestly? I don’t remember much about that year at all. The year 2000 definitely made a deeper impression.) In any case, there have been some pretty monumental changes for the LGBT community in the last ten years. Here are just … [Read more...] about The 2010s: A Decade in Review
It’s good to be King
I never much cared for homework when I was a kid. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t the only one. There were so many other things I would have rather been doing. And you might be surprised to find out just how much you can accomplish when you should be doing something else. There are few to choose from, but one of my most memorable homework assignments came from Mrs. Green’s English … [Read more...] about It’s good to be King
Duaine Daniels Named Grand Reveler VI
Duaine Daniels was named Grand Reveler VI at the Mystik Krewe de la Rue Royale Revelers annual Twelfth Night Party. Daniels is a well-loved and respected member of the New Orleans gay community, having been a firefighter, the founder of the Renegade Bears, a volunteer with the LGBT+ Archives Project of Louisiana, a former bar owner, a former deputy sheriff, the coordinator … [Read more...] about Duaine Daniels Named Grand Reveler VI
