The Herald-Palladium from Benton Harbor, Michigan • B6

The Herald-Palladium Benton Harbor-St. Joseph, Mich. 6B SUNDAY, February 11, 2007 ENTERTAINMENT Gay actors? Public just shrugs Vernor's got start after war Question: I once heard of a soft drink that was developed because of the Civil War. Do you know which soda it was? G.R.D., Dothan, Ala. Answer: James Vernor, a Detroit pharmacist, was attempting to develop a new drink when the war broke out.

Before going off to battle in 1 862, he stored his new concoction a combination of ginger, vanilla and spices in an oak barrel. Upon his return four years later, the barrel was cracked open and the delectable taste of the beverage overwhelmed him. He immediately began manufacturing Vernor's Ginger Ale, which is still on the market today. Question: For her birthday, my daughter received a DVD of Walt Disney's "Bambi." According MattSaylesAP ACTORS T.R. Knight (left) and Isaiah Washington of "Grey's Anatomy" are shown together at the 2006 TV Guide Emmy After Party in Los Angeles last August.

Knight outed himself to People magazine after co-star Washington uttered an anti-gay slur on the set of their ABC series last October. Jacquelyn Martin AP VETERAN STAGE ACTOR Andre de Shields, shown at the Fol-ger Theatre in Washington, D.C., recently, is an openly gay actor. He's earned two Tony award nominations, but he says many directors still are unwilling to cast openly gay actors. to the cred- Sjbt' its, Donnie Hk Dunagan I was the voice of Bambi. Did Dunagan I have much of a Holly- AskMr" Teer? Know-lt-AII Taunton, Gary Mass.

st Answer: Clothier Donald "Donnie" Roan Duna Should these shows run for several more years and audience support remain strong, Hollywood may have no choice but to continue offering both men the straight romantic roles they play so well. That could open a door to broader casting options for all actors, something Fabian would welcome. "In the end, I want to work. I want to be successful as an actor," he says. "I want to have vacations and not worry about the credit cards not working." But entertainment business still seems to have a problem By MELISSA RAYWORTH For The Associated Press LOS ANGELES Some high-profile gay actors have exited the closet recently, and the fan reaction has been almost nonexistent.

A gay man playing a randy heterosexual on TV? The industry still has its problems, but viewers are just shrugging. On the most recent episode of ABC's "Grey's Anatomy," T.R. Knight's character eloped to Las Vegas with his gorgeous girlfriend. One week earlier, after repeated rounds of vigorous sex, he proposed to her in a scene that was romantic, believable -and groundbreaking. Knight is an openly gay actor now.

He outed himself to People magazine after co-star Isaiah Washington uttered an anti-gay slur on the set of their ABC series last October. Yet nearly all the attention to the controversy has focused on Washington's transgression. There's been nary a comment about Knight's own love life. Instead, fans are reveling in the sparks flying between his character and Dr. Torres (Sara Ramirez): "I hope she says yes.

I really think he loves her!" said a recent posting about the characters' engagement on the show's chat room. "They're such a nice couple!" raved another. Clearly these are no longer the days when Rock Hudson had no choice but to feign interest in starlets in order to protect his career. "Things have changed," Ellen DeGeneres, whose coming out a decade ago was a major cultural moment, told Knight last month on her talk show. Knight isn't alone in having his sexuality greeted with a public yawn.

Last November, actor Neil Patrick Harris described himself in a brief statement to People magazine as a "contented gay man." Past "American Idol" finalist R.J. Helton made a similar announcement weeks earlier, and former N'Sync star Lance Bass did the same last August. Each became barely a blip on the pop-culture radar. The mellow response to these celebrity self-outings is a far cry from what happened after DeGeneres' "Yep, I'm Gay" announcement on the cover of Time magazine. Back then, some predicted the end of DeGeneres' career.

Ten years later, she's anything but unemployed: She's hosting next month's Oscars, currently helming her own Emmy -winning talk show and serving as one of the celeb faces of American Express. Strangely enough, some gay actors say that while America's comfort level has improved considerably, the entertainment industry hasn't caught up. It may be 2007, they say, but the vibe inside studio casting offices can feel surprisingly like 1957. These actors say being outed remains a huge threat to a performer's career, particularly for men. An announcement, even a PAN'S LABYRINTH wood, but far less so for men," says Faderman.

"But it's interesting that the most prominent examples I can give Ellen DeGeneres, Melissa Etheridge, Lily Tomlin they don't play romantic leads." A National Enquirer cover last August trumpeted "Hollywood's Secret 'Gay List'" in bold, black letters above photos of various leading men. Inside, they reported the estimated odds of these celebrities coming out. Network executives, Fabian says, fear negative coverage in the tabloids. And they prefer not to cast openly gay actors in straight roles because they want those tabloids to publicize their stars' social lives positive- iy- "You go in for a pilot, and you're told the casting director loves you, the producer loves you," says Fabian. "Then you go to network, and you have to sign your five-year deal first.

I think that's where the real discussion is going on: 'We really liked him, but he's really funny, but how can we get him out there with the girls when he's sitting home with his boyfriend every Knight's case will be an interesting litmus test of whether recent celebrity outings will encourage the industry to change its approach. Before his announcement, Knight had already developed a fan base. TV viewers have also warmed to Harris' performance as a straight, womanizing character on the CBS sitcom "How I Met Your Mother," now in its second season. Comments posted on imdb.com describe Harris as the best thing about the show. rumor, can eliminate them from the running for straight roles -the roles that make up the vast majority of available work.

"I have friends in the industry casting directors, for an example who are gay, who will not cast another person and the reason given is, 'Oh, he's too says veteran performer Andre de Shields, an openly gay actor who's earned two Tony award nominations. "A lot of this has to do with self-loathing." Despite its reputation for leading the world down a hedonistic path, "Hollywood is one of the most homophobic places on the planet," de Shields says. "And these are the folks who could make the biggest difference in artists' lives." Established gay male stars like Rupert Everett face this kind of bias (as Everett laments in his recent autobiography), as do those still making their mark. "I was told I was 'too light' for 'Judging says Kevin Fabian, an openly gay actor who has appeared on episodes of "The West Wing," "Will Grace" and other prime-time shows. "I looked at the casting director and said, 'Have you watched your That sort of experience leaves gay actors questioning how much progress has really been made.

"From an actor's point of view, I understand why they are scared to death of saying anything for fear of being pigeonholed," says casting director Matt Messinger. "Gay people are cast as straight all the time. But if you're asking if things have improved for openly gay actors, I can't say it's any easier now." When Knight revealed his sexual orientation last fall, he offered a brief but pointed statement: "I hope the fact that I'm gay isn't the most interesting part of me." For actor and singer Kye Brackett, the decision to mention his bisexuality to casting directors comes down to exactly Knight's point: Will industry people be so distracted by the fact that he dates men that they won't see him as a performer? Brackett remembers seeing a billboard for the Tom Cruise film "Born on the Fourth of July" in 1989. "There was a whole rumor that had begun about Tom Cruise being gay. And I remember driving up the street and seeing his picture and my first thought was, 'There's Tom Cruise.

He's says Brackett. "All these things he actually worked for got immediately overshadowed by a rumor. Who would want to deal with that as an actor?" Because of that bias, Brackett says, agents are unlikely to recommend openly gay clients for straight roles. "They don't want to be the one who says, 'This person is gay and that's Despite the risk, some actors feel there's little choice but to deal directly with their sexuality. Fabian says he temporarily hid his sexual preference during acting school.

The result, he says: "My acting was terrible. You're constantly putting layer on top of layer." The current crop of tabloid magazines and nightly entertainment-news shows have brought the decades-old fascination with performers' personal lives to a new level. They love focusing on the subject of who's gay and who isn't, though there appears to be a double standard in their approach. Actresses may acquire a bit of positive buzz and be "seen as sexy" after rumors of gay romance, says Lillian Faderman, co-author of the book "Gay L.A." But men in the same situation are perceived differently. "Things have certainly improved for women in Holly Sun: 11 AO, 2:00, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30 Mon-Tue: 2:00, 4:30, 7:00, 9:30 N0RBIT(PG13) Sun-Tue: 12:40, 2:55, 5:05, 7:15, 9:25 HANNIBAL RISING (R) Sun: 11:50, 2:20, 5:00, 7:30, 10:00 Mon-Tue: 2:20, 5:00, 7:30, 10:00 THE MESSENGERS, pgi BECAuVE4'SAliDSO(4pGi3) Sun-Tue: 12:25, 2:30, 4:40, 6:50, 9:00 SMOKIN' ACES(R) Sun: 12:10, 2:30, 5:00, 7:15, 9:35 Mon-Tue: 2:30, 5:00, 7:15, 9:35 EPIC MOVIE (PG13) Sun-Tue: 1:10, 3:00, 4:55, 7:10, 9:05 CATCH AND RELEASE (PG13) THE HITCHER (R) Mon-Tue: 2:00, 4:00, 6:00, 8:00, 10:10 THE QUEEN (pgis) Mon-Tue: 1:40, 3:50, 6:05, 8:15 STOMP THE YARD (pg 13) Mon-Tue: 4:25, 9:25 DREAMGIRLS(PG13 NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM (pgj Sun: 11:30, 1:50, 4:10, 6:30, 8:50 Mon-Tue: 1:50, 4:10, 6:30, 8:50 CHARLOTTE'S WEB(g gan was born Aug.

16, 1934, in San Antonio, Texas. His film debut was "Mother Carey's Chickens" (1938). Over the next four years, he appeared in seven more movies, including the 1942 animated film "Bambi." In 1952, he started a new career when he joined the U.S. Marines. He retired after 25 years, achieving the rank of major.

According to several biographies, Dunagan never revealed to his fellow Marines that he was the voice of Disney's young deer; he feared being nicknamed Bambi. Question: You said movie stars Clara Bow and Rex Bell were married in 1931. Who was Rex Bell? W.S., Pueblo, Colo. Answer: George Francis Beldam entered the world Oct. 16, 1903, in Chicago, 111.

In the late 1920s, he began to appear in films as Rex Bell, quickly becoming a cowboy hero. He entered politics in the mid-1950s, serving as lieutenant governor of Nevada until 1962. His last film, "The Misfits" (1961), was also the final film of movie greats Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. Bell died of a heart attack in 1962; his wife, Clara Bow, passed away in 1965. Question: When I think of country music, I think of one singer, Loretta Lynn.

Is that her real name? I know she was born in an unusual town. What was it? How old was she when she got married? How long did the marriage last? I.B., Lafayette, Ind. Answer: Loretta was born April 14, 1935, to Ted and Clara Webb in Butcher Hollow, Ky. She was given her first name in honor of actress Loretta Young. She married Oliver Vanetta Lynn just before her 14th birthday in 1949.

By the time she reached 17, she had four children, and she was a grandmother at age 29. Her marriage lasted until 1996, when Oliver died after a long battle with diabetes; he was 69. Question: Every schoolkid knows that gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill in California in 1848. What kind of mill was Sutter's Mill? Where was the mill located? Who actually found the first flakes of gold? D.X., Bangor, Maine Answer: Sutter's Mill was a sawmill owned by John Sutter in Coloma, Calif, northeast of Sacramento. An employee of the mill, James Marshall, found the gold flakes on Jan.

24, 1848 and the rush began. fifHTl AHOULNT) TOWN Experience the next "taste of the The Livery taste of the ijinphmpj -the place I ri LAKE MICHIGAN tl4V COLLEGE IWB Mendel Center mainstage Friday, February 23 at 190 5th street, Benton Harbor FEBRUARY 24, 2007 Saturday, What do you get when you combine an old livery, a micro brewery and a string quartet? An unforgettable evening topped off with fabulous classic and contemporary music in a very unique setting. sponsored by National City 57 Send your questions to Mr. Know-lt-AII at or co United Feature Syndicate, 200 Madison New York, NY 10016. Tickets: $20 For more information or tickets the Symphony at 269-982-4030 or www.smso.org.