Printer Friendly
The Free Library
14,794,102 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

Talkin' 'bout a revolution: Margaret Cho's new comedy concert film, Revolution, debuts on Sundance Channel--and she's as pissed off and hilarious as ever.


Margaret Cho once categorized herself as "not straight, not gay, just slutty. Where's my parade?"

With her latest film, Revolution, set to premiere on Sundance Channel in June as part of the month-long "Out Loud" celebration of Gay Pride Month, she takes the opportunity to update her description of her sexual identity.

"I'm a queer," Cho says. "I'm married to a man and somewhat ashamedly heterosexual. I've had relationships with women and men, and I have fallen in love with a man, and it's a marriage that's important to me. It also makes sense that I'm a gay man. I'm also transgendered transgendered adjective Relating to a person who has undergone genital/sexual reassignment surgery Transgender health issues Hormonal therapy, cosmetic surgery, fertility options–eg, egg and sperm banking. See Sexual reassignment. Cf Transsexual. . I believe that I am all of these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video
The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing
1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17
2.
. These identities all apply to me. I want to come out as everything, because I am." She takes a breath. "It's something I've always dealt with."

What that means now--onstage and off--is that Cho, 35, has to work harder for gay rights. She says all this on the phone from a Dallas hotel room, where she's test-running yet another new concert piece, A Stale of Emergency, which she'll tour in time for the presidential election this fall. Marriage rights for everyone in this country--and the world, certainly, because Cho thinks big--have become her focus. "That's where I see inequality," she says. "That's where I see injustice. To me, gender is very fluid. Justice is not. Justice is not negotiable."

In Revolution, shot at Los Angeles's Wiltern Theatre The Wiltern Theatre and adjacent 12-story Pellissier Building are an Art Deco landmark located on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Western Avenue in Los Angeles, California. The entire complex is commonly referred to as simply the Wiltern. , Cho enters the stage in full geisha geisha

Member of a professional class of women in Japan whose traditional occupation is to entertain men. A geisha must be adept at singing, dancing, and playing traditional musical instruments (e.g., the samisen) in addition to being skilled at making conversation.
 gear (save for high-heeled Roberto Cavalli Roberto Cavalli (born November 15, 1940) is a well-known Italian fashion designer of modern luxury clothing. He was born in Florence, Italy. Biography
Cavalli is known for using wild animal prints and sexualized cuts in his design, leading to comparisons with designer
 boots), but, somewhat metaphorically, she can't keep the act up long. She sheds her wig, her tiara, those boots--that Asian identity--no less than 15 minutes into the show, saying, in effect, that she's not just Korean American Korean Americans (Korean: 한국계 미국인, Hanja: 韓國系美國人, hangukgye migugin) are Americans of Korean descent. . While other queer comics are still making funny observations about life outside of the bedroom to keep their TV shows sanitized san·i·tize  
tr.v. san·i·tized, san·i·tiz·ing, san·i·tiz·es
1. To make sanitary, as by cleaning or disinfecting.

2.
, perhaps it's this sartorial sar·to·ri·al  
adj.
Of or relating to a tailor, tailoring, or tailored clothing: sartorial elegance.



[From Late Latin sartor, tailor; see sartorius.
 freedom that allows Cho to explore some of her most achingly personal, provocative, and political material to date. There's very little aping of her mother here. In one skit a woman's nether regions explode and are sewn back together. Also, she calls out those who would dare deny anyone the right to marry.

"I've never seen American polities go so wrong," Cho says. "Gay marriage evolved into Janet Jackson and then the [Donald] Rumsfeld hearings on Iraqi prisoner abuse Prisoner abuse is the mistreatment of persons while they are under arrest or incarcerated. Abuse falling into this category includes:
  • Physical abuse: Needless beating, hitting, or other Corporal punishment.
. We should not forget that we are still fighting this cultural war."

Her defiant courage and clarity of vision may come from a very traditional place: her year-old marriage to Alan Ridenour, who helped her understand what family means. "There's nothing like wedded bliss," she purrs. "There's nothing like it. I understand what it means to love somebody and, therefore, understand what it means to have a family. Regardless of who I'm married to, those family values will stick with me. I've always been queer. My values come from within the queer community."

Jones is a senior editor at E! Online.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Liberation Publications, Inc.
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2004, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Title Annotation:television
Author:Jones, Anderson
Publication:The Advocate (The national gay & lesbian newsmagazine)
Article Type:Interview
Geographic Code:1USA
Date:Jun 22, 2004
Words:493
Previous Article:Babylon in San Francisco: Beach Blanket Babylon is one of the longest-running attractions of the City by the Bay. But is it gay? Well, thereon hangs...
Next Article:All the queen's madmen: the two comedians behind Little Britain create a wide range of wacko characters, including "the only gay in the...
Topics:



Related Articles
Cho & tell.(Margaret Cho)(Interview)
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENTS\Redford champions small films by showing them on a new network.(L.A. LIFE)
Sundance Film Festival. (Festival Wraps).(2002)(Brief Article)
Where the gays are: a quick look at the queerest movies the season has to offer. (Summer Movie Special).
There's no business like Cho business.(Entertainment)
LOGO DEBUTS ADELPHIA TO OFFER GAY, BISEXUAL NETWORK.(Business)
Toronto Film Festival.(FESTIVAL RECAP)
MARGARET CHO TO CAP WEEKEND'S OUTFEST.(U)
Backdoor man: Amy Taubin on Larry Clark and Destricted.
The Advocate calendar.(Calendar)

Terms of use | Copyright © 2010 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles