what's new with frank...
Wow, things have been crazy for me the past two weeks. If anyone has tried to contact me and I havent gotten back to you yet, please dont take it personally i'll be sure to return your email soon. In the past few weeks i've received an unusual outpouring of emails from people that have happened to stumble across this blog and are interested in learning more about everything from NYU to the ballroom scene and my crazy double-life in both these worlds, among others. Keep reading! Thanks for your support, its much appreciated. So here's what's new:
On the steps of Columbia University's scenic Low Library
On the steps of Columbia University's scenic Low Library
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Ph.D. blues...
The new semester began about three weeks ago. This semester im enrolled in a required seminar for Ph.D. students in my department on qualitative research methodologies with Professor Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, a graduate seminar at Columbia University on "Critical Approaches to African American Studies" with Professor Manning Marable, and a supervised research study with my advisor Professor Jose Esteban Munoz on contemporary Black British visual and performance art (basically, im preparing for my comprehensive area exam in this field). For the supervised research course, I'm focusing my attention on the work of black british artists Isaac Julien and Steve McQueen. Having only one class on NYU's campus this semester has been a real blessing. It has allowed me to get some much needed "time away" while still getting the studying and research done that I need. This semester I also submitted my area-exam descriptions. For those unfamilar with academia, "area exams" are the required fields that people receiving Ph.D.'s in the humanities and social sciences have to pass before they start writing their dissertation. Ph.D. candidates usually choose the areas of scholarly inquiry they would like to be examined in and use these fields to determine what college courses they plan on teaching when they (finally!) become professors. Considering that I'm hoping to eventually teach as a professor in an interdisciplinary department such as African American Studies, American Studies, Ethnic Studies or Gender and Sexuality Studies, my area exams are in Critical Race Theory, Black Visual and Performance Studies, and Performance Theory/Theories of 'Performativity' (a once arcane philosophical concept that has recently gained a new popularity among academic cultural critics). Blah, blah, blah....
As you can tell probably from my face, the Philly Awards Ball got mixed reviews from me.
Photo by Mother Jack Mizrahi
Ballroom Banter
This weekend I just got back from the Philly Awards Ball in Philadephia with my house brothers and sisters in the legendary, rocksocking House of Mizrahi. The "Awards Ball" is loosely based on the concept of the grammys, or tony-awards, etc.---it's an actual ball as well as a little mini-ceremony where the year's best competitors per city/state are announced for a given category. Eleven of us packed my house sister's 7 seater van to travel to the city of brotherly love. Of course, it was hilarious. We also won five trophies at the ball, tying with the House of Prodigy for grand prize. This upcoming weekend after I get back from giving a workshop in Washington D.C. on February 10th (thanks to my friend Keith Boykin) i'll be headed to Detroit with the Mizrahi's for the House of Prodigy's "East Meets West Ball." That's if im not too tired.
Introducing Father Ruben Mizrahi
Hey, my gay brother, the handsome, hardworking, married and rocksocking Father of the House of Mizrahi has started his new blog. Take a moment and show him some luv, and tell the fool I see sent ya! Mother Jack, are you next?
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Frank & Flavalife Magazine
In other news, i'm thrilled to announce a fantastic colloboration i've embarked on with the men of Chicago's Flavaworks Inc., the producers of the steamy triple-x men's magazine "Flavamen" as well their new and exciting G-rated spin-off "FlavaLife." I'll be traveling on behalf of Flavalife as their "national ballroom correspondent" (still working on a title here, lol) two or three times a month across the country to report, take pictures, and review the ballroom scene from state-to-state. For the next two months i'll be traveling to D.C. (Feb. 18th), Chicago (Feb. 25th), and Miami (March 4th), and D.C. again (Feb. 25th) for balls hosted by members of the houses of mugler, allure, balenciaga, manolo-blahnik, and revlon. It should be a blast. The guys of Flavamen are great and this new colloboration promises to be hot.
In other news, i'm thrilled to announce a fantastic colloboration i've embarked on with the men of Chicago's Flavaworks Inc., the producers of the steamy triple-x men's magazine "Flavamen" as well their new and exciting G-rated spin-off "FlavaLife." I'll be traveling on behalf of Flavalife as their "national ballroom correspondent" (still working on a title here, lol) two or three times a month across the country to report, take pictures, and review the ballroom scene from state-to-state. For the next two months i'll be traveling to D.C. (Feb. 18th), Chicago (Feb. 25th), and Miami (March 4th), and D.C. again (Feb. 25th) for balls hosted by members of the houses of mugler, allure, balenciaga, manolo-blahnik, and revlon. It should be a blast. The guys of Flavamen are great and this new colloboration promises to be hot.
Hey. I have my area exams in 2 weeks. Yikes. Good luck with your reading!
Posted by
Violet Vixen |
2/07/2006
Funny picture! You look so over it...what ever it was...
Good Luck with your Studies!
Make mama proud!
laterz
Posted by
WATER |
2/08/2006
aiight, profe. you're an inspiration.
Posted by
Karamale |
2/08/2006
FLR,
I am so in love with your gansta. I mean you have a non-stop life. Which is great it shows that you have a passio for life and are able to float in and out of the social and professional academic lifestyles. I need that kind of patience.
Best success in your area exams.
When you become the world class professor, I will look back and remember the beautifuk gansta you had as a youngin.
Posted by
Anonymous |
2/09/2006
Checked your blog out, nice!!!
KD
Posted by
KneeDeep |
2/11/2006
Hey man nice blog u got here. Could u do me a big favor, plz i need your help, go read my latest post, vote, and then pass it on....Thanks ;)
Posted by
Shawn Manley |
2/13/2006
nice place you have here, I cam e across your site when i was doing a search on the lyrics of makidada...best wishes on your studies...
Posted by
Drama Kween |
2/15/2006
Local gay Internet site believed linked to the spread of HIV/STDs
By Gary Barlow - Staff writer
At the urging of Chicago Department of Public Health officials, the City of Chicago slapped a cease-and-desist order on the Lakeview home of an online gay porn site April 20 after concerns were raised about cases of HIV and other STDs tied to the site’s models.
Christopher Brown, assistant commissioner for HIV/AIDS/STD programs at CDPH, said health officials acted after uncovering “credible” evidence that models at FlavaWorks.com, which also operated CocoBoyz Dorm Room online, were HIV-positive, were engaging in unsafe sex practices and were spreading HIV, syphilis and gonorrhea through contact with individuals outside the business.
Brown said CDPH’s initial involvement came in late December after HIV service providers called CDPH to express “concerns that some of their clients could be seen on the website engaging in unsafe sex.”
“We also became aware of cases of HIV linked to some of the models,” Brown said.
The business allowed members to go online and view models engaging in sex in a “dorm room” setting that was staged in an apartment at 933 W. Irving Park Road. The models were predominately black and Latino. Members could also pay more to have the models perform specific sex acts.
Chicago’s Department of Business Affairs and Licensing issued the cease-and-desist order prohibiting the business from operating at the Irving Park Road location. Brown said CDPH Comm. Terry Moore also plans to issue a cease-and-desist order.
Brown said the business owner (Phillip Bleicher of Chicago and Devin Wiley of Texas) had been “less than cooperative” with city officials’ efforts to stop the spread of HIV and other diseases and get CocoBoyz models in for counseling, treatment and testing.
“Our main concern was the dorm,” Brown said. “Our goal is to immediately look at the models, screen them and address their needs.”
By the time city officials and police showed up the morning of April 20, CocoBoyz had already cleared out of the apartment. A man who identified himself as Jackson Robinson, manager of the business, said he and the owner closed it because they knew the city planned to shut it down. Robinson denied the city’s charges in a phone interview.
“There’s no one HIV-positive in our dorm, so that’s untrue,” Robinson said. “The models also engage in safe sexual practices.”
He said he felt the primary reason the city moved against the porn business was that it didn’t have the proper license. He said he’d repeatedly been turned down for a license.
Brown scoffed at Robinson’s denials.
“We had evidence and reports from what I would consider credible sources that there was HIV and STDs among the models at CocoBoyz dorm room, and unsafe sex could be viewed right there on the website,” Brown said.
Brown stopped short of saying the porn models engaged in prostitution with customers, but said, “Yes, through our conversations, there were individuals who became infected through contact with the models.”
There are also allegations that the business used unusual labor contracts with its models, which, according to one source, “at least bordered on illegal servitude.” The 30-day contracts allegedly required the models to perform a certain number of sexual acts in exchange for a stipend. But, when the models tried to collect the stipends, they were told they were being charged for such things as food and bed linens, leaving them, in some cases, in debt rather than collecting money. They were then pressured to sign new contracts.
Robinson said the business, which dates back to 1999, is looking for a new home outside Chicago and will reopen “whenever we can be licensed and incorporated somewhere else.”
More info at: http://chicagofreepress.com/news/index.html#local%20gay%20internet
Posted by
Anonymous |
4/29/2006