Get on Stage and Tell a Joke (Ep 523 - Beijing Story/Ricky)

My guest this week is the comedian Ricky Sim, who’s currently touring with his show Coming Out to Dead People. As the name might suggest Ricky’s coming-out process was a little bumpy. Starting with the time that he smuggled an adult VHS tape into the one place he felt safe watching it … a church basement. (Check out Ricky’s upcoming shows in Chicago and New York at https://www.rickysim.com/#tour-dates .)

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re in Seattle, I hope you’ll join me at my upcoming live show What’s so Gay About Frasier. It’s a deep-dive into the private life of Seattle’s most eligible bachelor — and an investigation into why he keeps finding himself at the center of queer misunderstandings. It’s on Tuesday, June 24 at Elliott Bay Books on Capitol Hill at 7pm. I have all the details in the shownotes and at mattbaume.com/events.

Also, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows — I have a new video about the magic of Star Trek’s Lwaxana Troi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

A Restaurant, a Cabaret, and a Hustler Bar (Ep 522 - Sorority House Massacre/Erik)

My guest this week is culture writer Erik Piepenburg, author of the new book Dining Out: First Dates, Defiant Nights, and Last Call Disco Fries at America's Gay Restaurants. It’s a nationwide tour of the places queer people gather to eat, and how those places satisfy more than just our literal hunger. When Erik started the project, he expected that he’d be documenting the dying-out of gay restaurants, but he found something surprising and thriving instead.

We’ll have that conversation in just a minute. First — if you’re in Seattle, I hope you’ll join me at two upcoming live events. The first is a book signing and sitcom-themed hangout at the Northgate Barnes & Noble — that’s this Sunday, June 8 from noon to 4pm. Come enjoy clips from classic sitcoms, get your copy of Hi Honey, I’m Homo! signed, and pick up some free stickers & bookmarks! The store’s located right off the light rail — just take it up to Northgate.

The second event this month is a presentation entitled What’s so Gay About Frasier — a deep-dive into why Seattle’s most eligible bachelor keeps managing to find himself at the center of queer farces. That’s on Tuesday, June 24 at Elliott Bay Books on Capitol Hill at 7pm. I have all the details in the shownotes and at mattbaume.com/events.

Also, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows — I have a new video about the magic of Star Trek’s Lwaxana Troi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

Who Killed the Cinema Palace? (Ep 521 - Hitchcock/Christopher)

My guest this week is writer Christopher Tradowsky, who loves nothing more than to slip into the sanctuary of an old-fashioned movie palace, to commune with strangers all indulging together in whatever escape is unspooling up on the screen. These days, those great vintage movie houses are getting harder to find. But Christopher’s extending an invitation to discover that magic through his new book, Midnight at the Cinema Palace, a novel about three friends — or maybe more? — whose love of film draws them into a 1990s-era film noir.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows — I have a new video about the magic of Star Trek’s Lwaxana Troi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

Also -- if you're in Seattle, come grab a signed copy of my book, Hi Honey, I'm Homo!, hang out and chat about great queer comedy, and pick up some freebies next Sunday June 8 -- I'll be at Northgate Barnes & Noble, signing books & showing my favorite sitcom clips. It's right off the Northgate light rail stop -- see you there!

What Happened to my Brother? (Ep 520 - Hair/Peter)

My guest this week is filmmaker Peter McDowell, whose documentary Jimmy in Saigon is a sort of detective story that follows Peter’s attempt to unravel into the strange death of his brother … and also an unspoken love story that had been hidden for years. Peter didn’t expect to find himself making this documentary, and for a long time didn’t even think of himself as a filmmaker. It wasn’t until recently that he decided to spend his entire savings trying to unravel a mystery that had hung over his family for decades.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

I Don't Want to be Part of the Straight World (Ep 519 - Freaks/Alexis)

My guest this week is Alexis Langlois, director of the film Queens of Drama — a musical love story about two performers who enter a forbidden romance behind the scenes of a pop-star competition. Alexis has been making films with a troupe of irregulars for years, inspired by John Waters’ Dreamlanders and the recurring actors in the films of David Lynch. His style is scrappy, independent, political, and very queer … so you can imagine his surprise when he was invited to present his latest work at Cannes.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First — if you’ve been watching the latest season of Drag Race All Stars, you’ve seen Bosco and Irene the Alien absolutely stealing the show with great looks, funny banter, and a mischievous friendship. And you can get even more of that Irene and Bosco magic — having an absolute riot playing Dungeons & Dragons. A couple years ago Bosco and Irene joined me and my partner James for a D&D adventure, and we just posted the full audio for you to check out. Over six hours of these two drag stars on a fun, chaotic fantasy romp. You don’t need to know anything about D&D to listen — it’s basically like an audiobook that you can put on to enjoy while you’re doing something else. I think you’ll love it — Here’s a link: https://youtu.be/rD8tJTtAMYA 

And if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new video out now about the British sitcom Vicious, starring Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

Inspired by Hookups (Ep 518 - The B-52s/Peter Crighton)

My guest this week is Pete Crighton, whose debut book The Vinyl Diaries comes out next week on May 13. It’s a memoir and a disocography, based on a journal that Pete kept of his various hookups with men over the years and the soundtrack of each encounter and relationship.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new video out now about the British sitcom Vicious, starring Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

A Radical Like Me (Ep 517 - Lavender Men/Roger & Lovell)

A new film called Lavender Men comes to theaters this month, and streaming in June — it’s about a theatrical stage manager who daydreams about her connection to Abraham Lincoln through queer romance. I’m chatting with two of the folks involved in the film this week: Lovell Holder directed the film, and Roger Q. Mason is the writer and star. They’re longtime collaborators, going back to college when Lovell was entranced by Roger’s performance in Romeo and Juliet as the Nurse. And this film is just one step in their plans to change the world.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new video out now about the British sitcom Vicious, starring Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

The Moment I Became a Director (Ep 516 - Most People Die on Sundays/Iair)

My guest this week is the writer, director, and co-star of the new Argentinian film Most People Die on Sundays. Iair grew up watching soap operas, pulled into on-screen melodramas. And now as an adult, he gets to make movies and work alongside the actors he used to watch on his favorite shows. But that’s only the start of what makes his latest film so personal.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows. I have a new one coming this weekend about the British sitcom Vicious, starring Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

Serial Killers Shake Things Up (Ep 515 - Torch Song Trilogy/Jeffery Self)

You may have seen writer, actor, and comedian Jeffery Self on the shows 30 Rock, Desperate Housewives, and Jeffery & Cole Casserole alongside Cole Escola. Or you might know him from his books, Drag Teen and A Very Very Bad Thing. Jeffery’s latest book Self-Sabotage: And Other Ways I've Spent My Time came out last month. And for this week’s episode, we’re heading into the Sewers archive to revisit my conversation with Jeffery from 2017, when we talked about forming a rebel theater troupe in his small southern hometown; testing his capacity for sass on television; and creating the circle of friends that he knew he needed in his life.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. First, if you’re enjoying The Sewers of Paris, I hope you’ll consider supporting the show on Patreon. You may also enjoy my YouTube videos about the making of iconic movies and TV shows — my latest is about the film Dog Day Afternoon. And check out my weekly livestreams on Twitch, my book Hi Honey, I’m Homo!, and my free email newsletter. There’s links to all that in the episode shownotes, and at MattBaume.com.

Where's the Coming-Out Advice for Somebody in a Chair? (Ep 514 - Narnia/Andrew)

You might’ve seen this week’s guest, Andrew Gurza, in the news lately. An activist and advocate for people with disabilities, he recently drew headlines for talking openly about how sex workers have changed his life, and why he believes the government should pay for them. Andrew has a new book coming out this month called Notes from a Queer Cripple: How to Cultivate Queer Disabled Joy (and Be Hot While Doing It!). And for this week’s Sewers of Paris, we’re diving into the archives to revisit my conversation with Andrew from 2017. At that time, he was hosting a podcast called Disability After Dark, and had recently organized a successful accessible sex party in Toronto. Now, his mission has continued: To demolish cultural taboos around disability and sex.