All eyes are on the Eagle this weekend as Atlanta Leather Pride 2011 kicks off. The event is only in its second year but is already becoming a major must-see.

The weekend kicks off with the Black & Blue Ball on Friday at the Eagle featuring BDSM and fetish demos. Hungry souls looking for a recharge can hit up the Leather BBQ on Saturday afternoon with all donations going to the Leather Archives & Museum and the Women’s Health Initiative.

It all leads up to the main event, the Mr. Atlanta Eagle contest on Saturday night. Chandler Bearden, a Fenuxe Best Bachelor of Atlanta 2011, took the Mr. Atlanta Eagle title last year. The Victory Party is afterwards, when the Eagle will also be celebrating their 24^th anniversary. For those still standing, Manifest4u hosts a Winddown Party at 3AM.

Congrats to the Eagle on their anniversary and cheers to another epic weekend!

Friday, April 1

Black and Blue Ball

Atlanta Eagle at 10PM

Saturday, April 2

Afternoon Leather BBQ

Atlanta Eagle at 4:30PM

Mr. Atlanta Eagle

Atlanta Eagle at 9PM

SWEAT (Mr. Atlanta Eagle Official Victory Party)

Atlanta Eagle at 10:30PM

Winddown Party

Manifest4u at 3AM

Sunday, April 3

Leather Brunch

Sauced Atlanta at 12PM

More information available at www.atlantaleatherpride.com.

Your favorite gay rapper is back with a twisted new video as Cazwell debuts his latest, “Get My Money Back.”

The Massachusetts native is best known for his hit song and video “Ice Cream Truck,” which debuted last summer. Cazwell and his booty-shakin’ backup dancers had viewers transfixed from the start with “Ice Cream Truck” etched in the brains of listeners through the new year.

The shirtless, muscular dancers return for “Get My Money Back,” which features loads of phallic symbols, breakdancing, costumes and one crack slip.

See Cazwell’s new video “Get My Money Back” HERE. Viewer discretion is advised!

Chris Bess was named president of For the Kid in All of Us last month after four years of involvement with the non-profit organization. He works as a nurse in the Medical Affairs Department at UCB.

What is your favorite thing about Atlanta?

I love being outdoors, and my favorite destination is Piedmont Park.

Do you have any nicknames?

Crispy. It is an almagamation of sorts with my first name and last initial. Chris B. became Crispy.

What’s the first thing you would buy if you won the lottery?

A nice estate overlooking an incredible beach somewhere and first class airfare for my friends.

What music artist makes you want to dance?

Katy Perry always seems to get my foot tapping.

What would your drag name be?

I make one ugly woman so thankfully I doubt I will ever have to hear this name being introduced at Blake’s. That being said, I guess I have to stick with the old formula of your childhood pet and the street you grew up on. Smokey Burke. Dreadful I know.

Learn about another member of our community in next Tuesday’s installment of Take 5 With Fenuxe!

Well this should make some Midtown hearts flutter this morning. It was announced that Britney Spears and Enrique Iglesias will be hitting the road together this summer with a stop at Philips Arena on July 17.

It’s a big day for Brit-Brit as she releases her seventh studio album Femme Fatale. Enrique has been riding high with his album Euphoria, powered by blockbuster singles “Tonight” and “I Like It.”

On sale dates for the Philips show will be announced soon.

Say goodbye to March while refreshing yourself with the smooth, pure taste of Moon Mountain Vodka.

Ingredients:

- 1.5 fl oz Moon Mountain Vodka

- 1 fl oz Lemonade

- 2 leaves Fresh Basil

- 0.25 fl oz Lime Juice

- 2 Cucumber Rounds

Combine all five ingredients in a shaker glass with ice and shake well.  Strain the gimlet into an ice-filled rocks glass, garnish with a cucumber wheel and enjoy!  You’re cooled down and freshened up!

Check out more info and drink recipes at www.thebar.com.

Please Drink Responsibly

Is an openly gay man about to bump Palin and Gingrich out of the way and become the new face of the Republican Party? Well, in all likelihood, not a chance in hell. But it’s going to be fun watching Fred Karger try.

The longtime GOP activist from Laguna Beach officially entered the 2012 presidential race on Wednesday, becoming the first openly gay person to run for president of the United States.

Karger might not have run for public office before, but he’s no slouch. He’s managed dozens of campaigns in his 35 years in politics and was a senior consultant on the campaigns of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Gerald Ford.

We like this guy a lot, and not just for poking fun at his anonymity by wearing buttons and hanging banners at campaign stops that say “Fred Who?” He redirected his focus in 2004 to devote his expertise to gay causes, and he’s dedicating his presidential run to the six gay teens who committed suicide in the past year because they were bullied.

So give ‘em hell, Fred!

CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST ON FRED KARGER’S CAMPAIGN AT HIS OFFICIAL WEBSITE

Iconic actress Elizabeth Taylor has died.  The Oscar winner was best known for her roles in Cleopatra, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Butterfield 8.

But she was also a tireless fighter in the battle against HIV/AIDS. She helped start the American Foundation for AIDS research (amfAR) after the death of her friend and former costar Rock Hudson. Hudson died of AIDS in 1985.

She also founded the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation.

In lieu of flowers, Taylor’s family asks that contributions be made to the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Click HERE to make a donation.

Brett is a licensed psychotherapist specializing in counseling the LGBT community.  He is also a counselor with Equality Counseling.

What is your favorite thing about Atlanta?

My favorite thing about Atlanta would have to be all of the great and unique neighborhoods scattered around the city.

Who is your personal hero?

My personal hero is definitely my grandmother, Helen. She’s taught me how to be a person with a huge heart who’s kind and caring towards everyone. She was one of the first people I came out to, and she definitely gave me one of the BEST receptions. What a class act!!!

What’s the first thing you would buy if you won the lottery?

If I won the lottery, the first thing I’d do would be to put aside money to take care of my parents for when they get older. That’s not to say that I wouldn’t buy a little place down in Mexico for myself as well…lol.

What music artist makes you want to dance?

Rihanna definitely makes me get up and want to dance lately, especially with her new song, “S&M.” I really love it!

What would your drag name be?

Being Jewish, my drag name would have to be something like “Queen Yenta.”

Learn about another member of our community in next Tuesday’s Take 5 With Fenuxe!

A local man is on a 10-week fundraising mission to help those affected by leukemia and lymphoma – with a little help from Destiny’s Child.

Eric Eason is representing Atlanta’s gay community in his run for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Man of the Year. The campaign begins Wednesday, March 23 and runs through June 4, when a grand finale will take place at the Loews Hotel. The candidate who raises the most money will be featured on ten billboards throughout the Atlanta area.

Eason is running in honor of LLS’s Boy and Girl of the Year, who are Atlanta-area survivors of blood cancer. He also plans on running in honor of survivors he meets during the campaign.

His campaign theme song? The dance remix of “Survivor” by Destiny’s Child of course.

Several fundraising events at gay and gay friendly establishments are in the works, including an April 30 event at the Mellow Mushroom in Snellville and one at Woofs on May 21. Mellow Mushroom was a big supporter of the son of Todd Harkleroad when he was being treated for leukemia a few years ago. Harkleroad is president of AEN and a member of Eason’s campaign team.

What can you do to help? Make a tax-deductible donation at Eason’s LLS campaign page HERE. Companies can also purchase sponsorships or donate items for the auction to be held at the June 4 grand finale. And of course, attend one of the fundraising events and the finale at Loews.

Keep up with Eason’s LLS campaign and find out about the latest fundraising events on his Facebook page HERE.

Actor Sid Shier

The legendary playwright (and openly gay) Tennessee Williams comes back to tell his life story thanks to gay Atlanta acting vet Sid Shier in Confessions of a Nightingale. The one-man show opens this week and plays throughout April at 14^th Street Playhouse.

Part of the reason Shier is looking forward to bringing Williams’ story to the stage is a lack of name recognition among the younger set for the famous writer of A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof.

“Tennessee Williams may be the greatest playwright of the 20^th century,” Shier says. “It speaks to education in our country and what kids are being made aware of in the arts.”

No details of Williams’ tumultuous life will be spared in Confessions of a Nightingale. His mentally ill sister, his father’s alcoholism, his own long battles with drug and alcohol addiction, his nervous breakdown and his very active sex life are all explored.

Shier felt a connection with the writer on many fronts, including both having troubled relationships with their fathers and being close to their mothers. “I understand him,” Shier says. “I understand what he went through. He was a gay man. He was not a terribly masculine man, nor am I. It was just a fit.”

Shier hopes for a strong gay presence at the shows.  He says it’s compelling drama which veers from funny to heavy throughout the show.

“His work is important, today probably more important than ever because he had an understanding of the human condition in a way that was amazing for a man who himself could never get it under control.”

Confessions of a Nightingale

March 24 – April 24

14^th Street Playhouse

www.14thstplayhouse.org