In two hours, the state of California will start issuing licenses for same-sex marriages. While ceremonies won't officially begin in Los Angeles County till tomorrow morning, the marriage of Robin Tyler and Diane Olsen will take place in Beverly Hills today. Tyler and Olsen are the who were denied a license at the Beverly Hills courthouse back in 2004 and "challenged that rejection all the way to the California Supreme Court." Tomorrow, Star Trek's George......

After rumors of Mayor Bloomberg eying the Governor's Mansion in Albany in 2010, a Quinnipiac poll reveals that NY State voters wouldn't mind a billionaire governor. Out of 1,388 NY voters, 30% said they like the idea of Governor Bloomberg. Current Governor David Paterson was in third place, with 23%--former mayor Rudy Giuliani was in second with 26% (15% of respondents picked Attorney General Andrew Cuomo)! Given that the margin of error is +/- 2.6......

The California State Supreme Court refused to put a hold on gay marriage in its state, denying a requested stay by opponents to the legal and social evolution that is scheduled to go into effect June 17th. The decision was 4-3 against the stay. Opponents of the May 15 decision allowing same-sex couples to become legally married had collected enough signatures to place an amendment on November's ballot specifying marriage was restricted to a bond......

A legal team with the backing of James Dobson is ready to file a legal suit against New York State, claiming that Gov. David Paterson illegally sidestepped the State Legislature when he declared a state of reciprocity in recognizing gay marriages ordained in other states. Dobson is the head of a ministry called Focus on the Family, which is dedicated to protecting what it views as immutable Christian social values, including the long-held human value......

Photographs of Governor Paterson and Senate Leader Joseph Bruno from the AP When Governor Paterson says things like “People who live together for a long time would like to be married — as far as I’m concerned, I think it’s beautiful,” don’t you just want to give him a big hug and buy him an ice cold Schmitt’s? Well, not everyone is heartened by Paterson’s push to have out-of-state marriages recognized in New York.......

Governor Paterson issued a memo telling all state agencies to recognize legally performed, out-of-state same-sex marriages as valid marriages. This memo was, based on the February Appellate Court ruling, said gay marriages "should be afforded the same recognition as any other legally performed union." Assemblyman Daniel O'Donnell said, "Very shortly, there will be hundreds and hundreds and hundreds, and probably thousands and thousands and thousands of gay people who have their marriages recognized by the......

Photograph by joeholmes on Flickr The California Supreme Court struck down the gay marriage ban and legalized gay marriage. The decision will go into effect in 30 days. Chief Justice Ronald M. George wrote in the majority opinion, "In view of the substance and significance of the fundamental constitutional right to form a family relationship, the California Constitution properly must be interpreted to guarantee this basic civil right to all Californians, whether gay or......

A New York State appellate court ruled that under the federal concept of the "marriage recognition rule," which grants reciprocity to the bond of marriage formed in other states, it will recognize gay marriages solemnized in other states. As one of the largest states in the nation, this is a huge step for proponents of normalizing same-sex marriages. Gay marriages still aren't allowed in New York State, although a young mayor in New Paltz, NY......

Yesterday was the 38th Annual Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride March, and thousands of people participated - from shimmying and showing off their outrageous costumes to waving gay pride flags and hollering their support. The grand marshals of the parade were religious leaders Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum and Reverend Dr. Troy Perry; Kleinbaum said, "We stand for a progressive religious voice. Those who use religion to advocate an anti-gay agenda I believe are blaspheming......

The State Assembly voted in favor of allowing same-sex marriages in New York. Newsday said it was the first time a gay marriage bill was "debated publicly in one of the houses of the State Legislature Tuesday." However, the bill is not expected to make it pass the Republican-controlled Senate. Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said, "We're not doing gay marriage by [tomorrow's adjournment], that's for sure." The Sun had a breakdown of how the......

Democrat Micah Kellner won the special election to fill the Upper East Side Assembly seat vacated by Pete Grannis (who was appointed the Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner by Governor Spitzer). Kellner received about two-thirds of the vote over Republican opponent Gregory Camp. Kellner is 28 and has been an aide to City Comptroller William Thompson. He was born with cerebral palsy and managed to overcome it, a fact that was featured heavily in campaign......

All across the Ist-A-Verse (or at least the American parts thereof), writers and editors are in the midst of enjoying their three-day weekend. But after the week we've all had, we feel like the break is not only needed, but deserved. Just look at everything we've been doing! Gothamist headed into the Memorial Day weekend with a number of tasks accomplished. They worried about Long Islanders giving New Yorkers a bad name. They tried......

As rival Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney continues to gain ground, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani is still leading in national surveys. However, Giuliani has been facing criticism over his abortion stance, which has most recently been refined as something like I believe that women should have a choice, though I'm morally against abortion. And with that, he's trying to convince the conservative voters out there that he's a good choice. He gave this opinion at......

EVENT: BKLYN DESIGNS 2007 kicks off today. The design expo will not only provide the latest trends and lots of fabulous things for your home - but all day panel discussions, interviews and of course parties, after parties and much more. All Weekend // St. Ann's Warehouse [38 Water St, Brooklyn] // $12 per day THEATER: Porn star-cum-performance artist Annie Sprinkle returns to the New York stage with her artistic and domestic partner Elizabeth M.......

On the Gothamist Newsmap, one of the incidents is "Pedestrian Struck | West 51 Btw 9th & 10th Ave I/f/o Club Posh Manhattan, NY | 5/9/2007 2:14 a.m." It turns out that the pedestrian isn't any ol' pedestrian -- it happens to be Steve Green, millionaire real-estate developer, onetime member of the "worst landlords of the city" club, and high-profile gay divorcee. Green was leaving Club Posh, walking to his Rolls-Royce, when he was struck......

Back in 1990 the Rock The Vote campaign was founded and aimed towards getting the MTV generation into the polling place. Now the politicians are joining MySpace in an effort to reach the younger generation. MySpace Impact is where you can access each Presidential candidates profile. Some candidates have their profiles set to private, perhaps in an effort to get more "friends" (since you have to add them before viewing it). So far, Obama (who's......

PARTY: The L Magazine celebrates their fourth year and 100th issue tonight at their Fourth-Annual Centennial Party. There will be complimentary tequila and goodies from Brooklyn Industries and Crumpler. Come, drink, celebrate and don't think about the hangover you'll have tomorrow. 8pm // M1-5 [52 Walker St] // Free THEATER: This weekend concludes Stone Soup Theater Arts’ double bill of Edward Bond’s 1976 short play Stone and The Maguffin, an original farce that imagines a......

He wants to reform campaign finance laws. Spitzer told a group of government reform activists (aka Goo Goos - the good government types) he was negotiating with the Senate and Assembly, but State Senate Majority leader Joe Bruno said, "We've been close for a month, but close, you know, you don't get a cigar," and pointed out that it's easier for Spitzer to introduce campaign finance reform because he's rich (like almost $2 million reported......

The top judge in New York State, Court of Appeals Chief Justice Judith Kaye, has threatned to sue the state if judges don't get raises by the summer. And according to the NY Times, a proposal to give them raises seems to have been a victim of the last minute deal-making for the state budget - Governor Spitzer did include a retroactive pay raise for judges, but lawmakers proposed a raise for both judges AND......

The first line of a NY Times Caucus Blog post on Giuliani speaking today: "Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani invoked Ronald Reagan at least a dozen times in his speech this afternoon before a fairly young audience at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington." Is Reagan Rudy's new 9/11? The Politico says there's a "Mood of Gloom at CPAC" and people are wistful for Reagan, so, clearly Giuliani knows his audience. The......

Fascinating legal ruling concerning a gay marriage split. Couple Steven Green and David Gonzalez were married in Massachusetts on Valentine's Day 2005, after four years of living together. Then a few months after the marriage, they separated and started their courtship with the law. From the NY Times:...Mr. Green’s lawyer drafted a separation agreement, which both parties signed in September 2005, the court papers said. Under that agreement, Mr. Gonzalez transferred title of his ski......

Sunday. Usually, a quiet, contemplative day in the Blogosphere. But not here in the Ist-a-Verse. Nonono! Just look below and see all of the wild and crazy stuff our staffs are up to. In Austin, bands are beginning to confirm for SXSW and the rumor mill is up and running. Good thing, too, because we all know how much Austinites love live performances. Austin also found itself in the national spotlight, with Longhorn Legend......

- Brooklyn Papers talks to Brooklyn Beep Marty Markowitz who tells them they are biased about the Atlantic Yards project and updates them on his diet - An eighth grader tells The Politicker's Azi Paybarah that Eliot Spitzer's inauguration speech was positive but "mean" to George Pataki. How naive the young are - wait till you pay taxes, kid! - Speaking of Spitzer, good luck to him on trying to introduce gay marriage proposals......

Okay, maybe not the weirdest interview ever, but it's definitely a crazy lawsuit: Thirty five year old model Ana Sola is suing a prospective employer after he got grabby during an interview. Sola says that psychologist William Swan wanted to show her his special relaxation techniques that are part of a program for sexual abuse victims (Sola was interviewing to be a co-trainer). Judge Doris Ling-Cohan (you may remember her as the judge who feels......

With the NJ Supreme Court decision that gay couples should have the same rights as heterosexual couples just one day old, it's still unclear whether or not New York will accept a NJ same-sex civil union or marriage, though it has with other states. Mayor Bloomberg said, "New York City has a policy of accepting bona-fide marriages from other jurisdictions. I've always believed it's not the government's business whom you marry." And City Council Speaker......

The New Jersey State Supreme Court ruled that same-sex same-sex civil unions are constituational, and therefore "must be afforded on equal terms the same rights and benefits enjoyed by opposite-sex couples under the civil marriage statutes.” But the court said that the NJ government will decide whether it's "marriage," taking a stance similar to Vermont. The court's 4-3 ruling stated, "The issue is not about the transformation of the traditional definition of marriage, but about......

Democratic Governor hopeful Eliot Spitzer brought some life back into the gay marriage debate here in New York on Thursday night at an event for the Empire State Pride Agenda when he told the audience that "we will make it law in New York." Considering Spitzer's lead in the polls, his remarks were unexpected if welcome. “We will not ask whether this proposition of legalizing same-sex marriage is popular or unpopular; we will not......

Starting yesterday at the cavernous St. Ann’s Warehouse, New York City is getting its first chance to experience “Hell House”, an interactive spectacle that is fast becoming a Halloween tradition in churches across America. Nearly all productions of “Hell House” are based on a single script sold by Pastor Keenan Roberts, co-founder of The New Destiny Christian Center in Colorado. “Hell House” visitors are escorted through a series of graphic scenes which illustrate the......

Last night, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and former State Assembly Republican minority leader John Faso had their first gubernatorial debate. Both promised not to tax New York residents, though Faso wonder how Spitzer would be able to do that, with Spitzer's ambitious plans to cut taxes, give people more health coverage, and help school financing. Faso pointed out that Spitzer uses the private plane of a developer interested in bringing a casino to NY......

Looking ahead to this week's movie options, there's a few indie-sized pics and one massive, Super Big Gulp-sized car racing comedy. Ordinarily Gothamist is all about championing the cinematic little guy, but when it's this goofy, yet earnest we say go for the excess. But to the small fish first: Quinceañera is a Los Angeles coming of age story centering around one Mexican-American girl, Magdalena and the traditional celebration which marks her 15th birthday. A......