Norfolk, Virginia, July 1995I'm 34 years old, living in West Hollywood but visiting Alan for a few days. He's back at his sister's house in Norfolk, so I'm staying with my friend Tarik: about my age, short, dark-skinned, very muscular, with a handsome round face, bright eyes, and thick square hands.
We're having a potluck dinner with Alan and a few other guys. I'm hoping to get to "share" later with Shane, a twink with short blond hair, a smooth chest, and a basket that won't quit.
We have barbecued chicken, baked beans, greens, grits, and a fruit salad, but Alan doesn't eat anything but a few strawberries. He looks frail and gets confused easily -- nearing the end, I suspect (actually, he will live another ten years). So I try to cheer him up with the most outrageous stories I can think of about life in West Hollywood: sausage fondlings in the sauna at the gym, my collision with John Stamos' bulge, Lane's four-way with Cesare Romero, Batman, and Robin.
Back in West Hollywood, Alan didn't like celebrity hookup stories: who cares if the guy happens to be in movies or on tv? It's what's inside that counts -- inside his heart...inside his pants! But now he asks for more stories -- maybe they are reflections of his old life, before his HIV diagnosis, when he was young and full of optimism, with a world of infinite possibility in front of him. He interrogates me about any celebrity I have been with recently, and when I run low, what about Lane? Raul? Fred and Matt?
I mention Jeff MacKay, Peter Fonda, and Lost in Space star Billy Mumy. But Alan wants to hear about a teenager: "Let the dead past stay dead. I want to know that there are still gay kids growing up out there, a new generation to carry on when we are gone. Tell me about someone fresh and new."
"I hear that Jerry O'Connell on Sliders is bi," Shane the blond twink says, "And everybody's been in Brandon Call's pants. Some of your well-connected Hollywood friends must have hooked up with them."Great, now I need a "fresh and new" celebrity hookup story to please Alan AND to impress Shane with the goal of a three-way later. My mind goes blank -- could I create one from scratch?
"Um...well...Joey Lawrence jogs past our apartment nearly every day, and...um..."
Then Tarik chimes in: "That sounds interesting, but I think you should give the rest of us a chance. Did I ever tell you guys that I hooked up with Jonathan Brandis?"
I sigh with relief. Jonathan Brandis was a famous child star (Ladybugs, Sidekicks, It, The Neverending Story). Now 19 years old, he is a full-fledged teen idol, playing Lucas in the sci-fi series SeaQuest (1993-96). He always denies that he is gay, but there are lots of rumors.
There weren't a lot of science fiction fans in the African-American community of Norfolk. Science fiction was for white people, the adults said, to dream about black genocide and a future all-white universe.
Tarik didn't care. He loved science fiction, no matter the genre: books, comics, movies, tv. So much that he went to every convention he could afford. In October 1994, he drove four hours north to Baltimore for Farpoint 2.
Two of the three guest speakers were gay: George Takei (Star Trek) and Jonathan Brandis. Of course, neither were out -- you couldn't be out in Hollywood, and hope for a career. But everyone had heard stories about George inviting particularly muscular fans back to his hotel room at conventions, and Jonathan's preference for black men, with quite a long list of lovers for someone who was barely 18: Don Franklin (his costar on SeaQuest); Geoffrey Owens (Eldon on The Cosby Show); Jaleel White (Urkel on Family Matters)
The convention lasted for three days -- plenty of time to hook up with both George and Jonathan, and have time left over for Nick Miscusi (husband of the third guest, Nana Visitor).
The rest of the story, with nude photos and explicit sexual content, is on Tales of West Hollywood.