Halloween: A Cheap Costume Idea

Hallowe’en is nearly here! Xtra and Fab have already listed all the party goings-on for the sacred gay weekend, and over at the Round-Up Scott’s got a list of spooky costume suggestions (although I think it might still be too soon to go as Matthew Shepard, personally).

This year I’m keeping it simple and going as one of Toronto’s local ghouls — terrifying Toronto Star columnist Rosie DiManno.

DiManno’s terrible writing has attracted criticism all over the interwebs, particularly from Torontoist (where I snagged the above composite), and also on this very blog. As someone with no moral compass or shame, she’s the perfect source for a drag costume.

I was all prepared to go out and buy wig and do a terrible dye-job myself, but then I discovered that Shoppers’ Drug Mart sells ready-made DiManno wigs off the rack.

They’re just called “Colour Streak Witch” wigs. Simply pull the hair behind your ears, throw on some junk earrings, and add cherry red lipstick. Air of disgust, spite, and utter shamelessness sold separately. Happy Hallowe’en!

Oh, and if you’re looking for real news, Canadian Blood Services has recently created a fan page on Facebook, and this week activists have inundated it with complaints about the gay blood donor ban. It sure looks like CBS is having fun responding to each of the complaint posts, so why not go stir the pot a bit?

Rob Salerno is a playwright and journalist whose writing has appeared in such publications as Vice, Advocate, NOW and OutTraveler.

Keep Reading

A still image of Anne, played by Amybeth McNulty, in braids and a coat, looking at another child in Anne with an E.

Why the adaptation ‘Anne with an E’ speaks to queers and misfits of all kinds

The modern interpretation of Anne of Green Gables reflected queer and gender-diverse people’s lives back at them 
Karla Sofía Gascón as Emilia Perez in Emilia Perez. Gascón wears black with colourful embroidery, has long hair, and a brown purse and delicate chain.

Trans cartel musical ‘Emilia Pérez’ takes maximalist aesthetic to the extreme

REVIEW: The film’s existence raises intriguing questions about appropriate subjects for the playful machinations of French auteurs
Dorothy Allison sits behind a microphone. She has long, light-coloured hair and wears glasses and a patterned button-up shirt.

5 things to know about Dorothy Allison

The lesbian feminist writer passed on Nov. 6

‘Solemates’ is a barefoot stroll through the history of our fetish for feet

Queer historian Adam Zmith’s newest book allows us to dip our toes into the past of a common, yet stigmatized, kink