The Gay Agenda

FLICK: With Brad Pitt showing off his acting chops (read: pretty face) as the fastest gun in the West and Mary-Louise Parker delivering a performance thats already attracted critical nods, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford officially kicks off the fall Oscar bait season on September 21. "Jesse James is bigger than you can imagine," says Robert Ford (Casey Affleck). Here's hoping. TUNES: With her status as an out lesbian and political activist getting the most attention, its easy to forget how talented veteran musician Melissa Etheridge really is. Pick up her latest release, The Awakening, September 25. BOOK: In his best-selling memoir Running with Scissors, Augusten Burroughs speaks briefly of his brothers battle with Aspergers. With Look Me In the Eye, Burroughs's brother John Elder Robison steps into the spotlight and tells his version of Scissors through a unique pair of eyes. SCHMOOZING: The good news: Those interested in networking (and who isnt?) can attend the Out & Equal Workplace Summit in Washington, D.C. September 27-29. The bad news: Youll have to dust off that resume, slacker. The summit brings together bigwigs from corporate environments as well as nonprofit organizations. For more information, go to OutandEqual.org. TUBE: On the heels of a criminally overdue movie adaptation comes the new season of the long-running (and, let's face it, supergay) cartoonThe Simpsons. Homer gets a life coach voiced by Stephen Colbert, and Lionel Richie (no lie!) even drops by. See it September 23.