Joey Pollari: American Horror Story's Ben has flirted with Nick Robinson and kissed Tab Hunter, but is he gay in real life? With Nick and Joey d*cks

Link to the n*de photos. 

 Last night we watched the premiere of American Horror Story, Season 13, entitled "13."  It was about what you would expect from AHS: an opening where "Are you scared?" sounds like "Great skin," heavy-handed symbolism,  people introduced with their back turned so we'll be surprised when they turn around, gore, homophobia, and a lot of cute guys.  In this case, just one cute guy, Ben (Joe Pollari), who has triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13).  

Unfortunately, he is dating a girl with triskaidekaphilia (love of the number 13). For her birthday (on the 13th), she wants to visit the 13 Cayman Islands with her 12 closest friends (making 13).  Ben doesn't want to go, for obvious reasons, but at the last moment, he decides to make a mad dash to the airport, and board Flight 1313, where he is in seat 13d. The plane crashes, and everyone is killed -- except Ben.

Next he gets a job as a hospice aid to an infinitely wealthy vampire-like being whose apartment is full of Satanic imagery, plus the real Last Supper (with Jesus and 12 disciples making 13).   Meanwhile,  a coven of witches gets upset because "something wicked this way comes," a serial killer clown murders 12 students and the teacher at a clown college (making 13), and Jessica Lange resurrects a lot of characters who died in previous seasons (including two Evan Peters). 

Heck with a review. Let's just profile the hunky Joey Pollari.  

Joey was born in 1994, and grew up in Minneapolis, and broke into acting after attending a scouting event -- the next day agents started calling.  After taking acting lessons and doing a guest spot on Cold Case, he landed his first starring role in Disney's Skyrunners (2009). Tyler (Joey) stumbles upon a spaceship, which gives him magical powers.  He uses them to help his older brother Nick (Kelly Blatz) win The Girl of His Dreams.  

Well, at least Tyler isn't winning a girl.

Next he starred in The In-Betweeners (2012), about four high schoolers who are inexperienced in the bedroom and want to meet girls.  With girls.  It was on MTV, what do you expect?  

Eden (2014) is Lost without the paranormal: A soccer team (plus The Girl) is stranded on a desert island.  As far as I can tell, there's no gay content, but Michael Cardelle (left) shows his stuff.

The gay roles begin the anthology series American Crime, Season 2 (2014).  A high is  outed when "incriminating" photos are published online.  He accuses three jocks, including Erik (Joey), of drugging and doing nonconsensual stuff with him.  Then Erik is forcibly outed, and claims that it was consensual.  Then Taylor murders one of them.  It's all very sordid, and I thought we had moved beyond "being gay is a horrible secret that can never be revealed." 

Love, Simon (2018), a movie about a closeted high schooler (Nick Robinson) who has to wrangle finding the identity of his crush and dealing with a blackmailer who threatens to reveal his secret.  Another terrible secret that must never be revealed?  I'm seeing some internalized homophobia in these portrayals

On RG Beefcake and Boyfriends: Nick's d*ck and backside.

Joey plays Lyle, a server at a restaurant who flirts with Simon, but is actually interested in his female friend. 

More after the break

Shirtless Sports Fans

I've never been to a sports match except for a couple of baseball games, but I understand that it's customary for fans to take their shirts off and spell out their team with letters on their chests.

Looks like there's more beefcake in the stands than on the field.

They can also spell out the name of their favorite player.

Or miscellaneous sentiments.

It helps to get the letters in the right order.

Two letters on a chest isn't really fair.

More after the break.

Jan-Michael Vincent: His n*de photo was the talk of West Hollywood

  

Link to the n*de photos

In the 1990s, you rarely saw male actors with their shirts off, and seeing them n*de was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So when this photo appeared in the gay magazine In Touch, it was a sensation.  Everybody bought a copy.  Everyone having brunch at the French Quarter was speculating on it.  The blurb told us that he was Jan-Michael Vincent in Buster and Billie (1974), but was it a gay movie?  Was it adult?  Was Jan-Michael Vincent one of us?

Some of us remembered him from Danger Island, a serial on the Banana Splits Saturday morning show (1968-69): An archaeologist, his daughter, and his assistant Link (Jan-Michael)) are shipwrecked on a desert island, where they befriend a stranded gay couple -- nearly overt, with lots of "we've been together for years" and "I won't leave you." 

And Big Wednesday (1978), with Jan-Michael, William Katt, and Gary Busey as surfer buddies.

But otherwise we came up blank. In the days before the internet, you couldn't look up an actor's works easily, and Jan-Michael's movie and tv appearances weren't of much gay interest.

The Mechanic (1972): Assassin Charles Bronson takes on his buddy's son (Jan-Michael) as an apprentice.

The World's Greatest Athlete (1973): Coach John Amos goes to Africa and recruits a Tarzan-type (Jan-Michael) to be a track and field star.  He falls in love with a girl named Jane. 

This p*nis and backside scene does not appear in the movie.  It must be an out-take.

Bite the Bullet (1975): A newspaper sponsors a 700-mile horse race across the Old West, and a group of misfits, including Gene Hackman, Candace Bergin, and Jan-Michael, compete.

Vigilante Force (1976): Um...Jan-Michael fights Kris Kristofferson while The Girl serves drinks?

More after the break

Oliver Sawell: A Surrey boy plays two gay guys, posts a shirtless Spiderman, and throws it. With three n*de co-stars

Link to the n*de photos

I got another guy on my Instagram recommendations who is very famous outside the U.S. but unknown here.  Actually, two guys: Alan Carr (middle) and Oliver Sawell (left).  Here they are being interviewed by Chatty Man. The question: "Would you eat a brussels sprout curry?"

Alan is a comedian and presenter with over 200 appearances on British tv, beginning in 2002.  A few that stand out: The Law of the Playground, 8 of 10 Cats, Jool's Hootenany, The Friday Night Project, Spexy Beast Live...

I'm only at 2013.

Playing it Straight, Alan Carr's New Year Specstacular, Alan Carr: Chatty Man, Good Morning Britain, There's Something About Movies, The Celebrity Traitors, This Morning, Alan Carr's Picture Slam, RuPaul's Drag Race UK, The National Television Awards...

Wait -- RuPaul's Drag Race UK?

Yep, Alan is gay.  His ex-husband is comedy writer Paul Drayton, whose Ride or Die Trying was published in 2026. 

I'm surprised that a gay person is such a major media figure, but maybe Britain is a little less homophobic than the States.

In 2023-2026, Alan narrated Changing Ends, an autobiographical comedy about growing up gay and femme in the 1980s.  He starts out unaware of the existence of gay people, but soon figures it out. There are plotlines about coming out and getting a boyfriend.

Shaun Dooley (right) plays his macho Dad, who manages a 4th Division football club, and wants Alan to become a footballer, too.

I couldn't begin to profile Alan Carr in 12 photos and 300 words, so I'll profile Oliver, who plays the young Alan.

The bald dude is Richard Franks, host of Enquiries, interviewing the super-famous 16-year old: Royal Television Society Award, nominated for two BAFTAs, presenter at the British Soap Awards and the National Television Awards.

He was born in Farnham, Surrey, one of those quaint English villages with cobbled streets, a castle, and...um...Domino's Pizza. 

More after the break