The Advocate, the
world’s leading gay news source, celebrated its 45th
anniversary with a gala event featuring emcee Ross
Mathews and special performances by Grammy® Award-winning artist Macy
Gray and Gay Men’s Chorus of
Los Angeles on Thursday, March 29th
at The Beverly Hilton Hotel’s world-renowned International Ballroom in
Beverly Hills, CA. The
Advocate 45th Presented by Lexus, which benefited the
Point Foundation, honored the
heroes and champions who have made significant strides in the LGBT community
over the past 45 years.
The event opened with a performance by Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, who
sang a rendition of Katy Perry’s “Firework,” followed by
remarks from Here Media CEO Paul Colichman, The Advocate Editor-in-Chief Matthew Breen, and emcee Ross Mathews, among others. Guests were then treated to short
congratulatory videos from various notable supporters including Ellen DeGeneres, Ricky Martin, Kathy Griffin,
Sean Hayes, Judith Light, Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Larry Kramer, Greg
Louganis, Dustin Lance Black, Senator Dianne Feinstein and more,
along with a performance by Grammy® Award-winning artist Macy Gray who sang a 3-song set including
“Nothing Else Matters,” a cover of Radiohead’s “Creep,” and “I Try.” DJ Beau Dasher provided music throughout
the evening.
The event also featured a captivating digital gallery
display of the complete Heroes Hall of Fame,
a list of individuals composed of a person or group of people chosen each year
by The Advocate who have been responsible for great
advances in the cause of LGBT equality. The honorees include: Jerry Joachim (1967), Pat Rocco (1968), Willie Brown, Jr. (1969), Dr. Franklin Kameny (1970), Jack Baker (1971), Madeline Davis (1972), Lance Loud (1973), Elaine Noble of Mass. (1974), Oliver William “Bill” Sipple (1975),
Dave Kopay (1976), Harvey Milk (1977), Dianne Feinstein (1978), Robin Tyler, Lucia Valeska, Rev. Troy Perry and
Phyllis Frye (1979), Gov. Jerry
Brown (1980), Billie Jean King (1981),
Rep. Henry Waxman (1982), Sheryl Lee Ralph (1983), Robert Gallo (1984), David Goodstein (1985), Donna Deitch (1986), ACT UP/Larry Kramer (1987), Sir Ian McKellen (1988), Edward Albee (1989), Bill T. Jones (1990), Patricia Ireland (1991), k.d. lang (1992), Roberta Achtenberg (1993), Pedro Zamora (1994), Roseanne (1995), Judith Light (1996), Ellen
DeGeneres (1997), Matthew Shepard (1998),
Rep. Tammy Baldwin (1999), Rudy Galindo (2000), Mark Bingham and Mychal Judge (2001), Rosie O’Donnell (2002), Bishop V. Gene Robinson (2003), Cynthia Nixon (2004), Melissa Etheridge (2005), Health Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal (2006), Hillary Clinton (2007), Dustin Lance Black (2008), Adam Lambert (2009), Chaz Bono (2010), Dan Choi (2011), and Rep. Barney Frank (2012).
Additional celebrity guests in attendance included Jesse Tyler Ferguson, David Burtka, Dustin Lance
Black, Camille Grammer, George Kotsiopoulos, Mark Deklin, Perez Hilton, Rex
Lee, Marisol Nichols, Renee Olstead, Reza Farahan, Willam Belli, Michelle
Clunie, Tracey Heggins, Serinda Swan, Drew Droege, Bruce Vilanch, Billy Bean,
Gloria Allred, Betty DeGeneres, David Millbern, Miss Coco Peru, and
many more.
In 1967 The Advocate
was launched in an effort to educate and unite the LGBT community
about unlawful arrests and bar raids. It soon became an indispensable and necessary
resource for LGBT current events, culture, and activism within the community.
Today as The Advocate celebrates its 45th
anniversary it remains ahead of the curve — covering events and themes
that often spur a cultural revolution.
