Lovin' my Logo

We got a postcard from our cable company alerting us to the fact that they were adding 4 new channels to the digital cable channel line-up on Sept 26th. One of them was Logo, the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender cable network. That’s all I needed to hear (read). I made a note on my mental calendar for Sept 26th. I save the postcard.

Sept 26th finally arrives and I anxiously attempt to tune in to channel 163 for Logo. Nothing. Hmmm… I go back to the postcard and read it again, this time a bit more carefully, and notice the key word I’d missed before: digital. The 4 new channels (including Logo) were being added to the digital cable service. We have analog.

I’d never switched from analog to digital cable (despite the repeated attempts by the cable company’s marketing department) because I had no incentive. At the time, the only gain for upgrading was getting music channels, which I don’t need on my TV since I have a CD player and CDs. Oh yeah, and there’s the higher price of digital.

But knowing there was a GLBT cable channel out there that I couldn’t watch made me call the cable company and inquire about the cost differential and any other added channels. I found that by subscribing to a particular upgrade package, combined with the rep’s ability to remove other a la carte charges that would be included in the package, I’d only have to pay about $7. more per month. “Okay – sign me up” I told him. Within about 20 minutes, I had my new, expanded digital cable programming, including Logo!

Logo shows movies with gay themes, and original series and programs. I was thrilled to watch my favorite movie of all time “Torch Song Trilogy”. They also have an interesting show called “Noah’s Arc”, which is kind of like the black gay man’s ‘Sex and the City’. They also have a stand up comedy show called Wisecrack that I’ve enjoyed a few times, and “Roundtrip Ticket”, a travel show with a pink passport.

Not all the programming is wonderful and satisfying, although it is all gay related in some way. One of the less enjoyable films was called “Our Sons”, starring Julie Andrews and Ann Margaret, who play the mothers of two gay men who are in a relationship. One of them is dying of AIDS… you know the rest of the story. But like I told Joe, that film was made during that dark period in gay cinema when all films included a gay man dying of AIDS. Not to minimize that real-life experience at all, but it seemed that during the late 80s/early 90s every movie with a gay character also had one dying of AIDS. Gratefully we’ve moved on to some other pertinent topics in gay cinema.

I found that my upgrade to digital cable also brought me even MORE home improvement shows, as well as several channels of Encore and Sundance, which often have non-mainstream selections I enjoy. Sundance even has a series called “TransGeneration” which chronicles the lives of 4 transgender college students, in various stages of transition. Very interesting and enlightening.

All in all, I’d say the additional $7. a month is worth it for all the new GLBT and non-mainstream entertainment I’m receiving. So if you call or email and I don’t respond, I’m probably watching TV.