'Can We Help?' Joan Rivers Seeks Support For Financially Ailing NYC Gay Men's Chorus

On the eve of its 30th anniversary season of bringing harmony, awareness and visibility to New York City in support of the LGBT community, the New York City Gay Men's Chorus (NYCGMC) announced that it is in jeopardy of having its voice silenced permanently due to severe financial problems. Major NYCGMC friend and fan, Joan Rivers, is reaching out to help the chorus in their time of need as they host a number of fundraising efforts.

Joan Rivers is the Tony-nominated actress, playwright, screenwriter, motion picture director, Emmy Award-winning television talk-show host, jewelry designer, business woman and mother to "what's-her-name" Melissa.

She is on the board of God's Love We Deliver, National Chairwoman of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, and gives lectures around the world on suicide prevention and survival. With her trademark mix of outspoken wit, savvy and compassion, she continues to be one of America's most admired first ladies of comedy.

Rivers sent out a letter today requesting support for NYCGMC and you can read her message right here on BWW:

August 13, 2009

Greetings!

Can we talk?

I haven't been this depressed since Paris Hilton picked somebody else over me as her new BFF. Since those crazy kids Jon and Kate couldn't make a go of it. Since the Octomom refused to adopt me. Since....well, you get the picture. I'm UPSET!

Why, you may ask? Because my beloved New York City Gay Men's Chorus is having a tough financial crisis and there's a very real chance that they may have to shut down the organization. That simply cannot happen.

I love these guys. I've performed with them at Lincoln Center. They've been in my living room and, believe me, it isn't often that I have 250 men in my living room. Well...OK, but that's another story...

This is serious stuff, my friends. This economic downturn is hurting everybody. And, we all know that so many important causes are asking for our support. I'll tell you why I think the New York City Gay Men's Chorus deserves OUR support.

The Chorus gives a beautiful voice to important initiatives such as marriage equality and non-discrimination. And even today, there are always people looking for role models, for the courage to come out - and these guys stand proudly as out, accomplished, proud and committed gay men. We cannot lose their influence on our culture, our community and the very pulse of New York City.

For 30 years, the Chorus has been making beautiful music and changing lives. There are young gay men new to the city, founding members, even a few women - who knew? - for whom the Monday night rehearsals are a ritual and a touchstone, providing a creative outlet and supportive family, sometimes when their own families have kicked them out.

The Chorus has offered comfort to the community after the tragedy of 9/11, fought in the battle against AIDS, and mourned the loss of over 100 of its own members. And they do all this, while sounding TERRIFIC and being just ADORABLE as all get out.

You can help TODAY by visiting their website at www.nycgmc.org or calling their office at 212- 344-1777. Make a donation. Host a party in your home (don't worry...all 250 of them don't have to show up!). There are all sorts of ways to help.

Please do it today. Don't make me beg. It's not pretty.

Many thanks!

Joan Rivers

The NYCGMC is undertaking a number of efforts to stay alive including a public awareness campaign, fundraising efforts to the broader community and outreach to secure support from elected officials, LGBT leaders and celebrities with whom the Chorus has performed. The more than 200 members of NYCGMC are also raising money through personal solicitation and popular social networking groups.

A fixture on the New York City cultural scene since its founding in 1979, the New York City Gay Men's Chorus has performed in a wide variety of venues from the Metropolitan Opera House to Madison Square Garden, and even Yankee Stadium and Joan Rivers' living room. The group was the first gay chorus to perform in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, the first American gay chorus to tour Europe, and the first to have a recording contract with a major label, having produced eight recordings.

August is Joan Rivers month! On August 5th, TV Land premiered "How'd You Get So Rich?" hosted by the legendary comedian. On August 9th, the Comedy Central Roast of Joan Rivers aired. And on August 4th, the legendary comedian returned to Times Square for 6 performances. Rivers presented an evening of her newest and most outrageous riffs on Hollywood, pop culture, celebrities, and award show fashions at The Laurie Beechman Theatre inside the West Bank Cafe (407 West 42nd Street at Ninth Avenue). Rivers performs live on Tuesdays at 9pm and Wednesdays at 8pm through August 20 (Note: There is no show Aug. 18, but there is an added show on Thursday, August 20 at 9pm). Tickets are $30 with a portion of the proceeds going to Joan Rivers' favorite charities: God's Love We Deliver and Guide Dogs for the Blind. There is also a $15 per person food or drink minimum. For reservations call 212-352-3101 or visit www.SpinCycleNYC.com.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, Joan Rivers "made the rounds" in New York during the ‘50s, appearing in a few off-off Broadway plays (including one where she played a lesbian opposite an equally unknown Barbra Streisand), surviving sleazy agents, tawdry clubs, and hostile audiences. A 1965 booking on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" led to her hosting one of the first syndicated talk shows on daytime TV, "That Show with Joan Rivers" in 1968. In the ‘70s Joan wrote the TV-movie The Girl Most Likely To (starring Stockard Channing) and then wrote and directed her first feature film Rabbit Test, casting Billy Crystal in the lead. In 1983 Joan became the permanent guest host on "The Tonight Show." Later, she headlined in Las Vegas, sold out Carnegie Hall, produced a Grammy nominated comedy album, and wrote two best-selling books. In 1989 the Tribune Corporation launched Joan in her own syndicated daytime talk show. She won an Emmy and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1994 she wrote and starred on Broadway in Sally Marr and Her Escorts, for which she received a Best Actress Tony nomination. Since then, Joan has written three more best-selling books, maintains her own jewelry line on QVC, provided fashion commentaries for E! and The TV Guide Channel, and filmed a special for Bravo. Currently, she has two new books on sale (Men Are Stupid . . . And They Like Big Boobs: A Woman's Guide to Beauty Through Plastic Surgery and Murder at the Academy Awards). Earlier this year, she was the winner of Donald Trump's Celebrity Apprentice 2.

Photo credit Walter McBride