Welcome back to the Sewers of Paris. Thanks for your patience during the brief pause in the podcast during the month of June — and now I’m delighted to get back behind the mic for more conversations about the entertainment that changed the lives of queer people. On tonight’s episode: 

My guest this week is Manuel Betancourt, whose new book of essays about hunks, heartthrobs, and what pop culture taught him about men — and the desire for them. Manuel’s found his way through a series of re-inventions, moving from Colombia to Canada to New York and California, each time deciding to try out a new life as he zeroed in on the one that fits best — one that, it turns out, includes naked garden parties.

We’ll have that conversation in a minute. But first — you may have heard that I too have a new book out! It’s about the behind-the-scenes history of queer characters on sitcoms, and the role that comedy played in queer liberation — and continues to play to this day. It’s called Hi Honey, I’m Homo! and it’s available now wherever books are sold. I can even sign and personalize your copy before shipping it to you — just go to gaysitcoms.com and look for the instructions for ordering a signed copy.

Also if you’re a fan of queer culture, and I’m sure you are, don’t forget to swing by my YouTube channel for my videos about film and TV history. That’s at YouTube.com/mattbaume — and I’ve got a new video premiering this weekend all about Norman Lear that I think you’ll love. You can also subscribe to my email newsletter for weekly dispatches, and join me every Sunday for livestreams over on Twitch at twitch.tv/mattbaume — on the last livestream, we watched clips from a bunch of my favorite failed TV show pilots, and there’s lots more to watch on the next one.

Oh and one more thing — I’ve added two new free features to my Patreon. The first is a free tier that gets monthly Q&A videos where I respond to questions and clips sent in by folks like you. And the second is a free trial, so you can watch hundreds of Patreon-exclusive bonus videos for a week, and then decide if you want to stick around. You can check out the Patreon at patreon.com/mattbaume.