Outfest's annual
Legacy Awards honor producer Bruce Cohen and NBC
Universal's Ben Silverman. Silverman takes the opportunity
to announce his mother is gay. Outfest introduces its
new executive director, Todd Heustess.
Molly Shannon,
Outfest deputy director Kirsten Schaffer, and Ben
Silverman
Milk producer Bruce Cohen and NBC Universal
were honored on Wednesday night at Outfest’s Legacy
Awards, held at the Directors Guild Theater in Los
Angeles and hosted by Bruce Vilanch.
Cohen was
presented with his “Outtie” award by good
friend Ewan McGregor. As he went to the podium to
claim the statue Cohen greeted McGregor with a hug and
a kiss, remarking in a singsong voice, “I just kissed
Ewan McGregor on the lips. See, that is what this
evening was all about.” Cohen is a longtime
supporter of Outfest and helped start the Outfest
Legacy Project, which works to restore historic LGBT films
and videos, but he used his acceptance speech to thank
everyone else who was there, including his husband,
and to ask the audience to get active in fighting
Proposition 8.
NBC Universal was
also honored for its commitment to diversity and the
portrayal of LGBT characters in its films and television
shows. Accepting the award is NBC Entertainment
cochair Ben Silverman, who was presented the award by
Molly Shannon, star of NBC’s upcoming Kath &
Kim. His speech outlined the company’s
continuing commitment to the community, then ended on a
personal note. “I debated whether or not to say this,
as I am a bit of a press target,” said
Silverman. The audience was waiting for him to come
out. “No, it’s not me,” he continued.
“But my mother is gay.”
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