Arts & Entertainment
Anderson Cooper shocked by Gloria Vanderbilt’s lesbian affair
CNN anchor says his mother’s revelation is ‘news to me’
(Screenshot via People)
Gloria Vanderbilt dropped a bombshell on Anderson Cooper when she revealed she once had a lesbian affair.
During an interview with People, Vanderbilt told Editorial Director Jess Cage she had once been involved in a same sex relationship at 13 years old.
“What? Hello, this is news to me. You didn’t mention this in the book, mom,” Cooper says.
‘I went through a brief so-called lesbian relationship with a girl in school,’ Vanderbilt, 92, told People. “Cynthia, her name was, and she came once to visit my aunt in New York on holiday. We had this sort of lesbian relationship and it felt so great. It felt so good and yet I thought, ‘There’s something about this.'”
Cooper, 48, says Vanderbilt’s mother Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt was accused of being a lesbian during the 1932 custody trial over Vanderbilt.
“That word wasn’t spoken. The press wasn’t supposed to write about it,” Cooper says. “My mom knew that something terrible had come out in the court, but she didn’t know what it was and she didn’t know what being a lesbian meant at the time, obviously.”
Vanderbilt says the affair was before the trial, but she was still wary about her feelings.
“This is before the thing I knew about my mother,’ Vanderbilt says. ‘I thought, “No, this is something that’s not really what I want.” It was very brief.’
“I think almost everybody goes through at one point. Of course, the thing is, now we realize there’s no difference. Love is love,” Vanderbilt added.
Cooper also spoke about how his mother’s attitude about same-sex relationships encouraged him to come out to her. As a child, Cooper says his mother was friends with a gay couple who she described to him as married even though same-sex marriage was illegal at the time.
Cooper and Vanderbilt have written “The Rainbow Comes and Goes: A Mother and Son Talk About Life, Love and Loss,” a joint memoir together out in stores April 5. They will also star in the HBO documentary about their relationship “Nothing Left Unsaid” airing April 9.
The fourth annual Equality Prince William Pride was held at the Harris Pavilion in Manassas, Va. on Saturday, May 17.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
The Washington Blade held its 18th annual Summer Kickoff Party in Rehoboth Beach, Del., on Friday, May 16. Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer spoke along with State Sen. Russ Huxtable, CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Kim Leisey, Blade Editor Kevin Naff, and Clear Space Theatre Managing Director Joe Gfaller. The event raises funds for the Steve Elkins Memorial Fellowship in Journalism, which was awarded to AU student Abigail Hatting.
(Washington Blade photos by Daniel Truitt)
In some fowl fiction foreshadowing, a gay-owned chicken joint has come home to roost on U Street, taking a page from the chicken window subplot on the HBO show “Looking.”
Last Friday, Lucky Pollo – much more than just a takeout window – stretched its wings atop the busy nightlife corner of 14th and U Streets NW.
Behind the poultry production place is Zach Renovátes, a D.C.-based nightlife operator and managing partner of LGBTQ venues Bunker and District Eagle, as well as the LGBTQ event production company KINETIC Presents.
Renovátes opened Bunker in February 2023 and District Eagle in January of this year. Lucky Pollo is the third in his growing gay empire, though this time there are noshes.
“Lucky Pollo was meant to be fun and a little provocative,” Renovátes said.
Based around its Peruvian-style rotisserie chicken, Lucky Pollo is a quick-service restaurant boasting a small menu of poultry and sides. Renovátes says that the dishes are deeply rooted in Peruvian culinary tradition, “a playful experience alongside seriously good food.”
Lucky Pollo’s signature chicken is steeped in a dozen-plus-spice marinade for 24 hours. The meat is then slow-roasted, rotisserie-style, over oak-wood charcoal. Chicken options include quarter, half, and whole.
Helming the kitchen at Lucky Pollo is Chef Luis Herrera, who brings Peruvian recipes passed down through three generations, including his grandmother Laura’s original creations.
Beyond the full bird, the menu features Peruvian-inspired sides like yuca fries (“I personally love these,” says Renovátes) and fried plantains, as well as comfort classics such as mac and cheese and mashed potatoes, and bowls, wraps, and salads. Herrera oversees development of the multiple sauces (including staff favorite, the “secret green sauce”), crafted in-house using traditional Peruvian ingredients.
Lucky Pollo, in its streetside perch, is an independent concept from District Eagle, open to the public and staying open late (3 a.m. on weekends) to serve both nightlife guests and the wider U Street crowd hungry for late-night bites. However, just beyond the kitchen, tucked in the back lies a vintage 1950s candy machine—labeled “Out of Order,” which serves as the door leading to subterranean District Eagle.
Renovátes notes that when District Eagle is open, security staff will maintain a strict two-line policy, ensuring that those seeking meat to eat will not get entwined with those looking to gain access to District Eagle.
Lucky Pollo unites the need for sustenance with the idea of a bit of fortune, given its motto, “Get Lucky” and the whimsical brand mascot: a leather-booted chicken perched on a horseshoe. Renovátes and his District Eagle business partner had always been interested in opening a restaurant, and the Lucky Pollo space was indeed lucky: It already came with a functional kitchen. Plus, he says, the nearby fast-casual places around 14th and U streets “don’t offer a lot of quality options,” so opening the chicken spot “was a no-brainer.”
The space, designed by NYC creative Jasin Cadic, blends theatrical street-art-style vibes with Keith Haring-inspired wall prints, neon signs, and ceiling-hung chicken figurines —”some edgy, some sweet,” says Renovátes —creating an immersive, playful atmosphere. Lucky Pollo and District Eagle maintain separate amenities for their respective customers.
Lucky Pollo opened last week with a competition to devour a whole rotisserie chicken in the fastest time, with the winner earning $1,000 and a framed spot on the restaurant’s “Wall of Fame.” The opening also featured other games and prizes, and a full crowd spilling out the door.
“We want it to be a great place to eat, but also serve as a playful front for something completely unexpected.” Renovátes says.
On weekends especially, he jokes, the motto will be, ‘Come for the chicken, stay for the cock.’”
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Calendar: May 16-22
