DVD/VHS By Blase DiStefano & Troy Carrington

TRASHY TEXANS

Some of our favorite celebs go Southern and sordid

Forget some of the terrible acting. Forget some of the terrible production values. But don't forget that Sordid Lives has its heart in the right place, which makes it not only watchable, but downright fun, y'all-especially in the second viewing.

The very dysfunctional group of small-town Texans includes Delta Burke, Bonnie Bedelia, Olivia Newton-John, Beau Bridges, and Leslie Jordan (you may not recognize the latter's name, but you'll recognize the face, even though he's in drag . . . as a Tammy Wynette impersonator, no less; you can also catch him as a semi-regular on Will & Grace as Karen's nemesis).

The weakest link in this trashy spectacle is Kirk Geiger as Ty Williamson, the gay son of Latrelle Williamson (Bedelia) who lives in West Hollywood; that he also lives in the closet is the crux of the story. The whole clan is gathering for the funeral of the family matriarch, but Ty can't seem to crawl out of that closet to make an appearance.

No matter. When you've got Delta and Bonnie and Olivia and Beau (in one scene in a lacy black bra!) interacting, you've got one helluva good time. And the good times continue with Newton-John's country crooning, not to mention her role as . . . well, if you haven't seen it, there's no reason to spoil it for you.

The Sordid Lives DVD includes, among other features, 10 deleted scenes plus interviews with Del Shores (the writer/director), Bedelia, Jordan, and many more.

Trivia: Bonnie Bedelia also played the mother of a gay man in the 1997 TV drama Any Mother's Son.

Available March 18 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. -Blase DiStefano

sistas 'n the city

This animated parody series of Sex and the City takes you through the lives of four very different women: Tameka, a publicist; Mercedes, a visual artist and painter; Jordan, a bonafide BAP (Black American Princess); and Athena, a lesbian neo-soul singer, who is voiced by underground rapper Medusa. One of the best bonus features is the interview with Medusa, who explains how her character's lesbianism makes her a little more open so she can see all the other characters' points of view. (Check out www.onebadsista.com for more on Medusa.)

The writer and creator is screenwriter Tina Andrews, who wrote the award-winning miniseries Sally Hemings: An American Scandal. She was also the first African-American woman to win the 2001 Writers Guild of America Award. • Available March 25 from Urban Entertainment. -BD

showtime's queer as folk

The complete second season

Called "truly revolutionary" by the New York Times, Queer as Folk instantly became Showtime's most watched original program upon its premiere in 1999, and it continues to break new ground in depicting the lives of gays and lesbians on television. Outrageous, hilarious, graphic, wonderful-and all 20 episodes of the second season are included in this boxed set. Five-tape VHS or six-disc DVD. The DVD includes three hours of extras, including "Inside Babylon," "A Week in the Life of QAF," "QAF on the Pride Tour," and a sneak preview of season three. From Twentieth Century Fox. Now in stores. -Troy Carrington

a queer as folk novel. In Every Nine Seconds (Pocket Books Fiction Trade Paperback Original), the first book in a new three-book series, author Joseph Brockton invites readers to visit the earlier lives of Brian Kinney and Michael Novotny by revealing tales that haven't been shared on TV, shining light on the intimate history of two of our favorite Queer as Folk personalities.

tales of the city

First six episodes, never before on DVD

Named one of the 10 best miniseries of all times by Entertainment Weekly, Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City introduces us to 28 Barbary Lane in hip, hot, anything-goes 1970s San Francisco. The powerhouse cast includes Olympia Dukakis, Laura Linney, Chloe Webb, and features Thomas Gibson, Billy Campbell, and Paul Gross. Now available on DVD and VHS. The DVD includes audio commentary by Maupin, director Alastair Reid, Dukakis, and Linney; exclusive behind-the-scenes location and rehearsal footage; cast bios; and much more. From Wolfe Video at 1-800-GET-WOLFE (438-9653) or www.wolfevideo.com. -TC

six feet under

Complete first season

From openly gay Alan Ball, the Oscar-winning writer of American Beauty, comes a series that digs where others fear to tread. When a bus kills Nathaniel Fisher, owner of the Fisher & Sons Funeral Home in Los Angeles, the tragedy casts a pall on the homecoming of his prodigal son Nate. Together with his mother Ruth, brother David, and sister Claire, they must address the family business, and the many more personal matters that arise when your life is Six Feet Under. The HBO series was the winner of six Emmys in 2002. Available from Wolfe Video at 1-800-GET-WOLFE (432-9653) or www.wolfevideo.com. -TC

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