AIDS

New York artist and filmmaker Julian Schnabel, along with French Vogue editor-in-chief Carine Roitfield and Bobby Shriver of the (Product)RED Campaign, will be honored by the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) at the organization’s 10th annual gala on January 31, according to Variety. Presenters for the humanitarian fete, being held at Cipriani in midtown, include Marc Jacobs and Lou Reed (although the evening’s highlight may just be a special performance by none other than Barry Manilow!).  read more »

Klaus Nomi, the influential New Wave opera singer, semi-alien, and early ‘80s Lower East Side performance icon, was one of the first gay artists to succumb to AIDS when he died in 1983, as documented in Andrew Horn’s tear-inducing, yet hilariously quirky, 2004 film The Nomi Song. Though Nomi’s career was short-lived, and his synth-infused opera music -- for lack of a better word -- bizarre, the eccentric, German-born singer’s influence was considerable, touching pop stars (Morrissey) and contemporary composers (Austria’s Olga Neuwirth) alike. Now, on the eve of what would have been Mr. Nomi’s (nee Klaus Sperber) 64th birthday on January 24, a portion of his unfinished opera, Za Bakdaz, or “Nomi Homeland,” has for the first time been made available on CD.   read more »