#47: That's not just any man... That's OUR man! You're a GOOD MAN, Clay Aiken!

[Lotus]

According to a post at CV the photographer and owner of the photo booth released the photos for money and was proud that they were on JustJared and TMZ.

[wandacleo]

Last summer when the fires were raging in CA, I was reading news reports on lines and happened to read some of the comments. Holy crap!!! You just wouldn't BELIEVE the horrible things people were saying--they were fighting and calling each other names---over a FIRE.

All famous people get the same crap--we just don't read it as much. It really only means that Clay is famous.

There are sad sick pathetic people who just sit at their computers and spew hate. It makes the smallness of their lives less crushing because for a minute or two they can feel powerful.

Some of these people pretend to be Claymates.

[muskifest]

Hello, y'all!

I belong to the OFC to support Clay, so I don't really expect anything.

Fear, this comment made me wonder about something. How DOES membership in the OFC support Clay? (or someone belonging to anybody's fan sit support him/her?) Does Clay get money for the number of people who join? Or is the number of hits on the site related to support? Does a fan club site get money from guiding members to buy stuff---like tickets or memorabilia or whatnot? Is it so that the celebrity has a NUMBER to look at --- the number of members? I wonder how each person who DOES 'join' the OFC feel her 'support' is manifested.

I'm not trying to be argumentative--I'm seriously curious about this. Someone on CH mentioned something about fan clubs being sort of like actual CD's--that their purpose and benefit might become obsolete with the change in online things like YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, digital and other 'modern' vehicles of communication and information. That got me wondering...

The thing that was most annoying to me when I glanced over the titles of my Google Alerts was that WRAL in Raleigh cited and linked TMZ as the source for those pictures! Hell, they were all over the place before that crap rag got hold of them!

Ah well, and so it goes. And I have to agree with jamar and couchie re: nasty comments on all kinds of blogs, not just Clay. And jamar? I loved Kirby Puckett, too!

Oooooh, goodie! I have a WONderful day ahead of me! I get to do taxes and fill out forms for financial aid for Alex's college years!

I'd much rather or

[wandacleo]

Post-hoing today (Feel free to scroll as I rarely have anything worthwhile to say that takes more than 20 words--just musing here.)

I think maybe it's a good thing that Clay and Reed's pictures are out there. If gays are to achieve equal rights to marry (live, have children, etc) , then people need to see gays in loving relationships. Not that Clay should be forced to be the poster boy (man?) for gay rights, but if African Americans hadn't stood up for their rights, the civil rights movement would have progressed a lot more slowly. My one real annoyance with the campaign against Proposition 8 in CA was that the ads showed FAMILIES of gay people rather than gay couples themselves. I read it was because the organizers were afraid gay couples would turn people against gay rights. I don't think so.

I think brave gay men and women need to live openly as gay and not be afraid to show their feelings.

(With the emphasis on brave.)

[bottlecap]

FYI - Some annual memberships at the OFC seem to be expiring today with no notice and some members are already locked out. butterflyshine posted this update at CV:

We have let Admin know that we are experiencing issues with the board, apparently many who renewed this time last year have been locked out. On Thursday everyone's membership was supposed to be pushed back to prevent this from happening, unfortunately it seems to have worked for some, but not for all. As soon as we get an answer, I will let you know.

[Clayzy]

Let's see... nasty internet comments? Meh. Screw 'em to a wall. Too many people are small, insecure little gnomes (typically with very tiny genitalia... ) who have to talk badly about other people to feel good (or get off, probably).

Oh! Thanks for the picture of the cat flipping the bird! I haven't had any coffee yet so my brain isn't wanting to remember who posted it... I'm thinking of adding that picture to my Facebook page and put her name on it...

So my mom thinks that this picture of Clay with Merle is the nicest, but thinks his hair "needs to be away from his face" like in the dinner picture and characterized the Professor Aiken look as geeky. I think with Clay, geeky is just inevitable!

Stuuuuuuubble...

Oooh, feel free to ignore me. I'll be found sitting on page 10, drooling.

[djs111]

I think maybe it's a good thing that Clay and Reed's pictures are out there.

I think they should have been able to make that decision for themselves.

Not that Clay should be forced to be the poster boy (man?) for gay rights,

but....isn't that exactly what you are wishing for?

I feel badly that evidently there is no part of his life that people consider off-limits or not usable.

I emailed a photobooth rental company, asking them who owns the copyright on the pictures taken - this whole thing has convinced me to never rent one or step into one, if the results can then be shilled to the public.

[Couch Tomato]

support to me isn't about something tangible...it's symbolic. It simply means I support you. It actually makes me feel good..i still smile at my little card.

Nobody doubts that it's clay's right to decide how the pictures get out. But now that they are people are trying to find the silver lining.

[wandacleo]

I think maybe it's a good thing that Clay and Reed's pictures are out there.

I think they should have been able to make that decision for themselves.

Not that Clay should be forced to be the poster boy (man?) for gay rights,

but....isn't that exactly what you are wishing for?

I feel badly that evidently there is no part of his life that people consider off-limits or not usable.

Just to clarify....the pictures are already out there, and what I'm saying is that while it's an invasion of privacy and they shouldn't have been released without Clay's permission--the deed is done, and with that in mind, I don't think it's something terrible that people see Clay and Reed in what appears to be a loving relationship.

NOR am I saying that Clay should be forced to be the "poster boy" for gay rights, but that I think that it's good when people are willing to do that--whoever they are--because I think that will further the cause of equal rights. I would never presume to tell anyone how to manage their ethnicity or sexuality, but I admire those brave enough to confront prejudice head on.

[canfly172]

According to a post at CV the photographer and owner of the photo booth released the photos for money and was proud that they were on JustJared and TMZ.

So I heard.

VIA the shed, VIA RHT, VIA CV:

(I heard it through the grapevine...la, la, la...)

QUOTE (bar4clay @ Jan 24 2009, 12:54 PM)

Hi Everyone,

I am usually on the CB, but have been having issues about limiting topics and other such censorship issues. I have this amazing story to tell and felt it would be appreciated here. By the way, I am known as flyingstarship on the CB. I am President of the Pink Jacket Ladies in NJ and have been a lurker on CV since it started.

My daughter, not a Clay fan, is an executive with a huge pharmaceutical company and they had a large company event last night. One of the highlights was THE EXACT photo booth used at the Spam after-party. She was talking to the photographer who runs it and he told her he did all the big parties in NY including the Spam party. Told her he got shots of Clay Aiken with his boyfriend.My daughter pursued this by telling him her mom was a Claymate. He willingly told her that he released the photos for money and was very proud of himself when he saw them on JustJared and TMZ.Just wanted everyone to be sure that Reed had nothing to do with this.

Make sure everyone knows that this slimeball who doesn't care about Clay did it for the cash.

Barb

Love your board and will be active on here from now on.

Canfly's humble opinion:

I'm not sure I'm buying totally that story cuz the pix didn't hit TMZ until the morning after somebody gave me the link on Thursday night to the zenfolio site where the photobooth pix from the Spam after party were posted. From what I gathered, the pix or the link with the PW was posted at RHT Thursday night. Correct me if I'm wrong but the pix didn't hit TMZ or PH until Friday right? Possibly this person didn't sell the link & PW to PH or TMZ but to somebody else, who shared them with somebody who posted at RHT? I dunno. Just trying to sort through this timeline but I wasn't hearing about them being on PH & TMZ until Friday, so they weren't first in the chain of access. I saved them Thursday night (really the wee hours of the morning Friday) in case they disappeared and then just sat on them cuz I was not going to post them publicly and be in any way responsible for tabloid sites being able to pick them up. Once it was obvious that they were already posted publicly, then I was OK with sharing.

No idea if this has been posted:

Top entertainment stories this week

By Kathy Hanrahan

Posted: Jan. 23 9:24 p.m.

5. Does Clay Aiken have a boyfriend? Well TMZ has photos of the Raleigh native getting cozy with alleged boyfriend Reed Kelly in a photo booth at the wrap of "Spamalot."

Speaking of WRAL,Lynda Loveland has left WRAL TV for WRAL FM.

http://www.wral.com/news/local/video/4384126/ Clay is featured early in the video.Who will cover Clay at WRAL next time?

DangHesHot has made some nice wallpapers. She posted at the Shed that you could pm her for a link to the full-sized versions.

I'm hoping she's OK with me posting them here. If not, I'll be waiting for the obligatory upside the head.

[Couch Tomato]

It's not important to me to know how the pictures got out there. If it was illegal Clay has it in his power to sue. That's how I usually approach stuff like this.

[Carolina Clay]

LOL, check out Chardonnay's treatment of the photos in her excellent blog entry: Outside the Box. You'll be glad you did!

Thnx for posting DangHesHot's graphics, canfly.

Caro

[FearofH2O]

Hello, y'all!

I belong to the OFC to support Clay, so I don't really expect anything.

Fear, this comment made me wonder about something. How DOES membership in the OFC support Clay? (or someone belonging to anybody's fan sit support him/her?) Does Clay get money for the number of people who join? Or is the number of hits on the site related to support? Does a fan club site get money from guiding members to buy stuff---like tickets or memorabilia or whatnot? Is it so that the celebrity has a NUMBER to look at --- the number of members? I wonder how each person who DOES 'join' the OFC feel her 'support' is manifested.

I'm not trying to be argumentative--I'm seriously curious about this. Someone on CH mentioned something about fan clubs being sort of like actual CD's--that their purpose and benefit might become obsolete with the change in online things like YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, digital and other 'modern' vehicles of communication and information. That got me wondering...

You know Couch Tomato will always say it better than me. I would have said to add to the number of members, but it wouldn't have been as sweet as her comment.

support to me isn't about something tangible...it's symbolic. It simply means I support you. It actually makes me feel good..i still smile at my little card.

Nobody doubts that it's clay's right to decide how the pictures get out. But now that they are people are trying to find the silver lining.

I feel bad that Clay wasn't given the right to decide what pictures he wanted released but as almost everyone has said they are very innocent. I think they show Clay as a loving sweet person to both Reed and Merle. Now add Parker in the mix and I'm goo.:15_5_16:

[djs111]

Oh, I clicked on the pictures instantly, myself!!!!.....I was just thinking that if the guy really sold the password, that not only sucks but may be grounds for a lawsuit. I didn't think the fans obtained the password through nefarious means. All the photobooth sites assure people that pictures can be password-protected, and certainly anyone of the posers who gets a password can share it. Just think it sucks if the booth owner also owns the pix and can sell for profit.

Hopefully someday, Clay can appear in public with a friend/partner/whatever - and not have his appearing with a guy meaning anything deep or newsworthy whatsoever. It would CMSU if he and Reed posed like that just for grins, too. Not that I think they did, I just think it would be funny if there was a complete curtain pulled over another relationship.

So, I guess I am enjoying the pictures, taking them at face value without dissection, and hoping Clay or somebody else can sue if that is appropriate.

[aikim]

I'm Back!! We have switched from Comcast to AT&T and I am loving it...seems to be much faster! Have to set up a new e-mail since Comcast cancelled my e-mail along with my service, I would not have minded it if they had at least told me they were going to do that...lost all my e-mail addresses, etc. But I think this new set-up is going to work.

So, what's been going on...did I miss much?

Saw the pictures, loved the pictures...glad Clay is happy and out having a good time with his friends.

Privacy issue...I think in today's society with the internet and gossip mongers...privacy is hard to come by and unless Clay goes back to being a recluse, never goes out with his friends or allows pictures to be taken...he really isn't going to have much privacy. I hate that fans have to ferret out any and all information and in effect; do the dirty work of the JP's and PH's of the world, but it has been so since the beginning and probably won't ever stop.

Off to catch up.

Of yeah...2 Days until Golfing For Inclusion!

Kim

[liney23]

Hey, aikim.... welcome back!!!

but there are so many others who DESERVE the nasty comments, why not have a Google alert for THEM rather than target someone like Clay who has brought joy and hope into the lives of many

Because darkness hates the light.

jamar... bolded above says it all. Clay has always been the light and the dark has always tried to bring him down. He just keeps shining! Titanium, indeed!

00lsee. I don't think Clay will ever need me to run his career. Besides I'm too lazy.

I belong to the OFC to support Clay, so I don't really expect anything. Although the "He's here" post was so amazing. It just made the whole year.

I think the Broadway bears picture makes Clay look like a high school student. His outfit looks even better with the overcoat. Too bad I can't afford the bear.

Edited for punctuation. I'm so bad at it.

Fear... I was going to ask what the heck the "He's here." post was, but just now realized it was Parker's birth announcement and you are totally right. The fact that Clay blogged to the fans just two hours after Parker was born was sooo great and inclusive. Those who are grumping about him not blogging or not being more inclusive need to remember this marvelous blog on 8.8.08. Thanks for reminding me!

[Couch Tomato]

welcome back aikim!!

Wish me luck..I'm about to brave the San Francisco roads..yes I've lived in the Bay area my whole life but I had to do mapquest for everywhere I want to go. Pray I survive heee along with PerusingOne.

[gbmifan]

I really enjoyed looking at the pictures, but it reminds me that Clay will probably never have real privacy. I will be honest, I was not sure what I would feel when I first saw the pictures with Clay and Reed together. I looked at them and realized that they looked so happy that I did not care. I love goofy Clay and Reed seems to fit right in. I had read somewhere that they could not believe that anyone would act this way. It was a private party and it sure looked like it was fun. I remember when I go to a function we sometimes do not always act discreet. My last party for work one girl was going around taking pictures down people shirts to see if we could guess whose boobs we were looking at. I forgot about this and when I was at work yesterday and saw some pictures that were taken at the party, I remembered this happened. The girl whose camera was used was working and she said she went home and deleated them because she found them to invasive. Thanks God those will not get out, but we were just being crazy and having fun. A few of my coworkers teased me that night they would surely know when my picture came up since I wear an I cup bra and it would be obvious. Sometimes at parties things are done just for fun.

[luckiest1]

I think the more likely scenario is that someone who was at the party shared the password with someone else, and that person shared it with someone, and eventually it fell into the hands of someone who had an interest in the Claynation. The pictures were being passed around by fans before they were picked up by TMZ and the like, IIRC. Anyways, although I am sure that Clay did not pose for them with the intent of them being publicly available, I doubt he's losing sleep over the issue. He wasn't born yesterday, so I'm pretty sure he knew the odds of them getting out were high, what with who knows how many people at the party, many of whom were probably not even acquaintances, let alone friends, of his. The password was for the whole set of 826, not just the ones that included Clay.

Hee, I feel so old, until these pics I had no idea that photo booths were now going digital and online! It's been years since I had my picture taken in one, but I remember posing for some pretty silly shots back in the day.....

Good luck, couchie!

[cha cha trusty]

Re: Photobooth and how the password got leaked:

I think each person who had there 6 pictures taken in the booth could get a printout of those 6 pictures. Each printout has the web address and PASSWORD printed right in the middle of it. It's no wonder that the password leaked, it was right there for anyone and everyone to see. All that would have to happen is for one sheet of pix to be shared, copied, lost & found, or stolen and it's no longer a private thing.

See? Right in the middle? It says "To see everyone's photos...?"

canfly - I think it was late Thursday/early Friday the pix appeared on PH/TMZ...

[wandacleo]

These are copyrighted photos which we have all been stealing at will (LOL) but "news" outlets, using the word very loosely, would need to buy them in order to post them, I believe.

[aikim]

Okay, I am the only one who thinks that Reed looks a little like Greg Brady?

Kim

[liney23]

aikim... you are right, he does look a bit like Greg Brady. Also, that one where his mouth is all rubbery reminds me of some old time comedian and I can not remember who. Red Skelton, maybe? He cute, regardless. Boyfriend has good taste and so does Boyfriend's boyfriend.

[luckiest1]

I don't see Greg Brady, but I do see Jake Gyllenhal (sp?).

[annabear]

A tiny bit of Greg Brady (lol) and a lot of Jake Gyllenhaal. "October Sky" was on the other night and I would have sworn it was Reed in the ads.

Welcome back, aikim!