Crazytown

The app which was created as a way to meet hot guys, has become the secret networking tool of the gay mafia!
By David Davila (playwright / song-writer)

In the aftermath of the latest Paris Hilton scandal (she called gay men disgusting because they use the cell phone app GRINDR,) I’d like to take a moment to point out that Grindr isn't only used to meet sex partners. This social networking device is quite often used to make friends, and business contacts.

That’s right, GRINDR is a social networking device.

Though it’s true, many men meet on GRINDR and decide they'd like to shag, GRINDR is primarily just a way for gay men to network; and contrary to popular belief most messages on GRINDR do not end in sex, though they may end in the use of the "BLOCK" button.

In case your'e still using that dinosaur flip phone, GRINDR is a GPS based networking device that connects all gay men in the area and tells them exactly how far away from each other they are.

Knowing where all the gays in the vicinity are isn't disgusting, it's liberating. Back in the days of tapping feet and elongated glances life was rough for homosexuals. Our foreskinfathers forefathers had to live in the fear that their advances would not be returned or worse; that they might get the crap beat out of them.

Knowing exactly who is "family" in your neighborhood can help guys build their network of friends and colleagues, and yes sex partners... but let's focus on the friends and business contacts part today. Everyone can agree that it was easier to make friends in school because you're always meeting new people in the lunch line; well that is what grindr is, a virtual lunch line.

Grindr is just a place to meet other gay men.

Are most guys on Grindr trying to get laid? Yes, but most guys at any time anywhere in the world are just trying to get laid so Grindr shouldn't get the bad rap for that biological behavior.

I'm proud to say I've made several important contacts on Grindr that I now consider friends and colleagues. Working in the theatre district gives me direct access to the Grinding men of Broadway, and there's quite a few of them. I've met great guys who work in different management offices, production companies, even the big Broadway theatre organizations. It's no secret that theatre has always been run predominantly by homosexuals so what better way to meet the guys you wanna work with then on Grindr.

(Everyone in the industry is on GRINDR even Perez Hilton, and he's like the Gay Godfather, outing actors and recruiting members at every turn... so what are you waiting for? Join today!)

Since I run a theatre company dedicated to Texas playwrights, I always reach out to anyone who says they're from Texas on Grindr. I've met two playwrights this way who had very interesting plays that I hope to do readings of soon. I also met a great director who read and critiqued one of my plays and met with me for notes over coffee. I met a librettist who was straight out of college and desperate to pair up with a composer to start work on his dream project. I met a painter who I commissioned to paint the poster for my upcoming play ADAN Y JULIO. I met one of the producers of a film that I'm desperate to adapt into a musical (you can bet I'm holding on to that contact.)

(An early concept for the ADAN Y JULIO poster by local artist Xavier Ciro. The final poster is forthcoming. Stay tuned.)

I've also met tons of great actors who might be perfect fits for upcoming productions of my plays which are so specific that they have proven to be very difficult to cast. ADAN Y JULIO, my play about gay star-crossed lovers set against the Mexican drug war requires a young Hispanic twink with extreme emotional range, and a rough and tough young Hispanic cholo type. You bet that I reach out to anyone who might fit the bill and ask them to e-mail me their resumes.

... and I've made friends with several great guys that live in my neighborhood. I made a great friend that I have gone to church with several times, a friend I go to the movies with, and a friend who gets me into shows for free. :) All in all Grindr is pretty awesome for that reason alone.

Has Grindr made it easier for gay men to have sex with each other? Absolutely, but it's also made it easier for gay men to come together in ways they may not have done before; when they had to speculate and hide in the shadows.

Grindr has made it easier for us to unite, and unite we will. So the Paris Hiltons of the world can continue thinking we're disgusting, we will slowly plan their demise with the help of their make-up artists and stylists who have the power to make them look "disgusting."

We are talking about the Gay Mafia after all, what do you think we'd do put a horse head in her bed? It would ruin the de' Medici Italian linens!

It could happen... there's power in numbers, and Grindr has plenty of numbers... four million and counting...

(A map of all the men who used Grindr within a 45 minute time frame on June 3, 2002)

... and now for the 90's jam of the week in honor of the fabulous Colleen Harris' new cabaret show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre in Times Square. GURL became an overnight cabaret sensation with her show THIS TIME two years ago and now has a regular show every Monday night at New World Stages.

Her new show is called ALTERNATIVES and its completely dedicated to 90's alternative rock!!! YESSS GURL!!! I will be there Monday Oct 1st at 7pm... and you should be too! Don't know if she's singing this song, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. When I first heard this song as a teen, I think I immediately became an adult...

DAVID DAVILA is half of the song-writing duo Havrilla & Davila, author of the Tex-Mex plays ADAN Y JULIO, MEN OF GOD, CREDO, REQUERDOS OF MY LIFE, and AZTEC PIRATES AND THE INSIGNIFICANCE OF LIFE ON MARS. He is a self proclaimed Voxist, a Diva enthusiast, and founder of Lone Star Theatre Co. Wanna talk about it? www.daviddavila.net
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