By Charles Karel Bouley II

Take the best picture category as an example. The rightful heir to the nomination should have been Dreamgirls. Let’s be real: Every other major award show gave it the nod, many an award. Oscar? Nope. And what of openly gay writer-director Bill Condon? Yes, he’s been up for awards before, but not for this, what many see as his best work. And while Penélope Cruz has been nominated for her work in Volver, where is the film in the best foreign language category, or it’s openly gay writer-director Pedro Almodóvar? They’re back in the cheap seats, in the “I’m not nominated this year” section of the Kodak Theater.

I’ll be at the Oscars, on the red carpet for the various radio outlets that I work for, covering the night from the carpet and then backstage. And trust me, the media room is about as heterosexual as it comes. When I was at the Golden Globes this year, I could count on one hand the openly gay journalists working the various rooms. Even behind the scenes, Hollywood homophobia reigns. And even in my profession, talk radio, homophobia prevails. On major stations there’s me, Al Rantel, Harrison and ... and ... hmmm, I’d have to think about that. Not many, I’ll tell you that.

I’ve done TV work on CNN and MSNBC, and, outside of myself and Andrew Sullivan, you’d think there were no other gay people with political opinions out there. When I did episodic television for a few years , my being out was an oddity. Even my agents tell me to not concentrate on the gay thing. Hell, even the gay channels are homophobic. Yes, Logo and Here! In their quest to be all things to all people, these networks have either turned into stereotypes or cowards, not programming very much, not empowering those out there that the other networks ignore.

And the sad part is, Hollywood doesn’t get it. The audiences don’t care any more. Take T.R. Knight from Grey’s Anatomy. Recently, he had to come out because Isaiah Washington called him a faggot on the set and then was sent off to faggot rehab. On the show, his character, George, was proposing to the fabulously vivacious Satry Ramirez. Not one person I knew had trouble believing the storyline due to Knight’s real life orientation. On the contrary, everybody I know was in tears by his proposal and were on eggshells waiting for her to answer. Yes, we know he’s gay, but his character isn’t. He’s a good actor, and so we, the audience, forget about it. Ellen is now the face of American Express (and Oscar). People care more about George Michael’s drug habits than his sexuality. Young kids today blast Scissor Sisters on their iPods. Face it, the consuming public cares less and less about gayness, but Hollywood, well, it’s caught in the Rock Hudson era of hide it, don’t talk about it, don’t show it and above all, don’t employ it if you can help it.

And that’s sad. It’s sad, because conservatives blast Hollywood all the time, telling the world it’s a den of sin and gayness. But if that’s true, where’s the mainstream movies with the gay storylines? TV has come a long way on that front. Brothers and Sisters handles the topic quite well, Six Feet Under did it brilliantly, hell, even The Sarah Silverman Program now has a gay couple on the young, male skewing Comedy Central. But Hollywood?

Look at the Oscar nominees this year and find the gayness in what is supposed to be the gayest of all businesses. Yes, there are rumors about Leonardo, but nothing concrete. Ryan Gosling is sexy as hell, but straight. Peter O’Toole, Will Smith, Forest Whitaker—not many gay boys there. Mark Wahlberg, Eddie Murphy (rumors aside), Djimon Hounsou, Jackie Earle Haley, Alan Arkin…Judi Dench, Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren, Kate Winslet, Penélope Cruz…on and on I could go, but there’s not a gay man or gay character to be found. Steve Carell played a gay man in Little Miss Sunshine, but did not get a nomination, while his co-star Alan Arkin did.

No, Oscar, just like everybody else in Hollywood, is worried that they might be bicurious so the awards, more often than not, play it safe. But more importantly, they are supposed to be a reflection of the acting industry, of Hollywood, and if it were a true reflection, wouldn’t that mean that there’d be lots more gay people and gay films nominated, if gays ran things, if gays were out and everywhere?

Is it easier for a gay person in Hollywood? Depends on the job. Behind the scenes? Sure, at least easier than at some job in the Midwest working for Caterpillar (if you have to ask, you don’t get it). But in front of the camera or in high-profile positions? Nope, it’s still a straight boys club with an occasional power lesbian thrown in for good measure.

Even in the creative fields, our influence is nominal. Take the recent Superbowl Snickers debacle. Did a gay man on Madison Avenue have anything to do with that ad? Not a self-respecting one, that’s for sure. Did anybody that viewed it prior to airing have any gay sensibilities? Obviously not.

No, if Hollywood were this gay mecca, why would we need organizations like GLAAD (well, I debate their usefulness in the first place)?

No, many in Hollywood have closets bigger than Mariah Carey’s (her real life closet is a big as some department stores), and they stay in their climate controlled, hermetically sealed environments. The few that are out take the brunt for those that aren’t. And those that are working are often overlooked for their great work, or can’t get their works to screen because of the institutionalized homophobia that still exists in Tinseltown.

There are many true stereotypes in this world, but the one that most of Hollywood is gay is just plain wrong. The myth that it’s easier for a gay person in Hollywood, or in the entertainment industry as a whole—again, just plain wrong. The fact is, gays and lesbians face the same prejudices in “the business” as they do any place else, and for everyone that breaks through, for everyone that succeeds, for every speech we see where someone thanks their lover, there are countless others that won’t be able to make those speeches or thank those lovers because they won’t be given the chance.

Of course this from a town that covets a statue that has no genitalia. Maybe if Oscar grew some balls the people in the industry would, too. It’s all smoke and mirrors anyway. It’s all fantasy. It’s all show business. Audiences want to be entertained, and they don’t seem to care by whom any longer. Now, if that message can just get through to studio heads, agents, managers and the power brokers. Maybe then Hollywood would at least earn half the gay reputation it has now.