Fri. December 1, 2006
Chicago, IL -
Just in time for the holiday gift season, the organizers of the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago have released a feature-length DVD with more than two hours of coverage from the huge July sports & cultural festival. With national distribution by Wolfe Video, the DVD is available for sale for US$19.95 online at www.GayGamesChicago.org.
Culled from 200 hours of raw video footage taken by a dozen camera crews throughout the week, the DVD captures all of the action and spirit of the Gay Games and includes:
• Opening and closing ceremony highlights including iconic performers such as Margaret Cho, Erasure's Andy Bell, Cyndi Lauper, Megan Mullally, Heather Small, Kate Clinton, Ant and members of the cast of Showtime's “The L Word,” Marlee Matlin, Pam Grier and Daniela Sea.
• Excerpts of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley's inspiring Opening Ceremony remarks.
• Chapters highlighting 30 Gay Games sports & cultural events.
• An interview with former NFL football player Esera Tuaolo.
• Inspiring on-site interviews of athletes, families and fans – including conversations with international athletes in Chicago on scholarship, Crystal Lake residents at the rowing competition, and athletes attending their 5th, 6th or 7th Gay Games.
• Live and recorded versions of "The Faces of Victory,” the new Gay Games anthem written by Chicago rocker Dylan Rice and performed at Wrigley Field with Chuck Panozzo of Styx and other Chicago gay & lesbian rock stars.
Bonus chapters include:
• Tom Waddell Tribute Video – 4 minute video honoring the founder of the Gay Games movement with commentary by Olympians Greg Louganis and Leigh-Ann Naidoo, former NFL players Esera Tuaolo, Dave Kopay, and Roy Simmons, and a dozen other gay sports legends.
• Sports, culture and entertainment photo slide show with over 400 of the best photos shot by 60 official Gay Games photographers.
• Tribute to the 400 courageous Gay Games sponsors from around the world.
The Official Gay Games VII DVD is available for sale through Wolfe Video with a direct link available at www.GayGamesChicago.org. Pre-orders purchased through the Gay Games organization are being shipped before December 1. The Gay Games VII DVD is closed captioned. It is executive produced by Chicago Games, Inc., and is produced and directed by Brenda Schumacher, former Broadcast Communications Director of Chicago Games, Inc.
About Gay Games VII
Gay Games VII Sports and Cultural Festival took place 15-22 July 2006 with 11,500 athletes from 70 countries competing in 30 sports ranging from softball to dancesport, swimming to tennis. The weeklong event included band, cheerleading and color guard performances, chorus, an ancillary arts festival, and a series of community-organized social events and parties. The opening ceremony was 15 July at Soldier Field, the lakefront home stadium of American-style football's Chicago Bears. Closing ceremony was 22 July at Wrigley Field, the home of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs, located in the heart of Chicago's largest LGBT neighborhood.
Global sponsors of Gay Games VII included Lexiva; Logo; PlanetOut/Gay.com; Sirius Satellite Radio; Walgreens; Centaur Entertainment; Fleishman Hillard International Communications; NBC 5 Chicago; Orbitz; McKnight Kurland Baccelli; Illinois State University; The New York Times; Olivia Cruises & Resorts; Pride Nation Network; Windy City Media Group; Absolut Vodka; American Airlines; Apogee Strategies; Athletico; Chicago Free Press; Chicago Sun-Times; Ernst & Young; GLAAD; Genre; Human Rights Campaign; Lambda Legal Defense; Nike; QTG-Quaker/Tropicana/Gatorade; Sydney New Mardi Gras; Mate Magazine; Pink Magazine; QTG (Quaker/Tropicana/Gatorade); RCN; and Roosevelt University. Gay Games VII had more than 380 total sponsors including ChicagoPride.com.
For the complete article (non-reader view with multimedia and original links),
Tap here.
Head to the local LGBTQ news, events, directory and people network at ChicagoPride.com