August 16, 2012
Montreal Pride Welcomes "Queer Of the Year" Finalists
Mark Thompson READ TIME: 3 MIN.
Montreal, Quebec - Whether you're looking for a summer thrill or to get down by watching stiff competition go at it, Montr�al is calling you. Five "Queer of the Year" 2012 finalists are coming to town to snatch that crown. It's that time of queer again!
Tourisme Montr�al has been teasing the "Queer of the Year" freaky fanbase by revealing the five fresh faces one by one online, sprinkling in cheeky content (oh yes, they've been going to those places) over the last six weeks.
The five finalists are now in Montr�al, one of the world's most LGBT-friendly cities, to bring it throughout Montr�al Pride Week (August 11 through August 19). Social experiments have been designed with good times in mind, based on personality, community involvement, sex appeal, healthy lifestyle and talent. Now it's up to the fans to separate the fabulous from the anti-fierce.
Meet the Finalists
This son of a pastor with a Masters in Biomedical Anthropology and a pro sign language interpreter is tall, handsome, fit and selfless. We love him already. And so does everyone he touches (not literally, of course).
Our second finalist says he "brings down walls and connects people." No, it's not Bob the Builder - it's Topher McFarlane: stand-up comic, drag show organizer, community activist and occasional Zac Efron stalker. What's not to love?
This Cuban-Mexican bombshell of a finalist feels just as home on the dance floor as she does at...home. A self-proclaimed badass housewife with an appetite for Oaxacan cuisine and salsa music, she's also an entrepreneur, designer, and creative director of her own genderqueer fashion line.
He hails from Down Under, loves yoga, and is sometimes a she. Meet Shane Jenek aka Courtney Act, our 30-year old fabulous gender illusionist and pop singer. He says he's never met a person who has as much fun as he does. Judging from his stage performances, neither have we.
With abs to kill for and a magnetic personality, our fifth finalist makes friends easily. When he's not working out, he's working the crowd at LGBT fundraisers and community events. Looks like a fighter, acts like a lover.
Queers Give Good Facebook
Throughout Montreal Pride Week, the fivefinalists will be captured on film in episodes co-produced by digital artist Joe Sabia who is already hard at work having created Queers Through the Years and 33 Quips for Queers.
Through August 31, viewers can keep up with the action online and vote for their favorite contestants on Facebook. Closing ceremonies will include a final episode with the nomination of the 2012 "Queer of the Year."
Multiple Partners?
One winner will receive a round-trip air ticket on Air Canada and three free nights at Hotel Le Germain to return to Montr�al for a future visit, along with $5,000 CAD in spending cash.
The four runners-up will receive a $1,000 CAD cash prize. Montr�al Pride is the event partner for Queer of the Year. This is a community-driven, not-for-profit organization overseen by members of the businesses community, local LGBTA associations and event-planning and tourism industry representatives.
The Queer of the Year finalists will be flown to Montr�al on Air Canada. Hotel Le Germain Montr�al is the official hotel partner, providing accommodations to all contestants and the production team.
For more information, prize info, rules or the latest Montreal LGBT news,
visit Tourism Montreal "Queer of the Year" Facebook page and become a fan: http://www.facebook.com/QOTYcontest
Visit Tourism Montreal's Gay Life blog: www.tourisme-montreal.org/blog/gay-life/
Follow Tourism Montreal "Queer of the Year" on Twitter: www.twitter.com/QOTYcontest #QOTY2012
A long-term New Yorker and a member of New York Travel Writers Association, Mark Thompson has also lived in San Francisco, Boston, Provincetown, D.C., Miami Beach and the south of France. The author of the novels WOLFCHILD and MY HAWAIIAN PENTHOUSE, he has a PhD in American Studies and is the recipient of fellowships at MacDowell, Yaddo, and Blue Mountain Center. His work has appeared in numerous publications.
