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Gays get new Companion
BY SAM PFEIFLE
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Portland has a long history of gay-targeted publications, from The Furies in the ’70s to Our Paper in the ’80s to Apex in the early ’90s. Add to that now The Companion, a publication that debuted this summer and celebrates issue three October 19 by switching from a six-week to a monthly publication schedule. The paper is the print extension of Richard Lawlor’s and Wes Cannell’s GayFuninPortlandMaine.com, a Gay-issues Web site that went live last January, has a circulation of 5000 distributed mainly in Portland, and averages about 16 pages per issue. With a fun and campy tone that shouldn’t surprise those who know editor Lawlor from his event-planning activities, past issues have included a long interview with Mark Persky about leaving WBLM, No on 1 campaign coverage, listings of events, and random news and notes about gay issues from around the country. "Since it is monthly, we approach it more as a magazine than a newspaper," says Lawlor of the content. For this month’s issue, Lawlor is excited about his profile of Michael Maglaras, who’s made the film Cleophas and His Own about artist Marsden Hartley’s relationships in rural Maine. Also, as you might expect, Lawlor promises "lots of election coverage." The Companion comes amidst great attention to Maine’s gay community, with referendum campaign and Queer Television Network being added to Time Warner’s digital cable offerings. The challenge will be to avoid the fate of Portland’s past gay publications, which now find themselves companionless.
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