Dr. Who?

Dr. Who 2: Sexed-Up British Intelligence
By DAVE ITZKOFF

WHEN the television producer Russell T. Davies was growing up in Swansea, Wales, he came to a realization about himself — one that he knew might cause others to belittle him and even shun him: he loved the British science-fiction series "Doctor Who." And he wasn't ashamed of it.

"There's very classically and traditionally a strong gay fan base for 'Doctor Who,' " said Mr. Davies, 42, in a telephone interview from his home in Manchester, England. "He is a loner and a wanderer. He doesn't represent the authority — he is a man, unlike any other, doing his own thing. I think you can see the emotional connection."

From its premiere in 1963 through its 26-year run on the BBC (spanning eight different actors in the title role) "Doctor Who," the adventures of an enigmatic time-traveler known only as the Doctor, attracted a big, intensely loyal audience of viewers young and old, male and female, gay and straight. (It also earned a cult following in America when the series was rebroadcast on PBS in the 1970's and 80's.)

But as Mr. Davies's own television career began to take off in the 90's — he was, until recently, best known in Britain as the creator of the original version of "Queer as Folk" — the "Doctor Who" franchise was stuck in a state of suspended animation: aside from a TV movie that was shown in 1996, new episodes of the program had not been produced since 1989, when its meager production values lost the battle against the megabudget space operas being made in the United States. "It was rubber monsters and plastic suits," Mr. Davies said of the show, "but it was always imaginative, even when they had five cents to make it with."

Over the years, Mr. Davies has published a "Doctor Who" novel entitled "Damaged Goods" and even devised a character for "Queer as Folk" who was himself a fan of the show. Whenever the character failed to make a romantic connection in the clubs, "he'd go home and watch an episode of 'Doctor Who,' " Mr. Davies said with a laugh. "I couldn't begin to tell you what that says about me." More

Stereo

Thong brought back two paintings from Vietnam. He bought a used print and put one in it shortly after he got back. Yesterday, he bought a second frame, broke the glass getting the botantical print out of it, and so off we went to Nicollet Hardware to buy some glass. Sad that Rex has closed. Now they're both hanging out in the bedroom. It's stereo. One replaced the Tom of Finland poster, and the other hides partially behind the door.

He claims they wuz rush orders. He ordered them shortly before he left, and he did not want them at the house with his family. I'll leave the reasons up to your imagination.