Gay Magazine Honors Villaraigosa

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and LA Gay and Lesbian Center head Lorri Jean received special honors at a party held for Frontiers magazine’s 30th anniversary.

LA’s oldest and largest gay paper gave the Community Builders Award to Villaraigosa and Jean in recognition of their dedication to helping build a stronger LGBT community in the greater Los Angeles area.

The party was held Sunday afternoon at Eleven nightclub in West Hollywood with several hundred people in attendance. 1980s pop music played on the club’s sound system while images of 30 years worth of Frontiers covers flashed on TV screens around the club.

Described himself as being the mayor of a city that is “West Hollywood adjacent,” Villaraigosa said it was “so beautiful to see people who can celebrate their love freely.”

West Hollywood City Councilmember John Duran listed a number of significant events in area gay history, including AIDS rallies and Prop 8 protests, noting that Frontiers was there to cover each event

“Without Frontiers, we would not have the commonality that holds all of these people in the room together,” Duran said.

Frontiers publishers David Stern and Mark Hundahl thanked readers for supporting the magazine and thanked their “amazing staff” for putting out the magazine.

“I’m so blessed for all the crew that comes in and puts this product out,” Stern said.

Frontiers was founded in 1982 by gay activist Bob Craig who died of AIDS in 2000. Stern and Hundahl, who owned the competing gay magazine IN, purchased Frontiers in 2007. They ran Frontiers and IN as sister publications until 2009 when the two were merged into one magazine.

Frontiers is published biweekly and distributed for free throughout Southern California.

Full disclosure: West Hollywood Patch guest editor James F. Mills is also a contributor to Frontiers magazine.  

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