And just like that, Michael Patrick King has a high-profile date with GLAAD on the horizon.
The veteran TV writer, creator, director and executive producer has been selected to receive the Vito Russo Award at the organization’s 40th anniversary gala in New York on Oct. 10. The trophy, which will be presented to him by longtime collaborator and close friend Sarah Jessica Parker, is named after GLAAD’s founder and is regularly presented “to an LGBTQ media professional who has made a significant difference in accelerating LGBTQ acceptance.”
King has done so for decades in his work on such shows as Sex and the City, And Just Like That, The Comeback, AJ and the Queen and Will & Grace. King will join a roster of previous honorees that includes his Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon, Billy Porter, Anderson Cooper, Ricky Martin, Andy Cohen, RuPaul, Alan Cumming, Tom Ford, Rosie O’Donnell and George Takei, among others.
“I am honored to have my name associated with the name of Vito Russo — the inspiring, trailblazing hero of our LGBTQ world,” offered King, who is currently at work on a revival of The Comeback with co-creator and star Lisa Kudrow.
GLAAD’s milestone gala will be hosted by TV personality Ross Matthews. Set to appear as part of the program are RuPaul’s Drag Race stars Kandy Muse, Aja and Dahlian Sin and GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. Additional details will be announced in the coming weeks.
“With a longstanding and diverse variety of groundbreaking LGBTQ stories, Michael Patrick King has brought humor, humanity and authenticity to LGBTQ characters and lives, helping to raise the bar for inclusion in the industry and to shift culture at large,” said Ellis.
King has won two Emmy Awards, three Golden Globes and three PGA Awards. In addition to the aforementioned credits, King is the creator and co-writer of 2 Broke Girls, a multi-camera comedy for CBS that featured two waitresses and friends who tackle life in New York. His other credits include A Mann’s World, the Sex and the City films, Cybill, Good Advice, Murphy Brown and Temporarily Yours. He also wrote and directed the stage revue At Least It’s Pink.
