 |
 |
HBO: How did the idea of creating a gay and Lesbian family cruise come about?
Rosie O'Donnell: When Kelli was pregnant we went to Provincetown for family week and brought our children.
It was a really magical time for us. It was emotionally fulfilling for our family to be around other
like-minded families...a great celebration of the diversity of families, and what makes up an
American family. That's when I turned to Kelli and said, "Wouldn't it be great if we could do
something like this on a yearly basis?
Gregg (Kaminsky), Kelli's partner and best friend, had worked for a gay cruise company. He
said, "Well, we could book a cruise ship." We all kind of looked at each other, and then I said,
"Get it." I know that's all I said. (LAUGHS). And here we are.
Kelli O'Donnell: We're now heading into out third charter next summer.
Rosie O'Donnell: Gregg invited me to fly down to one of his charter cruises for a day to do a stand-up. And I
said, "Sure." That was the first time I had ever been on a charter, where everybody sort of
knew each other. And I thought, "Wow, this is fun." There was a wonderful sense of
community.
If you go to the mall, you don't know the other shoppers. You kind of nod, and you're both at
the sale rack. And you think, well, yes, we're having a lively time. But if you rented out the
mall and invited all the people who you know and love to come, you would have a community
experience, right?
You know, the check-in alone was unbelievable. I had just come from filming, "Riding the Bus"
in Toronto. Kelly was already on the boat working. I got home, picked up the kids, got
changed, got in the car, and didn't know what to expect. And here I am walking with four kids
dragging on me through this sea of families. Children and fathers and mothers and
grandparents. Many of them were crying, kids were giving me flowers, mothers were
hugging... it was very moving.
Kelli O'Donnell: I think that many of the passengers that day could have turned around and walked home and
felt like they had just experienced something amazing.(LAUGHS) There's no one place that
so many gay families have been together. And a lot of these families have never met another
gay family, and their children have never seen another gay family. So that experience in itself
was pretty magical.
Rosie O'Donnell: You'd hear the funniest things on the ship, kids in the pool saying "My mommies could beat up
your daddies." You know? (LAUGHS). And then we saw the daddies, and we thought, it's
probably true.
The reality of the American family all came together in a beautiful way. And, you know, in
some ways the heterosexual families that were here were also celebrated. One couple in the
group said that they felt like they were the grandparents to all of these children whose real
parents couldn't accept them. Or weren't yet ready to accept them.
Kelli O'Donnell: As a gay person who brought my straight family members on board, it was great thing to be
able to show them what my community looks like. It's not what you see on television. You
know, it's very simple and basic. It's more about love and happy families and happy children.
From a business perspective, our biggest growth area has been people bringing their
extended straight families.
HBO: Nothing like this has ever been done before. What were the biggest challenges to make this
happen?
Rosie O'Donnell: I insisted that they rent a cruise ship. My feeling was that we had the means to rent this ship,
and regardless of whether or not it was, half full or totally full, I wanted it to be a first-class
experience. I wanted people who usually have to settle for crumbs to get a full meal. And to
be celebrated, and to experience being cherished, and being treated with dignity and respect.
And so Kelli and Greg were like, "You're renting what? That's one of the most expensive ships
on the planet!" "I know, but I want the best." I didn't want anything less than the best. So, you
know, we could have went under the first year. (LAUGHS). Truthfully, because, it's a big nut
to rent this whole boat.
HBO: Were you concerned about filling the ship?
Kelli O'Donnell: Yes. The first year we didn't fill the ship. We had 1,600 passengers. Last year we had 2,200
passengers. And this year, you know, we're gonna' sell out. Capacity is about 2,600 people.
Rosie O'Donnell: We had an amazing group of Broadway people the first year, who were so loving, and so
willing to do any and everything.
Kelli O'Donnell: Broadway's such a great connector between people.
HBO: What did the children think of the experience and what kind of impact did it have on you as a
family?
Rosie O'Donnell: It's hard to explain. Our oldest was just about eight so that's a hard age to articulate your
emotions. But I know that he loved it. All four of them loved it, and they all are counting the
days 'til the next one.
Kelli O'Donnell: I think it provides all the kids on board with a chance to feel empowered by your family, and to
see that there are other families like yours. It's a place where they never feel like they're
different. And they feel connected to something
Rosie O'Donnell: You know, we're lucky, we live in New York. There are other gay families in our
neighborhood. There are other gay families at their school. So our kids are fortunate in many
ways to live in the tri-state area. But there are families from Oklahoma, Nevada and the
MidWest that have never met another gay family. We received some very moving letters describing what the cruise meant to these families -- to
finally not be the minority, to be released of social or even government-sanctioned shame. It's
kind of unbelievable, really. We're gonna look back on this 50 years from now, and go, "Wow,
they used to do that to gay people." "Are you kidding me?" "No. Yes, they did." So it was a
place where I think everyone was able to be shame-free, and to live with, dignity.
Kelli O'Donnell: Kids feel it too. It must be a great thing for the kids to watch their parents be able to walk
together holding hands without everybody staring.
HBO: What do you hope audiences will come away with after seeing the film?
Kelli O'Donnell: Being biased against gay people is just ignorance.
Rosie O'Donnell: All families deserve respect and all families are bound by love. And that we're all equal. I
think the movie really shows that the sexuality of a parent has nothing to do with the
competency or ability to parent.
|
|
|
|
|
