(LA Times) Sports columnist: 'I am a transsexual'

[baseline bum]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070426/ap_on_sp_ot/transsexual_sports_writer

LOS ANGELES - A veteran sports writer for the Los Angeles Times said in his column Thursday that he is a transsexual.

Mike Penner told readers of his struggle to embrace his gender, and said when he returns from vacation in a few weeks he will be known as Christine Daniels. He did not say whether he was having surgery or why he's changing his last name.

"I am a transsexual sports writer," Penner wrote. "It has taken more than 40 years, a million tears and hundreds of hours of soul-wrenching therapy for me to work up the courage to type those words."

The 49-year-old Penner said his brain has been "wired female" and he's tried to fight off the urge to change sexes. He called writing a story about his sexuality the "most frightening of all the towering mountains of fear I somehow had to confront and struggle to scale."

"How do you go about sharing your most important truth, one you spent a lifetime trying to keep deeply buried, to a world that has grown familiar and comfortable with your facade?" Penner asked.

Penner, who is married to another Los Angeles Times writer, said he started coming out about two months ago by telling his boss, his barber and a soccer teammate, and that he now feels happier and healthier.

"Mike Penner has been an exemplary contributor to the Los Angeles Times sports pages for over two decades and today's column is no exception," Randy Harvey, the newspaper's sports editor, said in a statement. "The decision to go public cannot have been an easy one and, while we do not make a habit of commenting on the personal and private lives of our journalists, we do look forward to continuing our relationship into the future."

John Amaechi, the first NBA player to publicly come out of the closet as being gay, said he read Penner's column Thursday after returning from a speaking engagement in Berkeley at the University of California.

"It's incredibly bold and far more courageous than anything I could have done," said Amaechi, who spent five seasons in the NBA. "I commend him."

Penner has spent more than 20 years at the Los Angeles Times and has covered the Olympics, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and has served as the Times' sports media critic.

[T Park]

quitteeee interesting.

[TxJudsonRocketTx]

Only in California

[T Park]

Well I don't understand why he feels we should know.

Why not, just be whatever.

Its like, your a transsexual. Uh, yippee, whats that got to do with sports writing?

[Fillmoe]

i didnt know JB lived in LA..........

[Shelly]

Only in California

I have one that lives in my neighborhood. He wears bad wigs, mini-skirts and eff me pumps. Occasionally, he wears thigh boots.

He used to walk his dog in these get-ups. Very rarely, do we see him as a man. His teenage son (although he may be 18 or 19) lives with him.

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

Well I don't understand why he feels we should know.

Why not, just be whatever.

Its like, your a transsexual. Uh, yippee, whats that got to do with sports writing?

You don't think a reader of Mike Penner's column might ask a question when he sees that byline and mugshot of Christine Daniels in his slot?

[SpursWoman]

At least he picked a good name. :tu

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

Mike Penner told readers of his struggle to embrace his gender, and said when he returns from vacation in a few weeks he will be known as Christine Daniels. He did not say whether he was having surgery or why he's changing his last name.
---
:lol
---
Penner, who is married to another Los Angeles Times writer, said he started coming out about two months ago by telling his boss, his barber and a soccer teammate, and that he now feels happier and healthier.
-----
he didn't tell his spouse?

Not surprisingly, he's now getting a divorce.

[tlongII]

I have one that lives in my neighborhood. He wears bad wigs, mini-skirts and eff me pumps. Occasionally, he wears thigh boots.

He used to walk his dog in these get-ups. Very rarely, do we see him as a man. His teenage son (although he may be 18 or 19) lives with him.


So you live in that part of town. :spless:

[lefty]

in the 40's or 50's , one woman won the gold medal for the USA at the olympic games (100 meters)
When she died, they found out she was a man.

Unbelievable.

It may be the same thing for Beno...

[T Park]

What, find out that Beno is a man?

[lefty]

What, find out that Beno is a man?
No, a girl

[baseline bum]

Well I don't understand why he feels we should know.

Why not, just be whatever.

Its like, your a transsexual. Uh, yippee, whats that got to do with sports writing?

She's getting her name changed, so I'm guessing that needs a bit of explanation. More importantly, she's doing it to raise awareness that gays/bis/transsexuals are normal people who like the same things as straight people, and don't always fit some stereotype. I applaud Christine for having the courage to come out in a society that's not as progressive as it acts like it is.

[loveThe23]

I have one that lives in my neighborhood. He wears bad wigs, mini-skirts and eff me pumps. Occasionally, he wears thigh boots.

He used to walk his dog in these get-ups. Very rarely, do we see him as a man. His teenage son (although he may be 18 or 19) lives with him.

Oh god i know what you mean. :dizzy

There's this guy that lives two houses away from us.... and whenever my mom, dad, or whoever's mowing the lawn, say it's my dad, he'll start flirting with him and be like "Oh my gawddd heyy Mike!!" "Like, I hate mowing the lawn, it makes all like sore ya knowww?" "How can you do it, oh my gawd" and he has a boyfriend, and (sometimes they both comeover) so now my dad rarely steps outside. :lol and all this drag queen crap.... then he like starts bonding with me or my mom like , "Hey gurl, how'd you do your hair, gawd i can NEVER get mine like that!" (you have man hair, maybe that's why.) if we're outside, it's scary as hell. i mean if you're gay, just be it, or if you want to be a girl, then get like surgery.

[Spurminator]

Only in California


Tell that to Trinidad, Colorado....

[ShoogarBear]

I've been trying to find a picture to see if tlong would hit it.

[mrsmaalox]

On "The View" this AM, Baba Wawa had a clip of a 20/20 story she did on transgendered children; it was pretty sad. The whole thing will be on TV tonight.

[TDMVPDPOY]

mizzymyte stepping out???

[nkdlunch]

it literally took balls for him to say that

[Shaolin-Style]

Uh, so if I'm a writer and I like pizza with ketchup on it, should I go and publish an article about it?

Don't know what the point is. I guess the point is to tell everyone you're gay or weird these days ahead of time so you don't get involved in a scandal about your employer's reputation.

[Kori Ellis]

Uh, so if I'm a writer and I like pizza with ketchup on it, should I go and publish an article about it?

Don't know what the point is. I guess the point is to tell everyone you're gay or weird these days ahead of time so you don't get involved in a scandal about your employer's reputation.

I'm guessing the point is that he's going to start writing under the name Christine, so he kind of had to publish something explaining it.

[Spurminator]

Funny how it's always the people who care whether someone's gay or transexual that wonder why gays and transexuals think we care.

[Sportcamper]

I applaud Christine’s courage, honesty, integrity & nominate “him/her” for “Sportswriter/Cross dresser” of the year...

[cornbread]

I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.

[2Blonde]

I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.
Does it taste like cornbread?

[cornbread]

Does it taste like cornbread?
What do you think I am? Some kind of cannibal?

[efrem1]

What does Tim Curry think about this?

[sabar]

Man, Amaechi has been mentioned in every article concerning LGBT, he came out for the :greedy

[Sportcamper]

Christine Daniels...

http://www.latimes.com/images/blogs/christine_daniels.jpg

[ObiwanGinobili]

Christine Daniels...

http://www.latimes.com/images/blogs/christine_daniels.jpg


not bad for 50yo broad..... he as a she looks better than my MIL thats fer sure.

[Sportcamper]

Waiting for the tlong responce...

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

Waiting for the tlong responce...

He's still trying to figure out if she's anglo.

[samikeyp]

At least he picked a good name

Daniels? ;)

[Johnny_Blaze_47]

Daniels? ;)

http://www.hoopsvibe.com/IMG/antonio_daniels-arton20925-240x240.jpg
"Don't bring me into this."

[L.I.T]

I'm still wondering why he told a soccer team. The barber I can understand: "Can you do perms? And I'm not going to need a shave anymore."*

*Disclaimer: Please note that I commend this guy for making the announcement; I can't imagine it was easy. I just couldn't resist the bad jokes.

[ShoogarBear]

Waiting for the tlong responce...You know he's thinking it, he just doesn't have the guts to post.

[ShoogarBear]

not bad for 50yo broad..... he as a she looks better than my MIL thats fer sure.Dayum. Harsh.