ABOVE PHOTO: Jai Rodriguez. (Shutterstock.com)
By Kharisma McIlwaine
Before there was “Project Runway” and “The Real Housewives,” Bravo introduced the world to “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.” “Queer Eye” premiered in July 2003 and featured five openly gay men who were experts in their respective fields: Ted Allen, the “Food and Wine Connoisseur”; Kyan Douglass, the “Grooming Guru,” expert in hair, personal hygiene and makeup; Thom Filicia, the “Design Doctor,” expert of interior design and home organization; Carson Kressley, the “Fashion Savant,” the expert of fashion and personal styling and Jai Rodriguez, the “Culture Vulture,” expert of pop culture and social interactions. Each episode crafted a tailored plan to drastically revamp one client’s life in all five areas. “Queer Eye” became an instant classic and continues to be a source of nostalgia for its fans.
After 20 years, the iconic “Fab Five” are reuniting for a one night only live event called “An Evening with the Fab 5- 20 Years Later.” Jai Rodriguez spoke with the SUN about his journey in the entertainment business, the cultural significance of the show and his excitement about reuniting with his Bravo castmates.
Rodriguez is the epitome of a multihyphenate. The New York native is an Emmy Award-winning TV personality, Broadway star, New York Times bestselling author, singer, and actor.
“I’ve just been around for a really long time — like 26 years doing this,” he said. If you stick around long enough stuff will happen. I grew up in the suburbs of Long Island and I saw family members that made life choices that just made sense for them.”
“Performing in church and school, I’d think I’m getting leads in stuff and thought, ‘Am I good? Let me find out I’m good’,” Rodriguez continued. “I went to a performing high school junior and senior year and got the training I would’ve gotten in my freshman and sophomore year of college, had I gone for musical theater. Literally right out of high school, I auditioned for “Rent” and got that. That really started my career. It gave me a lot of discipline to start with theater first and then go into television and it all happened organically.”
When “Queer Eye” first premiered on Bravo, it was a truly a groundbreaking experience for viewers. It was also a completely unexpected experience for Rodriguez.
“I had been doing “Rent” for about 5 years,” he recalled. “I’m leaving, I’m doing an off-Broadway play, a movie, I’m building up my resume, but “Rent” is the gig. I’m, like, ‘I’ll be back, y’all.’ They said, ‘Go do that project and come back.’ I had taken 6 months off of “Rent.” That means your pay goes from cute to hardly anything. I had to move in with friends and live in their guestroom. The bedroom was so small, I’d open the door and hit the bed.”
“Then I get this call,” Rodriguez continued. “They need you to go in for this thing, they don’t really know what it is, [but] you have to be openly gay. A nightlife expert was what I was first told, so I didn’t have a reference. So, I went in and met with this woman. She said walk me through a verbal date as a divorced dad living on Long Island. What would we do here in the city? Now as a 23-year-old gay boy who had been around the block in New York, I knew cute stuff. I knew New York like the back of my hand, so I was able to walk her through these really unique experiences.”
Rodriguez’s unique knowledge led him to audition in front of producers from NBC, Bravo, Andy Cohen and two men who would later turn out to be his future castmates.
“I called my agent, and said, ‘I’m not getting this, I’m completely humiliated.’ I’m at my dressing room at work, putting on my makeup for the show,” he said. “He calls and says, ‘you start Monday — I guess you didn’t do that bad.’ Carson and Ted were there to do a chemistry test — nobody told me that. I thought they were auditioning for this job. I start the show, and still didn’t know what we were doing. We all figured it out together, learned and helped create the show, which is why we each have Emmys. We were hosts, but in many ways, we were creative producers of our own segment, and doing “Queer Eye” taught us to be more than just a host.”
From the surface, “Queer Eye” may appear to be just a fun show that explored etiquette, fashion, culture, and the beauty of a great makeover. In reality, its platform provided a safe space and an opportunity for a marginalized community to be represented in the mainstream.
“I’m really grateful that Andy Cohen took a chance,” Rodriguez said. “For better or worse, I was one of the first. There were a small handful of out queer actors at that time. Most of the actors playing gay were not out of the closet themselves. So, in 2003, here I am thinking, ‘I’m on TV, all these doors are going to be open.’ They’re, like, “No — you’re Latin and you’re a little effeminate.’ The boxes that I check for diversity now were not considered assets then. This is a beautiful evolution into there’s always work to be done, but we have come a long way. I’m blessed that for me the commerce — the “worth it” part — is the lives that were changed and the conversations that people could have, because as a family, they watched the show. They knew gay people now and they welcomed them into their house every Tuesday night.”
Twenty years later, the “Fab 5” are reuniting for a one night only event to reflect on the laughs, lessons, and the brotherhood they built while the world watched.
“I’m happy to report that we’re all here and living our respective best lives,” Rodriguez said. “I think one of the coolest things is, this was my version of college. So, I’m reuniting with my fraternity. It’s like this beautiful experience that y’all got a window into. I’ve never done another show that has that kind of chemistry! You can’t teach it, we didn’t try — it just happened. That’s why this reunion show is going to be insane. We’re doing makeovers, I’m singing two songs… it’s a full show. When you create something like this as grownups, you do feel the need to nurture it. These guys are like family. People always ask if we’re best friends and we’re, like, ‘No, we’re brothers.’”
“This is our way to connect with the fans in real time — and not just for you guys to see us do something fun, but for us to say thank you, because y’all supported us at a time where it was not always cool to stand up for queer folks,” he said
Be sure to follow Rodriguez across social media platforms @jairodriguez. “An Evening With The Fab 5 – 20 Years Later” will take place on December 16 at the Wind Creek Event Center in Bethlehem, Pa. To purchase tickets, visit: www.windcreekeventcenter.com/events.
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