10 snuggly years

Butch Cordora is celebrating 10 years of being in bed.

The 10th anniversary of In Bed With Butch - if not Philadelphia's first or only gay television program, by far its most prominent - transcends sexual preference, politics, and other dramas.

The show's namesake, creator, and host celebrated his program's first decade with IBWB's favorite guests Sunday night at Pure, in the heart of the Gayborhood at 1221 St. James.

The chatty Cordora, 49, says he "pretty much stopped using the bed" during Season 4 in 2002.

"I had to get rid of it," he says. "I got picked up by WYBE, and the station manager, in so many words, steered me toward becoming more mainstream, less controversial and shocking to the viewers to ensure a reasonable time slot. Keep the bed - 4 a.m. Get rid of the bed - midnight."

Cordora didn't need a bed for a gimmick. He was a born storyteller and host, and his show became a local outlet for lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender issues - or just dishing about trashy performances, straight and gay.

Think of him as a flamboyant Mike Douglas. The IBWB set is even decorated in Douglas' '70s tones.

Cordora - more muscular than when his show began - and IBWB airs Thursdays on Drexel University's DUTV at 10:30 p.m., with showings Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays. DUTV is an educational channel cablecast under the authority of the city on Chanel 54 to Comcast subscribers in central Philadelphia. He's had two stints at DUTV, the first being from 1999 to 2002. He was on WYBE public access from 2002 until 2008, when the channel became MIND-TV and canceled the program.

Cordora moved to Philly in 1987 from Pittston, Pa. He thought he wanted to be an actor and did extra work in films such as 12 Monkeys and gay theater throughout the '90s, until he decided he didn't have the passion for it. "Plus I don't think I was that good," he says with a laugh. "But I knew I had a voice and a point of view. I just had to find an avenue." He was thinking talk show. Friends suggested he be himself on camera and try journalism departments at Philly's universities. So he hit La Salle, Temple, and St. Joe's - until Drexel bit.

Comedian Frank DeCaro guesses Cordora got In Bed thanks to his tenacity. "Butch is a force of nature," he says. "He makes a demi-celebrity feel special, which is why so many New Yorkers are willing to make the schlep to Philadelphia to do his show. That, and the fact we're all media whores."

Timothy Teal, the show's supervising producer, says "it's important during each taping to change it up but maintain IBWB's core values. We're finding our audience is not just GLBT viewers. A large part is straights interested in our content. Butch's humor and insight open doors to people that may not be our target demographics."

"Butch owns gay Philadelphia," says DeCaro, namesake of his own radio show on Sirius and XM satellite radio. "His show's funny, unpredictable, and warm because he's all those things. And it doesn't hurt that he looks like a younger, cuter Iggy Pop, either."

The highlight of Pure's Butch-bash came when DeCaro introduced Philly drag queen Sandy Beach, IBWB's first-ever guest. Beach has been in retirement but wouldn't miss such an anniversary. "It's one thing to come from Manhattan for Butch," Beach said. "It's quite another to come out of retirement."

Since IBWB's start, Cordora has hosted the likes of Sir Ian McKellen, several Village People (Randy Jones, Felipe Rose), and fellow media mavens DeCaro and Brini Maxwell (the drag character played by Ben Sander).

"Butch had chutzpah to do what he wanted without waiting for the establishment to give it to him," says Maxwell, whose Style Network show, downloadable Web program, and books portray the demure blonde as a cross between Martha Stewart and Donna Reed.

Maxwell is a good witness to a kind of magic Cordora brings to his work. He is a sort of social networking do-gooder where guests - make that friends - are concerned.

"Know what's interesting about Butch?" asks a Mohawked Rose in full Indian feather regalia. (He was the original Indian in the Village People.) "He doesn't forget. When people fall off the radar for a minute, he's the type of guy who'll go after you to perform. After I did Butch's show, I got countless calls for work. That's why, as soon as Butch asked me to play tonight, how could I say no? He's there for people."

When the book Brini Maxwell's Guide to Gracious Living came out in 2005, Cordora invited her to be on IBWB. It was the beginning of some nice networking. After the show, Maxwell met Jason Crook, proprietor of Philadelphia Home Art Garden (PHAG). Now Maxwell designs items for the Felix Populi line at the PHAG shop on Walnut. Maxwell also became a lifetime Friend of Butch and the show - so much so that she cohosted the Pure party with DeCaro.

Actor Keith Collins hit IBWB to promote his 2004 movie Games People Play. Stricken with Tourette's syndrome as a child, Collins wound up talking about it on the show. "The next thing you know," Collins says, "Butch brought me back and gave me my own segment to talk about my work as an advocate, as well as helping me out with several charity events." Collins was emcee Sunday night at Pure. "Your concerns become his concern."

IBWB guests have included the late gay-rights activist Barbara Gittings and countless members of Philly's GLBT community. Straight guests have included Ed Feldman and Joe L'Erario, hosts of The Furniture Guys on PBS ("They redid my bed, and they trashed Martha Stewart to no end," Cordora says), and Gervase Peterson, a contestant on the first season of the CBS reality show Survivor.

"Butch is an innovator because, let's face it, too many people are still homophobic," says Peterson, who has become the show's de facto cohost. "No matter gay or straight, Butch developed a following of loyal fans, and the craziest thing is that he's done it himself - starting small and growing it into a big deal. It should be national. And being the straight guy working on his show is cool. Everyone's secure in their skin."

But what about going national? Is Butch Cordora ready for his close-up?

"I'm extremely groomed to make the jump to Logo or here!", says Cordora, naming the two biggest national gay-themed television networks. "I feel like I have the confidence, professionalism, and talent to go all the way."

The last time he felt that confident he landed In Bed. Here's hoping.