2010 SUMMER YEARBOOK: Miss Fire Island: Wanda Sykes

 
 
After playing the White House, welcoming twins and premiering her own late-night talk show, outspoken lesbian Comedian Wanda Sykes needed an escape. JC Alvarez catches up with an old friend on Cherry Grove.
 
The annual summertime trek out to Fire Island is a right of passage into “gaydom,” but if you ask me, the haul out there can be tough—especially if you’re balancing a cake! I’m visiting friends and my mother always taught me you never arrive empty handed. My day-trip out to Cherry Grove on Fire Island is twofold: I needed desperately to get out of the city to visit with friends, and at that friend’s invitation I’ve taken the opportunity to chat with her. After all, life seems to be moving at warp speed around my friend Wanda Sykes. It’s always a great adventure catching up to her!
 
On her July 23 appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, she lovingly joked about her wife, Alex, and their twins—especially how they’re all managing to keep her on her toes! She is without a doubt one of the funniest comics of our generation; saucy, brash and destined to leave an indelible mark on the cultural radar. Still, I hadn’t anticipated the impact she would have on the gay community.
 
On Sykes’ HBO Comedy Special, I’ma Be Me—which garnered her two Emmy nominations—she revealed more of herself than ever before, much to the adulation of her fans. She followed that with the FOX late-night talk show The Wanda Sykes Show and the CBS series she costarred in, The New Adventures of Old Christine—both of which have since been cancelled. The downfall of the talk show was not a surprise to me—I never understood how Fox was going to attempt to bridle one of the most provocatively outspoken personalities in entertainment today—even our President couldn’t keep Sykes in check when she hosted last year’s White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
 
As I make my way over to the Grove on the ferry my cell phone buzzes with a text: “After a drink you can put on your journalist cap.” I smile and text Sykes back: “I’m already one drink in.”
 
When I arrive at the modest holiday abode I can hear none other than Ms. Sykes—certainly the most distinct and familiar voice emanating from the home—at least until the baby sounds take over. Already a keen sun worshipper, Sykes’ son is running around and goes right past me out onto the front deck. “Boy…you’d make a terrible babysitter,” is the hello I get from Sykes, raised eyebrow and all, scolding me on arrival. “You just let the kid walk right past you!” It’s not like he’s heading for traffic or anything, but it’s a sweet reminder of her dimensional shift into motherhood. She scoops up the little bundle in her arms, and turns to properly greet her guest from the mainland.
 
The inside of the house is wonderfully comfortable with the view of the bay you would expect a celebrity to indulge herself in, except for the obvious attempts at baby-proofing every corner of furniture. I greet Sykes’ beautiful wife, Alex, and dole over their daughter, who is already skilled at the art of playing coy. With the cake box safely deposited onto the counter, I can relax and enjoy the day.
 
Having worked up a remarkable appetite on my voyage we decide to take in some lunch and head to the Island Breeze for some nosh. We can’t manage the short walk to the eatery without Sykes being recognized. “Hey Wanda! Hi Wanda,” comes at us from all directions. I’ve certainly grown accustomed to Sykes’ celebrity, having been around to watch it evolve over the years, but it’s only been recently that its familiarity has grown by leaps and bounds.
 
The Sykes were married in California as soon as they could legally do so. Almost as quickly, Proposition 8 was passed, preventing any such marriage licenses to be issued thereafter. A new ruling this summer overturned Proposition 8, declaring it unconstitutional. With the validity of their marriage not a question of debate for the time being, I ask my friends how they felt about the events in California. “I was extremely emotional. I’m tearing up now,” Sykes admits. “I think we should get divorced and then get remarried,” Alex adds with a grin, “and have another party!” Wanda interjects. “It’s overwhelming but I knew it was going to happen. I had no doubt. Sure, they’re going to try to appeal it, but it will have to go to the Supreme Court and I’d love to see that show!”
 
Alex expresses her concern for that short time when their marriage was in question: “It was hard to think that we [possibly] weren’t married—about to become a family—to suddenly feel like it was all a joke.” Sykes agreed, “You don’t do that to people—it’s dehumanizing.”
 
And certainly the debate will continue, but Sykes is feeling especially optimistic right now. “It’s a very exciting time in our history,” she declares. And certainly an exciting time for her, too.
 
Arguably one of her best stand-up concerts to date, I’ma Be Me portrayed how far she had come in comfortably embracing her role as an out performer. “I didn’t think I had a whole show and I wanted it to be solid,” she recalls. “When I decided to include aspects of my life, that’s when I realized...I’m free! It’s so liberating not having to dance around anything, so I decided to talk about my wife, my marriage, my kids—I’m going to be me!” I ask Wanda if she feels that the direction she’s taken with her comedy perhaps alienates some of her fan base. “I’m sure there may be people who expect me to just be the ornery Wanda, but there are fans who have been with me from the beginning and they know that my comedy is political and current—now that I’m out, I’m free to talk about it. It’s nice to remind people who like my comedy that I’m also a lesbian—it gets people to talk.”
 
Sykes has whole-heartedly embraced being a role model in the gay community. She and Alex understand the importance of being a visibly gay couple. “The more people see us,” Sykes says, “the more they can put a face to someone who is gay. I look at Constance McMillen [the Mississippi teen not allowed to bring her girlfriend to the prom] She’s a strong girl. She had some nasty things said about her. It makes you think about those kids at the lunch counter during the civil rights movement.” The historical parallels are an uncanny reminder to her. “It’s my obligation [to be visible].”
 
Which leads me into discussing the cancelation of her Fox talkshow. “It felt like I took on a little too much and the show didn’t meet my standards, especially within the box we had to operate…but I was proud of it,” she tells me.
 
With lunch wrapping up and Alex having left us for her day on the beach, I bring up how validated Sykes must be feeling about the Emmys. She has always been about the work and finessing her art as a comic. “I’m always going to be working on my stand-up, always working toward that next special,” she reveals. “When I started doing this I wanting to be the best. I would never do anything half-assed!”
 
Before the end of my visit, we head over to Cherry’s on the Bay, where it doesn’t take long for the crowd to notice her. “It’s great—but it’s weird. This is the first time that I’m out here that I’m really getting recognized,” she says just as a tourist has pulled out a long-lens camera and snapped a picture of us. Sykes relates, “the locals are used to having me out here—they’re great! But I’m on vacation and I have those days that I just don’t want to be bothered.” Which is how the comedian likes to spend her time off—with her friends and family. It’s important to Sykes to keep things real.
 
On my way home, I think about how much laughter is a part of Sykes’ family. I also realize I didn’t even have a bite of the cake I brought. but then, as if on cue, I receive a text. “Hey the cake was delicious! We like cake. Thanks. XO” And that’s all the icing I needed.    N


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