WWW.MELISSAETHERIDGE.COM
I love to play there -- play as in having fun."
Melissa Etheridge
Melissa Etheridge loves Hawaii. She's visited several times, but never performed here because, she says, "it's a long way from anywhere." Etheridge ephemera
Melissa and her lesbian ex-companion
have 2 children by David CrosbyBy Tim Ryan
tryan@starbulletin.com"My music is not very popular in Asia, so if I came to Hawaii to perform I wouldn't be stopping on the way to or from anywhere; and that would be very expensive," she says. "But I love to play there, play as in having fun."
The Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter was given a choice this summer by her manager of performing in London or Hawaii.
"Talk about a 'duh' answer," Etheridge says. "Hawaii here we come!"
By "we" she means her new partner and up to 400 members of her M.E.I.N. fan club: the Melissa Etheridge Information Network. For about $700 each, members receive accommodations, attend a luau and a sound check a few hours before Friday's concert, and get premium concert seating.
The entertainer, who went public at Bill Clinton's inauguration that she's a lesbian, estimates that about 70 percent of her audiences are female with 60 percent of these gay, followed by heterosexual couples, and gay men.
"They've been the last to join my fan club," Etheridge says, laughing.
We caught up with Etheridge for an interview that ran last Friday (https://archives.starbulletin.com/ 2002/07/12/features/story6.html). In addition, she gamely provided answers to the Star-Bulletin's simple factoid questions:
Date and place of birth: May 29, 1961; Leavenworth, Kansas
Where: Blaisdell Arena Melissa Etheridge
When: 7:30 p.m. today
Tickets: $45 and $55, available at the Blaisdell box office and Ticket Plus outlets, including Foodland and Sack 'n Save, the University of Hawaii Campus Center, MWR Kunia and other military outlets.
Call: 526-4400 or go online at www.ticketplushawaii.com.
Also: 7 p.m. tomorrow at Maui Arts & Cultural Center. For more information, call the box office at 808-242-7469.
Education: Leavenworth High School; graduated 1979; Berklee College of Music, Boston, Mass.; left after one year to pursue music career.
Parents: Dad/John Etheridge, math teacher and athletic director; mother/Elisabeth, computer specialist for the Army.
Older sister: Jennifer.
Significant others:
>> Tammy Lynn Michaels, actress; began dating summer 2001.
>> Julie Cypher, filmmaker; met Aug. 23, 1988. They have two children together: Bailey Jean (born Feb. 10, 1997) and Beckett (Nov. 18, 1998). Etheridge and Cypher separated in September 2000, but live next door to each other and share child custody. The children were born through artificial insemination; David Crosby donated the sperm. It was once rumored that Brad Pitt was the donor.
Crosby connection: He was an acquaintance of Cypher and Etheridge. When Etheridge and Cypher visited the Crosbys in Hawaii a few months after the birth of the Crosby's child Jango, they talked about wanting a child of their own. It was Crosby's wife Jan's idea. He was surprised, but agreed.
Before Etheridge: Cypher was married to actor Lou Diamond Phillips; they divorced in 1990.
Pets: Two dogs -- Angel and Bingo, a cockatoo named Boo, and cats Gwendolyn and Gabrielle. A pet shark died while she was on tour.
Odd Awards: In 1989, at her 10th high school reunion, she was given an award for being the person from her graduating class to have the most appearances on David Letterman.
Music: Wrote her first song at age 10.
Failed auditions: In 1984, Melissa auditioned for the show "Fame," but lost to Janet Jackson.
Interesting performances: Melissa played for Leavenworth prison in Kansas. "Prisons have the most enthusiastic audiences. It's like playing for 2,000 people who all want to be entertained," she said.
Favorite color: Aqua blue.
Collects: Airport pens.
Beverage: Room temperature water.
Breakfast food: Pancakes.
Actors: Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson.
Flower: Gerber Daisies.
Film: "Thelma and Louise"
Book: "Nine Short Stories" by J.D. Salinger.
Favorite item of clothing: Black boots.
Vacation getaway: Hawaii, of course!
Magazine: Time
Domestics: Enjoys cooking and gardening.
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