March 25, 2013 | Arts / Entertainment

New reality TV show about being gay and gray

There is a new gay-centric TV show on the air, and it examines the lives of older gay men and lesbians living in the Palm Springs area.  Made for Canadian TV channel Slice, Golden Gays proves that no matter how old you are, being gay and gray does not mean your life is over.

The show was inspired by Robert Julian's book Postcards from Palm Springs. It's a memoir of his experience as an older man in Palm Springs, filled with depictions of parties, orgies and all the local drama fit for print (which these days means every sordid detail).

Julian, now 62, stars in and narrates the show. 

"Regardless of the show's ultimate success, the significance of Golden Gays lies in the fact that it is the first television show in history to focus on the lives of lesbian and gay seniors," he explained. "By definition, this is groundbreaking television."

You've got the prude butch man who wants to open a gay hotel. You have two bears, who left Canada with dreams of starting a clothing optional bear resort. There's the lesbian power-chick who plans parties, like the Botox-injection get-together. And a lesbian 'life coach' in the middle of an emotional break-down.

Over-acted? You bet! Over-scripted? Yes! Characters you would never want to meet because they come off as petty, annoying or self-obsessed? All the standard fare of reality TV is there, but with a ground-breaking senior gays twist. While I won't be giving up re-runs of Golden Girls any time soon, let's hope this series gets picked up by Logo or Bravo! just for the sheer novelty value.