The cast for the West Coast one-night production of Dustin Lance Black’s “8″ has been announced, and it’s rather hottie-intense.

Despite the order earlier this month by Chief U.S. District Judge James Ware to release the videos from the Proposition 8 trial in former Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker’s courtroom in San Francisco, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ordered a stay of this order, keeping the videos under wraps while the higher court decides the proponents’ appeal of the videos’ release.

In other words, this sideshow over releasing the videos, based on the fear of the bigots’ attorneys and witnesses that their arguments will be exposed to the light of day, making them look like the foolish bigots they are, continues.

Academy Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black’s play 8 covering the Proposition 8 hearings starring Morgan Freeman, Anthony Edwards, Cheyenne Jackson, Christine Lahti, Rob Reiner, Yeardley Smith and Marisa Tomei hits Broadway on September 19 in a one-time staged reading at the Eugene O’Neil Theater to benefit the American Foundation for Equal Rights. Tickets start at $500.

We have unexpectedly quick news out of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on the Perry v. Schwarzenegger Proposition 8 marriage equality appeal. As you will recall, the case is in the 9th on appeal from the three week long evidentiary trial in the Northern District of California last January in front of Judge Vaughn Walker with closing arguments made on June 16 (summary of EW live coverage here) and Judge Walker’s opinion finding such marriage discrimination unconstitutional was issued on August 4th.
The current appeal had oral argument less than a month ago, on Monday December 6th.

Now we have the surprisingly fast first decision, if you can call it a “decision”. It is really a disguised punt.

The 9th Circuit has granted the request for stay in the Perry Prop 8 case.

Judge Walker has made his decision on the motion to stay his judgment in the Proposition 8 case.

Judge Walker set an accelerated schedule for consideration of DI’s Motion For Stay in California’s Proposition 8 ban on marriage decision. The real defendant, the State of California, has already filed opposition to the stay, through the Attorney General, the Governor and the City of San Francisco.

The decision from Judge Vaughn Walker is in and the hatred and discrimination of California’s Proposition 8 has been overturned and declared unconstitutional.

[Today, FDL is lucky to carry simultaneous liveblogging of Perry v. Schwarzenegger by Marcy/bmaz and Teddy--for Teddy's ongoing liveblog click here and for Marcy Part One click here]

Good morning from the Burton Federal Courthouse, San Francisco, Ceremonial Courtroom. We are awaiting the start of Closing Arguments today in Perry v Schwarzenegger, the landmark civil rights trial of the century, which will determine the constitutionality of Proposition 8, passed by Californians the same day Barack Obama was elected president. Prop 8 restricts marriage to one man and one woman, and is being challenged by two California same-sex couples who seek to marry, along with the American Foundation for Equal Rights.