Melissa Etheridge & Tammy Lynn Michaels

[BobbyD 2]

(APNews.com)Etheridge: I Used Medicinal MarijuanaMelissa Etheridge says she smoked medicinal marijuana to help with the side effects of chemotherapy during her treatment for breast cancer. The 44-year-old singer, who was diagnosed over a year ago, is now cancer-free. "Instead of taking five or six of the prescriptions, I decided to go a natural route and smoke marijuana," Etheridge says in an interview to air Sunday on "Dateline NBC" (7 p.m. EDT). When asked how her doctors reacted, Etheridge says, "Every single one was, `Oh, yeah. That's the best help for the effects of chemotherapy.'" The singer said she smoked marijuana every day for her pain and symptoms and "the minute I didn't feel it, I stopped." The use of marijuana with a doctor's recommendation is legal in California and nine other states, but is against federal law. Asked if she was concerned about federal prosecution, Etheridge replied, "No, I didn't worry. But it was worth it." She recently released a new greatest hits album, "The Road Less Traveled," including the new song "I Run for Life," which is dedicated to the fight against breast cancer.

[queenie 0]

Good for her.But I am wondering,didn't they ban medicinal marijuana in CA?I have to research that.Melissa sure is looking healthy and I think a lot of women are inspired by her.I know I am.Whatever it takes,she is back to making music and taking care of her kids and partner.

[WiLdFiRe 0]

I don't know if its banned where she is but I hear they are trying to ban it anywhere it is legal. I think thats gross. If a person could use it for medicinal purposes they should be allowed to. I'm glad she had Tammy to help her through this ordeal.

[princess 1,712]

Twins For Etheridge, Partner

Tuesday Apr 18, 2006 7:00am EST

By Stephen M. Silverman

people.com

 

Etheridge and Michaels

CREDIT: JAMIE MCCARTHY / WIREIMAGE

Melissa Etheridge and partner Tammy Lynn Michaels are sharing some major family news with their fans.

 

"We are thrilled to announce that Tammy is pregnant, and expecting our twins sometime around this fall," the singer and the actress say in a joint statement on Etheridge's official Web site.

 

"To answer the obvious question: We used an anonymous donor from a bank," the statement continues.

 

Etheridge, 44, and Michaels, 31, who has acted on TV's Popular and The L Word, married in Malibu in September 2003. Etheridge already had two children from a previous relationship with Julie Cypher: daughter Bailey Jean, born in 1997, and son Beckett, born in 1998.

 

The couple makes reference to the children in the Web statement: "These are our first two babies conceived together, but not our first time mothering together," says the posting. "For the past five years, we have been parenting two children from a previous time in Melissa's life. The twins will be a joyful addition to our loving home."

 

The message concludes by saying, "We are a blessed family, and ask that no gifts be sent. Any gifts we receive we will donate to a local women's shelter. However, well wishes are more than welcome!"

 

Bailey Jean and Beckett were conceived via artificial insemination courtesy of friend and rock legend David Crosby. But last August Etheridge said that, while she and Michaels were planning to have a child together, this time the donor would not be Crosby.

 

"Been there, done that," she told TV's Extra.

 

Etheridge was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2004 and underwent chemotherapy. She made her post-chemo stage debut at last year's Grammys, where she stopped the show with her rendition of Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart" – and her bald head, a result of her treatment.

 

Etheridge credited Michaels as being instrumental in her battle against cancer. "When it was over, I came home to a bouquet that said 'In sickness and in health,' and she means it," the singer told Extra. "And the love and support of someone like that is worth all the money in the world."

[Hoyaheel 1,874]

I'm so happy for them! I know Melissa mentioned wanting more kids in some of the interviews she did about her cancer, but wanted her life to return to a little "normalcy".....

[tyler 408]

I'm so happy for them! I know Melissa mentioned wanting more kids in some of the interviews she did about her cancer, but wanted her life to return to a little "normalcy".....

Ditto.

[princess 1,712]

Melissa Etheridge and partner Tammy Lynn Michaels, who is expecting twins this fall, catch some air in a park Sunday near their Los Angles home. The pair, who wed in 2003, announced the pregnancy on their Web site: "We are a blessed family, and ask that no gifts be sent. However, well wishes are more than welcome!"

[soho2chelsea 3]

http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index....2f-9f0746341b37

 

One of Each for Etheridge

by Natalie Finn

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 04:37:50 PM PDT

 

 

Go to her window now, and you'll see Melissa Etheridge caring for two babies.

 

The Yes I Am singer and her partner, Popular actress Tammy Lynn Michaels, announced Friday that they are the proud parents of twins, son Miller Steven and daughter Johnnie Rose, born Oct. 17 and in excellent health.

 

"The creation of life brings about immeasurable love and pours hope into the future," the couple said in a statement. "The joy will help carry us through our upcoming sleepless nights."

 

They divulged in April that Michaels was pregnant by way of an anonymous sperm donor. Etheridge also said at the time that while this is their first time conceiving together, it is not their first time parenting, as Michaels has been an active presence for the past five years in the lives of Etheridge's two kids with ex-partner Julie Cypher.

 

Cypher, who was with Etheridge for 12 years, gave birth to the pair's daughter Bailey Jean, 9, and son Beckett, 7, through artificial insemination that was reported to be anonymous but was soon revealed to be from rocker David Crosby.

 

Michaels, 31, and Etheridge, 45, swapped vows during a star-studded ceremony in 2003, the first marriage (or domestic partnership, according to California law) for both.

 

A year later, Etheridge was diagnosed with breast cancer. The Grammy winner got by with a little help from her friends (and a little medicinal marijuana), and after a lumpectomy and an intense regimen of chemo and radiation therapy, she was able to give the all-clear sign last summer. A longtime gay rights activist, Etheridge added fighting cancer to her list of causes, penning the song "I Run for Life" to offer support to others battling the disease.

 

Now (and luckily), if Etheridge is suffering from exhaustion it should only be because of the two bundles of joy not sleeping through the night in the next room.

 

The mother of four, who recently composed the title song for Al Gore's global warming documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, has also signed on to be the focus of a Q&A session in November at the Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film & TV Music Conference.

 

Michaels, best known for her lead role on the WB teen-fest Popular has since had a multi-episode stint on The L-Word and starred in the short-lived NBC series Committed.

[sanlee 49]

Congrats on being a DAD again Melissa...'Yes I Am' is one of the BEST albums I own..

[sanlee 49]

Melissa Etheridge to receive music industry honor

 

NEW YORK (Billboard) - It has been quite a year for singer/songwriter Melissa Etheridge.

 

At the behest of former vice president Al Gore, she wrote the song "I Need to Wake Up" for the environmental documentary "An Inconvenient Truth," and ended up with an Oscar for her efforts.

 

Come July 7, Etheridge will lend her voice to Live Earth, Gore's seven-continent concert to raise awareness for what he has coined SOS, Save Our Selves: A Campaign for a Climate in Crisis.

 

Etheridge has also kept busy in her personal life. The 45-year-old cancer survivor and partner, actress Tammy Lynne, are proud new parents of twins. In her spare time, Etheridge is putting the finishing touches on her first studio album in three years, which is scheduled for a fourth-quarter release. She hopes to tour next summer -- with the whole family in tow.

 

On Wednesday, Etheridge will be receive the ASCAP Founders Award during the performing rights group's 24th annual Pop Music Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. The ceremony is part of ASCAP's "I Create Music Week" to celebrate songwriters and music-makers. Other festivities surrounding this event include the Film & Television Music Awards honoring composer Marc Shaiman, and the second annual ASCAP "I Create Music" Expo, a three-day conference dedicated to songwriting and composing, at the Hollywood Renaissance Hotel.

 

Reuters.com

[NYCat 1]

Melissa Etheridge Talks About Her Twins

 

Melissa Etheridge had already been raising two children, so she was no novice parent when her twins were born last October.

 

But the new additions, she tells PEOPLE, have turned out to be "a whole different ball of wax."

 

"They have their own language, they are more content to be with each other. With twins, it's like you're in their life," she says of her 11-month-old son Miller Steven and daughter Johnnie Rose.

 

Etheridge, 46, and partner Tammy Lynn Etheridge, 32, conceived the twins via artificial insemination, and Tammy carried the babies. Melissa also has two children from a previous relationship with Julie Cypher: daughter Bailey Jean, 10, and son Beckett, 8.

 

Speaking before a concert at Hard Rock Cafe New York on Tuesday – to kick off a breast cancer awareness campaign called "Rocktober" and to launch her new album The Awakening – Etheridge says that although she already had a boy and a girl, the twins made evident inherent gender differences.

 

"I used to think it was society but no, no, no," she says, laughing. "You can put the same thing in front of both of (the twins) and they will do completely different things. He will see if he can break it, if he can throw it, and she is going to contemplate it, see how she can manipulate it."

 

Plus, with twins, she says, "Even their relationship to each parent is different because they have a relationship with each other at first."

 

Etheridge, diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, says her health now is excellent. Her head, made bald by chemotherapy, is now covered with blonde, shoulder-length hair.

 

"It's an interesting experience to walk through life and have people burst into tears," says Etheridge. "The experience of breast cancer, or cancer in general, everybody knows somebody who has had cancer, it's always there. Everybody has that story."

[BobbyD 2]

Melissa Etheridge Goes Diving

Posted Mar 7th 2008 11:31AM by TMZ Staff

 

Wearing fins, snorkel and a skimpy bathing t-shirt and shorts, rocker mom Melissa Etheridge waddled on the beach in Hawaii on Thursday.

 

Melissa looked happy as a clam, spending the day in the sun with her four children and wife Tammy Lynn Michaels.

[BobbyD 2]

Report: Melissa Etheridge to wed girlfriend

‘We have four children and we’re trying to find the right time,’ says singer

msnbc.com

 

LOS ANGELES - Melissa Etheridge will wed girlfriend Tammy Lynn Michaels, the singer told celebrity television show “Extra” ahead of California’s vote next month on whether to strip same-sex couples of the right to marry.

 

“Yes, we have four children and we’re trying to find the right time,” Etheridge said when asked about marriage in an interview set to air on Wednesday night.

 

A spokeswoman for Etheridge was not immediately available.

 

Back in May, the California Supreme Court granted same-sex couples the right to marry, but residents opposing the decision have organized a proposition calling for an amendment to the state’s constitution that would ban gay marriage.

 

Voters will cast their ballots in November’s election on whether or not to support the proposition.

 

Etheridge, 47, whose rock hits include “Come to My Window” and “I’m the Only One,” has for years been one of the most high-profile celebrities to live openly as a lesbian.

 

She has two children with her former partner Julie Cypher, and in 2006, Etheridge and Michaels had their own twins.

 

Michaels, 33, is an actress who appeared in the lesbian-themed cable TV show “The L Word.”

 

Other celebrity same-sex couples who have wed this year in California include talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres and her partner Portia de Rossi, and “Star Trek” star George Takei and his longtime boyfriend Brad Altman.

 

Copyright 2008 Reuters. Click for restrictions.

[Desertdreaming 26]

Found on AOL - Wallet pop

 

In protest of California's Proposition 8 passing, and essentially outlawing gay marriage, Melissa Etheridge stated publicly that she was not going to pay any state taxes. Her theory was that if she isn’t granted the same rights as other citizens (i.e. the right to marry the person she loves, regardless of gender) then she isn’t a "full" citizen and has no obligation to pay taxes. She has since said that she will make a final decision on whether or not she pays taxes by April 15.

 

 

I really like Melissa Etheridge but really this was kinda a dumb thing to say. Especially since she back-paddled and gave it an April 15th deadline. I am thinking that her business manager and/or CPA talked to her after she made this comment and said " hey hey hey, does Wesley Snipes ring a bell or that Richard guy from Survivor. "

 

You want to make your feelings on Prop 8 known then move to another state. Do not do any business in CA. Or get out and campaign for it. I know extreme measures but do not say you are not going to pay your taxes especially in public. I have to say I thought of all the states that this would not be an issue in would be California. I am thinking that it is not as liberal as people make it out to be.

[Hihomumio 168]

Yeah, I'm kind of surprised about this too-I'm one of those who always thought CA was at the top of the gay rights ladder.

[ElleDriver 0]

Melissa and Tammy Etheridge Separate

 

 

Melissa and Tammy Etheridge have ended their nearly nine-year relationship.

 

"Melissa and Tammy Etheridge are saddened to announce that they are now separated," Melissa's rep tells PEOPLE exclusively.

 

The former couple add in a statement: "We ask for consideration and respect for our family as we go through this difficult period."

 

Melissa, 48, and Tammy (formerly Tammy Lynn Michaels) exchanged vows in Malibu in September 2003.

 

Tammy, 35, gave birth to their children – son Miller and daughter Johnnie Rose – in 2006, after Etheridge was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004.

 

Etheridge is also the mother of two children, Bailey, 13, and Beckett, 11, with former partner Julie Cypher.

[Hoyaheel 1,874]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

[akua123 0]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Funny, this made me think of my dad, he used to (not alive anymore) cheat/break up/get together with new one around the ten year mark! I've always liked both of them (LOVE Melissa and her music, always loved the short-lived show Popular and loved Tammy in it, hopefully she'll go back to do some more acting now that her kids are a little older)

[cr8zn2004 0]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Only thing is, Julie left Melissa -- and with Tammy, we don't know who left who. I would bet that Tammy left the relationship, not the other way around.

[Hihomumio 168]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Only thing is, Julie left Melissa -- and with Tammy, we don't know who left who. I would bet that Tammy left the relationship, not the other way around.

 

Just curious: why do you say that?

[cr8zn2004 0]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Only thing is, Julie left Melissa -- and with Tammy, we don't know who left who. I would bet that Tammy left the relationship, not the other way around.

 

Just curious: why do you say that?

 

Just my opinion, that's all!

[Hoyaheel 1,874]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Only thing is, Julie left Melissa

Maybe that was part of the separation agreement? Do we really know what goes on inside any couple? I mean - Julie now says she never was a lesbian, so, um.....You were with another woman for 10+ years and had 2 kids with her, but you weren't a lesbian? Ok then......

[Hihomumio 168]

Hmm, isn't that about the same length of time she was with Julie? Does Melissa get really bad 7-Year itch and break it off just under 10 yrs? Too bad - I liked them as a couple....

Only thing is, Julie left Melissa

Maybe that was part of the separation agreement? Do we really know what goes on inside any couple? I mean - Julie now says she never was a lesbian, so, um.....You were with another woman for 10+ years and had 2 kids with her, but you weren't a lesbian? Ok then......

 

 

when I hear something like this it makes me wonder how valid the "I was born this way" argument is.

 

edited to say: my comment above does not express what I really meant and reading it now, I don't like how it sounds. I'm annoyed with the Hollywood types that can't seem to get their act together. Why deny what has been your life for 10 years, how do you turn that on and off like that? I hope it's not because she's been living a lie all this time or she is ashamed. They have kids together for crying out loud, how confusing will it be for them to hear something like this?

Edited April 19, 2010 by Hihomumio

[Hoyaheel 1,874]

I have heard people say "I never thought I was a lesbian but I just fell in love with Susie". I usually assume that person is a true bisexual - that they are falling in love with (and sexually attracted to) members of both genders. But I'm no neuroscientist. I do believe we are born with sexual impusles - but I also believe there are truly bisexual people right in the middle of Kinsey's continuum.

 

[i'm not a lesbian or bisexual, but I would have a mad passionate fling with Melissa Etheridge...I have loved her since ~1993]

[akua123 0]

I have heard people say "I never thought I was a lesbian but I just fell in love with Susie". I usually assume that person is a true bisexual - that they are falling in love with (and sexually attracted to) members of both genders. But I'm no neuroscientist. I do believe we are born with sexual impusles - but I also believe there are truly bisexual people right in the middle of Kinsey's continuum.

 

[i'm not a lesbian or bisexual, but I would have a mad passionate fling with Melissa Etheridge...I have loved her since ~1993]

thank you for responding, I tried a few times but didn't want to come off as a total bitch. I'm either a bisexual or lesbian (I've learned that sometimes things are hard to categorize and there can be a continuum)

 

Believe me, I've tried most of my life not to feel this way and if I had a choice, there were many times I certainly wouldn't have, including sometimes still. Of course I'm sure there are people who had support early, good life, acceptance, friends, etc., but a lot of times that's not the case. I can't really imagining myself choosing this, had I a choice. It took me a long time to accept that I don't have a choice. I can't help who I'm attracted to, I can help what I do about it, but I've also learned that trying to go against that so strongly can be (and has been in the past) very detrimental to my health.

 

Okay, off the soapbox now, and you'll have to excuse me as I'm a little crazy today.

 

I'll end with, I LOVE LOVE LOVE Melissa Etheridge and second the mad passionate fling (or anything else I can get). I know Pink gets a lot of grief from some segments of society for "looking like a man", but regardless, she comes in as a close second.

 

I'm not sure where Keifer fits in there, but since I don't have much of a shot with any of them, lol, I'll throw him in mix (so to speak) and would give him a try too

 

ETA: I never thought I was a lesbian or bisexual either, until I realized it (that probably doesn't make sense, but it does to me anyway )

Edited April 19, 2010 by akua123