Likely unaware of the allegorical significance, Jesse Archer orders a Cosmopolitan from the bartender at the Stonewall Inn. Arriving earlier in a pair of dark aviator sunglasses, despite the day's thick overcast skies, he's hung-over from a book signing after-party thrown in his honor the night before. The day before that, he worked the runway in Times Square for National Underwear Day. Before that, he attended the Philadelphia LGBT Film Festival, where A Four Letter Word, a film he both starred in and co-wrote, was the opening night feature. A few weeks prior, he was in California winning the Outfest (Los Angeles' G&L Film Festival) best screenplay award for AFLW. On his busy forward calendar he's planning additional film fest appearances and squeezing in a friend's gay wedding in Denmark. Musing over topics for his OUT Magazine column while also coordinating book events to promote his recently released memoir, You Can Run: Gay, Glam and Gritty Travels In South America, Archer orders his drink: Cosmopolitan, indeed.

Archer's film career began as a featured extra in Speed 2. "I was one of the people exiting the boat," Archer says. "The first part with lines was Slutty Summer [a gay romantic comedy by Casper Andreas released in 2004]." Archer went on to cameo in 2006's Boy Culture as a "threesome hottie" before starring in this year's AFLW. Archer wrote the film with Andreas, where the character roles of Slutty Summer take the lead, addressing issues of love and relationships juxtaposed against the sexually-fueled atmosphere of gay male nightlife.

An accomplished freelance writer, Archer's experience in publications gave rise to penning monthly contributions for OUT Magazine, writing an "untitled" column on gay life voiced by Archer's subversive point of view. "I'm letting the cat out of the bag right now," Archer says of scoring his OUT gig. "I knew [OUT Editor in Chief] Aaron Hicklin before he had that position. He knew I was a writer and brought me in to show him my portfolio Then, like three months later, he was like, 'You're a columnist.'"

In spring 2007 the prized jewel of Archer's media prowess was released - his debut book, You Can Run. In it, Archer shares his experiences of backpacking in South America, swirling the concepts of memoir and travel writing with gay cliché and camp charging powerful self-reflection and worldly dissection.

"There were so many great stories from [South America]. They needed to be put together in narrative form. So, I was writing a few stories and I ran into a [Haworth Press representative] who asked 'Why don't you put together a book proposal?' Several years, and several re-writes, later, I popped out a book. I gave birth. It took me four to five years. It was a painful birth."

Editor's Note: Read the full feature interview article with Jesse Archer on ChicagoPride.com and see him in person at Mary's Attic (5400 N. Clark St.) on Friday, October 5th at 8pm. He'll be reading from his memoir, You Can Run and copies of the book will be available at a reduced price in celebration of Archer's appearance.