Shortly after Barack Obama made history on Wednesday (9 May) by becoming the first US president to publicly support gay marriage, Ellen DeGeneres got on Twitter to express her gratitude.

'Thank you President @BarackObama for your beautiful and brave words,' she tweeted. 'I’m overwhelmed.'

DeGeneres, who is married to actress Portia de Rossi, was among the famous people in the entertainment industry who were quick with praise.

A gay graduate was banned from speaking at his Catholic school after the staff learned of his sexuality from Facebook.

Dominic Sheahan-Stahl had been invited to speak at his younger brother’s graduation ceremony on 20 May at Sacred Heart Academy in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, but the invitation was withdrawn.

Sheahan-Stahl graduated from the school in 1998, and had received numerous honours and awards while at Sacred Heart. He has since been living his life as a proud gay man in New York City.

How much money would you pay to get a kiss on the lips from hunky John Stamos?

A man at this weekend's GLAAD Media Awards in New York City decided that parting ways with $5,000 was worth a lip lock with the man who onced starred on TV's Full House and ER.

“Come to daddy over here baby, come to Uncle Jesse!” Stamos said to the man as he took the stage.

While campaigning for her husband in New York City, First Lady Michelle Obama twice reminded people that it is the president who makes appointments to the US Supreme Court and that those appointments could impact gay marriage.

At an event hosted by actor Robert De Niro on Monday (19 March), the First Lady said: 'Let us not forget what [the Supreme Court's] decisions - the impact those decisions will have on our lives for decades to come - on our privacy and security, on whether we can speak freely, worship openly, and, yes, love whomever we choose.'

Gay California lawyer Michael Fitzgerald was approved by the US Senate on Thursday (15 March) to serve on the federal bench.

His appointment to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California makes him just the fourth lifetime-tenured judge in the nation and the first to serve outside of New York City.

Fitzgerald, who was nominated by President Barack Obama last July, was overwhelmingly approved by a vote of 91-6. He had the strong backing of California's two US Senators: Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein.

After nearly 20 years together, Tom Wahlen and Russell Kemp never thought the day would come when they would be able to stand before their loved ones and their two children and become legally married.

And they most certainly never thought their ceremony would be performed by Fran Drescher!

But that was the scene last night at The Out Hotel in New York City because the couple won the Love Is Love Gay Marriage Contest put on by Drescher and TV Land, the network that airs her sitcom Happily Divorced.

Seventy-eight mayors from U.S. cities large and small gathered in Washington D.C. Friday (20 January) and announced their support of gay marriage.

The group, in the capitol for the annual U.S. Conference of Mayors, included New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (pictured), San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.

New York City ended 2011 with a spike in marriage licenses. By all indications that's due to same sex couples.

"We're overwhelmed," Michael McSweeney, the city clerk, said to the Wall Street Journal. "It's been much busier for us than this time last year, but we're delighted to see the extra business because we understand the impact. We're handling it. We're thrilled."