Thirty years ago, Outword hit the streets with its very first issue — and right there in our debut pages, we were talking about the upcoming Rainbow Festival. Back then, the headliner was Kym Sims — a true one-hit wonder, but a fabulous one all the same. Fast forward three decades, and this year’s festival is bringing another fan favorite to the stage: David Archuleta. Singer, dancer, all-around talent — and the star of our latest cover. Chris Narloch gives you the inside scoop on what to expect from his performance on page 15.

We’re also kicking off our 30th birthday celebration in style! Mark your calendars for our customer appreciation party at Badlands on September 9. Readers, advertisers, friends — everyone’s welcome to join the fun. To mark the occasion, we dusted off one of the few surviving paper copies of that very first issue. Fred snapped some photos of its pages, and it’s fascinating to see how much has changed… and how some conversations haven’t changed at all. We also want to give a big thank-you to the advertisers who have stood by us since day one — we appreciate you more than words can say.

Elsewhere in this issue:
• Updates on two Pride celebrations still to come — Santa Barbara and Palm Springs — on page 8.
• Four quick-hit movie reviews from Chris Narloch (page 12), including “The Fantastic Four,” “Sign o’ the Times” and “Weapons.”
• Two pages of smiling faces from our July “Liquid Therapy” Happy Hour — proof that summer in Sacramento comes with a lot of laughter and clinking glasses.

There’s even more waiting for you inside, so head to our website to flip through the digital ISSUU version or download the PDF — both free, as always.

Here’s to a summer of mild weather (knock on wood), good friends, and plenty of celebrations. See you at Badlands on September 9!