Is it true you went partying this morning?
Carson: God, no! We flew in this morning and we got lucky because we had a tailwind or something and we didn’t have to stop in Guam. We love Guam but we’d rather be here. We got in at 4 and we got to the hotel, the Glorietta Shangri-La, which we love to death. Look at this place! I went to the gym, then I went to the pool and we started our press conference. No rock-star stuff yet but I’m sure I’ll tear up the room and stay up all night like I usually do.

Are there any clashes of egos?
Gosh, no! Right, Michael (to Michael Flutie, the Fab Five manager)? No, if we really didn’t get along, five gay men, we’d have clawed each other’s eyes out, pulled each other’s hair a long time ago. We all genuinely enjoy each other’s company and have fun. We’ve been on hiatus for a couple of weeks, and going to the airport I was so excited to see everybody. It felt like one of those, like, you’ve been off the air for five years and you do one of those reunion episodes, and it’s only been three weeks, and I was so excited to see these people.

Who would you date among the four guys?
Oh, gosh! I’ll try to remember who has the biggest package. (Laughter) That’s always a weird question because we’ve been so close for the past four years, and we’ve had so many unique experiences together that we really feel like family. So just the thought of being romantic with any of them makes me throw up a little (rolls eyes). It’s kinda icky... If I were interested, I would be a lucky guy to be involved with any of them since each of them is special and wonderful.

Seriously?
(Emphatic) Seriously! I mean, I’m the cutest, but…

You said on “Oprah” you came out to your mom only two weeks before the show aired…
Yeah, isn’t that something? You think she would’ve known!

Did you ever date a girl before that?
I did, but we usually went to the mall and bought shoes. (Laughter)

So how many pairs of shoes do you have?
I say, hundreds, which, here in the Philippines, that’s not a lot!

Are you seeing anyone special now?
No, I’m single, a.k.a. painfully alone. Do you know anybody?

A lot!
Really? Let’s work on that! I’d love a guy with a huge 401K! (Laughter)

What’s your view on same-sex marriage?
I’m more concerned with same-sex divorce. (Laughter) I don’t wanna get stuck with someone forever! (Laughter) I think maybe marriage is the wrong word to use. But when it all boils down, it’s a human rights issue, and gay people and straight people, they should have the same rights. Whether you’re gay or straight, with a physical disability, your skin’s a different color, it’s absurd in this age to not be aware and be concerned of the inequity in rights.

But if you ever get married, what would you wear?
Oh, God! You’re supposed to wear white if you’re virginal, so I guess I’ll wear brown! (Laughter) Or really dark navy.

Or something like that (Carson’s wearing a zebra-print shirt)?
Yeah! This is good because it’s like good and evil. You’re like an angel or a devil. I’m a Scorpio, so you know…

How do you think has the show helped in advancing the cause of the gay movement?
It’s interesting because when we started doing the show, none of us really thought of it as having any sort of political agenda. And I think the real power from it and the real power that people obtain in their life is that there’s great power and freedom in being yourself and expressing who you are. I think the beauty of our show is that unknowingly we got to do that ourselves and express ourselves and be true to ourselves and be honest and be out. And the guys that we make over, while they go through the process of being on the show, they also show their true colors. They also get in touch with who they really are and let go of their fear and just express themselves.

Has it ever happened that you made over someone who’s not really straight?
There were a few I’ve wondered about but they haven’t come out yet! (Laughter)

What do you think of guys who still think that fussing about their looks is a little too gay?
I think when guys are worried about caring too much about their looks, caring too much about their hair and they’re afraid that they’ll be perceived to be gay… Hopefully there’ll be a day in our society when being perceived to be gay isn’t a bad, terrible thing. The great thing about our show is that it gives permission to care about it and it is a good thing to care about how you look and it’s a good thing to feel good about how you look. The success stories on our show prove that guys get the jobs that they want, they get the look that they want and they get the girl. There’s nothing wrong with caring about yourself.

Don’t you think it also has something to do with the attitude of women? They don’t want their boyfriends to look better than them.
Maybe, yeah! If your boyfriend spends more time with his hair than you do, it could be a warning sign. (Laughter)

You graduated magna cum laude and you were also a frat guy.
Yeah, I don’t even know what magna cum laude means! (Laughter) It sounds kinda dirty to me! Yeah, but I was a very good student. But you know what, I’ve always been a little bit charming, so maybe I got better grades because I’d stay after class and say, “Oh, my God! Professor, I love your shoes! Those are fantastic! How did I do in the test?” “A-minus.” “Oh, we can do better than that, can we? How about an A-plus?” Gotcha! (Laughter) Yes, I was in a fraternity and that was crazy! There were a lot of guys with their shirts off all the time…

Did they know that you were…?
Did they know? (Emphatic) Oh, hi! I think they had to! It wasn’t official, though.

(Whispers) Did you ever get it off with a frat guy?
Oh, my God! (Laughter) Is this for Filipino readers? (Laughter) No, I wish I had. It would’ve been like an adult feature. But you know, I’m not dead yet! (Laughter)

Is it harder to find a date now that you’re famous?
It’s not harder to find a date but I think it’s harder to keep one. Because you meet a lot of people and they just wanna hang out with you, and that’s wonderful because I love people. But when you’re on a date, you’ve just finished your appetizer and he says, “My girlfriend loves your show!” I’m about to choke on my cilantro! (Laughter) Sometimes it does pose a problem. People ask if it’s all worth it, and it really is because people are wonderful and I love people. I’m in the people business and I love it.

Can you tell us more about your clothing line?
Yes! I can’t really give you the particulars because the actual legal paper work is still going back and forth. But it will debut this fall with a major American retailer, probably the biggest American retailer. It’s men’s and women’s, about 75 percent women, 25 percent men. It has accessories, leather goods, handbags. It’s a full line and it’s been incredible fun to actually provide the consumer with things that people, I think, will really need and things that will make people feel great.

How long has this been in the works?
Probably about a year. It takes a long time to make a shirt. Who knew? (Laughter)

It’s called Perfect?
Yes.

Do you know how much the pieces would cost? Is it high-end?
Perfection comes at a price, my love! But, no, it’s definitely a moderately priced line because I’m a firm believer that looking good doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. When it’s quality fabric and it’s a good fit, it’s not about prestige; it’s about looking good and feeling good. And I think this clothing line will do that and it doesn’t have to be expensive. People come up and say, “I love that top! Is that Gucci?” because it’s worth $500. It’s not about that. People will say that top looks good on you because the fit is great and the fabric is beautiful and the color works. It doesn’t matter what’s on the label.

What do you think of the spin-offs of your show?
I think it’s very flattering. I don’t want to say imitation, but imitation is a serious form of flattery. We had a very successful franchise, and any type of successful franchise will mean a spin-off. There’s Polo Jeans for Ralph Lauren. Marc Jacobs works for Louis Vuitton and he also has his own line. It’s a natural progression in the business.

Did you ever watch those shows?
Yeah, I’ve seen them. I think the cast was great. But I’m a firm believer that there’s nothing like the original.

Who would you make over among the four guys?
Hmmm… I really don’t think any of them need it because we spend so much time together that we’re continually making over each other. Like I said in the press conference earlier, Thom has helped me so much with my apartment, Kyan gives me tips on my hair and I’ve got them to dress much better and taught them… (Emphatic) You should’ve seen them when they first arrived! I mean… (Laughter) They all have great personal style and we just kind of influenced each other.

Who has helped you the most?
Oh, gosh, I don’t know. I would probably say Thom because that was the area where I needed the most help… (Jai yells “Traitor!” from the other room.) No, I love you! (Laughter) I’m so culturally advanced! Dressing your body is one thing but dressing your home is so much more three-dimensional and so much more prominent, and it really affects your mood. It’s really an art to be able to do that.

Is there like a mother hen among you?
(Michael: He’s the mother hen.) Yes, just because I’m naturally bossy. Don’t you think?

Any advice to straight Filipino men?
Don’t do your hair like this (shows the cover of a society magazine). (Laughter) You’ll never get a woman if you do this. But these men (gets another copy of the magazine), they look good. Look at them.

But those are women!
These are women? (Laughter) It’s hard to tell anymore since this metrosexual thing took off.