James "Duke" Mason

James Duke Mason is a writer, advocate and commentator. The only child of singer Belinda Carlisle and film producer/former White House official Morgan Mason, he is also the only grandchild of the late British actor James Mason and his wife, media personality Pamela Mason.

Born in LA, Mason moved to Europe with his parents as a child. Mason is openly gay and came out to his family and friends at the age of 14 in 2006. He served as the first openly gay president of his international high school's student council in France. He served as a Page in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2008.

After graduating high school in 2010, Mason moved back to the U.S. to study political science at Cal Lutheran. After a year he moved to West Hollywood to pursue his passion for grassroots advocacy.

He had an acting role in the film "What Happens Next", which screened as part of the Hollywood Film Festival. In 2010, The Advocate listed Mason as one of the most influential young LGBT Americans in their "Forty Under 40" issue. He was named in OUT magazine's 2011 "Out 100" list as one of the 100 most influential LGBT people in the world.

He has appeared on TV shows such as Dr. Phil, Nancy Grace, and Politicking with Larry King. He served as an official surrogate for the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama in 2012 and Hillary Clinton in 2016. He served on the Board of Directors of Outfest from 2012 to 2015, the youngest Board Member in the organization's history. He was a candidate for the West Hollywood City Council in the 2015 election, and was subsequently appointed by Mayor Lindsey Horvath to her newly created 21st Century Leaders Task Force. He was on the Board of WeHo Community Housing Corporation from 2015 to 2017.

From 2015 to 2020 he served on the WeHo LGBTQ+ Advisory Board, where he was Co-Chair from 2017 to 2018. He once again ran for City Council in 2019; he placed 5th (top 3 won) in a crowded field of 11 candidates. He was endorsed by longtime City Councilmember John Heilman, U.S. Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney (Co-Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus) and prominent LGBTQ organization Equality California.

In 2022 he was a Special Advisor to Rick Caruso's campaign for LA Mayor. For more than a decade he has been a writer/commentator for various major publications, including Mediaite, The Huffington Post, The Advocate, OUT Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter and Billboard. He also has a podcast called Duke's Download. And also recently appeared in the MTV docuseries “My Family Legacy” - now streaming on Paramount+ - where he honors the legacy of his mother Belinda Carlisle. He served as an advisor/liaison to Matt Mahan's campaign for Governor of California in 2026.