Milestone for US LGBTQ Community

[kgmets]

President-Elect Biden's choice of Mayor Pete to be our next Secretary of Transportation constitutes a historic milestone for the US LGBTQ Community. Mayor Pete will be the first openly gay person to hold a position in the Cabinet of the President of the US. Additionally, at age 38 Mayor Pete will be the second youngest person in US history to serve in the Cabinet. The youngest was the very first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. As one who is relatively young, articulate, a very intelligent multi lingual Rhodes Scholar, war veteran and physically attractive, I cannot think of a better role model and symbol of the gay community than Mayor Pete. Now if I can just stop calling him Mayor Pete and learn to spell his last name!

 

[tampa24]

I'm very happy about the news also. It's wonderful progress. Some commentators are quick to say he is the first "out" gay cabinet member in history.

As far as high level members of an administration who were gay... Janet Reno as Attorney General under Bill Clinton comes to mind as one of the first probable closeted LGBT members.

 

[Jaybifla]

I'm very happy about the news also. It's wonderful progress. Some commentators are quick to say he is the first "out" gay cabinet member in history.

As far as high level members of an administration who were gay... Janet Reno as Attorney General under Bill Clinton comes to mind as one of the first probable closeted LGBT members.

There’s also Mike Pence...LOL

 

[tampa24]

There’s also Mike Pence...LOL

True that! haha

 

[mikeyank]

Most importantly, Pete can be a role model to kids growing up in non gay friendly locales and or families. A member of the president’s cabinet who lives openly with his male partner “normalizes” a way of life that is not always accepted can have a great impact on young people is a great happening to my eyes.

 

[kgmets]

Most importantly, Pete can be a role model to kids growing up in non gay friendly locales and or families. A member of the president’s cabinet who lives openly with his male partner “normalizes” a way of life that is not always accepted can have a great impact on young people is a great happening to my eyes.

Exactly my point! You stated it well in a different way.

 

[kgmets]

There’s also Mike Pence...LOL

I don't know about that but do know that Pence was born and raised Roman Catholic but left the church for being not far right wing enough and actually paying attention to Jesus' actual words such as "it is easier for a camel to go though the eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it to the kingdom of heaven", "judge not lest you be judged," and "whenever you feed, offer drink and clothe the poor, you did it to me [and go to heaven, and . . . whenever you deny food, drink and clothing to the poor, you did that to me and go to hell]". The last quote is from the Gospel of the Last Judgment. Pence's far right new church prefers the gospel of wealth, judging everyone and stripping benefits from the poor to fund tax cuts for billionaires, the exact opposite of the express words of Jesus Christ. As Mayor Pete once put in about such far right wing pseudo Christians "their problem is not with me but with God who created me!" This post is not an apology for Catholics as half of them voted for Trump in apparent complete ignorance of their own religion. I consider myself a Gospel of the Last Judgment voter in that I vote against the party that takes from the poor and middle class and diverts the monies to the super rich and vote for the party that opposes that and attempts to be fair to all.

 

[Repareur]

I don't know about that but do know that Pence was born and raised Roman Catholic but left the church for being not far right wing enough and actually paying attention to Jesus' actual words such as "it is easier for a camel to go though the eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it to the kingdom of heaven", "judge not lest you be judged," and "whenever you feed, offer drink and clothe the poor, you did it to me [and go to heaven, and . . . whenever you deny food, drink and clothing to the poor, you did that to me and go to hell]". The last quote is from the Gospel of the Last Judgment. Pence's far right new church prefers the gospel of wealth, judging everyone and stripping benefits from the poor to fund tax cuts for billionaires, the exact opposite of the express words of Jesus Christ. As Mayor Pete once put in about such far right wing pseudo Christians "their problem is not with me but with God who created me!" This post is not an apology for Catholics as half of them voted for Trump in apparent complete ignorance of their own religion. I consider myself a Gospel of the Last Judgment voter in that I vote against the party that takes from the poor and middle class and diverts the monies to the super rich and vote for the party that opposes that and attempts to be fair to all.

Amen brother! I hope you are preaching to the choir around here, you definitely are to me.

 

[tampa24]

I don't know about that but do know that Pence was born and raised Roman Catholic but left the church for being not far right wing enough and actually paying attention to Jesus' actual words such as "it is easier for a camel to go though the eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it to the kingdom of heaven", "judge not lest you be judged," and "whenever you feed, offer drink and clothe the poor, you did it to me [and go to heaven, and . . . whenever you deny food, drink and clothing to the poor, you did that to me and go to hell]". The last quote is from the Gospel of the Last Judgment. Pence's far right new church prefers the gospel of wealth, judging everyone and stripping benefits from the poor to fund tax cuts for billionaires, the exact opposite of the express words of Jesus Christ. As Mayor Pete once put in about such far right wing pseudo Christians "their problem is not with me but with God who created me!" This post is not an apology for Catholics as half of them voted for Trump in apparent complete ignorance of their own religion. I consider myself a Gospel of the Last Judgment voter in that I vote against the party that takes from the poor and middle class and diverts the monies to the super rich and vote for the party that opposes that and attempts to be fair to all.

Well said, KG!

 

[kgmets]

Most importantly, Pete can be a role model to kids growing up in non gay friendly locales and or families. A member of the president’s cabinet who lives openly with his male partner “normalizes” a way of life that is not always accepted can have a great impact on young people is a great happening to my eyes.

Pete made that very point himself at the press conference announcing his nomination. He recalled that when he was a closeted 17 year old, he had to watch a bigoted Senate reject the nomination of an openly gay man named Hormel to be Ambassador to Belgium solely due to him being gay, and how badly he felt watching that. He then hoped that today's 17 year olds will feel much greater self worth with his cabinet nomination.

 

[mikeyank]

Pete made that very point himself at the press conference announcing his nomination. He recalled that when he was a closeted 17 year old, he had to watch a bigoted Senate reject the nomination of an openly gay man named Hormel to be Ambassador to Belgium solely due to him being gay, and how badly he felt watching that. He then hoped that today's 17 year olds will feel much greater self worth with his cabinet nomination.

Exactly. I'm glad that Pete does understand how badly young gay or bi kids need a role model. I was watching an old AMC program on YouTube about an openly gay actor back in the 1920's named William Haines. This documentary pointed out that even in 2001, when the documentary was made there were no openly gay actors in Hollywood. At least today 20 years later we do have a handful. But my point is that in national politics we have basically none. Why if 25% of the population is gay or bi is there such a small percentage out for young people to be able to emulate?

And of course in professional sports which you and I follow, KG, there are basically zero in the major sports in the US, (baseball, football, basketball and hockey). Here is a preview of the AMC documentary available on YouTube about the pioneer openly gay actor, Billy Haines.

 

[kgmets]

Exactly. I'm glad that Pete does understand how badly young gay or bi kids need a role model. I was watching an old AMC program on YouTube about an openly gay actor back in the 1920's named William Haines. This documentary pointed out that even in 2001, when the documentary was made there were no openly gay actors in Hollywood. At least today 20 years later we do have a handful. But my point is that in national politics we have basically none. Why if 25% of the population is gay or bi is there such a small percentage out for young people to be able to emulate?

And of course in professional sports which you and I follow, KG, there are basically zero in the major sports in the US, (baseball, football, basketball and hockey). Here is a preview of the AMC documentary available on YouTube about the pioneer openly gay actor, Billy Haines.

Great story about the price to be paid for being openly gay in prior generations. Haines could have kept his fame and fortune by having a female beard for public purposes and kept on living with his lover as many other Hollywood star male actors did. Up until relatively recently the choice was professional success by staying in the closet or losing everything to be openly gay. It is a newer healthier generation now. The military was the first major national organization to integrate in 1948. A young straight vet recently back from Afghanistan told me that he had no problem whatsoever with the gays in his unit, which is the way it should be. Just as the military led in race relations from 1948 on, so it may be leading in gay respect and acceptance now. While clearly less desirable, in fairness to the closeted gays in earlier generations, not only did the closet give them professional success and fortune but sometimes the opportunity to help other gays as well, none of which they would have had had they come out. While where we are now is infinitely better, we should resist the temptation to be judgmental about the closeted gays of earlier generations, who really had no choice. The most tragic example of this was the young gay Brit who cracked the Nazi codes during WWII and was arguably personally responsible for the defeat of the Nazis, but lost his career when caught in a police entrapment sting and was driven to suicide. I think that a few years ago, his criminal conviction was vacated, an apology was given and posthumous honors were bestowed upon him, which was good but far too late. You are also quite correct about male professional sports where the norm is for gays to wait until after they retire to come out (in contrast to women's professional sports where there are a number of star openly gay lesbian athletes, and the acceptance level is so much higher). But in male sports the homophobic straight jocks sublimate the same sex attraction into socially accepted ass patting, hugging, kissing, not to mention the college wrestlers popping boners and engaging in intimate physical contact with each other which Tampa and I love to focus on, delighting in the fact that these are mostly straight homophobic wrestlers claiming to have no same sex attraction at the same time they are acting it out in socially accepted sublimated ways.

 

[Repareur]

Again very well said KG.

 

[juanjo]

I don't know about that but do know that Pence was born and raised Roman Catholic but left the church for being not far-right-wing enough and actually paying attention to Jesus' actual words such as "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to make it to the kingdom of heaven", "judge not lest you be judged," and "whenever you feed, offer drink and clothe the poor, you did it to me [and go to heaven, and . . . whenever you deny food, drink, and clothing to the poor, you did that to me and go to hell]". The last quote is from the Gospel of the Last Judgment. Pence's far-right new church prefers the gospel of wealth, judging everyone, and stripping benefits from the poor to fund tax cuts for billionaires, the exact opposite of the express words of Jesus Christ. As Mayor Pete once put in about such far-right-wing pseudo-Christians "their problem is not with me but with God who created me!" This post is not an apology for Catholics as half of them voted for Trump in apparent complete ignorance of their own religion. I consider myself a Gospel of the Last Judgment voter in that I vote against the party that takes from the poor and middle class and diverts the monies to the super-rich and vote for the party that opposes that and attempts to be fair to all.

Good comment. Mr. Pence is an excellent example of a man who apparently is completely unfamiliar with Matthew 25:31-46 and has followed his wife down the rabbit hole of far-right extremism. The only difference between a far-right religious fanatic of the type common in the US and the type found in Iran is the language in which they pray and the name of the book they read.

 

[juanjo]

Exactly. I'm glad that Pete does understand how badly young gay or bi kids need a role model. I was watching an old AMC program on YouTube about an openly gay actor back in the 1920s named William Haines. This documentary pointed out that even in 2001 when the documentary was made there were no openly gay actors in Hollywood. At least today 20 years later we do have a handful. But my point is that in national politics we have basically none. Why if 25% of the population is gay or bi is there such a small percentage out for young people to be able to emulate?

And of course in professional sports which you and I follow, KG, there are basically zero in the major sports in the US, (baseball, football, basketball, and hockey). Here is a preview of the AMC documentary available on YouTube about the pioneer openly gay actor, Billy Haines.

Billy Haines was a complex but heroic man who was a top box office attraction at the time he walked away from his career. He had made a stupid mistake in 1933, being arrested with a sailor in a room at the YMCA [and who hasn't been with a sailor at the YMCA at least once in their life?]. He had met Jimmy Shields in 1926 ad they had been a couple since meeting so this indiscretion caused some tension between the two, although they worked it out. It also threw MGM into a tizzy to have one of their top talent caught in a gay scandal. Louis B. Mayer, the studio head at MGM, delivered an ultimatum to Haines: Choose between a sham lavender marriage or his relationship with Shields. Haines told Mayer "I am married" and walked out of the meeting. He and Jimmy remained together for 47 years until Haines' death from lung cancer.

Haines & Shields went on to found one of the most illustrious antique and interior design stores in LA - he did all the top stars' & directors' homes, such as Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Jack Warner, Betsy Bloomingdale, and George Cukor. and even assisted in set design features on a number of movies. For example, all the paintings and assorted other art used to decorate the rooms in Tara on the "Gone With The Wind" set were provided by Haines from his own personal collection. He also did the Reagan residence as a favor to Ms. Reagan although it is said that Ronnie did not like having "pansies" around and would only communicate with Haines through his wife. [That might explain something about Reagan's response during the AIDS epidemic.]

What I always admired about Haines was that he had a reputation as a 'wisecracker' in his acting career both on and off the screen and was making a lot of money for the time period but when it came to it, he was willing to walk away from all of it because of his love for Shields. That was not an easy thing to do. He could have been like Cary Grant, Navarro, or numerous others who came before or after him, following the dictates of the studios and engaging in fake marriages and fake romances with women while hiding the man they truly loved in the shadows.

 

[tampa24]

Good comment. Mr. Pence is an excellent example of a man who apparently is completely unfamiliar with Matthew 25:31-46 and has followed his wife down the rabbit hole of far-right extremism. The only difference between a far-right religious fanatic of the type common in the US and the type found in Iran is the language in which they pray and the name of the book they read.

Thank you for stating that truth Juanjo.

I came to that conclusion a few years ago also. There is not much difference between the far right Christian religious extremists here in the U.S. compared to the Taliban in Afghanistan or the Mullahs in Iran. They would love to tell everyone that they must attend church regularly. And either fine them or imprison them if they do not. Or both. They must not have any sex before marriage. If they are unmarried their whole lives, then they must never have sex. Women must dress very modestly. Gays should be either be killed or imprisoned away from the general population. Those kinds of things (or only slight variations thereof) are on the wish list of extremist Christian groups as well.

 

[mikeyank]

Billy Haines was a complex but heroic man who was a top box office attraction at the time he walked away from his career. He had made a stupid mistake in 1933, being arrested with a sailor in a room at the YMCA [and who hasn't been with a sailor at the YMCA at least once in their life?]. He had met Jimmy Shields in 1926 ad they had been a couple since meeting so this indiscretion caused some tension between the two, although they worked it out. It also threw MGM into a tizzy to have one of their top talent caught in a gay scandal. Louis B. Mayer, the studio head at MGM, delivered an ultimatum to Haines: Choose between a sham lavender marriage or his relationship with Shields. Haines told Mayer "I am married" and walked out of the meeting. He and Jimmy remained together for 47 years until Haines' death from lung cancer.

Haines & Shields went on to found one of the most illustrious antique and interior design stores in LA - he did all the top stars' & directors' homes, such as Joan Crawford, Tallulah Bankhead, Jack Warner, Betsy Bloomingdale, and George Cukor. and even assisted in set design features on a number of movies. For example, all the paintings and assorted other art used to decorate the rooms in Tara on the "Gone With The Wind" set were provided by Haines from his own personal collection. He also did the Reagan residence as a favor to Ms. Reagan although it is said that Ronnie did not like having "pansies" around and would only communicate with Haines through his wife. [That might explain something about Reagan's response during the AIDS epidemic.]

What I always admired about Haines was that he had a reputation as a 'wisecracker' in his acting career both on and off the screen and was making a lot of money for the time period but when it came to it, he was willing to walk away from all of it because of his love for Shields. That was not an easy thing to do. He could have been like Cary Grant, Navarro, or numerous others who came before or after him, following the dictates of the studios and engaging in fake marriages and fake romances with women while hiding the man they truly loved in the shadows.

Thanks juanjo for explaining so much that was covered in that AMC documentary that I stumbled up on YouTube. I don't think I had ever heard of him before and if you asked me to guess who Billy Haines was, my first guess would have been a shortstop for the old Brooklyn Dodgers.

One more point that was made in the documentary was that when Louis B. Mayer asked Billy to abandon his partner Jimmy Shields, supposed Billy said that he would if Louis gave up his wife. I guess that was a part of Billy's wise-cracking personality.

One more side note. I purchased a 65" "smart TV" a few months ago and thought I'd be mainly watching NetFlix and Amazon Prime, but instead I am find a whole bunch of fascinating documentaries including many of interest to the LGBQ community. And Netflix also has some great gay themed programming including one about Armistead Maupin and his coming out period, And another called "Circus of Books" about a non descript straight Jewish couple who wound up owning a gay bookstore in "Boys Town" in Los Angeles. Here is a preview of the series.

And here is a synopsis of the story from The Guardian.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/apr/22/circus-of-books-netflix-gay-porn-shop-documentary

Circus of Books: behind a Netflix film about a mom-and-pop gay porn shop

A still from Circus of Books. Photograph: Netflix
In a charming new documentary produced by Ryan Murphy, a film-maker explores her parents’ business: a Los Angeles store selling gay porn

Jim Farber
Wed 22 Apr 2020 03.05 EDT

162
Rachel Mason always remembers her parents telling her as a teenager not to let anyone know what they did for a living. “They used the same codes the mafia does,” Mason said. “My mom had five different ‘official’ job titles as one point. She’d say, ‘I’m in real estate’ or ‘I’m a manager’.”

Both of which were, in a sense, true. Karen and Barry Mason – two quiet, middle-aged and, in the mother’s case, devoutly religious, people – did, in fact, own a commercial property and did run a store. What they kept hidden was the fact that their store happened to be the largest purveyor of hardcore gay pornography in Los Angeles, a place unknown to the general public but legendary among gay men across the US. At one point, through their mail-order business, the couple became perhaps the biggest distributors of gay porn in the US. In the 80s and 90s, the Masons’ store, named Circus of Books, was the place to pick up explicit gay magazines and movies, some of which the couple even produced, along with such useful accoutrements as lube, dildos and cock rings. It was even a good place to find sex, with the friskier patrons ducking out back to an area teeming enough to earn the nickname “Vaseline Alley”.

n the movie, older gay men talk about the store in hallowed tones, expressing a mixture of affection, connection and awe. “To see men naked and unafraid, that gave us a lot of pride,” says Don Norman, a Circus regular, while another says: “It made every gay man feel comfortable about exploring their sexuality.”


It was the kind of store “you’d expect two extra-fetishy leather daddies to own”, Rachel Mason said, with a laugh. “Which is what made this whole thing so bizarre.”

The disparity between her parents’ character and the specifics of their business serves as the jumping-off point for an illuminating new documentary named Circus of Books, which is produced by Ryan Murphy and is now available on Netflix. The movie, directed by Rachel, an artist and musician, covers more than her parents’ unusual double life and the family’s complex dynamic. It also delves into the special role a venue like Circus of Books had in the lives of gay men of an earlier era. The heyday of the store – which the Masons owned from 1983 until its closing in 2019 – peaked several decades ago, a time when the lives of their gay male patrons were far more fraught, and covert, than the open LGBTQ+ world of today. “To be a homo was unspeakable,” says Billy Miller, publisher of the seminal gay magazine Straight to Hell, in the film. “I can’t even explain how different it was.”

Check out the link for the full article. Wow I have strayed from KG's original post about Mayor Pete being nominated for the cabinet position, but I've always thought that this forum was at it's best when we meander like a river as a thread takes on a life of it's own.......

 

[kgmets]

Thanks juanjo for explaining so much that was covered in that AMC documentary that I stumbled up on YouTube. I don't think I had ever heard of him before and if you asked me to guess who Billy Haines was, my first guess would have been a shortstop for the old Brooklyn Dodgers.

One more point that was made in the documentary was that when Louis B. Mayer asked Billy to abandon his partner Jimmy Shields, supposed Billy said that he would if Louis gave up his wife. I guess that was a part of Billy's wise-cracking personality.

One more side note. I purchased a 65" "smart TV" a few months ago and thought I'd be mainly watching NetFlix and Amazon Prime, but instead I am find a whole bunch of fascinating documentaries including many of interest to the LGBQ community. And Netflix also has some great gay themed programming including one about Armistead Maupin and his coming out period, And another called "Circus of Books" about a non descript straight Jewish couple who wound up owning a gay bookstore in "Boys Town" in Los Angeles. Here is a preview of the series.

And here is a synopsis of the story from The Guardian.

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/apr/22/circus-of-books-netflix-gay-porn-shop-documentary

Circus of Books: behind a Netflix film about a mom-and-pop gay porn shop

A still from Circus of Books. Photograph: Netflix
In a charming new documentary produced by Ryan Murphy, a film-maker explores her parents’ business: a Los Angeles store selling gay porn

Jim Farber
Wed 22 Apr 2020 03.05 EDT

162
Rachel Mason always remembers her parents telling her as a teenager not to let anyone know what they did for a living. “They used the same codes the mafia does,” Mason said. “My mom had five different ‘official’ job titles as one point. She’d say, ‘I’m in real estate’ or ‘I’m a manager’.”

Both of which were, in a sense, true. Karen and Barry Mason – two quiet, middle-aged and, in the mother’s case, devoutly religious, people – did, in fact, own a commercial property and did run a store. What they kept hidden was the fact that their store happened to be the largest purveyor of hardcore gay pornography in Los Angeles, a place unknown to the general public but legendary among gay men across the US. At one point, through their mail-order business, the couple became perhaps the biggest distributors of gay porn in the US. In the 80s and 90s, the Masons’ store, named Circus of Books, was the place to pick up explicit gay magazines and movies, some of which the couple even produced, along with such useful accoutrements as lube, dildos and cock rings. It was even a good place to find sex, with the friskier patrons ducking out back to an area teeming enough to earn the nickname “Vaseline Alley”.

n the movie, older gay men talk about the store in hallowed tones, expressing a mixture of affection, connection and awe. “To see men naked and unafraid, that gave us a lot of pride,” says Don Norman, a Circus regular, while another says: “It made every gay man feel comfortable about exploring their sexuality.”


It was the kind of store “you’d expect two extra-fetishy leather daddies to own”, Rachel Mason said, with a laugh. “Which is what made this whole thing so bizarre.”

The disparity between her parents’ character and the specifics of their business serves as the jumping-off point for an illuminating new documentary named Circus of Books, which is produced by Ryan Murphy and is now available on Netflix. The movie, directed by Rachel, an artist and musician, covers more than her parents’ unusual double life and the family’s complex dynamic. It also delves into the special role a venue like Circus of Books had in the lives of gay men of an earlier era. The heyday of the store – which the Masons owned from 1983 until its closing in 2019 – peaked several decades ago, a time when the lives of their gay male patrons were far more fraught, and covert, than the open LGBTQ+ world of today. “To be a homo was unspeakable,” says Billy Miller, publisher of the seminal gay magazine Straight to Hell, in the film. “I can’t even explain how different it was.”

Check out the link for the full article. Wow I have strayed from KG's original post about Mayor Pete being nominated for the cabinet position, but I've always thought that this forum was at it's best when we meander like a river as a thread takes on a life of it's own.......

I completely agree! Meandering threads are sometimes the best! It's like a stream of consciousness conversation that flows from one point to another. One of many factors that makes the Broke Straight Boys Forum such an asset and resource!

 

[mikeyank]

I completely agree! Meandering threads are sometimes the best! It's like a stream of consciousness conversation that flows from one point to another. One of many factors that makes the Broke Straight Boys Forum such an asset and resource!

 

[kgmets]

Good comment. Mr. Pence is an excellent example of a man who apparently is completely unfamiliar with Matthew 25:31-46 and has followed his wife down the rabbit hole of far-right extremism. The only difference between a far-right religious fanatic of the type common in the US and the type found in Iran is the language in which they pray and the name of the book they read.

For those of you who can, check out this morning's New York Times op ed page for an interview with a progressive evangelical minister. His response to your point is there is a word for advocating the opposite of what the bible says about treatment of the poor to enrich even more the rich, and the word is HERESY! He also views the political marriage of white right wing evangelism to the Republican Party as a Faustian deal which gives up the "envangel" (preaching the scriptures) and keeps the "white", a heretical blow against true Christianity. Lest this become too denominational, Senator Al Franken said that his rabbi once told him that Christ's teachings on social justice and the treatment of the poor by the rich were were nothing new and well within mainstream Judaic thought. So we are talking about universal truths here that the three religions in the Abrahamic tradition share, and that the white right wing evangelicals are heretically selling out.