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Intellect Books - Scott McKinnon

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190 pages

English

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A propos
Informations
Extrait

Description

Cinema has long played a major role in the formation of community among marginalised groups, and this book details that process for gay men in Sydney, Australia from the 1950s to the present. Scott McKinnon builds the book from a variety of sources, including film reviews, media reports, personal memoirs, oral histories and a striking range of films, all deployed to answer the question of understanding cinema-going as a moment of connection to community and identity – how the experience of seeing these films and being part of an audience helped to build a community among the gay men of Sydney in the period.

Introduction

Part One: Friends of Dorothy in the Emerald City

Chapter 1 – The 1950s – Censored from view for all to see

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1950s Sydney

Regular guys and ‘sister boys’: Tea and Sympathy

Friends of Tom Lee: Rebel without a Cause, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Some Like it Hot

Chapter 2 – The 1960s – Undeniable

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1960s Sydney

Poor unfortunate souls: Victim and Advise and Consent

The real lives of English youth: A Taste of Honey, The Leather Boys and If...

Chapter 3 – The 1970s – Strike up the band

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1970s Sydney

A memory of times gone by: The Boys in the Band

The thrill of the new: Sunday Bloody Sunday and A Very Natural Thing

Chapter 4 – The 1980s – Arriving at last, leaving too soon

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1980s Sydney

The Hollywood gaze: Fame, Partners, Cruising and Making Love

An independent eye: Taxi Zum Klo

Chapter 5 – The 1990s – When we were cool

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1990s Sydney

Made for them or watched by us? The Sum of Us

To enlighten and remember: Philadelphia and Longtime Companion

Chapter 6 – The 2000s – In the shadow of the mountain

Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 2000s Sydney

The film that got us good: Brokeback Mountain

Staying home or going to the festival: Another Gay Movie and Shelter

Part Two: Memories of Dorothy: Memories, Movies, Gay Men

Chapter 7 – Gay kids at the movies – Movie memory and queer childhoods

On-screen memories: Childhood

Remembering childhood cinema-going

Chapter 8 – Others like us – Movie memory and the search for community

Movie memories at the movies: Identity

Learning, reciting and refuting memory

Chapter 9 – We were there – Movie memory and the search for a queer past

Heroes and villains: Braveheart and Alexander

Creating ‘our’ history: Stonewall and Milk

Conclusion: Gay Men at the Movies

Sujets

Arts visuels

Cinéma

Cinema

Gender Studies

General officer

Cultural studies

Art

General

Informations

Publié par	Intellect Books
Date de parution	01 août 2016
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781783205981
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,2688€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

First published in the UK in 2016 by Intellect, The Mill, Parnall Road, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16 3JG, UK
First published in the USA in 2016 by Intellect, The University of Chicago Press, 1427 E. 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Copyright © 2016 Intellect Ltd
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Cover designer: Emily Dann
Copy-editor: MPS Technologies
Production managers: Jessica Lovett
Typesetting: John Teehan
ISBN 978-1-78320-596-7
ePDF ISBN 978-1-78320-597-4
ePub ISBN 978-1-78320-598-1
Printed and bound by Hobbs, UK
Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part One: Friends of Dorothy in the Emerald City
Chapter 1 The 1950s — Censored from view for all to see
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1950s Sydney
Regular guys and ‘sister boys’: Tea and Sympathy
Friends of Tom Lee: Rebel without a Cause, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Some Like it Hot
Chapter 2 The 1960s — Undeniable
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1960s Sydney
Poor unfortunate souls: Victim and Advise and Consent
The real lives of English youth: A Taste of Honey, The Leather Boys and If ...
Chapter 3 The 1970s — Strike up the band
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1970s Sydney
A memory of times gone by: The Boys in the Band
The thrill of the new: Sunday Bloody Sunday and A Very Natural Thing
Chapter 4 The 1980s — Arriving at last, leaving too soon
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1980s Sydney
The Hollywood gaze: Fame, Partners, Cruising and Making Love
An independent eye: Taxi Zum Klo
Chapter 5 The 1990s — When we were cool
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 1990s Sydney
Made for them or watched by us? The Sum of Us
To enlighten and remember: Philadelphia and Longtime Companion
Chapter 6 The 2000s — In the shadow of the mountain
Gay space, cinema-going and censorship in 2000s Sydney
The film that got us good: Brokeback Mountain
Staying home or going to the festival: Another Gay Movie and Shelter
Part Two: Memories of Dorothy: Memory, Movies, Gay Men
Chapter 7 Gay kids at the movies — Movie memory and queer childhoods
On-screen memories: Childhood
Remembering childhood cinema-going
Chapter 8 Others like us — Movie memory and the search for community
Movie memories at the movies: Identity
Learning, reciting and refuting memory
Chapter 9 We were there — Movie memory and the search for a queer past
Heroes and villains: Braveheart and Alexander
Creating ‘our’ history: Stonewall and Milk
Conclusion: Gay men at the movies
Bibliography
Index
For Jimmy
Acknowledgements
The Jimmy to whom this book is dedicated is my partner, James Worner. James has lived and breathed this project with me over many years. He has patiently listened to me ramble on while I talked ill-formed ideas into some kind of sense; he has read chapter draft after chapter draft, editing them into sensible life; and he has been a reassuring voice of support throughout the whole process. For these reasons and innumerable others I consider myself very lucky to have found him. Many thanks, Jimmy!
This book began its life as a Ph.D. thesis and a huge debt of gratitude is owed to my former supervisor and continued mentor and friend, Paula Hamilton.
I’m also grateful to my fellow historians at Sydney’s Pride History Group. Their hard work, skill and passion for history is inspirational. In particular, Shirleene Robinson, John Witte and Robert French have each taught me a great deal and have been wonderful collaborators.
For the past three years, Andrew Gorman-Murray and Dale Dominey-Howes have been my brilliant bosses/collaborators/mentors/friends. I’m very grateful to them both.
Sincere thanks go to all of my interviewees, who so generously shared their time, thoughts and memories.
Many thanks to Daniel James, a talented photographer and fabulous friend who has generously provided many of the photographs in this book (and quite a few others that hang on my walls at home).
And, finally, thanks to my wonderful mum and dad. No matter what you may think of this book, Dear Reader, you can at least be sure that its mere existence makes Bob and Jill McKinnon proud.
Introduction
“Why don’t I put on a movie?
Take your mind off things.”
– Zach, Making Love (1982)
The American film Making Love played on the screens of the Hoyts cinema chain in Sydney, Australia, in July 1982. As the first Hollywood romance about a relationship between openly gay men, the film drew the attention of the local media. Sydney’s gay press expressed cautious enthusiasm, hopeful that this was a sign of increasing acceptance but wary of Hollywood’s homophobic history. The mainstream press pondered what meaning about a changing world could be drawn from the screening of a gay romance at multiplex cinemas. It was a popular movie among the growing, increasingly vocal and visible gay community of the city, although many gay men decried it as representing a limited and middle-class vision of gay identity.
John B was a movie-obsessed high school student when Making Love was released. 1 A lifelong love of the movies had begun in childhood and he studied the newspaper film listings each week to plan his frequent trips to the cinema. But for John, there was something different about this movie. In an oral history interview almost thirty years later, he said:
And I can still remember when the movie Making Love came out. That it was on at Pitt Street. I could not bring myself to go and see it. What if someone saw me go and see it? But I was fascinated. I wanted to know about it. And I read everything I could about it.
Homophobic bullying at school had left John terrified of being gay. He was excited by the film’s storyline and yet troubled by his own attraction to it. Even more importantly, he feared the consequences if a schoolmate saw him at the cinema in which the film was showing. So he continued to read all he could about it without ever approaching the cinema door.
John’s story, and the factors that determined the local reception of Making Love , reveal the central themes of this book; namely, the role of cinema and cinema-going in the emergence of gay male community and identity. Across years of censorship and oppression, of activism and anger, of pride and celebration, of illness and mourning, this book finds the influence of the movies woven into the cultural and social history of gay male communities, into the cultural geography of urban spaces and into both the personal and the collective memories of many gay men. By exploring the history of audiences as well as cinematic texts, the significance of the movies can be found both on and beyond the screen.
Important to the reception of Making Love in 1982 were the physical spaces in which it was screened; the available subject positions from which gay men viewed the film; the critical response in both the gay and mainstream media; the film’s context within the history of gay representation on-screen and the responses of gay cinema-goers who drew multiple and often conflicting meanings from the film’s text. And vitally important are the memories of a man who, although he didn’t see the film until adulthood, remembers this Hollywood romance as a significant moment in his struggles with sexuality and difference.
In the latter half of the twentieth century, many large global cities have seen the emergence of visible, politically active and culturally productive lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) communities. The place of homosexuality in these spaces has shifted across time from a site of censorship and denial to political discussion and cultural participation. Various forms of gay identity have emerged, consolidated, adapted and, at times, faded from view. Inner-city neighbourhoods have been altered through their colonisation by LGBTQ communities, these neighbourhoods both framing and adapting to queer identities.
The movies have played a pivotal role in this history. Important, of course, have been the forms of queer representation found in cinematic texts. But movies are more than just texts comprised of projected images. They form a pervasive cultural product that has woven its way through the everyday life of cities. The movies are part of the cultural geography of the urban environment; they are valuable fodder for a voracious media; they are part of our memories and sites of our history. They are also a means of social interaction; moments by which we connect with friends, go on dates, share thoughts and argue meanings.
The historiography of gay men 2 and the movies has all too rarely taken into account the importance of cinema beyond the text. In this book, I take an interdisciplinary approach in asking the question, “What role have the movies played in the emergence of gay male community and identity?” By looking at the movies, and at gay male life, as a matter of socio-cultural history, cultural geography and memory studies, I argue for the significance of cinema and cinema-going as factors in that emergence, using my hometown of Sydney, Australia, as a case study. By analysing the memories of gay male cinema-goers alongside cinematic texts and extratextual materials, I chart the influences of the movies in the history of a gay male community. I do not, of course, mean to suggest that cinema has been the singular factor in the development of urban gay communities and cultures. I do argue, however, that there is value in looking past the screen to consider the importance of the movies as part of the history of gay life in the city.
In which the author discusses himself
There is an element of auto-ethnography in this book and I will at times refer to my own experiences and