Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 52, Ed. 1 Friday, April 25, 1997 Page: 4 of 72
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214/754-8710
(Individual Extentions listed below)
fax214/969-7271
E-MAiudvoice@ ix.netcom.com
3000 Carlisle St., Suite 200
Dallas, Texas 75204
9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Weekcays
News & Editorial__
Dennis Vercher, 113
EDITOR
Tammye Nash, 117
John McCoy, 118
STAFF REPORTERS
Contributors:
Steve Waren
FILM CRITIC
Erin McClendon
THEATER CRITIC
David Taffet
TRAVEL FEATURES
Jere Becker
TRAINER'S ROOM
Meryl Cohn
MS. BEHAVIOR
David Bianco
PAST OUT
Timothy Nasson
FEATURES
Charlie Green
Tony Hamilton
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Advertising
Robert Moore, 112
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Leo Cusimano, 114
John Arnsdorff, 115
ACCOUNT
REPRESENTATIVES
Greg Hoover, 123
CLASSIFIEDS
Graphics
K.R. Murphy, 119
ART DIRECTOR
David Davis, 125
GRAPHIC ARTIST
Administration_
Don Ritz, 110
CONTROLLER
Larry Mosely, 110
ADMINISTRATIVE ASST.
Affiliations
3c“
La asp-”-
An
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Associate Member
The Associated Press
©1997, Voice Publishing Co., Inc. All rights
reserved. Reprint rights are available only by specific
permission of the publishers or editor.
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Viewpoints_
Just how revolutionary is Ellen’s coming-out?
After all, television has been teasing with gay images for decades. Right, Endora?
/ I've often
wondered what
I'd be like had I
not grown up
with television.
My parents obvi-
ously had fulfill-
ing childhoods
without this
entertainment
medium, but I
can't imagine life
without it. While I have no doubt that
every American adult has their own
recollections of TV programs that
shaped their childhood, I do question
whether or not mine are the same. I am,
after all, a gay male. And I was, after all,
what my parent's friends referred to as
"a creative child." (That's Southern
Baptist slang for "a big homo.")
I've often heard my heterosexual
male friends reminisce about their fond
memories of such shows as Gunsmoke,
The Rifleman and Bonanza. They all had
fantasies of being cowboys, and loved
the rough and tough demeanors of
those show's stars. These were clearly
shows that held no interest for me,
aside from my fascination with Miss
Kitty's fabulous outfits. And if I had to
watch a Western, I was more prone to
The Wild, Wild West — just to look at
Robert Conrad! Obviously, my fantasies
were on a whole different channel, so to
speak.
No, I was far more intrigued by sit-
coms. They were far more fun, and let's
face it, I've always been a fan of laugh-
ter. The Munsters, The Addams Family,
Gilligan's Island and, of course,
Bewitched. I loved Bewitched! Was it
because I identified with Samantha —
she who was "different" but had to act
"normal" like everyone else? Or was it
the outlandish eyeshadow and billow-
ing chiffon of Endora? No, I can honest-
ly say that I was fan of Bewitched
because of Louise Tate's leopard-skin
hat and coat. Now there was a woman
who knew how to dress!
I was fan of Bewitched
because of Louise Tate’s
leopard-skin hat and
coat. Now there was a
woman who knew how
to dress!
It did strike me as odd, however, that
the characters on this show seemed to
drink an awful lot of alcohol. Kind of
explains Darrin's mother and her sick
headaches, doesn't it?
Beyond sitcoms, I, as a creative child,
loved fantasy shows like Lost in Space
and Batman. Here were characters who
had colorful costumes and zippy meth-
ods of transportation. What a combina-
tion! .Plus, these two shows gave me
comfort in showing that there were
other people out there who were "that
way." I mean, really, Dr. Smith on Lost
in Space — now there's one big homo!
And don't get me started on Batman
and Robin. Bruce Wayne was a wealthy,
attractive man who lived in a huge
house with his best friend whom he
referred to as Young Dick, his Boy
Wonder. Right! And when things got
really exciting, they slid down a brass
pole, played in a dungeon, and ran
around town in tights!
Finally, I have fond memories of
Saturday morning cartoons. Mainly
Bugs Bunny. Here was a fun guy who
could get in and out of almost any situ-
ation and oftentimes did so by dressing
in drag. Now that looked like fun to
me! Here again, though, Saturday
mornings offered their share of fantasy
shows as well. Scooby-Doo was a big
influence on me for many reasons —
not the least of which was Freddie. He
was such a stud muffin, yet he wore a
scarf around his neck — I loved that!
This was also the show that introduced
me to my first lesbian heroine. Yes, I am
of the definite opinion that Velma is a
big dyke. But above all else on
Saturdays, I lived for Johnny Quest.
Here was a cute young blond boy who
got to go on exciting overseas expedi-
tions, with his best friend, his dog, his
Dad, and his Dad's "friend," a big stud
known as Race Bannon. I can vividly
remember running around the house
with a towel on my head hoping some
cute blond boy would take me to exotic
places!
So as you can see, my flamboyance
as a child was greatly abetted by my
fascination with television. Now that
I'm an adult, I don't have much time for
TV, but when I do, you can rest assured
that I'm watching Nick at Nite and re-
living those childhood fantasies all over
again. T
Paul J. Williams
The Way I See It
LETTERS
We welcome letters from our readers. Send let-
ters to the Editor, Dallas Voice, 3000 Carlisle,
Suite 200, Dallas TX 75204, or FAX to 969-7271,
or e-mail to dvoice@ix.netcom.com. Please
include a daytime telephone number so we may
contact you for confirmation. Your name and city
will be printed at the end of your letter. Concise
letters are more likely to be printed; all letters are
subject to editing. We do not print unsigned letters
or letters sent to other publications; we also
decline to withhold the letter-writer’s name.
About extreme’ sex
John McCoy's chilling article in last
week's Dallas Voice ("Xtreme sex," Page
1) demands community attention. It's
incredible how these people who delib-
erate practice unsafe sex rationalize
their behavior.
They refuse to recognize HIV's
means of transmission and mutation.
They imply that being HIV-positive and
asymptomatic is the only significant
consequence of "raw" sex. They ignore
the slow, painful and truly horrific way
the disease eventually destroys the
body. They even censor their own dis-
cussions on the topic. And they do all of
this for the mere purpose of protecting
their pathetic bubble of fantasy from
bursting and interrupting their nonstop
party existence. This "to hell with
everyone else" attitude is the stuff of
which stereotypes are made.
When we pay our taxes, we are pay-
ing our dues in exchange for the health
benefits society can provide. They are a
premium on a social insurance policy.
In return, we are expected to do what
we can to limit the risks involved, so
that the system can afford to help those
who get sick anyway. This is also true of
private insurance policies; if everyone
got sick, no one could afford the premi-
ums.
These "extreme sex" adherents seem
to think that the community and society
at large owes them whatever it takes to
sustain their lives and health while they
practice their deadly sexual habits.
That's not insurance. That's embezzle-
ment! Given this fraud, it's no wonder
that homophobia is rampant in much of
the straight population.
To the world at large, I would like to
point out that these people are not rep-
resentative of the gay population, and
some of us are doing everything we can
These people are not
representative ot the gay
population, and some of
us are doing everything
we can to see that they
never become represen-
tative^! our attitudes.
to see that they never become represen-
tative of our attitudes. Let's agree as a
community to stop this madness and
encourage the healing process now.
Kevin L. Weller
Dallas
4
APRIL 25, 1997
DALLAS VOICE
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Vercher, Dennis. Dallas Voice (Dallas, Tex.), Vol. 13, No. 52, Ed. 1 Friday, April 25, 1997, newspaper, April 25, 1997; Dallas, Texas. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth616113/m1/4/: accessed March 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.