Gay men magazine
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“It was a lifestyle and celebrity magazine as seen through a gay male lens,” says New York-based Eric Marcus, creator of the podcast Gay History. It embraced sensuality on any kind of stage, be it Vegas clubs, circus tents, ice rinks, or bullrings. It was a champion of experimental art, cutting-edge theater, and up-and-coming artists. That magazine and the 168 that followed (all of which I‘ve treasured like old friends) reflected all the things I love: theater dance television cabaret visual arts film fashion opera pop music and beautiful, sexy men. It was as if I just shook hands with my secret self. I remember spending 50 cents and picking up its first issue in May 1968 at a Boston newsstand. But for others, it usually went right over their heads.” Secret Selvesĭegley’s and Ordynowicz’s passion for the publication brought to mind my own love of the glossy magazine. “Still, if you were a closeted gay man, you just knew the magazine was for you.
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“After Dark was as closeted as the gays had to be then,” says Degley. There was an air of danger, he says, for gay men and women during that subterranean era when deep secrets, knowing glances, and coded words were de rigueur in order to keep jobs, families, and reputations intact while still being able to connect with other LBGTQ persons.ĭegley and Ordynowicz, who live in West Haven, are especially intrigued with After Dark magazine, published from 1968 to 1983. “We can’t forget what our community had to go through to get to where we are now,” says Ordynowicz, who compares their ephemera pursuit to modern hipsters collecting vinyl records to better appreciate and honor a past culture. Over the past few years Ordynowicz, a 38-year-old theater technician and Degley, a 43-year-old claims adjuster, have developed a fascination for vintage gay-related periodicals, especially those of the second half of the 20th Century. Billy Ordynowicz and Lawrence Degley have a gay obsession.