Newsletter of the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives No. 16, Spring 2001
In this issue:
The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives is pleased to announce that Matt Hughes,
emeritus Professor of Music of the School of Music at Acadia University, is
the newly elected president of the Board of CLGA.
This is the second national organization that Matt has served as President.
He was elected President of the Canadian Federation of Music Teachers' Associations
from 1989 to 1991. Matt has extensive experience building both the Music Collection
and the Gay and Lesbian Literature Collection of Acadia University.
A concert pianist, Matt has performed in Canada, the United States, England
and Greece. In addition, Matt has recorded for the CBC, CTV and BBC. He has
performed widely with Hortus Music, an 18th century ensemble and he is a member
of the Board of Directors of Opera in Concert, Toronto. He has been published
by Columbia University Press, Yale University Press, and Dalhousie University
Press.
Matt Hughes's e-mail address is hughes99@home.ca
by Matt Hughes
Since the last Newsletter, the Archives has seen celebrations, changes and farewells.
The Archives celebrated a victory in a decision delivered by Ontario Human Rights Commission Board Chair, Ms Heather M. MacNaughton, on February 24, 2000, between Mr. Scott Brockie and Imaging Excellence Inc., and Ray Brillinger and the CLGA. The decision by Ms MacNaughton found Mr. Brockie and his company had discriminated against Mr. Brillinger and the Archives by refusing to print letterhead, stationery and envelopes for the Archives. Organizations across the country are watching this decision as it is of national importance. This is the first time the OHRC has accepted an organization, as a Complainant, opening the door for other charity groups and organizations. Equally important this decision offers a clear decision on how for a Respondent may go using freedom of expression as a basis for discrimination. In 1999, the CLGA joined the ranks of individuals and organizations moving us ever closer to a society built on justice and acceptance. The decision is being appealed.
The Archives continues its celebration with the opening of a new exhibition entitled, Builders of Tolerance: Portraits from the CLGA. The exhibition features portraits of Elmer Bagares, Nicole Brossard, Michelle Douglas, John Fisher, Janine Fuller, Rev. Brent Hawkes, Gens Hellquist, Tomson Highway, Charlie Hill, George Hislop, Dr. Alan Li, Ann-Marie MacDonald, Bonte Minnema, Alex Munter, Pat Murphy, Glen Murray, Keith Norton, Carmen Paquette, Kyle Rae, Neil Richards and Susan Ursel. Toronto photographer, Dave Smith, whose interests include homoerotic nudes, gave an informal lecture as part of the exhibition. The lecture was an overview of the "History of Gay Photography", illustrated with slides, points and books from the collection of the Archives. The presentation included works by F. Holland Day, Baron von Gloeden and Richard Plowright.
Funding continues to be a challenge. Fundraising efforts have fallen alarming short for the past year. Revenues and Expenditures for the year ending December 31, 1999 reported a deficit of $16,907. In the past, the CLGA has been one of the two designated beneficiaries of the Pride and Remembrance Run. In 1999 the rules were changed and the Archives was not chosen. The resulting deficit, which was considerable, was covered by withdrawing money from our Emergency Funds.
The essential work to the CLGA in building a stronger sense of lesbian and gay identity was recognized and supported by two of the community's leading organizations. We would like to acknowledge the continued and generous support of the Pink Triangle Press and the Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal Foundation
Another challenging aspect of the Archives is the lack of space. At present, only non-fiction is available at our Temperance Street address. The Board is trying to deal with this problem along with its renewed efforts in fundraising. As part of the contingency effort, the Board opened a dialogue with the University of Toronto.
Effective July 1, 2000, Matt Hughes was elected President of the Board. Edward Tompkins resigned to move with his partner, Christopher Bondy, to Paris, France. At a reception for volunteers in July, the Board said goodbye to Edward and Chris. I would like to commend Edward for his hard work, his vision, his scholarship, his dedication and his love for the Archives.
As President, his achievements were many. Among them is the National Portrait Collection of Leaders and Achievers in the Lesbian and Gay Community. This is an important addition to our Archives, honouring lesbian and gays across Canada. Also, it has drawn our attention to artists who have given their creativity and craftsmanship to build a collection of high artistic merit. I'll risk waxing rhapsodic by saying that Edward, in his quiet way, [...]
liberation politics that is uniquely Canadian, while drawing from both the American and European cultures, and indicating the special qualities of our own contribution and leadership. Combined with this year's show on Tolerance, it points to the many different ways lesbians and gays are contributing to critical areas in politics, religion and literature, native Canadian and Asian Canadian cultures. Underlying these collections is a vision of individual and collective achievement discovery and fulfillment. In pointing to our unfolding history, it shows us, as individual gays and lesbians, a vision of our power, our diversity and our complexity. This is exactly what our Archives should do. Happily, as gays and lesbians continue to achieve, Edward's vision will continue to serve us.
Edward Tompkins resigned to move with his partner, Christopher Bondy to Paris, France
Also, the Board said goodbye and thanks to Edward's partner and life companion, Chris Bondy. Chris has worked as the Archives' lawyer on our Human Rights Case involving our printer. He has done this pro bono, which means he has given us his skill, time, energy, dedication and knowledge for free! With their departure form the Archives and Canada, the Board wishes them love, happiness and prosperity.
The Board would like to take this opportunity to express its thanks to the amazing group of dedicated Volunteers who allow this organization to flourish. The health, vitality and resilience of the CLGA is due to their determination. That this organization respects its mandate to be national in scope, equal in its focus on the role of lesbians and gays in the creation of a more accepting society, and to be a place where individuals feel valued and respected for their contribution to these goals.
Woody's is hosting a fundraiser and donating a portion of the bar tab for the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives on Thursday evening March 29, 2001. VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Paul Shearer (416) 485-2394. (Woody's is located at 467 Church St., Toronto)
Volunteer Appreciation Party was held July 30, 2000 at the home of Lawrence Bennett.
By Jay Cassel
The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives houses one of the world's largest collections
of old physique magazines. The oldest is Physical Culture, published in New
York from about 1899 to 1947. Over the last year, the Archives has received
several large donations of these rare physique and physical-culture periodicals.
The glory days for physique magazines were from the later 1940s through the 1960s. Most were produced in the United States, though a surprising number came out of Britain. Some were even published in Canada, such as Ahoy, Crews, Face & Physique and Physique Illustrated. Even the Montreal-based Weider brothers offered a few tantalizing titles, like Muscular Miracles (1943).
While they maintained an obvious connection with muscle-building, many of these magazines presented a great range of bodies. Often the same issues presented men of widely different ages and build. Whatever your "type" might be, you could probably find someone who appealed to you. This is the first indication that something more than the admirations of mens's muscular development was going on.
Famous models include Glenn Bishop, who figures prominently among the new donations to the Archives. David Zurbborg is a favorite of mine. He can also be seen in Bruno Gmunder's 1990 book, Bruce of Los Angeles. Well worth mentioning are Steve Wengrin and, for that Mediterranean look, Zaro Rossi.
Boyish types can be found by flipping through titles: Johnny Kemper (Young Muscle-Builder), Ronnie Mills, whose images have been reissued on postcards sold at Priape, and Rick Shambling, a distinctly fem fashion model in several issues of Young Physique, both titles from 1965. Until the early 1960s, most titles were printed as little "pocket' magazines, deliberately sized to be carried discretely in a men's jacket pocket. More than a few men who were young at the time have told me about making their first contact with gay material through these magazines. A few tell stories of slipping a magazine into their pocket and heading quickly home. At least one remembers that their size made them easy to "lift" if a teenager did not want to go through the awful process of admitting he actually wanted to purchase such a magazine.
But the idea was that a man need not be embarrassed. The prominent display of virile muscularity made such magazines look like the most masculine of interests. So, ironically, the images had a double meaning. They represented admirable masculine development, and thus were manly, and yet they appealed to the desires of men attracted to men, whom so much of post-war society viewed as less than manly.
In the days of severe homophobia, physical-culture magazine were a creative outlet for the exploration of gay male sexuality (ideals and desires). Emphasis was much more on quality photography, sometimes by professional portrait studios, such as Al Urban (1940s [sic] and 1940s) and Bruce of Los Angels (1930s-1960s). Bob Mizer of the Athletic Model Guild began in the same vein as these predecessors. As time progressed, he allowed a much more obviously "camp" sensibility to enter into his distinctive images.
The other somewhat later, was outdoors life and nudism. This was much more a feature of European publications, with the FKK tradition of Germany, which went back to the 1920s. In the 1950s photographers head to well known venues such as the French Riveria taking pictures of the handsome men they met there, or body-builders already well known after winning various titles.
Canada was home to a remarkable number of studious during the 1960s. By far the most prolific was Frank Bvorck of Toronto. He produced a range of images from the "artistic" to the frankly pornographic. Borck worked both in the studio and outdoors. The Toronto Islands, the Scarborough Bluffs and cottage-country beaches feature in many of his most remarkable photographs. His material was picked up by several American magazines and often recycled, well into the 1970s. Probably for legal reasons, his studio was transformed a couple of times, appearing under the names BDR and Rickart. Kriss Enterprises of Hamilton, Ontario, provided "tame" studio shots for mainstream magazines and nudes for the earliest "explicit" magazines of the mid 1960s. In 1961, Male Classics ran a picture taken by "roving Canadian photographer COX."
Quebec produced a remarkable number of studious, specializing not only in muscular types, but also in blue collar men, as well as including a large number of handsome young French Canadians. Gerald Desfosses of Sorel managed to sell images to all the major American magazines. Andre Daniel specialized imposing his models in very Quebecois settings. Andre Pilon, a young French Canadian muscle type, is the most famous of the French-Canadian models. His attributes may be appreciated in a number of magazines recently donated to the Archives, especially the October, 1962, issue of Modern Man and Man's World, a British magazine.
The little ads in these magazines are also to be noted. Whether Canadian, American of British, they present interesting historical evidence of gay life in the 1950s and [...]
The CLGA is actively collecting these early Canadian images and would welcome further donations.
We would especially like to hear from former models or clients of these studios:
by Lawrence Bennett
"When you see Gerry freeze into some of those poses, you know why the British
Empire fell." So remarked an English professor about Gerry King's performance
as Captain Absolute in Richard Sheridan's " The Rivals" back in the
1960s. Today, Gerry's outgoing personality continues to express that discerning
intelligence and aptitude for humorous interpretation, as well as an irrepressible
flair for wordplay. Bom in Newfoundland, the youngest of five children, he has
lived in Toronto since early childhood. After receiving his Honors B. A. in
English Language and Literature form the University of Toronto (financed by
summertime employment as an orderly on The Toronto General midnight shift),
and his Masters in Library Science from the University of Western Ontario, he
worked for 32 years with the York region Board of Education.
In his second year of retirement, Gerry balances foreign travel with an interest in the performing arts and literature, the latter including everything "from escapist trash to erudite biographies." He also has membership in the Prime Timers' book discussion group. Slim despite his dedication to gourmet cooking and wine-making, he gardens, cycles and walks for fitness. A longtime Archives volunteer, Gerry is responsible for the James Fraser library. What led him to volunteer at the Archives?
"It all began with a seduction of sorts by the founder of the Archives - James Fraser. By way of recovery and therapy after a rather disastrous relationship, I had been invited to join an evening of bridge hosted by a number of young gay professionals. Unknown to them was my lousy ability at cards. Fumbling my way through yet another inept hand I blurted out that I was a librarian. No sooner were the fateful words uttered, than a tall, lion-maned individual with an infectious smile and a very tight T-shirt was looming over me directing my game. It was James Fraser who was constantly on the prowl for professionals to help him in his efforts with the fledgling Archives. Needless to say, James succeeded in getting me to join forces with him.
"In those days the Archives consisted of about four bookcases and three filing cabinets. They were all crammed into a comer on the fifth storey of an old office building inhabited by The Body Politic which nurtured and supported the concept of a gay archives. James's invitation allowed me to contribute my professional skills in a relatively low-profile manner. In 1980, even a low-profile connection with gay circles was not as comfortable a situation as it is today. Professionally, many of us could not openly acknowledge such connections without fear of harassment or even losing our job. Proximity to the people who produced The Body Politic brought me greater awareness of the emerging Toronto community in all its glorious aspects. Each Wednesday night as I enter the Archives I look at the picture of James Fraser with fondness and gratitude. The circle of dedicated volunteers into which he drew me two decades ago continues to nurture my personal growth and self acceptance as a contributing member of our gay community.
"Over the 20 years I have been volunteering, I have helped move the Archives to three new locations, learned to drive a cube van in blizzard conditions and have even been serenaded by The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence who arrived in fall regalia to bless our effort after one of the moves.
I have encountered every possible variety of erotic, exotic, X-rated printed material. Cataloguing some of these items challenged the imagination and often led to hilarious debates among fellow volunteers.
"A decade ago in Toronto, during one of the first international lesbian and gay conferences to include a historical and archival component, we came to fully realize the uniqueness of what we were doing. The little collection of four bookshelves and three filing cabinets had grown considerably, having become one of only a very few such collections in the world. Ours was certainly one of the most organized and focused. That is still pretty much the situation today. It is a rallying cry for those of us still working to preserve gay history."
We honor the following, who supported the Archives as volunteers, made contributions or donations in kind, or donated their person papers to the Archives
by Lawrence Bennett
If you visited the Archives last fall, you were bound to discover that our reading
room was functioning as a drying chamber for water-damaged materials from the
flood at our John Street storage locker in August . We are glad to report that
volunteers Paul Leatherdale and Al Duddin survived indignities sustained when
a section of steel shelving collapsed on them during their salvaging efforts.
Early on the morning of October 19th, 2000, the building manger at 56 Temperance called Al Duddin to tell him that the Archives was being inundated from the floor above. "It wasn't as bad as we feared," says Matt Hughes, " It was worse. Not only was there water on the floor, but there was a lot of it dripping on us from the ceiling as we moved boxes and materials in search of dry land. In several areas, waterlogged ceiling panels had fallen, making a fine old mess. Fortunately our computers and all the original artwork for our National Portrait Collection were safe. We are so lucky to have such wonderful volunteers who pitched in so readily." Observed Harold Averill, "much of the damage and the spread of mould were contained due to prompt action on the part of everyone. If the material had remained in the wet conditions even a few more hours, the disaster would have been much worse."
An ironic twist is that one of the accessions we rescued - early records of Gays of Ottawa - had been sent to the Archives after a fire. The boxes, with contents still bearing numerous scorch marks, were soaked by water splashing off the carpet as it poured down from above. Fortunately only a few of the folders were damaged."
Losses in the two floods have been documented for insurance purposes.
Initial approval has been granted to The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives to install a display space at the Rexall Drugstore at the comer of Church and Wellesley
The Archives is in need of technological updates. Do you have late-model office or computer equipment you could donate to us? We have immediate need for a fax machine or Pentium computer.
We have other office related expenses, such as a new phone line. For information on how to donate specifically for office expenses: Please call: 416-777-2755
March 5, 2001
Dear Matt,
I was touched that you took the time to send me a note. I have always, in the
long years of my public life, been grateful for the support of my community.
Wherever I have gone to publicize books or do writers-in-residency, the gay
and lesbian community have been out in strength to offer support, hospitality,
and friendship, often to the amazement of my host, whether the academy or library
or the range of media. It was for me politically and personally lovely, a teaching
of the world about how we hang together. But in this last hard year of my grief
at the loss of Helen, the honor to her and kindness to me have given me a new
sense of what that community means.
Thankyou,
Jane.
(Jane Rule)
The annual General Meeting of the Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives will be held at 6:30 PM on May 7 at the 519 Centre (519 Church St., Toronto)
The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives gratefully acknowledges the following sponsors: Pink Triangle Press; AIDS Committee of Toronto - Community Partners Fund; Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal Foundation
The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives would also like to especially thank the volunteers that made this newsletter happen. A big special thank you to the following: Lawrence Bennett, Elio larmacci, Jay Cassel, David DuBois, Harold Averill, Brad Walton, Bruce Jones, Gerry King, City Park Bridge Club. (Brad Walton Editor can be reached at: gtun@tutoronto.ca)
We need a few good people to help with: Desktop publishing, Writing, Public
Relations, Special Events, Fund Raising.
No pay. Lots of love and praise. Call today