August 2012

www.GayDayton.org
Volume 12, Issue 8
August 2012
Map
Events
Articles
Calendar
ARC Ohio Names Masquerage 2012 Event Chairperson!
Masquerage, AIDS Resource Center Ohio’s (ARC Ohio) annual
masked party for a cause will be celebrating its 11th anniversary
on Saturday, October 20th under the guidance
of Event Chair Jeff Pizza, General Manager of
Lexus of Dayton. Mr. Pizza has been a longtime
supporter of ARC Ohio personally and Lexus of
Dayton has been a sponsor of Masquerage for the
last eight years.
Pizza shares, “Lexus of Dayton believes you have
to give back. We have a responsibility to share
in the well-being of the community we serve and ARC Ohio does
work that affects so many in our region.” Over the years Jeff’s
family and friends have been impacted by AIDS and he has seen
first-hand the work of ARC Ohio. “When someone you know is diagnosed with HIV you need to have experienced, caring folks who
can help direct you, and restore hope and that’s exactly what ARC
Ohio does for our community.”
Since its inception, Masquerage—Dayton’s Party of Parties for
a Cause--has raised more than $1,000,000 in unrestricted funds
which support critical services for those living HIV/AIDS as well
as prevention, testing and advocacy efforts. The event allows attendees to have a unique and entertaining experience while supporting ARC Ohio and its mission to lead the fight against HIV/
AIDS. Masquerage has attracted over 6500 guests, many of whom
have donned attire to match the evening’s ever-changing themes.
Past themes have ranged from tribal to disco, interplanetary super
hero’s to Marie Antoinette. In 2011 Masquerage celebrated a “Decade of Decadence” and broke the all-time attendee record with
over 1000 guests and set an all-time high in total fundraising, with
$163,000 raised. Following in a new tradition launched in 2010,
ARC will host the theme release party to announce the 11th anniversary Masquerage theme on August 3rd from 6:00 – 8:00 PM at
Club Masque. Be amongst the first to know the theme for the 11th
annual Masquerage. As a special incentive if you purchase your
ticket for Masquerage at the August 3 release party, your $20 ticket
price for the release party applies to your Masquerage ticket!
For more information on Masquerage, please log onto
www.masquerage.org or call (937) 461-2437 extension 2029.
Calendar of Events
Aug 3-5
The Human Race Theater Company presents:
“2012 Festival of New Musicals” for more info
visit: http://humanracetheatre.org/mtwfestival.php
Aug 4
MuCrew - Trip to Cedar Point. Leaving Dayton at
6am. Info at: http://www.themucrew.com/
Aug 14
MuCrew - End of Summer Cook Out 6pm
for more info: http://www.themucrew.com/
Aug 14
PFLAG monthly meeting - Annual Picnic 6:30pm
at Cross Creek Community Church for info:
http://www.pflagdayton.org/
Aug 20
Dayton Gay Men’s Chorus: Auditions “Join The Chorus” http://www.daytongaymenschorus.org/
Aug 24-Sept9 The Dayton Theatre Guild Presents, “Opus”
For info: http://www.daytontheatreguild.org/
Aug 25
Lesbian Dayton Beach Party - For more info:
visit: http://www.lesbiandayton.com/
If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. Milton Berle
Gay Dayton is published monthly by Gay Dayton Press
Randy Phillips, owner
E-mail:
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Phone:
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All ads must be placed by the 10th of the month prior to inclusion. For Rates
call: 937-623-1590 or check out: www.gaydayton.org/advertise.htm Inclusion in
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All advertisers welcome the business of the LGBT community. All material is
copyrighted 2012 by Gay Dayton Press.©
P.O. Box 4436, Dayton, Ohio 45401-4436 All Rights Reserved.
by: Terri Schlichenmeyer
aka: “The Book Worm”
[email protected]
“Re-Dressing America’s Frontier Past” by Peter Boag c.2011,
University of California Press$39.95 / $41.50 Canada 257 pages
The outfit was beyond your budget.
It was impractical, too, because you’d
probably never wear it. It looked great on, it
fit just right, it was so perfect, but it would
just hang in your closet. Still….
You couldn’t whip your credit card out fast
enough.
Do clothes make the (wo)man? Are we what
we wear? In the new book “Re-Dressing
America’s Frontier Past,” author Peter
Boag, proves that those questions plagued
our ancestors more than history admits.
Joe Monahan’s neighbors were shocked.
The fall of 1903 was short and winter came
early. Tough and self-sufficient, Joe had come to the Mallory ranch
complaining of illness and he didn’t look good. Shortly after his arrival,
he died in the warmth of his neighbors’ home.
The shock came when they went to prepare Joe’s body for burial:
Grizzled Joe Monahan was a woman.
Peter Boag says that such scenarios were common in the West in the
decades between 1850 and 1920. Cross-dressers, for myriad reasons,
were “very much a part of daily life…” and while people tittered and
talked, general attitudes were based on late-19th-century beliefs on
gender. Medical experts eventually claimed that cross-dressing was part
of a “neurological disease” called homosexuality, and “…homosexuality
was understood as an unfortunate by-product of modernization.”
But button-holing wasn’t so easy…
For women, the frontier was a man’s world. There was adventure and
prosperity there, and becoming a man as much as possible was a way to
seize opportunity. Safety was another reason for appearing masculine,
cross-dressing could be scandalous fun, and it could help escape
punishment for criminal behavior. There were also women who believed
themselves to be boys from birth.
For smooth-faced men, it was common to dress as women for dances
and parties because biological women were scarce. Men impersonated
women to entertain others. In some Native American communities,
“berdaches” were encouraged to embrace femininity. Like some women,
males took on girlish appearances to escape crime, and then there were
the men who simply wanted to “be” women.
But for those men, and their female counterparts, life wasn’t easy.
Being arrested for the “crime” of wearing clothes for the opposite sex
was common and cross-dressers were often shunned. Interestingly,
however, their partners (usually same-sex) were generally socially
accepted.
“Re-Dressing America’s Frontier Past” is good, but long.
Author Peter Boag offers lots of excellent examples to back up his
reasoning behind why these stories are largely hidden from history, and
what he found will set western fans (not to mention screenwriters) on
their ears. This is fascinating stuff, on many levels.
And yet – the book has its distractions. It’s very scholarly and often reads
like a dissertation, which occasionally makes it hard to read if you’re just
looking for a peek at hidden history and not a lecture.
That aside, because it uncovers a wealth of stories that are overdue for
telling, I liked “Re-Dressing America’s Frontier Past” and I think you
will, too. If you’re a Western History buff especially, you need to outfit
yourself with this book soon.
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How gay men were set up in elaborate blackmail
stings in the 1960s
By John Aravosis
| In almost every case, after making contact, the chicken would
accompany the mark up to his room, or suggest another hotel
where they could go instead. Once in the room, one of two
scenarios would follow.
In some cases, the bulls would wait until the two men had gotten
themselves into a compromising position before bursting into
the room and identifying themselves as vice squad detectives,
capitalizing on the fear, panic, and surprise they induced in the
victim as they initiated what they referred to as the play. At the
Hilton, where Skull Murphy was head of security, the timing was
made easier by the inch or so Murphy had shaved from certain
room doors, into which he inserted a small dental mirror taped to
the end of a cane, the better to see exactly when to pounce.
The bulls would explain the penalties for violating sodomy laws or
corrupting a minor, then demand an outright bribe, or as they did to
the Princeton professor, suggest that the victim pay “bail money”
as a way of avoiding making his arrest public, or prison. In some
cases the bulls might induce a payoff by putting a victim together
in a room with another man they pretended to have arrested for
the same thing elsewhere in the hotel. That other man might say
something like: “Hey, I can’t afford to be arrested. I’m going to
offer them money, what about you?” Having the victim induce
the payoff, rather than demand the money outright, lowered the
criminals’ exposure in court.
With all the right clothes and the right police jargon, some of
the blackmailers appeared “more detective than real detectives,”
the FBI’s Paul Brana said. The official paperwork—warrants,
affidavits, arrest forms—was convincing too.
They specialized in targeting the rich and powerful: They played
this long game with chutzpah too. On two occasions they marched
New Jersey Congressman Peter Frelinghuysen, who sat on the
House Foreign Affairs Committee, right out of his Capitol Hill
office and onto a private plane for a trip to his New Jersey bank
where he paid them $50,000 in total, according to the FBI’s Paul
Brana. Admiral William Church, who, among other duties was
in charge of the New York Naval Yards at the time, was escorted
from the Pentagon, handing over $5,000, as was an Army general
who paid $2,000. The criminals also rushed a prominent surgeon
right out of an operating room, forcing his colleague to finish the
procedure. They didn’t miss a chance to see a bit of the world
either, flying to London to nick a well-known British producer for
$3,000.
Once successful in obtaining a payoff, the culprits often returned
for more. A Midwestern teacher paid $120,000 over a four-year
period. A Kansas City businessman handed over nearly $150,000
until he pleaded with the criminals to kill him because he had no
more money. If denied, the criminals made good on their threats,
often destroying lives. The Times reported that “The marriage of
one victim who refused to be intimidated was wrecked when the
gang informed his wife.” According to Time magazine, the fiancé
of another victim broke off her engagement.
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Department of Justice wants Supreme Court to rule on DOMA
The Department of Justice has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to
hear two cases from gay couples challenging the federal Defense
of Marriage Act.
The administration is requesting that Golinski v.
Office of Personnel Management be fast-tracked to the
highest court in the nation,
MetroWeekly reports. Karen
Golinski, a federal court
employee, sued the government after being denied equal
Attorney General: Eric Holder
spousal benefits for her wife
that her colleagues in heterosexual marriages have access to. A
district court judge—and Republican appointee—found DOMA to
be unconstitutional. Arguments for the case are scheduled for the
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in September.
The other case, Massachusetts v. Department of Health and Human Services, was taken up by the Republican-majority House
Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group. Earlier this year, the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled in that case that section 3 of
DOMA, which prohibits the federal government from recognizing
same-sex marriages, was unconstitutional.
Lambda Legal staff attorney Tara Borelli said its clear to her clients, her organization, and the DOJ that the so-called Defense of
Marriage Act's days are numbered.
"The last four courts to consider the question have all found Section 3 of DOMA -- which prohibits the federal government from
recognizing same-sex couples' valid marriages -- to be unconstitutional. DoJ's action may speed the day when the Supreme Court
reaches the issue. Lambda Legal and Morrison & Foerster stand
ready to argue for fair treatment for Karen Golinski and her spouse,
Amy Cunninghis, in any court, at any time, and we welcome this
opportunity to finally put DOMA out of its, and our, misery."
Mike Moloney
Deb Hunt
Provide peace of mind
for you and
your partner with a
Domestic Partnership Agreement
ESTATE AND BUSINESS SUCCESSION
PLANNING FOR SAME-SEX COUPLES
Scott Davies
www.ssdlaw.com
Dayton - West Chester
937-222-2500
Are You Interested In Attending A
Concealed Weapons Course?
Date: TBA
If Interested email:
[email protected]
Barry S. McCorkle, MD, AAHIVS
Board
Certified
B
oard C
ertified Internal
InternalMedicine
Medicine
Credentialed
C
redentialedHIV
HIVSpecialist
Specialist
1222 S. Patterson Blvd.
Suite 340
Dayton, Ohio 45402
www.morselegalservices.com
(937) 208-8885
(937) 208-8895 Fax
(937) 463-1830 After Hours
Phone: 937.318.1100
September 6–23, 2012
A Comedic Look
at Love in the Golden Years
A LOFT EXTRA!
October 18–27, 2012
A Spine-Tingling Pursuit
of Truth
November 29–
December 16, 2012
An Intimate Take on a Classic
February 7–24, 2013
A Winning Drama
April 4–21, 2013
A Revealing Exposé
June 6–23, 2013
A Side-Splitting Spoof
The Loft Season Sponsor
Organizational Support Provided By
Tickets On Sale
Beginning August 7!
937-228-3630
or online:
Additional Loft Season Support
www.humanracetheatre.org
or
www.ticketcenterstage.com