Author: Maggie Pacia
Interviewer: Kaleigh Callis
Killer queers, depraved bisexuals, predatory and vampiric lesbians, frustrated and suicidal gays. These were the queer characters of Hollywood cinema before gay liberation, if they even made it to the screen. However, the wasteland that was queer representation began to change in the 1970s, admitting gays neither homicidal nor suicidal, lesbian mothers, and the presence of active, influential queer communities. Although lacking clear patterns of bad representation to good, Hollywood films of that time bear out filmmakers’ efforts to try new modes and tell new stories, revealing the ways in which the heterosexist dominant culture both accepted and erased homosexuality.
Images: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hollywood_Sign_satellite_view.png and https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rainbow_flag_and_blue_skies.jpg