Elizabeth Taylor, who passed away this week, was a gay icon. There is no doubt about that. However between you and me, I wish she had the opportunity to be in more lgbt positive movies.
The two movies she starred which featured lgbt portrayals weren't exactly positive. One was Suddenly Last Summer (1959) and the other was this monstrosity, Reflections in A Golden Eye (1967).
In Reflections in A Golden Eye, she portrayed the overly amorous wife of an Army captain (Marlon Brando). It is a movie about lust, and repression (Brando's character is a repressed gay man lusting after an army soldier (Robert Forester) who is fond nude horseback riding.)
Not one of my favorites:
Past Know Your LGBT History Posts:
Know Your LGBT History - Dynasty
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Know Your LGBT History - Hotel
Know Your LGBT History - The Streets of San Francisco
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Know Your LGBT History - Caged
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Know Your LGBT History - Maude
Know Your LGBT History - That Certain Summer
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Know Your LGBT History - Beautiful Thing
Know Your LGBT History - Armed and Dangerous
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Know Your LGBT History - Suddenly Last Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Gay TV Now
Know Your LGBT History - Stewardess School
Know Your LGBT History - Up the Academy
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Know Your LGBT History - Victim
Know Your LGBT History - The Color Purple
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Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George
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Know your lgbt history - Fright Night
Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil
The Jeffersons and the transgender community
The two movies she starred which featured lgbt portrayals weren't exactly positive. One was Suddenly Last Summer (1959) and the other was this monstrosity, Reflections in A Golden Eye (1967).
In Reflections in A Golden Eye, she portrayed the overly amorous wife of an Army captain (Marlon Brando). It is a movie about lust, and repression (Brando's character is a repressed gay man lusting after an army soldier (Robert Forester) who is fond nude horseback riding.)
Not one of my favorites:
Past Know Your LGBT History Posts:
Know Your LGBT History - Dynasty
Know Your LGBT History - Milk
Know Your LGBT History - Black Shampoo
Know Your LGBT History - Never Too Young To Die
Know Your LGBT History - All About Eve
Know Your LGBT History - Hotel
Know Your LGBT History - The Streets of San Francisco
Know Your LGBT History - Two looks at transgender characters in films
Know Your LGBT History - Flawless
Know Your LGBT History - Mahogany
Know Your LGBT History - Beverly Hills Cop
Know Your LGBT History - Some Like It Hot
Know Your LGBT History - Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia
Know Your LGBT History - Dirty Laundry
Know Your LGBT History - The Willie Witch Project
Know Your LGBT History - Spartacus
Know Your LGBT History - Caged
Know Your LGBT History - The Birdcage
Know Your LGBT History - Maude
Know Your LGBT History - That Certain Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Boat Trip
Know Your LGBT History - Staircase
Know Your LGBT History - Beautiful Thing
Know Your LGBT History - Armed and Dangerous
Know Your LGBT History - The Proud Family
Know Your LGBT History - Suddenly Last Summer
Know Your LGBT History - Gay TV Now
Know Your LGBT History - Stewardess School
Know Your LGBT History - Up the Academy
Know Your LGBT History - Don't be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
Know Your LGBT History - A Different Story
Know Your LGBT History - Victim
Know Your LGBT History - The Color Purple
Know Your LGBT History - Making Love
Know Your LGBT History - A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy's Revenge
Know Your LGBT History - Noah's Arc
Know Your LGBT History - Ode to Billy Joe
Know Your LGBT History - Adorable Adrian Adonis
Know Your LGBT History - The Night Strangler
Know Your LGBT History - All in the Family
Know Your LGBT History - Tongues Untied
Know Your LGBT History - The Celluloid Closet
Know Your LGBT History - Querelle
Know Your LGBT History - Theatre of Blood
Know Your LGBT History - Strange Fruit
Know Your LGBT History - Designing Women
Know Your LGBT History - The Children's Hour
Know Your LGBT History - Sylvester
Know Your LGBT History - Once Bitten
Know Your LGBT History - The Boys in the Band
Know Your LGBT History - Christopher Morley, the crossdressing assassin
Know Your LGBT History - Midnight Cowboy
Know Your LGBT History - Dracula's Daughter
Know Your LGBT History - Blacula
Know Your LGBT History - 3 Strikes
Know Your LGBT History - Paris Is Burning
Know Your LGBT History - The Women
Know your LGBT History - Soul Plane
Know Your LGBT History - The Player's Club
Special Know Your LGBT History - Fame
Know Your LGBT History - Welcome Home, Bobby
Know Your LGBT History - Barney Miller
Know your lgbt history - The Jerry Springer Show
Know your lgbt history - Martin Lawrence and that 'gay guy' on his show
Know your lgbt history - The Ricki Lake Show
Know your lgbt history - Which Way Is Up
Know your lgbt history - Gays in Primetime Soaps
Know your lgbt history - Boys Beware
Know your lgbt history - The Boondocks
Know your lgbt history - Mannequin
Know your lgbt history - The Warriors
Know Your LGBT History - New York Undercover
Know Your LGBT History - Low Down Dirty Shame
Know Your LGBT History - Fortune and Men's Eyes
Know your lgbt history - California Suite
Know your lgbt history - Taxi (Elaine's Strange Triangle)
Know your lgbt history - Come Back Charleston Blue
Know your lgbt history - James Bond goes gay
Know your lgbt history - Windows
Know your lgbt history - To Wong Foo and Priscilla
Know your lgbt history - Blazing Saddles
Know your lgbt history - Sanford and Son
Know your lgbt history - In Living Color
Know your lgbt history - Cleopatra Jones and her lesbian drug lords
Know your lgbt history - Norman, Is That You?
Know your lgbt history - The 'Exotic' Adrian Street
Know your lgbt history - The Choirboys
Know your lgbt history - Eddie Murphy
Know your lgbt history - The Killing of Sister George
Know your lgbt history - Hanna-Barbera cartoons pushes the 'gay agenda
'Know your lgbt history - Cruising
Know your lgbt history - Foxy Brown and Cleopatra Jones
Know your lgbt history - I Got Da Hook Up
Know your lgbt history - Fright Night
Know your lgbt history - Flowers of Evil
The Jeffersons and the transgender community
Suddenly, Last Summer was a typical portrayal of the gay lifestyle at the time. The moral of the story is that you would come to a horrible demise if you were gay. My favorite Taylor film is Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf. I like your blog and its content. Keep writing.
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As a gay man in his late 60s, I actually have some lingering affection for the this strange movie. It was, after all, one of the earliest presentations of a major star in a gay role. And it was about repression and hiding, and those furtive ways common to those of us "back then." Thank goodness those things are changing, but let us not forget our history - how we were and how we were perceived. That too is important. Besides, this memory is just lurid fun!
ReplyDeleteI know its not explicit in the movie but I suspect Cat on a Hot Tin Roof could be considered another gay themed movie she was in.
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