I m m ^ ^ ♦.the LADDER .January 1963 1964 JANUARY 1963 purpose of the the Laddêli Volume 7, number i Published monthly by tho Doughtert of S illt li, Inc«, o non« profit eorporotfon, 1232 Morkot Stroet, Suit« 108, Son Pron' ciico 2, California, Telephone: UNderhill 3 - 8196> A rOMEN'S ORGANIZATION FOR THE PURPOSE OP PROMOTING NATIONAL OFFICERS, DAUGHTERS OF BILITIS, INC. THE INTEGRATION OP THE HOMOSEXUAL INTO SOCIETY B Y: President— Jaye Bell Vice President— Marty Elliott ______ Recording Secretary— Margaret Heinz Corresponding Secretary-—Barbara Gitiings P«¿7Zlc Relations Director— Meredith Grey Treasurer— Ev Howe THE LADDER STAFF Editor— Del Martin V Education of the variant, with particular ell^>llasis on the pajdi- Fiction and Poetry Editor— Agatha Mathys Art Editor— KBtUy Rogers ological, physiological and sociological aspects, to enable her Los Angeles Reporter— Sten Russell to understand herself and make her adjustment to society in all Chicago Reporter— Jean Sand Production— Joan Oliver, Nancy Lee its social, civic and economic implications— diis to be acconp* Circulation Manager— Cleo Glenn lished by establishing and maintaining as complete a library as possible of both fiction and non-fiction literature on the sex de­ THE LADDER is regarded as a sounding board for various viant tfaeme; by sponsoring public discussions on pertinent sub­ points of view on the homophile and related subjects and jects to be conducted by leading members of the legal, psychiat­ does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the organization. ric, religious and other professions; by advocating a mode of be­ havior and dress acceptable to society. 0 Education of the public at large through acceptance first of the contents individual, leading to an eventual breakdown ¿f erroneous taboos and prejudices; through public discussion meedags aforemen­ tioned; through dissemination of educational literature on the homosexual theme. It’ s time for a change - Editorial by Del martin..., ................... 4 Lesbian literature in 1962 - by Gene Damon......................................6 O Participation in research projects by duly authotixed and respon­ MOOD MISCELLANEA...................................................................................... sible psychologists, sociologists and otiier such experts directed EDAM AND CHEEVE - A STORY BY BELLE HOWLAND............... ..................... 1° towards fimher knowledge of the homosexual. Chicago Psychiatrist Speaks - A report by jean Sand..................... 20 O Investigation ot die penal code as it pertains to the hoaoscxaal, Here and There.......................................................................................... proposal of changes to provide an equitable handling of cases Cartoon - by ............................................................................................ involving this minority group, and promotion of these changes COVER BY KATHY ROGERS tfarou^ due process of law in the state legislatures. Copyright 1962 by daughters of Bil it is , Inc,, San Francisco, Cal. The new Image would be a dream or goal fo r those homosex­ uals who had not attained this exalted state. The new It’s Time for a Change image would be, and is , a mockery to the , discerning professional persons who, in the course “f ^^e r work, come in contact with the many, varied types of ho­ It may be a New Tear's resolution or an old polltloal saw^ mosexuals who run the gamut from the very poor to the very but the saying, " I t 's time for a change", has a great deal rich in economic, educational, in tellectual and spiritual of value to an organization or a movement or a publication. le v e ls. The new image would be a myth to the general pub- Change - a re-evaluation of old ideas and policies incor­ lie who would continue to see only the old image of the porated with new ideas and new blood - is essential to pro­ negative stereotype. gress. Images are shadows or stick figu res without heart. They As expressed in the May, I962 issue of THE LADDERS "DOB lack the human quality, the human falling, ® has never been conceived as a mass membership organization, desire to rise above i t . The only "image' that r t l l chang but rather as an ever-changing membership with an evolving the public's attitude would be of flesh and blood. And leadership developing as new people come Into the group and these are the ones who hide th eir faces, * 0 shy away from the older members move out into so ciety. Without change, their fellows, who refuse to stand up and be ® ^ ' the organization would become statlcj there would be no who deny th eir fellows deny themselves, and the imag growth - and our purpose would not be served," comes a hollow shell without substance. This concept must apply equally to the magazine published Today is also the day of the "sales message" - the by DOB, And it is indeed time fo r a change! propaganda machine that grinds out the polished, sophist - ^ cated phrase of gobbledegook that has l it t l e meaning f R, E, L. Masters in his book, "The Homosexual Revolution", average individual. Americans have become a nation sale - put th is need very ap tly, THE LADDER, which began as a men with a slogan for everything. To carry on ^ newsletter in October of 1956, has been to date prim arily sales campaign it is said that an organization and its pu 1 a "l^ouse organ" for an in-group circulation. But times cation must have a fixed goal and a fixed policy, from whlc have changed, and the magazine must re fle c t th is change. It must never waiver. For a propaganda machine « The organization must review its publication and its po­ several sides to a question. It can't afford to; it licies in the light of the attention now focused on the lose its effectiveness. In the American homophlle movement by the mass media of books, newspapers, there is no room for discussion, thought and decision. Ju radio and TV, ie ir t h e drums loud and cle a r, drown out the flute the delicate music of the v io lin . There y Madison Avenue created the "image", which has become a ll way. 'E ith er a thing is right or wrong, black or white; there Important in American l i f e . The advertiser, the p o lit i­ no shades of gray. Perhaps that is why ^ ® cian, the business man, the teacher - yes, even the homo­ called gray matter - because it's fuzzy and doesn * sexual - must forever be aware of the "image" he projects. recognize the fixed goal or the only way, because i t It i s said the homophlle organizations must do away with H s s fry for it to mull things over before a decision can be the negative stereotype of the homosexual characterized made, and once a decision is made can change i t . by the ultra-feminine man or the over-masculine woman, and create a new "image". This new image would portray The hour of decision is at hand. The membership of the the homosexual as an In tellig e n t, responsible citizen who .f BiUtl. ..d ... B..rd .t D.r.. r. cannot be distinguished by appearance, but only by his or find . her choice of love partner. The new image would be posi­ tiv e , creative, productive - a model Indeed fo r the entire (Continued on page 22) populace, A welcome touch of humor appeared in a posthumously d is­ LESBIAN LITERATURE IN 1962 covered novel fragment by Ronald Pirbank called The New Rhythm (sic ). The subtle English touch is well presented in the major By Gene Damon novel The Compromisers by Ernest Borneman, Frederic Prokosch, who hardly ever f a ils to include some homosexual­ The tide rises and no end appears in view. Despite rumors ity in his novels, adds lengthy variant passages to Seven of blue-nose activity and cracking down on literary freedom, S is te rs . the opposite is actually true# Many previously forbidden titles were published in the D. S, this year. H, £. Bates in A Crown of Wild Myrtle handles the subject poorly but he writes well, even so. The esoteric Theodora The quantity of Lesbian t it le s is so overwhelming that no Keogh writes r e a lis tic a lly fo r a change in The Other G irl. brief report can begin to discuss them all, I would like to acknowledge assistance from T, R, H, who gave ms excel­ There were several meritorious Lesbian short stories published lent data. in 1962; "Murder at Merryoak" by Margaret Austin, "Tonight My Love is Coming" by Maude Hutchins, and the very, very Over 200 books are listed at the end of this report and lovely "The Threesome" by Margaret Austin, they are nearly a ll 1^62 titles with perhaps 13^ l^fiO and 1961 titles previously missed. The list is twice as long Happily there is a poetry entry and one of great value. as last year's list. May Sarton's Cloud. Stone . Sun. Vine . For the second year in a row, the general quality is high As i s usual, the tone in the hardcover novels tended toward despite the usual plethora of Junk items. acceptance and equally expected the paperbacks varied greatly in t one. Hardbacks of unusual Interest Include some "school" t it l e s ; Short Pleasures by Anne Bernays, The Garden by Kathryn However, the quality in paperbacks was really up from the Perutz, The Phoenix Hour by Sarah K ilpatrick, The Chinese last few years. Among the better paperback t it le s were: Gay Garden by Rosemary Manning, and the beautiful love story, Girl and In the Shadows by Joan Ellis, the hilarious satire Winter Love by Han Suyln, Love Like a Shadow by Kimberly Kemp, Mjr Lovely Adele by Adrian Bennett, Libido Beach by Alain Abby, The Strange Women by A very special love story is told in Cassandra at the Miriam Gardner, Ten^^ Torment and The Soft Sin by Randy Salem, Wedding by Dorothy Baker.