We're bringing you a bonus episode as a post-Pride gift! Back in April, Leigh sat down with filmmaker Whitney Skauge (they/them) to talk about their new documentary short, The Beauty President. The Beauty President offers a glimpse into the story of Terence Alan Smith. In 1992, Smith, also known by his drag name, Joan Jett Blakk,  made a historic bid for the White House as an openly queer write-in candidate. In our conversation, we talk about the film, the impact of focusing on historically excluded folks in media, and the importance of visibility and disruption as protest in the midst of the AIDS crisis. Check out the trailer for The Beauty President by clicking here, and learn more about the film, upcoming screenings near you, and more on Breakwater Studios' website.  You can learn more about Whitney Skauge on their website, and follow them on Instagram at @whitneyskauge.

0.11. "I Need You to Lick Bush in '92": Whitney Skauge and The Beauty President

History is Gay is a podcast that examines the underappreciated and overlooked queer ladies, gents, and gentle-enbies that have always been there in the unexplored corners of history. Because history has never been as straight as you think. 

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In this interview episode, Leigh sits down with scholar and creator of the Queer Digital History Project Avery Dame-Griff to discuss his book The Two Revolutions: A History of the Transgender Internet and all it contains about the magic of the evolution of trans folks on the internet. From BBSes (bulletin board system) to Twitter, we discuss how trans people have always existed on and created their own unique spaces on the World Wide Web, tapping into Avery’s extensive research, interviews, and media archaeology. Where to find more from Avery Dame-Griff online:   AveryDame.net   Mastodon: apdamegriff@aoir.social   Queer Digital History Project   Also, some additional awesome news about internet trans history! As listeners may know, Leigh works at the GLBT Historical Society for their day job. And recently, a volunteer archivist, Cara Esten Hurtle, discovered an amazing CD-ROM containing the entirety of Transgender Forum, (TGForum.com) from 1995 to 1998, one of the largest trans communities online at that time, that Avery Dame-Griff also covers in his book! Hurtle uploaded the CD-rom online for anyone to peruse and it’s absolutely amazing to see the 90s trans community right there before your very eyes! The discovery has been covered by them online in a fantastic article which you can read here: This Archive Offers an Incredible Window Into the Early Trans Internet. And you can peruse the  CD-Rom of TGForum.com here, where Cara uploaded the archive! Just click the “START.HTM” file in the tgfcd window, and browse to your heart’s content! Want Leigh to do an interview with Cara about her discovery? Let us know! Want to help us continue to make the show? Support us on Patreon and get awesome goodies, behind-the-scenes access, special minisodes, and more! We have a Discord server for everyone to hang out in, exclusive O.G. Lesbian Sappho t-shirts, Pop-Culture Tie-In movie watches, and some really fun extras coming your way! You can also get merch in our store! Shirts, hoodies, totes, mugs, magnets, and other neat things! If you’d like to help us transcribe the show for our d/Deaf and hard of hearing fans, please head on over to www.historyisgaypodcast.com/transcribe to join the team of volunteers! Find our full list of sources and bonus content at www.historyisgaypodcast.com. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! Don't forget to rate and review so more folks can see the show!

0.20. Dialing in to Gender: Tracing Trans Internet History with Avery Dame-Griff

This episode has EVERYTHING: gay haircuts, yearning, rage against the patriarchy, they were *roommates*....let’s talk about the magical world of Yoshiya Nobuko, girls’ culture, and lesbian fiction in Taishō era Japan! Leigh is joined by guest host Erica Friedman, speaker, editor, researcher and an expert on all things Yuri. Yoshiya Nobuko was an extremely popular writer in 20th century Japan who lived with her beloved female partner for 50 years and her legacy continues today as “the Grandmother of Yuri.”. The tropes and storylines established in her writing can still be seen today in queer girls stories in and outside of Japan– get ready to learn all about modern Japan’s very own Sappho. After all, it’s all in the yearning.   Erica Friedman writes about Yuri anime, manga and related media on her blog Okazu, and can be found on Twitter as @okazuyuri, Bluesky as Okazu and @EricaFriedman@mastodon.social   Erica’s book  By Your Side: The First 100 Years of Yuri Anime and Manga is the first in-depth study of Yuri in English. Outline 0:00 Introduction 7:29 Socio-Historical Context 24:00 Who Were They? Bio Time 41:36 - 43:42 Content Note: discussion of WWII  48:37 Why Do We Think They’re Gay?: Some More Socio-Historical Context 50:12 - 55:30 Content Note: discussion of pathologizing of homosexuality 55:30 - 58:00 Content Note: discussion of suicides in the news at the time 58:34 Word of The Week: “S Class” 1:06:56 Why Do We Think They’re Gay?: Yoshiya’s Life 1:17:47 Queer Themes in Yoshiya’s Fiction 1:21:30 -1:22:39 Content Note: brief reference to suicide 1:30:07 Pop Culture Tie-Ins 1:36:00 How Gay Were They? 1:37:15 Conclusion and Sign off  Want to help us continue to make the show? Support us on Patreon and get awesome goodies, behind-the-scenes access, special minisodes, and more! We have a Discord server for everyone to hang out in, exclusive O.G. Lesbian Sappho t-shirts, Pop-Culture Tie-In movie watches, and some really fun extras coming your way! You can also get merch in our store! Shirts, hoodies, totes, mugs, magnets, and other neat things!  If you’d like to help us transcribe the show for our d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing fans, please head on over to www.historyisgaypodcast.com/transcribe to join the team of volunteers!  Find our full list of sources and bonus content at www.historyisgaypodcast.com. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! Don't forget to rate and review so more folks can see the show!  

46. A Husband is Unnecessary: Yoshiya Nobuko & Japanese Girls' Culture

Hello queerlings! Leigh here with an exciting announcement! |  Join us on Sunday, October 1 at 5:00 pm Pacific Time / 8:00 pm Eastern for our first-ever virtual LGBTQ+ History Trivia Night, presented by History is Gay! All listeners and friends are invited to come join the fun, make a team (or get to know new friends), and flex your queer history and trivia knowledge, with a mix of questions about general queer history and some memories from History is Gay episodes past!  Tickets are $10 for the general public, $5 for History is Gay Patrons at any level, and FREE for patrons at the Lavender Menace tier and above. Check out our Patreon for promo codes that were sent out to patrons.   Go to www.historyisgaypodcast.com/trivia to see details and get your tickets! We can't wait to see you :D

History is Gay Presents: LGBTQ+ History Trivia Night!

In this interview episode, Leigh talks with Dr. Elizabeth Gloyn, Reader in Latin Language and Literature at Royal Holloway, the University of London, and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Her research focuses on the intersection between Latin literature, ancient philosophy, and gender studies; as well as topics of classical reception (particularly monsters) and the history of women in Classics. She is also the author of Tracking Classical Monsters in Popular Culture. Thanks to listener Cheryl Morgan for connecting us for this wonderful conversation on queerness in the ancient world (including adorable poly couples), what Seneca really said about the Amazons, and how fanfiction has created a unique space for queering classical monsters.  Where to find more from Liz Gloyn online:  @lizgloyn on Twitter Classically Inclined, Liz's blog on Wordpress  "Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken is the latest film to give a monster a makeover"  Want to help us continue to make the show? Support us on Patreon and get awesome goodies, behind-the-scenes access, special minisodes, and more! We have a Discord server for everyone to hang out in, exclusive O.G. Lesbian Sappho t-shirts, Pop-Culture Tie-In movie watches, and some really fun extras coming your way! You can also get merch in our store! Shirts, hoodies, totes, mugs, magnets, and other neat things! If you’d like to help us transcribe the show for our d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing fans, please head on over to www.historyisgaypodcast.com/transcribe to join the team of volunteers! Find our full list of sources and bonus content at www.historyisgaypodcast.com. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! Don't forget to rate and review so more folks can see the show!

0.19. Classical Myths, Monsters, and Ancient Gays: A Conversation with Liz Gloyn

An episode Leigh has been dreaming of since the start of the pod is finally here! In this ep, Leigh is joined by guest host Frankie de la Cretaz, sports journalist, queer history buff, and certified Gaylor Swiftie, to discuss the queer history of women’s baseball & softball, in particular the story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, aka the inspiration behind A League of Their Own! We discuss all the extreme “no-homo”ing that was happening in the League’s rules and regulations, and all the YES HOMO-ing that happened in spite of it, making the sport into an important site of queer community. We also introduce you to the wonderful world of AAGBPL’s rival for women’s baseball at the time, the National Girls’ Baseball League, and the contrasts between the two leagues.  Thank you to Averie Severs for editing this episode.  Our guest host for this episode, Frankie de la Cretaz, can be found online @thefrankiedlc on Twitter and Instagram. You can check out their Linktree for links to purchase their book, Hail Mary: The Rise and Fall of the National Women's Football League and see more of their writing. Support filmmaker Adam Chu’s efforts to create Their Turn at Bat: The Story of the National Girls Baseball League, a documentary film about Chicago’s forgotten women’s baseball league at www.nationalgirlsbaseballleague.com! Also, don’t forget to check out our bonus episode discussing A League of their Own, with co-creator Will Graham! Outline 0:00 Introduction 5:26 Socio-Historic Context 12:12 The Leagues: AAGPBL 27:42 Why Do We Think They’re Gay?: Queerness and Women’s Sports 31:48-34:44 Word of the Week: Muscle Moll 34:44 Back to why do we think they’re gay 47:07 The Leagues: NGBL 53:19 Who Were They? Queer ball players of note 1:24:00 -1:24:53 Content Warning: Homophobic violence 1:27:50 Pop Culture Tie In 1:34:15 How Gay Were They? 1:39:50 Closing and Where to Find Us Online Want to help us continue to make the show? Support us on Patreon and get awesome goodies, behind-the-scenes access, special minisodes, and more! We have a Discord server for everyone to hang out in, exclusive O.G. Lesbian Sappho t-shirts, Pop-Culture Tie-In movie watches, and some really fun extras coming your way! You can also get merch in our store! Shirts, hoodies, totes, mugs, magnets, and other neat things! If you’d like to help us transcribe the show for our d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing fans, please head on over to www.historyisgaypodcast.com/transcribe to join the team of volunteers! Find our full list of sources and bonus content at www.historyisgaypodcast.com. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr, and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! Don't forget to rate and review so more folks can see the show!

0.11. "I Need You to Lick Bush in '92": Whitney Skauge and The Beauty President

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