General Thoughts on "/" (Homosexual) Zines-Stories
| Meta | |
|---|---|
| Title: | General Thoughts on "/" (Homosexual) Zines-Stories |
| Creator: | [S. Landry] |
| Date(s): | June 1988 |
| Medium: | |
| Fandom: | Starsky & Hutch |
| Topic: | |
| External Links: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
General Thoughts on "/" (Homosexual) Zines-Stories is a 1988 handwritten essay by [S. Landry]. It was printed in Tell Me Something I Don't Know! #8.
The topic is slash, specifically Starsky/Hutch fic, and why this fan feels this subject is acceptable.
She prefaces it with
I have read some S&H ones which I thought were handled very well. As long as there is no "bed hopping" stories, I have no problems with slash. A real change in my thinking on slash has occurred in the last year when a friend and I discussed it.
The Essay
Until recently, I used to strongly object to "/" stories. Not so much because of explicit sex, but because I thought the characters were straight since they were portrayed that way in the TV series.Now, I realize that in America, on Network TV (not speaking of Cable TV), we will never see characters portrayed as "gay"! Oh, we may hear that they are "gay" or refereed to as living together, but we will never see a series based on it as a couple There couldn't be dating scenes, love scenes etc., using that concept. So Network TV stays with what they consider normal.
Homosexuality is prevalent in the U.S. (as elsewhere) and the American Psychology Assn. (like the AMA) in the early 1970's removed the concept of homosexuality from the list of "abnormal behavior."
I am not gay, I majored in Liberal Arts (sociology, psychology, Humanities) in college, and have always felt what one did was their own businss. It is the religious control of this country that keeps the networks "status quo" and refuses to admit that [it] is is a lifestyle. I'm not saying homosexuality is right or wrong, just that we will never see any TV series showing a relationship that is not heterosexual so, of course, an actor can only portray an actor as straight. He has no other choice!
Fan Comments
Your contention that "...we will Never see characters portrayed as "Gay"..," on network television is inaccurate. The recently premiered ABC series "Heartbeat" has as two of its main characters a lesbian couple; middle-aged, long established, operating as a family unit. True, the series is not based solely upon them. And no, no explicit scene of lovemaking has aired, nor is it likely to! I agree that there exists a line which timorous network executives cannot yet bring themselves to cross. But I disagree that the word "never" is applicable. It's not all that long ago since antecedent clones of today's TV execs were equally terrified...perhaps more so...of airing any program which featured blacks. (With the exception, of course, of "Amos 'N' Andy".) Admittedly, bigotry so rooted in religious ignorance is difficult to destroy even with the most obvious rationality, but not Impossible. Times change. With agonizing slowness. But they do change...
It could be argued that your statement that "...we will never see any TV series showing a relationship that is not heterosexual so, of course, an actor can only portray a character as straight. He has no other choice!" is also open to debate. The nuances of a talented actor's performance can carry surprisingly subtle messages.
[snipped]
Be cause a TV exec or producer views a role in a certain way, or even be cause a writer shapes a role a certain way, does not guarantee that the actor bringing that role to life will play it that way. Perhaps some fans see shadings in the characters of 'Starsky' and 'Hutch', and in Paul and David's performance, which you do not. I'm not saying you're mistaken, and certainly it is NOT my intention to trigger an other endless, tedious, and absolutely pointless "do they/don't they?" round robin argument; I simply felt moved to remind you that this topic, like just about everything else in this Life, is a matter of subjective interpretation.
It's always baffled me why, when a discussion touches upon the topic of homosexuality in even the most peripheral way, some people feel it crucial that they declare their own personal sexual proclivities, as if such an unasked for declaration somehow legitimizes their opinions, and therefore makes them more profound. The only bit of information I ever bother to volunteer is the fact that I'm a descendant of The Boru. And that I do simply as a friendly public service message to warn the unsuspecting not to get my Irish up.