Friday, June 27, 2025

Advocate Men (June 1989), Part Two

In this June 1989 issue of Advocate Men (which has been broken into two parts), a reader named Mark responds to a fellow reader’s letter about the dating difficulties he encounters being HIV positive, with many people rejecting him due to his status. In his response, Mark claims that gay men already face numerous setbacks in the dating world and adding HIV status into the mix only makes things worse. Likewise, he claims someone’s status should not be a barrier to love: “We gays have enough hang-ups without being separated from our life because of AIDS. Life is too short for anyone to be deprived of a chance to feel and share love, to have someone there to hold him and share all that life has to offer.” Included in this second half (see the first half here) are the short stories “Bronc Buster” (where a rodeo cowboy is taught how to tame a wild horse) and “Pit Bull Love” (about an affair between a wrestler and his manager) and photos of models Brian Adams, Lance Anderson, and Sergio Calucci.

Friday, June 13, 2025

Freshmen (June 1998), Part Two

In 1975, David Kopay, the former running back for the San Francisco 49ers, became the first professional football player to come out as gay. Although Kopay made headlines and faced major discrimination, it would not be until 1992 that another professional football player, Roy Franklin Simmons, announced his sexuality. As Kopay explains in his 1977 autobiography The David Kopay Story, football – like all professions – has gay members; but the masculine nature of the sport prevents most from acknowledging their sexuality, causing many to believe gay athletes do not exist: “If [Mike] McCormack did not know about the homosexuality or bisexuality of some of the outstanding players he has coached in Washington and in Philadelphia, he was the only man in the National Football League still ignorant of their names.” Such is the case in Lawrence Atkinson’s short story “Vintage Hardball” contained in this June 1998 issues of Freshmen (which has been broken into two parts). Contained in this second half (see the first half here) is an interview with adult performer Corky Adams, the short story “The Stand-In” (about an affair between and actor and his look-alike), and photospreads of models Marco Antonio and Roland Martinus.