Homoerotic Archaeology: Advocate Men (June 1988), Part One

Friday, June 14, 2019

Advocate Men (June 1988), Part One

Beginning in 1967 as a newsletter for the Los Angeles activist group Personal Rights in Defense of Education (PRIDE), The Advocate established itself as a serious publication of LGBTQ+ political and social issues and, to this day, features interviews with figures on a board range of topics, from Hillary Clinton to George Michael. In June of 1984, the publisher entered the realm of homoeroticism with its release of Advocate Men. Where The Advocate offered thought-provoking articles on health care and marriage equality, Advocate Men presented erotic short stories and sultry photos. The first half of the June 1988 issue, which has been broken into two parts, contains spreads of models Benjamin Cates and Evan Fletcher, a Donelan cartoon, an advertisement for the film Bi and Beyond, the short story "Tacoma" (about a young man who leaves New Jersey to reunite with his college friend in Washington), and reader-submitted stories of steamy sexual encounters at a summer resort in the Philippines and a radio station.

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What is Homoerotic Archaeology?

In 2016, I discovered several discarded boxes at an estate sale. Under their flimsy flaps were hundreds of well-worn issues of homoerotic magazines from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. I purchased them out of mild intrigue and, as I perused their pages, I was startled to realize that something commonly disregarded as pornographic smut earnestly chronicled the evolution of gay culture: the social and sexual liberation of the 1970s, the crushing devastation from AIDS during the 1980s, and the gradual strengthening of the community in the 1990s. As a gay man, I was touched by the subtle narrative these publications told. As a historian, I was motivated to digitally preserve their content. And, as an educator, I was driven to create a platform to share that information freely with others interested in the progression of gay society. Homoerotic Archaeology is that venue. Here you will find the advertisements, articles, short stories, and (of course) pictures found in these magazines lovingly preserved and presented for future generations of gay men to enjoy and study.

Why Preserve Homoerotica?

As early as the 1970s, scholars such as June Rook have stressed the need to preserve homosexual history in an effort to combat repression and establish a cultural background for future generations. Much of the preservation process admirably focuses on the substantial works of homosexual artists and thinkers; however, it sadly ignores other elements quintessential to the community’s history, particularly homoerotica. Although frequently labeled obscene filth, homoerotica has, just like the significant creations of artists and thinkers, been a prevalent part of the group’s culture and has played an integral role in shaping identities and perceptions (consider how influential Tom of Finland’s hypermasculinity has been in molding the body ideals of modern gay men). Due to this factor, the conservation of homoerotica is just as essential as the preservation of major artistic and theoretical homosexual works.