Numbers (August 1980), Part Two

In the first edition of The Joy of Gay Sex (1977), Dr. Charles Silverstein and Edmund White warned readers that fisting can lead to internal bleeding, infection of the peritoneum, and rupture of the sigmoid colon. Likewise, John Preston’s article “The Fine Art of Fisting,” which can be found in this August 1980 issue of Numbers, discusses how none of the doctors the writer interviewed recommended the sexual act. Yet, despite its dangers, fisting became more prevalent in the sadomasochistic community of gay men during the late 1970s, with the formation of the Fistfuckers of America Club and even the pornographic film Centurians of Rome (1980) featuring the act. In fact, Preston’s article, although explaining the fatal complications that can ensue, takes a compassionate stance on the process, claiming, like many fetishes, fisting is often misunderstood. Included in the second half of this issue (see the first half here) is the short story “The Fugitive” (about the narrator’s sexual encounter with an escaped convict who broke into his apartment).

Numbers (August 1980), Part One

In the first edition of The Joy of Gay Sex (1977), Dr. Charles Silverstein and Edmund White warned readers that fisting can lead to internal bleeding, infection of the peritoneum, and rupture of the sigmoid colon. Likewise, John Preston’s article “The Fine Art of Fisting,” which can be found in this August 1980 issue of Numbers, discusses how none of the doctors the writer interviewed recommended the sexual act. Yet, despite its dangers, fisting became more prevalent in the sadomasochistic community of gay men during the late 1970s, with the formation of the Fistfuckers of America Club and even the pornographic film Centurians of Rome (1980) featuring the act. In fact, Preston’s article, although explaining the fatal complications that can ensue, takes a compassionate stance on the process, claiming, like many fetishes, fisting is often misunderstood. Also included in the first half of this issue is the short story “Getting His Man” (where the rescue of an injured man leads to romance, rape, and murder), a Private Line comic, and a series of photospread devoted to leather.

Sexpress (July 1992), Part Two

Founded in 1978 by William Higgins, Catalina Video specialized in gay-themed pornographic films. In the late 1980s, the production company experienced a set of changes as newer hires pushed to modernize the firm. The first was with twenty-three-year-old Christian Mann who served as president of the business until 1989 and drove the company to improve its marketing to niche groups in the gay community. The second was with Scott Masters who began to serve as head of production in 1987 and inspired the company to open a second studio in San Francisco and publish full-color magazines through Gourmet Editions. This issue, which has been broken into two parts, was one of these works and served to advertise the studio’s newest film, Sexpress. It also features an advertisement for the company with Lex Baldwin as its posterchild.