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The interview discusses what coming out was like for the interviewee and the reactions of her family members.
Side B:
Interviewee discusses dating and having her first love affair. The interview talks about the differences in reactions of people when she came out during the 1960s and how that affected what she did and who she hung out with. She discusses the change in going from a group of people who accepted her being gay to a group of people who felt guilty of being gay. ]]>Contact LHA at dyv.lha@gmail.com
]]>Kennedy, E. L. & Davis, M. D. (1993). Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge.]]>
Side B = 31.23 minutes]]>Contact LHA at dyv.lha@gmail.com
]]>Kennedy, E. L. & Davis, M. D. (1993). Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge]]>
Side B = 31:06]]>Contact LHA at dyv.lha@gmail.com
]]>
27:21 minutes (Side B)]]>
Side B: Cheryl discusses her relationships, including sexual relationships and partnerships. She shares her experiences and opinions about affairs, and monogamous and non-monogamous relationships. Generational differences within the lesbian community are also discussed.]]>
Interviewer: Madeline Davis]]>Contact LHA at dyv.lha@gmail.com
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Side B= 43:25 min.]]>
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Later in the tape Cheryl discusses how her relationships fall into patterns. From there she list characteristic she is attractive to in a partner.
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Speakers' identities are unclear throughout. Recording label identifies Cindy and Joan but it is hard to tell if there are actually two separate speakers.
Sound quality is poor. Tape cuts off abruptly at the end. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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She talks about her relationships with women, how she never openly acknowledged that she was gay but if she was asked she wouldn’t deny it.
They discuss monogamy, she was mostly faithful, but she also talks about jealous partners and how when one is accused of things, one might as well and go ahead and do it.
She doesn’t believe that a lesbian relationship is any different than a straight relationship.
They discuss bars and areas in Buffalo that she would frequent: Moon Glow bar, Pearls bar, Ralph Martins, Ryan’s Hotel, Little Harlem. They also discuss dating rituals, fashion, and relationship/ courting roles.]]>
Madeline Davis (Interviewer)]]>
SPW497_Debra_B]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Believes lesbians make better mothers because they know more. She didn’t want her son to go into gay life because she felt it would be difficult for him, she doesn’t believe that gay men relationships last. She believes you can teach someone not to be gay.
They talk about gay men and lesbian relationships and social interactions. She would call upon her gay male friends to be her date to events that she needed a date, also sometimes family events. They talk about marriages between a gay man and gay woman. Debra says that she knew quite a few couples who had done that to put up a front, but that those relationships always worked out well. Debra also talks about marriage between two women. She never wanted to get married but knew women who did.
They also discuss alcoholism and drugs among the gay community.
On the second tape, Debra further discusses fights in the lesbian community. Madeline asks if she knew any lesbians who played sports in the 1940s and 1950s. Debra believes lesbians played sports but cannot definitely say so.]]>
Madeline Davis (Interviewer)]]>
SPW498_Debra_B]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B = 9:02]]>
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Madeline Davis (Interviewer)]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Madeline Davis (Interviewer)]]>
SPW513_DJ_B]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Preceded by SPW512.
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Side B: 11:07]]>
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Side B: Dorothy continues the discussion of roles in lesbianism and the division between the two groups in bars. She says that her "crowd" did not distinguish between these two groups and she ultimately stopped going to bars, partly as a result of the need for role division. She discusses in some depth her problem with alcohol and talks about her membership in Alcoholics Anonymous. She talks about how she decided that she was a lesbian and gives further details about her first relationship. She also speculates on whether or not other people knew she was a lesbian, including her mother and acquaintances such as her landlord. She says that she has never had any problems with people discriminating against her. Dorothy also continues to talk about the social dynamics of bars in Buffalo. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND]]>
Side B: 31:07]]>
She talks first of weekend activities or leisure activities such as house parties, picnics, and going to bars. She talks in general about sexual relations, mentioning "daisy chain" sex, and attitudes towards sex and equality in love-making. She talks in general about long-term relationships and breaking up. She then answers questions and talks at length about her long-term relationship with Harriette, their break up and lasting friendship. She mentions their first car and the business they owned together. She talks of monogamy. She talks of Harriette's later marriage and other relationships. Dorothy talks of her opinion of bi-sexuality and of Harriette's marriage and relationships.
]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND]]>Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge]]>
SPW474_Dorothy_B]]>
Dorothy discusses lesbians in the military during World War II with regard to her friend Betty, a lesbian marine who feared her phone was tapped. She refers to it as a 'witch hunt'. Dorothy discusses lesbian bars in Buffalo in the 1940s -1950s, and talks about friendships and butch and femme roles.
Side B
Dorothy discusses her break up with her girlfriend of 13 years, Charlotte. She talks about their courtship, sexuality, home life, and their families, who were never formally told they were a couple. While talking about the break up she mentions the deed to a cottage they shared and losing personal property in the breakup. Dorothy mentions seeking help from a lawyer and a lesbian psychologist in the 1950s. Dorothy discusses that she once considered suicide after a breakup.
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Side B]]>
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Coverage=Temporal 1942-1960
Coverage=Temporal: 20th Century]]>
Dorothy discusses how women met one another, sexuality, and her various relationships. Particular focus is on her 10 year relationship with her girlfriend during the mid 1950s to mid 1960s.
Side B
Dorothy discusses how she feels about children and the fact that she never any. She gives her opinion on two women raising a child, and talks about her friends who are now married to men who raised children. In addition, she continues her thoughts on sexuality and butch-femme roles.
]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND]]>Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: Joan discusses the class divisions in the lesbian community, the university gay scene, and her personal, professional, and romantic history.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: 27:30]]>
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Side B: Joe talks about social clubs (all men's clubs) and how gay society functioned within these clubs. He also talked about sports and gay women at the time. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
]]>Kennedy, E. L. & Davis, M. D. (1993). Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge.]]>
27:51 min (side B)]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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The social conditions, the acceptance of lesbians, and the "openness" of homosexuals are compared between New York, Florida, and Toronto. References are made to anti-gay activist Anita Bryant and others who put social pressure on lesbians to stay closeted.
Additionally, Judy touches upon negotiating workplace discrimination and "nosy" neighbors. She briefly mentions her relationship with her family and what it was like growing up in Buffalo.
]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
]]>Kennedy, E. L. & Davis, M. D. (1993). Boots of Leather, Slippers of Gold: The History of a Lesbian Community. New York: Routledge]]>
Side B: Judy discusses her past relationships and the ways in which she feels the treatment of women at jobs has changed.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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The sound quality is poor in the beginning. The tape cuts off abruptly at the end.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B includes songs about lesbians, their lives and realities, and their relationships with children and their families. ]]>
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Side B 18:01]]>
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Lou and Jane discuss their sexual relationship and further aspects of female sexuality.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B= 40:20 min. (note: digitization was terminated prematurely due to the physical condition of the tape)]]>
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On Side B- Jane begins with her experience as Fem lesbian, and her difficulty with what that means to her. She talks about her difficulty with coming "out", and then is interrupted by one of their children.
Lou discusses her relationship with her Fem partner (Jane), as someone who self-identifies as a Butch. She discusses her choices in life, and her commitment to her relationship, her partner, and her family. She also talks about her disillusionment with the future, and her lack of hope for change. Lou references Jane's feelings, and her hope for Jane to recognize what it means to be a Fem.
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Madeline Davis (Interviewer)]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: Continuing the conversation from Side A, Mary discusses in more detail the types of people she observed in the various bars in Buffalo, as well as her family. She explains that she got along with her family, but never came out to them, in spite of which her father never questioned her about her relationships or pressured her to get married. She also discusses the socio-economic status of various gay communities throughout Buffalo. Both the interviewer and the interviewee discuss butch and femme identities within the larger context of the lesbian community in Buffalo. Mary speaks in more detail about her social experiences. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: 45:20]]>
Constant whirring noise that stops about 10 minutes into the recording.
Side B: Mary continues the discussion on butch and femme role-playing. She elaborates on fights, holding down jobs, and being "out." She also explains the relationships lesbians had with gay men in Buffalo, N.Y., and the bar scene dynamics of mixed, gay, or lesbian bars. Mary and the interviewer discuss gay activism and the difficulties of being involved in activism at that time. Mary also describes outings where there was a risk of being visible as a group, such as going on picnics or renting cottages. She elaborates on her experience with social dynamics like cliques and having heterosexual friends within the lesbian and gay community. Mary then expands upon the nature of her relationships with women as well as with black lesbians - racial prejudice and relationships are discussed.
Constant whirring noise that stops about 5 minutes into the recording.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: Mary Ann continues to discuss her time in jail. She took on a butch look, and began to receive small gifts under her cell door from femme girls in other divisions. She developed relationships with different girls that she worked with while in jail, and talks about lookouts, or "chickies," standing watch for girls who were with their partners in the showers or elsewhere. She then talks about her sex life with a long-term partner of 22 years, with whom she raised foster children. Later, she touches on her job as a dancer at Buffalo clubs, and a two-year period when she worked as a prostitute.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
Side B: Pat discusses why she does not have many gay friends and why she does not identify with the lesbian community. She talks about her relationships and her feelings about sex.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: In this interview Pat talks about how she does not like or feel comfortable in the gay community. She has never identified with it, or been made to feel welcome. This is one of the reasons that she does not maintain friendships with other lesbians, unless she is having a sexual relationship with them. She mentions being victimized and physically assaulted because she was a butch lesbian. Interviewer Madeline enters the discussion, speaking about her own sexual experiences with women. Madeline classifies Pat as “untouchable,†something that Pat denies, stating that she is simply very private. She feels that sex is a necessary but not important part of a relationship; it is something that is never sought or welcomed. She is suspicious of those who claim to experience sexual pleasure, including Madeline. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement
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Side B: 43:18]]>
Side B: Pat discusses her friendship and romantic relationship with Jerry Jones, a male impersonator, who was well known in the 1950s Buffalo lesbian community. Pat discusses her move to Albany, N.Y., in the late 1950s and the birth of her daughter in 1957. She also mentions her experiences at after-hour bars which were only open to African Americans. While she used to frequent them in her early years, she no longer goes. Pat identifies as a butch lesbian and discusses the differences between butches and femmes. When she was younger she did not allow her partner to touch her during sex, but is much more open to the idea now. According to Pat, many butch lesbians did not receive sexual contact from their partners. ]]><a href="/omeka/rights-statement" target="_blank"> See the LHA Copyright Statement </a>]]>
Side B: 0:31:05]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Recording has loud feedback sounds and squeaks at the beginning.
Side B: Pat and DJ discuss bar denizens vs. lesbians who did not frequent bars and the "class" distinction there, and also the way non-butch lesbians looked down on butches. DJ describes how her long-term relationships were analogous to marriage, where she was the breadwinner and her partners were housewives who perhaps worked but did not "provide." Both discuss the fact that in the 1940s and '50s butches had the freedom to have affairs whereas femmes were expected to be faithful. This created an atmosphere of mistrust in which monogamous long-term relationships became very difficult.
Recording has loud squeaks at the beginning, hisses throughout, and cuts off abruptly at the end.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B: 31:56]]>
Side B: Pat and DJ continue to discuss relationships during the 1950s and talk about reasons for breaking up. The discussion revolves around the importance of taking care of a woman and being able to satisfy her needs. The two women discuss the negative stigma of cheating. The discussion turns to take pride in a partner and the importance of her appearance and physical presence. Pat and DJ also talk about the presence of violence during relationships in the 1950s, listing insecurity between partners as the main reason. The two women speak specifically of violence in bars as a result of talking to another woman’s lady or challenging femmes in relationships to talk to other women. They discuss how much of this behavior was learned from lesbian role models of the 1940s. ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B: 31:56]]>
Cut off at 0:14:55
Side B: The group continues their discussion of the interview process, including who is willing to talk and who is not, as well as who will use their names and who will not. There is more discussion about beatings. Pat tells of coming out to her mother. Her mother only worries about the violence Pat is subjected to, on account of being butch. There is a long discussion about the nature of breakups and their aftermath. The group discusses the role of third parties in most breakups and the way a butch or femme reacts to a breakup. The issue of "passing" comes up, and Pat talks about working as a cab driver and passing as a man. Often, the children of femmes did not know that their mothers' partners were actually women. The interview concludes with a description of the rules for asking other butches' girlfriends to dance, and the fights that sometimes ensued. This point in the discussion highlights the difference between the generation of the interviewees and the generation of the interviewers.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B: 32:04]]>
Side B: Paula speaks about her family life in relation to her sexual identity. She talks about her husband's fast lifestyle and her changing preferences eventually causing the dissolution of their marriage. Paula mentions the types of employment she has had, including working in department stores, as a waitress, as a desk clerk at the Genesee Hotel, and on the assembly line at Bell Aircraft. She speaks more about various bars that she went to: Pat's, Dugan's, the Carousel, and the Carlton Hotel. She talks about a long-term relationship that she had, after her divorce, that lasted ten years, as well as traveling out of the Buffalo area to places like Florida, California, and Utica, N.Y.
The recording cuts off abruptly after 23 minutes.]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B: 23:30]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Side B: 46:30]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
Interviewee: Stella Stone]]> See the LHA Copyright Statement ]]>
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SIDE B (Duplicate of Side A) Windsor discusses femme and butch roles in several lesbian relationships, and Skip’s opinion on these role changes. Windsor speaks about her relationship with Skip and difficulties of being constantly with her partner, having different money-earning capabilities, the emotions and desires in their relationship, and how they celebrated holidays together.
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Interviewer: Liz
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SIDE B 30:55]]>
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Pennsylvania, PN]]>
SIDE B Windsor discusses suicides in the lesbian community. Skip was able to accept herself as lesbian, and Windsor explains why.
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SIDE B 30:54]]>
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