VETERAN ACTIVIST Peter Staley attained a new level of notoriety after appearing in David France’s Oscar-nominated documentary How to Survive a Plague (2012). The film follows several key members of ACT UP as they perform various acts of political theater, from occupying the headquarters of a big pharma corporation to draping a giant condom over the house of notorious homophobe Jesse Helms.
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NO ISSUE on “the Heartland” would be complete without an article on Chicago, undoubtedly the beating heart—or is it the brain?—of this vast expanse. With this realization, I immediately thought of John D’Emilio as the logical person to contact for a targeted tutorial on Chicago’s LGBT history and culture. A longtime contributor to this magazine …
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LIBERIAN-BORN Cheryl Dunye grew up in Philadelphia, which is where she began her career as a filmmaker, a term that includes directing, producing, and acting in her films. Her first films were a series of shorts about her experience as a Black lesbian, and they combined documentary and narrative elements in what came to be called “Dunyementaries.”
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WHEN Abstract Expressionism exploded in the 1950s, Edward Melcarth was painting and sculpting construction workers, junkies, and hustlers in an epic style, highly influenced by Renaissance painters like Paolo Veronese and Tintoretto. This link between the past and present was a significant feature of his artistic vision, one that still has a striking effect on the viewer to this day.
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Tim Miller interviews author Steven Reigns.
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Matthew Hays talks with Sarah Schulman, the author of Let the Record Show.
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Interview with Paul Rudnick by Frank Pizzoli: PLAYING THE PALACE is Paul Rudnick’s new novel (reviewed in this issue), … He is also a regular contributor to The New Yorker, and his articles and essays have also appeared in The New York Times, Esquire, Vogue, and Vanity Fair. He is currently writing the book for the Broadway musical adaptation of The Devil Wears Prada.
This interview was conducted by telephone in late April.
Franco Mormando talks with André Aciman, the author of Find Me.
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Ilana Rapp talks with film writer, producer, and director – Alan Ball.
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WAS SHE or wasn’t she? Again, we face that vexing question regarding the lives of lesbians and gay men, in this case of Molly Dewson, who was known as “the General” in the era of the New Deal. Dewson is the subject of a book by historian Susan Ware that suddenly seems relevant, which prompted me to seek a conversation with the author of Partner and I: Molly Dewson, Feminism, and New Deal Politics (Yale 1987).
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