By André Hereford on October 11, 2021 @here4andre
For LGBTQ+ people in the U.S., the road towards liberation has been long, circuitous, dark, and dangerous, and those who have organized and fought for equality often were forced to do so from the safety of the shadows. A new documentary, Cured, making its broadcast premiere on PBS’s Independent Lens series, brings to light a little-known chapter of that struggle, when committed activists stepped out of the shadows to loudly and publicly resist an institution that used fear and ignorance to justify treating queer people as second-class citizens.
It was in 1952 that the American Psychiatric Association (APA) listed homosexuality as a mental disorder in the first edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). Adding to the public sentiment that gays and lesbians weren’t just different, but were morally deficient, the DSM listing provided a clinical basis for denying queer people basic human rights, from jobs and housing to education and even custody of their children.
Labeling LGBTQ people as “psychologically disturbed” implicitly upheld the discrimination that made it next to impossible for them to live freely and openly. Even worse, the mental illness diagnosis led to thousands of gays and lesbians being committed to mental institutions, or forced into varying forms of therapy, including electroshock treatments, and in some extreme cases, full or partial lobotomies.
But, as one gay activist argues in Cured, it was this very treatment that posed the greatest danger to his mental health. Gay and lesbian leaders like the late Dr. Frank Kameny, Barbara Gittings, and Kay Lahusen rose up, determined to see homosexuality removed from the DSM listings.
Among the surviving activists interviewed for the film who led the fight, the Reverend Magora Kennedy details how their efforts coalesced around the burgeoning civil rights and feminist movements, while Dr. Charles Silverstein recounts his personal path towards rebellion as a then-schoolteacher who sought psychiatric treatment for years in search of a “cure” for his same-sex attraction.
In the words of Sigmund Freud, there was no cure, as homosexuality was not an illness. It was “no advantage, but nothing to be ashamed of,” he wrote, decades before the DSM was even published. In 1973, the APA decided to remove the listing from the DSM.
“Millions were cured with the stroke of a pen,” says psychiatrist Dr. Richard Green. And, as Cured co-director Bennett Singer points out, “Even though this is a story from history, its lessons remain profoundly relevant today. This is a film about the process of bringing about lasting, systemic social change.”
Cured premieres October 11, National Coming Out Day, on PBS Independent Lens. Visit www.pbs.com.
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By Doug Rule on May 12, 2022 @ruleonwriting
Theater lovers everywhere should head to PBS the next three Friday evenings to enjoy new premieres in the 5th annual "Broadway's Best" lineup from the acclaimed Great Performance series. In Washington, it will be broadcast on WETA at 9 p.m. and will also be available nationwide for streaming from the PBS website and PBS Video app as part of #PBSForTheArts.
First up, on Friday, May 13, is a videotaped recording of the West End revival of Cole Porter's classic Anything Goes.
Based on the acclaimed 2011 Broadway revival, the London production sees Tony-winning choreographer Kathleen Marshall reprising her role as director and also Tony-winner Sutton Foster reprising her role as Reno Sweeney and making her West End debut.
By André Hereford on April 1, 2022 @here4andre
The filmmakers and corporations behind Sony’s Marvel Comics adaptation Morbius (★☆☆☆☆) have had ample time to consider what they’re aiming for with this big-budget film intro for living vampire, and vintage Spider-Man nemesis, Dr. Michael Morbius.
Namely they should have figured out by now whether their version of the character -- portrayed in astonishingly muted fashion by Oscar-winner and accent devourer Jared Leto -- exists in any known Spider-Man film universe, or maybe one that’s merely Spidey-adjacent, à la Venom.
After half a decade and at least seven release date delays, moviegoers and Marvel fans (not mutually exclusive) also have had ample time to try to make sense of every hint in the marketing, and every detail of speculation.
By Hugh McIntyre on April 30, 2022 @popbanghugh
Harry Styles is on top of the world right now. He's got the No. 1 single on the planet, the trailer for his upcoming film was just unveiled for the first time, and he's on the cover of a magazine. He's busy sharing quite a bit about who he is as a musician, a man, and an artist -- but there are still some things one of the most famous artists on the planet doesn't want to let go of.
"I've been really open with it with my friends, but that's my personal experience. It's mine."
This was Styles' answer when he was asked about his sexuality during an interview. The story was published in the most recent edition of Better Homes & Gardens (an odd title for Styles to cover), and while the pop/rock singer-songwriter touched on several topics in the far-reaching chat, it's the sex talk that's grabbing most people's attention.
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