Gaysweek

Gaysweek was an American weekly gay and lesbian newspaper based in New York City printed from 1977 until 1979. Considered the city's first mainstream weekly lesbian and gay newspaper, it was founded by Alan Bell in 1977 as an 8-page single-color tabloid and finished its run in 1979 as a 24-page two-color publication. It featured articles, letter, art and poetry. It was, at the time, only one of three weekly publications geared towards gay people. It was also the first mainstream gay publication published by an African-American (Alan Bell).^[1][2][3]

Gaysweek

Editor	Alan Bell
Categories	Newspaper
Frequency	Weekly
Founder	Alan Bell
Founded	1977 (1977)
First issue	February 28, 1977 (1977-02-28)
Final issue Number	1979 (1979) 104
Company	New York Gay News, Inc.
Country	United States
Based in	New York City
Language	English
ISSN	0145-9104
OCLC	26280473

Background

Gaysweek was New York City's first mainstream weekly lesbian and gay newspaper.^[4][3] It was founded by Alan Bell in 1977. Gaysweek began as an 8-page single-color tabloid and when it ceased publication in 1979 after 104 issues, it had grown to a 24-page two-color publication. Its monthly arts supplement, Gaysweek Arts and Letters, was edited by Byrne Fone. During its run, it was one of only three gay weeklies in the world and the only mainstream gay publication owned by an African-American. A portion of Gaysweek archives are housed at Cornell University Library, Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections.^[5]

Although it was eventually granted, Gaysweek's application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for registration of the Gaysweek trademark, was opposed by Newsweek, Inc. because, according to attorneys for the publication, they are similar "both phonetically and in appearance." Newsweek later sued Gaysweek for trademark infringement.^[3][6]

In 2002, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston turned over a copy of the February 12, 1979 issue of Gaysweek, in relation to a lawsuit, which included an article titled "Men & Boys" that described a meeting in Boston in which Father Paul Shanley defended a relationship between a man and a boy.^[7]

In 2015, Alan Bell was inducted into the LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame.^[8]

Notable writers

Eric Bentley Perry Brass Robert Chesley Daniel Curzon Martin Duberman Harvey Fierstein

Robert Patrick Felice Picano David Rothenberg Edmund White George Whitmore

See also

• Bay Area Reporter
• BLK (magazine)
• Gay Community News (Boston)
• LGBT culture in New York City
• Out Front Colorado
• Washington Blade

References

1. Merskin, Debra L. (12 November 2019). The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Mass Media and Society. SAGE Publications. pp. 2086–. ISBN 978-1-4833-7554-0.
2. Seabaugh, Cathy (February 1994), "BLK: Focused Coverage for African-American Gays & Lesbians", Outlines, vol. 7, no. 8, Chicago
3. Toce, Sarah (2012). "Alan Bell". Gay Press, Gay Power: The Growth of LGBT Community Newspapers in America. By Baim, Tracy (1st. ed.). Chicago: Prairie Avenue Productions and Windy City Media Group. pp. 230–236. ISBN 978-1-4800-8052-2.
4. Taver, Chuck. "African-Americans in the LGBT Community". Lesbian-Gay-Bisexual-Transgender Outreach Office. Marshall University. Archived from the original on 30 June 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
5. "Guide to the Gaysweek Publishing Items, 1977-1978". Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections. Cornell University Library. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
6. de la Croix, Sukie (1998), "What a Difference a Gay Makes: The Gay/Lesbian Movement, 5, 10, 15 & 20 Years Ago", Outlines
7. "Shanley Attended NAMBLA Meeting". Fox News. Associated Press. 2 May 2002. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
8. "NLGJA Announces 2015 Inductees to LGBT Journalists Hall of Fame". NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists. August 18, 2015.

Further reading

• Streitmatter, Rodger (1995). Unspeakable: The Rise of the Gay and Lesbian Press in America. Boston: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-19873-3. OCLC 32745788.

External links

• September 1978 issue of Gaysweek at Pride Museum