New York Tim Adms Former Mayor Ed Koch Was Gay Ne Years After His Death

Contents:

• NEW YORK TIM FALLY ADMS FORMER MAYOR ED KOCH WAS GAY NE YEARS AFTER HIS ATH
• ED KOCH DI: WAS FORMER NYC MAYOR GAY? BS MYERSON CAMPAIGN APPEARANC, RICHARD NATHAN FUELED RUMORS OF HOMOSEXUALY
• A PORTRA OF ED KOCH’S SECRET GAY LIFE
• ED KOCH, THE AMBIGUOLY GAY MAYOR
• ED KOCH: ON REGRETS, GAY MAYORS AND HIS LEGACYIN THIS EXCLIVE TERVIEW NDUCTED A FEW WEEKS AGO, THE LATE GREAT EX-MAYOR OPENED UP ABOUT HIS YEARS HIS BELOVED NEW YORKWRTEN BY ADAM RATHE (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453841951663-0'); }); ED KOCH—WHO PASSED AWAY THIS MORNG OM NGTIVE HEART FAILURE AT THE AGE OF 88—WAS THE OUTSPOKEN, DIVISIVE BUT ULTIMATEDLY ADORED MAYOR OF NEW YORK CY OM 1978 TO 1989. HE WAS THE MAN CHARGE WHEN THE SUBWAY WORKERS WENT ON STRIKE FOR 10 DAYS, WHEN A BELOVED HARLEM HOSPAL CLOSED, AND WHEN THE AIDS EPIMIC WAS AT S HEIGHT. HE WAS ALSO A LARGER-THAN-LIFE LEAR WHO MA APPEARANC ON SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, H THE TOWN WH FORMER MISS AMERI BS MYERSON (SUPPOSEDLY TO QUASH MORS HE PREFERRED THE PANY OF MEN), AND PRID OVER EXTRAORDARY OVERHLS TO THE CY ERNMENT.STARTG ON FEB. 1, THE UPS AND THE DOWNS OF KOCH’S 11 YEARS OFFICE—AND HIS NOT-ENTIRELY-QUIET LIFE AFTERWARDS—WILL BE ON DISPLAY WHEN FILMMAKER NEIL BARSKY’S DOCUMENTARY KOCH PLAYS THEATERS. A FEW WEEKS AGO, DUJOUR MET WH KOCH HIS OFFICE AT A MANHATTAN LAW FIRM TO DISCS THE FILM, THE PROSPECT OF AN OPENLY GAY NEW YORK CY MAYOR, AND WHAT ’S LIKE HAVG A BRIDGE NAMED FOR YOU.  WHAT MA YOU CI KOCH WAS A PROJECT TO GET VOLVED ?IT WASN’T ME. NEIL BARSKY LLED DIANE COFFEY, WHO’D BEEN MY CHIEF OF STAFF AND IS MY CLOSE IEND, AND HE TOLD HER WHAT HE WANTED TO DO. THEN SHE LLED ME AND SAID SHE THOUGHT WAS A GOOD IA. SHE SAID, ‘WHY DON’T YOU TALK TO HIM AND IF YOU THK HE’S FAIR, DO .’ SO I DID TALK TO HIM AND I ONLY HAD ONE REQUT: BEFORE YOU MAKE PUBLIC, SHOW TO ME AND ALLOW ME TO EXPRS IF THERE WERE THGS THAT SHOULD BE RRECTED AND HE’D CI WHETHER OR NOT TO MAKE THE CHANG. WHEN HE SHOWED ME THE FILM, I REQUTED NO CHANG.ONE OF THE BIGGER EVENTS THE FILM IS THE CLOSG OF SYNHAM HOSPAL. YOU SAID ON MERA THAT YOU WOULD HAVE HANDLED DIFFERENTLY. HOW?ON THE MERS, I DID THE RIGHT THG. BUT THE MERS THIS SE WERE THE WRONG THG. EVERY MAYOR BEFORE ME HAD SAID THEY WOULD CLOSE THE HOSPAL BEE PROVID FERR RE AND ST MORE PER PATIENT THAT BELLEVUE. WHAT I DIDN’T TAKE TO NSIRATN, WHICH THE OTHER MAYORS DID, WAS THE PSYCHOLOGIL IMPACT OF CLOSG THE HOSPAL. IT HAD BEEN CREATED BY THE BLACK MUNY WHEN BLACK DOCTORS ULDN’T ADM THEIR PATIENTS TO HOSPALS OPERATED AS WHE HOSPALS. THE MUNY DIDN’T RE ABOUT THE HEALTHRE AS MUCH AS THE HOSPAL, WHICH WAS SOMETHG SPECIAL. I DIDN’T APPRECIATE THAT.HOW DO YOU THK THE FAMO ‘VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO’ POSTERS AFFECTED YOUR 1977 MAYORAL RACE?I THK THAT PEOPLE WHEN THEY VOTED FOR ME, SOME THOUGHT I WAS GAY, SOME THOUGHT I WASN’T, MOST DIDN’T RE. IT PROBABLY AFFECTED MY IENDS MORE THAN THE PUBLIC. I DON’T THK ADD TO MY VOTE, BUT I DON’T THK SIGNIFINTLY TRACTED OM .WE HAVE A NEW YORK CY MAYORAL RACE G UP WH AN OPENLY GAY NDIDATE, CHRISTE QUN. ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT HER SEXUALY IS SEEMGLY NOT AN ISSUE?YOU SAY ’S NOT AN ISSUE, BUT THERE ARE 50 STAT THE UNN AND ONLY 20 OF THEM HAVE LAWS—I WAS RPONSIBLE FOR THE CY OF NEW YORK—THAT PROHIB DISCRIMATN BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATN. [HOMOPHOBIA] IS NOT SOMETHG I’D SAY HAS GONE AWAY. IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK, ’S MUCH DIFFERENT THAN ED TO BE. IN OTHER STAT, NOT SO MUCH.BUT IS WATCHG SOMEONE LIKE QUN N MOVG?I THK ’S MARVELO. I HELPED MAKE THAT HAPPEN, AND I’M VERY PROUD OF THAT. REMEMBER THAT THE FIRST MONTH OF MY ADMISTRATN, I ISSUED AN EXECUTIVE ORR BARRG DISCRIMATN BASED ON SUCH THGS. PEOPLE WERE SHOCKED.THROUGHOUT THE FILM, THE POWER OF THE PRS IS APPARENT. THE NEWSPAPERS WERE HUGELY IMPORTANT. WHAT DO YOU THK TODAY IS THE MOST POWERFUL OUTLET NEW YORK CY POLICS?THE NEW YORK TIM, BEE THERE IS NO OTHER MEDIA STUTN THAT, IF THEY SUPPORT YOU, WILL BRG YOU THE SAME LARGE PERCENTAGE. IT’S THE NUMBER-ONE ENDORSEMENT. THOUGH I DIDN’T HAVE , I WAS NOT ENDORSED BY THE TIM; CUOMO WAS.YOU SAY ON MERA THAT IF YOU’D BEEN ELECTED TO A FOURTH TERM, YOU’D HAVE DIED OFFICE. WHAT ABOUT THE JOB MAK THAT LETHAL?IT’S 24 HOURS A DAY. I ONCE SAID, EARLY ON, THAT IF YOU WANT TO PICK AT THE PRINT ’LL ST YOU $400 ROUND TRIP TO GO TO WASHGTON. IF YOU WANT TO PICK AT THE ERNOR, ’LL ST YOU $200 TO GO TO ALBANY. YOU WANT TO PICK AT ME, ’S $3 ROUND TRIP. AND THEY ME.AT ONE POT THE FILM, YOU VIS YOUR ALREADY ERECTED HEADSTONE. THERE’S AN EPAPH WRTEN, BUT WHAT IS YOU’D LIKE YOUR LEGACY TO BE?THIS IS WHAT I DID FOR THE CY OF NEW YORK: EVERYBODY THOUGHT WAS GOG TO BEE DETRO, BUT I SAVED . I REBUILT . THE FIRST THG I DID WAS GIVE PEOPLE BACK THEIR SENSE OF PRI. THE SEND THG WAS THAT I BALANCED THE BUDGET FOR THE FIRST TIME 15 YEARS. THIRD, I REBUILT THE CY WH 250,000 AFFORDABLE APARTMENTS. NOT BAD FOR A KID BORN THE BRONX.YOU’VE MA A BS LATELY OF WRG FILM REVIEWS. HOW DID THIS START?I’VE ALWAYS GONE TO THE MOVI. I DON’T PRETEND TO BE AN EXPERT, THOUGH, AND THAT’S WHAT MAK MY REVIEWS SO LIKEABLE. PEOPLE ENJOY THEM; I HAVE A MAILG LIST OF 6,000.YOU’VE GOT A BRIDGE NAMED AFTER YOU, THE ED KOCH QUEENSBORO BRIDGE (WHAT ED TO BE THE 59TH STREET BRIDGE). WHAT DO ONE DO WH A BRIDGE ONCE ’S NAMED FOR HIM?I MAKE A POT OF JOKG ABOUT . MY MAJOR JOKE IS THAT I’M LOOKG FOR A NVAS VER FOR FOR CLEMENT WEATHER—BUT OFF THE SHELF, OTHERWISE ’LL BE TOO EXPENSIVE. I ALSO THK THERE SHOULD BE MORE LIGHTS ON MY BRIDGE. TAGS:ALL CI,INTERVIEWS,NEW YORK,POLICS (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453841951663-2'); }); (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453737959964-0'); }); GALLERIES CANN CONFINTIAL
• ELRGAYS, TELL ABOUT ED KOCH
• NEW YORK TIM ADMS FORMER MAYOR ED KOCH WAS GAY NE YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH

NEW YORK TIM FALLY ADMS FORMER MAYOR ED KOCH WAS GAY NE YEARS AFTER HIS ATH

But as open as Koch uld be, my lleagu Matt Flegenheimer and Rosa Golnsohn wrote a new profile of him, he straed to nceal one aspect of his life: He was gay. But when they did, Leonard Bloom, who was on the board of Gay Men’s Health Crisis, told that Koch was credibly unfortable. Even though nobody the room asked, Koch felt pelled to say to his senr team, “I am not a homosexual.

Gettg outed seemed like an existential threat to belonged to maybe the last generatn of New York policians for whom beg openly gay was polilly had a mpaign nsultant who ma homophobic remarks and mand to know if the mors were te. But when gay iends of his would nudge him and then enurage him to e out later life, Koch would jt say, “I don’t want to.

ED KOCH DI: WAS FORMER NYC MAYOR GAY? BS MYERSON CAMPAIGN APPEARANC, RICHARD NATHAN FUELED RUMORS OF HOMOSEXUALY

As a gay man, I appreciated seeg what people like me went through for gay rights — mak me regnize what I ’s a real sadns to . And gay activists nounced some of the preventative mov ma, such as the closg of bathho, as discrimatory. By the standards of today, is a crime that he was not out, proud and makg gay rights his biggt e.

A PORTRA OF ED KOCH’S SECRET GAY LIFE

Ne years after his ath, The New York Tim has fally gotten around to admtg that former New York Cy Mayor Ed Koch was gay. Ined, Mar Cuomo, his rival the electn, nied was behd mpaign signs that read “Vote for Cuomo, not the homo.

Still, at the time, Koch was a ngrsman for the Wt Village, one of the gayt districts the natn. He surround himself wh a llectn of younger gay iends who tried to play matchmaker for him and enuraged him to e out. One of Koch’s clost gay iends at the time of his ath was a former Tim reporter who would later out Koch a book 2019.

ED KOCH, THE AMBIGUOLY GAY MAYOR

And that spoke are now hundreds of openly gay elected officials the Uned Stat and over a thoand around the world.

This past November, voters elected a rerd number of openly gay or bisexual members of Congrs (six) and the very first member of the U. I cid that I uld not; mattered to me that there weren’t any proment gay role mols that I knew of who were succsfully navigatg this terra. Or at least not enough of them to nvce me that I uld do , too, or that was worth the wasn’t until the mid-seventi, when out lbian Elae Noble was first elected to the Massachetts state legislature, and later, 1978, when Harvey Milk was first elected to the board of supervisors San Francis that we had any gay elected-official role mols at all.

) It wasn’t until 1983 that we had an openly gay member of Congrs, and that only happened bee Congrsman Gerry Studds was forced to e out of the closet after he admted an affair wh a ngrsnal page. It would have ma a world of difference to a whole generatn of young people—young aspirg gay and lbian polil people—for there to have been a role mol as big and succsful as Ed believe that he was reluctant to aggrsively addrs the AIDS crisis for fear of beg intified as gay.

ED KOCH: ON REGRETS, GAY MAYORS AND HIS LEGACYIN THIS EXCLIVE TERVIEW NDUCTED A FEW WEEKS AGO, THE LATE GREAT EX-MAYOR OPENED UP ABOUT HIS YEARS HIS BELOVED NEW YORKWRTEN BY ADAM RATHE (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453841951663-0'); }); ED KOCH—WHO PASSED AWAY THIS MORNG OM NGTIVE HEART FAILURE AT THE AGE OF 88—WAS THE OUTSPOKEN, DIVISIVE BUT ULTIMATEDLY ADORED MAYOR OF NEW YORK CY OM 1978 TO 1989. HE WAS THE MAN CHARGE WHEN THE SUBWAY WORKERS WENT ON STRIKE FOR 10 DAYS, WHEN A BELOVED HARLEM HOSPAL CLOSED, AND WHEN THE AIDS EPIMIC WAS AT S HEIGHT. HE WAS ALSO A LARGER-THAN-LIFE LEAR WHO MA APPEARANC ON SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, H THE TOWN WH FORMER MISS AMERI BS MYERSON (SUPPOSEDLY TO QUASH MORS HE PREFERRED THE PANY OF MEN), AND PRID OVER EXTRAORDARY OVERHLS TO THE CY ERNMENT.STARTG ON FEB. 1, THE UPS AND THE DOWNS OF KOCH’S 11 YEARS OFFICE—AND HIS NOT-ENTIRELY-QUIET LIFE AFTERWARDS—WILL BE ON DISPLAY WHEN FILMMAKER NEIL BARSKY’S DOCUMENTARY KOCH PLAYS THEATERS. A FEW WEEKS AGO, DUJOUR MET WH KOCH HIS OFFICE AT A MANHATTAN LAW FIRM TO DISCS THE FILM, THE PROSPECT OF AN OPENLY GAY NEW YORK CY MAYOR, AND WHAT ’S LIKE HAVG A BRIDGE NAMED FOR YOU.  WHAT MA YOU CI KOCH WAS A PROJECT TO GET VOLVED ?IT WASN’T ME. NEIL BARSKY LLED DIANE COFFEY, WHO’D BEEN MY CHIEF OF STAFF AND IS MY CLOSE IEND, AND HE TOLD HER WHAT HE WANTED TO DO. THEN SHE LLED ME AND SAID SHE THOUGHT WAS A GOOD IA. SHE SAID, ‘WHY DON’T YOU TALK TO HIM AND IF YOU THK HE’S FAIR, DO .’ SO I DID TALK TO HIM AND I ONLY HAD ONE REQUT: BEFORE YOU MAKE PUBLIC, SHOW TO ME AND ALLOW ME TO EXPRS IF THERE WERE THGS THAT SHOULD BE RRECTED AND HE’D CI WHETHER OR NOT TO MAKE THE CHANG. WHEN HE SHOWED ME THE FILM, I REQUTED NO CHANG.ONE OF THE BIGGER EVENTS THE FILM IS THE CLOSG OF SYNHAM HOSPAL. YOU SAID ON MERA THAT YOU WOULD HAVE HANDLED DIFFERENTLY. HOW?ON THE MERS, I DID THE RIGHT THG. BUT THE MERS THIS SE WERE THE WRONG THG. EVERY MAYOR BEFORE ME HAD SAID THEY WOULD CLOSE THE HOSPAL BEE PROVID FERR RE AND ST MORE PER PATIENT THAT BELLEVUE. WHAT I DIDN’T TAKE TO NSIRATN, WHICH THE OTHER MAYORS DID, WAS THE PSYCHOLOGIL IMPACT OF CLOSG THE HOSPAL. IT HAD BEEN CREATED BY THE BLACK MUNY WHEN BLACK DOCTORS ULDN’T ADM THEIR PATIENTS TO HOSPALS OPERATED AS WHE HOSPALS. THE MUNY DIDN’T RE ABOUT THE HEALTHRE AS MUCH AS THE HOSPAL, WHICH WAS SOMETHG SPECIAL. I DIDN’T APPRECIATE THAT.HOW DO YOU THK THE FAMO ‘VOTE FOR CUOMO, NOT THE HOMO’ POSTERS AFFECTED YOUR 1977 MAYORAL RACE?I THK THAT PEOPLE WHEN THEY VOTED FOR ME, SOME THOUGHT I WAS GAY, SOME THOUGHT I WASN’T, MOST DIDN’T RE. IT PROBABLY AFFECTED MY IENDS MORE THAN THE PUBLIC. I DON’T THK ADD TO MY VOTE, BUT I DON’T THK SIGNIFINTLY TRACTED OM .WE HAVE A NEW YORK CY MAYORAL RACE G UP WH AN OPENLY GAY NDIDATE, CHRISTE QUN. ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT HER SEXUALY IS SEEMGLY NOT AN ISSUE?YOU SAY ’S NOT AN ISSUE, BUT THERE ARE 50 STAT THE UNN AND ONLY 20 OF THEM HAVE LAWS—I WAS RPONSIBLE FOR THE CY OF NEW YORK—THAT PROHIB DISCRIMATN BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATN. [HOMOPHOBIA] IS NOT SOMETHG I’D SAY HAS GONE AWAY. IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK, ’S MUCH DIFFERENT THAN ED TO BE. IN OTHER STAT, NOT SO MUCH.BUT IS WATCHG SOMEONE LIKE QUN N MOVG?I THK ’S MARVELO. I HELPED MAKE THAT HAPPEN, AND I’M VERY PROUD OF THAT. REMEMBER THAT THE FIRST MONTH OF MY ADMISTRATN, I ISSUED AN EXECUTIVE ORR BARRG DISCRIMATN BASED ON SUCH THGS. PEOPLE WERE SHOCKED.THROUGHOUT THE FILM, THE POWER OF THE PRS IS APPARENT. THE NEWSPAPERS WERE HUGELY IMPORTANT. WHAT DO YOU THK TODAY IS THE MOST POWERFUL OUTLET NEW YORK CY POLICS?THE NEW YORK TIM, BEE THERE IS NO OTHER MEDIA STUTN THAT, IF THEY SUPPORT YOU, WILL BRG YOU THE SAME LARGE PERCENTAGE. IT’S THE NUMBER-ONE ENDORSEMENT. THOUGH I DIDN’T HAVE , I WAS NOT ENDORSED BY THE TIM; CUOMO WAS.YOU SAY ON MERA THAT IF YOU’D BEEN ELECTED TO A FOURTH TERM, YOU’D HAVE DIED OFFICE. WHAT ABOUT THE JOB MAK THAT LETHAL?IT’S 24 HOURS A DAY. I ONCE SAID, EARLY ON, THAT IF YOU WANT TO PICK AT THE PRINT ’LL ST YOU $400 ROUND TRIP TO GO TO WASHGTON. IF YOU WANT TO PICK AT THE ERNOR, ’LL ST YOU $200 TO GO TO ALBANY. YOU WANT TO PICK AT ME, ’S $3 ROUND TRIP. AND THEY ME.AT ONE POT THE FILM, YOU VIS YOUR ALREADY ERECTED HEADSTONE. THERE’S AN EPAPH WRTEN, BUT WHAT IS YOU’D LIKE YOUR LEGACY TO BE?THIS IS WHAT I DID FOR THE CY OF NEW YORK: EVERYBODY THOUGHT WAS GOG TO BEE DETRO, BUT I SAVED . I REBUILT . THE FIRST THG I DID WAS GIVE PEOPLE BACK THEIR SENSE OF PRI. THE SEND THG WAS THAT I BALANCED THE BUDGET FOR THE FIRST TIME 15 YEARS. THIRD, I REBUILT THE CY WH 250,000 AFFORDABLE APARTMENTS. NOT BAD FOR A KID BORN THE BRONX.YOU’VE MA A BS LATELY OF WRG FILM REVIEWS. HOW DID THIS START?I’VE ALWAYS GONE TO THE MOVI. I DON’T PRETEND TO BE AN EXPERT, THOUGH, AND THAT’S WHAT MAK MY REVIEWS SO LIKEABLE. PEOPLE ENJOY THEM; I HAVE A MAILG LIST OF 6,000.YOU’VE GOT A BRIDGE NAMED AFTER YOU, THE ED KOCH QUEENSBORO BRIDGE (WHAT ED TO BE THE 59TH STREET BRIDGE). WHAT DO ONE DO WH A BRIDGE ONCE ’S NAMED FOR HIM?I MAKE A POT OF JOKG ABOUT . MY MAJOR JOKE IS THAT I’M LOOKG FOR A NVAS VER FOR FOR CLEMENT WEATHER—BUT OFF THE SHELF, OTHERWISE ’LL BE TOO EXPENSIVE. I ALSO THK THERE SHOULD BE MORE LIGHTS ON MY BRIDGE. TAGS:ALL CI,INTERVIEWS,NEW YORK,POLICS (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453841951663-2'); }); (FUNCTN() { GOOGLETAG.DISPLAY('DIV-GPT-AD-1453737959964-0'); }); GALLERIES CANN CONFINTIAL

He had to have known that his stat as a “lifelong bachelor, ” to many people of his era, meant that he was a closeted way or the other, many gay people are still angry at him over his unwillgns to say if he was gay. Yet, there was one area volvg his personal life that Koch never discsed: his ’s unwillgns to speak about this aspect of his personal life led to mors that the three-term mayor was gay.

ELRGAYS, TELL ABOUT ED KOCH

Koch never then-ngrsman Koch ran agast New York Secretary of State Mar Cuomo for mayor, anonymo lerature flood the streets of the cy, urgg New Yorkers to “Vote for Cuomo, not the Homo. ” Cuomo nied beg behd the offensive an effort to fe the gay mors, Koch had Bs Myerson, a former Miss Ameri, by his si durg mpaign events 1977. Later, Koch said that he and Myerson were not romantilly volved, Rters reported, and he nied beg gay.

If I were a homosexual, I would hope I would have the urage to say so, ” he said at the time, a New York Daily News article. "When Koch was asked years later about his sexualy, he would not nfirm whether he was straight or gay. ”Koch was among the policians featured “Outrage, ” a 2009 documentary, about closeted gay elected the film, Koch was said to have had a boyiend, Richard Nathan, who left the cy when Koch was first elected mayor; however, Koch nied havg a romantic relatnship wh Nathan, who later died of AIDS, the New York Daily News said on Friday.

NEW YORK TIM ADMS FORMER MAYOR ED KOCH WAS GAY NE YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH

Based on terviews wh Koch iends and sympathizers, the article scribed how the oime New York mayor publicly nied his own homosexualy, while admtg to timat, a fact that is long faiar to theatergoers who saw Larry Kramer’s 1985 play “The Normal Heart” or Tony Khner’s “Angels Ameri” (1991).

Kramer and Khner, both gay Jewish wrers, exriated Koch their works for havg been slow to react to the outbreak of AIDS when he served as mayor the 1980s. One theory is that Koch did not wish to appear to favor the sexual mory he belonged to, sce AIDS at the time was rrectly intified as maly affectg gay men and traveno dg ers.

The Tim article spired more ire the form of a petn signed by a number of gay Jewish journalists and lleagu, cludg Lawrence Mass, -founr of Gay Men’s Health Crisis; journalist Donna Mkowz; activist Allen Roskoff; publisher Mark Segal; and historian Sarah Schulman.

In 1981, New York’s gay muny lled on Koch to do somethg about AIDS, but only 21 months later the Gay Men’s Health Crisis was granted an nclive meetg wh the mayor, who waed until 1988 to take any real actn agast the panmic, which by then had already killed several thoand New Yorkers.