I have to nfs that I never thought Barney Miller was a show for me. A child of the '80s, I would nstantly see on the syndited afternoon TV schle, but bee of s lack of aliens, puppets, or nja turtl I never gave a moment’s thought. Of urse, that’s before I learned about the show’s subversive gay backstory. Barney Miller buted 1975 as a mid-season replacement after ABC axed a whole...
Contents:
- HOW BARNEY MILLER’S GAYS DEFEATED ABC’S NETWORK CENSORS
- 20 STRAIGHT CHARACTERS WE DIDN'T KNOW WERE OPENLY GAY IN REAL LIFE
- THAT GAY EPISO: ‘BARNEY MILLER’ GETS THE WRONG LGHS OUT OF A GAY EXTORTN PLOT
- MY LIFE AS A GAY CONGRSMAN
- THAT GAY EPISO: ‘BARNEY MILLER’ GETS THE WRONG LGHS OUT OF A GAY EXTORTN PLOT
HOW BARNEY MILLER’S GAYS DEFEATED ABC’S NETWORK CENSORS
* barny gay *
In 1987, Congrsman Barney Frank, a Democrat om Massachetts, ma history when he told the Boston Globe, “If you ask the direct qutn: ‘Are you gay?
S Hoe of Reprentativ, Frank advoted for numero bills that promoted gay rights, and was the leadg -sponsor on other key legislatn cludg 2010’s Dodd-Frank Act, which overhled fancial regulatn the wake of the 2008 fancial crisis. I said, ‘Yeah, I’d like to get volved polics, but I uld probably never get elected bee I’m gay. ’ I knew I was gay om 13.
To be gay [was at the time] to be very unpopular. Everybody who ran for the legislature was asked by the gay and lbian groups, ‘Would you support a gay rights bill, repealg the law agast sodomy and preventg job discrimatn? [I cid then] that while I would not e out publicly, but I would be very supportive of gay rights.
20 STRAIGHT CHARACTERS WE DIDN'T KNOW WERE OPENLY GAY IN REAL LIFE
And to the then-lear of the gay rights movement Ameri, a guy name Steve Enan. He said, ‘Here’s the problem—I’m tryg to get people to sponsor gay rights bills all the legislatur, and I’ve been braggg about how many straight people I have supportg the bills. Every year I fd out another one is gay.
THAT GAY EPISO: ‘BARNEY MILLER’ GETS THE WRONG LGHS OUT OF A GAY EXTORTN PLOT
In 1987, you beme the first Congrsman to choose to publicly e out as gay. Before I me out, was not a great secret that I was gay. Unrstandably, gay people who knew I was gog to e out were very enthed.
’ They were aaid that if I me out, my fluence would be dimished every area but gay rights. And advanced my advocy of gay rights.
It’s one thg for me as a ‘straight person’ to ask my lleagu to vote for gay rights when they’d say was polilly difficult. You uld not be an [openly gay] immigrant to Ameri.
MY LIFE AS A GAY CONGRSMAN
I was a participant Congrs on gettg rid of laws on the books that discrimated agast gay people. From the begng of what was lled [the gay rights movement], until well to the ‘90s, there wasn’t much [mastream] nversatn about trans people.
More gay and lbian people ially me out than did transgenr people. I thk we are now, regards to transgenr people, where we were wh regard to gay and lbian people maybe 20 years ago. Of urse, that’s before I learned about the show’s subversive gay backstory.
But Barney Miller charged right to relatively uncharted terrory, openg s first episo after the pilot wh a gay purse-snatcher storyle. ”) Personally, I love the character: He’s smart, he’s funny, he’s nfint, and he’s unambiguloly gay.
THAT GAY EPISO: ‘BARNEY MILLER’ GETS THE WRONG LGHS OUT OF A GAY EXTORTN PLOT
So Danny Arnold, the shownner, brought a nsultant om the Gay Media Task Force, a new anizatn that advoted for better pictns of gay characters.
Gay dienc were miffed by Marty’s pictn: A sassy flamboyant crimal who leered at straight men, many viewers felt that Marty rerced negative stereotyp about gay people.
Of urse, flamboyant gay men exist, as do gay crimals. But bee those trop were particularly mon on TV at the time, there was ncern that viewers would get the imprsn that Marty reprented all gay men.