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data-activy-map="social-share-lks-article-top" data-ttid="social-share-menu"><li data-ttid="social-share-facebook" class="styl_em__b5A78 styl_facebook__bOW_X"><a href=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="styl_lk__RsJVU"><span class="in in-share-facebook"></span></a></li><li data-ttid="social-share-twter" class="styl_em__b5A78 styl_twter__ww7sF"><a href=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="styl_lk__RsJVU"><span class="in in-twter"></span></a></li><li data-ttid="social-share-ptert" class="styl_em__b5A78 styl_ptert__CaMm1"><a href=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="styl_lk__RsJVU"><span class="in in-share-ptert"></span></a></li><li data-ttid="social-share-email" class="styl_em__b5A78"><a href="mailto:?subject='The Letter Men' tails love letters between two men separated by WWII& target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="styl_lk__RsJVU"><span class="in in-share-email"></span></a></li><li data-ttid="social-share-py" class="styl_em__b5A78 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<span class="byle-name"><a href=">Alex Tabet</a></span> and <span class="byle-name">Aaron Gilchrist</span></div></sectn><div class="article-body__ntent article-body-font--loadg"><p class="">“Wouldn’t be wonrful if all our letters uld be published the future a more enlightened time,” Gordon Bowsher wrote durg the harrowg days of World War II. “Then all the world uld see how love we are.” </p><p class="">Many are now gettg the opportuny to wns their credible love story, more than 80 years after Bowsher wrote to Gilbert Bradley, the man he loved. </p><div class="ad ad--text-alignment ad-ntaer boxleAd dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="boxle" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te" data-offset-viewport="100"></div></div><div id="taboolaReadMoreBelow"></div><p class="">The two were separated 1939, when Bradley was drafted to the Brish Army.</p><figure class="styl_leImage__yAWZ0 styl_small__5hUB_ styl_portra__NRWbO"><picture class="styl_image__1qciH"><source media="(m-width: 1240px)" srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><source media="(m-width: 1000px)" srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><source media="(m-width: 758px)" srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><source srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><img loadg="lazy" src=" alt="Gilbert Bradley." height="1500" width="999"/></picture><figptn class="ptn styl_ptn__Pe5JC"><span class="ptn__ntaer">Gilbert Bradley.</span><span class="ptn__source">Courty Andrew Vallente</span></figptn></figure><p class="">Throughout World War II, they wrote each other love letters, which have now been ptured Andrew Vallente’s short film “The Letter Men,” starrg Garrett Clayton as Bradley and Matthew Postlethwae as Bowsher. </p><p class="">The film premiered June 10 at Tribe Film Ftival and is showg throughout the week.</p><p class="">Vallente had the ia for his film after learng of the uple's letters 2017. </p><div class="ad ad--text-alignment ad-ntaer boxleAd dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="boxle" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te" data-offset-viewport="100"></div></div><p class="">“Beg a gay filmmaker, bed wh my love for World War II history, I knew I had to tell this story,” Vallente, the director and -wrer of the film, said. </p><p class="">Bradley and Bowsher first met Devon, southwt England, 1938. In love but separated by the war, the two men began wrg each other letters — a potentially dangero act durg that era. Homosexualy was illegal the U.K. until 1967. </p><p class="">“Most queer people burned their letters durg that time bee they were terrified of beg disvered,” Vallente said. </p><figure class="styl_leImage__yAWZ0 styl_medium__OMa6x"><picture class="styl_image__1qciH"><source media="(m-width: 1000px)" srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><source srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><img loadg="lazy" src=" alt="From left, Matthew Postlethwae, Andrew Vallente, and Garrett Clayton." height="1668" width="2500"/></picture><figptn class="ptn styl_ptn__Pe5JC"><span class="ptn__ntaer">From left, Matthew Postlethwae, Andrew Vallente, and Garrett Clayton.</span><span class="ptn__source">Courty Andrew Vallente</span></figptn></figure><p class="">“Incency,” the ary term for sexual activy between men, uld rult a lengthy prison sentence for Brish soldiers. As a rult, rrponnce tailg gay love om that time is extremely rare. </p><div class="ad ad--text-alignment ad-ntaer boxleAd dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="boxle" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te" data-offset-viewport="100"></div></div><div class="remend-tersectn-ref" data-activy-map="remend-article-body-remend"></div><p class="">Vallente said that, at some pot, Bradley told Bowsher he fell love wh another man Stland, and their letters beme more iendly until they drifted apart and stopped wrg to each other 1945. Bradley kept his letters until his ath 2008. </p><p class="">Vallente -wrote the script wh his hband, Danny Vallente. The majory of the script is posed of the exact words om Bradley and Bowsher’s letters.  </p><p class="">Vallente ma sure that most of the st and crew volved the productn of the film intified as LGBTQ.  </p><figure class="styl_leImage__yAWZ0 styl_medium__OMa6x"><picture class="styl_image__1qciH"><source media="(m-width: 1000px)" srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><source srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><img loadg="lazy" src=" alt="Garrett Clayton and Matthew Postlethwae as Gilbert Bradley and Gordon Bowsher." height="1667" width="2500"/></picture><figptn class="ptn styl_ptn__Pe5JC"><span class="ptn__ntaer">Garrett Clayton and Matthew Postlethwae as Gilbert Bradley and Gordon Bowsher.</span><span class="ptn__source">Courty Andrew Vallente</span></figptn></figure><p class="">“I thk ’s important that we tell our own stori,” he said. “That don’t always necsarily need to happen, but this se I’m happy that was.” </p><div class="ad ad--text-alignment ad-ntaer boxleAd dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="boxle" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[]],[[758,1],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[728,90],[360,360]]],[[0,0],[[300,250],[700,50],[5,5],[360,360]]]]" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te" data-offset-viewport="100"></div></div><p class="">For Vallente, highlightg the posivy of gay love was important when producg “The Letter Men.” </p><div class="remend-tersectn-ref" data-activy-map="remend-article-body-remend"></div><p class="">“In a lot of LGBTQ+ cema, we tell our worst stori, some of the worst thgs that have happened to om over the years,” he said. “In ‘The Letter Men,’ we didn’t explore hate crim, we didn’t explore people beg shunned for beg love. We really jt told the story of the two men love.” </p><p class="endmark"><strong><em>Follow </em></strong><a href=" target="_blank"><strong><em>NBC Out</em></strong></a><strong><em> on </em></strong><a href=" target="_blank"><strong><em>Twter</em></strong></a><strong><em>, </em></strong><a href=" target="_blank"><strong><em>Facebook</em></strong></a><strong><em> & </em></strong><a href=" target="_blank"><strong><em>Instagram</em></strong></a></p><div class="expand-byle-ntributors articleByleContaer"><div class="expand-byle article-expand-byle" data-activy-map="expand-byle-article-bottom"><div class="byle-thumbnail byle-thumbnail--has-image expand-byle__thumbnail"><a href="><picture><source srcSet=" 2x, 1x"/><img loadg="lazy" src=" alt="" height="48" width="48"/></picture></a></div><span class="byle-name expand-byle__name"><a href=">Alex Tabet</a></span><span class="byle-social expand-byle__social"><a href="" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="byle-social--lk"><span class="in in-email"></span></a></span><div class="expand-byle__b-wrapper"><p class="byle-b expand-byle__b">Alex Tabet is a 2024 NBC News mpaign embed.</p></div></div><div class="expand-byle article-expand-byle" data-activy-map="expand-byle-article-bottom"><span class="byle-thumbnail byle-thumbnail--no-image expand-byle__thumbnail"></span><span class="byle-name expand-byle__name">Aaron Gilchrist</span><span class="byle-social expand-byle__social"></span><div class="expand-byle__b-wrapper"><p class="byle-b expand-byle__b">Aaron Gilchrist is an anchor for NBC News.</p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="article-body--right-rail-ntaer"><div class="article-body__right-rail layout-grid-em grid-l-4_5-l grid-l-3_5-xl grid-l-ph-half-xl"><div class="ad article-body__right-rail--ad ad--text-alignment ad-ntaer dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="boxrail" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[[300,250],[360,360]]],[[758,1],[]],[[0,0],[]]]" data-offset="10" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te"></div></div></div></div></div><div class="body-bottom-remend"><div class="ad ad--midrponsive ad-ntaer dn-prt"><div data-mps="te" data-slot="midrponsive" data-siz="[[[1000,1],[[700,1],[5,5]]],[[758,1],[]],[[0,0],[]]]" data-offset="300" data-reh-terval="0" data-renr-on-view="te" data-targetg="{}" data-active-tab="te"></div></div></div></div></div></article></div></div><div id="hfs-footer" class="dn-prt" data-activy-map="hfs-footer"><footer class="hfsf" ><div class="ner"><div class="logo"><a href="><svg class="peack" viewBox="578 62 67 39" xmlns=" fill="currentColor"><g fill-le="evenodd"><path d="M579.074 90.58c1.717-4.494 6.472-6.08 10.697-3.37l18.29 12.754h-22.18c-4.62 0-8.252-4.23-6.8-9.385"></path><path class="feather" d="M579.074 90.58c1.717-4.494 6.472-6.08 10.697-3.37l18.29 12.754h-22.18c-4.62 0-8.252-4.23-6.8-9.385"></path><path class="feather" d="M597.563 75.863l9.442 21.613-19.478-13.35c-4.887-3.24-3.896-8.79-1.19-11.237 3.83-3.24 9.245-2.12 11.226 2.97"></path><path class="feather" d="M610.57 70.93l-3.433 24.19-9.772-23c-2.113-5.75 2.64-9.516 5.81-9.583 3.632-.396 8.188 2.38 7.396 8.394"></path><path class="feather" d="M625.494 72.103l-9.707 23.067-3.102-20.82c-.265-3.17 1.716-3.237 2.443-3.832-.133-.463-1.124-.463-1.124-.463h-1.848c-.198-5.42 4.028-7.8 7.462-7.535 3.697.132 7.856 4.428 5.876 9.583"></path><path class="feather" d="M635.338 84.167L615.86 97.584l9.177-21.348c2.775-6.742 9.245-5.42 11.556-2.842 2.51 2.51 3.235 7.6-1.255 10.773"></path><path class="feather" d="M637.448 99.9h-22.515l18.29-12.756c4.49-2.975 9.244-.266 10.498 3.635 1.327 4.36-1.65 9.12-6.27 9.12"></path></g></svg></a></div><nav class="lks"><ul class="lks__wrap" data-l-2="14" data-l-3=15><li><a href=" target="_self">About</a></li><li><a href=" target="_self">Contact</a></li><li><a href=">Help</a></li><li><a href=">Careers</a></li><li><a href=" target="_blank" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ad Choic</a></li><li><a href=" target="_blank" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Privacy Policy</a></li><li><a href=" target="_blank" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Do Not Sell My Personal Informatn</a></li><li><a href=" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CA Notice</a></li><li><a href=">New Terms of Service (Updated JULY 7, 2023)</a></li><li><a href=">NBC News Semap</a></li><li><a href=">Advertise</a></li><li><a href=" target="_self">Select Shoppg</a></li><li><a href=" target="_self">Select Personal Fance</a></li></ul></nav><div class="py"><p>© 2023 NBC UNIVERSAL</p><div class="brands"><a href="><svg viewBox="0 0 120 20" fill="none" xmlns=" aria-labelledby="nbc_news_logo"><tle class="nbc_news_logo">NBC News Logo

two gay ww2 soldiers

A mm owner has llected the letters between two gay soldiers between World War II and the story of their romance is like that of a famo romance novel.

Contents:

IN WWII, TWO GAY SOLDIERS’ FORBIDN ROMANCE LIV ON IN THEIR LOVE LETTERS

Gay and Lbian soldiers faced extraordary discrimatn durg World War II. Most found new muni of people and thrived spe the opprsn. Disver the film Comg Out Unr Fire that shar their story. * two gay ww2 soldiers *

Letters between gay men are credibly rare bee they were almost always stroyed. This is an credibly rare photograph of a gay soldier and a man Paris durg World War II.

Homosexualy was illegal at that time, and beg ught the army as a gay man was so much worse. If he was found out, was likely that he would serve time prison, or even get shot by a homophobic soldier, and left for ad.

Beg openly gay would not be crimalized until The Sexual Offens Act 1967.

"COMG OUT UNR FIRE": THE STORY OF GAY AND LBIAN SERVICEMEMBERS

PETER TATCHELL tells the movg story of a gay soldier durg WW2, PRIVATE DUDLEY CAVE. Havg risked his ... * two gay ww2 soldiers *

Not surprisgly, there were other gay men that were drafted to the army as well.

For the vast majory of gay men wrg letters to one another durg that time, they actually did burn the letters. For years, they had dreams of leavg England and movg to the Uned Stat, where they uld live sunny California, which was known for beg more acceptg of homosexuals. The Newly Disvered Love Letters Between Two Gay Soldiers In World War II Will Have You In Tears.

A GAY SOLDIER'S STORY

Elae Tyler May, History Whout Victims: Gays World War II, Reviews Amerin History, Vol. 19, No. 2 (Jun., 1991), pp. 255-259 * two gay ww2 soldiers *

The Newly Disvered Love Letters Between Two Gay World War II Soldiers Tell A Heartwarmg Story Of Forbidn Love. Gay and Lbian soldiers faced extraordary discrimatn durg World War II.

Liebman and more than 9, 000 Amerin servicemembers, however, eventually were given a Sectn 8 "blue discharge" for beg homosexual. The 1994 documentary Comg Out Unr Fire giv voice to the experienc of thoands of gay and lbian servicemembers who joed the ary durg World War II, a story that is largely ignored by historians and mms across the untry.

In 1993, the Uned Stat was batg the discrimatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy regardg homosexuals the morn ary. At the time, homosexualy was classified as a mental illns by the medil muny; mental illns was one ndn that disqualified young people om service.

NEW WWI MOVIE TO FEATURE A GAY LOVE STORY

LGBTQA+ Pri started as a prott wh the Stonewall Rts 1969 and many historians pos that the roots of the LGBT activists n be found the World War II experienc of gays men and lbians the Amerin ary." name="scriptn * two gay ww2 soldiers *

Gay and lbian recs were forced to answer qutns vaguely, or lie about their sexualy, orr to be allowed to serve; otherwise, they would n the risk of beg sent home and brand as “sex perverts. By the middle of the war, the ary sought new ways to target and expel homosexuals. Instead of chargg dividuals wh sodomy, a urt-martialed offense, the ary began intifyg spected homosexuals as psychopaths.

Such a move created an efficient system of discrimatn and prosecutn of homosexual members of the ary.

Dpe the threat of persecutn, gay and lbian servicemembers thrived durg World War II. The new iendships gave gay and lbian GIs refuge om the hostily that surround them and allowed for a distct subculture to velop wh the ary. Servicemembers on every waront enjoyed drag show entertament; an entire gay lexin was veloped om the wrgs of Dorothy Parker; and eventually an unrground queer newspaper emerged.

THE FOTTEN GAY SOLDIERS OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR

In the early 20th century, the medil tablishment beme fixated wh the ia that gay people uld be “cured.” To achieve this, they turned to a lany of btal practic: om electrotherapy to lobotomi. * two gay ww2 soldiers *

Soldiers reprented female characters ary plays, and some homosexual soldiers found refuge om rigid genr rol.

The irony that the ary selected two homosexuals to reprent the ial image of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps was not lost on Abry. Eisenhower signed Executive Orr 10450, which banned homosexuals om feral employment.

FILM REVIEW; GAY WORLD WAR II: ABE BY THE MILARY

* two gay ww2 soldiers *

Over 5, 000 feral employe lost their jobs over accatns of homosexualy. The feral discrimatory actns drove LGBTQ people further to the shadows of society and embolned law enforcement and policians, who beme more vlent toward gay and lbian cizens.

Patrons of the gay bar fought back and sparked a vlent uprisg that started the gay rights movement the Uned Stat.

Gay and lbian veterans of World War II beme some of the first to fight ary discrimatn and blue discharg the years followg the war.

WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO BE GAY DURG WWII

My only hope is that anizatns around the untry m to pturg the voic of gay, lbian, and transgenr veterans and that we fd a place our history to honor their service as well. We sat down wh Sir John Dermot Turg, Alan Turg’s nephew and thor of a new book on Bletchley Park, to discs his uncle’s role pivotal role puter science and his persecutn for beg gay the 1950s.

Wartime film star Patsy Kelly's most fiant act was beg an openly gay woman an hospable climate for the LGBTQIA+ muny. “Beg a gay filmmaker, bed wh my love for World War II history, I knew I had to tell this story, ” Vallente, the director and -wrer of the film, said.

” For Vallente, highlightg the posivy of gay love was important when producg “The Letter Men. PETER TATCHELL tells the movg story of a gay soldier durg WW2, PRIVATE DUDLEY CAVE.

THE NEWLY DISVERED LOVE LETTERS BETWEEN TWO GAY SOLDIERS IN WORLD WAR II WILL HAVE YOU IN TEARS

Of the, 's likely that at least 250, 000 were gay or bisexual (based on projectns om the 1990-91 Natnal Survey of Sexual Attus and Liftyl which found that six per cent of men report havg had homosexual experienc). A iend of me, Dudley Cave, who died a few years back, was one of the many gay soldiers. Havg risked his life durg WW2, and nearly died a Japane POW mp, Cave was angry that once the war was over Bra's gay soldiers were persecuted and jailed by the ary thori.

I am glad I served but I am angry that ary homophobia was allowed to wreck so many liv for over 50 years after we gave our all for a eedom that gay people were nied", said Cave. Durg WW2, and until 1999, there was an official ban on lbians and gays servg the armed forc. Ined, homosexualy was grounds for dismissal om the forc and for harsh imprisonment.

READ THIS HEARTBREAKG GAY WORLD WAR II SOLDIER’S LOVE LETTER

But Private Cave never faced any qutns or warngs ncerng homosexualy when beg terviewed by recment officers and pletg his enlistment forms. "People were put the army regardls of whether they were gay or not", acrdg to Cave's rellectns. There was none of the later homophobic uproar about gays unrmg ary disciple and effectivens.

Cave's experience was typil of the sudn relaxed attu towards lbians and gays the servic. Faced wh the danger of German vasn and the need to maximise bat strength, ary chiefs unofficially waived their objectns to homosexuals uniform.

Cave rells that neher the top brass nor fellow soldiers showed any ncern about gay enliste. "There were none of the anti-gay wch-hunts we had after WW2", he told me. Contrary to the later fears of the generals, durg WW2 there was no evince that homosexual soldiers unrmed un hn:.

GAYS THE MILARY SHOWS THOSE WHO FIGHT WARS AND PREJUDICE

Cave noted there was never any disciplary actn taken agast gay men his un:. Dpe the gossip that he was a "nancy boy", Cave sisted that the worst homophobia he ever faced was beg chid for "holdg a broom like a woman".

He returned to a society where discrimatn agast gay people remaed rife.

Ined, Cave was dismissed om his job as manager of the Majtic Cema Wembley, London, 1954 after was disvered he was gay.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* TWO GAY WW2 SOLDIERS

"Comg Out Unr Fire": The Story of Gay and Lbian Servicemembers | The Natnal WWII Mm | New Orleans .

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