Stayin’ Alive: Disco History, Pride Month, and Other Things
If you’ve been paying attention, I missed the end of May deadline for the freebie newsletter to drop. Not for lack of trying. May was a busy month that saw me doing a lot of things I normally don’t set aside time for — like publishing the next novel in my Mercedes Masterson Detective Stories series. You can get it here. I’m super proud that I was able to get it done during May, because May was the 20th anniversary of the creation of Mercedes. It’s hard to believe she’s that old now and that I’ve been working on this character off and on for so long. More on that here. I also got to collaborate with an artist (Jamie Hahn Creative) on some of the finishing touches of the book cover, so I could bring it to life in the most original way possible. I made a bunch of fun things for the anniversary, including this trip down memory lane in the video embedded below. Check it out, you get to see Heather Jackson who has been playing Mercedes since 2005 grow up in it.
I’m also still busy with school. I’m in my last year and that’s hard to believe. I’m currently in a Victorian Literature course which is perfect timing as my next novel will be a Victorian era gothic horror story about a vampire titled The Affairs of Lady Blackwater. Here’s a few images from my mood board for that story to give you a sense of where my head is at on this one.
What I’ve been reading…
I don’t always do this, but I do enjoy it, here is a list of things I’ve read recently that you might want to read as well.
Tulsa’s first Black mayor announces $105M reparations plan for descendants of 1921 Race Massacre — I’ve mentioned the Tulsa Race Massacre in the past, and I’m happy to share the news that Tulsa’s first Black mayor is working on a plan for reparations for the descendants of the massacre.
Bill giving Texas parents, school boards more control over library books heads to Gov. Greg Abbott — Texas is up to more book banning. I thought this tidbit in particular is telling of where we’re at with these so-called parents’ rights bills, taken from the article, “About 16% of complaints about school library books last year were initiated by parents, according to a report from the American Libraries Association, while 72% came from elected officials, pressure groups and board members and administrators.” This isn’t about parents’ rights, but about taking those rights away, especially from those parents who do not wish to restrict the reading of their kids or ban books.
More than half of top 100 mental health TikToks contain misinformation, study finds — We live in a time where America is actively rejecting health professionals and scientists. Please, for the love of all that is holy, do not get mental help from TikTok videos or Substack newsletters. The world is full of a lot of misinformation, especially on social media and even more so from the current administration which is actively destroying our health and science institutions.
The Importance of Being Ernest by Oscar Wilde. I first read this in my teenage years, I believe, and didn’t think it was very good at the time. I recently re-read it and can confirm, my opinion still holds that it is just not very good. I suspect time has not been kind to a lot of its humor. As an actor, I find it odd that it takes until about the halfway mark before I can get a sense that there is something to work with humor wise. That’s odd to me. I’ve read a lot of bad scripts through the years, but you can always find something to tweak with and bring out some entertainment. The first half of this play is rough though. I would be at a loss trying to sort it out as an actor if I was cast in it. And that’s just weird to me. Again, I suspect it’s a difference in time that is hurting my ability to “get it.”
Mrs. Warren’s Profession by George Bernard Shaw. This is another Victorian era play, but I enjoyed this one a lot more than Wilde’s Ernest. Both plays tackle similar social issues, but I felt Shaw handled the material better and left us with a more impactful conclusion.
Disco History, a story, and Pride.
It’s Pride Month! And that’s good news. It’s a time to be happy, to have joy, but also a time to remain strong. LGBTQ hate, especially trans hate, is off the charts right now and this current administration is hell bent on taking away the rights of so many. But alas, as I’ve said before, live like hell. Get up in the morning and walk tall. You are amazing people who deserve all the happiness in the world. These are tough times for the community but I want you to continue to live like hell. Be out if you can and as proud as your heart can stand.
But what does this have to do with disco? Glad you remembered. First of all, disco is amazing, and I will die on those platform shoes. Secondly, disco originated in gay clubs and more specifically within the Black and gay community. It’s why many homophobes at the time absolutely hated it when disco went mainstream in the 1970s. I first found my love of disco as a teenager. There was a 70s radio syndicated show that would air once a week that I listened to and I absorbed a lot of 70s music that way, especially disco. I was raised in a heavily conservative Christian environment that was homophobic — being gay was a sin. Thankfully, I never latched fool-heartedly onto homophobia, though I’m not saying I was perfect. What I didn’t know though was that disco had its roots in the gay community and by the time I started listening to disco, I had already been hiding my music preferences from the rest of my family for years, because I had been ridiculed for them in the past.
When I was in high school, some of my peers would refer to disco as gay in a derogatory way. It was common place when I was in high school for my peers to call music they hated, or anything really, gay as an insult. The homophobia and toxic masculinity was real. I never got it, but later when I discovered the history of disco, I suspected that many of the boys in high school calling disco gay had picked it up from their homophobic parents who probably hated it when they were in high school in the 1970s. Had I known disco was rooted in the gay community, I might have done things differently, maybe not. As it was, as a teen I collected a lot of 70s clothes and was often walking around in a leisure suit and polyester or my brownish-red leather jacket. I was open of my love of disco and all things 70s. I suppose it’s no wonder that for a while it was rumored I was gay. I suppose you could say I walked into that, but fortunately I thought it was just laughable and went right on in my polyester and shaggy hair.
Me as a teenager in polyester and wicked sideburns. And a kitten in a pocket.
When I found out about the roots of disco years later, I was still in that church, and I didn’t care. I kept right on with 70s style and disco.
What’s the point of that story? Not sure, I mainly just wanted to talk about disco and Pride. So sue me. I do think there is a lesson here though, and that’s to ignore all the hate. Even if you don’t get it or understand where it’s coming from. Just roll your eyes, slip into that leisure suit and strut it out. Fuck the haters. So get on your best, whether that’s polyester or goth or whatever, and walk out loud and proud. Live like hell. Happy Pride Month!
“Stayin’ Alive” by The Bee Gees.
And let’s end it on one of the most recognizable disco songs of all dang time. Dance or strut, the choice is yours, but let the beat take you away.
