|
The Cycle
Sluts
They wore a startling combo of leather gear and Frederick's of Hollywood-inspired undergarments. From the tip-top of their sky-high, feverishly teased wigs (think trailer-trash broads on crystal meth) to the bottom of their stature-building footwear (platform shoes, motorcycle boots), they stood tall (not one of them less than seven feet) in more ways than one. Their makeup— part Kabuki/part Sweet Charity—accentuated their unapologetic facial hair, streaked with glitter.  This
carefully
designed juxtaposition, indicating a gender identity meltdown, extended
beyond The Look. The Act consisted of original songs and sketch
material created by Bill Bowersock, Matt Vernon and John Beal tailored
to showcase them at their butchest and most femme.
John Wayne one minute, Ann-Margret the next. Words that have since
become downright banal and void of their true meaning were used to
describe them: outrageous, androgynous, dangerous.Known as the Cycle Sluts, their in-your-face expressions of unrestrained sexuality were hard won (this was less than a decade after Stonewall). After years of secreting who we were as sexual beings, the Cycle Sluts put the “sex” into homosexuality. In Los Angeles of 1975, the Cycle Sluts were the “It Girls” of gay culture, attracting gay and straight audiences alike in their nightclub appearances at the Whisky-a-Go-Go, the Roxy and other hip venues. Hollywood's most famous celebrities of the era, including Lucille Ball, disco divas, producers, managers and agents like Allan Carr (Grease, La Cage Aux Folles, Village People, Joan Rivers, Ann-Margret) and Roy Gerber (The Beatles, Bette Midler) commandeered the star booths night after night. The Cycle Sluts couldn't have gotten within spitting distance of prime time, and that was precisely their allure. Unsanitized, uncensored, and unequivocally gay, their stage personas carried the stereotypical trappings of their predecessors (hair and makeup), but added an aspect of being gay that had rarely been acknowledged out loud. The Cycle Sluts may have had false eyelashes out to “here,” but they also had substantial packages out to “there,” bulging beneath their frilly lace panties. Thirty years later, we have the stars of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy to prove just how much progress gays have made in terms of widespread acceptance. |
 |
visit the john beal web site