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Now Playing
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UCLA Film & Television Archive "Word Is Out: Stories of Some of Our Lives"
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Directed by Peter Adair, Nancy Adair, Veronica Selver, Andrew Brown, Robert Epstein, and Lucy Massie Phenix
USA, 1977
Color
135 Minutes
Show Times:
Fri., Feb. 19 7:00 PM
Introduced by MFAH Film Committee member Kristian Salinas
Quite possibly as relevant today as it was upon its debut, Word Is Out is widely considered the first feature-length documentary on gay and lesbian identity. Offering a vastly different perspective than the common views of the time, the film presents twenty-six diverse gay and lesbian individuals, who with profundity, honesty, and humor, describe their struggle to live a decent life in America, despite prejudice, discriminatory laws, and society´s unwillingness to treat them with respect and equality.
One of the producers of the film is Houstonian Tracy Gary, who recalls, "I was 25 when I helped produce Word is Out and it changed my life forever, as it did for all of us and the country. It remains one of my favorite set of memories of a time in which all things were transcended with love, persistence, and patience."
"Word Is Out impacted audiences around the world in 1978 by destroying stereotypes of the gay experience. Today, the power of this film lies not only in its disarming interviews but in how these beautifully woven interviews stand as a watershed to our history. These stories are a record of our struggles, our dissension, our joys, our loves and our lives. The filmmakers capture the innocence and charm of 26 people—ranging in age from 18 to 77, from San Francisco to New Mexico to Boston, from beehived housewife to sultry drag queen. You will laugh at the irony as one woman explains how doctors put her on a diet of two salads a day to cure her ´sickness.´ You might feel humbled or grateful as one ex-member of the Women´s Army Corps tells how the women expected to get beat up for dancing in gay bars by angry servicemen in the late 1940s and early 50s. Either way, you will leave the theater affected by the fierce courage and love emanating from these stories, our stories." -Kristin Pepe, Legacy Project Manager
Cosponsored by Q-Fest (www.q-fest.org) and the Houston GLBT Community Center (www.houstonglbtcommunitycenter.org)
 Click here to visit the film´s Web site.
Be sure to check back for additional screenings or changes in the Films schedule. You can also contact us with questions about future films at film@mfah.org.
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