Way back in the 1980s, when life was rough and fun at the same time, I got involved with a local Rocky Horror Picture Show group. For those not in the know The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a campy failed musical film that found a second life as a midnight movie. During the presentations fans would dress up as the characters and mime out the film in front of the screen, while the audience participated with MST3K style lines shouted back in response to dialog and events in the story. The story is one of mad science, aliens, Rock and Roll, and of course, Sex. The costumes for the film are outlandish, daring, and ignore normal gender roles.
I started out just another audience member, attending the showings every Friday and Saturday night, but I quickly became a ‘cast member’ one of those people dressing up and acting out the film. (I have the soul of a thwarted actor, no doubt about it.) I started out as the character Riff Raff. Certainly the most fun to play, he gets to torture the monster, have elbow sex with his sister, serve Meatloaf to the guests, and do most of the killing in the movie, but I quickly transitioned to playing at one point or another every male character in the story with the exception of Rocky, the monster.
The usual drill was a number of fans and cast members might come over to our apartment 90 minutes or so early, helping each other with costumes and make-up, before arriving around 11 pm in front of the theater. There we would socialized, gossip and have fun before filing in for the performance. It was truly a community and the second to make me feel welcome. (The first community that I truly felt welcome at was D&D players.) After the movie we’d usually end up at Denny’s, eating and chatting and basking in the warm sensation of friendship.
On night I arrived with friends ready to perform as Frank-N-Furter. Frank is the mad scientist and transvestite of the story. His costume is a corset, fishnet stockings, wig, gloves, heels, and loads of make-up. (I wore heels but already being 6’2” I was a King Kong sized Frank.) My friends wandered off as we fell into our different orbits of socialization. At some point a group of guys came out of the theater, not Rocky fans but patrons of the feature playing during the regular hours. With their breath stinking of drink they stopped and marveled at the freak-show of Rocky Horror fans along the sidewalk. Then one of them fixed his attention on me.
Now I mentioned that I am six foot two, but at the time I was rail thin probably about 140 lbs, and I have never been a confident fighter. The guy closed in and started in with insults and his general disgust as ‘faggots.’ (Despite the get up I was and am straight, but among Rocky Horror fans that made me the token minority.)
Fear stole into my stomach, twisting it into a cramping knot as my fight or flight complex began to seriously engage. His friends did nothing and the guy moved closer, violence inching horribly towards an awful reality.
Coalescing from the line of fans, people started moving over and standing next to me. Straight, Gay, bi-sexual, their orientation irrelevant , they, my dear friends and fellow cast members, stood next to and let be known that I was not alone and that they were ready to prove it.
Suddenly facing a crowd ready to fight, the asshole’s friends quickly convinced him to disengage and they left. I stood there, my limbs trembling, my heart beating like some Bossa Nova band on speed, awash in relief. My friends, dispersed, and we resumed out sociable chatting and went on to another fun performance.
This memory comes back to now and then, powerfully intense even after 30 years. It is also now one of the reasons why I cannot support these social conservative candidates that the Republican party thrusts upon us.
When the chips were falling and it really mattered my friends stood by me, ready for combat and with equality becoming more more the rule for those with different sexual lives how could I turn my back on them? How could I trade their rights for the possibility of lower taxes? I can’t and I will not.
This is bar far not the only reason why I had to walk away from the Republican Party, I can’t even say it’s the number one reason, but it is a reason. I can’t ignore the need to recognize their civil right anymore than I could ignore my own.
I rememner Rocky Horor and own a rarely watched copy of the DVD. Sadly, I am now old enough that the movie no longer resonates for me. I did, however, have a similar experience, without the fighting potential. (Don’t know what I’d have done if there had been figting potential. I’d taken some martial arts by then and I have no issue with finishing a fight if someone else starts it.)
Gainesville (University of Florida) has a high percentage of male students, in part because of the majors offered and in part because it was the traditional Men’s College of Florida, back when the schools were segregated by sex. (FSU was the Women’s College.) It has many fraternities because of this and the members, frankly, do not make a good impression and are, in general, a bunch of over-priveleged jerks (and a few other, ruder words that I won’t use here.) Anyway, I was waiting to go into the theater – all dressed up and outrageous, though tame compared to Gaga and what has happened since – and I was just generally happy. One “Frat Rat” (believe me, once you knew the type, it was obvious. No one else over-applied THAT MUCH Polo!!) walked up to me and said, “You disgust me.” and walked off. Now, I am no beauty, but neither am I disgusting and to this day I don’t know if he thought I was transexual or what, but it doesn’t matter. Why would you walk up to a stranger who is doing you no harm and say that? It is exactly this sort of thing that disturbs me – these same bozos are the ones running the country right now – over-priveleged, self-important, sanctimoneous, smug Frat Rats. Former Pres. George W. Bush was one (I saw the pictures. He could have been at any fraternity at Florida and he would hav efit right in.) and many of his cronies are just like him. They do not improve government and have never lived on the low wages that they think is all most of us are worth. They are part of the problem and, near as I can tell, they are not offereing any solutions.