Bryant was a beauty queen and successful singer. Had she been a kind, caring and accepting person, her life undoubtedly would’ve been different. She divided her fans with her anti-gay crusade, driven partly by her religion and partly by ignorance. She believed “gay” could be foisted on people, particularly children, despite no such thing happening in reality. She had endorsements that went away due to her anti-inclusion views, and then she even pissed off her fellow believers when she got a divorce. Her career dried up and she eventually went broke. She would have been offered a high-paying cabinet job today, but “troll” wasn’t as marketable then as it is today.
Doris Day was married and divorced a few times. But she loved animals and was well known and liked for her sunny disposition. Bryant didn’t have Day’s star power or acting ability, but simply being a kind, loving person might have carried her much farther.
Eventually, Bryant’s granddaughter came out to her as being gay when she turned 21, another pie in the face if there ever was one.
My grandmother knew Anita Bryant (probably through Chi Omega; Grandma was a big national officer, but it could have been the DAR, the John Birch Society, or Northwestern University, where Grandma had been a Dean). In the late 1960s, before giving up on me completely, she sat me down for a serious talk.
Her point: If I could only make myself more like Anita Bryant, I might have a chance at a happy life. Bryant was "such a valued person." And so pretty! (I was an intolerably chubby pre-teen who did not meet the Dean's standards for appearance.)
Even then I knew it was both hopeless and absurd. I laughed, not the best choice with Grandma. Bryant was already making anti-gay noises and I had that adolescent radar for adult sanctimony. Grandma, most un-pleased, gave up on me and focused on my younger sisters. They laughed too, eventually.
Jeez. I remember way back in junior high, there was an English teacher and drama coach who was obviously gay, and who was universally beloved as a wonderful teacher and director. This was back in the 1960s! Nobody seemed to care, because he was great.
Clarence Darrow said "I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great satisfaction."
That said, the Pizzagate gunman strikes me as less culpable than Bryan or Ray, because he seems to have been delusional. I would much rather have seen Alex Jones meet a grisly end of some kind.
Most news reports seem to say that Welch was killed by police without mentioning that he had pointed a gun at an officer and not dropped the weapon as instructed. His death was the direct result of his threatening behavior. You do not fuck around with the police as he clearly found out.
There are a lot of trigger-happy police out there, but if the events were as described, I do not fault those officers one bit. In fact, I sympathize with them, because now they have to carry that to their graves.
Well that trifecta of delusional assholes won't be missed, and add to that the today is "PAB is Officially a Felon Day" as well as a Friday just brings a smile to my face.
Bryant was a beauty queen and successful singer. Had she been a kind, caring and accepting person, her life undoubtedly would’ve been different. She divided her fans with her anti-gay crusade, driven partly by her religion and partly by ignorance. She believed “gay” could be foisted on people, particularly children, despite no such thing happening in reality. She had endorsements that went away due to her anti-inclusion views, and then she even pissed off her fellow believers when she got a divorce. Her career dried up and she eventually went broke. She would have been offered a high-paying cabinet job today, but “troll” wasn’t as marketable then as it is today.
Doris Day was married and divorced a few times. But she loved animals and was well known and liked for her sunny disposition. Bryant didn’t have Day’s star power or acting ability, but simply being a kind, loving person might have carried her much farther.
Eventually, Bryant’s granddaughter came out to her as being gay when she turned 21, another pie in the face if there ever was one.
Anita Bryant, ah yes I remember her well. Ugh. And a big thank you to Oprah for all of the grifters she made famous.
I honestly thought she'd died a long time ago, like years if not DECADES. Nevertheless, that pie-in-the-face video never gets old.
Good riddance to all the bad rubbish.
No. I ain't telling you who is on my wish list for the next nine months.
I'll bet a lot of those names are the same as the ones on a lot of our wish lists...
Hang on… Anita Bryant wanted the freedom to persecute “nail biters”??
So how did Ray die?
I asked that question and no one seems to know. And the family is not saying.
Soooooooooooo....let the wild speculative rumpus start!
My grandmother knew Anita Bryant (probably through Chi Omega; Grandma was a big national officer, but it could have been the DAR, the John Birch Society, or Northwestern University, where Grandma had been a Dean). In the late 1960s, before giving up on me completely, she sat me down for a serious talk.
Her point: If I could only make myself more like Anita Bryant, I might have a chance at a happy life. Bryant was "such a valued person." And so pretty! (I was an intolerably chubby pre-teen who did not meet the Dean's standards for appearance.)
Even then I knew it was both hopeless and absurd. I laughed, not the best choice with Grandma. Bryant was already making anti-gay noises and I had that adolescent radar for adult sanctimony. Grandma, most un-pleased, gave up on me and focused on my younger sisters. They laughed too, eventually.
Jeez. I remember way back in junior high, there was an English teacher and drama coach who was obviously gay, and who was universally beloved as a wonderful teacher and director. This was back in the 1960s! Nobody seemed to care, because he was great.
Clarence Darrow said "I have never killed a man, but I have read many obituaries with great satisfaction."
That said, the Pizzagate gunman strikes me as less culpable than Bryan or Ray, because he seems to have been delusional. I would much rather have seen Alex Jones meet a grisly end of some kind.
Back in the day (1979? 1980? JC was president) I heard a street comedian in Washington Square Park riff on Anita Bryant.
“There’s a street in Newark named after Anita Bryant, it’s called’Orange Avenue’. It shouldn’t be, because it goes both ways.”
Thanks for sharing
Most news reports seem to say that Welch was killed by police without mentioning that he had pointed a gun at an officer and not dropped the weapon as instructed. His death was the direct result of his threatening behavior. You do not fuck around with the police as he clearly found out.
There are a lot of trigger-happy police out there, but if the events were as described, I do not fault those officers one bit. In fact, I sympathize with them, because now they have to carry that to their graves.
Good riddance to all of that trash.
Ta, Robyn. We were told as children to say only good things about the dead. Welch, Bryant, and Ray are dead. GOOD.
Stop making mean comments, Wonks! I can't possibly upvote them all
Well that trifecta of delusional assholes won't be missed, and add to that the today is "PAB is Officially a Felon Day" as well as a Friday just brings a smile to my face.
They tried to pass the "Briggs' Amendment" to ban queer teachers in California, and defeating that ended up being an early success of the movement.
I remember that!