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What do gay porn star Al Parker, freestyle singer Shannon, movie star Betty Hutton, “Boom Boom Boom, Let’s Go Back to My Room” and me as Tarzan all have in common?
Guerneville. Yep, let me explain how Northern California’s gay Russian River area has been so impactful on my life.
I was 25 in 1990 and went to Guerneville with friends for the 4th of July weekend, which is something I did annually for quite a few years. That particular weekend in 1990 was the beginning of Independence Week which included things like men's jello wrestling, jazz cabaret and pop singer performances and Mr Russian River contest. As per usual, I was there primarily to dance.
My memories of that weekend are a bit spotty and that is most likely due to my fondness of acid and marijuana at that time. I have clear flashback bits similar to watching a 16 mm film on projector where a few frames have been spliced out - and here's what I remember.
AL PARKER
It was late afternoon or early evening, probably for a tea dance, when I saw Al Parker. He was sitting alone at a table near the window, in the back, away from the Dance Floor and main area. He was alone. My interaction with him was brief and went something along the lines of "Aren't you, Al Parker? My name is Bobby." What stands out mostly in my memory is that he seemed a bit sad with baleful eyes. I don't think that he wanted to be bothered, especially by an ebullient young spaz like me. Of course I had seen a few of his movies, but he wasn't a favorite performer of mine and he had segued into some fetish videos that were definitely not in my wheelhouse. Once I quickly processed that he wanted to be alone, I let him be and buzzed away. Seeing pornstars in the San Francisco area around that time was totally normal for me. I really don't recall why I didn't ask for him to sign something. Perhaps I just didn't want to bother him, just didn't care enough, or was unsatisfied with the only autograph material option of a cocktail napkin. (The latter seems most likely, now that I think about it.) He passed away from AIDS just a couple years later. It wasn't until later, as a much older adult, that I began to appreciate his role in being a pioneer in gay porn. The Advocate Men Magazine from 1987 that you see here is a highly sought after collectible, as is any original copy of his biography, "Clone". I'm lucky to have this rare handwritten note from him on Surge Studios letterhead. Let's not even wonder about the stain on the right hand side of the letter. Al Parker was a handsome man, a gay prototype and icon. It was providence that I was able to interact with him even for just a tiny bit, for which I am grateful.
As I searched for any PG footage of Al Parker, I had to laugh coming across my friend and fellow-collector Matthew Rettenmund being responsible for posting this clip of Al. Thank you, Mattthew! www.boyculture.om
SHANNON
Shannon was five or six years past her heyday and hit records, but I was definitely looking forward to seeing her perform because of course I loved her songs "Let The Music Play" and "Give Me Tonight." The lighting seemed to be mostly yellow, the dance floor in front of the slightly elevated stage was jam-packed and I'm pretty sure I was high on SOMEthing.
Here's where the spliced film reel is a little bit glitchy. I can't remember whether I got her autograph that night, after the show, or if I got it the next day seeing her still at the resort. Since her inscription says “Get well for me and all of us”, I am completely baffled. I don’t even remember being sick or what that was about. Unless it was definitely the next day and I was experiencing a hangover or serotonin drop. I've seen Shannon perform a few times since then at Freestyle Festivals. She is usually one of the very early opening acts, "sings" only the two hit songs, often wears big sunglasses and has one or two shirtless boy dancers. On and off quicker than you can pee or get a drink.
P.S. I love her album cover for "Love Goes All the Way". Even though it didn't have any hits on it, the artistic female bodybuilding component is cool.
Here's a video of Shannon performing on a European television show at the height of her fame:
Jo-Carol (aka JoLo), Paul Lekakis and Vicki Shepard all performed that weekend also. I didn't see them perform but I do have autographs of all of them in my collection.
PAUL LEKAKIS
A great 8x10 of Paul Lekaki in the prime of his male beauty during the time of his big hit "Boom Boom Boom, Let's Go Back to My Room". He dated an actor/dancer friend of mine, who was also a great male beauty in the early 90s. Both still good looking men, and back in the day, I'm certain they turned many heads when walking together ... each displaying their top specimen and opposite, but complimentary, status of a fine blonde all American and raven haired Italian with flashing dark eyes. Opposites attract, yet magnets repel.
Paul was a one-hit wonder and his life was super troubled in the '90s - HIV, prostitution, drugs, etc. But he has bounced back from the brink and seems to be doing well and sometimes active on social media. I'm glad that he is a strong survivor. Here's a special nugget- a Stock Aitken Waterman song that Paul performed for the soundtrack of a movie called "The Fruit Machine". Yep, FRUIT MACHINE.. And just TRY finding this on vinyl!
VICKI SHEPARD
I had no idea who the eff Vicki Shepard was when I saw her on the program for the weekend, but it turns out that I do have some of her records in my collection and shown here is an autographed 12" of hers - I have a couple of them.. Collectors. Sometimes we don't even know what we have. Now that I know who she has, I DO remember her songs ... there was this ear-worm, which has recently been added to my playlist.
And also I forgot about her disco version of "Somewhere" - here's a rare live performance from back in the day
JO-CAROL
JoCarol aka JoLo were part of the San Francisco gay music scene and recorded for Megatone Records. Often she/they were performing in the clubs. It was a ritual that the last dance in the early '80s was not Donna Summer it was this song by JoLo. There IS an "official video" on YouTube from 1984, but just listening is better.
BETTY HUTTON
Okay, so how does Betty Hutton get in this mix? It was from reading a book when I was a teenager called “The Decline and Fall of the Love Goddesses” by author Patrick Agan that I even discovered who Betty Hutton was. Another book said that Betty was working as a hostess at the Hexagon House... which I knew was near the Woods and Fifes in Russian River. I knew this because my family often went to Russian River for vacations when I was a kid. So there I was at 15 or so walking up to find the hexagon house in the middle of the day to ask if Betty Hutton was there to sign an autograph. Little did I know that she hadn't been working there in quite a while, or that in the future I would be walking that very same road, under the influence, and on my way to a gay dance club in/near the same spot where Annie Oakley had been a hostess. Come to think of it, I can't remember exactly why we stopped going to Russian River as a family for vacations, but I do remember the male crowd at the resorts was just getting interesting for ME when we stopped. Huh.
There was a posting on Facebook from 2020 where the poster says "Do you recall ... when Betty Hutton was working as a hostess at the Hexagon House?" It's been taken down, but at least I knew I wasn't crazy.
Betty Hutton is a priceless treasure! She is a sparkling, ebullient, effervescent, ball of energy overflowing with good nature and cuteness. Stork Club, Miracle of Morgan's Creek, The Perils of Pauline and of course Annie Get Your Gun- having replaced Judy Garland- and her more serious turn as the trapeze artist in The Greatest Show on Earth. I had been looking for her for so long when finally one of the addresses I tried struck gold and I got all of these pictures that were inscribed to Bobby back in the mail. I was so overjoyed. And this was BEFORE I even saw any of her films!
My propensity to write to celebrities simply because of finding great photographs or reading a dramatic story about them and then later in my life realizing that they were a big star of the golden age of Hollywood is just a result of being at the right place at the right time. With gay eyes.
I recommend Betty Hutton and just about anything. Of special note is her over-the-top performance as a vengeful saloon singer in "Gunsmoke". You can literally see Amanda Blake rolling her eyes, although it was supposed to be in character, it is very apropos of anybody's reaction to Betty Hutton's histrionics and overacting being completely out of place (but oddly entertaining) in a 1960's Western tv show.
Here is a great glimpse of her bubbly personality performing one of her hit songs live - watch how her personality kicks into high gear around the 45 second point
She is also charming and endearing when she was interviewed by Bob Osborne on TCM. This is such a touching and true interview. It's not allowed to be embedded but you can find it on YouTube and it's really worth a watch.
All of the autographs that you see here inscribed to me were received through the mail. Others were purchased in collections. The big blue signature of Betty's is on the back of a postcard from Providence Rhode Island with a postmark of 1991 - I believe she had worked at a rectory with priests there.
Of special note is the typed letter signed to a publicist I believe, that contains personal content and the picture of her daughters. Apparently the daughters were not close to her at the end of her life and did not go to Betty's funeral.
What is it about so many famous females that alienates their blood families and pulls in gay legions to be their family when the light has dimmed and the money is low???
Loving tribute www.bettyhuttonestate.com
MARK VIEIRA
Mark Alan Vieira is a respected Golden Age of Hollywood biographer, researcher, historian and photographer. He NEVER skimps on finding and writing/telling the unvarnished truth about his subjects and his photo books are of the highest quality. His photography skills are unparalleled and the newest high quality prints that he has of Hollywood legends are astounding. Please check out his work and his social media - if you love Classic Hollywood like Mark does, you will be nothing but impressed by ALL of his output. You'll see from the photos that i have many of his books in my collection The Joan Crawford cover on "George Hurrell's Hollywood" is GORGEOUS!
So how does he fit in with my Guerneville story?
According to his log entry - he met me at Fern Grove on. July 3, 1986. I was 21 years old, lying in the sun by the pool when Mark came up to me and said "Languor becomes you". He was quoting David Noh from 1974 who was quoting Harold Huber in the Mae West movie "Klondike Annie" I was trying to figure out what languor meant.
Very quickly after this first meeting, Mark V. did a photo shoot with me. It was my first time being in front of a professional camera, I was nervous and insecure, not knowing what to do or how to pose. It's a testament to Mark's skill that he made me comfortable enough in my own skin, and some of those pictures came out as true art pieces. You'll see the one of me and my reflection in the mirror is from that first shoot and it's one of my favorites.
Mark and I have had many different adventures since 1986 - including a cross-country trip to photograph golfers in some real small bumfuck towns (at least as I recall), a visit to the gay club Pulse where the mass killing of almost 50 people happened years later, several screenings of rare vintage prints of old movies, and visits to the homes of Hedy Lamarr, Debra Paget, Jennifer Jones and Karen Morley. Karen invited us in after saying "Do something useful and bring in the newspaper." Mark V. and i have a long history.
At 49, as I immersed myself in the gym, combining the results with my social media presence felt like an obvious next move. The natural progression was to showcase my new gains by recreating classic Hollywood beefcake poses.
Naturally, Mark Vieira was my photographer of choice as my ideas and poses were right in his wheelhouse. We did portrait sessions on April 8, 2016 and June 11 and 12, 2017. Between my gym work (and maybe a bit of baby oil) along with Mark's lighting and photography skills, he was able to create some marvelous photos of me as Tarzan, John Payne in "Kid Nightingale", Wolverine, Johnny Weissmuller upper body shots, Rocky, Gladiator and more. His work is supreme and I'm indebted to this man for catching me in my best light. And for always making me laugh, as he sighs. Giggle giggle.
Appealing to his sense of humor and summing up with the truth: "A jubilant, humble, light-hearted man of great faith and optimism; Mark is one of the most remarkable and unique people I have ever been blessed to know."
As the saying goes: "You can't make new old friends" but thanks to Mark, he has made THIS old friend look "new" on occasion. Eternal gratitude to my friend Mark Vieira. Languor, indeed!
"I will NOT be ignored" is greatly adored"
