Arthur Bell (journalist)

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Arthur Bell
Born(1939-11-06)November 6, 1939
DiedJune 2, 1984(1984-06-02) (aged 44)
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Journalist, activist, author

Arthur Bell (November 6, 1939 – June 2, 1984)[1] was an American journalist, author and LGBT rights activist.

Early life

Bell was born in Brooklyn to Samuel Bell, a manufacturer of children's clothing, and, Claire Bodan Bell, a designer.[2] When Bell was in junior high school the family moved to Montreal.[2] Bell returned to New York City in 1960 and found a job writing jacket copy for children's books.[2] He soon became director of publicity for children's books at Viking Press, later leaving Viking Press to work at Random House.[2] An early member of the Gay Liberation Front and a founding member of the Gay Activists Alliance in New York City, wrote two books.[2] Dancing the Gay Lib Blues was published in 1971 and he published Kings Don't Mean a Thing in 1978.[2]

Journalism

Bell wrote his first piece for the

Gay Liberation movement. He became a regular columnist in 1976 with his column "Bell Tells".[3] He also worked for a time for The Emerald City on Channel J.[4]

After

second-degree murder and served almost a quarter-century in prison.[6]

In connection with the case, Bell wrote a series of columns about a string of unsolved murders of gay men; these columns, along with the novel Cruising by Gerald Walker, were the inspiration behind the William Friedkin film Cruising.[7] Bell wrote additional columns condemning Friedkin and Cruising after reading a leaked early screenplay, deploring what he viewed as its negative depiction of gay people and claiming that it would inspire violence against homosexuals.[8] At Bell's urging, gay activists disrupted the filming of Cruising and demonstrated at theatres where the film was playing.

Personal life

Bell met author Arthur Evans, at the time a film distributor, and the two entered into a relationship in 1964.[2] They parted on bad terms in 1971, and Bell included an unflattering portrait of Evans in his book Dancing the Gay Lib Blues. The two reconstructed their friendship and Bell dedicated his second book Kings Don't Mean a Thing to Evans.

Death

Bell died June 2, 1984, at the age of 44 from complications related to diabetes.[3] His last conversations were preserved by publisher Charles Ortleb of the New York Native.

Legacy

Playwright Doric Wilson based a character in his play The West Street Gang on Bell.[9]

Notes

  1. ^ Eagan, from Bronski, p. 45, 48.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "archives.nypl.org -- Arthur Bell papers". archives.nypl.org. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Arthur Bell, 51, a Columnist, Homosexual Rights Activist". The New York Times. June 4, 1984. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  4. ^ Humm, Andy (January 22, 2014). "Gene Stavis, Gay TV Pioneer, Dies at 70 – Gay City News". Gay City News. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  5. ^ Bell, Arthur (October 31, 1977). "A Talk on the Wild Side". The Village Voice. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  6. ^ Miller, Matt (October 25, 2018). "Searching For the Truth About the Actual Murderer in The Exorcist". Esquire. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  7. ^ Simon, Alex (September 2007). "Cruising with Billy" (PDF). Venice magazine. pp. 68–71. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 15, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
  8. ^ Williams, p. 135.
  9. ^ Nelson, p. 447.

References

Further reading

Archival Resources
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