A Usable Past

Ahh, Harold and Maude.  Best film ever. And full of smokin’ hot styles, too (and not just from Sunshine Doré).  So throw on some Cat Stevens, pour something organic to drink, and check out this post from Enjoy Your Style which analyzes the couture of various characters in Hal Ashby’s classic.

From “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis,” played by Bob Denver.

One of my favorite shows I grew up watching on Nick at Night, “Dobie Gillis” was my introduction to beatniks.  See also Pia Zadora in Hairspray and the Cool Cat from Looney Tunes.

h/t Enjoy Your Style.

Can R.J. Reynolds sell tampons?

From Slate.

Wow. I mean, seriously. Wow. How was this acceptable in the 1980s on a television show with children? He even attempts to bribe one of the girls with winning the Canadian game show Just Like Mom if she allows him to kiss her. When she still refuses him, he tells her, “Well, I guess you can’t win the show then, if I don’t get a hug and a kiss.” No, seriously. Props to her (I assume) mother for being the only adult on the show to call out his creepy perversion for what it is – she calls him a “dirty old man.” Disturbing much?

From Godless Girl.

Miss you, G.

H/T bitches get shit done.

It’s so refreshing to see filmmakers embracing digital media as a way to explore and share information on topics relating to marginalized groups. Though the digital format cannot reach all marginalized communities (most notably those without financial or time access to the internet), it is becoming more frequently used by activists to explain the complexities of gender and sexuality to a wider audience outside of academic, activist, and queer communities.

This is a very accessible video breaking down gender roles and gender identity produced by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center of New York.  Props for the inclusion of multiple trans people of color!  If you’re unfamiliar with issues dealing with gender and sexuality, such as the differences between gender identity and sexual orientation, what gender roles are, or the definition of “genderqueer,” check this out.

H/T to TransGriot.

He probably should have learned by attempt 3.

From DCist.