Time Line 1976

Time Line 1976 (Time Line 1975) -- (Main Index) -- (Time Line 1977)

Books Published

• The History of Sexuality, Volume I: An Introduction, by Michel Foucault.
• Publication of RFM's second Collection of SM short fiction by himself and other authors.
• Two Bulls in a Male Harem by Robert Fraum. This is the first in a trilogy of very heavy SM erotic novels.
• Mannespielen, a portfolio of art by Rex, followed by Icons in 1977 and the Rex calendars, published by The Trading Post, then the Mineshaft, in later years.
• Gay American History, Lesbians and Gay Men in the USA by Jonathan Ned Katz, Revised edition 1992.
• Drummer #5 includes the first cartoon strip by British artist Bill Ward. The strip is titled "King"
• Drummer #5 includes the first installment of "Babysitter" by Phil Andros, with art by Chuck Arnette.
• Latrec in Leather, a collection of drawings by Chuck Arnette, is advertised in Drummer #5.

Clubs and groupos formed

Formation of Adventurers/Suncoast Florida; American Leathermen MC of Houston; Companion MC, Philadelphia; The Connecticut Copperheads; The Corn Haulers, Des Moines; Dallas MC; East Anglia Bikers, UK; Falcons MC, Rhode Island; FFA-CAC, DC; Glass City Champions (originally International Roadmasters of Toledo); Griffin Motor Club, Canberra, Australia; Jackaroos, Victoria, Australia; Knights of Omaha; MSC Finland; MSC Groningen, Netherlands; New York Coordinating Committee, Peregrine MC, Atlanta; 76ers, San Bernadino, CA; South Pacific Rangers, SF; Silver Barons MC, Reno; The Spirits of St. Louis; SLC Stuttgart; SLM Norway; The Tarnsmen, Baltimore; Trojans MSC, Toronto; and Valley Knights MC, Sacramento.

Bar openings include

• Badlands, NYC; and The Boston Eagle.
• The NY Eagle begins Sunday brunch and Tea Dance.
• The Slot, a very leather "hotel" sex club, opens on Folsom near 6th in San Francisco.
• And a sex club called "The Hotel" opens in San Francisco, in 1979 it changes it's name to the Handball Express.[R]

Films released

The Gage Brother's film Kansas City Trucking Co. starring Fred Halsted and Richard Locke, is released.

Michael Zen's film "Falconhead" is released.

1976

Nick O'Demus, owner of A Taste Of Leather shop upstairs at FeBe's, opens The Trading Post at 960 Folsom in San Francisco [R]

1976, Jan 1

At a New Year's Eve party at the Second City MC clubhouse in Chicago, Andrew Charles and Tony DeBlase, who had sighted each other in the last few seconds of 1975, and who had been lip locked through the transition, meet and begin what is, as of this writing, a 23+ year partnership.

1976, Jan.

Full Moon Night at Larry's, Los Angeles' popular leather bar, becomes so crowded it is changed to admission by invitation (and reservation) only.

1976, Feb.

In Detroit, a jury awards $200,000 to a man who claimed that an auto accident, in which his car was rear ended, turned him into a homosexual. [TOL]

1976, March

Eons Gallery, Los Angeles' erotic art gallery has its first show photographs by Robert Opel.

1976, March 4

Man Friday, a Broadway musical in which Friday offers his body to Robinson Caruso, flops.

1976, March 8

After long court battles in Seattle the Washington State Police drop bars against hiring homosexuals.

1976, April 10

Los Angeles Police Department raids a Slave Auction being held at the Mark IV baths as a fundraiser sponsored by Drummer magazine. A major case of police overkill as the resulting legal actions show.

1976, April 13

San Francisco Police Chief Charles Gain urges homosexuals on his force to come out of the closet and show that gays can be good cops.

1976, June

SM Dungeon Devices, an illustrated catalog of SM toys is published by The Trading Post in San Francisco.

1976, July

Robert Opel covers a Leather Wedding at Griff's, a popular Los Angeles leather bar, in Drummer #7.

1976, July

"Famous Sadists in History" series starts in Drummer #7.

1976, July

Publication of the first issue of Package, Fred Halsted's "Journal of Men Fact & Opinion". Lasts 6 issues, through Jan 1977.

1976, July

Three gay men in Des Moines restaurant are charged with disturbing the peace after they winked at two heterosexual men who claimed the wink made them nauseated. [TOL]

1976, Sept

A California Court of Appeals orders two men who had been arrested on lewd conduct charges for kissing in public to register with the state as sex offenders.[TOL]

1976, Sept.

Chicago Hellfire Club celebrates its 5th anniversary by holding a weekend long event featuring a Saturday night SM party at a remote campground. Called Inferno 5, this is first of what are to become the most infamous and exclusive male SM play events.

1976, Sept.

The Gold Coast, Chicago's premier leather bar, celebrates it's 15th anniversary with a week long party detailed in Drummer #9.

1976, Sept.

Drummer #8 features a photo spread of the gay leather world's best known tattoo artist, Cliff Raven, painting tattoos on Val Martin.

1976, Sept.

Alan Eagles takes over the "Movie Mayhem" series in Drummer #8 and the series takes flight.

1976, Sept.

"Many Happy Returns" by Phil Andros, illustrated by Chuck Arnette, is published in Drummer #8.

1976, Sept.

Blueboy magazine, a Miami based gay nude glossy, publishes an SM issue -- it is a fiasco.

1976, Oct.

The Cycle Sluts are featured in Drummer #9, including a cover photo of one of the leather gender benders. Publisher John Embry, many years later, blames this photo being responsible for one of the worst selling issues in the magazine's history.

1976, Oct.

Drummer #9 includes the first "Erotic Dots", in which the reader connects the numbered dots to reveal an, often otherwise unprintable, drawing. This, as most but not all of the "Erotic Dots", is by the artist Sean.

1976, Oct.

Drummer #9 includes the first part of the serial "The Great SM Murder Mystery" by John Rowberry & Rue Dyllon. The series stops, uncompleted, in Drummer #11. This is the first time Rowberry's name appears in Drummer, the magazine he will serve and influence over many coming years.

1976, Oct. 26

The Mineshaft in New York City opens. This after-hours club allowed and encouraged virtually all forms of sexual activity among its hot male patrons. It was a mecca for leather/SM types in the Eastern US and Canada. Closed in Nov. 1985.

1976, Nov.

The cover of Drummer #10 spotlights a new artist, REX, using a drawing he did for the Trading Post poster. But the masthead does not yet include his name.

1976 Nov.?

Drummer #10 features the artist Etienne, with a centerfold and several additional pages of his artwork.

1976, Dec.?

Drummer #11 spotlights the first Bill Ward cartoon strip under the title "DRUM".

1976, Dec. 1

Willard Eugene Allen is released from a Florida mental hospital after being incarcerated for 26 years for having sex with another man. Although the statute under which he had been arrested had been repealed almost 20 years earlier, state authorities had ignored doctor's suggestions that he be released. [TOL]

(Time Line 1975) -- (Time Line Index) -- (Time Line 1977)
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