New York Hustlers PB: Masculinity and Sex in Modern America

This important new book, which focuses on the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, but which looks back to the earlier decades of the century and has a conclusion dealing with the 1970s to 1990s, maps the world of those known as 'trade' - ostensibly straight men who would engage in homosexual sex - and hustlers - those who were paid for it. It was a milieu that was central to the sexual histories of several generations of twentieth-century American men and also influenced American literary and visual culture; the 'trade aesthetic' informed the work of a variety of artists, filmmakers, and writers. This sexual culture, though compelling in itself, also allows us to explore some key aspects of modern sexual history.

This pioneering work, which draws on a wide range of visual and literary sources, including previously unpublished material from the Kinsey archives, will appeal to a wide range of readers, especially those interested in the histories of sex, the city, masculinity, and American culture.

Author: Barry Reay
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Published: 08/01/2010
Pages: 296
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.40w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9780719080081

Review Citation(s):
Choice 06/01/2011

About the Author

Barry Reay is Professor of History at the University of Auckland, New Zealand