The Rest of It: Hustlers, Cocaine, Depression, and Then Some, 1976–1988

Martin Duberman

Published by Duke University Press 2018

The Rest of It

Hustlers, Cocaine, Depression, and Then Some, 1976–1988

Martin Duberman

https://doi.org/10.1515/9780822371861

Overview
Contents

About this book

The Rest of It is the untold and revealing story of how Martin Duberman—a major historian and a founding figure in the history of gay and lesbian studies—managed to survive and be productive during a difficult twelve year period in which he was beset by drug addiction, health problems, and personal loss.

Author / Editor information

Martin Duberman is Distinguished Professor of History, Emeritus, at City University of New York, where he founded and directed the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies. He is the author of numerous histories, biographies, memoirs, essays, plays, and novels, which include Cures: A Gay Man's Odyssey; Paul Robeson; Stonewall; Midlife Queer: Autobiography of a Decade, 1971–1981; Black Mountain: An Exploration in Community; The Worlds of Lincoln Kirstein; Jews/Queers/Germans; and more than a dozen others. His biography of Charles Francis Adams won the Bancroft Prize, and his coedited anthology Hidden from History: Reclaiming the Gay and Lesbian Past won two Lambda Literary Awards. He won a third Lambda Award for Hold Tight Gently: Michael Callen, Essex Hemphill, and the Battlefield of AIDS. Duberman received the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Historical Association, as well as two honorary degrees: Doctor of Humane Letters from Amherst College, and Doctor of Letters from Columbia University. He was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Duberman lives in New York City.

Reviews

"Challenging gay invisibility and confronting anti-gay bigotry among the intelligentsia are key battlefronts on which Marty fought early, bravely and often. The passion of his arguments and efforts is everywhere in the testimony of The Rest of Us."

-- Lawrence D. Mass Medium

"Sharp and engaging, with tasteful anecdotes that anchor Duberman not in a historical lineage but firmly within his own personal journey. This highly intelligent book is not just another contribution to gay history; it is also an important pillar in the author's literary biography. A fascinating look into a significant period in the life of a much-loved literary figure."

-- Kirkus Reviews

"We queers are better off, better informed and better empowered, for Duberman’s astute, engaged lifetime of work. We are also better off for reading The Rest of It, for understanding the beautifully written history of one man, yes, but in effect, a part of the history of us all."

-- D. Gilson Lambda Literary Review

"The Rest of It is not a revisionist memoir or the roars of a gay literary lion in winter. It is instead an intimate, revealing, and vibrant account of a writer’s personal struggles with Duberman in top form. Duberman’s account of this pivotal time in GLBTQ history is as sharp as ever...."

-- Lew J. Whittington New York Journal of Books

"Duberman is one of America's great intellectuals; all readers can enjoy this well-rounded self-portrait of a tumultuous decade in the life of an important thinker."

-- David Azzolina Library Journal

"The Rest of It, a memoir of the years 1976 to 1988, confirms Duberman’s status as one of our most brilliant and essential memoirists. This is clearly a skilled, dedicated historian’s memoir, as it minutely details the writer’s personal life while also grounding us in the political and social turmoil of the time. . . . The Rest of It will engage and enrich readers with its brutally honest examination of one man’s life lived fully. It deserves a place on your bookshelf."

-- Hank Trout A&U Magazine

"Duberman's emotionally raw and keenly observant memoir illuminates both his turbulent life and the years when gay publishing began to flower just as AIDS started to devastate its landscape."

-- Kevin Howell Shelf Awareness

"Martin Duberman has been a touchstone for a generation of gay men, and, once again, he offers up his life experiences to help us better understand our own. The Rest of It is a lively book; it forces readers to engage with the difficult, often contentious personality of a brilliantly accomplished gay man wrestling with his demons."

-- Daniel A. Burr Gay & Lesbian Review

"Filled with tidbits of gossip with appearances by luminaries of the era like Gore Vidal and Norman Mailer, The Rest Of Us is a brutally honest examination of a painful period in the writer’s life and career."

-- The Advocate

“[I] highly recommend this book. It was a pleasure to read, and I learned a great deal about Duberman and the world he inhabited. The book is at times witty, sad, happy, and darkly funny. We urge our students to write history ‘warts and all,’ and Duberman has turned that advice upon himself and produced a book that I am glad to have read.”

-- Jerry Watkins Journal of the History of Sexuality

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
PREFACE Publicly Available Download PDF	xi
1 My Mother’s Death Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2 Attempted Therapies Theater, LSD, Bioenergetics Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	9
3 A New Kind of History Gay Scholarship Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	15
4 Reading My Circadian Chart Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	28
5 Hustlers Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	39
6 A Heart Attack Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	48
7 The Reagan Years Begin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	55
8 The New York Civil Liberties Union and the Gay Movement Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	61
9 Writing the Paul Robeson Biography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	85
10 New York Native Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	98
11 CUNY, Christopher Lasch, and Eugene Genovese Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	104
12 The Onset of AIDS Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	115
13 Completing Robeson Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	125
14 The Salmagundi Controversy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	135
15 Paul Robeson Jr. Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	144
16 Depression Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	148
17 Hospitalization Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	163
18 Getting Clean: AA and CA Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	171
19 East Germany and After Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	181
20 The Theater Again Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	190
21 Aftermaths: 1985–1988 Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	197
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	223
INDEX Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	225

Language: English
Publisher: Duke University Press
Audience: General/trade;
Pages
- Main content: 256

eBook

Published: February 22, 2018
ISBN: 9780822371861