Michael Callen
Encyclopedia
Michael Callen was a singer, songwriter
, composer
, author
, and AIDS
activist. He was a significant architect of the response to the AIDS crisis in the United States
.
First diagnosed with "Gay related immune deficiency" (GRID) in 1982, Callen quickly became a leader in the response to the epidemic. He was a founding member of the People With AIDS Self-Empowerment Movement among other organizations, and he testified before the President's Commission on AIDS and both houses of the United States Congress
.
Callen died of AIDS-related complications in Los Angeles
, California
, at the age of 38.
, which outlined the tenets of safe sex
, developed in collaboration with Richard Berkowitz
and Dr. Joseph Sonnabend
. In 1990, he wrote Surviving AIDS, which received an Honorable Mention from the American Medical Writers Association.
He was frequently seen on television talking about AIDS. Appearances included Nightline, Good Morning America
, 20/20, and The Phil Donahue Show
. He wrote for several newspapers and magazines, including the Village Voice, The New York Native, and Outweek; some of his articles are collected in Surviving and Thriving with AIDS, published by the People with AIDS Coalition in 1988.
Callen openly questioned the HIV
theory of AIDS and was especially critical of AZT
monotherapy when it was first introduced: "The HIV paradigm has produced nothing of value for my life and I actually believe that treatments based on the arrogant belief that HIV has proven to be the sole and sufficient cause of AIDS has hastened the deaths of many of my friends."
four-piece band called “Lowlife”, playing piano and keyboards, singing, yodeling
, and twirling a baton.
He was a founding member of the gay male a cappella
singing group The Flirtations
, with whom he recorded two albums. He also had a solo album, Purple Heart, which a review in The Advocate
called "the most remarkable gay independent release of the past decade." During the last year of his life, Callen recorded over 40 songs; Legacy, a 2-CD album of 29 of them, was posthumously released by Significant Other Records in 1996.
In partnership with Oscar winner Peter Allen
and Marsha Melamet, he wrote his most famous song, "Love Don't Need a Reason", which he sang frequently at gay pride
and AIDS-related events around the country.
In 1993 he appeared in the films Philadelphia
(as part of The Flirtations) and Zero Patience
(appearing in drag
as "Miss HIV", a singing virus).
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
activist. He was a significant architect of the response to the AIDS crisis in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
First diagnosed with "Gay related immune deficiency" (GRID) in 1982, Callen quickly became a leader in the response to the epidemic. He was a founding member of the People With AIDS Self-Empowerment Movement among other organizations, and he testified before the President's Commission on AIDS and both houses of the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
.
Callen died of AIDS-related complications in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, at the age of 38.
AIDS activist
In 1983, Callen co-authored the book How to Have Sex in an Epidemic: One ApproachHow to Have Sex in an Epidemic: One Approach
How to Have Sex in an Epidemic: One Approach is a book written by Richard Berkowitz and Michael Callen to advise gay men about how to avoid contracting the infecting agent which causes AIDS, which is now known to be HIV.-Historical significance:...
, which outlined the tenets of safe sex
Safe sex
Safe sex is sexual activity engaged in by people who have taken precautions to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS. It is also referred to as safer sex or protected sex, while unsafe or unprotected sex is sexual activity engaged in without precautions...
, developed in collaboration with Richard Berkowitz
Richard Berkowitz
Richard Berkowitz is a gay American author and activist best known as an early advocate of safe sex in response to the AIDS crisis among gay men in the 1980s.-Life and career:...
and Dr. Joseph Sonnabend
Joseph Sonnabend
Joseph Adolph Sonnabend, M.D. is a distinguished retired physician, scientist and AIDS researcher, notable for pioneering community-based research, the propagation of safe sex to prevent infection, and an early and unconventional multifactorial model of AIDS...
. In 1990, he wrote Surviving AIDS, which received an Honorable Mention from the American Medical Writers Association.
He was frequently seen on television talking about AIDS. Appearances included Nightline, Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
, 20/20, and The Phil Donahue Show
Phil Donahue
Phillip John "Phil" Donahue is an American media personality, writer, and film producer best known as the creator and host of The Phil Donahue Show. The television program, also known as Donahue, was the first to use a talk show format. The show had a 26-year run on U.S...
. He wrote for several newspapers and magazines, including the Village Voice, The New York Native, and Outweek; some of his articles are collected in Surviving and Thriving with AIDS, published by the People with AIDS Coalition in 1988.
Callen openly questioned the HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
theory of AIDS and was especially critical of AZT
Zidovudine
Zidovudine or azidothymidine is a nucleoside analog reverse-transcriptase inhibitor , a type of antiretroviral drug used for the treatment of HIV/AIDS. It is an analog of thymidine....
monotherapy when it was first introduced: "The HIV paradigm has produced nothing of value for my life and I actually believe that treatments based on the arrogant belief that HIV has proven to be the sole and sufficient cause of AIDS has hastened the deaths of many of my friends."
Performer
In the early 1980s, Callen was in a gay and lesbianLesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
four-piece band called “Lowlife”, playing piano and keyboards, singing, yodeling
Yodeling
Yodeling is a form of singing that involves singing an extended note which rapidly and repeatedly changes in pitch from the vocal or chest register to the falsetto/head register; making a high-low-high-low sound.The English word yodel is derived from a German word jodeln meaning "to...
, and twirling a baton.
He was a founding member of the gay male a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
singing group The Flirtations
The Flirtations (a cappella musical group)
The Flirtations were a pro-LGBT a cappella musical group active from 1988 to 1997. Their music provided an opportunity for both a celebration of gay culture and a call to arms in the battle against AIDS and homophobia...
, with whom he recorded two albums. He also had a solo album, Purple Heart, which a review in The Advocate
The Advocate
The Advocate is an American LGBT-interest magazine, printed monthly and available by subscription. The Advocate brand also includes a web site. Both magazine and web site have an editorial focus on news, politics, opinion, and arts and entertainment of interest to LGBT people...
called "the most remarkable gay independent release of the past decade." During the last year of his life, Callen recorded over 40 songs; Legacy, a 2-CD album of 29 of them, was posthumously released by Significant Other Records in 1996.
In partnership with Oscar winner Peter Allen
Peter Allen
Peter Allen was an Australian songwriter and entertainer. His songs were made popular by many recording artists, including Elkie Brooks, Melissa Manchester and Olivia Newton-John, with one, Arthur's Theme, winning an Academy Award in 1981...
and Marsha Melamet, he wrote his most famous song, "Love Don't Need a Reason", which he sang frequently at gay pride
Gay pride
LGBT pride or gay pride is the concept that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people should be proud of their sexual orientation and gender identity...
and AIDS-related events around the country.
In 1993 he appeared in the films Philadelphia
Philadelphia (film)
Philadelphia is a 1993 American drama film that was one of the first mainstream Hollywood films to acknowledge HIV/AIDS, homosexuality and homophobia. It was written by Ron Nyswaner and directed by Jonathan Demme. The film stars Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington...
(as part of The Flirtations) and Zero Patience
Zero Patience
Zero Patience is a 1993 Canadian musical film written and directed by John Greyson. The film examines and refutes the urban legend of the alleged introduction of HIV to North America by a single individual, Gaëtan Dugas...
(appearing in drag
Drag (clothing)
Drag is used for any clothing carrying symbolic significance but usually referring to the clothing associated with one gender role when worn by a person of another gender. The origin of the term "drag" is unknown, but it may have originated in Polari, a gay street argot in England in the early...
as "Miss HIV", a singing virus).
See also
- Callen-Lorde Community Health CenterCallen-Lorde Community Health CenterCallen-Lorde Community Health Center is a primary care center located at 356 West 18th Street in New York, NY. The center is dedicated to providing medical health care to the city's LGBT population without regard to ability to pay....
, an organization in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
named for Michael Callen and Audre LordeAudre LordeAudre Lorde was a Caribbean-American writer, poet and activist.-Life:...
. - ACRIAACRIAThe or ACRIA was founded in December 1991 to provide community based clinical drug trials for people living with AIDS. They also run the HIV Health Literacy Program . ACRIA can trace their history back to the founding of the Community Research Initiative by Michael Callen and Joseph Sonnabend....
- Started as Community Research Initiative, an organization co founded by Callen and Joseph Sonnabend.