Vice Versa (magazine)
Encyclopedia
Subtitled "America's Gayest Magazine", Vice Versa is the earliest known U.S. periodical published especially for lesbians, as well as the earliest extant example of the lesbian and gay press in that country.
The magazine was the project of Lisa Ben (an anagram
of "lesbian"), a secretary at RKO Studios in Los Angeles
. By her own account, Ben had "a lot of time to herself" at work and, starting in June of 1947, "twice each month typed out five carbons
and one original of Vice Versa. She recalled being told by her boss that he didn't care what she was typing, but he wanted her to "look busy" so people at the studio would think he was important.
She described the intention of the magazine being to create "a medium through which we may express our thoughts, our emotions, our opinions- as long as material was 'within the bounds of good taste'".
The nine issues of Vice Versa created by Lisa Ben "combined a unique editorial mix and a highly personal style" and opened up a forum for lesbians to communicate with each other via readers' letters, personal essays, short fiction and poetry. The first issue was 15 pages long; subsequent issues ranged from 9 to 20 pages.
In Unspeakable, his history of the gay and lesbian press in the United States, journalist and historian Rodger Streitmatter noted that Vice Versa "contained no bylines, no photographs, no advertisements, no masthead and neither the name or address of its editor... yet it set the agenda that has defined lesbian and gay journalism for 50 years." As examples of the 'defining qualities' of the magazine, Jim Kepner
, founder and curator of the International Gay and Lesbian Archives cites Vice Versa' s mix of editorials, short stories, poetry, book and film reviews and a letters column as setting "the pattern that hundreds [of gay and lesbian magazines] have followed".
The publication was free and Ben initially mailed three copies to friends and distributed the rest by hand, encouraging her readers to pass their copies along to friends rather than throwing them away. Ben believes that several dozen people read each copy. Although scrupulous about avoiding material that could be considered "dirty" or risqué, she stopped mailing copies after a friend advised her that she could be arrested for sending obscene material through the mail. Publications addressing homosexuality were automatically deemed obscene under the Comstock Act until 1958.
Ben eventually left her job at RKO and publication of the magazine ceased in 1948.
The editor expressed the hope that "perhaps Vice Versa might be the forerunner of better magazines dedicated to the Third sex, which, in some future time, might take their rightful place on the newsstands beside other publications, to be available openly and without restriction."
The magazine was the project of Lisa Ben (an anagram
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
of "lesbian"), a secretary at RKO Studios 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...
. By her own account, Ben had "a lot of time to herself" at work and, starting in June of 1947, "twice each month typed out five carbons
Carbon paper
Carbon paper is paper coated on one side with a layer of a loosely bound dry ink or pigmented coating, usually bound with wax. It is used for making one or more copies simultaneous with the creation of an original document...
and one original of Vice Versa. She recalled being told by her boss that he didn't care what she was typing, but he wanted her to "look busy" so people at the studio would think he was important.
She described the intention of the magazine being to create "a medium through which we may express our thoughts, our emotions, our opinions- as long as material was 'within the bounds of good taste'".
The nine issues of Vice Versa created by Lisa Ben "combined a unique editorial mix and a highly personal style" and opened up a forum for lesbians to communicate with each other via readers' letters, personal essays, short fiction and poetry. The first issue was 15 pages long; subsequent issues ranged from 9 to 20 pages.
In Unspeakable, his history of the gay and lesbian press in the United States, journalist and historian Rodger Streitmatter noted that Vice Versa "contained no bylines, no photographs, no advertisements, no masthead and neither the name or address of its editor... yet it set the agenda that has defined lesbian and gay journalism for 50 years." As examples of the 'defining qualities' of the magazine, Jim Kepner
Jim Kepner
James Lynn 'Jim' Kepner, Jr. was a journalist, author, historian, archivist and leader in the gay rights movement. His work was intertwined with One, Inc...
, founder and curator of the International Gay and Lesbian Archives cites Vice Versa
The publication was free and Ben initially mailed three copies to friends and distributed the rest by hand, encouraging her readers to pass their copies along to friends rather than throwing them away. Ben believes that several dozen people read each copy. Although scrupulous about avoiding material that could be considered "dirty" or risqué, she stopped mailing copies after a friend advised her that she could be arrested for sending obscene material through the mail. Publications addressing homosexuality were automatically deemed obscene under the Comstock Act until 1958.
Ben eventually left her job at RKO and publication of the magazine ceased in 1948.
The editor expressed the hope that "perhaps Vice Versa might be the forerunner of better magazines dedicated to the Third sex, which, in some future time, might take their rightful place on the newsstands beside other publications, to be available openly and without restriction."
See also
- Lesbian literatureLesbian literatureThis is a list of books portraying sexual relations between female characters, who may include lesbians, bisexuals and WSWs.-Classic fiction and drama:*The Bachelor Girl – Victor Margueritte –...
- List of lesbian periodicals
- Society for Human Rights, publisher of Friendship and Freedom, the earliest known gay publication in the United States (although no copies are known to survive)