Straight men who pretended to be gay to avoid the military.
Of course ignorant heterosexuals in the 1970's thought dressing in women's clothes was "gay".
shareUm, he dressed in women's clothes, not because he was Gay, but because he was trying to get out of the Army on a Section 8.. I own up to Season 4 of M*A*S*H on DVD.. The Best seasons were with Trapper John and Henry Blake
sharePretending to be gay was a popular tactic to try and get a section 8.
shareHe never came on to anyone and everyone pretty much was in on the gag and knew he was straight, but the U.S Army didn't.. He even had someone visit in one episode to determine if he was a section 8 and the guy stated all he had to do was sign the dotted line and he was a free man, BUT, he'd have to refer to himself as a she for the rest of his life and he said No.. It was Dr. Sidney Freeman who interviewed him and concluded this
shareI'm not sure what you're quibbling about. Section 8* lumps it all together. And gays, lesbians and bisexuals were prohibited from joining the military during the Korean War and the next 50 years.
In the 70's when MASH was on tv most straights thought gay men dressed up in women's clothes.
And add to the confusion, if Klinger was pretending to be a transvestite, those are straight men who dress in women's clothes as a sexual fetish. They don't want to be women. They sniff women's panties.
*Section 8 was a category of discharge from the United States military, used for a service member judged mentally unfit for service. Section 8 was also often given to cross-dressers, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.share
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_8_(military)
"In the 70's when MASH was on tv most straights thought gay men dressed up in women's clothes."
That's absolute nonsense. In the 1970s straight people knew that gay men were sexually attracted to other men. They did not think "gay" meant men dressing as women. Transvestism was regarded as an oddball activity that few men, gay or straight, participated in.
NO...IN THE 70S...PEOPLE JUST THOUGHT IT WAS ALL THE SAME...STRAIGHT OR THE OTHER.
shareMy point is there has always been a stereotype that gay men are effeminate and often dress in women clothes, in addition to fucking other men.
In the 70s most people in the mainstream weren't as enlightened as you seem to think they were.
shareHow old are you?
shareOld enough to remember when we gay men couldn't join the military.
shareBut you don't remember that people in the 70s didn't equate gayness with men dressing in women's clothes, which is transvestites. If you are too young that's cool.
shareNo, I'm gay and I grew up in the 70's. When I was 10 years old I asked my older sister "what's a homosexual?" because I suspected I was one. She told me it was a man who dresses in women's clothes. Maybe that's where my angst over this comes from. It was a common misconception among straight people.
shareReally? Nowadays, it seems mostly black people get section 8.
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