Jeb and Dash: A Diary of Gay Life, 1918-1945
by Jeb Alexander
On This Page
Description
"It occurred to me today with something of a shock how horrible it would be for this diary of mine to be pawed over and read unsympathetically after I am dead, by those incapable of understanding ... And then the thought of the one thing even more dreadful and terrible than that--for my diary never to be read by the one person who would or could understand. For I do want it to be read--there is no use concealing the fact--by somebody who is like me, who would understand. Jeb Alexander was a show more gay man who lived in Washington, D.C., during the first half of the twentieth century. From 1918, when he was nineteen years old, until the late 1950s, he chronicled his daily life engagingly and unsparingly, leaving behind a unique record of ordinary gay life before Stonewall, a history that has remained largely hidden until now. Jeb came of age as the century did, witnessing and recording political and social change from the position of insider as an editor for the U.S. Government and outsider as a gay man. Painfully shy, and frustrated in his ambition to be a novelist by writer's block, Jeb turned to his diary as a way of expressing himself as well as recording events, creating a full emotional self-portrait and unforgettable sketches of the men who made up his lively circle of friends. Jeb and Dash also details the joy and anguish of an extraordinary on-and-off love affair between Jeb and C.C. Dasham (Dash), whom he met in college and with whom he remained friends throughout his life. A rare and important historical document, a beautifully written memoir, a love story, an ode to old Washington, D.C., Jeb and Dash is a remarkable find and an enduring literary achievement."--Jacket. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
Read this book almost 30 years ago when it first came out. What was interesting to me then, a peak behind the curtains, hungry for any knowledge of my elders who went before me, and stunned how seemingly long ago the events took place. Now, I see the heartbreak, almost stalker-like qualities of Jeb, and monotony of modern life. Along with, the ability to make your own way in the world, choosing your family of friends, love of the arts. Sadly, somethings have not changed. The DC described in the book is full of racism, complaints that DC is not a state, and police brutality. One big thing that has changed since my first reading of the book, the internet. I enjoyed searching for locations and events mentioned in the book. Finding old show more postcards of the restaurants and apartment buildings, for that's all that is left, most have been torn down log ago. The location of the Krazy Kat Klub is in the same alley that The Green Lantern is in now. I'm pretty sure Jeb's friend "Max," is the artist Philip Fletcher Bell.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11479677/philip-fletcher-bell
https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-philip-flet...
https://outlet.historicimages.com/products/dfpy24079
https://www.shorpy.com/node/3453 show less
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11479677/philip-fletcher-bell
https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-philip-flet...
https://outlet.historicimages.com/products/dfpy24079
https://www.shorpy.com/node/3453 show less
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
1 Work 226 Members
All Editions
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1993
- People/Characters
- Jeb Alexander (alias of Carter Newman Bealer); C.C. "Dash" Dasham (alias of Isham W. Perkins)
- Important places
- Washington, D.C., USA
Classifications
- Genres
- LGBTQ+, Biography & Memoir, Nonfiction, Sexuality and Gender Studies, General Nonfiction, History
- DDC/MDS
- 305.389664092 — Society, Government, and Culture Social sciences, sociology & anthropology Social group - Age, Gender, Ethnicity People by gender or sex Specific groups of men Gay men
- LCC
- HQ75.8 .A74 .A3 — Social sciences The family. Marriage, Women and Sexuality The Family. Marriage. Women Sexual life Homosexuality. Lesbianism
Statistics
- Members
- 226
- Popularity
- 143,617
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (4.11)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 2
- ASINs
- 5
