Close Quarters: A Hint of Homosexuality?

by Bruce Joffe

As in real life, the advertising world has created its own domestic dramas that communicate there’s a lot more to their same-sex relationships than mere pleasantries and platonic friendships. A number of print ads from the early 1900s and on leave little doubt that something special, and probably not platonic, is going on between the men or women depicted in these ads. They’re obviously sharing close quarters. Very close quarters … and beds. Did they just spend a night together? Are they live-in lovers? Could they be “domestic partners,” sharing everything from food and the rent to sexual attachments and emotional commitments?

31 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2024