The First Time I Met Frank O'Hara: Reading Gay American Writers

by Rick Whitaker

Those who first met Rick Whitaker through his unrepentant memoir know that he was not a typical prostitute. This "Wittgenstein- and Freud-quoting" hustler is at core a thinker—and a voracious reader, one who has written book reviews for The New York Times and The Washington Post. In The First Time I Met Frank O’Hara, Whitaker discusses the books that have altered his perception and influenced the way he conducts his life. Although not all of Whitaker's favorite books are written by homosexuals, many — all included here — are. Linked essays on gay writers include Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Hart Crane, Gertrude Stein, Frank O'Hara, and David Wojnarowicz . These sexual outsiders share what Whitaker calls a “gay sensibility”: they describe without describing, show while hiding, and sing while keeping silent. Black-and-white photographs are also featured.

Genres: Nonfiction

208 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2003

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rick Whitaker is generous and warm in his appraisals of authors and remarkably deft of insight and, of course, deep into literary history. It's grand to know our ancestors are finally allowed to be out and about as queer and so talented. So it's not simply the luminous Frank O'Hara who is "eulogized" as I blindly assumed before reading. Tho he shines.

[Gail Kennon · Rating 2 out of 5]

didn't really get his premise..and found little to think about.