Gay Mafia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Gay Mafia or Velvet Mafia is a term for a supposed group of powerful gay people, supposedly headed by David Geffen, who use their influence to further their own goals and those of other gays, while excluding or actively working against non-gay people.[1] It has been described as a conspiracy theory similar to that which supposed that Jews were a "a diabolical group that was consolidating power everywhere from the banking industry to Hollywood."[2] The "Gay Mafia" and "Velvet Mafia" are typically associated with the upper echelons of the fashion and entertainment industries, and the terms are also used humorously by gay people themselves. The term was widely used in the 1980s and 1990s, and could often be seen in the pages of the New York Post.
Contents |
[edit] Origin of the term
The term "Velvet Mafia" was first used by author Stephen Gaines in the 1970s, to describe the influential gay crowd that gathered at Studio 54. This "mafia" included Calvin Klein, Andy Warhol, Jann Wenner among others. The term was tongue-in-cheek, describing a "powerful social clique, not some truly devious alliance ruling either an industry or our politics."[3]
[edit] The Michael Ovitz scandal
Gradually, "velvet" came to be replaced with "gay". The term may have gained wider social prominence after it was used in a Spy magazine article 1995 and became notorious after an interview with one-time Hollywood talent agent Michael Ovitz in Vanity Fair in 2002 in which Ovitz claimed that an organized group of gay men was singling him out to ensure that he would "never [work] in [Hollywood] again".
Ovitz who, according to some, had a reputation for being homophobic during the height of his career in the 1980s and 1990s, claimed that DreamWorks SKG co-founder David Geffen, former New York Times reporter Bernard Weintraub, various former employees of Ovitz at the Creative Artists Agency such as CAA co-founder and Universal Studios President Ronald Meyer, and former Disney President Michael Eisner, among others, were part of a powerful group that conspired to end his career.
Some of the men named have not publicly come out, and indeed Ovitz himself has stated that "not all of them are gay", [4] so it is uncertain whether they are gay or not. Nevertheless, it has been pointed out that while powerful gay men in the entertainment industry may constitute a powerful social network, they have historically shown little loyalty to the larger gay community, in many cases preferring to remain closeted.
[edit] The Velvet Mafia in popular culture
An episode of television sit-com Will & Grace revolved around the Gay Mafia, with singer Elton John as its boss. Details Magazine subsequently ran a story on the Gay Mafia in which it humorously claimed that Max Mutchnik, co-creator of Will & Grace, was a "gay godfather-on-the-make." The article also identifies several other "pink power brokers," including GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) -entertainment director Scott Seomin.[5]
Robin Williams also referenced the Gay Mafia in his Live on Broadway special, referring to it as the "Mauve Hand", and portraying a gay Godfather as Marlon Brando, quipping "Does this pistol make my ass look big?"
In the emmy award winning episode of The Simpsons entitled Three Gays of the Condo Homer Simpson refers to his two gay roommates as the "Velvet Mafia" to his wife Marge when they make him margaritas and his subsequent drunkenness causes him to be late for the reconciliation dinner planned by his wife.
In another episode of The Simpsons entitled "Jaws Wired Shut", there is a float during the gay pride parade titled "The Velvet mafia"
A Los Angeles improvisational and sketch comedy troupe call themselves the Gay mafia. [6]
A big-budget two-parter gay porn title from Falcon Studios staring Brent Corrigan is titled The Velvet Mafia.
An ezine founded in 2001 that features alternative literary queer fiction and erotica from new gay writers, edited by Sean Meriwether. Velvet Mafia: Dangerous Queer Fiction
In the episode "Sorry, Ari" of the HBO series Entourage, the character Lloyd says: "The gay mafia has been replaced by the gay assistant corps, Ari. We know all."
In RTE's the Panel Dara Ó Briain makes reference to the Gay Mafia led by Graham Norton.
[edit] References
- Michaelangelo Signorile, "Martha, Mafiosi, and Convenient Myths" in Gay City News
- Michaelangelo Signorile, "About that Gay Mafia"
[edit] External links
- "Gay Mafia Takes Control of Hollywood", by Paul Richert
- E!Online report
- LA Weekly report
- "Gay Mafia" article by Michelangelo Signorile
