"The Gay World" in THE NEW YORK SPY (1967)

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THE NEW YORK SPY
edited by Alan Rinzler
David White Co., New York
1967

   This is a nice little document of NYC at this time.  The book has an intro by Tom Wolfe and sections written by specialists...No "gyro" is to be found here at this date.

Pg. 52:  "Eat Street" (56th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues)
Pg. 114:  You have arrived in New York, the "Apple."
Pg. 161:  For a real treat, make it down to Princeton (New Jersey) on a football weekend and see the game the way F. Scott Fitzgerald did: half smashed, on a beautiful campus, old grads picknicking (called "tailgating") on cold lobster and meat pies by the lake.
Pg. 186:  ...mini-dresses...
Pg. 204:  ..."luncheoning," as Lorelei Lee names it...
Pg. 316:   The Credibility Gap.
Pg. 319:  (_The Village Voice_ invented "teenie-boppers" so they must be valid; "groupies" follow groups).
Pg. 320:  It aims at something called "The Freak Out," a nightly occurrence of spontaneous expression.  (Andy Warhol's The Balloon Farm in the East Village--ed.)
Pg. 344:  Groupies are so named because they pursue the members of various rock 'n' roll groups from one discotheque to the next.
Pg. 365:  ...mini-shorts...
Pg. 365:  The phrase "Beautiful People" popped off the pages of _Vogue_ in the spring of 1962 and was used to describe the whole new spearhead of society that came in with the Kennedys.
Pg. 367:  ...hip-huggers...

   "The Gay World" by Leo Skir is on pages 372-393.
Pg. 388:
_A NOTE ON TERMINOLOGY_
As noted, the homosexual world in New York City is not one by several, with different slang.  In general the subgroups, Negro, Jewish, junkie, teahead, acidhead, gay, use an interlingua whose only rule is that by the time a term is In, it's on the way out.  The chief thing about any In vocabulary is not the term, but using that term in a sentence.  Delivery is all, vocabulary is incidental.
   A "homosexual" rarely or never calls himself a "homosexual."  If anything the word is "gay" (not "queer" as in England).  Usually the In-group question would be "Is he?" with no adjective at all.
   A lesbian never calls herself a lesbian.  She is either "gay" or "heavy" (which replaced "butch" to connote masculinity).
   The Spanish term (much heard in New York City) is "maricon," which is abusive.  (OED?--ed.)  Spanish femme types call themselves "queens," a term out of use otherwise.  Also out-of-date: fairy, fruit, pansy.  "Paunce" is unknown in America.
   "Faggot," like "nigger," is a hate and fight word.  A "homosexual" in "homosexual" society will take it from another, but not from a straightnik.
   "Straightniks" (also known as normals) in New York City are always trying to assimilate, to be a little colored, Jewish, gay, etc.  But In-Madison-Avenue term for gay kid is _fagele_ ("little bird" in Yiddish), sound-alike to the abusive "fag," "faggot," which terms come from the medieval use of sticks of wood to burn heretics, Jews, homosexuals.

   In any event:
   Dropping hairpins--letting tender nuances into conversation to see if someone is simpatico.
   "He won't come to tea again"--self-explanatory.
   "I'll tell you, _in that night!_"--means that a couple is about to split up (see Luke 17:34-35).
(Pg. 389--ed.)
   Norman--normal.  A term of abuse.  ("There's this Norman girl at the office comes to my desk, wants to push her engagement ring in my face like she is the pope and I should kiss it.")
   Pure--feminine.  ("He looks so pure when he's dancing.")
   Simon--from Simon Simon; a straightnik who does not know the score.
   Tip (verb)--to leave.  ("We must tip now.")
Ugly, bad--beautiful, good.
   Wonderful--awful.  ("He's wonderful," translate as "He's awful.")
   "You're a very interesting person."--"You're boring me to death."